What to Do if you Miss the Rapture

Peace of Mind in Perilous Times - Pete Garcia

Reposted from omegaletter.com 
Prophecy - Signs
Monday, September 15, 2014
Pete Garcia
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!  ~ Isaiah 5:20

It used to be, that people didn’t need to lock their doors at night, or worry about someone stealing a bike from their front yard.  You didn’t use to need to worry about your kids walking to the store by themselves, or just being out all day playing until dinner time.  You didn’t need to worry about whether your government was spying on you.  You trusted the banks to do with your money, what they said they would.  If bad guys did bad things, they were caught and went to jail (and for a long time).  You had a national border that actually stopped, or at least, limited the amount of unknowns coming into your country.  At one point in your life, you had faith in the system. 

But what we’ve seen in the last 25 years in the United States, is a rapid and aggressive acceleration into a national decline in almost every sector.  We have effectively transitioned from a producer-nation, to a service based nation.  We have rapidly transitioned from a creditor nation, to a debtor nation.  We have justified to ourselves (vis-à-vis an ever rising debt ceiling), the current level of sky rocketing debt we currently find ourselves in.  Time honored cultural and religious institutions are being turned on their head.  Marriage is no longer just between a man and a woman.  Children don’t necessarily need to come from only two parents.   Science is quickly outpacing the ethical boundaries that prevent the abuse of those technologies. 

Globally…Ebola, Bird Flu, Swine Flu, and a half dozen other diseases are but hairbreadth away from becoming pandemic.  Strange animal die-offs are occurring at alarming rates.  The radioactive fallout from Fukushima pollution of the Pacific has begun to change the face of life in the world’s largest ocean.  ISIS, Al-Qaeda, the Taliban, Hamas, Islamic Jihad, Boko Haram, and many other Islamic terror groups are rampaging across the 10/40 window, leaving a trail of carnage in their wake.  Crime and murder have all but seized our city centers, which in turn has driven the law abiding citizen, further and further out of it. 

But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: For men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good  2 Timothy 3:1-3

The norms and basic civil decencies are being turned on their head.  Ethnic tensions are on the rise globally, but none so alarmingly as they are right here in the US, where black inner-city mobs ‘knocking-out’ or beating up non-black persons, is seemingly becoming common place.  The media are reluctant or outright afraid to call things what they are, and ‘hate crime’ is seemingly only reserved for those ‘dangerous’ Tea Party types.  Right is wrong, up is down, black is white, and evil is good…and it’s only getting worse.  Notice how the Apostle Paul’s words are ringing truer and truer by the day.  Things are not getting better, but are getting progressively worse.  And now that we find ourselves in these very times he spoke of, are we surprised that they are anything less than what the Bible said they would be? 

Assessment

Not many years ago, it was really hard to find things to dig up to prove that we are in fact, in the last moments of the last days.  Such is not the case in 2014, where so much is happening, on so many fronts, that it makes your head hurt just thinking about it.  It would be really easy to get discouraged with all that’s transpired since 9/11/01 and conclude we must already be in the Tribulation in some form or fashion.  Maybe that is why positions like Pre-Wrath and Post-Tribulation positions seem to be growing at more rapid rates within Eschatological circles.  It is natural to assume, that when things take a turn for the worse, we must be in one or more of the judgments.  For instance…

The other day I was scanning the news when I came across an article talking about the pros and cons of the new RFID technology.  It had a long laundry list of potential benefits that it could have constructive impacts to many of the aforementioned problems we are currently experiencing in this nation.  For instance, it could help prevent crime, track predators, protect property, and prevent identity theft.  But at the end of the article, it asks the question of whether or not it’s ethical, and whether it has the potential for abuse.  I thought that was a rather silly question, considering all we know now about the abuses of government thus far, over privacy and what not.  But I liken it to the pre and post mindset people had before and after 9/11. 

Before 9/11, Americans would have never allowed the Patriot Acts to pass through the halls of Congress.  But afterwards, because of fear, it seemed like a very logical thing to do and it was pushed through at break-neck speed.  Now that it is in force, its tentacles of intrusion have only ever grown in its scope and depth as it reaches into the lives of average Americans.  All it took for the American people to hand over personal liberty was the right threat.  Each new potential threat is used to justify a continued and ever more pervasive reach into the lives of the public…and again, that too is by design. 

Fear drives our daily lives now.  Fear feeds into our belief systems, and into what we are willing to accept as normal.  Fear is ingratiating itself into our eschatology, which is why positions like Pre-Wrath and Post-Trib are on the rise in Evangelical churches.  Fear is an insatiable monster in and of itself, and it feeds on hope, and devours peace, crushes action, and delivers you into a cradle of bondage.

Conclusion

Being grounded in the Pre-Tribulation Rapture as THE Blessed Hope, is more than just lip service.  It is more than just head knowledge.  It’s more than just having the correct, chronological understand of end time’s events.  It was designed by God, to give us, a light of hope, in an increasingly darkened world.  Whether we want to accept it or not, we are that generation that will see the Lord return.  We are the generation with Israel back in her land.  We are the generation with Israel in control of Jerusalem.  We are the generation that has the technological and economic means to control all buying and selling in the world.  We are that generation that have all the signs converging at break neck speed.  And yes, doom and gloom is big business…just turn on your local or national news.  Fear sells, but we, are not called to live in a spirit of fear.  Peter says…

And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; 2 Peter 1:19

We are not only to have the proper understanding of Scripture, to include how things end (eschatology), but we are also supposed to apply that knowledge to our daily lives.  If you notice in the New Testament, almost every passage referencing the Lord’s coming at the Rapture, is preceded or surrounded by passages that promote holy living.  We are to live out our beliefs, by being grounded in the reality, that Christ will return, and that His return, will be before the world enters into that final seven years.   We are not called ‘overcomers’ for nothing…

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” John 16:33
It’s knowing, believing, and sharing that belief through our word and deed that will draw people to Christ, because we have this hope, in an increasingly hopeless world.  We belong to Christ, Christ is in us, and we make up the body of Christ…and Christ is God.  If Christ existed before all things, and by all things were created through Him, and Christ conquered death and hell at the Cross…what have we to fear?  What is in this life that poses a greater threat than that?  Nothing.  We are not called to have a spirit of fear.  The Pre-Tribulation Rapture (or catching up) is just hope realized and codified in Scripture for our benefit.  It was God’s plan, hidden before the foundation of the world, revealed through Paul and John to us, that we should live boldly and confidently, in a world that is passing away. (Eph. 3:1-7; 1 Thess 4:13-5:9; 1 John 2:17)

A world passing away, is juxtaposed with the peace that passes understanding.  Yes, these are dark times, and they are growing darker by the day.  But the worse it gets, the closer it is to Christ’s return.  We simply need to keep all that in perspective. 

So beloved, don’t get sucked into false beliefs that promote fear, and rob you of hope.  Don’t be drawn to teachers that feed doom and gloom, and promote their own ministries or eschatological beliefs, over what Scripture actually teaches.  Don’t let their confusion over the Rapture, with the Second Coming, lead you down a path which has you prepping for Armageddon, when we are called to live boldly and confidently in this time so soon near our Lord’s coming.  (See Matt. 6:25-33) 

Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory  2 Cor. 4:16-17

The Rapture According to Jesus Christ

Reposted from omegaletter.com
Prophecy - Signs
Monday, January 30, 2017
Pete Garcia 

Not many years ago, famed Reformist and Partial-Preterist theologian R.C. Sproul authored a book entitled “The Last Days According to Jesus Christ”. In it he states that “I am convinced that the substance of the Olivet Discourse was fulfilled in AD 70 and that the bulk of Revelation was likewise fulfilled in that time period” (page 158). Unfortunately, his view is not unique within Christendom.

From the fourth century onward, the dominant eschatological view within Christendom had been built upon Augustine’s teachings that the Kingdom was a spiritual one which was already in effect. By the time Augustine had come to some renown, Israel had not existed as a nation for the better part of 300 years. Much of Augustine’s teachings were used as the foundation stones for the budding amalgamation between pagan Rome and Roman Christianity…which later came to be formally known as the Roman Catholic Church (RCC).
With the decline of the Roman Empire, the RCC became the prevailing force dominating Europe and parts of the Middle East for the next thousand years. It wouldn’t be until the 14^th century that an awakening began to take hold for those who wanted out from underneath the oppressive Roman Catholic regime. Men like Jan Hus, Peter Waldo, John Wycliffe, and later Martin Luther, John Calvin, and Huldrych Zwingli did much too course-correct Roman Catholicism’s abusive and errant stray from true, biblical Christianity.

But one of the leftover doctrines that did not get reformed was that of Christian Eschatology. The Reformers all but kept the same teachings that were first propagated by Augustine that the Kingdom was now. Unfortunately, Augustine’s influence continued to have a significant impact on Martin Luther and John Calvin who were the fathers of the newly flourishing Protestant movement.

The only major difference between the Reformers and the RCC Papists was who actually was running ‘the Kingdom’. Obviously, the RCC thought they were since the Pope himself was supposed to be the ‘Vicar of Christ’ on earth. The Reformers later began to view that if anything, the Pope was not the ‘Vicar of Christ’, but rather the ‘Antichrist’. What they did agree on was that the Kingdom was already in effect, the Jewish people were no longer God’s chosen, and that most of prophecy had already been fulfilled.

Given their time-frame (circa 14^th-17^th centuries), who could blame them? Christendom had just emerged out of the Dark Ages. Israel hadn’t existed as a nation for over a 1,000 years. Life moved at the speed of horse. Technological advancements had just given the world the printing press. The Ottoman Turks were the rising power in the Middle East. Roman Catholic domination over the politics in Europe was fracturing, and a whole new world was being discovered and exploited.

The early Protestant Reformers may have had cause to think the way they did eschatologically speaking…but what excuse does the R.C. Sproul types have today?
The world went through two great wars and a Nazi Holocaust causing six million Jewish deaths. Israel became a nation again miraculously after almost 1,900 years. The world has progressed faster technologically and educationally speaking, than the previous twenty centuries combined. Pestilences, earthquakes, wars, national and ethnic strife, violence, and starvation are increasingly amplifying. The world population has reached over seven billion, while at the same time the world is teetering on economic collapse…but somehow the first century was worse than the twentieth? (Matt. 24:21-22)

Assessment
Christian theology is chock full of doctrines, teachings, insights, and various other topics that have seemingly become more and more controversial over the past two millennia. It doesn't matter if you're talking about spiritual gifts, eternal security, the Trinity, Sabbath day worship, baptism, Communion, tithing, etc...If there is a topic-Christians of every stripe and flavor have found a way to argue and divide over it. But perhaps none have been as controversial as the doctrine of the Rapture of the Church.

The Apostle Paul didn’t invent the doctrine, (Gal. 1:11-12) rather he simply expounded upon what the Lord had already said concerning it. For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep (1 Thess. 4:15). So regardless of denominational history, church dogma, creeds, early church father views, etc.…Jesus has a theological position on both the Rapture and the Second Coming, and I promise you it’s not Augustinian.

The Rapture of the Church vs. the Second Coming
The first thing we have to realize is that Christ’s Second Coming is broken up into two parts…the Rapture (Harpazo-catching up) of His bride the Church (1 Thess. 1:10; 4:13-18, 1 Cor. 15:51-56)…and His return to earth with His bride the Church…at the Triumphal Return as chronicled in Zech. 14:3-5, Matt. 24:29-31; 26:64, Jude 1:14-15, Rev. 1:7; 19:11-14. These cannot be the same event because of the numerous and glaring distinctions juxtaposed against each other. (Differences chart)

Critics of my aforementioned statement (Second Coming in two parts) fail to recognize that the Jews of Jesus’s day had that exact same problem concerning Christ’s First Coming as these critics now have with His Second Coming. They (first century Jews) thought the Messiah would come kick the Romans out and usher in the Kingdom right then and there. What they failed to see in the Old Testament (but what we Christians now clearly see with Scriptural hindsight) is the two separate comings of the Messiah…first as the sacrificial Lamb who takes away the sins of the world, and later as the conquering King. (Isaiah 53, Dan. 9:24-26, John 1:29, Psalm 2, Zech. 10, 14) Critics of the Pre-Tribulation view, fail to see that Christ’s Second Coming is also in two parts.

We (proponents of the Pre-Tribulation view) recognize that Jesus does talk extensively about the events leading up to and including His Triumphal Return, but that does not diminish nor deny that He also talks about His return for the Church first.

Days of Noah vs. the Olivet Discourse
The first mention of the concept of the Rapture in the Gospels is found in Luke 17:26-30. In it Jesus likened the time of His return to that of the days of Noah and Lot-a world which was largely carrying on as if it didn’t have a care in the world. In fact, He went out of His way to emphasize the sense of normalcy surrounding these events despite their OT pinning’s. Were they in massive tribulation prior to the flood, or prior to Sodom and Gomorrah’s fiery hailstorm? No…life was normal. Incessantly wicked and violent yes, but normal in the sense that a frog cooking in a pot doesn’t realize the water it’s in is being boiled until it’s too late. (Gen 6, 19)

People were going about their normal lives…and then calamity struck. Jesus could not be possibly referring to the events inside the 70^th Week of Daniel primarily because after 21 divine judgments are unleashed, the world is forever changed. Those judgments cause half the world’s population to die, large percentages of the ocean and fresh water to turn to blood, the sun has a ‘nova’ like event, then goes dark, people are struck with sores, and the Two Witness’s perform unbelievable signs and wonders, etc., so there leaves little possibility for ‘normal’ inside the seven-year Tribulation.

The Olivet Discourse on the other hand is what most people automatically default to when they want to get Jesus’s view on the last days. The Synoptic Gospels-Matthew, Mark, and Luke all carry a variant of the Olivet Discourse. What often gets overlooked, is that each of the Gospels, provide a different perspective on the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus because they were geared toward different audiences.

Matthew: portrays Christ as the rightful Heir of ‘David’s Throne’ and has very Jewish overtones throughout the book…and it contains the Olivet Discourse. (Written circa 50AD)
Mark: portrays the servanthood of Christ and is written with a Gentile audience in mind…and has the Olivet Discourse. (Circa 68AD)
Luke: portrays the humanity of Christ and is written with a Greek audience in mind…has the Olivet Discourse. (Circa 60AD)
John: portrays the deity of Christ…is the last gospel written well into the Church era and does not have any version of the Olivet Discourse. (Circa 85AD)

Wait…did John forget to put his version of the Olivet Discourse in there? He was one of the attendees after all (Mark 13:3). Maybe he knew he was going to write the book of Revelation later in life (95AD) and decided to save it till then…oh wait…he didn’t know that either. (Did he know he was going to get banished to the Isle of Patmos under Domitian?) Hmmm…I wonder why John didn’t record a variant of the Olivet Discourse? Why would John leave out one of his Lord’s longest and most prolific discussions? Perhaps it is because the Holy Spirit instructed him not to. Instead, he records the Upper Room Discourse (John 14-16)…which was taught exclusively to the eleven disciples the night before His crucifixion. Instead of recording wars, rumors of wars, earthquakes, pestilences, etc.…John records the comforting words that Christians of every generation could take solace in.

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also. John 14:1-3

Jesus (being God in the Flesh) knew before He ever came the first time that His second coming would not be a singular event. Rather it would be two events, both of which bestow a special place of honor for His bride the Church. It is not that we the Church are deserving of any such honor, but only because Christ shed His own divine blood for us and that we are the Church He built (Matt. 16:18-19). We are the pearl of great price in the parable in which the merchant sold all He had to purchase it (Matt. 13:45-46).

Conclusion
Now R.C. Sproul and many other subscribers to the Amillennial, Post-Tribulation Rapture, and Preterist views consider the Olivet Discourse to be the be-all, end-all description of the last days, but they do so neglecting many other passages that fill in the gaps of Jesus’s macro-view of the last days. While they might disagree on when those last days actually occur (Post-Trib sees future while Amillennialist and Preterist look to past fulfillment circa 70AD), what they miss are the clear distinctions between the two future comings.

The conundrum is this; if it’s already all happened, why the instruction to watch and be ready? Or, if I’m destined to go into the worst period of human history and I can’t change anything about it…why am to take comfort in that? Some reason that we need purification…so why aren’t they missionaries in North Korea at this very moment boldly proclaiming the Gospel? My response is that there is plenty of purification going on there these days...so why wait?

Watching and waiting in and of itself has a very purifying effect not only on our lives, but on our theology as well. It keeps us grounded by not becoming so focused on building our own little kingdoms in the here and now. Being earth-focused is what led us to the Dark Ages in the first place. If Christ didn’t want us to understand and learn Bible prophecy, He wouldn’t have given John the Revelation to give to us. Furthermore, when Jesus revealed Himself glorified to John on Patmos, He had some choice words to say for the early church…and by extension us-he who has an ear, let him hear.

Speaking to the Church with her Vicar, her political machinations, and her “Kingdom” He says-

And I gave her time to repent of her sexual immorality, and she did not repent. Indeed I will cast her into a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds. Rev. 2:21-22

Speaking to the Christian Church who does not watch and understand prophecy-

Remember therefore how you have received and heard; hold fast and repent. Therefore if you will not watch, I will come upon you as a thief, and you will not know what hour I will come upon you. Rev. 3:3

Speaking to the Christian Church who does-

Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.  Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown. Rev. 3:10-11

He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.”Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus! The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Amen. Revelation 22:20-21a

Election 2016 and the Coming Rapture of the Church

Reposted from omegaletter.com
Perspective on the News
Monday, November 07, 2016
Pete Garcia 

November 8^th, 2016 is a day that many in the US and around the world have longed for since 2009. The US Presidential election has proven this year to be unprecedented in its twists, turns, and revelations in regards to the final two candidates. As with the previous elections, this one has divided the American public, but interestingly, has somewhat galvanized the Christian evangelical vote like never before. A civil war is brewing and the battlefield this time is not on the fields of Antietam or Gettysburg, but in the ballot boxes across the nation.

One candidate has been in the political arena in a number of roles over the last thirty years. At present, she faces charges of extreme corruption, and her power base is made up of globalists, banking cartels, Islamic nations, socialists, communists, and radicals of every type and flavor. Her worldview is blatantly secular humanist but as has been recently revealed it is bordering in and around the satanic.

The other candidate has been a successful businessman and media personality, who until recently, had not engaged much in the way of politics, but has crossed the lines to join both parties over the last three decades. His crude mannerisms, rough language, rash temperament, and economic proclivities have made him a tough candidate for Christian evangelicals to rally around…at first.

At stake are two visions of the America to come. One seeks a continuation of the last eight years. The other, more nationalist and populist, seeks to regain the former glory years of American economic and military might. Which one will emerge victorious? At this point, only God knows, but rest assured, either way, His will and His agenda will remain perfectly on track. Let us for a moment, look at the candidates and see how the political ramifications bear out in the prophetic.

Assessment
We know according to Scripture passages like Revelation 6 and 13 that the world one day ends up under the control of just one man we know as The Antichrist. He is the ‘man of lawlessness’ that Paul speaks of in 2^nd Thessalonians 2, and whom John sees as the ‘Rider on the white horse’ in Revelation 6. He is able to wrest control of all the nations of the world, and subjugate everyone into one economic system of buying and selling. Until this generation that would have been impossible simply because the world lacked the technology to tie every nation and every person into one economic system.

We also know that Jesus stated the world would be like the days of Noah, and the days of Lot just prior to His return. (Luke 17) We only have cursory information on both of those time periods but what we do know is that those periods of time were wrought with violence, sexual perversion, supernatural and satanic activity, and the thoughts of man were only evil continually.

At the same time, Jesus stated that the world would not know when He would return. This cannot be speaking of the Second Coming because that is preceded by 21 specific and global judgments that will reduce the world’s population by more than half. Furthermore, once the Tribulation begins (Daniel’s 70^th Week), it is marked at the halfway point by a very specific event…the abomination of desolation.

Rather, Jesus spoke of the time leading up to His return for His bride, the Church. He stated that the world, although reminiscent of the days of Noah and Lot would be carrying on business as usual. Paul added that people would be talking about ‘peace and safety’ and that this event, the Rapture, would catch the world by surprise and it would be followed by sudden destruction. Thus, the Rapture will be both surprising and catastrophic in its aftermath with the immediate removal of perhaps up to 1 billion humans from around the world.

Jesus, Paul, Peter, Jude, and John were all in agreement that global conditions would progressively go from bad to worse in every aspect of life here on earth. The closer it draws to the end, the more evil people would become, and the more ineffectual the church would become. (Matt. 24:3-14; 2 Tim. 3; 2 Peter 3; Jude; Rev. 3)

Two other very significant indicators also had to be in play for the world to be at the very doorsteps of Christ’s return; Israel had to become a nation again, and that the world would increasingly become united in their hatred of Israel. The reason they hate Israel, is because Israel is proof positive that God exists, that Bible prophecy is true, and that Christ will one day return.

So with the aforementioned signs and indicators, let us look at the scenarios each candidate brings to bear should they be the next presidential candidate on November the 9^th.

A President Clinton victory
A Hillary Clinton victory on Nov. the 8^th would be a resounding kick in the guts to Christians and patriotic people across the nation. It would be disheartening and I would venture to say, a bit frightening given some of her previous statements she’s made regarding reining in freedom of religion, particularly that of Christianity. The strongest case for her victory in terms of Scriptural reasoning would be that it is a resounding confirmation of the Biblical descriptions of the global conditions increasingly becoming increasingly vile and wicked.
Moreover, there is a great propensity that the first year of her term in office would largely be overshadowed by the investigations and potential indictment for illegal activity during her tenure as Secretary of State. Not to fear though, she will resort to the tactic that every other despot on the planet does when the scandal at home becomes too great-plunge us into another war. This isn’t a war in which she intends to win, she just needs the American public in a prolonged and fruitless distraction. Furthermore, an economic reckoning is coming and it will very likely fall in her lap during her first term.

In terms of Israel, she will keep the status quo with our greatest ally in the Middle East,  which means she will continue the current policies of blaming and ostracizing Israel. In terms of the Church in America, she will continue pressing and crushing the civil liberties we currently enjoy: freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and freedom of worship…specifically targeting only one group-Christians.

If she were to win, she’d only do so by squeaking a victory out, which would enrage a large portion of our society. Civil war is a greater potential under her than ever before, simply due to the amount of corruption and scandal she carries into the office. Furthermore, this wouldn’t be civil unrest by simply the tea party ‘mom and pop’ types…this would extend across law enforcement, military, and intelligence agencies which have become galvanized like never before to stop her.

Prognosis: A highly divided America, embroiled in internal turmoil and scandal, wrought with massive economic problems, half-handedly attempting to engage enemy forces across the Middle East, and potentially being on the receiving end of both Russian and Chinese attacks, succumbs to military isolationism, but double-downs on international economic interdependency through ramping up of NAFTA and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). America rapidly in decline in terms of global standing fits nicely with a non-participant situation in terms of coming to Israel’s aid in an Ezekiel 38 scenario.

A President Trump victory
Should Donald Trump be declared the victor on November the 8^th, his victory would bring a huge sigh of relief to millions of Americans and former allies of the United States around the world. The greatest moment of turmoil in beginning his transition with President Obama, would be in fact, the handing of ‘the baton’ from Obama to Trump. A Trump victory would signal a flurry of last minute edicts and executive orders from Obama to-- exonerate Hillary Clinton, further divide Israel, and force a selection of a Supreme Court justice.

In terms of social evils and the rapid cultural decline, I believe that Trump will attempt to emplace competent leaders at every level who will hold wide-scale lawlessness at bay. There is no stopping the overall direction the world is going, but a Trump presidency would start tapping on the brakes, instead of flooring the gas pedal as a Clinton presidency would.
This economic reckoning is still coming, and this will be one of the most significant things President Trump will have to contend with. Under Clinton, it would come, not because the powers that be wanted it to, but that the system itself is due for a course correction. They (power brokers, the Federal Reserve, central banks and international monetary agencies, OPEC, etc.) have largely held it at bay while Obama was busy selling off American sovereignty in exchange for an artificial economic uptick.

But with Trump, there will be no brakes, no stoppage, and no mercy in terms of how deep and far this economic downturn will be. The intent then would be to lay this all at the feet of the Republicans once and for all. Fortunately, Trump has made his fortune understanding economics, and the human condition. It is possible that he could turn this around and make the necessary changes that renegotiates our dealings in regards to currency strength, export/import balances, and the national debt.

In terms of our military standing, he would greatly revamp the ailing and strained US military forces. I would expect that anywhere the US has placed troops, he would seek also to renegotiate the terms of the arrangements so that the US is not wasting resources and potential in unnecessary commitments. I would expect that Russia, Iran, North Korea, and China would be more reluctant to test American resolve under his presidency than under Clinton’s.

Trump has made it clear that he would finally recognize Jerusalem as the sole, undivided capital of Israel, something no president has done since they recaptured the eastern half of it in 1967. Prophetically speaking, this is significant because Jesus said….and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led away captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. (Luke 21:24)

I am becoming less and less convinced that this means there will be a complete absence of Gentiles in Jerusalem milling about, as this has never been the case even when they were their own kingdom. But were President Trump, the leader of the world’s greatest nation, to acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital of Israel after 49 years of Israeli ownership, this could signal the beginning of the end of Gentile dominion as the world begins to enter into Daniel’s 70^th Week. I believe that this is the only reason why it hasn’t happened yet.

*Put in another way, if recognizing Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel were to work in Satan’s favor, it would have already happened 49 years ago. But it doesn’t and this is why Satan has been working so hard to prevent this now through eight different US administrations.

Prognosis: This could also mark the time when Christians let their guard down in the United States. This supports the Biblically-based understanding that the church becomes largely lethargic and lukewarm. Hypothetically speaking, if Trump surrounds himself with as much Christian leadership (advisors and cabinet members) as has we have been led to believe, a Rapture would decimate much of our Executive Branch forcing a national realignment, in conjunction with an economic downturn.

Conclusion
First and foremost, the Rapture of the Church is a sign-less event. It doesn’t need anything to precede or accompany it for it to occur. That said, Jesus, Peter, and Paul allude to events surrounding it that do not give the day or hour, but point to the season for when it would occur. Secondly remember, that an economic course-correction is coming regardless of who gets elected.  Lastly, remember that Bible prophecy almost exclusively deals with only Israel in regards to God’s schedule, so Israel should always figure significantly in terms of knowing where and when we are on God’s calendar of scheduled events.

Clinton would never acknowledge Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. First, it would infuriate her base, and secondly, it would infuriate a great many of her Islamic donors. Trump however, has made very clear that he intends to do from day one once he assumes the mantle. How does the recognition of Jerusalem figure into Bible prophecy? Well, if my understanding of Luke 21:24 is correct, it would trigger the end of Gentile dominion, and open the gate so to speak, for the end time events setting the stage for the Tribulation.
A recognition of Jerusalem could be the trigger for several prophetic events such as Psalm 83, Isaiah 17, Ezekiel 38, and Daniel 9:27. Where does the Rapture figure into all these events? Well, it could be before or after a Psalm 83 and Isaiah 17 scenario, but it looks like it precedes both an Ezekiel 38 and Daniel 9:27 scenario…so somewhere in the middle…right about the time when people are crying out for ‘peace and safety’

For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape… 1 Thess 5:2-3

About Pete Garcia
Last article: Diary of a Dead Man

Review of the Book "The Rapture Verdict"

Republished from FB "Prophecy Watchers" page

No doubt many of you have seen the anti-rapture book that consistently draws rave reviews on Amazon's review page, The Rapture Verdict. Sadly, biblical ignorance rules the day and much of the church today. We're not interested in bashing author Michael Snyder, who seems like a genuinely nice guy with good intentions, albeit with a survivalist and social Gospel mentality. But when bad theology is being taught to the masses we feel some obligation to try and do what we can to avert the confusion. I do not know the pastor who penned this response to Michael's book, but it is spot on target with no personal agenda, or monetary motivation. I hope it reaches out to the many confused people who are preparing to endure the wrath of God, even wearing it like a badge of honor. I might add that the subject of Israel's role in the end times is nowhere to be found in this book. But that is no surprise. It fits the modus operandi perfectly. 

"The "Rapture Verdict" is not only biased, it does not speak accurately about the Word of God. It misrepresents a basic concept the Bible teaches and that so many writing books on prophecy, a subject they have little understanding of - that being God's love and grace. Few seem to understand that Israel and the Church are distinctly different subjects of the Biblical message. Misunderstanding that critical distinction you can count on falling into the trap that the author of the "Rapture Verdict" has and where the blind end up leading the blind. The author has much to learn about God's Word. For example, God uses many different grammatical devices to communicate His Word such as parables, metaphors, analogies, similitudes, types, and shadows. There are roughly 200 linguistic and grammatical devices used in the Bible. Proverbs 25:2 states that God has hidden truths for our discovery. That should serve as a hint to the reader there is more here than you think.

While the author does not recognize Bible Dispensations, his lack of understanding of Bible basics '"101" fails to take into consideration that the Bible is also structured on God's Covenants with man. He violates the common over-simplification of most churches by treating the Bible as a two-covenant book, i.e., Old and New Covenants (Testaments). The Bible identifies eight covenants in his dealing with man. His lack of understanding results in his failure to distinguish between Israel and the Church and misleads his readers.

The topic of "Typology" was all but lost a century ago and it serves as a guide to know that God does not always declare doctrine in the simplistic of ways. If you believe the Bible is the Word of God, and it is, it can be proven by at least a dozen ways that God is the Author and used humans as instruments to record His message. There are many ways to study and discern the Bible, two of my favorites are "thematically" and "typologically". The theme of "Deliverance before Judgment" is directed to the born-again believer in Jesus Christ. This theme is imparted throughout the Bible. The first example that I can think of is found in Genesis 19:12-22. Read that and you will never read the Bible or the book of Revelation the same way again. The author states that after you read his book you will never read Revelation the same way again. The author has so much to learn about God's Word.

The theme of "Grace" is found 170X times; the theme of "Mercy" is found 276X times; and the theme of "Deliverance" is found over 600X times. Those who read this can be assured that if you are a believer, you will not go through "THE TRIBULATION" of Daniel 9:24-27. The author is certainly not a Greek scholar since the Biblical word for "rapture" is "HARPAZO" and it means "to carry off, take by force, snatched away, catch up, caught up, seize by force". In all of its New Testament grammatical forms, a total of 13X times, the message is amply clear that the person, object, etc., is being "removed" with great force, like grabbing a child on the railroad tracks from an oncoming train.

While the Apostle Paul the first to teach the Rapture "Harpazo" in the New Testament, the reader might want to know that the Rapture theme can be found in the Old Testament as well, meaning "to be saved, to extricate, to rescue, to deliver". The Hebrew word is "NATSAL" and it appears 213X times throughout the Old Testament. The central point to consider here is that God offers "Deliverance before Judgment". It is a foundational tenet of the Bible so many seem to overlook.

What perturbed me about this book is the author cherry-picked church history, and names 3 early church fathers to support his position against the Pre-Tribulation Rapture. I can name a dozen early church fathers who held the opposite position in support of the Pre-Tribulation Rapture. Then the author predictably assigns the Pre-Trib. Rapture doctrine to a young Scottish girl by the name of Margaret MacDonald, and then by Charles Darby as originator of the teaching.

Critics of the Pre-Millennial Pre-Tribulation argue its was a new doctrine but they do not understand that beginning with Constantine and Augustine, in the early 4th century, the church snuffed out dissident thinking and teaching. Scholars either towed the Catholic doctrine or were eliminated from the scene. So there was little in print about the Pre-Tribulation doctrine until after the Reformation.

When I stated "predictably", he follows the pattern of all the rest following this scripted attacks on the Pre-Trib. doctrine it comes from ignorance [lack of knowledge] or lack of a theological education. Anti-Pre-Tribbers don't know their Bible and they don't know church history and they don't know theology! You can verify this is not the case by searching the topic "Pre-Tribulation Truth", a multiple-part series on the Pre-Tribulation teaching on the internet that offers the Bible reader incontrovertible proof for the Pre-Tribulation teaching. Just google the "Pre-Tribulation Truth". Paul was the first to teach the Pre-Tribulation Rapture and the Bible teaches that truth.

The author like most of those that attack the Pre-Tribulation position mislead their readers on the facts, and leave out facts which reveals their lack of understanding on theology in general, and lack of any scholarship when it comes to the Bible. This comes from a pre-disposition against the modern-day State of Israel. Their sell-out to "Replacement Theology" and failure to see the larger picture of the Bible makes a clear delineation between Israel and the Church and thus blinding them from seeing the truth in the Bible. The Bible makes it clear the believer in Jesus Christ will be kept from the day of God's wrath! God's wrath was on the cross for believers!

The Bible mentions the Lord's Second Coming 325X times in the New Testament. It also notes at least 15X times specific contrasts or differences that define the Rapture as being entirely different than the Second Coming. There are at least 23X times that identify the Rapture phase, and another 35X times that identify the Second Coming phase. One does not have to twist or manipulate the text as the author so states to conclude the validity of the Pre-Tribulation Rapture. The core of the teaching is found in five passages: John 14:1-3; 1st Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1st Corinthians 15:50-56; 2nd Thessalonians 2:1-12; and Revelation 4:1-2.

The Tribulation, Daniel's 70th Week, Daniel 9:24-27 is reserved for Israel and a disobedient and disbelieving world. IT IS NOT FOR THE BORN-AGAIN BIBLE BELIEVING CHRISTIAN! The subject of "The Tribulation" is well defined 49X times in the Prophets, and 15X times in the New Testament.

Jesus Christ as the Bridegroom is not going to take His bride and commit spousal abuse and then turn around and say, "Me and this girl want to get married". The reading of the Greek text for the five noted passages does not support spouse abuse. To do so would violate God's love, grace, and mercy. The author and others like him usually get their doctrine "proof text" from Matthew 24:29-31, but they do not get the point that the flow of the dialogue between Jesus and His disciples is less formal; its not laid out neatly like in a schedule program where each detail follows neatly one after the other, as if it was a program guide for a World Series baseball game.

As 2nd Peter 2:1 points out, many false teachers will come in the last days. They will not only eat your lunch, they will devour your Joy! Their heresies are damnable, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. I have been a "born-again" Christian for 51 years, a student of prophecy for 49 years. I was a computer programmer on the team that first computerized the KJV Bible in 1963/64, and later went to Bible college and seminary and became a pastor as of that privileged experience. There is much more in the Bible that the author could learn, not the least of about judging his brothers and sisters in Christ. But when it comes to the "Rapture Verdict", the judge should dismiss this case for lack of evidence beyond a shadow of doubt! Do your homework by checking out the "Pre-Tribulation Truth" series on the net, millions have had their hope restored. It will not cost you a dime either.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, do not be shaken by this shallow attack on the Pre-Tribulation Rapture. The late Hilton Sutton once said, "when the bombs are descending, the saints will be ascending". The author is no authority on the Bible, and he is a good voice for the "woe is me" as we close in on the End of Days. The Pre-Tribulation Rapture is closer than most realize and his posts on the economic collapse merely serve to support my contention we are going home very soon. He is correct when it comes to the economic collapse and it really is a reminder that as believers we are to be alert, awake, and at work to reach anyone that we can identify as unsaved!

For the bystander not knowing what to believe about the subject of the Rapture, I'm not selling a book, I am giving you the truth of the Bible freely and want you to go with us in the Pre-Tribulation Rapture. There is nothing to be gained to stay behind in the hell that will follow in the period we refer to as Daniel's 70th Week. There is so much you don't know, and you have been misled by the false teachers that work on behalf of Lucifer. God will speak to your heart and mind and tell you I am right.

Rev. Robert H. Reid

Ice and Salus on Psalm 83

The First 10 Generations of Mankind Form a Composite Picture of Messiah's Ministry

Reposted from FB
Bible Study Planet

July 16 at 11:21am ·

• Adam is the "Son of God" (Luke 3)
• Abel is the "Son of Man" (Adam means "man", Genesis 4)

• Adam died through a "tree". (Genesis 3)
• Abel was a Shepherd whose blood was shed by his brother. (Genesis 4)
• Seth was the 3rd Son whose life resurrected the righteous lineage in place of Abel's death. (Genesis 4)
• Enoch walked closely with God and was taken away to Heaven. (Genesis 5)
• Methuselah's life (the oldest life at 969 years) was a picture of GRACE *restraining* the Judgment of God via the Flood (Methuselah's name means "When He Dies; It [the Flood] Shall Come")
• Noah and His family of 7 entered the single Door in the Ark of Salvation to escape the Judgment on the World (Genesis 7)
• Noah and His family of 7 return to Earth and set up an altar of sacrifice to give thanks to God in a New World and New Order (Genesis 8)
::: COMPARE :::
• Jesus is the "Son of God" and the "Son of Man" (Mark 1; John 1)
• Jesus is the Good Shepherd whose blood was shed by his brothers. (John 10)
• Jesus died on a "tree". (John 19)
• Jesus was resurrected in the 3rd Day, resurrecting the Righteousness of God in place of His prior death. (John 20)
• After His resurrection God took back His son in the Ascension to Heaven to sit at His right-hand. (Acts 1)
• The Church Age [approximately 2,000 years] is known as the "Age of GRACE" and as the Light we restrain the Darkness; when we are REMOVED the Judgment of God is delivered [in the Tribulation]
• Christ and His 7 Churches enter through the Single Door set in Heaven via the Rapture to escape the Judgment on the World (Revelation 2-4)
• Christ and His Church return to Earth and Christ sets up the Temple of God (Ezekiel 40-48) in a New World Order known as the "Kingdom" (Revelation 19-20)

Where's the Comfort? Terry James

Republished from raptureready.com
 

Pre-Trib belief antagonists are on the rise. Rapture critics, even among those who claim to believe in the eventuality of a Rapture, just not the pre-Tribulation view of that event, purport to present evidence on every side that our times trumpet the obvious: The world is about to enter the Tribulation. Christ's call to believers, they say, just isn't going to happen before Christians suffer at least part of the terrors of that beastly era. 

They offer that anyone with knowledge of issues and events going on should recognize that the New World Order bunch is transforming America and the world into the kingdom of Antichrist. All is about to come together for the Gog-led invasion into the Middle East. As a matter of fact, many hold that World War III has already begun.

Advanced computer and other control technologies and instrumentalities are in place for locking everyone on the planet into fiscal bondage and physical slavery to the final empire as prophesied by Daniel. 

Those of us who believe there is coming a supernatural Rapture-escape from these judgments on sinful mankind are just living in fantasyland is the collective message I infer from emails and articles that increasingly assault my senses. That I, and all of you, should begin prepping with food, water, gold, silver, and finding a good bunker in which to hunker down during these upcoming days seem to me to be the things these Rapture naysayers are presenting. Seldom do I hear coming from our opponents on the question of the Rapture the admonition to be trying to witness with all our might the gospel of Jesus Christ. I guess there will be plenty of time for that once the Antichrist regime is firmly in place. 

While the Pre-Trib proponent holds at the heart of his effort winning as many souls to Christ as possible so those saved won't go through that time of horrors, many of the anti-Rapture antagonists want to do things to make sure they are more comfortable while trying to survive that hellish time. 

Coincidentally--or perhaps not--these just happen to, in some cases of TV and other ministries who openly disdain the thought of Rapture, offer for sale all of these things for survival. The packaged food items invariably are proclaimed to have shelf lives of three decades or longer. So, we can, if we survive, have these supplies to partake of well into the Millennium, I suppose. This, based upon the general theme that they believe the seven-year Tribulation, not the Rapture, is imminent. There have been over the past few years a number of debates taking place on whether there will be the Pre-Trib Rapture or not. The best I've heard was the one at the Pre-Trib study group meetings when Dr. Mark Hitchcock completely destroyed the anti-Rapture arguments of the Bible Answer Man. 

There are some such debates scheduled for prophecy conferences in the near future. These will perhaps offer new food for thought, but I doubt whether they will change minds on either side of the controversy. 

Personally, I believe the time for debate on this matter is past. It is time now to just offer the assurance of that soon to come exhilarating moment when Christ will say "Come up here!" (Revelation 4:1). 

There are so many scriptural assurances of the Pre-Tribulation Rapture that we could fill many articles with them. As a matter of fact, we have done just that on the Rapture Ready website. 

I wish to mention only one Rapture factor here, because I believe it is the most reassuring of all truth in God's telling His children that they are not appointed to His wrath. Here we interject the question proposed in our title: Where's the Comfort? By that we ask: What comfort is there in the argument that Christians will go through the Tribulation?

Paul the apostle first assures us of this fact: "For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Thessalonians 5:9). But, it is the next thought from the mind of God that should cause warm reassurance in the spiritual heart of every believer: "Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do." (1 Thessalonians 5:11). 

Get it? We are to "comfort" ourselves, not wring our hands looking for these things to destroy us or to look for Antichrist. We are to be looking for our "blessed hope" (Titus 2:13).
There is no comfort --nor is there directive in God's Word--to be had in anticipating going through the time of God's wrath and almost certain martyrdom (probably by beheading). There is no comfort in looking for the worst dictator in the planet's history to hunt us down and lop off our heads. 

Here is what God's Word promises instead of the dreaded scenario proposed by the Rapture antagonists: For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 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. Wherefore comfort one another with these words." (1 Thessalonians 4:15-18) --
--Terry

Tommy Ice: The Pri-Trib Rapture Part II

Via servehiminthewaiting.com

It may be the most controversial subject in Christendom today—the rapture of the Church. It’s a critical Bible doctrine that has its share of skeptics and bashers. Will be whisked up to heaven by Jesus “in the twinkling of an eye,” or will we be left behind to face the Antichrist, endure a 7-year Tribulation, and face a certain death? We’ve brought in the A-Team for this fascinating subject—Gary Stearman and prophecy legend Thomas Ice, the Executive Director of the Pre-Trib Research Center. And what a conversation they had! Better put on your deep thinking cap. These guys address the issues with logic and Scripture and defend the Blessed Hope! 

Watch the Program

A few observations on the Rapture, from Gary:  The catching-away of the Church is a gift and a promise of God to those who are the body of Christ (born-again believers). It is one of many New Testament mysteries, and the most mysterious of them all. There are a variety of opinions about the "What,"  "When ' " "Why ' " "Where" and "How ) " of this signal event . For a long list of reasons, I believe that the rapture comes before the "man of sin" (II Thess. 2:3) gives assent to a covenant with the leaders of Israel, allowing them to practice "sacrifice" and "oblation " in the Third Temple. It is this action that marks the beginning of the seven-year Tribulation. It comes after a series of wars that will miraculously bring Israel to prominence in the Middle East ... and the World. Currently, there's not a human on Earth who can tell you who that man is, or where he is. Furthermore, as this is written, there is no Temple in Israel for him to approve as a place of Jewish worship. Some passage of time and several dramatic events must occur before the establishment of that man's authority. By contrast, our Lord's coming occurs without any forewarning ... before that evil man is revealed. How do I know this? By faith, based upon the systematic study of the Bible. I'm waiting ... and I'm watching. But what if things go bad before our Lord arrives? What if water, electricity, food and money all fail? What if there's rioting and martyrdom? Well ... all these things have happened to God's people before ... even to His closest disciples. I'll still trust Him. As David put it: "23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way. 24 Though he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down: for the LORD upholdeth him with his hand. 25 I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread" (Ps. 37:23-25).

Tommy Ice: The Pre - Trib Rapture

The Rapture’s in the Air: Part 2 by Pete Garcia

Republished from omegaletter.com
via servehiminthewaiting.com
Pete Garcia

It is only natural for those who are watching the deteriorating conditions in the world today, too want to abandon the idea of the “blessed hope” in favor of ‘prepping’ for The Tribulation. History has, after all, shown us that fortune favors the prepared. But just as it is with our eternal salvation, our deliverance from this coming time isn’t dependent upon our efforts but on what Christ has already done. After all, isn’t that what distinguishes Christianity from every other faith-system? In other words, the ‘blessed hope’ goes against man-centered logic and puts the onus of salvation completely in God’s hands.

Consider the two examples Christ gave us with Noah and Lot. What manner of prepping (aside from what God told them to do specifically) could Noah and Lot have done to ‘weather the storm’? What bunker or high place could have saved Noah from the flood waters which covered the earth? What fortifications could Lot have done to make his house ‘judgment-proof’? In either case, their deliverance wasn’t dependent upon themselves to find a way through it, but as they were instructed by God. 

NOWHERE in the NT epistles does the Church find instruction to prepare for the 70th Week of Daniel. The only way people can come to that conclusion is if they take information intended for another audience, and then misapply it to themselves. Such is the case with the confusion over the Olivet Discourse and Revelation 4-19.

Who’s who in the Tribulation? 
We now turn to Daniel’s 70 Weeks Prophecy for further clarification of who this particular time is for. The future 70th week of Daniel then is a seven year, “week of years” and is the summation of the entire 70 Weeks (490 years) prophecy as was given to the Prophet Daniel by the angel Gabriel. Daniel 9:24 states;
“Seventy weeks are determined For your people and for your holy city,
To finish the transgression, 
To make an end of sins, 
To make reconciliation for iniquity,
To bring in everlasting righteousness,
To seal up vision and prophecy,
And to anoint the Most Holy.

If you were to take the whole passage of Daniel 9 in context, it becomes abundantly clear who Daniel was asking forgiveness for and on behalf of…that being national Israel. Here, we see the angel Gabriel comes to assure Daniel that God has a plan for the Jew’s (your people) and for Jerusalem (your holy city). Again, the Church is nowhere to be seen in this, as Daniel (along with all the other OT prophets) had no concept of who or what the mystery of the Church was then, because it had not yet been revealed, and wouldn’t be, until Christ first does in Matthew 16:17-20. Even then, Christ doesn’t go into the details about the specifics of the Church, He will save that task for the Apostle Paul, many years later. And just as we don’t see the Church in the first 69 weeks, neither will we in the 70th week. 

As another point of confirmation, we see in the Revelation of Jesus Christ, Jesus addressing the Church (ecclesia) 19 times in chapters 1-3…yet doesn’t mention the ecclesia anymore from chapters 4-19 while describing the 21 divine Judgments that are poured out upon the earth. Critics will argue that this is an argument from silence, but the silence is deafening. Note this as well, the phrase He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches accompanies each of the seven letters to the seven churches. Yet, inside the seven year Tribulation, we see this warning given in Revelation 13:9, which states if anyone has an ear, let him hear. If the Church were still in the Tribulation, this would have been the perfect opportunity to mention it. 

At best, critics of the Pre-Tribulation Rapture liken the term ‘saints’ as the Church on the earth during the Tribulation. I’d like to point out, that ‘saints’ is a fairly generic term, which is used before, during, and after Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. So the usage of ‘saints’ as an indicator of who one is, must be understood in light of the context in which it is given. Jesus specifically addresses the Church as ecclesia, and is liberal in the usage of it in the first three chapters of Revelation. If the ecclesia is in the Tribulation, why neglect it for the next 17 chapters? If you were reading a story in a book and a character was regularly mentioned for the first three chapters, and then not mentioned again…wouldn’t that strike you as odd? The burning question it should leave you unsettled with is…what happened to them? 

The Restrainer
  One of the most significant points in understanding why the Church is not inside the confines of the seven year Tribulation, is that Paul exhorts and corrects the Thessalonians in his second epistle that they can’t already be inside that specific time period (as someone had erroneously taught them), because the man of lawlessness had not yet been revealed. The man of lawlessness can’t be revealed, until the Restrainer is removed. The Restrainer can’t be removed, until the apostasia has arrived. See the sequential process in 2 Thess. 2:3-8; 

Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, 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. 

Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. 

1.  And then the lawless one will be revealed
2.  “Falling away”; apostasia occurs first
3.  This occurs in conjunction with the removal of the Restrainer

 The apostasia, must be a singular event. Why is that you ask? Well, apostasy has been present in this world since the 1st century as Paul, Peter, Jude, John, early church fathers, etc. all have had to contend with it in their respective days, even until today. If apostasia simply means the KJV rendering of “falling away”….which “falling away” is it then? Paul dealt with Judaizers. John and Peter dealt with Gnostics. The ECF’s dealt with heresies of all kinds. We have Mormonism, Jehovah Witnesses, Roman Catholicism, and cults of every flavor to contend with these days. The current theory is the ‘general falling away’ across greater Christendom through ecumenism with heretical and non-Christian faiths. So which is it then and why would God give us such an unspecific sign that could be used in every single generation? And why do those who argue against imminence, then use apostasia as a type of imminence in their argumentation?

This author (along with others), believes that the apostasia is the actual departure at the Rapture. This concept of apostasia is tied to the removal of the Restrainer. Consider the identifying characteristics of the Restrainer who is first identified in a gender neutral identity (what is--vs. 6), then in the masculine form (He--vs. 7). 

Were this speaking of Michael the Archangel, or the Antichrist himself, or Satan, they could only be referred to as a ‘he’ or ‘him’, since they are masculine in embodiment. Were the restrainer human government or religion, or some other type of institution, the restrainer would be a thing, and not referred to with a personal pronoun. The only One who this could be referring to is neither male, female, or human in any type of bodily form…yet, is also a living Being, so as to distinguish Him from simply being a ‘thing’…which is God the Holy Spirit. Jesus referred to the Holy Spirit as a ‘He’ numerous times in John 14-16, and thus we should conclude, that the clues Paul leaves here can only reference God the Holy Spirit. 

Furthermore, this Restrainer, must be God the Holy Spirit, since evil is present simultaneously all over the created order, and the Restrainer must be powerful enough to curtail it. We see in verse 9; The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders. It first removes the Satan as a candidate, since Satan wouldn’t hinder himself. Secondly, it removes Michael the Archangel since Michael doesn’t (or doesn’t presently) confront Satan with anything more than a rebuke. (Jude 1:9) 

It would seem that just as it was in Creation (Gen. 1:2), in Noah’s day (Gen. 6:3), and again before and after Pentecost, (Acts 2), there is coming a time when the Holy Spirit’s active role here on the earth will be changed. To clarify something that often gets misconstrued, the Holy Spirit is omnipresent, and so it’s not that He disappears from the earth altogether, but His role changes, just as it had in the past with Creation, during the OT period, at Pentecost, and now during the Church Age. He will be removing (the apostasia) the Body of Christ via the harpazo (catching up) of those He permanently seals and indwells (John 14:16, Romans 8:9, Ephesians 4:30) in order for the man of lawlessness (the Antichrist) to be revealed. 

Imminence 
I’ve recently had someone argue against the doctrine of imminence by stating that since Peter was foretold that he was going to have to die in a certain manner that this rules out imminence since Peter would not expect to be taken up in the Rapture prior to that. (John 21:18-19)

For me, that argument carries very little weight and seems to ignore the general expectation that Paul, John, James, and the others had in regards to keeping that ‘blessed hope’ alive, even in their generation. Marshall Hawkins writes concerning this “seeming” dilemma; 

Time for this gap between Peter’s middle age and his old age is allowed for by the progress of revelation. It was not until the book of James (written just about A.D. 50), and then later in Paul’s writings that the imminence of the rapture is revealed. Twenty years would have elapsed between the prophecy and the writing of James—enough time for Peter to have aged sufficiently. . . . By this time imminence was a viable doctrine for most of the church since they would have no idea whether Peter was alive at any one moment or not. . . . For those accompanying Peter at this time, the rapture was also imminent because Peter may have been seized and martyred at any time, making the rapture possible immediately afterward. Marshall Hawkins, “Rebuttal of the Posttribulational Denial of Imminence” (Unpublished ThM thesis, Capital Bible Seminary, 1979), p. 45. Cited in McAvoy, “Critique,” p. 83 

Let me conclude this discussion on imminence with a sampling of passages linking our faith, with the biblical significance of imminence; 1 Corinthians 1:7, 1 Corinthians 16:22, Philippians 3:20, Philippians 4:5, 1 Thessalonians 1:10, 1 Thessalonians 5:6, 1 Timothy 6:14, Titus 2:13, Hebrews 9:28, James 5:7-9, 1 Peter 1:13, Jude 21, Revelation 3:11; 22:7, 12, 20, Revelation 22:17, 20 [Excerpts from Dr. Tommy Ice’s Imminence and the Rapture] 

Conclusion
As mentioned earlier, a believer’s supernatural deliverance in Scripture, is in direct relationship to the size and scope of God's judgment. When the 70th Week comes, it will encompass the entire world and there will be no place for man to escape to on the earth, thus explaining the reason why the removal of the Church (those born-again believers), has to be off-planet. This reasoning fits exactly with what Jesus states in Revelation 3:10… 

Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

The Mid-Trib, Pre-Wrath, and Post-Tribulation views try to promote the notion that ‘prepared’ believers are somehow exempted from the judgments and persecution that will come upon believers during the Tribulation. Yet, we see in Rev. 6:9-11 and 13:7 martyrdom has become global, and that the Antichrist is given permission to overcome the ‘saints’ completely. In fact, the ONLY ones’ who are sealed supernaturally, are those 144,000 Jews from the twelve tribes of Israel, who are listed out by their respective tribes. (Rev. 7:1-8) 

So the question then becomes….what exactly is the believer ‘kept from’ during the Tribulation? It would seem martyrdom is the only sure guarantee…which negates the idea of being ‘kept from’. 

The only view, which ensures and supports the biblical view of imminence is the Pre-Tribulation view. The Tribulation is a highly chronicled time, broken down by days (2,520), months (42 x 2), and years (3 ½ x 2) and marked by 21 divine judgments, with a clear halfway-point (Matt. 24:15) that separates the first half of the 70th week, from the last half. The question then is, how can any view outside the Pre-Trib view be considered imminent, (no man knows the day or hour) when there are so many clear signs and markers inside the confines of the 70th Week, which count down to the day the Lord will return at His Second Coming? 

The only view which correctly defines the apostasia, the Restrainer, and the role each play in accordance to the revelation of the man of lawlessness, AND also fits perfectly with chronological nature of Revelation 1-6 beginning with the Churches, the Rapture of John, the Throne Room scene, and Christ opening of the Seal Judgments, is the Pre-Tribulation view. 

The only view which is in keeping with the biblical purpose of “the why” of the Tribulation, is the Pre-Tribulation view. Jeremiah 30:7-11 and Daniel 9:24-27, very specifically teach that this time is for the Christ rejecting world, and for the nation of Israel. This then correlates perfectly to the obvious absence of the “ecclesia” from Revelation 4 onwards. 

The only view which properly defines divine wrath consistently, and in keeping with the principles laid out throughout the Bible, is the Pre-Tribulation view. Again, trials and persecutions in this life are to be expected. That is NOT the same thing as the wrath that God pours out in His indignation. 

The only view, which takes the biblical understanding of salvation, both eternal and physical, and puts it solely in God’s hands, is that of the Pre-Tribulation view. Our ‘blessed hope’ isn’t dependent upon our own ability to preserve ourselves, but in placing our faith in a God who is faithful to His word, and that He will not destroy the righteous with the wicked. 

Lastly, if the Rapture were in conjunction with the Second Coming, the passage below would make no sense. If the Rapture were at some point inside the Tribulation (which Christ said would be the most horrific time in human history), would makes no sense. The only way this passage makes sense, is if the Rapture happens before the Tribulation begins. Therefore…

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. John 14:1-3 

About Pete Garcia Last week: The Rapture's in the Air: Part 1