Bible prophecy Questions & Answers
A: Trib is an abbreviation for Tribulation which means “Trouble” or “Persecution”. There is prophesied a period of time in the future when there will be intense tribulation unlike anything the world has ever seen. We are told, If God were not to step in, no flesh would be saved (Matt. 24:22). Jesus is to return to earth and take His Church, as in rescuing it. So our question is, just when does Jesus comes to remove his Church from this great time of tribulation? That is what is being referred to in those three terms above. Will He come Pre-Tribulation, Mid (meaning middle of the) Tribulation or Post (meaning after the Tribulation)?
A: This has been taught as a way to explain II Thes. 2:7-8, which states; “For the mystery of iniquity doth already work; only he who now letteth will let until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that wicked one be revealed whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.” Here the idea is put forward that the Holy Spirit, who resides in Christians, is the one being “taken out of the way”. So when the Church is taken form the earth so will “the Holy Spirit” be removed from the earth. That’s how they arrive at this teaching.
By twisting this scripture as they do, it allows them to declare that the Church must be removed or raptured from the earth before “that wicked one” is revealed. This then allows them to proclaim, “Don’t worry about anything evil happening to you, because we, the Church, will be taken before all the bad stuff starts happening”. This message is very popular and allows for easy evangelism. But it is wrong! It does not harmonize with all other prophecies and it contradicts what Paul just stated in verse II Thes. 2:3. It is therefore an incorrect interpretation of what this is saying.
This twisted interpretation will set the Christian up for failure and heartbreak. When hard times do come and they have not yet been taken as they had been taught, they will feel abandoned. This could collapse their faith, adding to the falling away spoken of in II Thes. 2:3, all because of wrong teaching!
To make this scripture say this it is twisting it to say something it is NOT. So why would people do this. Because they are trying to make the Bible say what they want it to say, instead of letting it say what it does. We just don’t always like what is it says. And that is unpopular and offensive to many.
Lastly the Holy Spirit is not taken from the earth for many reasons. One such reason is, the 144,000 sealed Jews who remain on the earth through the Great Tribulation and on into the millennial reign of Jesus Christ. They are Christian Jews, full of the Holy Spirit, remaining on earth.
A: In view of the previous answer and what is stated by Paul in II Thes. 2:1-3, it seems there are yet things to be fulfilled. A careful reading of, Matt. 24, Lu. 21, Mk 13 will reveal, several things need to happen first. It should be noted the differences between those things that are repeating events such as wars and rumors of wars, pestilences earthquakes and false Christs verses those one-time events that are clock starter, one-time events. If the Church is to see the “Man of Sin” as Paul puts forward, then we are waiting for Dan. 9:27 to happen, which is one of the primary ways we know who this person is.
(I offer a 5 hour seminar on these topics. Contact me for details.)
A: No, the church does not go through the wrath of God. I Thes. 1:10, 5:9, Rom. 5:9 are among the many scriptures declaring this. All Christians should however read and heed Col. 3:5-6 instructing us why the wrath of God comes on the earth. Also heed the warning given in Rev. 18:4 “And I heard another voice from heaven, saying , Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues;
A: Yes and No
Jesus can come for you and me at any time. We could die today and be locked into our eternal reward, (be it good or bad)! Therefore our answer is “YES”.
But the day and hour of Jesus return for His Church is known only by the Father (Mk. 13:32) and that is a precise moment in time. This cannot happen at any moment. Jesus has told us everything he knew about this event so we would not be confused or fearful. Even Jesus didn’t know the time of his return. He said the Father has kept it to Himself. Had He told Jesus, Jesus would have told us! The Bible gives us many facts, informing us of our travel arrangements, our requirements and the preparations needed for our journey to heaven! We are told what we must do, what we must avoid. We are told what we will see, and what to expect. We need to read and understand these prophecies and know what they say.
These prophecies have been given to the Church to study, read and know. They can be KNOWN and should be taught. We get in trouble, even confused, when we try to make them say what we want them to say, instead of just letting them say what they do! I spent years trying to understand Bible prophecy, but it always seemed aloof, confusing and contradictory from what I was taught in Bible school. Then God told me to stop trying to make it say what men want it to say. Let go of all opinions and dogmas and read it as facts and just let it speak. Then it all harmonized and made total sense.
If you viewed the previous four Q&A’s and read those scriptures, you have already discovered there are things which must happen before we are collected to be with Jesus.
With that being said, I believe we have crosses a line of no return and a prophetic clock has started the countdown to when Jesus returns. No one knows the day or the hour of Christ’s return, but we are given a clear description of the season of His return, with many great details to comfort us.
Know from this time forward things will progress faster and with more severity until Jesus Christ repossess planet earth. We are on the threshold of this culminating. It will happen fast, when it starts.
Know, Jesus wasn’t just speaking to Jews when He said “When you therefore see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet stand in the holy place (whosoever readeth let him understand)” Matt 24:15. We are instructed to understand this! This event starts another clock ticking, counting the actual days to when Christ rules and reins on planet earth. That’s why Jesus wanted his Church to know this.
This is not a reference to Titus and the destruction of the temple in 70 AD. as many teach. This is a future event in our near future.
Still other scriptures reveal events that must happen before Jesus returns for His Church. But as for you and me, we must always be ready to meet our maker, for today He may take you or I in death! Because of this we are to be ready at any day to meet the Lord.(I offer a 5 hour seminar on these topics, contact me for details)
A: The rapture is the term used for the catching away of the Church by Gods angels. This event is to happen in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. It’s spoken of in many places put never called the “Rapture” in the Bible. It is sometimes referred to as the “Catching Away”, the “gathering of the Saints”. Reference Matt. 24:30-31, also 1 Cor. 15:51-55.
Yes, it is a real event yet to happen.
It should also be mentioned there is a catching, a harvesting of souls, the evil people. This happens after the Saints have been taken to safety, away form the wrath of God on the wicked. Matt. 25:31-46 also in Rev. 14:14-20
