ariseandshine: He will come like a thief in the night. The picture you paint here is not the rapture.


There is a pattern in the bible concerning the rapture. Follow this pattern and you will know how that rapture will happen because God does not change. There is nothing new under the Sun.


Enoch was raptured.
Elijah was raptured.
Try and understand these two raptures first then you will know what to expect.


Last point:
There is no record of accident during rapture in the Bible.

fckyourman: OGA Pastor well done.

Pastor Olu T: 17/07/2010

RAPTURE

INTRODUCTION

For the lord Himself shall descend from heaven with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God and the dead in Christ will rise first, then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the lord in the air, so we will always be with the Lord.
1Thesalonians 4:16-17

Some says since Rapture is not stated verbatim in the bible, it means that there is no Rapture, but the scripture we are considering clearly point to Rapture, so we look at Rapture in the light of this scripture and other related scriptures.
Rapture is the transforming and translating of Christians both living and dead (physically) to meet Jesus Christ in the air, during His second coming to the earth and be with Him forever, which will occur at the time of the end.
Though the word rapture was not stated verbatim in the bible, but the bible points to rapture in several passages of the scripture. The word rapture is just used to describe the event that was going to take place at the second coming of Jesus back to the earth. The early Christians never had problems with the event that was going to take place; in fact everyone was very much acquainted with it and expected it.
Jesus Christ talked about it a lot and even went to describing it in details in the book Mathew 24 which we will be looking at in details in the course of this book.

In several scriptures of the bible, we are meant to understand that the earth condition will grow from bad to worse during the time of the end but those that endure to the end shall be saved and this gospel of the kingdom will preach to the ends of the world as a witness to all the nation and then the end will come.

Pastor Olu T: 17/07/2010

RAPTURE


When the end comes, the earth will not come to literal end, things will still remain the same (normal), the unbelieving will still remain unbelieving still, businesses will move on as usual and there will not be any unusual signs from what is happening in the world but the scriptures says suddenly Christ will appear in the atmosphere, when Christ appear in the atmosphere, only those that will be going with Him will see Him, they will be transformed and caught up with Him in the atmosphere, they will disappear and vanish from the earth, so at that time there will report all over the world of missing people just as the scriptures says in Mathew 24 that two people will be on the bed and one person will be taken and the other left, two people will be grinding on the mill and one will be taken and the other left, two will be in the field one will be taken and the other left, there will be reports all over the world that people have suddenly vanished, yet some will still not understand what all these is about and not believe still but give incredulous meanings to all that is happening, just like the first time the Hoy Spirit came to indwell man in the book of Acts of the apostles chapter 2 And the apostles spoke in different tongues, giving praise to the Lord, and those that where present started giving all sort of meanings to all that is happening , so it will be at that time when Christ will come and even worse because there will be no Christian (believer) on earth to accurately explain the happenings unlike the day of Pentecost just as Peter did.
As the bible says there will great pain in the world at that time as a result of the rapture, places of the earth being in different time zones will create so much problems as at the time of Jesus second coming , some will be at day while some will be at night which will bring about different kinds of accidents, there will be plane crash allover because if it be that the pilot suddenly disappear while the plane is in the air, there will also be car crash all over for all kinds of reasons and houses burnt, may be people are cooking or using home appliances during the time of their flight. There will be all kinds of accidents even some not even thought of will occur on that day of Rapture which will bring about so many loss of lives and many will go to Hell that day because once you did not go with the Rapture, it means if you die in those accidents, you go to Hell. Though many people will still remain on earth but the good news about it is that some will believe the scripture due to all they have seen during the Rapture and have been told before the Rapture.

Those that finally believe will go through so many persecutions like never before the creation of the world. During the rebuilding of the world (As at that time the whole world will be in total chaos and destruction), a man would rise who would appear to be a man of peace because he will bring about peace on earth (world), he would be a very intelligent man, who would be made ruler of the whole world and which during his reign, the world would enjoy peace and blissfulness which it never had experienced since man left the garden of Eden. Things will remain normal and even better, Christianity (Religion) will still remain and there will be so much hypocrisy like never before, so many false prophet will rise deceiving many and even themselves, in fact any child born into the world at that period, will never know if anything like the Rapture had taken place because things will be as normal as it can be for a particular period of time. After some time God will start pouring out His bowl of wrath on the inhabitant of the earth and there will so much terrible times, earthquakes and so many natural disaster will befall the earth, during this time so many that believed after the Rapture will fall and some that still remain in their believes will face so many persecutions because there will be so much conspiracy against them, it will be widely believed that they are the ones responsible for all the disaster that is happening on earth and hereby so many will be cast into prison and some killed because they belong to the way or sect which is what it will be called then, this will go on for three and half years, which at first people will start receiving the 666 marks (Mark of the beast) unknowingly in other to do business and when it becomes known it will be too late for anyone to repent. Anyone that do not have the mark will not be allowed to do business of any kind and those that do not will be hunted down and killed, but before you are killed you will be given the last opportunity to receive the mark. At this time the beast (Anti christ) will come out openly and demand worship from which if you do not you will be killed, this will take place for the next three and half years.

Jesus Christ will come back after the second three and half years, destroy the beast, the false prophets, and those with the beast mark and cast them into the lake of fire but those that do not receive the mark of the beast will still remain on earth. Christ will establish His kingdom here on earth for one thousand years, which Satan will be bound for this period so that he can no longer deceive the people of the world, and at this time the earth will become a paradise and return back to as it was when it was first created.
Jesus is coming back soon, there is no doubt about that, if you would like to be Raptured when He comes back, the only reasonable thing for you to do is to be right with Him so when He comes, you will go with Him.

Freksy:

When the apostle Paul said that Christians would be "caught up" to be with the Lord, what subject was being discussed? RESURRECTION!

1 Thess. 4:13-18, "We would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning those who are asleep ("those who sleep in death," NE; "those who have died," TEV, JB), that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep. For this we declare to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel's call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first; then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words."

Evidently some members of the Christian church in Thessalonica had died. Paul encouraged the survivors to comfort one another with the resurrection hope. He reminded them that Jesus was resurrected after his death; so, too, at the coming of the Lord, those faithful Christians among them who had died would be raised to be with Christ.

Who are the ones that will be 'caught up in the clouds,' as stated at 1 Thessalonians 4:17?

Verse 15 explains that they are faithful ones "who are left until the coming of the Lord," that is, they are still living at the time of Christ's coming.

Will they ever die?

According to Romans 6:3-5 and 1 Corinthians 15:35, 36, 44, they must die before they can gain heavenly life. But there is no need for them to remain in the death state awaiting Christ's return. They will instantly be "caught up," "in the twinkling of an eye," to be with The Lord.

RESURRECTION is what the apostle knew and preached. Rapture is alien.

Freksy:


You make it appear as if the "rapture" will be escape plan for Christians from the great tribulation. The bible shows both the righteous and unrighteous will experience the great tribulation.

"(21) For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. (22) And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened". Matthew 24:21-22 (KJV)

This does not say that "the elects" will all have been taken to heaven before the great tribulation, does it? Rather, it holds out the prospect to them, along with associates in the flesh, of surviving that great tribulation on earth.

"(9) After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; (10) And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. (14) And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Revelation 7:9-10,14 (KJV)

To "come out" of something a person must go into it or be in it. So this great multitude must be persons who actually experience the great tribulation and come out of it as survivors.

Pastor Olu T:

Maybe this will help sir;

Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed- In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised up incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

1Corinthians 15:51-53

Pastor Olu T: We are surely living in the end of days and surely dont need a seer to see this!

The spirit says clearly that in later times some believers will desert the Christian faith. They will follow spirit that deceive, and they will believe the teachings of demons. These people will speak lies disguise as truth. Their consciences have been scarred as if branded by a red-hot iron.

1Timothy 4:1-2

Stay blessed and remain rapturable