bibleprophecyaswritten.com The Any - Day - Now RAPTURE... Before the Wrath to Come! I [Jesus] will come again, and receive you to Myself...(Jn 14:3) ...Jesus, who delivers us from the wrath to come. (1 Th 1:10; 1 Thes 5:9; Ro 5:9) “The Rapture Myth” An article entitled “The Rapture Myth” was sent to pre - trib prophecy ministries, including Bible Prophecy As Written, by a respected colleague to alert us about the Biblical fallacies being circulated to unsuspecting Christians in unvigilant mainstream churches. The Rapture Myth “Is the common belief in the Rapture actually biblical ? No, it is not.” [After that introductory statement, there follows cherry - picked Scriptures which are then lined up to arrive at a pre - concluded “Conclusion” ‒ Here it is; the Church is destined to — not be “delivered from” – but be subjected to “the wrath to come” ...the Great Tribulation! The whole affair amounts, at best, to a confused mix of a “partial - post - trib rapture”. Most Christians will even miss that twisted rapture concept, destined to experience the wrath of the Tribulation. Here is the concluding statement by the author] “Yes, there will be protection during the climactic, earth - shattering events of the end - times — not in a "Rapture" off to Heaven, but in fact right here, somewhere on earth -- for zealous, faithful Christians who are unwilling to compromise on the truth God has shown them.” Wallace G. Smith Tomorrows World.org Below is my brief answer to “The Rapture Myth”. Thank you for sending the article. His title, “The Rapture Myth", is a misnomer. He is still describing a Rapture. His description of the process of being "caught up" (Latin for "Rapture", 1 Thes 4:17), and being "changed" from "perishable" and "mortal" to "imperishable and immortal" (1 Cor 15:51 - 54) to meet Christ in the air is correct and still a Rapture. If I were to teach that to a pre - trib audience I wouldn't expect any dissent. The author is not talking about the "Rapture Myth". It's about timing and sequence. He is actually talking about a "Pre - Tribulation Rapture Myth". Here are some key points he misses, which expose the misunderstanding replete in this article, and why it matters. 1. The Bible teaching of the Imminent (any - moment) Return of Christ is ignored. The Bible teaches us to be watching and expect an "any day - any hour - any time" Return of Christ (Mat 24:50; Mark 13:33). 2. How do we know this applies to Today, and every day? 1) Believers are told they can Expect Christ to Return "immediately AFTER the Tribulation (Mat 24:29) 2) Believers are told that Christ is coming at an hour when we DO NOT Expect Him (Mat 24:44; Luke 12:40) 3) Which one is right? They cannot both be right. Or can they? 4) Yes, they are both right, because Christ is coming TWICE , FIRST in the IMMINENT, any - moment Rapture (Luke 12:40). SECOND , in His Return to earth "immediately after" the Tribulation (Mat 24:29). This article has the author saying, "I DO NOT EXPECT Christ to Return today, or any day, before the Tribulation, or at any time during the Seven Seals, or at any time during the first Six Trumpets. The author is essentially saying "my master is not coming for a long time" -- which is the position of the "evil servant" (Mat 24:48 - 50). Again, Christ "is coming at an hour that YOU DO NOT EXPECT (Luke 12:40). Let us hold to the teaching about the "faithful and sensible" servant, who is on the "alert" serving the "household" of Christ (Mat 24:45 - 47), and expecting to be "delivered from the Wrath (Tribulation) to come" (1 Thes 1:10), for it is a caution from Jesus to "ALL" (Mark 13:37). I notice several related errors, such as "Replacement Theology" in his reference to Revelation 12. Again, thank you for sharing this article with me. Yours in Christ, Phillip Goodman bibleprophecyaswritten. com GRAPH BELOW: Matthew 24:36 - 42 is a Double - Reference Prophecy ⚫ M O R E B E L O W ⚫ Rapture The Second Coming of Christ Return But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. For the coming of the Son of Man will be just like the days of Noah. ... Noah entered the ark, and they did not understand until the flood came and took them all away; so shall the coming of the Son of Man be...For this reason you be ready too; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will. (Mat 24:36 - 44) The day and hour teaching is a warning to watch and be spiritually ready at all times , for the Lord is coming at any time on an unknown day There are two phases to Christ’s Second Coming — the Rapture and the Return. Some say Matthew 24:36 - 44 (above) does not speak of the Rapture, but only to the R eturn They say that since the warning uses the global flood of Noah as an example, then it can only refer to the return of Christ in judgment at the end of the Tribulation. However, the Rapture, like the Return, is also associated with judgment. One of the most concise and clearest references to the pre - tribulation Rapture is 1 Thessalonians 1:10, “...wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who delivers us (Salvation) from the wrath (Judgment) to come.” (1 Thes 1:10) At the Rapture believers are delivered “from the wrath (judgment) to come.” (1 Thes 1:10) Both the Rapture and the Return also include a “salvation” component (“ delivered from”, 1 Thes 1:10; “saved” from...Mat 24:22). So we can paraphrase the two phases of Christ’s Second Coming this way, 1. At the Rapture believers are SAVED , or delivered , from the JUDGMENT of “the wrath to come. ” 2. At the Return believers are SAVED from the JUDGMENT of extermination in the Tribulation. 3. In the Matthew 24:36 - 39 analogy above, just as God saved Noah from the Flood , at the Rapture, BEFORE the Tribulation , He will save believers from the Tribulation’s Wrath to come. (1 Thes 1:10; 5:9) Likewise, at the Return He will save believers from annihilation at the END of the Tribulation . (Mat 24:22; cmp v13) Christs' teaching is a double reference prophecy. As such, Christ is referring to His Second Coming as a two - phase d event. Thus the Matthew 24 references to an "unknown - day" apply to BOTH phases of His Second Coming — the Rapture AND the Return. As a double reference prophecy, it teaches that the "unknown day" of the Rapture makes it an imminent event. (This understanding also mediates a long - running debate: Is the "unknown day" referring to the Rapture, or to the Return? Christ is teaching that Matthew 24:36 - 50 has reference to BOTH !) Here is an example of a double reference prophecy, revealed to Mary, the mother of Jesus, by the angel Gabriel, "And behold, you will conceive in your womb, and bear a son, and you shall name Him Jesus. "He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Most High ; [First Coming of Christ] and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David; and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever; and His kingdom will have no end." [Second Coming of Christ] (Luke 1:31 - 33; note the single verse with 2000+ years between fulfillments; see also Isai 9:6, 61:1 - 2; Mic 5:2 for other double reference prophecies ) Note the double reference about the Coming of Jesus, the Messiah. It appears as a single event, with no indication of a time break between two separate fulfillments. Likewise, there is a clear inference that Matthew 24 contains a double reference prophecy. While the prophecy of the angel Gabriel to Mary above speaks of two phases of Christ’s Coming ( a First and a Second Coming), Matthew 24 is about two phases of that Second Coming (First the Rapture; Second the Return). On the one hand, the passage says that Christ will come, not only on an unknown day, but on a day many do not EXPECT (Mat 24:50). Yet, on the other hand, we are told we should EXPECT Him to come “immediately after the Tribulation” (Mat 24:29 - 30). This is a clear implication that in Matthew 24 there are two (2) phases to Christ’s Second Coming — the Rapture and the Return. Just as I expect Christ to come “AFTER the Tribulation” ( Mat 24:29), I also expect Him to come BEFORE the Tribulation (1 Thes 1:10) The chart below shows the Matthew 24 double reference (the Rapture and the Return) prophecy. As previously noted both the Rapture and the Return phases include both “Salvation” and “Judgment.’ This is key to understanding the chart and Christ’s use of Noah and the flood as an analogy to His Second Coming. The other passages in the Chart (referencing the Rapture , the Return , or both as noted) can be seen to fit and satisfy the entire prophecy. A few final notes: 1. The only way Jesus cannot come on “a day we do not expect” is if we are expecting Him to come every day. But the exact “day and hour ” remains “ un known”. This is the point of the prophecy — to be spiritually ready EVERY day! 2. The “unknown day” of Christs’ Coming in phase 2 — His Return — “immediately after the tribulation” (Mat 24:29 - 30), still remains an “unknown day” as to its exactness, but believers CAN KNOW “He is near, right at the door” from the signs (24:33). 3. Unbelievers, hardened in their unbelief by Satan and the Antichrist (2 Thes 2:9 - 12) will reap the judgment of the warning that Christ “will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know” (Mat 24:50; Luke 12:46). 4. This summary Scripture from Peter the Apostle, using the same analogy as that of Matthew 24:37 - 39 captures both the Rapture and the Return beautifully, For if God ... preserved Noah ...when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly; ...then the Lord knows how to rescue the godly ...and to keep the unrighteous ...for the day of judgment ...(2 Pet 2:4 - 9) Therefore, by the Grace of God, we have assurance through faith in Christ that we will be (“delivered - rescued - saved”) (ultimate Salvation ) from the “wrath - flood - tribulation” to come ( Judgment ). The point Jesus makes about His Second Coming is to be alert and watching — believing, faithful, expectant – - for we do not know the day or hour when “Jesus will come again, and receive us to Himself; that where He is, there we may be also.” (John 14:3 personalized)