THE RAPTURE VERSUS HOLY SCRIPTURE

Could it be that the great apostasy that will come upon the world shortly before the second coming of Jesus Christ will be fueled by the popular myth of a "pre-tribulational rapture". Christians who have believed the lie of a "secret evacuation" from the earth before the terrible days of the "Great Tribulation" will doubt their faith in the face of persecution and martyrdom. Christians who live in the West in ease and prosperity have been sold a fable that there lives will be lived out free of the horrors of the "Great tribulation". Television evangelists and Pastor-authors propagate the lie of a "secret rapture". John Hagee, Charles Stanley, David Jeremiah, John MacArthur, Perry Stone, and on and on it goes.
Jesus praying to His Father said, "I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one". (John 17:15)
The historic teaching of the Church has always been that the second coming of Christ is a singular event at the time of the end, the day of the Lord, when the dead will be raised, and the judgment will take place (John 5:24-29; Matthew 25:31-46). The Church Fathers never mention a "secret rapture" that would take place prior to the second coming of Jesus Christ. It wasn't until 1830 that such a doctrine was contrived and later made popular via the Scofield Study Bible. Today this innovative false doctrine is mainstream among tens of millions of Evangelicals and Charismatics. And even culture at-large is steeped in this lie through the "Left Behind" books and movies.
The passage of scripture used so often as the basis of the "pre-trib rapture" is 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17. This passage is clearly teaching about the second coming of Jesus and the resurrection of believers. Both those who have died (fallen asleep), and those "who are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord" will be "caught up" to meet the Lord in the air!!! This catching up is clearly the resurrection of the believers at the second coming of Jesus Christ. "The word translated as "caught up" is a form of the Greek verb harpazo. The Vulgate, the official Latin version of the Bible used by the  Roman Catholic Church, translates the Greek verb in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 as rapiemur (from the Latin verb rapio, to sieze and carry off), hence the English word rapture." (T.L. Frazier, p.146, A Second Look at the Second Coming, Conciliar Press). It is true that we will be "caught up" at the second coming of Jesus Christ. This is the resurrection promised by Jesus Himself. The trump of God will sound, and the archangel will shout (Daniel 12:1-3), and the saints will meet the Lord in the air.
St John Chrysostom in his commentary on 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 asks, "If He (Christ) is about to descend, on what account shall we be caught up? For the sake of honor. For when a king drives into a city, those who are in honor go out to meet him; but the condemned await the judge within. And upon the coming of an affectionate father, his children indeed, and those who are worthy to be his children, are taken out in a chariot, that they may see and kiss him: but those of the domestics who have offended remain within". (John Chrysostom, Homilies on Thessalonians, Holily 8). After we meet Christ in the air, we escort Him "into the city" (to the earth) as He continues His descent. Jesus then judges humanity, and the saints remain forever with Christ in His eternal kingdom. The shout of the archangel alerts the saints that the King is coming, and the saints go out to meet their King in honor, then escort their King to the earth in clouds of great glory.
This same idea is communicated by Jesus himself in his teaching the parable of the "Ten Virgins" in Matthew 25:1-12. The Church is the bride of Christ, a chaste virgin (2 Corinthians 11:2), who, upon hearing the cry, "Behold, The Bridegroom Cometh", goes out to meet Him, and all of those "that were ready" went in with Him to the Marriage (Revelation 19).
In Matthew 24:40-42 Jesus teaches that at His coming "one will be taken, and the other left". The leap is made by Pre-trib Prophecy teachers (with some twisting of scripture mixed with false presuppositions) that this passage depicts a "catching up" before the second coming. But just a few verses before this in Matthew 24:29-31 Jesus proclaims that His coming will be "AFTER THE TRIBULATION of those days".
Other passages that are "used" to teach a pre-trib rapture are John 14:1-3; Revelation 4:1; 1 Corinthians 15:50-53; 2 Thessalonians 2:6-8; Revelation 3:10. The only way a Christian pastor can come to the conclusion that these passages teach a pre-tribulational rapture is if they are first steeped in dispensationalism and thus come to the text of Scripture with tainted glasses that cause them to see things that are not there.

THE ONE AND ONLY SECOND COMING

"...And I believe in One Lord, Jesus Christ, the Son of God....and He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead, Whose kingdom shall have no end..." (From The Nicene Creed)


The Scriptures clearly teach that Jesus will come a second time to the earth. The first time He came in humility, taking on the form of a servant (Phil 2:5-9). The second time He will come in glory to judge the living and the dead (2 Timothy 4:1,2; Hebrews 9:26-28). It has been said that in the 260 chapters that make up the New Testament that there are 300 references to the second coming of Jesus Christ. Someone please count them for me!!!

The Second Coming of Jesus Christ is a singular event. No where in Scripture do we see mentioned a two-part return of Jesus; first a secret rapture, then a few years later a glorious second coming of Jesus seen by all on the earth. We read in Acts 1:9-11, that when Christ ascended into glory, "..this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven". There is no mention of "two" second comings! He ascended in glory. He shall return in glory.

There is no "Pre-Trib Rapture"! Matthew 24:29-31 tells us that, "Immediately AFTER THE TRIBULATION of those days" that Jesus will come in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. Just as the angels described His return in Acts 1:9-11. There is One, and only one "Second Coming of Jesus Christ".

The coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together unto him is a singular event (2 Thessalonians 1:7 - 2:8). Note: 2 Thess 2:1. And before that day can come, there will come "a falling away (an apostasy), and that man of sin (the antichrist) will be revealed. Before Jesus comes the second time there will be a great deception that will befall the people of the earth. Satan will manifest himself in the "Wicked One" (the antichrist) with power and signs and lying wonders. And, "if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect" (Matthew 24:24). But Jesus promises that "for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened (Matthew 24:22). The "falling away" that is going to happen, and is even happening now, is the work of Satan described as "all deceivableness of unrighteousness". A great delusion is blanketing the earth. But note that the cause of the deception is because people "received not THE LOVE OF THE TRUTH, that they might be saved". God will allow a "strong delusion" to overtake those "who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness".

THE FEEDING OF THE 5000 BY JESUS

The Gospel story of Jesus multiplying the loaves of bread and fishes, and feeding the 5000, is the only miracle that Jesus performed that is recorded in all four gospels; Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. This fact should inspire us to take a close look at why this is so. The Holy Spirit, who moved upon the authors of the gospels, is wanting His Church to understand something very significant. Our hearts are illumined to what that significance is when we take note that the three synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, and Luke) are written as an evangel to the world, but the gospel of John is written to reveal deep theology to the Church, to the believers in Jesus. The gospel of John is the theological gospel, the gospel that unveils the mysteries of God to the Church; that Jesus is the eternal Word and Son of God, and co-equal with the Father; the incarnation of the God-man is expounded, and the Father is introduced as well as the person and work of the Holy Spirit; the Holy Trinity is made known. The Apostle John is known to the Ancient Church as St John the Theologian, and for good reason. St John is the apostle who expresses mystical realities in his gospel. This is seen regarding our topic of the multiplication of the bread and fishes, and the 'Feeding of the 5000'. The Apostle John opens for us the meaning of the feeding of the 5000 by Jesus. John records Jesus's lengthy discourse in chapter 6 of his gospel where Jesus reveals that he is the bread of life that comes down from heaven for the life of the world.
    It is through the Apostle John's discourse in chapter 6 that we are made to understand the meaning of the multiplication of the bread and fishes, and how there is no limit to the miraculous multiplication of the food being distributed to everyone in need. 
    Just as Jesus took the bread at the last supper, and gave thanks, he does the same thing here in the desert with the thousands in need of being fed. The next day many gather together around Jesus "where they did eat bread, after that the Lord had given thanks" (6:23). The people knew that it was at Jesus's giving of thanks to the Father that the food was multiplied. A dialogue begins, and Jesus says, "Labour not for the meat (food) which perisheth, but for that meat (food) which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed" (6:27). The people speak of how Moses fed their ancestors manna in the desert, "He gave them bread from heaven to eat" (6:31). But Jesus corrects them saying, "Verily, verily, I say unto you. Moses gave you not that bread from heaven; but my Father giveth you THE TRUE BREAD from heaven. For the bread of God is HE which cometh down from heaven, and GIVETH LIFE UNTO THE WORLD" (6:32-33).
    Jesus, in his feeding of the multitudes by miraculously multiplying the food when he gives thanks, is revealing the Eucharist of the Mystical and Last Supper which will take place just prior to his crucifixion (Matthew 26:26-29; Mark 14:22-25; Luke 22:19-20). Here in his gospel, John the Apostle records Jesus expounding the mystery of his body being eaten, and his blood being drunk by all those who believe in him. Jesus is the bread from heaven, being mystically multiplied for all those who believe.
   
    Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life. I am that bread of life. Your fathers did eat manna in the wilderness, and are dead. This is the bread which cometh down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof, and not die. I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.
    The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat?
    Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever" (John 6:47-58).