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From: heb_roots_chr@mail.geocities.com
Sent: Thursday, June 19, 1997 12:32 AM
To: Hebraic Heritage Newsgroup
Subject: The Inheritance -- Part IV
From: drleves@ibm.net
To: heb_roots_chr@geocities.com
Subject: Chapter eight
From Eddie:
**************
Food for thought. While the Christian worlds seems to love to argue when the ENTIRE church will be raptured as the church
teaches that the ENTIRE church is the bride, did you ever consider that there will be a pre-tribulation rapture but ONLY THE BRIDE who
PREPARED herself and had her LAMP BURNING was counted WORTHY to escape the tribulation but the "foolish" and "lukewarm" Christian was
not ready and missed the GREAT WEDDING?? Could this be the message of the parable of Yeshua/Jesus in Matthew 25 ??
Don't you think that it is important to KNOW who the BRIDE of Christ is, what her spiritual characteristics are and what her role
is in the Kingdom of heaven ????
Below is part IV of the article from our brother in the newsgroup.
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CHAPTER 8
The Great Escape The Rapture
A very controversial subject in Christianity rotates around the second
coming of the Lord. Escathology has been the focal point of many foolish
divisions and new denominations have been formed on the controversy of
this topic. Some people believe that the church will have to go through
the great tribulations, others say it will have to go only through part
of the tribulation.
Many other people believe the "taken away" (the rapture) will occur just
prior to the tribulation period. I happen to be of latter group.
Some people ridicule the concept of the "Rapture of the Church." They
declare that the word "rapture" is not found in the Bible. That depends
on which Bible you're reading. Paul, in his writing to the people of
the church of the Thessalonians, said "I would not have you to be
ignorant, brethren, concerning them who are asleep, that ye sorrow not,
even as those who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and
rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with
Him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which
are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not procede them
which are asleep. "For the Lord Himself shall decend from heaven with a
shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God: and
the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we which are alive and remain
shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in
the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one
another with these words" (1 Thess 4:13-18).
The phrase "caught up" in 1 Thessalonian 4:17 is the Greek word
harpanzo, which actually means "to be snatched away violently." The
word "rapture" gets its origin from the Latin Vulgate, one of the oldest
known Bibles in existence. The Latin equivalent of harpanzo is the verb
rapio, which means "to take away by force. This appropriate tense of
rapio appears in verse 17. Rapts is the past participle of rapio. Our
English words "rapt" and "rapture" stem from this past participle. What
is meant by the rapture of the church?
The Rapture speaks to the time when Jesus Christ will come and take His
Church out of this world. It shall happen suddenly without any notice.=20
The rapture of the Church and the Second Coming of Christ are two
separate events. At therapture Jesus is coming for those who are
looking for His appearance and those who are not "lukewarm".
This event will save those who are chosen from the terrible ordeals of
judgement or tribulation that God will impose upon the earth. The
tribulation will begin with World War Three in the Middle East and end
seven years later with the battle of Armageddon when the Lord will come.
He will come with those saints that were removed from the earth during
the Rapture.
They will establish the Kingdom age which will last a thousand years.=20
"Behold the Lord cometh with ten thousands of His saints" (Jude 14). In
1 Corinthians 15:51-52, Paul said, "Behold, I show you a mystery; we
will not all sleep, but will be changed {metamorphosis, a change of
body} in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye." When will the rapture
take place?
The Lord said, "No man knows the day or the hour," and for us to presume
some date or some hour would be an unscriptural presumption. Many, even
up to this day, have claimed to know the exact time and have even
prohesied it. Their claims have proven false.
Although we do not know the exact time of the Rapture, we are given a
clue. In 1 Thessalonians 5 Paul says, "But of the times and seasons,
brethren you have no need that I write unto you. For you yourselves know
perfectly that the day of the Lord is coming like a thief in the night.=20
For when they will say, Peace and safety; then comes sudden
destruction....But ye, brethren, are not in darkness that that day
should overtake you as a thief."
As we see today the signs of the time we must realize that we were
warned by the Lord to discern the seasons and the time. Jesus told us
that at the time of the end it will be like the time of Noah when the
whole world was filled with violence. We are observing in today's
society the rise of a perverted and violent society.
The Lord said that one of the signs would be that worldwouldbe like it
was during the time of Sodom and Gomorah. The sign of that time was a
great effeminate movement. This is also the origin of the word "sodomy"
in our law books. They might have called it the "Gay movements" if it
were today. One thing is for certain, God destroyed those cities
because of this sin. In this country today it's no longer shameful to
be "queer," "homosexual," or "Lesbian." They have covered the name of
"shame" with "gay." You may call slime sugar, but it's still slime.=20
God calls it "SIN" and God will judge each nation for this perversion.=20
This is not the only sin that God will judge in this world. This
country, and the world, has murdered millions of innocent children
(abortion) as a sacrifice to the God of pleasure.
Another sign of the end days is the rise of false prophets and false
Christs. Jesus has said that "many shall come in My name, saying, I am
the Christ, and will deceive many" (Matthew 24:5).
God has given to us the Word of Prophecy that will be a sign for the
season of his coming. One of the greatest signs to the world today is
the reestablishment of the nation Israel. For years Bible scholars had
looked forward to the regathering of the nation of Israel. This was
based on many Scriptures (including Matthew 24:32) by applying
expositional constancy such as in the parable of the fig tree, saying
that the fig tree is symbolic of Israel. Skeptics ridiculed this
interpretation.
Never in the history of man had a nation ever been reborn. But in May,
1948, a miracle took place, God re-established the nation of Israel.
God had fulfilled His Promise even as He said He would. Psalm 102:16
declares, "When the Lord shall build up zion, He shall appear in His
Glory." In the parable of the fig tree we are told "Now learn a parable
of the fig tree; when its branch is yet tender, and putteth forth
leaves, you will know that summer is nigh...even know that it is near,
even at the doors, Verily I say unto you, THIS GENERATION SHALL shall
not pass away, till all these things be fullfilled" (Matt 24:32-35).
What generation is the Lord speaking about? Certainly not the generation
Christ was talking to because they've passed away, but the generation
that saw the fig tree budding forth. The coming of Jesus Christ is "even
at the doors." The rebirth of the nation Israel should be a sign that
we might observe to know that the time is short.
Another great sign given by the Lord is found in the Gospel of Luke. It
tells us that "And they will fall by the edge of the sword, and be led
captive into all nations. And Jerusalem will be trampled by Gentiles
until the time of the Gentiles is fulfilled" (Luke 21:24).
The city of Jerusalem for the first time in over twenty five hundred
years was completley free from Gentile domination in June of 1967. The
times of the Gentiles (World system) has come to a close and again a
great sign of the coming of the Lord has taken place in this generation.
Sadly the Liberal government in Israel today is trading land for peace,
and 1996, they will even try to bargain Jerusalem for peace with the
Arabs. This also is part of Biblical prophecy, for the prophet
Zachariah wrote about the last days prior to the second coming of the
Lord "And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very
heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be
cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it"
(Zachariah 12:3) and again he wrote, "For I will gather all the nations
to battle against Jerusalem; the city shall be taken, the houses rifled,
and the women ravished. Half of the city shall go into captivity, but
the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city" (Zech
14:2).
Other signs are clearly seen today, the violent generation, unruly
children, and the rise of the Homosexual movement, Jesus had said ""but
on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from
heaven and destroyed them all. "Even so will it be in the day when the
Son of Man is revealed" (Luke 17:29-30).
Those worthy of the rapture I believe that those who are running the
race and keeping themselves in the love of God will not be dissapointed
when the event of the Rapture takes place.
The scriptures warn us of just who will be worthy of the Rapture. Jesus
said "But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with
carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you
unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those that dwell on
the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore, and pray always that you
may be COUNTED WORTHY to escape all these things that will come to pass,
and to stand before the Son of Man" (Luke 22:34-36).
Those who are following the instructions of Jesus will be taken up in
the Rapture just prior to the judgement that will come upon the earth.=20
Why before the Tribulation? Because God has not appointed wrath to the
saints.
Let's stop here for a moment. Some use the above scripture to say that
you can continue to live like a Sunday Christian, live like a pagan for
the rest of the week, and still be found worthy to escape the judgment
of God. That is not what I am implying. I believe what the scripture
is saying is that God does not want to have us be judged with this
present evil world.
That is why Peter said "For the time is come that judgment must begin at
the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of
them that obey not the Gospel of God?" (1 Peter 4:17). If one knows the
Lord's will and does not do it, the master will come at a time when he
will not expect him. Scriptures say that, "he will be cut asunder, and
his portion with the unbelievers, (the world's judgement)" (Luke 13:46).
The parable of the unjust steward in the Gospel of Luke had his portion
appointed with the unbelievers. I believe this implies that the man was
disinherited and therefore lost the race and failed to obtain the
Kingdom of God.
Notice what is written, "And that servant, which knew his lord's will,
AND PREPARED NOT HIMSELF, NEITHER DID ACCORDING TO HIS WILL, shall be
beaten with many stripes" (Luke 12:36-48).
One of his failure's was that HE FAILED TO PREPARE
HIMSELF. (The scriptures in another place tells us that the Bride had
made herself ready.) He also failed to DO ACCORDING TO HIS WILL.
These two items are very important for the believer to understand, for
one without the other makes both void. Jesus said to "Remember
therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the FIRST
WORKS; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy
candlestick out of his place except thou repent" (Revelation 2:5). The
"First works" means to prepare yourself to meet the Lord. It means to
abide in Christ, to be clothed with His righteousness.
If we prepare ourselves to be like Jesus, the Holy Spirit will guide us
in all truth's that we will be living according to His will. The Holy
Spirit cannot do this work if we don't abide in Christ. To do the
Lord's will also means to redeem the time. Paul, in Ephesians 5:16,
exhorts us to "redeem the time, because the days are evil."
The word "redeem" actually means "to make wise and sacred use of every
opportunity." We must realize that we are stewards of everything that
we have. Everything is really a loan from the Lord. We may say my car,
my future, my family, my job, but the truth of the matter is that these
things are not ours at all, but God's.
Our very life is a gift from the Lord. The very breath that you are
drawing as you read this book is really from the Lord. Also notice
in this parable of the unwise steward that the Lord speaks of
chastisement. "And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and
prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, SHALL BE BEATEN
WITH MANY STRIPES." According to Hebrews 12, chastisement means sonship
and without it we would be bastards, and not sons (Heb 12-5-11).
This unwise steward therefore was not lost but severely chastened by
missing out when the Lord comes for those who are ready at the Rapture
and by staying behind when the Lord comes.
Another similar story is told in the Parable of the ten virgins in
Matthew 25. In this story we have two classes of virgins (Matt
25:2-4). Many commentators take the five foolish virgins to be unsaved,
yet there are so many reasons to overturn such a poor interpretation
that I will mention only a few which serve as an important proof that
these foolish virgins are saved people: (1) They have lights in their
lamps (Verse 8). These lights sustained them up to midnight and the time
of their lamps "going out" showing that the lights are not yet
extinguished. And so these virgins have "good works" and they "glorify
{their} Father who is in heaven" (Matt 5:16)=A3 due to the indwelling
Holy Spirit in them except that now their lights are going out.
(2) There is oil in their lamps, even through it is granted that
there is no oil in the vessels. Oil signifies the Holy Spirit,
andtherefore these foolish virgins must be saved ones.
(3) The difference between the five wise and five foolish virgins lies
in their conduct, not in their nature. Since all of them are virgins,
with no divergence of true or false, their only distinction is between
their being wise or foolish. To be foolish does not mean to not be
saved. Oil in the lamps means more than the in-dwelling of the Holy
Spirit: it speaks of being filled with the Holy Spirit.
The indwelling Holy Spirit is received at the time of regeneration but
the filling of the Holy Spirit comes through continual seeking following
the moment of regeneration. Each believer has the Holy Spirit yet not
all have the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
A vessel is something other than the lamp, yet, this is not the emphasis
here. Since oil is a liquid, it must be contained in a vessel. God's
will for us is for each of us to be filled to the fullness not just
partially filled. In order to be filled to fullness, we need to do more
that just trimming or decorating the lamp. The supply of oil must also
be adequate to keep the lamp burning.
One of the priestly duties was to keep the lampstand trimmed and the oil
filled in their reservoirs so that the lamps would not go out. What
about those who did not get ready?
Once the rapture has taken place, those who were lukewarm and distant
from the Lord will realize, like the sons of the prophets in 2 Kings 2,
that what they had prophesied had truly come to pass.
As a result, they will become serious about God's Word. They will
become the martyred during the Great Tribulation period by refusing to
take the mark of the beast. Some will die in the terrible judgement
that's coming to this world. They will have lost out on the Inheritance
of God and the invitation that God had sent to them for the marriage
supper of the Lamb. "Blessed are they who are invited to the marriage
supper of the Lamb" (Rev 19:6).
How much better to go with the Bride (five wise virgins cc. Matt 25)
than to be left behind to face the Tribulation and all the horror coming
upon the earth. For Jesus said, "For there will be great tribulation,
such as the world never has seen before or ever will see again" (Matt
24:21). Why not just open your heart and life to Jesus Christ now?=20
If you have not received Him as your Lord and Saviour then by faith ask
Him; if you are a carnal Christian, re-commit your life to him and start
obeying His rules of the Kingdom so that you too may be heir to the
great Inheritance our Lord has left for us all.
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