“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17) (KJV)
There are Christians who say there is a Mid-Tribulation Rapture and a Post-Tribulation Rapture. However, since the Tribulation is wrath, the Bible clearly says, “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him.” (1 Thessalonians 5:9-10) That’s really where their argument falls apart.
Some of them counter the argument for a Mid-Tribulation Rapture and a Post-Tribulation Rapture by saying, “we need to go through the fire and be purified Brides of Christ.” The reason that is wrong is simply this: our salvation is through Grace not works. You only need to believe in Jesus Christ, His death and His resurrection to be saved. Works has nothing to do with it. All other religions have works to get to heaven, except the New Age that says you’re god.
Other reasons:
-In Thessalonians 2, Paul had to assure the church at Thessolonia they were not in the Tribulation. They basically thought they were in the Tribulation due to the great persecution and suffering they were enduring. Why would they think they missed the Rapture if it doesn’t come first?
-Why would Jesus want His Bride (the church) to go through the Tribulation? The Trib is judgement and that’s reserved for non-believers.
-In Revelation, the church is mentioned until chapter 4 and then not mentioned again.
-The Holy Spirit restrains evil and does not during the Tribulation. In 2 Thessalonians 2:6, Paul writes about this. The Holy Spirit restrains evil because Christians are on earth. Once we are gone, the Holy Spirit no longer has a reason to restrain evil. The only thing the Holy Spirit does during the Tribulation is perform salvation for those saved by faith and seal believers. There is no Baptism of the Holy Spirit during the Tribulation. If a person wants to be saved during the Tribulation, they will have to do so totally by faith.
Do you realize how terrible the Tribulation is going to be? Murder will be commonplace, because of the lack of food, cannibalism will go on, demonic possession will be common, natural disasters will be common, and then there are all those judgements that kill billions, not millions, of people.
-The Rapture is a reward for believing so you don’t go through God’s wrath. It’s not an escape, it is a reward.
-Jesus said the gates of hell shall not prevail against His church in Matthew 16:17-19. However, in Revelation, Satan will make war with the saints and conquer them in Revelation 13:7. Therefore, to make Jesus’s words true, the church cannot go through the Tribulation. The saints mentioned in 13:7 are the ones saved during the Tribulation. And, most of those saints will have to surrender their lives for the faith, sadly.
-We are currently in the Dispensation of Grace due to Jesus. The Tribulation is the Dispensation of Judgement. We are not appointed to wrath, but grace, so we will not be present during the Tribulation.
-Jesus is our Hope! If we had to go through the Tribulation, is there really any hope?
-Jesus is our Husband (Isaiah 54:5). When a person gets saved, they really are being married to Jesus in a spiritual sense because we are all the Bride of Christ. Before Jesus was crucified, He promised to go and prepare a place for us, His Bride, and to come and get us. (John 14:3) Again, why would He let His Bride go through the wrath of God during the Tribulation? That just doesn’t make sense.
Now, you can go in the Rapture, too!
We are at the end. That great getting up morning, called the Rapture, could happen at any time. The world is ripe for the Tribulation and the Great Tribulation. You don’t want to be here for God’s judgement and wrath poured out on mankind.
You are God's prized possession and Satan HATES YOU! Honestly, has Satan ever done anything for you? Really? Nope, not one thing! Jesus, on the other hand, has paved the way for us with complete and utter victory over everything, especially Satan and his ilk. When Jesus died on the Cross, he took away the sin of the world. We only have to repent and ask Jesus into our heart to be born again.
Do you know Jesus?
Well, it is easy to know him and experience his undying, unfathomable love and affection.
He came and died for you.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16) (KJV)
There is no greater love than Jesus.
"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." (John 15:13) (KJV)
Accept Him today if you don't know him.
Sinner's Prayer
"Dear Lord Jesus, I know that I am a sinner, and I ask for Your forgiveness. I believe You died for my sins and rose from the dead. I turn from my sins and invite You to come into my heart and life. I want to trust and follow You as my Lord and Savior."
Now, go and tell someone and welcome to His Kingdom.
The Holy Spirit Baptism is a gift. Just pray, "God, I accept the Holy Spirit as a gift and welcome Him into my being. Thank and praise you Jesus for the Holy Spirit." In these dark times, you need the Holy Spirit right after getting saved.
Amen and Hallelujah.
Cameron Rowe
Eternal Cross
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