Rapture

[death]

As everyone knows the word "rapture" isn't in the Bible. In this world their are those who say that we will be taken before the tribulation, some say mid-tribulation and others say end of the tribulation.. Would like to know ppl's reasons for believing the way they do, please backup with scripture.

[Nathan England]

Rapture is not in the Bible, but:

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 Thessalonians 4:16,17, KJV)

This is what we call rapture. The Lord Jesus Christ returning for his Church. We believe this happens _before_ the tribulation because of this:

For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
(I Thessalonians 5:9, KJV)

God has promised to spare us from his wrath, and this wrath in Thessalonians is particularly speaking about judgemental wrath, a direct attempt to get Israel's attention, in other words, the Tribulation. Therefore, I believe we will be removed before this happens.

[death]

But what about the following verses, they seem to point to a post tribulation......


Math. 24:29.....[29] Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
[30] 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.
[31] And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Mark 13:24-27 "But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun shall be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory. And then shall he send his angels, and shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from the uttermost part of the earth to the uttermost part of heaven.

[Nathan England]

Jesus was refering to a post tribulation here. But his church is already gone. Many people don't believe in a rapture, or have it confused with the Second Coming.

Jesus here, is stating that after the rapture, and after the 7 year tribulation on the earth, where God is going to judge Israel and make a final attempt to show them He is real and they need him, Jesus is going to return, this time, for the millenial kingdom.

The elect here, I believe, is Jesus refering to the Jewish witnesses turned Christian, the 140,000 witnessess.

I could be wrong here, and I'd like to see a response from Anthony or Jason, and of course Pastor, but this is what I see.