Recently my wife was talking to her son on the phone and I heard him say he did not know if the Rapture is really going to happen. Today I want to address his concern and maybe yours also. I will endeavor to answer these two questions and show you what the Word of Gods has to say about this much debated topic.
I believe we are in the final few years of the Biblical countdown to this incredible event, which will turn the world upside down and trigger events that will stagger the imagination, and cause much fear and confusion as the anti-christ reveals himself to a very troubled world. For more information on this subject please read my blogs Time To Reset and End Times, Are We In Them?
What is the Rapture? The word is not in our KJV Bible. What does the word mean? Our English word rapture comes from the Latin word rapio,or rapturo, which means to seize or snatch from one place to another. The translators used the Greek word harpazo, or caught, in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, from which we get the much used word rapture in our Biblical circles today. The same word is used in Acts 8:39, when Phillip is translated or moved physically to another place approximately 25 miles away from where he was. Then in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4, Paul is taken to the 3rd Heaven for instructions from Jesus.
This gives us 2 or more witnesses to establish a truth or facts. The same word in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 means just what it implies, the whole Church will be snatched or taken away in the moment of a twinkling of the eye. See 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 as another witness to this fact. I believe this answers the question as to what the rapture is, the physical removal of the “Church” to our eternal home in Heaven. All of us at one time. Remember light travels at 186,000 miles per second. Our Earth is only 24,901 miles around, so light can circle the earth 7.5 times in 1 second.
I would like to make one more statement about this subject before I answer the other question. This one is for my brother in law as we both like sci-fi. In the show Star Trek the basic means of transportation other than their Star Ship is the Transporter. As Mr Scott their chief engineer explains it, the disassembly of the human body or anything else, particle by particle and the reassembly of it at another destination. Any way you look at it, we are reunited with our physical bodies just like Jesus was in the tomb. A new species of supernatural beings designed to be eternal just like Him. I sometimes can not wait much longer, but it will happen just as the Bible has declared so many thousands of years ago.
When will the Rapture happen? The answer to this question is found in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 and 7. Once again I must depart from mainstream teachings that the Holy Spirit is he who letteth, verse 7. I believe there is another way to interpret this scripture. It is the “Church”, as we are the ones Jesus gave authority and dominion over the forces of darkness in His name. The key to understanding this is in verse 3, the falling away. In this verse we read that there is someone or something preventing the anti-christ from appearing as he wants to. This falling away has been viewed incorrectly by the organized church for way to long. The Greek word is apostosia, and it can be interpreted to mean falling away or rebellion. However the other interpretation of the word by excellent Greek scholars is departure. Here is a list of some of the old translations and translators prior to the KJV. Geneva Bible, Great Bible, Tyndale, Dawson, Lineberg, Covedale, Crammer, Major, James, Baker, Parkhurst, Scott, Donnegan, Amplified. Most of these I have never heard of before, but they showed up in my research. These Greek scholars and commentators give us sufficient evidence to know of a certainty that the Greek word apostasia can be rightly translated in more ways than one. Departure best fits in this context with what the writer has written.
So to answer my question as to when will the rapture happen. Not until the Church leaves the earth to be with Jesus. Our cry should be, Marnatha, come quickly Lord Jesus. When the Church age is over, judgement will fall on the earth, but it will not fall on the Church.
Please do not look for it as an escape hatch from the world. We are to occupy this earth until He returns for us. Become militant in your occupation. No nation that has been defeated and then occupied by the winning forces ever rose up against their occupier unless the occupier was removed. We are that force, not the Holy Spirit. He is our helper and supplier of the power of God in our lives. The enemy of God, the devil, does not know who this anti-christ is. He has used many world leaders to try and force Gods hand in the past. Many men have tried to rule the world out of Gods timeline, but all have failed because we, the Church, was still here. We are the ones holding back the forces of evil until God says go and get my children and bring them home.
Our blessed hope is the realization that whether we live or die, we are the Lords, and we shall be like Him. We will rise again to meet Jesus in the air. Paul wrote in his letter, “wherefore comfort one another with these words”. He is explaining to the church in Thessalonica that they do not need to be sad when someone dies, as they will be the first ones to rise and then those which are still alive and remain, will be raised together to meet them in the air with Jesus in that day. I do not understand why we are not sure the Bible is not true and accurate. Read it and rejoice was his message and ours too.
I hope I have answered the questions about the Rapture. We are all in this race together, and at times we become confused and discouraged as we take our eyes off the goal which is finishing our race. Remember you will make it, just don’t give up. See you next time.
In His Service, as Kilted Priest.
The Kilted Priest 