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STUDY TWENTY
Hope In Christ
A Study in Scriptural Integrity:
When Will We Meet the Lord in the Air?
Administrations, to whom Scripture is written.
We will attempt to understand when the
meeting of the Lord in the air, described by I Thes. 4:13ff, takes place in
relationship to the book of Revelations.
We will search the Scriptures in context
of "administrations" and "to whom it is addressed."
Of course, there are those who would argue, "It is all God's Word. You can not pick and choose what to obey."
Such as say this are correct. You cannot pick and choose.
But do we Gentiles still offering animal sacrifices for our sins? Are we still circumcising? No, in the faith of Abraham that he had uncircumcised we have our faith, and in the atonement of Jesus' blood we have sacrifice.
Are we then picking and choosing? No, the Scriptures pick and chose for us. We simply accept what is for us to do, and learn the purpose of the rest for our understanding. We need to therefore find out what in scripture is addressed to whom.
I Thes. 4:13ff: "But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which 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 prevent them which are asleep.
"For the Lord himself shall descend 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."
Who is this addressed to? Directly to the Church at Thessalonica at about 65 AD. However, it reveals by revelation a doctrine pertinent to the entirety of Christianity.
It reveals to the Church that it will not meet the Lord in the mountains around Jerusalem, and it will not meet the Lord at his throne for Judgment. It reveals that three things will occur that will be unmistakable.
First, the dead in Christ will rise incorruptible; second, those alive will be changed into something new; third, we will then all rise to meet the Lord where?
In the air. There will be no doubt as to what happened. For reference in this article to these three events collectively, we will use the term made common by the Latin Bible, "Rapture."
This is our hope, this is what we wait for. We wait for this return of Jesus our Lord, not on earth, but for us in the air. Something else is said about this waiting for the Lord. According to I Thes 1:10, we are:
"... to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come."
Even as God raised Jesus, God will raise our dead, and we wait for this, for Jesus has (past tense, already accomplished) saved us from the wrath to come. In the context of us meeting Jesus, we are delivered from the wrath to come. What wrath? Rev. 6:12-ff:
"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;
"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.
"And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
"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;
"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:
"For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?"
The day of God's wrath. We have, in the context of meeting the Lord (which takes place in the air) been delivered from wrath. We, the Church that is to meet Jesus in the air, are gone.
How much of Revelations did we go through? Let's find out.
Gal. 1:11 &12: "But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man.
"For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ."
Paul says his revelation, and the very gospel he preached, was from Jesus Christ. Either he lied or he told the truth. I believe he told the truth.
Col 1: 24-28: "Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body's sake, which is the church:
"Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
"Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
"To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
"Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus:"
Prior to the Church of today that started on the day of Pentacost, this gospel Paul preached was a mystery, hid from ages and generations. This gospel that includes a Church that meets its Lord in the air was a secret. This gospel is a "dispensation," meaning an "administration," given to Paul by Jesus Christ. Not to Peter, not to James, but to Paul.
Eph. 3:1 -11: "For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles,
"If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward:
"How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words,
"Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)
"Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;
"That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:
"Whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of the grace of God given unto me by the effectual working of his power.
"Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;
"And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:
"To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God,
"According to the eternal purpose which he purposed in Christ Jesus our Lord:"
This administration of the gospel is also called an administration of grace.
Remember, this gospel is regarding a fulness not known in other ages. This gospel is not even the same gospel preached by Jesus Christ during his earthly ministry! It was hidden.
In this age of grace revealed first to Paul, it is known by us. In other ages, before Paul, it was not made known. Meeting the Lord in the air was not known, for the true riches of Christ were "unsearchable:" they could not be traced for they were hid.
I Cor. 2:8: "But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:
"Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory."
It was not even known to the powers of darkness.
Eph 2:18-ff: "For through him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father.
"Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God;
"And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;
"In whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord:
"In whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit."
Collectively we are the Temple of God. Biblically we are known as the Body of Christ, as the household of God, as the Church of God. Each connotes an aspect of the Christian Church that began on Pentecost with the Twelve, and ends at the Rapture.
And Paul, recording in Romans, I & II Corinthians, Galations, Ephesians, Phillipians, Colloseans, I & II Thessilonians, Hebrews, Philemon, and I & II Timothy received the fullness of the doctrine to this Church, including when it would finish, at the Rapture.
(Acts, I & II Peter, I II and II John fill in details vital to our personal walk but the fullness of the Church and its mysteries were revealed to Paul.)
I Cor. 10:32 "Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God."
Prior to Pentecost there were two categories of people: Jews (Israel) and Gentiles (the nations.) Now we have Jews, Gentiles, and Church of God, the body of born again believers.
When Jesus spoke to his disciples, before his resurrection, was he referring to the Rapture? No, he was referring to things prophesied throughout the old testament. When he said, "one would be left, another taken," was that the Rapture? No. It was in reference to events that will take place in the future.
Paul's epistles were to believers, his ministry to all. Who were the Old Testament ministries to, who were they taught by Jesus?
Duet 5:1-3: "And Moses called all Israel, and said unto them, Hear, O Israel, the statutes and judgments which I speak in your ears this day, that ye may learn them, and keep, and do them.
"The LORD our God made a covenant with us in Horeb.
"The LORD made not this covenant with our fathers, but with us, even us, who are all of us here alive this day."
The Law of the Covenant was to Israel, and even then only after it was given and made. Did God change? No, conditions of faith and of the people changed.
Eze. 2:3: "And he said unto me, Son of man, I send thee to the children of Israel, to a rebellious nation that hath rebelled against me: they and their fathers have transgressed against me, even unto this very day."
Matt 10: 5-7: "These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not:
"But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
"And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand."
This gospel was of the Kingdom of Heaven. Paul never uses the phrase, "Kingdom of Heaven." Our administration is not the Kingdom, because a Kingdom requires the presence of a King. Our administration is of grace, and we, the Body of Christ, ambassadors.
Jesus spake a gospel pertaining his personal presence. We preach a gospel regarding Christ risen and seated at God's right hand, and we the believers having all spiritual blessings.
And Jesus preached only to Israel, and during his Kingdom gave only crumbs to Gentiles who came to him. And he sent his disciples only to Israel. It was the preaching of the Kingdom.
Luke 1:80: "And the child grew, and waxed strong in spirit, and was in the deserts till the day of his shewing unto Israel."
John the Baptist was shown (presented for benefit of) only to Israel. He heralded the Kingdom.
Matt 15:22 -24: "And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil.
"But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us.
"But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel:"
Jesus did end up helping her, but only after she was able to demonstrate that it would not infringe on his sole ministry to Israel. He was sent, with his personal presence, only to Israel.
Acts 1:6-8: "When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?
"And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.
"But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth."
He preached the Kingdom of Israel, which centered on Jerusalem and Israel. But Israel rejected her King and had him slain.
But Jesus was raised from the dead, the King is back, right? Jesus' disciples were concerned with the Kingdom of Israel gospel, they were asking for positions in the government.
But the Kingdom of Israel, it seems, was on hold, "put in the Father's own power." It was put on hold because Jesus was about to leave again.
Because first, an administration where "ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth" would take place.
This was Jesus' first revelation of a gospel he would share fully with Paul. The very next moment, yes, the very next instant after this was brought up,
"And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.
"And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;
"Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven." Acts 1:9-11
The very last thing
Jesus did was drop the mind blower that, "The Kingdom is in the Father’s
power, no definite time for it to crank up again." When will it return?
When Jesus appears
as he ascended, not to meet his saints in the air, but to return to answer his
disciple's question, "Wilt thou again restore the Kingdom?"
Yes he will restore
the Kingdom.
But the Kingdom is
taking an intermission, and an "administration of grace" is taking
its place, that will end when the constituents of that administration
"meet the Lord in the air."
Is this
administration still under the Kingdom of Heaven?
Of Course it is,
but just as Puerto Rico is governed by a different standard than Florida, but
under the same Constitution, we have different rules from Israel but the same
heart of God.
Gal. 4:1-7: "Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;
"But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.
"Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:
"But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
"To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
"And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
"Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ."
During this administration of grace, over and over again we are called sons, and heirs; we are saved from wrath; we are blessed with all spiritual blessings.
None of this was revealed to Israel or to the sons of man, not even during the personal presence of the King of the Kingdom of Heaven.
The Rapture was not revealed, where a Church of spirit-filled Christians will be caught up into the air at the end of its age.
The return of Jesus the angels promised to the eleven will take place like his ascent, meaning he will return to earth and land. But on his way back, we will meet him in the air.
The Kingdom of David and thus, of Jesus was to Israel; when it returns, Jesus will rule both Israel and earth. The Gospel we preach, the gospel is not of the Kingdom of Israel but of an "administration of grace,” and is to all nations.
God has the end of this administration "in his pocket," in His Own power.
We are sons in relationship to God, though we still serve God, Jesus, and one another. The Church epistles almost all start with a phrase containing "grace from God our Father and from the Lord Jesus Christ." They are addressed to us, his children.
In the epistles addressed to us, we learn
what we can do today to please God. We learn who we are and what will become of
us. We learn we will meet the Lord in the air.
We
learn we have been delivered from wrath. We learn we are not of the Kingdom of
Israel age.
Are we subjects of the King? Yes. And ambassadors. But his administration to Israel is on hold, in God's "pocket." When we speak in his name it is as the messengers of a King, but one not yet back to recover his Kingdom.
What became of the Kingdom then? It is on hold.
Jesus will continue it upon his return to earth, it will begin again. The record of the Rapture says we will meet him in the air, that is how the administration of grace comes to a close. Then what of the Kingdom?
Rev: 1:1-3: "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:
"Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
"Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand."
Once again the revelation refers to "servants." One will not find an "administration of grace," or a "body of Christ," or a "church of God" highlighted in the book of Revelations. The end times are come, and the Kingdom is nigh at hand.
How do we know this?
The key is in the address. It is no great mystery, it is very plain, only we have not known how to understand it or what to look for.
First in verse one we find emphasis on servants. While we as Christians are servants also, we are sons first, dear children of God. That is the testimony of Scripture.
That however is not conclusive or even very indicative of a change in address.
In the second verse, however, we find the telling reference to the earthly ministry, the Kingdom, of Jesus Christ.
John says he saw record of the "Word of God," a Kingdom term for Christ, he said he bare record of Christ's testimony, again a Kingdom reference to his earthly ministry, and of all things that he, Jesus, saw.
The first verses of Revelations bring us right into the Gospels, and finish with, "take heed, the time is at hand."
We read this as "take heed, the time will soon be here." But it is a prophetic phrase meaning, "when it is relevant remember and heed it."
We the Church are
saved from wrath. When will this take place exactly?
We know that the
time God hath put in His own power, so it might be this decade, it might be a
century down the road.
But God reveals to
us mysteries, remember?
“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write
unto you.
“For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a
thief in the night.
“For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction
cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not
escape.
“But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.” 1 Thes. 5:1-4
This day of Christ’s return will appear to
the nations as a thief. A thief is stealthy, sneaky, but it will not creep up
on us. Why?
Because we’ve been told what to look for.
“For God hath not
appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
“Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together
with him.
“Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as
also ye do.” 1 Thes. 5:9-11
See, we are not appointed to wrath, that is
the context of the day not overtaking us as a thief.
For it not to overtake us that way, while we
lack the means to predict it, when it starts happening, we have the information
to tell precisely what is coming up.
Revelation of Saint John is not addressed to
us, but Romans is not addressed to Israel. But is Israel mentioned in Romans?
Yes.
We find the links from the Church epistles to
Revelations just as clearly as the Church epistles are linked to the Gospels
and the Old Testament.
“Behold, I shew 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 trump: for the
trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall
be changed.” 1 Cor. 15:51-52
This agrees perfectly with what we read
elsewhere, that we would be raised or changed.
When does it say this will happen? Elsewhere,
it says “the trump of God will sound.”
Here, though, it reveals that this trump of
God is also the LAST trump.
Furthermore, this Scripture tells us that how
we are changed is a mystery.
But is this mystery referred to as THE
mystery?
No, but Scripture we have read already refers
to THE mystery, doesn’t it?
"Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
"Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
"To whom God would make known what is
the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in
you, the hope of glory:" Col 1: 25-27
This mystery, THE mystery aforetime kept hid,
will be complete when the last trump of God is sounded and we are lifted to
meet our Lord in the air.
Only one place in Scripture brings the
finishing of the Mystery and the last trump together, and when one very clear
verse ties together very clear truths elsewhere revealed, it is emphasis we
should pay attention to:
“But in the days of the
voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God
should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.” Rev. 10:7
This one little verse sums it up.
The seventh angel, sounding the seventh, or
last, trump, shall signal the completion of “the mystery of God.”
Brothers, sisters, in all of Scripture only
one mystery is called THE mystery, and that is the mystery of the Church that
will be finished, or “completed,” at this time.
Before that, we of the Church will be seeing
the events foretold in Revelations come to pass, so that events do not overtake
us as a “thief in the night.”
But once we are taken up, then the power of
the beast and the false prophet come to pass.
Before this last trump, Jesus was in Heaven
overseeing the opening of the seals and sending angels on their way.
Once we are taken up, the Lord soon appears on
earth, in Jerusalem’s hills, on a white horse with a host at his sides.
Once we are taken up, we find the number and
mark of the Beast. We see the forces of Satan beset the forces of the Lion of
Judah.
But not until then.
The seals and the trumpets and the thunders
are but the beginning, while the Church is being “finished” and those taking
our place as God’s messengers are being prepared.
Then, once we are gathered to our Lord, the
rule of darkness begins in earnest, but we are rescued from that.
Some say we go through nothing in Revelation.
After all, are we not “saved from wrath?”
Yes. Many were “saved from the Titanic.”
Does that mean they were never on board when
the ship began to sink?
Of course not.
You say, but God loves us, and wouldn’t let
us go through that. I myself told myself that literally for decades before
facing the truth.
Does God love the Christians in Asia and
Africa?
Yes. Some are the most faithful, incredible
witnesses, who love the Lord with every fiber of their being.
Yet many undergo persecutions, tortures and
deaths for the faith that match the horrors of the seven seals and seven
trumpets in every way.
I ask again, does God love them?
Of course.
But when the last trump sounds, when this
point in Revelation takes place we will return to the point in time that
"God has put under his own power," where "this same Jesus will
return in like manner as ye have seen him go."
In fact, although
some of the events occurring before the Rapture are horrific, imagine a world
wholly given to evil. The days of the Beast, the False Prophet, and the mark of
the Beast will be the ultimate trial for those, as the saying goes, “left
behind.” And then the seven vials of wrath, after which Jesus establishes his
rule and imprisons Satan.*
This kingdom of
Satan will at first look benign and will offer hope to a shattered world.
“For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a
thief in the night.
“For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” 1 Thes. 5:2-3
But this hope will last but a short time. The
end will be brutal, overtaking the world like a thief in the night.
The world, rejoicing that they lived through
those days, will then see the Son of Man coming in glory in the clouds like he
came. The trumpet of God, the last trump, shall sound and the end is then come.
Then the things that John saw regarding the Kingdom ministry of Christ will again be in action, the Church of grace will have been removed to be with him, and then, "take heed, for the time is at hand!"
But in this we have hope, that saved from
wrath, we shall ever be with the Lord.
That, dear brothers
and sisters, is our joy and rejoicing that will keep up pure through the trials
ahead.
*More on the Rapture
There is one
possible contradiction to this scenario that you must be made aware of.
In Revelation,
seven seals are opened which are harbingers of judgments. In between the fifth
and sixth seals, martyrs are mentioned:
“And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls
of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they
held:
“And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true,
dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
“And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto
them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants
also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be
fulfilled.” Rev. 6:9-11
Of course, the dead
are not crying. This is a figure of speech.
But before the
seventh seal, we see these martyrs again. The seventh seal unleashes the seven
trumps, of which the seventh is the last, and which “finishes the mystery of
God.”
Prior to the opening
of the seventh seal, one hundred and forty-four thousand witnesses for Christ
are chosen from the tribes of Israel, sealed with the seal of God. After they
are chosen, this is written:
“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;
“And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth
upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.
“And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders
and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped
God,
“Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and
honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.
“And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are
arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?
“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.
“Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night
in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them.
“They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the
sun light on them, nor any heat.
“For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and
shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all
tears from their eyes.” Rev. 7:9-17
We see these
martyrs not dead, but alive before the throne of God. These are those of all
nations, martyred for God.
It must be pointed
out that an argument could be made that these are not the saints of the Church
of the Body, but tribulation saints, which would mean that the Rapture had
already taken place. After all,
“And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil,
and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,
“And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal
upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years
should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
“And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto
them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus,
and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his
image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands;
and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
“But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were
finished. This is the first resurrection.” Rev. 20:2-5
The problem with
this argument is that these in the “resurrection of the beheaded” were those
who had resisted the beast and the image of the beast. The people in Rev. six
and seven in the robes were said to be up and before God before the seventh and
last trump, and before the Beast and that period, and before the seven vials
which were said to be the vials of the wrath of God.
In fact, according
to the idea that the Rapture takes place at the sounding of the seventh trump,
we the Church are still spared the very worst days of the tribulations and the
wrath of the vials.
Immediately after
the hundred and forty-four thousand are sealed and the martyrs in white robes
are mentioned, we see:
“And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven
about the space of half an hour.
“And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.” Rev. 8:1-2
These seven angels sound their trumpets, and we assume
that the events initiated by each angel are completed before the next angel
sounds. That is an assumption unsubstantiated by the text.
We see only a continuation of a sequence of events, and we
see the figure of speech “anaphora” which we studied in Scripture Integrity Ten,
“Nephalim: Fallen Angels.”
There,
we saw that the nephalim were men of great wickedness, the offspring of “sons
and daughters,” all of whom were children of men and not of spirit beings.
Here,
the figure “anaphora” creates a list of events that happen, many overlapping,
but which stops or takes a break with one very important verse: verse seven of
chapter ten of Revelation.
“But in
the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the
mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the
prophets.” Rev. 10:7
Until now, this
was a long list of events that were added to by an ongoing sequence of events.
“AND
all the angels stood around thrones.” “AND when he had opened the seventh seal.”
“BUT
in the days of the voice of the seventh angel,” an exception to the important
events highlighted by the “anaphora” stands out on its own.
The
exception is that after the one and forty-four thousand of Israel are sealed,
after seven seals and at the seventh and last trump of God, the Mystery, which
we know to be the Church of the Body of Christ, is finished.
We
know the witnesses in white robes refer to martyrs that are already being
killed prior to the seventh seal opened, and are of “all nations?”
Who
fits both bills but the martyrs of the Church of the Body?
“Anaphora”
takes us directly FROM the description of these martyrs in chapter seven TO the
finish of the Mystery in chapter ten.
Thus
while some might argue that the Rapture had taken place by the time these
martyrs are mentioned, the very form and structure of this book should lead us
to realize that the very pivotal verse seven of chapter ten signals our
departure.
THEN
the Mystery will be finished, THEN we shall evermore be with our Lord.
May
this prepare you for the life God has called you to, and may this help you see
that indeed the hour is short.
Our
last study in Scripture will help prepare you for the days ahead, as we are
told the conclusion we are to make of the grace bestowed upon us.
God
be with you and keep you in His will, Amen.
Go To: Study Nineteen
Go To: Study Twenty-One