The Rapture, God's Timing--Why it Does/Doesn't Matter
Notes
Transcript
We just recently finished going through the book of Revelation chapter by chapter, verse by verse.
And we are going to take a few weeks to address some great questions that you all submitted about Revelation or the End Times.
We are calling this brief series: Hot Topics: Revelation Edition.
Hot Topics—reminds me of Hot Pockets…;
Now I am hungry and want a hot pocket.
And one of the most common questions submitted is this:
Pastor Rick, is there a rapture? Does Revelation talk about it? does the Bible talk about it? Where does this fit in, and does it even matter?
Let me start by defining what this rapture is that people are asking about…because some of you may not know it. Some of you have heard about it—and it is a very popular and well known thing.
Definition of Rapture: “that moment Jesus suddenly snatches up all Christians to himself prior to his final 2nd coming.”
The term “rapture” comes from the Latin Vulgate’s use of the word rapiõ meaning “to seize, snatch away,” which is equivalent to the meaning of the Greek word harpazõ in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 (“caught up”).
in 2014, the movie Left Behind came out—and actor Nicholas Cage plays a pilot in that movie. It depicts the rapture—and during this event all of a sudden without warning—every Christian is raptured or caught up and taken by Jesus into heaven. and unbelievers, the rest of humanity is left.
and so it depicts people’s clothes left behind, cars crashing b/c drivers are raptured, airplanes crashing, chaos breaking out on the world. b/c if all the Christians were raptured—it would cause mass chaos in our world.
this was popularized not just by this movie but by the book series that Tim Lahaye and Jerry Jenkins wrote.
many who support the rapture—believe it is necessary to get the Christians out of here, so then God can begin what is called the Great Tribulation period, a time of about 7 years, when God will bring his wrath upon the earth as is described in Revelation with the seals, trumpets and the bowls and an antichrist ruling, and then at the end of that 7 year time, Jesus will come back visibly and in power to finally defeat the forces of evil.
so if you hold to a rapture—it’s like you believe that Jesus’ 2nd coming occurs in 2 stages--
stage 1: the rapture—when he unexpectedly takes Christians
stage 2 (7 Years later): and then when he comes back again visibly, fully and finally
let me share the history of this thought:
Brief History of the Secret Rapture
Brief History of the Secret Rapture
The doctrine of the secret rapture emerged during the early 19th century through the teachings of John Nelson Darby (1800–1882). Darby was one of the early leaders of the Plymouth Brethren movement, and his teachings became known as “dispensationalism.”
Darby’s dispensationalism distinguished sharply between Israel and the church. The former was earthly, he believed, and the latter heavenly. God had two distinct peoples and separate plans for each. Thus Darby understood Old Testament prophecies as applying only to Israel, the earthly people of God. Rather than “spiritualizing” such prophecies, he expected a literal fulfillment of God’s promises to literal Israel. So when, according to dispensational thought, would God fulfill his prophecies to Israel? During the millennium (Rev. 20:1–8) after Jesus’ second coming.
So in order for God to resume these plans for Israel, Darby believed, God would first need to remove the church from the world. Hence arose the need for the secret rapture. Darby had in effect proposed something new: a two-stage return of Jesus. Jesus would first come to “rapture” the church, and then return again in visible glory.1
Darby’s views spread rapidly, especially in the United States. The dispensational system, including the secret rapture, was disseminated through prophecy conferences and received support from evangelists like D. L. Moody and Billy Sunday. By far the most important boost for Darby’s teaching, however, came from the Scofield Reference Bible. Scofield’s work became the English standard for fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians in the early 20th century, and in the process exposed thousands of readers to the secret rapture through his dispensational-informed study notes.
The secret rapture doctrine continued to gain steam in the latter half of the 20th century, and the advent of modern Israel in 1948 seemed a clear sign that God was restarting his plans for Israel. The rapture must be close! Books like Hal Lindsay’s The Late Great Planet Earth and movies like A Thief in the Night further popularized dispensational teaching. And then there are the Left Behind novels, which have sold millions of copies and captured the imagination of a new generation.
The rise and spread of the secret rapture teaching is a remarkable story. In just a century and a half, a previously unknown doctrine has become a central eschatological hope for millions.
But the big question is this—does the Bible actually teach a rapture?
Let me show you a couple of passages that those who support a rapture would turn to:
10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.
11 I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.
Look at verse 10 carefully.
(put back on screen)
Those who support a rapture before a tribulation period—say look at this—God is going to keep us as Christians from the hour of trial is coming on the whole earth and described in Revelation.
See it’s right there. God will rapture us—and then unleash his wrath on this earth.
but in response, I would argue
Response to Revelation 3:10-11
the idea that Christians are spared from suffering, (trials, and tribulation) is unbiblical. We never promised protection from suffering on this earth. Acts 14:22
22 strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.
33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”
just read Revelation 2-3—we see many references to the 7 churches suffering. most of them were suffering for their faith—and Jesus encouraged them to endure it.
2. (As Christians), we are guaranteed protection from God’s Wrath but not man’s wrath.
10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.
the inhabitants of the earth are those who do not follow Christ. so the hour of trial is for unbelievers. They are the ones who are suffering the seals, trumpets, and bowls of Revelation.
so we as believers we are spared or kept from those—that has been and will fall on unbelievers (remember I said through our series that Revelation describes things that are not just future, but I believe have already happened and are happening) while we are still present.
and it is possible for Christians to be present on the earth while God’s Wrath is being poured out..
just look at Revelation 9:4 - where these demonic scorpions
4 They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
just look at the book of Exodus—when God sends the ten plagues on Egypt—he spares the Israelites in the midst of it.
3. This promise in Rev. 3:10-11 is for spiritual protection in the midst of physical persecution.
yes, we will endure physical persecution, but God will preserve us and keep us through it.
John 17:15 ESV
English Standard Version Chapter 17
15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.
Here we see clearly that Jesus prays that we are actually not taken out of the world, but does pray that we would spiritually be protected so we can endure whatever comes our way.
and that word protect—is actually the same word as “keep”
10 Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come on the whole world to test the inhabitants of the earth.
God will not keep us FROM tribulation—but will keep us THROUGH it so we will endure with Jesus to the end.
4. Revelation 3:10-11 has to apply to Christians 2000 years ago. God gave these words to the church to encourage them. It wouldn’t make sense to say this is only meant to describe some secret rapture in the future. God was promising them spiritual protection.
so in summary—we are always protected and kept from God’s Wrath, but not man’s wrath.
let me look at one more passage that is argued for the rapture…anybody troubled..
(stand up!)
1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 (NIV)
13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.
14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
15 According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up (or raptured) together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
18 Therefore encourage one another with these words.
but in response—2 things--
Response to 1 Thess. 4:13-18
look at the context of verse 13—again. Paul is not addressing a rapture.
13 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.
1. look at the context....he is addressing a situation that the church was worried that their Christians brothers and sisters who had already died (sleeping in death!) would miss out on Christ’s return or be 2nd class. Paul says no.
14 For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.
vs. 14—those who have died will come with Jesus when he returns.
16 For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
vs. 16—the dead in Christ will rise first—meaning get their resurrection body.
17 After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.
vs. 17—those who are still alive will join Jesus in the air—getting their resurrection body.
2. The word for meet is only used 2 other times in the NT (Matthew 25:6, Acts 28:15)
and both times it describes going to meet a royal official and then coming back with him.
so this suggests that we will meet Jesus in the air, and come right back.
i think you really have to read into this passage to think this is talking about a secret rapture. I think is describing Jesus’ 2nd coming. we will be caught up to meet him in the air along with those who have died before, and return with Jesus to earth.
so let me summarize:
so what do I think? my opinion—that there will not be a 2 stage 2nd coming of Jesus. I don’t think Scripture teaches a secret rapture.
I think we as Christians have gone through, are going through, and will continue to go through tribulation until Jesus comes back.
I think we will be present when things get worse on this earth. We will be protected from God’s wrath and his plagues, but not man’s wrath.
look at Revelation 6:9-11 again
9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained.
10 They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?”
11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been.
(if time), I believe that Jesus’ 2nd coming is described as one future coming—at when Jesus will reward and redeem his people, and judge unbelievers.
it is not separated by 2 separate stages—when Jesus returns he rewards and gathers his people and also punishes unbelievers.
5 All this is evidence that God’s judgment is right, and as a result you will be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which you are suffering.
6 God is just: He will pay back trouble to those who trouble you
7 and give relief to you who are troubled, and to us as well. This will happen when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven in blazing fire with his powerful angels.
both believers being rewarded and unbelievers being judged will happen at the same time.
1 Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers and sisters,
2 not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by the teaching allegedly from us—whether by a prophecy or by word of mouth or by letter—asserting that the day of the Lord has already come.
both the coming of our Lord Jesus, our being gathering to Him and the Day of the Lord (that day when God will judge all) all are referring to one event.
and what now…why does this matter…final application:
Do not make the rapture a major issue or a divisive issue. (keep the main thing the main thing)
I will be very happy if I am wrong—if I am raptured and it works differently than what I am saying, I am not going to tell Jesus— “didn’t you hear my sermon on June 11th”)
I am sure there are those who disagree with me and hold to the teaching on the rapture—that’s fine. There are great Bible scholars who do as well—that’s great. but don’t let it be a divisive issue. You don’t have to agree with me.
there are plenty of other divisive issues that can separate churches—worship style wars, how each of us should parent, how we should all spend our money, views on the end times—as long as you believe Jesus will come back to fully and finally set up his kingdom we can agree with you.
Listen to Bible teaching with discernment. It’s always good to ask, “What does God’s Word say about this?” It’s always good to ask my sermons, “Is Pastor Rick actually saying what the Bible says?” (the Bereans)
Acts 17:11
11 Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.
I would be happy to go deeper with anyone who wants to discuss this, or send some articles.
3. Be prepared to suffer for Jesus now and in the future. (in other words, have a good theology of suffering)....
i fear that some of this theology of the rapture was developed by the western church, the church that is not suffering and going through persecution like much of the non-western world.
I also think we need to prepare to go through tribulation not just in the future, but all the time. As Christians, we can be so bad or ill-prepared for when suffering comes. We expect life to go well.
but Revelation is all about enduring faithfully with Jesus until the very end.
4. Look forward to Jesus’ 2nd coming. I think part of this question—our desire is to know exactly how things are going to work out. We want to know precisely—but we don’t know. (we love the maps, charts, and secret codes) Trust and be prepared for Jesus to return. Loving God, loving your neighbor, making a difference for Jesus and eternity now.
5. Remember that Jesus is with us in our suffering (and He suffered for us)
20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
so what do you believe about the rapture?
do you need to do some more reading, research, and praying?
most of all, are you able to endure suffering—persecution, medical diagnoses, hard things—knowing that it honors the Lord and He can use it.
Jesus made an incredible promise—he is with us to the end.
let’s endure suffering faithfully until he comes back.
the final song is a prayer to endure and live faithfully for Jesus.