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By John John Benjamin

Updated August 2010

Please check out how all these Scriptures fit together so perfectly.  Like pieces to a great end time puzzle, they go together to form an even greater overall picture:

1st Thessalonians 4:16,17

16) 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".

17) 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.

The "RAISING OF THE DEAD" in verse 16 is known as the "RESURRECTION", and when the saints "RISE UP INTO THE AIR TO MEET THE LORD", or are "CAUGHT UP", as it says in verse 17, this is known as the "RAPTURE". 

According to this passage, BOTH OF THESE THINGS "HAPPEN TOGETHER SIMULTANEOUSLY", and  BOTH ARE PART OF "SAME EVENT":  "THE RESURRECTION AND RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH". 

THE DEAD COME BACK TO LIFE, AND INSTANTLY BEGIN TO RISE UP INTO THE AIR, AND THEN THE LIVING FOLLOW ALONG AFTER THEM,  IN NEW "RESURRECTION BODIES", like Jesus had when He rose from the dead, that are spoken of elsewhere in the Scriptures as being impervious now to pain, sickness, and death; and are "LIKE UNTO THE ANGELS!"

The words "CAUGHT UP" come from the Latin word "RAPTIO" from which we get our modern word "RAPTURE."  This literally means to "RISE UP INTO THE AIR".  

Well this "SAME EXACT RESURRECTION EVENT"  is also spoken of in even greater detail in verse 5 of Revelation 20:4- 6:

Revelation 20:4-6

4) And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: AND I SAW THE SOULS OF THEM THAT WERE BEHEADED FOR THE WITNESS OF JESUS, AND FOR THE WORD OF GOD, AND WHICH HAD NOT WORSHIPED THE BEAST, NEITHER HIS IMAGE, NEITHER HAD RECEIVED HIS MARK UPON THEIR FOREHEADS OR IN THEIR HANDS, and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

5) But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished.

THIS IS THE "FIRST" RESURRECTION.

6) Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the FIRST RESURRECTION: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.

Notice the term "FIRST RESURRECTION" in verse 5?  That means that this would have to be speaking of the "SAME EXACT RESURRECTION EVENT" that we just read about in 1st Thessalonians chapter 4. 

How could the "RESURRECTION" spoken of in  1st Thessalonians 4 come "BEFORE" this resurrection spoken of here; since it says plainly that this particular resurrection is the "FIRST RESURRECTION"? 

If it is the "FIRST RESURRECTION", THEN NO OTHER RESURRECTION COULD COME BEFORE IT!  RIGHT?  If that were to happen, then it would not  be the "FIRST" one?

And if the RAPTURE, and the RESURRECTION  "OCCUR TOGETHER SIMULTANEOUSLY",  in 1st Thessalonians 4:16 & 17, as we have shown; THEN THEY MUST ALSO "OCCUR TOGETHER SIMULTANEOUSLY" HERE AT "THIS RESURRECTION" SPOKEN OF IN REVELATION  20:4- 6!  RIGHT?

So according to this "pairing together" of these two areas of Scripture, THE "RAPTURE" MUST ALSO OCCUR HERE AT THIS "SAME EXACT TIME", WHICH "HAS" TO BE SPEAKING OF THE "SAME RESURRECTION"; THE "FIRST RESURRECTION"!

So here is where I'm going with all this:  Please notice in Revelation 20:4 that THIS PARTICULAR MENTION OF THE RESURRECTION COMES "AFTER" THESE PEOPLE WERE "BEHEADED" BY THE ANTICHRIST, FOR REFUSING TO TAKE THE MARK OF THE BEAST?  THAT MEANS THAT THEY WERE "OBVIOUSLY" STILL HERE ON EARTH DURING THE COMING ANTICHRIST'S REIGN:

And also, since the RAPTURE and the RESURRECTION "OCCUR TOGETHER" here too; which we have just established, then this means that the RAPTURE  ITSELF cannot come until "AFTER" the Antichrist's cruel reign upon earth, according to the Scriptural evidence I've presented so far.  

SO THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH "HAS" TO COME "AFTER" THE OPPRESSIVE AND CRUEL REIGN OF THE ANTICHRIST ACCORDING TO HOW THESE SCRIPTURES GO TOGETHER WITH EACH OTHER!   There is no getting around it.  It's in PLAIN BLACK AND WHITE, and cannot happen any other way, or these Scriptures cannot be true!

So this is all TOTALLY CONTRARY to the modern false Church teaching called "PRE-TRIBULATIONAL RAPTURE", in which they have the "good" Christians being raptured out "BEFORE" the Antichrist comes and rules and reigns upon the earth in the end, and the "disobedient" Christians "left behind" to suffer during this time. 

According to this Pre-Trib teaching, the Christians that are beheaded here are those "disobedient ones" who weren't prepared for the Lord's return, and didn't make it in the rapture, and this "beheading" is part of thier punishment.  That's odd; 10 of the 12 original disciples were "martyred" for the Lord, as well as MILLIONS down through history; who were totally committed, sold out disciples?

Were they being punished for disobedience?  I dare say not!  Their "martyrdom" was considered a "great honor" for them in heaven.  What does it say that the Lord does to these people when they are "judged" here?  It says that they get the "special honor" of RULING AND REIGNING with Him through the entire thousand year period of the Millennium:  Hardly a "chastisement" for "bad behavior and disobedience"?  More like "the greatest honor that Christ can bestow upon His closest followers"!

So to summarize these things we've covered so far:  We have clearly established that these two particular "resurrection events" spoken of in these two different areas of Scripture have to be speaking about THE VERY SAME RESURRECTION; THE "FIRST RESURRECTION".

We have also established that the RESURRECTION and the RAPTURE  "OCCUR TOGETHER"; both being "integral parts" of the same event of "rising up into the air to meet the Lord".  So therefore, the RAPTURE that occurs during the RESURRECTION spoken of in 1st Thessalonians 4 also has to occur during the SAME RESURRECTION spoken of in Revelation 20.

And we have also established from these passages out of Revelation, that this all happens "AFTER" the Antichrist's cruel reign of persecution:  So therefore, this particular Church teaching that the Christians that are "beheaded" here, were just "disobedient Christians" who were "left behind" to suffer, is simply not true, because according to these passages out of Revelation, "ALL CHRISTIANS", THAT ARE STILL ALIVE, ARE STILL HERE ON EARTH DURING THIS TIME, SINCE THE "RAPTURE" CANNOT HAVE OCCURRED YET! 

So the present Church teachings on all this are very wrong, and are leading people down a terribly dangerous path by building their Faith on a wrong and false doctrine that may end up actually "destroying" the Faith of many, when things do not turn out the way that their most honored and revered Pastors, leaders, and teachers have guided, or rather "mis-guided" them. 

So the main point that I am trying to make here, and what I hope you can now clearly see from all that has been presented thus far; is that 1st Thessalonians 4, which is the favorite Scriptural passage, and "darling" of the Pre-Trib believers in their teachings, that they refer to over and over as being the very "RAPTURE ITSELF" - CANNOT OCCUR UNTIL THE ANTICHRIST COMES FIRST AND PERSECUTES THE CHURCH, EVEN "BEHEADING" MANY ! 

Both of these "RESURRECTIONS" HAVE to be speaking of the "SAME RESURRECTION"!   One cannot come BEFORE THE OTHER, and the one in Revelation clearly gives us a "TIME FRAME" for this great event, as occurring AFTER the Antichrist's reign. 

So like a legal attorney laying out a case before a judge in court, I am trying to lay out for you over and over, the clear Scriptural evidence for what I am trying to explain, from the "Law Book" of the Lord, to and show the truth from the Scriptures here on just how all these events are layed out on the Lord's time line: 

I have repeated it over and over here for you from many different angles so that hopefully you will see that "THERE IS NO WAY AROUND IT" , and "NO ARGUING WITH THIS EVIDENCE"!  

WHAT IT SAYS IS VERY CLEAR, IN PLAIN BLACK AND WHITE, AND CANNOT BE TAKEN ANY OTHER WAY THAN TO MEAN EXACTLY WHAT IT IS SAYING!  This argument would stand up in a court of law, because the evidence is very clear and "indisputable".  So also will all the Scriptural evidence that is presented in the rest of this study, from other Scriptures too: 

Doctrines and teachings out of the Bible should be built on ROCK SOLID VERSES THAT CANNOT BE TAKEN ANY OTHER WAY THAN TO MEAN EXACTLY WHAT THEY ARE SAYING IN PLAIN BLACK AND WHITE!  This is how "SOUND BIBLE DOCTRINE" should be built; "precept upon precept", and "line upon line". 

Teaching from the Scriptures should be built upon a SOLID FOUNDATION, of verses that state things VERY PLAINLY, that cannot be taken any other way than to mean EXACTLY what they are saying. 

Doctrines should never be built on "CLOUDY, NEBULOUS VERSES" that you have to "read a lot into", and that can be taken any number of ways.  This is like "building your house on sand!  

Sadly, what I have just described here sums up the vast majority of the doctrines of most of the modern Churches, and what they teach, on many subjects.  They make up "comfortable teachings" that are "built on sand", and unfortunately will not stand the tests of adversity that are coming!

The prophet Isaiah presents a very interesting passage of Scripture that, sadly, seems to be speaking of many of our modern preachers and Bible teachers, who are supposed to be our "watchmen", warning us of impending disaster, trouble, and "tribulation" before it comes:

Isaiah 56:10,11

10)  HIS WATCHMEN ARE BLIND:  THEY ARE ALL IGNORANT, THEY ARE ALL DUMB DOGS, THEY CANNOT BARK; SLEEPING, LYING DOWN, LOVING TO SLUMBER."

( Many of them like the "easy life" and aren't warning anyone of the terrible end time events that are coming, by "barking", or "speaking out loudly " to let us know of the terrible disasters that lie directly ahead.)

11)  YEA, THEY ARE "GREEDY DOGS" WHICH CAN NEVER HAVE ENOUGH, AND THEY ARE SHEPHERDS THAT CANNOT UNDERSTAND:  THEY ALL LOOK TO THEIR OWN WAY, EVERY ONE FOR HIS "GAIN" FROM HIS QUARTER.

( Many of them are JUST OUT FOR THE MONEY, and even TEACH FALSE DOCTRINES ABOUT MONEY, MONEY, MONEY!  They all look to their own congregations for their "gain" or how much money they will get this week and next week.  Sadly this is the main focus of many of them.)

But let's go on with our study here in linking together Scriptures that speak of the "same events", and go together to form a very clear overall picture of what's coming so the Lord's people will truly be prepared:

In Revelation 20:4- 6, it also speaks of a "JUDGMENT OF THE SAINTS" occurring at this resurrection, in which they are rewarded for remaining faithful unto death, during the Antichrist’s persecution. 

It appears that they are RAISED FROM THE DEAD IN THE RAPTURE, and then JUDGED AND  REWARDED BY THE LORD FOR THEIR GREAT FAITHFULNESS, "EVEN UNTO DEATH".  

They get to "rule and reign" with Christ during the Millennium, or thousand year reign of Jesus.  Well this even links together directly with another set of Scriptures that speak very clearly about this SAME EXACT EVENT!

This very same "JUDGMENT EVENT", and "REWARDING OF THE SAINTS" is also spoken of in Revelation 11:15-18, as coming at the blowing of the "7th AND LAST TRUMPET OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD".  THIS, THEREFORE PLACES THE RAPTURE AND RESURRECTION OF THE SAINTS AT THE BLOWING OF THIS SAME 7th AND LAST TRUMPET:  

Revelation 11:15-18  (with special emphasis on verses 15 & 18)

15) AND THE SEVENTH ANGEL SOUNDED; 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.

16) And the four and twenty elders which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshiped God,

17) Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power and hast reigned.

18) And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, "AND THE TIME OF THE DEAD THAT THEY SHOULD BE JUDGED", AND THAT THOU SHOULDEST "GIVE REWARD UNTO THY SERVANTS THE PROPHETS, AND TO THE SAINTS, AND THEM THAT FEAR THY NAME SMALL AND GREAT"; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

As you can see, verse 15 plainly states that "THE SEVENTH ANGEL SOUNDED".   This is the blowing of the 7th AND LAST TRUMPET OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD! 

As you can see by verse 18, it indicates that AT THIS TIME, THE DEAD IN CHRIST ARE "JUDGED", and God gives his servants and prophets, small and great, their rewards for meritorious service.  So this must mean that they are "RAISED FROM THE DEAD" here:  Because how could the Lord "reward" them if they arent?

Please also notice the term "JUDGED"?  "The time of the dead that they should be "JUDGED" is quite obviously referring to the same "JUDGMENT OF THE SAINTS" we just read about that occurs at the "RESURRECTION", in Revelation 20:4- 6; which we have also linked directly to 1st Thessalonians 4:16 & 17 and THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH! 

So therefore the phrase, "THE TIME OF THE DEAD THAT THEY SHOULD BE JUDGED, AND THAT THOU SHOULDEST GIVE REWARD UNTO THY SERVANTS THE PROPHETS, AND TO THE SAINTS, AND THEM THAT FEAR THY NAME SMALL AND GREAT",  obviously also refers to THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH, OR RESURRECTION AND "RAISING OF THE DEAD"! 

So by linking these verses all together by the association of the same events involved in each one; we see that this event of the "RAPTURE, RESURRECTION, JUDGMENT, AND REWARDING OF THE SAINTS" comes here at the blowing of the 7th and "LAST TRUMPET", which signifies the END OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD!  So we have also now shown clearly that the RAPTURE will not come until the END OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD!

THE GREAT APOSTLE PAUL SPOKE OF THE DEAD BEING RAISED AT THE BLOWING OF THIS "LAST TRUMPET" IN 1st CORINTHIANS 15:

1 Corinthians 15: 51 & 52:  

51) Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,

52) 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.

Lets focus in on this final "TRUMPET BLOWING" now for a minute:  You will notice that there is also mention of a "TRUMPET BEING BLOWN"  in 1 Thessalonians 4: 16 & 17 above?   WELL THERE IS ALSO MENTION OF A "TRUMPET BEING BLOWN" AT THE SECOND COMING OF THE LORD IN MATTHEW 24:31.  

AS A MATTER OF FACT, THERE ARE THREE IDENTICAL ELEMENTS THAT ARE FOUND IN  1ST THESSALONIANS  4:16 & 17 THAT ARE ALSO FOUND IN MATTHEW  24: 29-31; SHOWING CLEARLY THAT  THESE TWO AREAS OF SCRIPTURE ARE ALSO RELATED TO EACH OTHER, AND THEREFORE SPEAKING OF THE SAME EXACT EVENT: THE "RAPTURE" AND "RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD"!  

PLEASE NOTE THESE THREE IDENTICAL ELEMENTS IN EACH SET OF SCRIPTURES BELOW:

1) THE LORD RETURNS TO EARTH AND DESCENDS FROM HEAVEN:

2) A GREAT TRUMPET IS BLOWN: 

3) THE LORD'S PEOPLE "RISE IN THE AIR" TO MEET HIM IN HEAVEN!

- PLEASE OBSERVE THESE THREE THINGS MENTIONED IN 1st THESSALONIANS  4:16,17:

1st Thessalonians 4:16,17

16)  FOR THE LORD HIMSELF SHALL DESCEND FROM HEAVEN WITH A SHOUT, 

          1) (The Lord returns to earth and descends from heaven.) 

   ...with the voice of the Archangel, AND THE "TRUMP" OF GOD:

          2) (A great trumpet is blown.) 

   ...and the DEAD IN CHRIST SHALL RISE FIRST: 

17)  THEN WE WHICH ARE ALIVE AND REMAIN SHALL BE "CAUGHT UP" TOGETHER WITH THEM  "IN THE CLOUDS", "TO MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR": 

         3) (The Lord's people "rise in the air" to meet Him in heaven.) 

- NOW PLEASE OBSERVE THE SAME THREE THINGS SPOKEN OF IN

MATTHEW 24:29-31:

Matthew 24:29-31

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". 

        1) ( Once again: The Lord returns to earth and descends from heaven.)

31) AND HE SHALL SEND HIS ANGELS WITH A GREAT SOUND OF A "TRUMPET",

        2) (Once again: a great trumpet is blown.)  

AND THEY SHALL "GATHER TOGETHER" HIS ELECT FROM THE FOUR WINDS, FROM ONE END OF HEAVEN TO THE OTHER".   

       3) (Once again: The Lord's people "are gathered together" to meet Him in heaven.)

MATTHEW 24:31  REFERS TO THIS EVENT BY THE "ORIGINAL" NAME THE LORD GAVE IT; "THE GATHERING UNTO CHRIST".   EARLY CHRISTIANS REFERRED TO THIS EVENT USING THIS WORD "GATHERING", NOT THE WORD "RAPTURE!"

BUT THE MAIN POINT HERE IS THAT THESE TWO AREAS OF SCRIPTURE ARE SPEAKING OF THE SAME EXACT EVENT:  THE RAPTURE AND RESURRECTION OF GOD'S PEOPLE!  

This clearly shows that "THE GATHERING UNTO CHRIST" to meet Him in the air, is the "SAME EXACT EVENT" referred to in 1st Thessalonians 4 as "THE RAPTURE" which, as previously stated, simply means "to rise up into the air", or "raptio".  So "THE GATHERING UNTO CHRIST" and "THE RAPTURE" are the SAME THING!

As I said, the early Christians referred to this event using the terminology that Jesus used here in Matthew, as "THE GATHERING"!  The use of the term "RAPTURE" must have come along later, in Latin translations, as people began to use the terminology in 1st Thessalonians 4, to describe this event, that was translated from the term "raptio" meaning "caught up"? 

Satan, as a wise commanding general must have sat back and studied this all out and saw that he had to draw people's attention away from the term "GATHERING UNTO CHRIST", and to place it upon this "new term" - "RAPTIO", and then to try to "disassociate" the two terms, so that he could make them look like "two separate events", that are totally unrelated; because IT IS VERY APPARENT AND HARD TO ARGUE WITH WHERE THE "GATHERING UNTO CHRIST" COMES:

MATTHEW 24:29-31  VERY PLAINLY SAYS THAT THIS "GREAT GATHERING" COMES "IMMEDIATELY AFTER" THE TRIBULATION PERIOD, AND NOT BEFORE!   SO THIS IS AN INDISPUTABLE "FACT" OF SCRIPTURE!   

So Satan saw that he had to "disassociate" these two "descriptive terms" of this great "GATHERING" unto Christ and this so-called "RAPTURE" or "catching up"; and to try to make it look like they are speaking of TWO ENTIRELY DIFFERENT EVENTS! 

Then he could make a new false teaching to "set up" the end time Church for one of the BIGGEST DISASTERS IN IT'S HISTORY; hopefully destroying the Faith of millions, by making it appear that this event would happen BEFORE the Antichrist comes, instead of AFTER as the Bible plainly says.

When it does not occur as they have said, it will look like Christianity is a false religion, and many people will lose their Faith.  It even speaks of a "great falling away" from the Christian Faith at this time, which I will speak of shortly; probably either "caused" by this erroneous teaching, or at least "facilitated" by it!

Satan entered the Church with this false teaching through yielded vessels, or false teachers that Paul said would enter the Church over time with "damnable heresies" that would trip up and stumble many and cause them to fall away from the Faith.  This was all prophesied to come in many areas of Scripture.

So what has been presented so far here is very strong Scriptural evidence against a "pre-tribulational rapture" of any sort.  In fact, it makes this all quite plain!  THESE VERSES I'VE PRESENTED HERE CANNOT BE TAKEN ANY OTHER WAY THAN TO MEAN EXACTLY WHAT THEY ARE SAYING IN PLAIN BLACK AND WHITE!  

However, most all of the verses in the pre-tribulational teaching, CAN be taken another way, and interpreted to mean that, instead of being raptured out prematurely, we are merely "kept" by the lord and protected right here on this earth until he returns to take us out.

This is what Jesus said in John 17: 15, "I PRAY NOT THAT YOU SHOULD TAKE THEM OUT OF THE WORLD, BUT THAT YOU SHOULD "KEEP" THEM FROM THE EVIL." 

Speaking of the "blowing of the 7th trumpet" in Revelation; that particular event is spoken of TWICE; and there is even another "proof" from the "other" mention of this "last trumpet being blown" that is associated with the RAPTURE coming at the VERY END, instead of 3 1/2 or 7 years before, as is taught in the Pre-Tribulational teaching:

Revelation 10:5-7

5)  And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven,

6)  And swear by Him that liveth forever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, THAT THERE SHOULD BE TIME NO LONGER:

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.

So as you can plainly see, when the 7th Angel begins to "sound", or "blow his trumpet", it signifies THAT TIME SHALL BE NO MORE!   IT WILL BE THE END OF TIME FOR GOD'S PEOPLE!  NO MORE "COUNTING OF DAYS AND YEARS!"  WE WILL ENTER ETERNITY, where it will just always be "RIGHT NOW" all the time, FOREVER!

Well in light of that, please take note of just exactly "WHEN" Jesus Himself said that He would RAISE PEOPLE UP FROM THE DEAD, or "RESURRECT" THEM in the Book of John:

John 6:37-40

37)  All that the Father giveth Me shall come to Me; and him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.

38)  For I came down from heaven, not to do Mine own will, but the will of Him that sent Me.

39)  And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing, but should  "RAISE IT UP AGAIN AT THE LAST DAY".

40)  And this is the will of Him that sent Me, that everyone which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life:  AND I WILL "RAISE HIM UP"-"AT THE LAST DAY".

As you can see from these Scriptures, Jesus Himself said that He would "RAISE UP" or "RESURRECT" His followers "AT" (or "on") THE LAST DAY; or the "LAST DAY OF RECORDED TIME"; or what we just read about in Revelation above where it says that "TIME SHALL BE NO MORE!"

(In the ancient Greek texts, the words "at", "in", and "on" are the same word.  The Bible translators could have chosen to use any of them.  "On" would have probably been a better choice of words here...)

So the blowing of the 7th and LAST TRUMPET, signifies the "LAST DAY OF RECORDED TIME" for the followers of Christ, and Jesus indicated here in John 6 that He would "RAISE UP" OR "RESURRECT" THOSE WHO HAVE MADE THE DECISION TO BELIEVE IN HIM, AT WHAT WOULD BE THIS SAME EXACT "END OF TIME", or "LAST DAY"... the LAST DAY OF RECORD OF RECORDED TIME, THE VERY END!

So once again here is another "proof" that the RAPTURE, or "RAISING UP" does not come until THE VERY END... THE "LAST" DAY!  It cannot come 3 1/2 or 7 years before this time, OR JESUS WAS WRONG HERE!   I REALLY DON'T THINK THAT THAT IS THE CASE.  I think the Pre-Tribulational concept and teaching is what is wrong here.

These two particular teachings, or concepts concerning the "blowing of the 7th and LAST TRUMPET", are referred to as "Last Trumpet Theology".  Many do not accept or believe in it, for obvious reasons.  It is not a "comfortable teaching". 

Again, the great Prophet Isaiah speaks about people who just want to hear "comfortable teachings", and not things that "hurt their ears", or cause them to have to "think about tough hard things":

Isaiah 30:9,10

9)  ...THIS IS A REBELLIOUS PEOPLE, LYING CHILDREN, CHILDREN THAT WILL NOT HEAR "THE LAW OF THE LORD": 

10)  WHICH SAY TO THE SEERS, SEE NOT; AND TO THE PROPHETS, PROPHESY NOT UNTO US "RIGHT THINGS", SPEAK UNTO US "SMOOTH THINGS", PROPHESY "DECEITS":

WOW!  WHAT AN INCREDIBLE DESCRIPTION OF THE GREATER MAJORITY OF THE TEACHINGS OF THE MODERN "COMFORT-SEEKING" CHURCHES AND THEIR DOCTRINES; FROM "RICHES AND PROSPERITY" TO "PRE-TRIBULATIONAL RAPTURE"!   ...THE MODERN "CADILLAC CHRISTIANITY!" 

We should all be RICH, and FAMOUS, and WELL RESPECTED, and NEVER GET SICK OR HAVE A TOUGH DAY IN OUR LIVES, according to the modern false teachings of many.  And just think:  WE'LL ALL BE RAPTURED OUT BEFORE ANYTHING BAD HAPPENS TO US!  HOW CONVENIENT!

DON'T PAY ANY ATTENTION TO CHURCH HISTORY, OR ALL THE "MARTYRS" WHO HAVE DIED FOR THE LORD ALL DOWN THROUGH TIME!  DON'T LOOK AT CHURCH HISTORY OF WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO CHRISTIANS DURING THE LAST 2,000 YEARS! 

When was the last time any of these modern Churches recommended reading through the HISTORY of the Church for the last 2,000 years; or had a modern "Bible teacher" or "theologian" write anything about it?  THEY DON'T!  Because what happened to Christians in nearly every century for the last 2,000 years FLIES IN THE FACE of their modern "COMFORTABLE TEACHINGS"!

But getting back to our study of this particular subject of "THE RAPTURE"; DID YOU KNOW THAT THIS MARVELOUS EVENT OF THE "GATHERING UNTO CHRIST" IS EVEN SPOKEN OF IN THE PSALMS?

Psalms 50:3-5

3) OUR GOD SHALL COME, and shall not keep silence: A fire shall devour before Him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about Him. 

(He will return to earth in the Second Coming.)

4) HE SHALL "CALL" TO THE HEAVENS FROM ABOVE, AND TO THE EARTH, that he may "JUDGE HIS PEOPLE".  

(He shall "descend from heaven with a shout...")

(notice also the judgment of His saints that occurs at this same time just as shown in the Scriptures above?  ...that He may "judge" His people?)

5) "GATHER MY SAINTS TOGETHER UNTO ME"; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice." 

(Notice the use of the term "gather" once again, just like in Matthew 24?  ..."THE GATHERING?)

( the "sacrifice" mentioned is the Lord Jesus' atonement for our sins on Calvary. )

1st Thessalonians 4:16 says that the Lord will "descend from heaven with a shout?" Perhaps Psalms 50:4 & 5 tell us "what" He will shout when He returns?  ("Gather My saints together unto Me...")

This same "rapture term", "GATHERING TOGETHER" is also used in 2 Thessalonians 2:1; and like Revelation 20:4- 6, THIS CHAPTER STATES VERY PLAINLY AND CLEARLY THAT THE ANTICHRIST MUST COME "FIRST" AND RULE AND REIGN, BEFORE JESUS COMES TO GATHER US UNTO HIMSELF!

THIS, IN FACT, AS I HOPE YOU WILL SEE; IS THE WHOLE REASON THIS CHAPTER WAS EVEN WRITTEN IN THE FIRST PLACE; TO MAKE THIS ONE SPECIFIC POINT:  THAT THE "ANTICHRIST MUST COME FIRST"!   THIS IS THE "MAIN SUBJECT" AND "THEME" OF THIS CHAPTER, AND THE "ENTIRE REASON THAT IT WAS EVEN WRITTEN":

2 Thessalonians chapter 2:1-13:

1) "Now we beseech you, brethren, BY THE COMING OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST, AND BY OUR "GATHERING TOGETHER UNTO HIM",  

(From this introduction we can see that this chapter is going to deal with that particular coming of the Lord in which we are "gathered together unto Him") (That would be "the rapture", which I hope you can plainly see from the evidence presented so far...)

2) "That ye be not soon shaken in mind or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, AS THAT THE DAY OF CHRIST IS AT HAND."

(According to some historical accounts, someone falsely wrote the Thessalonians and told them they had missed the rapture, and signed Paul’s name to the letter.  So now Paul tells them not to believe any such false reports, because before Jesus returns to "gather" us unto Himself, the Antichrist must COME FIRST and sit in the temple claiming to be God; causing a great falling away from the Christian faith:)

3) Let no man deceive you by any means: FOR "THAT DAY" SHALL "NOT" COME, except there come a "FALLING AWAY FIRST", AND THAT MAN OF SIN BE REVEALED, THE SON OF PERDITION;  ( the Antichrist )

4) who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called god, or that is worshiped; SO THAT HE, AS GOD, SITTETH IN THE TEMPLE OF GOD, SHOWING HIMSELF THAT HE "IS GOD".

"THAT DAY", according to verse one, IS THE DAY OF CHRIST'S COMING AND OUR SUBSEQUENT "GATHERING TOGETHER UNTO HIM", OR "RAPTURE":  AND THESE VERSES MAKE IT "VERY CLEAR" THAT, THAT DAY SHALL "NOT" COME, UNTIL THE ANTICHRIST, or "SON OF PERDITION" COMES "FIRST" AND SITS IN THE TEMPLE CLAIMING TO BE GOD HIMSELF!

Notice also the clear warning here not to listen to men who might try to deceive us into thinking that this can happen some other way?  Jesus said in Matthew 24:3- 5 that in the end time, "MANY" WOULD COME IN "HIS NAME", "DECEIVING MANY"; SPECIFICALLY CONCERNING what would be the "SIGN OF HIS COMING", and the "END OF THE WORLD"!   (In other words...THE TIMING OF THE RAPTURE!)

Is this happening today?  Are there many today teaching that Jesus will come first and rapture us out, instead of the Antichrist coming first like this plainly says?  Can this be taken any other way than to mean exactly what it is saying in plain black and white?

As I said, many of today’s preachers and teachers are putting the Church to sleep with comfortable teachings, by telling them that they will be raptured out before all these coming troubles, instead of preparing God’s people to stand strong through these coming perilous times.

This is exactly what happened to the Churches in China right before Mao Tse Tung came through and began slaughtering them by the thousands.  The Chinese Church leaders that survived begged the great lady evangelist, Corrie Ten Boom, to warn the American churches not to make this same mistake, by telling their people that they will be taken out by the Lord before suffering any tribulation in their lives.

Corrie, as you know was the great saint who suffered so terribly in a German concentration camp, along with her sister, for the crime of hiding Jews in her Dad's house and Clock Shop in Germany during the days of Hitler in WW ll.  She was ministering to some of the Chinese pastors who survived Mao's purges when she was approached by them and presented with this message.

Her warnings have gone largely unheeded.  Corrie Ten Boom said, "There are some among us teaching that there will be no tribulation, that the Christians will be able to escape all this".  "These are the FALSE TEACHERS Jesus was warning us to expect in the latter days."  WOW! 

Only Corrie could get away with saying something of this magnitude.  Notice that this powerful message by her was never published by the Church shows on television and radio?  In fact it wasn't mentioned at all, except by a rare few true and good publishers such as Omega Ministries; and James and Jeani Mc Keever.

Corrie said to prepare for coming tribulation by memorizing important Bible verses and key passages, as the Lord leads; and that this is what she and her sister wished they had done more of, before they were arrested and placed in the Ravensbruk concentration camp in Germany during world war two.

The Antichrist may try to destroy all the Bibles and stamp out the Word of God, as many of the cruel dictators and world leaders have done all down through time.  If they couldn't burn all the Bibles, they kept them in another language and made it against the law to translate it into the language of the common people, or tried in some way to control what was preached out of it or printed, so that it favored them and "hid" the truth of the Gospel. 

The only Bible some of us may have in the days ahead is what we have memorized and hidden away in our hearts.  Begin by memorizing key passages that the Holy Spirit makes stand out to you.  

Amos speaks of this coming event, and says that in the end time, there will be a famine for hearing the Words of the Lord; and that people will travel all over the world searching for the Word of the Lord, and shall not find it.  (Amos 8: 11 & 12)  There will be a "famine" for hearing the Words of the Lord, because people will be "losing their heads" for preaching it!

So memorizing key Bible passages is something we should all take quite seriously and begin doing in earnest.  On with our chapter…

5) Remember ye not, that, when I was yet with you, I told you these things?

(Paul had obviously, already told these folks before that THE ANTICHRIST MUST COME FIRST,  yet they had forgotten or overlooked this upon receiving this demonic letter telling them they had missed the rapture. So Paul is chiding them, "Don’t you remember I told you the Antichrist must come first?"  "You haven’t seen this happen yet have you?"  "Have you seen him sitting in the temple claiming to be God?"  "How could you have believed this false report?")

6) And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in His time.

(And now you know what has to happen first, before the Lord is revealed in His time…the Antichrist must come first!)

7) For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only He who now letteth will let, until He be taken out of the way.

Out of this entire chapter, verse 7 here is the only verse that is used in the pre-tribulational teaching!  They blindly ignore the first 6 verses in this chapter which directly prove they are wrong, and teach that verse 7 means that the Holy Spirit is taken from the earth, and that therefore we must go with it in the rapture.

That is one heck of a lot to read into this verse!  This is what I was speaking about earlier in this study about building doctrine on "cloudy, nebulous verses" that can be taken "any number of ways", and NOT stating things in PLAIN BLACK AND WHITE!?

This just says "until He be taken OUT OF THE WAY?"  It doesn’t say to where?  That could happen right here on this earth.  This verse mentions nothing specific about a "catching away" or a "rapture"; and it could simply mean that the Holy Spirit steps aside and lets evil come forth to fulfill it’s end time role.

To read all this into this one short verse, while blindly ignoring the first 6 verses before it, which state things totally contrary to this view in "plain black and white", that cannot be taken any other way than to mean JUST EXACTLY WHAT THEY ARE SAYING, is in my opinion, very dangerous.  Yet this very view sums up the belief system of the vast majority of the modern Church of today.

Some of these doctrines being taught in the modern American Church are rather like buying a car.  If you don’t look too closely, or pay very close attention to detail, you will buy the first thing that comes along and think you got a good deal; till it quickly falls apart!

The car dealers will polish it all up and make even a junk heap look good, and if you don’t look too closely, you just might buy it.  If you go over these verses and read them quickly, not paying much attention to detail, you will easily be deceived by some of the modern teaching on them!

If you examine the pre-tribulational position on this subject closely, you will see that in order to believe this teaching, you would have to go back to verse 3 and change it to read: that day "SHALL" come first before the man of sin sits in the temple claiming to be God";  instead of how it presently reads, "that day "SHALL NOT" come.  You would have to directly alter it so that it reads EXACTLY THE OPPOSITE of what it presently says.

You would think that folks would see that by doing this, they set themselves up as "DECEIVERS" according to the first part of this verse?

THIS VERSE SHOULD "SCARE THE DAYLIGHTS" OUT OF THESE PEOPLE AND FALSE TEACHERS! 

IT SHOULD MAKE THEM EXAMINE WHAT THEY ARE TEACHING VERY CLOSELY AND CAREFULLY!   FOLKS, IT IS NOT A "LIGHT THING" TO ALTER THE SCRIPTURES IN THIS WAY; yet this is, in fact, EXACTLY what many; even most, are doing.

It really appears that these folks are unknowingly fulfilling Jesus prophecy in Matthew 24:3- 5, by DECEIVING people concerning the "SIGN OF HIS COMING," and "THE END OF THE WORLD", and the PROPER TIMING of the "GATHERING" or "RAPTURE". 

This is the MAIN THING that the disciples were really worried about here, and asking the Lord about.  "WHEN ARE YOU GOING TO COME AND RESCUE US AND SET UP YOUR KINGDOM"?

That is exactly what they are doing by telling them it’s going to happen some other way than what He said in plain black and white!  "IMMEDIATELY AFTER"  IS PRETTY HARD TO ARGUE WITH! 

THE SIGNS OF HIS COMING ARE CLEARLY LAID OUT BY HIM, AND THESE PEOPLE ARE TEACHING US THAT WE WILL NOT EVEN BE HERE TO WITNESS THESE VERY SAME "SIGNS" THAT HE TOLD US VERY SPECIFICALLY TO LOOK FOR!   (For more specific details, please see all of Matthew 24.)

Some teach that, "perhaps the coming of the Lord spoken of here is the 'DAY OF THE LORD', as it is referred to in other areas of Scripture; and that 'perhaps' it is a 7 year period, instead of something that just happens in an instant on one certain day".

"Perhaps He comes and raptures us out at the beginning of this period, and then the Antichrist comes and rules for 7 more years, after we are raptured out, and then Jesus returns once again at the end of this 7 year period"?

The key word in this belief is "PERHAPS"...   That makes it a theory, yet it is taught and accepted as fact. 

THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO SCRIPTURAL EVIDENCE TO BACK UP THIS FALSE NOTION AT ALL!   ...NOT A SINGLE VERSE CONNECTING THE FINAL 7 YEAR PERIOD OF END TIME BIBLE PROPHECY TO SPANNING THE LENGTH OF THE TIME PERIOD REFERRED TO AS "THE DAY OF THE LORD"!  

NOWHERE DOES THE BIBLE DIRECTLY SAY THIS IN PLAIN BLACK AND WHITE LIKE THE OTHER SCRIPTURES I HAVE PRESENTED HERE!  Once again, this entire concept is built on "cloudy, nebulous verses" that can be taken any number of ways, and that do not specifically say this clearly!

But even if you adopt this particular view; according to verse 3, of 2 Thessalonians 2, the Antichrist would STILL have to come "FIRST" before the "VERY FIRST DAY" of this 7 year period to fulfill this prophecy properly; or once again, you would have to alter verse 3 to read, "that day "SHALL" come before the Antichrist sits in the temple claiming to be God;" rather than as it presently reads, that day "SHALL NOT" come.

Most of the people who believe this lie just throw their hands up into the air at this point, and some even start yelling in anger at you.  They just can't stand to hear the truth about this subject and often go into a "fiery rage".  They look at the verses and you can just see a "spirit of blindness" come over their eyes like "cataracts"! 

They "fog out" and just cannot seem to see what you are trying to say no matter what direction you attack it from or how you hold it for them to see;  "up-side-down", "side ways", "from the back"; OR STRAIGHT ON FROM THE FRONT IN PLAIN ENGLISH!  

You can use "muppets" or a "slide-show", you can "stand on your head".  You can beat your head against a wall.  You can "gesticulate wildly" with your hands and feet, and "leap around in circles"! 

You can hire the Blue Angels to write it in smoke across the sky in F-18 Fighter planes.  You can have the Goodyear Blimp fly it around the football games written on a banner trailing behind it in GIANT LETTERS  ...and it's like..."NOTHING'S THERE FOLKS!" 

"NOTHING'S COMING ACROSS THE SCREEN!?"  The old "Roledex" just isn't pulling up any files!   ...a blank screen!   TOTAL BLINDNESS! 

 This has to be one of the GREATEST STRONGHOLDS OF SATAN UPON THE GREATER MIND OF THE CHURCH AS A WHOLE THAT THERE IS; and boy does he get mad when you come along preaching the truth on this.

Any time the devil has made a deep stronghold in the minds of men, such as he has done with this erroneous teaching in the greater majority of the modern so-called "Church system", and you come along preaching the truth, THERE ARE GOING TO BE "FIREWORKS"! 

Satan just doesn't like losing ground.  He has worked OVERTIME, and VERY HARD to set the Church up for the greatest "sucker-punch" that he's ever given it in it's history with this false teaching; and he'll  "sucker-punch" YOU,  if you come along preaching the truth.  Just try it and see!

He hopes to "knock out" the greater majority of Christians and Christianity IN ONE PUNCH with this total, unscriptural lie, when things do not pan out the way people have been set up to believe they will.

Does this seem like a small thing to be harping on to you?  Not worth arguing about or even discussing?  That's the standard "cop out" that they give after discussing it with them for a while. 

Well God turns the wheels of His great Omnipotence on just such very small things. Because of the loss of a nail in his hoof, a rider’s horse can lose a shoe, stumble, fall, and kill the rider!  This one small oversight by the Church may well cause this very thing to happen to it in the end.

Why is it that most people can never see the blindness and sin in their own generation?  Why can we look back to the past and see the sins of others in the Bible down through time, but do not even suspect that today, we are guilty of similar things as the Pharisees of old?  Why can we not see the blindness and callousness in our own hearts?

Many folks have gotten fed up with arguing over this subject, and say that they refuse to even discuss it anymore.  I have seen brethren almost come to blows and yell at each other over this topic. 

Then they just suddenly stop hollering, and say that it really isn't an important issue anyway, and that we shouldn't be arguing over it.  It's just creating dissention.  It's just a small thing... not worth even bringing up or discussing...  Just talking about "salvation in Christ" is the main thing we should all agree on... and blah, blah, blah...

This usually "pours water on the fire" for most; and then when you stop talking about it or leave, they go back to teaching their false view; confident that they have safely blocked the "punch" of God's Spirit trying to reach through to them to straighten them out by "knocking Satan's lie out of their mind".  Satan just loves that feint; that cop out!

He knows that then every one will be afraid to bring the subject up after that for fear of starting a "huge hullabulloo", and will just not talk about it.  Then these folks confidently go on teaching their perverted and distorted view to the flock of God’s Church. 

Satan is so clever.  First of all, as I said, it is not a light thing, and will have very dramatic negative effects on God’s Church when things do not transpire as folks have been taught they will!

As I said, the devil gets really angry when it is brought up, because it is exposing one of his GREATEST DECEITS that he is foisting upon God’s unsuspecting Church in the end time.

It is certainly wrong to get angry over anything and get mad at each other, but it is not wrong to discuss such a serious and important matter as this.  PEOPLE'S SOULS WILL DEPEND UPON THIS.  IT IS NOT A "SMALL THING" OR SOMETHING TO BE TAKEN LIGHTLY! 

Most folks teaching this pre-trib view, are doing it in ignorance; just parroting what they have been taught since they got saved, without having ever taken the time to study it all out carefully, and prayerfully.

The Lord is very merciful, and understanding, and patient.  He is trying to get folks to see the light on this, but it is very difficult.  As the branch bends, so grows the tree; and once a person is grounded deeply in this false belief system, it seems to be very hard to convince them otherwise, or to even get them to look at the facts surrounding all this, and read Scriptures like the ones in this study.

Most will stubbornly cling to this false view, until it becomes apparent that it is wrong, and then they will say, "Oh why didn’t we see this plain and simple truth laid out in the Scriptures?"  "Why couldn’t we see what Jesus warned so clearly of concerning all this?"

Suddenly the blinders will be ripped off and they will clearly see; but too late to alter the effects of what it will cause on the greater body of the Church as a whole. Those who are strong in the Lord will survive, but sadly, it will not go so good for those who follow afar off; who will begin to question their Faith, and the Lord, and to become very confused. 

Many may just give up in total despair.  MANY MAY EVEN COMMIT SUICIDE!  SO THIS IS A VERY VERY SERIOUS MATTER PEOPLE!  This is exactly what Satan is hoping for, in the spreading of, and determined defending of this absolute fabrication and lie!

Therfore, this is something that should be brought out into the open and discussed, ALMOST ABOVE ALL ELSE NOW, because of the magnitude of the havoc that this lie will wreak upon the Lord's people in the short days ahead!  

People say that it is just causing division. The truth always causes division among those who resent hearing it!  Jesus’ Words caused division.  Paul’s words caused division, and Paul argued with the Pharisees and contended and disputed with them for three years in the Book of Acts, before getting fed up with them and telling them he’d had it with them and was now going to the Gentiles.

So it is not wrong to contend for the truth.  But it should be done in love; as lovingly as possible.  What I have said here in this study in places may not sound too loving, and certainly not very respectful of the other side's "view".  But this is such a serious issue that I'm trying to get people's attention here!  I'M MAD AT SATAN!  Not the poor people who are deceived by this false teaching.

As I said, when Satan has successfully deceived a group of people and you come along preaching the truth, there are going to be fire works!  The devil hates being exposed and his work ruined. 

People get mad!  We should not argue in anger, but discuss important topics like this with love and patience and prayer; but this topic of "utmost importance" should certainly not just be "swept under the rug".  Let’s go on with 2 Thessalonians 2:

8)And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

9) Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders,

As you can see by verse 8, the Antichrist is "DESTROYED" by the brightness of this same "coming of the Lord", in which He "gathers us together unto Himself", according to verse 1.  So if this is the case, then how can the Antichrist rule or reign for another 3 ½ or 7 years as is taught by so many, today, in the Christian world?

Perhaps it’s time to prayerfully rethink all of these teachings, and put aside devotion to a particular Church’s beliefs out of blind obedience alone, and start studying the Scriptures deeply and praying for God’s guidance, and preaching the truth!  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

If people don't get straightened out on this "most important of issues", this one false teaching could wreak more havoc on God’s church than any of the calamities that have befallen it before down through time.  It may even help facilitate the great falling away from the Christian Faith spoken of here.

Many Christians may even support the Antichrist when he comes, thinking that he couldn’t possibly be the Antichrist or they would have been raptured out already.  He’s not coming with "horns and hoofs and a pitchfork."  He will appear as "as an angel of light." 

He will appear to be a very righteous and Godly man; a great man of peace, who may even appear at first to champion the cause of Israel in the world courts, demanding that they be given the right to rebuild their temple; which he plans to sit in and rule from, and that they should be given the right to re-start their animal sacrifices once again.

Folks will think he’s the greatest man of peace to ever come along.  He’s going to fool nearly everyone.  Don’t you be deceived!  Read these Scriptures again and pray over them, asking the Lord if these things are really the truth?  Satan has lulled almost the entire Church to sleep.  Wake up and see what’s coming!

He just loves this method of catching folks off guard by total surprise, and causing the greatest amount of fear possible in an instant.  It causes such great confusion, and he is the author of confusion. 

As I said before, he's like a great commanding general who studies out his war strategies long in advance.  Satan sat back and looked over this end time scenario centuries ago.  He knew he would have to put the Church to sleep to be able to catch them by surprise in this fashion.  He began to enter the Church with false "sleepy" doctrines.

Some have traced this pre-tribulational teaching back to around 1830 when a young Scottish girl named Margaret MacDonald received a prophecy which began to lead others this way in their thinking.

Immediately influenced were John Darby of the Plymouth Brethren, and Edward Irving of the Church of the Irvingites.  Then C.I. Scofield, author of the Scofield Bible, picked it up really gave it clout and credence, especially in America where it swept the religious world like wildfire; including even Moody Bible Institute and Dallas Theological Seminary! 

Undoubtedly, this is a fulfilling of the prophecy that "the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but will heap to themselves teachers having itching ears, and their ears shall be turned from the truth to hearing fables."  (2 Tim 4: 3 & 4)

Author and researcher Dave MacPherson went back and studied the sermons of these two men, Irving and Darby, and found that up until the time of Margaret’s prophecy, they both preached what the Church had believed for the first 1800 years; what we now call "post-tribulation" rapture. 

Then suddenly after possibly attending meetings at Margaret's house, they both began to preach this new "altered" view, and to vie with each other over who was the first to come out with it.

Now it has become such a part of standard Church dogma, that if you speak against it, people think you are a false prophet coming along speaking against the Lord and the Bible.

What people grow up hearing for many years, over and over, is what they usually believe very strongly in, and it forms a stronghold in their mind; which in this case is a strong hold of Satan, even though they don’t know it. 

Then when you come along preaching the truth on this, many folks think you are teaching some new doctrine, which is against the old teaching that they falsely think has been around since the beginning.

Most are totally unaware that the "POST TRIBULATIONAL VIEW" is what the Church believed first for nearly 1800 years.  This pre-trib teaching is the "Johnny-come-lately", a mere 170 - 200 years old!

Other researchers have traced this pre-trib teaching to a Jesuit priest named Father Immanuel Lacunza, who wrote similar things in 1790. Who ever came out with it, it is part of Satan’s long term strategy to get the Church right where he wants us so he can wreak the most havoc and cause the greatest amount of confusion and damage possible when his man, the "beast," or Antichrist, comes to power.

From what I’ve read of Church history, NO ONE  believed or taught any doctrine like this from the time of the early church fathers clear up to the time of the Reform

era fathers like Luther.

They all believed that we would go through the tribulation just like Jesus said, and be "gathered together" unto Him at the end; although there are a host of churchy, pre-trib teachers and apologists right now, trying very hard to trace it clear back to the early church.  I think they are making it all up as the go along, because from all I’ve studied, I’ve seen it nowhere.  They are trying to fit a modern belief into a past where it never existed.

The "reform era fathers," like Luther, believed in POST-TRIB RAPTURE.  They just had the lengths of time for end time events off; because, before in the Book of Ezekiel, God had told the prophet to lie on his side for "so many days" and that the nation of Israel would therefore suffer for their sins, an equal time in "years," these Reform Era fathers all thought that the 1,260 days of tribulation that were coming were also according to what is known here as the "day / year" principle.

1,260 days were to be considered 1,260 years that the church would be IN TRIBULATION under whom they perceived to be Antichrist, in the form of the ruling Pope’s of Rome that were persecuting them at the time.  This is what they all thought almost down to the last man; and that the "office of the Pope" represented the Antichrist.  But none of them, that I know of, believed that we would be raptured out BEFORE THE TRIBULATION.

One would think that since the first 69 weeks of Daniel’s "70 weeks" prophecy of the end, (Daniel 9: 24-27) were not according to the day / year principle; that therefore the last and final week would not be either; but would be actual days and years in REAL TIME, just as the first 69.  But sadly this was not the case; another of Satan’s tricks! They thought He meant a DAY FOR A YEAR during this era in Church history.

Many stepped forward with predictions on just when the 1,260 year period would end, setting dates.  One by one, all their theories on the year Jesus would return turned out to be wrong; the final one being the most dramatic, in the fall of 1844; where William Miller’s followers (the Adventists) all got up on their housetops dressed in white sheets awaiting the Lord’s return on a specific day Miller thought he got by calculating this time period from one Pope whom Miller considered to be the most wicked. 

Well it obviously came and went and the movement fell into disorder, and out of it came the 7th Day Adventists and the Church of God 7th Day.  Miller's teachings crossed the bounderies of many different denominations. 

In the beginning he wrote books, sharing his ideas on this subject, and people in many different denominations picked up on them and began to read them.  Only later did "followers" form into a group that came out of many other denominations.  At first you could be in "any" of a certain number of denominations and call yourself an "Adventist" at the time.

This is very similar to the doctrine of Pre-Tribulational Rapture today, which also crosses denominational bounderies, and spans almost then entire modern Church world including NEARLY EVERY SINGLE DENOMINATION, except a "precious few"! 

But after Miller's demise, IT WAS THEN THAT THE PRE-TRIBULATIONAL VIEW CAME ON THE SCENE IN THE MAINSTREAM CHURCH WORLD, and over the course of the next 100 or so years, swept the entire religious world like wild fire. 

Like I said, now everybody thinks it is the "old standard" believed by everyone since the very beginning, and they don’t realize that it is a relative newcomer in the Bible eschatology, or end time Bible prophecy field.

That was a tragic day for much of the church in 1844, when Miller was proved wrong, BUT NOT NEARLY AS TRAGIC AS WHAT'S COMING WHEN THE "LIE" OF PRE-TRIBULATIONAL RAPTURE COMES TO FULL FRUIT AND HAS IT'S FULL EFFECT ON THE LORD'S CHURCH!

As I said before, many may support the Antichrist thinking he’s a good man, and not suspecting him at all because they have been taught they will be raptured out first before he comes.

They will say, "Surely this wonderful man couldn’t be the Antichrist, or we would be raptured out with Jesus already."  Then many will have their faith destroyed when he takes off the "halo" and puts on the "horns", and people begin to see him for the evil devil that he is! 

The entire church will be in disarray, and many who have been taught that the good Christians will be raptured out, and the bad ones left behind, may give up in total discouragement, as I said before; some, even committing suicide.

There may be MANY SUICIDES, and many in great depression, disillusionment, and utter despair.  To think that you’ve failed the Lord, and that He’s left you behind to suffer?  So many people are going to be hurt by this unscriptural teaching.

The church will rock and reel under the fiery darts of the one who will "speak great words against the Most High," and "wear out the Saints of the Most High", and who will "make war with the Saints" and actually "prevail" or win against them, as it says in the Book of Daniel. 

And when the guillotines begin to fall, and people begin to lose their heads for refusing to deny their Faith in Jesus Christ; many may begin to jump off the boat like scared men fleeing a sinking ship!

Instead of a pre-tribulational rapture, many may be yanked out of their beds in the middle of the night, by complete surprise; by jackbooted storm troopers, brandishing sub-machine guns, and dressed in black S.W.A.T. gear; and hauled off to prison camps; some of which have already been set up all over, especially in America, according to certain reports.

From what I’ve heard, they were originally designed to house rioters back in the 1980's, when the Government expected huge civil unrest coming.  When questioned about these camps during his Presidency, Bill Clinton said that they were "work camps for first time offenders."

But this same program in the hands of a future Administration, may be used to lock up Christian dissidents who, although peaceful and non-violent for the most part; do not "believe" the way they are supposed to.  (ie: folks who dare to expose America and Israel’s sins!)

Jesus spoke of this terrible end time persecution that would occur in every nation of the world, against His followers, near the time of His return in Matthew 24:9 & 10:

9) "THEN SHALL THEY DELIVER YOU UP TO BE AFFLICTED AND  SHALL KILL YOU: AND YOU SHALL BE HATED BY ALL NATIONS FOR MY NAME'S SAKE."

10) "And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another".

Notice that this great end time persecution the Lord speaks of here, comes BEFORE THE RAPTURE, which is spoken of in verses 29-31?  Great persecution comes first! Daniel the Prophet also spoke of this same event over and over; of a great persecution of God’s saints in the end time tribulation period, under the terrifying reign of the Antichrist:

Daniel 7: 21,22,25-27)

21) I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them:

22) until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the Most High, and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.

25) and he shall speak great words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. (3 1/2 years or 1,260 days)

26) but the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.

27) And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him.

Daniel 8:23,24

23) And in the latter time of their kingdom, when the transgressors are come to the full, and king of fierce countenance and understanding dark sentences shall stand up.

24) and his power shall be mighty, but not by his own power: and he shall destroy wonderfully, and shall prosper, and practice, AND SHALL DESTROY THE MIGHTY AND THE HOLY PEOPLE"!

Wake up America!   YOU, ALONG WITH THE MODERN NATION OF ISRAEL, ARE "THE MIGHTY AND THE HOLY PEOPLE"!   The American churches are going to feel the main brunt of this persecution, ALONG WITH  the tiny nation of Israel!   It’s not just the Jews, folks, who are going to suffer during this time as many also falsely teach today!

Many Churches teach that the "good" Christians will be RAPTURED OUT, and the "poor" Nation of Israel will then suffer under the tremendous persecution of the Antichrist.  SURPRISE!!!  YOU'RE GOING TO BE HERE TOO FOLKS!  ...if you live long enough to enter into this end time time period. 

SO YOU WOULD BE WISE TO GET TO PREPARING, first, Spiritually, by deep study of the Word, and memorization of important passages of Scripture, and praying for the Lord to lead you to TRUE Christian ministries that are aware of what's really coming, and are teaching their people accordingly, and also preparing in every way possible for what's coming. 

Then it wouldn't hurt to prepare physically yourself for your family, relatives, and friends; as the Lord leads, by storing long term food stuffs, water & purifiers, medicines, soaps and toiletries, candles, lighters, lanterns, hunting and fishing equipment, tools, generators, solar or otherwise, wood stoves  ...all the things you may need to survive the days ahead that are almost upon us!

You might even pray about re-locating to areas where there are large concentrations of other Christians of like mind, WHO ARE AWAKE and preparing also, who can help you, in the "cities of refuge" and Christian communities that are beginning to form.  Ask the Lord to lead you to one; the place of His choosing. 

Christians will need to "band together" for support and help, not only to each other, but to be able to "reach out" to others less prepared that the Lord will lead to us in the days ahead.

Jesus said in Matthew 24:15, to pay special attention to the "ABOMINATION OF DESOLATION" being placed in the Temple, and to FLEE at this time to places of refuge:

Matthew 24: 15 - 21)

15) When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) 

16) then let them which be in Judea flee into the mountains:

17) Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take anything out of his house,

18) Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes.

19) And woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!

20) But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day:

21) FOR THEN SHALL BE "GREAT TRIBULATION" SUCH WAS NOT SINCE THE BEGINNING OF THE WORLD TO THIS TIME, NO NOR EVER SHALL BE..

Again, there is no mention of a "RAPTURE" before this time anywhere in Matthew 24. It comes later in verses 29-31.  If you follow pre-tribulaional teaching, it truly must be a secret rapture!  It’s so secret, that it’s not even mentioned in the scriptures!  Ha! People should be truly leary of such a teaching.

There should certainly be a lot more hard evidence for it if it were true; but there is not. ALL THE HARD EVIDENCE FALLS ON THE SIDE OF POST-TRIBULATIONAL RAPTURE! 

Apparently, according to verses 15 & 21 above, this "placing of the abomination of desolation" heralds the BEGINNING OF THE GREAT TRIBULATION PERIOD.  Let’s go to Daniel and read what happens at this time, as the Lord suggested above:

Daniel 11: 31-36

31) And arms shall stand on his part, and they shall pollute the sanctuary of strength, and shall take away the daily sacrifice, and they shall place the abomination that maketh desolate.

32) and such as do wickedly against the covenant shall he corrupt by flatteries: but the people that do know their God shall be strong, and do exploits.

33) And they that understand among the people shall instruct many: yet they fall by the sword, and by flame, by captivity, and by spoil many days.

34) now when they shall fall, they shall be helped with a little help: but many shall cleave to them with flatteries.

35) and some of them of understanding shall fall, to try them, and to purge, and to make them white, even to the time of the end: because it is yet for a time appointed.

36) and the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvelous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper TILL THE INDIGNATION BE ACCOMPLISHED: for that that is determined shall be done.

The "INDIGNATION" spoken of here is "GOD'S INDIGNATION" against the NATION OF ISRAEL for trying to take their "kingdom" back in the flesh, without going through the proper open doorway of Jesus Christ His Son, (as per John 10)  and winning the world through His love; instead of considering themselves BETTER THAN EVERYONE ELSE, (God is no respecter of persons)  and mowing them down with machine guns, bombs and bullets, to take back what they consider rightfully theirs, but is not, since the Lord drove them out  2,000 years ago!

And also because they are willing to accept "one who comes in his own name" to get this great advantage and blessing, instead of having accepted Him who came in the name of His Father; Jesus Christ!  This "indignation of God" is also against the duped American church system for aiding and abbetting them in this great end time fiasco!

Both the American church system and the modern nation of so-called "Israel" are going to be "purged, and purified, and made white" here to get them straightened out on this issue.

When they finally realize all this; under the Antichrist’s relentless attacks and his actual winning against them and subduing and destroying them, and they begin in great earnest and weeping to repent (as per Zechariah 12) then the Lord will come and fight against those nations that have come against them, and will return in all His glory to fight for His people and deliver them from their strong oppressor! (as per Zechariah 14)

This is another great lie that has entered the corrupt and compromised American church system, that the Lord is going to expose before all, before the great day of His Coming!

Jesus said in John chapters 8 & 10, to the Pharisees, that they were not going to be saved and blessed by God merely because they were "flesh sons of Abraham", and that they had to go through Him, the "door" to get into the kingdom.

Now, 2,000 years later, this same bunch, with this same mindset; who are now known as "Zionists" instead of "Pharisees", have returned to foist this same belief on the followers of Christ, and most Christians have warmly received it with open arms, no questions asked, and in "great spiritual ignorance", would support them to the death fighting to get their land back for them; thinking that they are "doing God service!"

Actually, America's sons and daughters are even now performing this very task as a America's Army fights in the Middle-East against Israel's Muslim enemies.  This is one of the main reasons for the modern middle-east wars; not just because these more radical Muslims have attacked America.  It is certainly serving the same interest anyway!  But don’t worry, God is going to straighten everyone out on this before the Lord returns. It will be made very plain.

As both America and Israel rock and reel under the Antichrist’s future attacks, coming terrorist attacks, natural disasters like famines, pestilences, earthquakes, and weather related disasters; many will turn hard to the Lord and begin questioning, "why is all this coming upon us"?  And the Lord will begin to show them the reasons for these things.

But many of the new, coming, end time prophets and saints, who will show people this, and expose these things, will be killed in great anger, just like Jesus, many of His followers, and all the prophets of old were; by these same type of people, or possibly, even by misguided, Fundamentalist Evangelical Christians, thinking that they are doing God service!  (See John 16:1 & 2)

If God's prophets of old, and His own Son were all "KILLED" by the ancient nation of Israel for speaking out against them, will not the very same thing happen now in this, the end time; by these same people who still have not changed their ways, and still believe the same things they did back then, and have even gotten "worse" and even "more stubborn and belligerent"?

Jesus said, as He was being led to be crucified, "if they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry..."  meaning, "if they are this wicked and cruel to me now for exposing them for what they truly are, what will happen to my followers in the end who also expose them then?"

SO GREAT PERSECUTION IS COMING UPON ALL TRUE CHRISTIANS WHO DARE TO SPEAK OUT!   But God Himself will be with us, just as He has all down through time with those who dared to "speak the truth" for Him. 

He will protect us, and even "take us on" with Him in many instances, "BEFORE" we feel any pain; or the "worst" of it anyway!  Or He will supernaturally make it "bearable" just to really make them mad, and show who's side He's really on.  YOU JUST CAN'T BEAT GOD!  IT'S IMPOSSIBLE! 

The modern so-called "Christian" Churches are so deceived on these issues.  The majority of American churches have become "spiritually blind", and deceived on ALMOST EVERYTHING THEY BELIEVE!

The only thing most have right is the foundation of receiving the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior.  From there on it goes downhill quite rapidly, and even most of them are confused on that, and get folks "saved" going in one door, and then "unsaved" going out the other!   Folks leave totally confused about their salvation and deluded on most every other teaching.

From blind support of Israel in modern "crusades", and making "enemies" of almost the entire rest of the world, instead of winning the world with the Love of Jesus; to "riches and prosperity", to "pre-tribulational rapture," and "false holiness" or more properly, "self righteousness" (the sin of the Pharisees) they compass land and sea to make one convert and when they have found him they make him two-fold more the "child of hell," as Jesus said, than they are themselves!

Many Churches are turning their people into modern self-righteous "Pharisees" instead of loving followers of Christ, like the early disciples were.  And then they are built on the false foundation of these other modern "comfortable teachings" that put them totally to sleep, concerning the terribly serious, and sometimes horrifying, end time events that are coming, such as those mentioned in the Book of Revelation.  Most are teaching their people that they won't even be around during the time period of almost the ENTIRE BOOK OF REVELATION!   What  blindness!  What deception!

Most Churches are being taught that they are the "Church of Philadelphia" spoken of in the Book of Revelation; and that they are going to be "kept from that hour,"  (the great tribulation)  by being raptured out beforehand.  But if you will read on in your Bible to the very next Church in that chapter, you will find a little more accurate description of todays modern Church systemn as a whole; the Church of Laodicea:

Revelation 3: 14 - 20

14) And unto the Angel of the Church of the Laodiceians write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;

15) I know thy works, that thou art neither cold nor hot: I would thou wert cold or hot.

16) So then because thou art lukewarm, I will spew thee out of my mouth.

17) Because thou sayest, I AM RICH AND INCREASED WITH GOODS AND HAVE NEED OF NOTHING,  (The modern "riches and prosperity doctrine of many?")  and knowest not that thou are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:

Spiritual blindness!  When you try to show some folks about "pre-trib rapture", or "riches and prosperity", or any of these other false teachings; or teachings that have been taken to the extreme and not balanced with other Scriptures; such as modern "Cadillac Christianity", they just cannot seem to see it no matter how long or hard you try to patiently explain it and show Scriptures!

They read over and over them and just cannot seem to see what they are saying, they have been so programmed.  It’s quite discouraging, but that is exactly what this verse is addressing here.

18) I counsel thee to buy of Me gold tried in the fire, that thou mayest be rich; and white raiment, that thou mayest be clothed, and that the shame of thy nakedness do not appear;

In one place in the Gospels, Jesus said that we get riches in heaven when we give of the money and blessings we have on this earth.  We get riches there, by giving here; of our time, our love, our material blessings, and our all.

Instead of the Gospel being perverted to mean that it’s "okay" to seek to be rich and have lots of money, prestige, and power; as the modern, mainly Dallas based televangelists teach; we are not to seek these things; but to give our lives as a living sacrifice, and to give our all for Jesus in every way we can.

We are to seek to give of ourselves, not to get. …and to anoint thine eyes with eye salve, that thou mayest see.   Once again, to pray hard against the spiritual blindness of the teachings of the vast majority of today’s modern churches, and inability to see messages such as this one that are preaching the unpopular truth!

 19) As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.

But getting back to the subject of the rapture here, as one final thought; one thing that might be causing confusion over this issue is this: the pre-trib view confuses "two separate time periods" in the Book of Revelation as being "one and the same"; the "TRIBULATION" and the "WRATH".

They are not the same event.  1st Thessalonians 5:9 says that, “we are not appointed to God’s wrath, but to obtain salvation;” so therefore pre-trib believers assume that we are not here on this earth for almost the entire Book of Revelation.  They assume that the entire Book of Revelation is God's wrath: 

But clearly, in Revelation there are TWO DISTINCT TIME PERIODS spoken of:  1) THE TRIBULATION, heralded by the blowing of 7 trumpets, and  2) THE WRATH, described by the "pouring out of 7 vials".   THEY ARE TWO ENTIRELY DIFFERENT TIME PERIODS, AND THE WRATH "FOLLOWS" THE TRIBULATION!  We are HERE for the TRIBULATION, but NOT for the WRATH!

If what they believe is true about not being here for nearly the entire Book of Revelation:  Folks, that is a lot of paper for God to waste!  There are a lot of very intricately detailed prophecies in there to just be discarded if the main body of the Church isn’t even going to be around to read or study them.

As I just stated, in the Book of Revelation the "TRIBULATION PERIOD" is heralded by the blowing of 7 trumpets, and as shown before here, we are raptured out at the last one.  (Revelation chapters 8-11)  This is then followed by the "WRATH PERIOD", which is heralded by the pouring out of 7 vials, after we are gone.  (Revelation chapter 16)

Therefore, we are not here for that event, but in heaven with the Lord at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.  So "we are not appointed unto wrath."  As I said, most churches are taught that "the wrath" covers the entire Book of Revelation.  As you can see from what I just presented, this simply is not true. 

Revelation 11:18 occurs at the blowing of the 7th and "last trumpet of tribulation"; at the "very end of the tribulation period".  It plainly says there that the blowing of this trumpet signifies the time period in which "the wrath of God is come".  So apparently "the wrath" had not even started yet at this time. 

Then in Revelation chapter 16 the "wrath of God" period is heralded by the pouring out of 7 "vials of the wrath of God".  So these two periods of the "tribulation" and the "wrath" do indeed represent events, THAT OCCUR AT TWO DISTINCT AND DIFFERENT TIME PERIODS, with one following the other, and the Churches are totally deceived on this.

The "tribulation" is the time period in which the Antichrist will mainly try to stamp out true Christianity, as well as any other religions that refuse to accept him.  The "wrath" is the time period which directly follows the tribulation, AFTER we are taken out in the rapture.   So there is indeed a "left behind" as is taught in many popular new books out on the market.  They just have it in the WRONG PLACE on the Lord's timeline!

At the END of the tribulation period, the Lord returns to rescue His people from the Antichrist’s wicked and cruel clutches in the "rapture", and then pours out His "wrath" on him and his followers AFTER we are gone, and safely with Him in heaven.

During the tribulation, 1/3rd of everything is destroyed by the Lord’s "selective judgments," while we are protected miraculously by the Lord right here on the earth. (1/3rd of the sky is darkened, 1/3rd of the oceans turn blood red, etc…) This is a bit like how the U.S. supposedly uses smart bombs so as not to hit the innocent civilians in warfare.  I’m sure the Lord’s a lot more accurate though. 

It's quite apparent that America's "smart bombs" aren't so "smart", by the fact that America and the forces of the West have now killed more innocent civilians in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, by "off course" bombs and missiles, that Saddam Hussein did in the entire reign of his madness! 

GOD'S JUDGMENT IS GOING TO FALL ON AMERICA FOR THIS TOO, AND ALREADY IS BY THE HORRENDOUS WEATHER HAPPENING THERE NOW; AND THERE IS MORE TO COME.  GOD IS JUST GETTING STARTED!

But an example of the Lord protecting His people even in the midst of terrible destruction happening all around them is found in the Old Testament during the plagues in Egypt of old, as the judgments of the Lord fell only on the Egyptians, and not on the Hebrews who lived right next door to them.

SO GOD CAN AND WILL PROTECT HIS TRUE ONES, AND THOSE WHO ARE FOLLOWING HIM CLOSELY!

But getting back to the difference between the "tribulation" and the "wrath" periods; during the wrath period, EVERYTHING is targeted by the Lord.  (ie: the whole sky is darkened, all the oceans turn blood red, etc…)  Revelation chapters 8-11, and 16 explain this in great detail.  Revelation 16:19 speaks of "THE CITIES OF THE NATIONS FALLING", and Isaiah 30:25 speaks of "THE DAY OF THE GREAT SLAUGHTER WHEN THE TOWERS (OR SKYSCRAPERS) FALL"!

Both of these chapters also speak of the sun getting 7 times hotter!  So this is the "wrath of God" folks!  Believe me, you don't want to be around for it!  We need to reach and warn the world for the Lord of these coming horrendous events.  But first we need to get our heads "screwed on straight" and all begin to teach the same thing and the truth about things like "the rapture", or we just look to the world like we can't even agree among ourselves what the Bible says is right and the truth.  Therefore people may not even listen to us.  We all have a responsibility to the Lord to deeply seek the truth, and then present it to others in His love, as He leads.

It is my earnest prayer that people will begin to wake up and see all these things that are coming, and to prepare accordingly. This study is not written to make people mad, create fear, or to cause division, but to prepare the Lord's people for what's coming, and to boldly stand up for the truth on the subject of the rapture, and to expose all the false teachings of modern so-called "Christianity"  that is presently being preached by almost the entire Church system of the West. 

It is written to sober folks up and to get them preparing for "the worst time in the history of  both the Church of Jesus Christ and the world as a whole", yet this will also be "the greatest time of glory for the Lord and His people as He SHINES THROUGH US WITH MODERN DAY MIRACLES to reach the world with His love as never before! 

The Lord is about to do the most wonderful things through His people during this modern "dark age" that is about to return in even greater darkness than before.  It tells what is coming in Joel:

Joel 2:28-32

28) And it shall come to pass in the last days, that I will pour out My Spirit upon ALL FLESH;  (the gift of salvation through Jesus and the Holy Spirit is FREE to all who want it...)  ...and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:

29) And also upon the servants and the handmaids in those days will I POUR OUT MY SPIRIT.

30) And I will show wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, fire, and pillars of smoke.

31) The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the GREAT AND TERRIBLE DAY OF THE LORD COME.

32) AND IT SHALL COME TO PASS, THAT WHOSOEVER SHALL CALL ON THE NAME OF THE LORD SHALL BE DELIVERED: for in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the REMNANT WHOM THE LORD SHALL CALL.  (the "remnant" being the witnessing missionaries still spreading the Word of the Lord's love and salvation to the terrible old "war-torn" world.)

Even these particular Scriptures are direct proof that Pre-Tribulational Rapture is a false teaching.  The Pre-Trib view teaches that all the "saved" will be raptured out by this time, and gone away into heaven with the Lord during this "tribulation period" spoken of here.  But very clearly, you can see that the Lord's people are STILL HERE during this time performing miracles through the Holy Spirit that is poured out freely on not only them, but anyone who wants to receive it. 

It is obvious from these Scriptures that the Lord sticks with this terrible old world clear up until the "bloody end", hoping for that one last little person that will turn to Him for salvation, and "call upon His Mighty Name" for deliverance.

Please pray hard about this message you have just read.  Please ask the Lord to reveal to you whether it is the truth or not?  Ask Him to remove any spiritual blindness from former teachings that might be hindering, and not allowing you to see these things in their proper perspective, if you are having trouble understanding them. 

Please pray about reading slowly back through this study, pondering each of these things spoken of here, and bring them before the Lord in prayer, if you really care about knowing the  real truth of the Scriptures, and what is coming.  Please don’t let these things come upon you unawares!

Please begin an active Bible Memory Program, and begin to prayerfully study the Bible as never before, and please pray and learn to hear the "voice of the Lord" in your heart.  (Jeremiah 29:13, 33:3, John 16:13,14, Isaiah 30:19-21)  These are three very important things that we will all need to be very accomplished in to be able go through the terrible events that lie directly ahead victoriously.

We are indeed going to enter shortly into "times that will try men’s souls"!  Let’s prepare now by getting as close to Jesus as we can, and by preparing in every way we can, as we are led by His Spirit.  Thank you for your time.

 - John Benjamin

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