Friday, January 7, 2022
First, Jesus said “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32). Well, that’s plain enough—now, if only dispensational pre-trib rapture theologians and pastors taught all other resurrection rapture teachings of Christ with the same conviction! But no, they refuse because they have a different agenda from Christ, one that departs entirely, and deceptively from Christ’s testimony!
Regarding the fact, however, that no one knows the day and hour of the Lord’s return, doesn’t at all mean that we can’t know the season of days of His return to gather His elect, because He told us as plainly the season of the resurrection rapture; occurring “Immediately after the tribulation” (Matt. 24:29–31). About the season of days, the Holy Spirit said “from the time that the daily sacrifice is taken away, [which occurs mid-trib when Antichrist stands in the rebuilt temple] and the abomination of desolation is set up, there shall be one thousand two hundred and ninety days. [Remember, the second half of the tribulation is 1,260 days] Blessed is he who waits, and comes to the one thousand three hundred and thirty five days” (Dan. 12:11–12). While the tribulation is clearly defined as two periods of 1,260 days each, Rev. 11:3 and Rev. 12:6; here we see a period of 75 days beyond the end of the seven-year tribulation. Without anyone knowing the day, the Lord will return in the season of one of those 75 days, “Immediately after the tribulation”, exactly as Jesus said, but as to which day, however, no one knows but God the Father!
THE RAPTURE
“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:16–17). These verses show the resurrection of the dead and rapture, the supernatural catching away of believers. Jesus called it gathering His elect, and told us that this occurs “Immediately after the tribulation” (Matt. 24:29–31). Herein there’s a 180 years-old conflict between what Christ taught vs traditions of men “making the word of God of no effect” (Mark 7:13). Tradition teaches a pre-trib rapture, but Christ a post-trib rapture. Who will you believe? In making your decision, remember, there is ONLY one truth, and His name is Jesus Christ, John 14:6, outside of which are outright lies, denials, assumptions and conjecture.
Above, we see the resurrection and rapture explicitly together, they’re inseparable. Jesus taught the resurrection, that “the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth—those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation” (John 5:28–29). Jesus explained that the resurrection occurs “at the last day” (John 6:40, 44, 54 and 11:23–24, [my emphasis] not seven years before the last day which would be required for a pre-tribulation rapture! Don’t overlook the truth that at the resurrection “ALL who are in the graves” will be raised from the dead when they hear His voice—which includes the redeemed and the damned. Jesus clearly taught the resurrection of the good and the evil occurring within “the hour”, that’s yet coming, in a singular, one hour.
The resurrection is again revealed when the Spirit said “Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed” (1 Cor. 15:51–52). [My emphasis] “the last trumpet” is the last trumpet in a series of seven trumpets when “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ” (Rev. 11:15–19). Here, Scripture again confirms that the resurrection and rapture are inseparable, they occur together “at the last day” and “at the last trumpet”. Christ’s post-trib rapture is again confirmed when the Spirit said that “He [Christ] must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets” (Acts 3:21 NIV). And we know unequivocally that the restoration of everything does not occur, in fact, cannot occur, until after the seven-year tribulation, else there would be no tribulation!
Here’s what Jesus explicitly taught: “Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matt. 24:29–31). Again, we see “the trumpet of God” (1 Thess. 4:16) which is “the last trumpet” of 1 Cor. 15:52. Note also that, of the rapture Scriptures, 1 Thess. 4:16–17 does NOT provide a resurrection rapture time frame, but both Matt. 24:29–31 and 1 Cor. 15:51–52 definitively do!
In the tribulation many unprepared believers will be found and killed by Antichrist forces, simply because they were never taught the truth and meat of the Word, but were instead told to believe an imminent pre-trib rapture that requires little to no preparation (aka the foolish virgins of Matt. 25:1–13) and that they would never see Antichrist, and if they did then they had missed the rapture! This writer has personally heard that ungodly message preached by theologians and pastors. They all learned from the same corrupt and unbiblical dispensational teachings of John Nelson Darby (1800–1882). Many prefer the flowery words of a false hope rather than the hard truths taught by Christ who suffered Calvary for the salvation of all who believe. In our great commission from Christ, however, we’re told to make disciples for Christ, not of men! But traditions of men are often made more appealing to the fallen flesh than Jesus’ teachings.
In the tribulation many offended Christians will “betray one another, and will hate one another” (Matt. 24:10), and they will fall away from the Christian faith in offense because they were lied to by Christian theologians, pastors and Bible teachers who should have known better, had they themselves believed the testimony of Jesus, and not a man’s ungodly epiphany. But the law of sowing and reaping will be true right up to the bitter end of this present age. Most believers are led to believe everything Christ taught EXCEPT FOR the gathering of His elect “Immediately after the tribulation” (Matt. 24:29–31). That fact alone, is ungodly, and should compel one’s search for end-time truths, otherwise risk being like the five foolish virgins of Matt. 25:1–13.
In the great tribulation, both Christians who are found and killed by Antichrist forces and those who fall away in offense, could have been led to God’s safety and provision for the last horrible 1,260 days had they been taught the “Bozrah ‘sheepfold and fortress’”, and that they are of the free woman of Gal. 4:21–31, who could have fled at the appointed time, as did Noah and Lot to their places of safety. This is one of the reasons Jesus gave us their examples, and said that as it was in the days of Noah and Lot, so shall it be in the days of the Son of Man. But for many, ear-tickling traditions are spiritually intoxicating and require much less study of Scriptures than to spend personal time with God, in His Word, learning truths. But they will reap what they sow.
In the near future WWIII will erupt; lawlessness now increases; more pestilences are created; crushing geo-engineered storms intensify; the Great Reset of 2021 is now destroying monetary systems; famines are ravaging earth; food is even now being weaponized; the mark of the beast will become reality. The question I often ask myself is, at what point will the Church awake from its Laodicean state of dispensational delusion, and discern the end-time truth? That’s a very fair question and here’s why—the organized church has managed to deceive its vast majority to pay no attention to Jesus’ teachings that he gathers His elect “Immediately after the tribulation”, or that the resurrection of the righteous and unrighteous dead occurs “at the last day”. Rather, the Church has indoctrinated its people to expect an imminent rapture at any moment; that nothing else needs to occur regarding prophetic fulfillment before the Lord snatches them off the earth! And compounding their delusion, if believers see Antichrist, then they’ve missed the rapture!
Consequently, most believers watch for nothing, expect nothing, and believe nothing more must occur prophetically before, poof, they’re snatched off the earth and carried to bliss. In their mind there’s nothing amiss. All is normal. Therefore, they have no hesitancy to go along to get along with government dictates. Nor are they concerned for their unbelieving fellowmen; many think they’ll “watch the tribulation from the grandstands of heaven”. I’ve personally heard that proud, ungodly deceit preached by theologians. They think their ministry ends pre-tribulation! In pride, they believe the seven-year tribulation is for others less fortunate, and specifically, unbelieving genealogical Jews of Israel! They’ve been radically blinded by the heresy of dispensationalism.
God’s warnings to ancient Israel are altogether applicable today: “An astonishing and horrible thing has been committed in the land: the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule by their own power; and My people love to have it so. But what will you do in the end?” (Jer. 5:30–31). And “if the watchman [pastors / leaders] sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand” (Ezek. 33:6). But like Jesus said “if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch” (Matt. 15:14). I pray for every believer, to truly believe the Lord Jesus Christ and not unbelieving traditions of men.
Marlin J. Yoder
