The Post-Tribulation Rapture of the Saints The doctrine of the rapture (resurrection) of the saints at the coming of the Lord is clearly taught in scripture as its meaning is inferred from the Greek word “harpazo,” translated “caught up” in 1 Thessalonians 4:17. However, among premillenialists (those who rightly believe that the Second Coming of Christ precedes his literal thousand year reign on earth, Rev. 19-20) there are several opposing views concerning the timing of the rapture in relation to the Great Tribulation of Matt. 24:21-29, Daniel 12:1, Rev. 6-19 etc. The following arguments show that contrary to the popular Pre-tribulation rapture position, the Post-tribulation Rapture (the Church to be on earth through the entire Tribulation period) is the only position clearly taught in scripture, and which easily harmonizes with all passages dealing with the Second Coming of Christ. As is shown below, all scriptures dealing with the timing of the rapture show it to occur after the great tribulation, in particular Matt. 24:29-31, 1 Cor. 15:51-52, 2 Thes. 2:1-8 and Rev. 20:4-5. Not only is the pre-trib rapture position in direct conflict with these scriptures, but there is no verse or passage anywhere in the Bible that teaches that the Rapture must precede the tribulation period. (We challenge you to find one and let us know!) The arguments commonly given to support a Pre-trib rapture are indirect and very weak at best, and involve forced, spiritualized or secretive interpretations of all conflicting passages to conform the text to the Pre-trib position, rather than relying on the plain-sense interpretation of the scriptures. Please prayerfully consider the arguments below. [NOTE: We are not at all in agreement with the position promoted in a recent popular video titled After the Tribulation, produced by Pastor Steven Anderson, of the Faithful Word Baptist Church (Inc.) of Tempe, Arizona. Contrary to its deceptive title, Andersons flawed position is clearly mid-trib, not post-trib. Further, Andersons innocuous, repentance-free gospel message presented in the video is equally deceptive. For clarification please see our review of Andersons video below.] ARGUMENTS 1. The Lord Jesus clearly taught a Post-Tribulation Rapture in Matthew 24:29-31 (& Mark 13:24-27). Immediately after the Tribulation of those days .... 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 (cf. Mark 13:27). Jesus said it clearly! The trumpet will sound and the elect will be gathered immediately after the Tribulation. Pre-trib proponents must dismiss this passage by saying it does not refer to the Rapture, which it clearly DOES refer to. The following arguments show that the event described in v. 31 IS the rapture of the Church: a. The event in this passage being the rapture easily harmonizes with the other “rapture” passages - Jesus coming in the clouds of heaven - cf. 1 Thes. 4:17, Daniel 7:13 - heralded by sound of a great trumpet - cf. 1 Thes. 4:16, 1 Cor. 15:52, Rev. 11:15-18 - accompanied by the angels - cf. 1 Thes. 4:16 (voice of archangel); 2 Thes 1:4-10 - gathering the elect from heaven and earth - Mark 13:27, 1 Thes. 4:14-17; 2 Thes 2:1 (gathering) b. Jesus is privately addressing His closest disciples (Peter, James, John & Andrew) in this discourse (see Mark 13:3), to whom He had already announced the conception of the Church (Matt 16:18, 18:17). If the Church was to escape the tribulation, Jesus would certainly have told these men who would be leading the early Church. Instead, he taught them to expect persecution or martyrdom, and to await their promised deliverance after those days. He would not have taught this here and then later revealed to Paul that the Church would be exempted. c. The dispensational argument that Jesus is addressing national Israel in this discourse rather than the Church, that the “elect” in this passage is the elect remnant of Israel on earth during the Tribulation, is false: (1). Verse 9 shows that the elect people that Jesus refers to are Christians, not unbelieving Israel (for my names sake, John 15:18-21). (2). The four disciples addressed here are representative of Christians that would be on earth throughout the entire church age, both before and during the Tribulation; before the “gospel of the kingdom” is preached in all the world, and after; see v. 14-15, and “you” in v. 9 & 26. [Note: C.I. Scofield’s footnote at Rev. 14:6, that the “gospel of the kingdom” referenced by Christ at Mt. 24:14-15 is a different gospel than Paul’s gospel is an accursed, abominable heresy (Gal. 1:8-9). The Lord Jesus and the apostles preached the same gospel; that Christs mission at His first advent was to give His life a ransom for many; and that to be saved one must: (a) come to repentance; (b) believe on Christ (justification by faith alone), and (c) be born again (regenerated with a new nature). For more proofs on this subject please hear our audio series on Scofield’s heresies (below), esp. Dual Kingdom, Dueling Gospels]. (3). The gathering of the elect in v. 31 cannot refer to the regathering of national Israel (Isaiah 11:11). The Antichrist must confirm a 7-year covenant with Israel (Daniel 9:24-27), and therefore Israel must be regathered and already in place before the tribulation (the time of Jacobs trouble, Jer. 30:7) can begin. (4). Throughout the N.T. the word “elect” as used in v. 31 refers not to Israel but to the Church, including both Jews and Gentiles called to salvation: Luke 18:7, Romans 8:33, 9:11-16, & 11:7 (the elect obtained what Israel could not); Col. 3:12; 1 Thes. 1:4; Tit 1:1; 1 Pet 1:2; 5:13; 2 John 1,13. There is nothing in the context of Matt. 24 to indicate that “elect” means something else in that particular passage. The context indicates that the “elect” in Matt. 24 is NOT Israel, but IS the Church. Further, there is only one group of chosen people that God calls His elect, who are all brought into one new man in Christ Jesus (for more proof here, listen to Theres ONE Chosen People, NOT TWO). 2. The Apostle Paul clearly taught a Post-trib Rapture in 1 Cor. 15:51-52. 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. Since the Resurrection/Rapture occurs at the “last trump” it cannot take place before the great sound of a trumpet mentioned by the Lord Jesus in Matt. 24:31 (occurs after the Tribulation), nor can it precede the Seven Trumpet judgments of Rev. 8-11, and actually occurs at the 7th trumpet itself (Rev. 11:15-18). This last trump is the same trumpet mentioned in 1 Thes. 4:16 and Matt. 24:31. [Note: The Revelation is NOT given in linear chronology, but includes 3 separate visions of the tribulation. The 7th trumpet occurs at the end of the tribulation, as does the 6th Seal of Rev. 6:12-14 (cf. Mt. 24:29-30; same event).] 3. The Apostle Paul taught a Post-trib Rapture in 2 Thessalonians 2:1-8. The plain sense interpretation and obvious point of this passage, meant to dispel false alarm at Thessalonica, is that the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and “our gathering together unto Him” in v. 1 (the Day of Christ in v. 2 and “that day” in v. 3) will not occur until after the “falling away” (apostasy) and the antichrist is revealed and destroyed in v. 3. (The word “by” in v. 1 (Gr. huper, 5228) means “concerning” or “regarding”). The falling away in v. 3 (Gr. apostosia, meaning rebellion; 1 Tim 4:1-2, Matt 24:10 etc.) cannot mean the rapture (departure from earth rather than from the faith) as claimed by many Pre-trib proponents because that is totally contrary to the clear meaning of the Greek word apostosia which carries a negative meaning of rebellion and anarchy, and because the Apostle Paul would then be making the contradictory statement that our gathering together unto him (v. 1) will not happen until after our gathering together unto Him (v.3). The Pre-trib argument from this passage that the Church must be the restraining influence of verses 6-7 and thus must be removed from the earth is false. According to the Pre-trib position, he who now letteth in v. 7 is the Holy Spirit as He is working through the Church, and therefore the Church must be removed from earth before the antichrist can be revealed. However, the Holy Spirit’s ministry of indwelling believers is not equivalent with His ministry of restraining the antichrist (if in fact the He of the passage is the Holy Spirit, which is not clearly shown). The Holy Spirit is eternal, omnipresent, omnipotent and omniscient God, is not limited only to indwelling believers, and can cease restraining antichrist without the Church being raptured. 4. The Book of Revelation teaches a Post-Tribulation Rapture. Rev. 20:4-6 describes the Resurrection (the First Resurrection) of the Righteous who will reign with Christ on earth for 1000 years. The event is presented in clear chronological order following the Tribulation period and the Battle of Armageddon, after the antichrist and false prophet are cast alive into the lake of fire and Satan is bound for the thousand years. There is no previous resurrection presented in Revelation (although this same event is alluded to in 11:15-19, the 7th Trumpet). This event, in Rev. 20:4, IS the Rapture of the Church. The event in Rev. 20 is referred to as the “First Resurrection.” If there was another resurrection or rapture before the Tribulation, the event in Rev. 20 would be the Second resurrection, not the First. A simple word study of the word first in its context in Rev. 20 shows that the word clearly means first in chronological order, not best as some have claimed. It is the first resurrection as compared and opposed to the second resurrection and second death of the wicked a thousand years later following the Millenial reign of Christ (Rev 20:12-15). The Pre-trib position typically attempts to claim the words to the Apostle John in Rev. 4:1 “Come up hither” as being a veiled, hidden reference to the rapture. This is absurd, given the clear and unmistakable presentation in Rev. 20 of the First Resurrection, and the fact that the Rapture of the Church is to be a glorious, unmistakable, creation-changing event (Rom. 8:18-23), not a secret, silent event (# 6 below). If the First Resurrection in Rev. 20 is presented so clearly, not hidden in a verse to be secretively interpreted like 4:1, why wouldn’t a Pre-trib rapture or resurrection also be as clearly presented? The attempt to find a Pre-trib rapture in Revelation 4:1 is typical of the many secretive and twisted interpretations required to come up with any teaching of a Pre-trib rapture. 5. The Lord Jesus taught a Post-Tribulation Rapture in his parables. a. The Parable of the Wheat and the Tares in Matthew 13:24-30,36-43 disproves the Pre-trib rapture theory, showing it is the wicked that will be removed from earth (Rev. 19:14-21) not the righteous; after which the Rapture will occur, the dead in Christ will be raised, and those believers who survive the Tribulation will be transformed to enter the Millennium (Rev. 20:1-4, 1 Cor. 15:51-52, 1 Thes. 4:16-17, Matt. 24:31) b. The parable of the days of Noah in Matthew 24:37-41 agrees with the Parable of the Wheat and Tares; it is the wicked that were taken away in the flood, not the righteous. 6. The Rapture of the Church will be a glorious, unmistakable, creation-changing event; not a secret, silent event (hidden in the veiled reference of Rev. 4:1) as taught by the Pre-trib position. Therefore the Rapture of the Church cannot precede the Tribulation, and must occur at the very beginning of the Millennial Reign of Christ: a. Romans 8:18-23 - This passage shows that the “redemption of our body” (the rapture) occurs when the creation is restored, which cannot precede the cataclysmic judgments of the tribulation period. If the rapture preceded the tribulation, creation would be awaiting Christs coming, not the redemption of our body. b. 1 Thes. 4:14-17 - The “shout, the voice of the archangel and the trump of God” in sounds unmistakably loud and boisterous, not a secret, silent catching away as taught by proponents of the Pre-trib position. 7. The Pre-trib argument that the Church is not mentioned in the book of Revelation after chapter 3 and that hence the rapture must have occurred at Rev. 4:1 is blatantly false. a. An argument from silence is a weak argument. The Bible does not contain the words “rapture” or “trinity” but still clearly teaches these doctrines. The word “church” is also not found in the books of 2 Timothy, Titus, 2 Peter, 1 or 2 John or Jude, but these books are clearly written both to and about the Church. b. The book of Jude does not mention the Church by name, but uses the word “saints” to refer to the Church in v. 3 & 14, just as the Apostle John does throughout the book of Revelation (Rev. 5:8, 8:3-4, 11:18, 13:7, 13:10, 14:12, 15:3, 16:6, 17:6, 18:24, and 19:8). Other references to a faithful church remnant in Revelation are the martyrs of 6:9-11, the great multitude of 7:9-17, those who die in the Lord in Rev. 14:13, and the people of God called out of Babylon, Rev. 18:4. The Church is seen all throughout the book of Revelation. To say that these saints or believers are saved Israelites who believe during the Tribulation, but who are not as worthy as we are of being spared that awful time, is not justifiable from scripture. 8. The Second Coming of Christ is presented throughout the Bible as a one-time climactic event, not to be divided into two phases of Rapture (resurrection) and then Return. Jesus will return at the end of the Tribulation, first to put down antichrist’s rebellion, and then to resurrect His saints. a. Nowhere in the Bible is there any indication or teaching given that the Second Advent will be in two phases, or that it will be preceded seven years beforehand by such a momentous event as the rapture of the Church. This doctrine (two-stage return) was not taught by any of the Apostles. All references to the Second Coming are of one end-time event. (Matt. 16:27-28; Matt. 24-25; Mark 13; Luke 12:35-40; Luke 21; John 14:1-3; 1 Cor. 1:7-8; 1 Cor. 15:23-24, 51-53; Phillip. 3:20-21; 1 Thes. 3:13, 4:15-18 & 5:23; 2 Thes. 1:4-10, 2:8; 1 Tim 6:14, 2 Tim 4:1-8; Titus 2:13; 1 Pet 1:7,13 & 4:12-13; 1 Jn 3:2, Rev. 19:11-21) b. The three Greek words used in the NT for the Second Coming (parousia, epiphaneia, and apokolupsis) are used interchangeably in relation to all end-time events associated with the Second Coming, with no distinction ever being made between the Rapture and the Return of Christ: (1). Epiphaneia (2015) - usually translated “appearing,” used in the following passages: Titus 2:13 - our blessed hope 2 Thes. 2:8 - (translated “brightness” in KJV) - destruction of antichrist 1 Tim 6:14 (v. 11-19) - conclusion of church ministry and service 2 Tim 4:1 - judgment of the living and the dead Conclusion: The epiphaneia of Christ is our blessed hope, at which time antichrist will be destroyed, our work on earth will be ended, and the living and the dead will be judged (1 Thes. 4:16, 2 Cor. 5:10) (2). Apokalupsis (602) - usually translated “revelation” or “revealed,” used in the following passages: 2 Thes. 1:5-10 - Christ coming with his angels to end our suffering (no promise of a Pre-trib rapture; the comfort given in this passage is the vengeance to be taken on the enemies of God’s people) 1 Peter 1:7,13 & 4:13 - Christ coming after the testing of our faith by fire (no Pre-trib promise) 1 Cor. 1:7-8 - Christ coming at “the end,” confirming the saints unto the Day of Christ Conclusion: The apokalupsis of Christ occurs at the end, at the day of the Lord, after the testing of our faith by fire, when He comes with his angels taking vengeance on His enemies, to be glorified in His saints. (3). Parousia (3952) - usually translated “coming,” used in the following passages: Matt. 24:3,27,30 - Christ’s coming at the second advent following the “tribulation of those days” 1 Cor. 15:23 - Resurrection of those that are Christ’s at His coming 1 Thes. 3:13 - Christ coming with all His saints 1 Thes. 4:15 - the Rapture occurs at Christ’s coming 1 Thes 5:23 - Paul’s prayer for believers to remain blameless until the Lord’s coming 2 Thes 2:8 - Destruction of antichrist by the appearing (epiphaneia) of Christ’s coming (parousia) Conclusion: At the parousia of Christ, all the above takes place: Christ comes with his saints, after the tribulation, to destroy antichrist, and to resurrect (rapture) all those “asleep” in Christ. Final Conclusion: the way these Greek words are used interchangeably in relation to all these end-time events, with no distinction made between rapture and return, indicates that they all take place at about the same time in planned sequence and are not separated by the 7- year Tribulation Period. 9. The argument that the Imminency of the Rapture (that it is the next prophetic event to be fulfilled with no signs preceding it) requires the Rapture to Precede the Tribulation, is false. This argument is based on circular reasoning (use of a false conclusion drawn from the Pre-trib position in attempt to support the Pre-trib theory). We are given several signs in Matthew 24 (and elsewhere) which Jesus himself clearly taught would precede His return. These signs include the Gospel being preached in all nations (Mt. 24:14-15; see Note above at 1.c.2 re. Scofield’s heretical note at Rev. 14:6 re. Christ’s gospel vs. Paul’s), the coming of the great tribulation, the rise of the apostasy and of antichrist (2 Thes. 2:1-3, 1 Tim. 4:1), Peter’s martyrdom (John 21:18-19), etc. The passage of time cannot change the meaning of scripture. If the Lords return was not imminent (any moment) when scripture was written (it wasnt imminent for Peter!), it cannot be so now either. There are several signs that must be fulfilled before the Lords return. No man can know the day or hour of the Lords return, but we are not in darkness and are supposed to know when it is near (Matt. 24:33, 1 Thes. 5:4). 10. The Pre-trib argument that the nature of the Church (the Bride of Christ) forbids it going through the Tribulation is in error. This argument is based on the premise that the church is exempt from suffering the wrath of God, Rom. 5:9, 1 Thes. 5:9, Rev. 3:10. This argument is in error because: a. The “wrath” mentioned in many passages cited refers to the wrath of eternal judgment in hell rather than suffering through the Tribulation (see Rom 1:18, 2:5-10, Heb. 3:11, etc.) b. If believers are to be raptured to escape the wrath of the great Tribulation, then those who believe during the Tribulation must be immediately raptured as well upon conversion, which is clearly not the case. c. Christians need not be removed from earth for God to protect them from His wrath (John 17:15). God’s protection of the Israelites during the plagues on Egypt typifies protection of the faithful remnant of the Church during the Tribulation (similar plagues). Noah was not removed from earth during God’s judgment but was protected through it. Lot was not raptured but was moved to a place of safety. The phrase “I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation which shall come upon all the world” in Rev. 3:10 can refer to divine protection rather than removal from the earth, and was a conditional promise given to only one of the seven churches of Asia, as compared to the promise of persecution and Tribulation given to the faithful church at Smyrna (Rev. 2:8-11). d. Promise of deliverance from the wrath of God does not include deliverance from Satan’s wrath, which will be leveled against believers during the Tribulation (Rev. 12:11-12, 13:7-10, Dan. 7:21, 25 & 8:24). e. Jesus will return for a Bride that has made herself ready (Rev 19:7), and that has been purged, purified, and made white (Dan 11:35, 12:10). This purification will happen, as always throughout history, through the refining fire of suffering and persecution (Acts 14:22). We are to take up our cross and follow Jesus; the way of the cross has in most ages of the church been the way of persecution and suffering (John 15:18-24; Phillip. 1:29; 1 Thes. 3:4; 2 Tim. 2:12 & 3:12, etc). Suffering and persecution always strengthens the church; the absence thereof always weakens it. 11. The argument that the Post-trib Rapture is impossible, as it leaves no non-raptured people to populate the earth during the Millennium, is false. There are at least three possible answers to this argument: a. The wicked unsaved who are destroyed at the Lords coming will have children that have not yet reached the age of accountability. The earth may be re-populated by orphans (Jer. 49:11). b. The Bible does not teach that all unsaved are destroyed at Christs return. In fact it indicates otherwise: Zech 14:16 - And it shall come to pass, that every one that is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall even go up from year to year to worship the King, the LORD of hosts, and to keep the feast of tabernacles. Many unsaved people may indeed be spared annihilation at the time of Christs return. c. Matt 3:9 - And think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. God is sovereign and can do as He pleases! The Bibles clear teaching of a post-trib rapture cannot be undone by an argument from mere logic. CONCLUSION All scriptures dealing with the timing of the rapture show it to occur after the great tribulation, in particular Matt. 24:29-31, 1 Cor. 15:51-52, 2 Thes. 2:1-8 and Rev. 20:4-5. Not only is the pre-trib rapture position in direct conflict with these scriptures, but there is no verse or passage anywhere in the Bible that teaches that the Rapture must precede the Tribulation. The arguments given to support a Pre-trib rapture are indirect and very weak at best, and involve forced, spiritualized or secretive interpretations of all passages it obviously conflicts with to conform the text to the Pre-trib position, rather than relying on the plain-sense interpretation of the scriptures. The Post-Tribulation Rapture position has none of these conflicts, was the historic position of the Apostles and early church, and because it IS exegetically derived from scripture it easily harmonizes with all passages related to the second coming of Christ. The great danger of the popular Pre-trib position is that it has produced a generation Christians that are totally unprepared for days ahead, who believe they can ignore the warnings of Matthew 24 the book of Revelation, and who see no reason to separate themselves from the rising beast system of Revelation 13, having been duped into believing those passages do not or will not apply to them. It is this writers opinion that all the necessary mechanisms are now in place for Satan to attempt to implement the enslavement of all humanity under the rule of the antichrist, from the globally connected electronic banking system and the microchip ID implant which may apparently be used as the mark of the beast, to the global government system being set up through the Vatican and UN. We believe Christians must draw near to the Lord and do all they can to prepare for very difficult days ahead, including preparing spiritually and mentally to suffer great persecution such as the Western church has not seen in centuries. Christians should be on guard and prepared to resist the rising global antichrist economic system, and are called upon to “love not their lives unto the death” (Rev. 12:11). Finally, in addition to becoming aggressive confrontational soul-winners in this late hour, Christians should try to correct and inform their deceived brethren who have bought into in the hoax of the Pretrib Rapture. Amen. We have received several emails asking for our review of the recently released video titled “After The Tribulation’ released by Steve Anderson, Pastor of the “Faithful Word Baptist Church” (Inc.) of Tempe, Arizona. Having seen the video, here are our observations. First, we very much appreciate the way Anderson reached out in this video to evangelist Kent Hovind, who was wrongfully imprisoned on trumped-up Federal charges after being treacherously betrayed by so-called “Christian” brethren who testified against him (for more details listen to our message Traitors in Washington, Traitors in the Pulpits, Part 2. Bro. Hovind has been on our church prayer list for some time and we constantly pray for his release). Also, we greatly appreciate the attention this video does bring to the gross fallacy of the pretrib rapture hoax and the immediate relevance of Matthew 24:29-31, which Bro. Adams has been trying to get across to blinded pretribbers for the last 20 years or so. The video does make some good points along those lines. That said, you cannot judge a book by its cover; and although the video has a great title, Anderson’s position on the rapture is NOT post-trib, and as explained below is in fact a mid-trib/pre-wrath position, and is unfortunately just as characteristically compromised as his watered-down gospel message. First, in the video Anderson takes a ridiculous, unfounded position that God’s wrath follows the tribulation and that the tribulation is merely a time of Christian persecution, when the Bible is quite clear that God’s wrath is most certainly poured out during the tribulation period, beginning right up front in Rev. 6 with the opening of the 7 seals: Revelation 6:15-17 - And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? That fearful statement in v. 16-17 is made as a result of the judgments that had previously been rendered. Here Anderson contradicts himself because at one point he does cite Matt. 24:21-22, where Christ says the tribulation will be a time of trouble unparalleled in human history. It certainly does include a time of God’s wrath, through which we believe a faithful believing remnant will be divinely protected and preserved. Also, Anderson is in error regarding his division of the book of Revelation into halves, when in fact the book has a very clear three-fold division rather than two. The chronology of the book is NOT linear. Anderson correctly observes that the sounding of the 7th Trumpet at Rev. 11:15-19 clearly occurs at the end of the tribulation period (while failing, unless I missed it, to point out that the 7th trumpet is in fact the “last trump” referred to by Paul in 1 Cor. 15), but misses the critical fact that the 6th seal also clearly ends the tribulation as well: Revelation 6:12-14 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. This is clearly the same event described by the Lord Jesus in Matt. 24: Matthew 24:29-30 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. Therefore, immediately after this scene in Rev. 6 the Lord Jesus returns in power and glory and gathers His elect. In Revelation therefore there are 3 separate visions of the tribulation period, given first in the 7 Seals, again in the 7 Trumpets, and finally in the 7 Vials. For more details on this see our PDF outline of the book of Revelation and listen to our audio message found here: Rightly Dividing the Revelation - and Debunking the Pretrib Rapture Hoax. Anderson makes this two-fold division and says that God’s wrath follows the tribulation so he can say that the rapture occurs at the 7th Trumpet, before the outpouring of God’s wrath and the reign of antichrist. This is in fact a mid-trib position, NOT post-trib; it is no less absurd than Scofield’s pretrib rapture, for the following reasons, among others: (1) both positions require two returns of the Lord rather than ONE as the scriptures clearly teach; (2) both fail to take Romans 8:18-26 into account (rapture occurs when creation is restored); (3) both fail to take 2 Thes. 2:1-8 into account (rapture cannot preceed revelation of antichrist); (4) both fail to take Matt. 24:29-31 into account, though Anderson falsely claims to (rapture cannot precede the (entire) tribulation); and (5) both fail to take Rev. 19-20 into account (Christ returns first to destroy the antichrist, bringing the armies of heaven with him, and THEN raises the dead in Christ and transforms those who “are alive and remain” to convene the judgment seat of Christ and establish His millennial kingdom. Finally, beyond Anderson’s flawed rapture position is the issue of his watered-down, innocuous, compromised and FALSE gospel message, as restated at the end of the video, wherein he includes the theologically bankrupt, scripturally ignorant statement that, “you don’t have to repent of your sins to be saved.” The Lord Jesus stated clearly after His resurrection, on the road to Emmaus, what our gospel message is to be: Luke 24:47 …And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. We posted a sermon some time back which dealt specifically with Anderson’s heretical gospel and his absurd treatise titled Easy Believism Defended wherein Anderson makes this most ignorant statement: The terms “repent” and “saved” (or any variations thereof) never occur in the same verse in the entire Bible. Yet “believe” and “saved” or “faith” and “saved” occur a multitude of times. No one can show me one verse in the Bible that says a person must give up any sins to be saved (or that a person must be willing to give them up). We understand that Mr. Anderson has committed much of the New Testament to memory, but apparently there are several scriptures he has also resolved to forget, beginning with Luke 24:47, and continuing with Acts 3:19 and many others mentioned in my audio message. Repentance and saving faith are inseparable; as are justification and regeneration. That is why the Apostle Paul, who refused to water down his message as Anderson does, said this: Acts 26:19-20 Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision: 20 But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance. We would encourage all who are inclined to agree with Andersons watered-down gospel to please listen to our audio message, Repenting IS Believing. The preacher from Arizona alluded to in the message is Steve Anderson. We would also call upon Bro. Anderson to repent of his preaching of this powerless and fruitless false gospel. Source article: independencebaptist/POST-TRIB_RAPTURE.html
Posted on: Mon, 27 Jan 2014 02:00:00 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015