Friday, April 24, 2026
God’s elect are mentioned repeatedly in the Gospel. The elect actually believe Christ. And it was Christ who taught the resurrection rapture, that He would gather His elect “Immediately after the tribulation” (Matt. 24:29–31). Further, the Holy Spirit said: “concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, [the rapture] we ask you … Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day [gathering God’s elect] will not come unless the falling away comes first, [described at Matt. 24:10] and the man of sin is revealed, [Antichrist] the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God” (2 Thess. 2:1, 3–4). However, God’s truth has been rejected by men who devised the pre-trib rapture tradition.
In order for the rapture to occur the resurrection of the dead must and will preempt it. “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). [My emphasis] Jesus taught the resurrection saying “Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves [the righteous and damned] 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). [My emphasis] The resurrection of “all who are in the graves” occurs in the space of an hour, both of the redeemed and the lost. However, “the dead in Christ will rise first”. And Jesus made it clear that the resurrection occurs “at the last day” (John 6:40, 44, 54), and not pre-tribulation.
The elect believe Christ, and not man. Therefore, since no Scripture speaks of a pre-trib rapture, why do millions of Christians believe man’s pre-trib rapture, but not Christ who taught the exact opposite? It’s because the majority are deceived, having been told what to believe by ear-tickling Dispensational theologians, pastors and Bible teachers that they, and not Jesus, are the authorities for the resurrection rapture. So, in which camp do you find yourself? Your answer reveals if you are prepared to face and endure the seven-year tribulation, keeping in mind that Jesus said “But he who endures to the end shall be saved” (Matt. 24:13). Exactly how important is Jesus to you? Is He important enough for you to believe Him instead of man’s testimony which has garnered the trust of the majority? It was the large majority of ancient Israel at the edge of Canaan who believed the bad report of the ten spies, instead of believing the two spies who believed God’s word that He would deliver the giants into Israel’s hands if only they believed, Num. 14:1–10.
And the coming world-shaking event of the seven-year tribulation and subsequent resurrection rapture will be a replay of that time when ancient Israel was supposed to inherit Canaan but was instead destroyed in the wilderness until those aged twenty and above were destroyed. So it will similarly be once again, for God said “That which has been is what will be, that which is done is what will be done, and there is nothing new under the sun. Is there anything of which it may be said, ‘See, this is new’? It has already been in ancient times before us” (Eccl. 1:9–10). God said to observe ancient Israel, saying “Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come” (1 Cor. 10:11). [My emphasis] But the question is, will we believe man’s creation of an escapist plan, or God?
It’s abundantly clear that the vast majority of believers have been deceived by smooth-talking, ear-itching, 2 Tim. 4:3, theologians, pastors and Bible teachers who tell congregations what to believe in order to remain in the good graces of the Dispensational traditions of man, however, unfortunately, “making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down. And many such things you do” (Mark 7:13). But I will tell you this, the elect of God believe the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ instead of traditions of men handed down for many generations! And in this case the pre-trib rapture has been handed down since John Nelson Darby (1800–1882) had his convalescent deceitful epiphany of a pre-trib rapture in about 1830.
The unrealized imminent expectancy of a pre-trib rapture will highly offend millions of believers who were promised by their trusted theologians and pastors that they’d be secretly snatched from the earth before the Antichrist and his seven-year tribulation even arrived. Of course, that belief wholly contradicts the word and testimony of God in Christ. And when Antichrist and the awful tribulation are evident, “then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another” (Matt. 24:13) just like Jesus said. Further, Jesus said “See, I have told you beforehand” (Matt. 24:25). But who’s listening to and preparing in the testimony of Jesus? Very few, as the large majority are expectant of an imminent rapture to spare them suffering the tribulation. But their hopes will be vehemently turned into deep offense, hatred and anger toward theologians, pastors and Bible teachers who promised them a pre-trib rapture, then only to be unprepared to face the very circumstances they were told they’d never see! Just like ancient Israel was highly offended when they saw the giants in the land of Canaan and the majority wanted to kill Moses and Aaron: “And all the congregation said to stone them with stones” (Num. 14:10). Similarly, that’s what will occur once again and the falling away in offense will be sudden and very great.
Repeat a lie often enough and it will be accepted as truth. That’s how the pre-trib came to be believed as truth. But the rapture is at “the resurrection of the dead” (John 5:28-29), when “the dead in Christ are raised” (1 Thess. 4:16), “Immediately after the tribulation” (Matt. 24:29-31), “at the last day” (John 6:40, 44, 54), “at the last trumpet” (1 Cor. 15:51-52), “with a great sound of a trumpet” (Matt. 24:31), when “The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!” (Rev. 11:15). The five wise virgins of Matt. 25:1–13 believed the Master would be long in coming, and so must we. Please also know, Dispensational Theology promises a secret rapture which defies the very nature and character of Almighty God. It’s utterly shameful. There’s no such thing as a secret rapture! If you know God in Christ, then you know that nothing of redemptive value has ever been done in secret. And God isn’t about to change His character for the end-time resurrection rapture of His elect. Yet, tens of millions of believers believe the unbiblical, proud and selfish secret rapture lie.
Indeed, the elect believe Christ, and they will prepare in His truths, because Jesus said “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). But we unfortunately live in a day and time when God’s word is being manipulated to satisfy the desires of many different personalities and lifestyles. And those of Darby’s following are those who do not love Christ’s clear truth that we believers will endure the tribulation, and that He will gather us together to Himself in the resurrection rapture just as He said throughout His word. But when men of God like myself teach the truth of the resurrection rapture, organized church leaders shut us down, silence and even shame us, as they can’t tolerate the threat of their lies being exposed.
Let me frame the Dispensational deceptions in a more modern and societal way that likely has not crossed your mind. Last week I mentioned that John Darby’s Dispensational positions were catapulted into Western Christianity in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Then, first published in 1909 and revised in 1917, the C.I. Scofield Reference Bible supercharged Dispensational belief. And with the simultaneous birthing of a new industrial revolution many winds of change blew across every sector of society, e.g. science and discovery, food production, health, medications, education and welfare, just to name a few. And many capitalized on these innovations at a high cost to the ignorant and unsuspecting. And we should not be delusional in thinking the gospel was left unscathed by these revolutionary winds of change; biblical truths were being changed.
In that era of new discoveries, just as it is today, people with innovative finances unavailable to most, literally began scamming the public with creations of unhealthy and addictive foods that, today, we now know cause many cancers and other sicknesses. Our educational system became corrupt to the point where we now graduate high school students who can’t even read at grade levels; all these systems we now know have been hijacked for the love of money and popularity. And don’t think for a second that Dispensational Theology wasn’t going to greatly capitalize on its better and easier way to heaven! With the innovations of print, film and theater it didn’t take long for Darby’s many followers to put its wares on the big screen with movies, books, videos, audio preaching series, all promising one could ignore Christ’s clear post-trib resurrection and rapture of the Church and exchange it for a new and improved pre-trib rapture of the Church.
As the result of many varied winds of change and technology, today we now have “over 450 known versions of the Bible in English alone.” (Source) There are now Bible versions to fit the likes and dislikes of all. And believe it or not, there’s even a “Gay Bible” designed to affirm the ungodly LGBTQ+ agenda. In addition to the hundreds of Bible versions today, there are now “over 45,000 different Christian denominations in the world, and around 1,200 of them exist in the United States alone.” (Source) What these statistics reveal is that, there’s actually little to no unity among believers. That’s very sad. So, to everyone, be very careful to whom you give ear.
To all theologians, pastors and Bible teachers, God clearly said: “I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom: Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, [for money] because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables” (2 Tim. 4:1–4). But that command has virtually lost all traction in the organized churches of our day. The relentless progressive agenda of a feel good faith from the pre-trib rapture, to the wealth and prosperity gospel, to Dominionism and beyond, produces much disregard for sound doctrine. But who’s paying attention? Very few. The masses are conditioned to having their ears tickled, to keep on tithing, to continue supporting the big money, fake smoke, and mirror shows.
My second book “ON EAGLES’ WINGS” explains in detail how to know Christ and find God’s Bozrah sheepfold of safety and place of provision for the last 1,260 days of the great tribulation.
Marlin J. Yoder
