Secret Pre-trib Rapture or Blessed Hope and First Resurrection
Noah's Dove
The secret rapture doctrine teaches that believers will be taken
before the great tribuation and the wicked are left behind. However, a
careful reading of Luke 17 says that the bodies of those which are
taken are taken to a place where the eagles are gathered together.
This does not sound like something
wonderful. Jesus says in the parable of the tares and the wheat that
the tares are gathered up first to be burnt and then the wheat is
taken to barns. In Ezekiel
the Scriptures predicts that those nations that march against Israel,
God would give them over to ravenous birds of every sort to and the
beast of the field to be devoured. Christians that put their hope in
a pre-tribulation rapture may be in for a surprise. Our blessed hope
(Titus2) is the second coming of Christ. There is no mention of a
secret rapture before the time of tribulation in Matthew 24. At His
second coming Jesus says, he shall send his angels
to gather his elect from the four winds. This is appears to be the
time for the first resurrection mentioned in Rev.20. If the Second
coming is our blessed hope then the secret rapture teaching is
offering those that believe it a false hope. A careful reading of 1
Corithians 15 and 1 Thess 4 reveals the nature and circumstances of
the resurrection of the dead and the living at Christ coming.
Biblical references:
Matt.24
[29] Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be
darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall
fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
30] And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and
then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the
Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31] And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and
they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end
of heaven to the other.
1Cor.15
[52] 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.
1Thes.4
[13] 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.
[14] For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them
also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
[15] 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.
[16] 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:
[17] 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.
[18] Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
Rev.20
[5] But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years
were finished. This is the first resurrection.
[6] Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection:
on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of
God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.
Tit.2
[13] Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the
great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
Ezekiel 39:1-5 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and
say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the
chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: And I will turn thee back, and
leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from
the north parts, and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel: And
I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows
to fall out of thy right hand. Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of
Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I
will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the
beasts of the field to be devoured. Thou shalt fall upon the open
field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
Luke.17
26] And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days
of the Son of man.
[27] They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in
marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, and the flood
came, and destroyed them all.
[28] Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they
drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded;
[29] But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and
brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.
[30] Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.
[31] In that day, he which shall be upon the housetop, and his stuff
in the house, let him not come down to take it away: and he that is in
the field, let him likewise not return back.
[32] Remember Lot's wife.
[33] Whosoever shall seek to save his life shall lose it; and
whosoever shall lose his life shall preserve it.
[34] I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the
one shall be taken, and the other shall be left.
[35] Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and
the other left.
[36] Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the
other left.
[37] And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said
unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be
gathered together.
Matt.13
[39] The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of
the world; and the reapers are the angels.
[41] The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather
out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity;
[49] So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come
forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,
Matt.13
[24] Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The kingdom of
heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field:
[25] But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the
wheat, and went his way.
[26] But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then
appeared the tares also.
[27] So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir,
didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it
tares?
[28] He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said
unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up?
[29] But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up
also the wheat with them.
[30] Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of
harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares,
and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my
barn.
Matt.24
[28] For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered
together.
[29] Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be
darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall
fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
[30] And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and
then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the
Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
[31] And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and
they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end
of heaven to the other.
[32] Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet
tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh:
[33] So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it
is near, even at the doors.
[34] Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all
these things be fulfilled.
[35] Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass
away.
[36] But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of
heaven, but my Father only.
[37] But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son
of man be.
[38] For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating
and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe
entered into the ark,
[39] And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so
shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
[40] Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the
other left.
[41] Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken,
and the other left.
[42] Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
[43] But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what
watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have
suffered his house to be broken up.
[44] Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not
the Son of man cometh.
[45] Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made
ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?
[46] Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find
so doing.
Ravenous Birds http://philologos.org/bpr/files/r002.htm
1 Nisan, 5761
Ezekiel 39:1-5 Therefore, thou son of man, prophesy against Gog, and
say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, O Gog, the
chief prince of Meshech and Tubal: And I will turn thee back, and
leave but the sixth part of thee, and will cause thee to come up from
the north parts, and will bring thee upon the mountains of Israel: And
I will smite thy bow out of thy left hand, and will cause thine arrows
to fall out of thy right hand. Thou shalt fall upon the mountains of
Israel, thou, and all thy bands, and the people that is with thee: I
will give thee unto the ravenous birds of every sort, and to the
beasts of the field to be devoured. Thou shalt fall upon the open
field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD.
Ezekiel 39:17-20 And, thou son of man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak
unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble
yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice
that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains
of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood. Ye shall eat the
flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth,
of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of
Bashan. And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye
be drunken, of my sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you. Thus ye
shall be filled at my table with horses and chariots, with mighty men,
and with all men of war, saith the Lord GOD.
Revelation 19:17-21 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he
cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst
of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the
great God; That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of
captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of
them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond,
both small and great. And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth,
and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat
on the horse, and against his army. And the beast was taken, and with
him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he
deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that
worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire
burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of
him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth:
and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.
In Nissan, the skies of Eretz Yisrael [land of Israel] are full of
birds. Because this tiny strip of land is on the main migration route
to and from Africa, it is home to a disproportionately large number of
birds each spring. They each know "their appointed time...the time of
their coming."
ORIGIN OF THE SECRET RAPTURE THEORY
http://www.angelfire.com/mi/Malkaynu/rapture.html
To many it is both amazing and shocking to discover that neither the
word rapture nor the doctrine/teaching of a "secret rapture" is to be
found in any bible translation. Moreover, it is not even mentioned in
any "christian" literature prior to the year 1830.
Dave MacPherson, author of The Unbelievable Pre-Trib Origin, reveals
that the "rapture" teaching born in England during the mid-1800's.
MacPherson's research found that a Church of Scotland minister, named
Edward Irving, was the first to preach the "rapture gospel."
Just how the "rapture" theory occurred to Irving is an intriguing
facet of modern churchianity's history. Irving held some eccentric
positions on the use of "spiritual" gifts, including speaking in
tongues and prophesying. He contended that these gifts were for the
present day "church", and had quite a few followers of his radical
notions. However, when chaotic disturbances arose in Irving's services
during the manifestations of these "gifts", the Church of Scotland
took action, dismissing Irving from his position as minister in 1832.
The ultimate result of Irving's dismissal was the formation of the
Catholic Apostolic Church, which still exists until this day. Irving's
movement grew and became the basis of modern day pentecostalism. The
natural evolution of this movement has resulted in the recent
emergence of the "Toronto Laughing Spirit" phenomenon which has
seduced and mislead more than a few well-intentioned people.
However, in 1830 during one of Irving's sessions before his dismissal,
a young Scottish girl, named Margaret MacDonald, fell into a "trance".
After several hours of "vision" and "prophesying" she revealed that
"christ's" return would occur in two phases, not just one. "Christ"
would first come visibly to only the righteous, then He would come a
second time to execute wrath on the unrighteous in the nations.
This "secret rapture" was promoted by Irving claiming he, too, had
heard a "voice" from heaven commanding him to teach it. (Some modern
researchers submit that Irving's speculations of the "rapture were
influenced by the Spanish Jesuit priest, Lacunza whose book Irving had
translated in 1827 under the title, The coming of the Messiah in Glory
and Majesty)
John Darby, an Englishman and pioneer of the "Plymouth Brethren"
movement became caught up in the rapture philosophies of Irving. When
Darby heard about Irving's activities, he traveled to Scotland to talk
with Irving and his followers about the "secret rapture". It was Darby
who became the master developer of "scriptural" arguments to support
the theory/doctrine that evolved.
Darby's development of the "rapture" theory has since become widely
popularized in Britain and finally in the U.S., largely as a result of
Cyrus Scofield's notes in his Scofield Reference Bible.
Belief in the "secret rapture" doctrine has become so widespread among
today's "evangelicals" and "fundamentalists" that many sitting in the
pews assume that the teaching dates back to the apostles themselves
and the Messiah. Regardless of whom one regards as the originator of
the teaching — whether Irving, Darby, Margaret MacDonald, or a Jesuit
priest - one thing is obvious; the "secret rapture" theory is of
relatively recent origin. Moreover, it has no basis in fact nor was it
ever a teaching of the Messiah, Apostles, or the early movement begun
by Messiah.
ORIGINS OF THE SECRET RAPTURE DOCTRINE - Youtube video link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FuVbj2Cu74