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Will there be a Secret Rapture?

Thousands are placing their hope in a coming secret rapture.
Will it occur?
The truth is shocking!
You need to know the answer.
Your life may depend upon it!

 

IT IS THE firm belief of thousands today that a fantastic, breath-taking event may take place at any moment! Suddenly, without warning, multitudes upon multitudes of people all over the world — your friends, your neighbors, members of your own family, businessmen and political leaders will DISAPPEAR! In vain their friends and associates will try to locate them; the world will be in consternation — appalled by the mysterious event that has occurred.

Then, the world situation will begin to change. Conditions will grow worse and worse. Terrible plagues, famine and war will break out and rage through the nations. A vicious and evil despot will rise to rule the world and cruelly force the people and nations to obey him and submit to his ungodly and satanic practices.

Slowly, a sickening, awful realization will strike terror into the hearts and awareness of the frantic, terrified populace. JESUS CHRIST had come — secretly, WITHOUT WARNING — and had RAPTURED His saints away to heaven. The great ANTICHRIST had begun his twisted rule upon earth and ALL people left on earth were DOOMED to damnation — FOREVER.

Will such an event occur?

Is this doctrine of the rapture of the saints true?

Millions of Christians of the Protestant faith are being taught to anticipate such an event. But what will actually occur?

We need to know what is coming in the future. We can know! The TRUTH is plain.

 

When Did It All Begin?

Most Protestants ASSUME this RAPTURE "THEORY" has always been a doctrine of the Christian faith. Those who teach the Rapture Theory state, "The Church of Jesus Christ has ALWAYS BELIEVED and taught that Jesus Christ will secretly rapture the Church away to heaven."

The real truth, however, is an eye-opening revelation.

The idea of a secret rapture of the saints was unknown to any Christian body before the SIXTEENTH CENTURY! Joseph Ribera, Cardinal Bellarmine and Alcasar, Jesuit Priests of the sixteenth century, were the first Christian authorities to promulgate this idea. Even in their day the idea was unclear, but the basic roots of the doctrine began at this time. (Cyclopaedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature by McClintock and Strong, article "Anti-Christ")

Later, around 1825, Samuel R. Maitland, librarian to the Archbishop of Canterbury, embraced the belief, although its basic tenets were still unclear in his day.

It wasn't until 1830 that this belief began to take on its modern definition. "The Catholic Apostolic Church had its beginning in 1830. It was founded in Britain . . . by men who claimed divine inspiration. They said the Holy Spirit revealed to them that the last days had come, that the Lord was about to return, that first He would 'rapture' the believers who were ready, at a secret coming, that other believers would be left to pass through the great tribulation, after which Christ would come in manifested power." (Heralds of the Dawn, by John A. Anderson, M.D.)

Thus we see the Rapture Theory is a product of recent times. It was NOT a doctrine of the original Church. It was never taught nor believed by Jesus Christ or His disciples.

Rapture theorists advance several so-called Biblical proofs for the Rapture Theory. Let's examine them and see what the Bible really does say about it.

 

Christ's Coming Assumed to Be in Two Phases

The assumption of the Rapture Theory is that Jesus will first come secretly FOR His saints, at which time He will descend from heaven to the atmosphere of this earth. He will at this time — so the theory goes — resurrect the righteous dead and "translate" the faithful living, rapturing them to heaven where they will remain with Him until He again returns — several years later. During this time a Great Tribulation will rage on earth and a satanic antichrist will reign.

The raptured saints will be SPARED from this Tribulation, having been raptured away BEFORE it begins.

At the "second phase" Jesus, accompanied by all His saints, will RETURN VISIBLY and DESTROY all the wicked which are upon the earth. He will then set up His Millennial reign.

Do the Scriptures bear out this "two-phased" return?

What did Jesus and His disciples teach concerning the return of Christ?

 

Jesus' Answer

When Jesus' disciples put the same question to Him, He gave the plain and direct answer. Let's notice it.

"And as he sat upon the Mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying; tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" (Matt. 24:3) They had no notion of a "two-phased" coming. They simply asked concerning His coming — His ONLY coming. When Jesus replied to their question, He did not imply there would be two phases. He simply acknowledged their question and began to tell them of the occurrences to precede His return.

Jesus warned of false Christs, of wars, of famine, pestilences and earthquakes — all to precede His coming. Then He warned of personal persecution, tribulation and even death of some in God's Church BEFORE His return; notice it — "Then shall they deliver YOU up to be afflicted, and shall kill You: and YE shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake" (Matt. 24:9).

Then Jesus spoke of great tribulation and the need for the Church to FLEE, all before His return (verses 15-21).

If Jesus were going to come in a secret rapture to take all His saints to Heaven before the Tribulation, why didn't He say so? It is because there will NOT BE A RAPTURE!! Jesus' direct answer warned there WOULD BE TRIBULATION — before His return.

 

Warning Against Rapture Theory

No, in fact, instead of comforting them with the "Rapture Theory," He warned them not to be tempted into believing His coming would be any different than He was outlining to them. Notice His specific warning to them:

"Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; BELIEVE IT NOT. For there shall arise false Christs, and FALSE PROPHETS, and shall skew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall DECEIVE the very elect" (Matt. 24:23-24).

Jesus warned there would be men who would advance great significant theories of supposedly wonderful things in order to deceive. Then Jesus became very emphatic. He said there would be some who would teach that Jesus had returned to some far away desert place OR that He had returned to some SECRET PLACE. He said: "BELIEVE IT NOT!" (verse 26)

Now notice CAREFULLY verses 27-31. Jesus answers so as to leave no question what His ONE AND ONLY SECOND COMING WOULD BE LIKE. He said: "For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be" (verse 27). Does this sound like a secret return? A secret rapture?

To leave absolutely NO DOUBT Jesus then said: "And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall SEE the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory" (verse 30). How can all the tribes of the earth see Him at His coming if it is a secret rapture?

These passages cannot be applied to a so-called first phase because it is at THIS PRECISE COMING that the saints are resurrected and gathered from the four corners of the earth (verse 31 — see also Mark 13:27). According to rapture theorists this gathering is to occur secretly at the time of the rapture.

 

Meet The Lord In The Air

Paul's inspired words, relating the truth of the resurrection of the dead in Christ and the transformation of the living, is another scripture often used by rapture theorists in an attempt to prove the secret rapture. "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" (I Thess. 4:16-17). The terminology "caught up" is supposed to designate the rapture.

I Corinthians 15 also talks of this same time. Paul states: "Behold, I show you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the LAST TRUMP: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed" (I Cor. 15:51-52).

Those who teach the rapture tell us that this is the time when Jesus Christ will return secretly to rapture His saints to heaven. Yet, we find this time identified as a singular time in all the history of the world. It is at the resurrection of the saints. It is also during the time of the last trumpet — the one and ONLY last trumpet.

This can only apply to one particular time in all the history of mankind.

There is only to be ONE last trumpet. At the sounding of THAT trumpet Jesus Christ is to return to this earth VISIBLY and ACTUALLY. Notice Revelation 1, verse 7: "Behold he cometh with clouds (exactly the same description we had in I Thess. 4:17); and every eye shall see him, they also which pierced him: and all the kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him."

The time of His return and the sounding of the last trumpet is also mentioned beginning in Revelation 8. "And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets" (verse 2). At the sounding of these trumpets, there are great plagues and cataclysmic events which occur on the earth. (Rev. 8:7-13 and Rev. 9:1-21)

Now notice Revelation 10:7; "But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall BEGIN TO SOUND, the mystery of God should be FINISHED, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets." Here is the mystery that Paul was describing in I Corinthians the fifteenth chapter! It is the time of the resurrection of the saints! Here is the sounding of the seventh and last trumpet! THIS IS THE ONE AND ONLY TIME SPOKEN OF. It is the return of JESUS CHRIST to this earth VISIBLY, when every eye shall see Him.

Now notice Revelation 11 beginning in Verse 15. "And the seventh angel sounded (sounding the last trumpet), and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever . . . and the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead" (Rev. 11:15, 17-18).

There can be NO DOUBT by these plain scriptures that NO SECRET RAPTURE is to occur.