Luke 21:36 (NKJV)
"Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
Escape all of what things?
All of what Luke 21:7-33 said.
Now many will argue "I just don't agree with that or I don't believe that it will happen that way" and give little to no Scripture to say why they "don't believe that it will happen that way," or articulate Scripture. And if they did, you have to also explain in Scriptural harmony why these Scripture about the rapture are there.
So because the Lord doesn't lie, in the Bible there is a way to escape the final week of Daniel's 70th Week prophesy as recorded in Daniel chapter 9.
Obviously death in Christ is one, and the other is the Lord returning as the 'thief in the night." (See Matthew 24:42-44). No one witnesses a thief unless they're there to "catch a thief." (pun intended.).
And I've said before, we're certain by Scripture when the Second Coming of Christ will happen. When we see Jerusalem surrounded. The Scripture never said, "when Israel is surrounded." The Scripture is very clear. "When you see Jerusalem surrounded."
One of the things that I've learned to do is to turn off the doubters about the rapture.
You’re entitled to believe anything you want but you have to run what you believe with Scripture.
Many of them don't believe that the word "rapture" is in the Bible or they believe that the rapture will happen in the middle or end of the week of 7 years. Seven years comes from Daniel 9:27 and other places in Scripture where you’ll see 1260 days or 42 months.
A week is symbolic for 7 years, or 1260 days or 42 months.
To refute the anti rapture crowd, here's some Scripture that they're unable to overcome.
1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 (NKJV) "For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.
For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an 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. And thus we shall always be with the Lord."
Here's my source for the word "rapture."
Τhe word “rapture” is simply the anglicized (made English in form or character) form of the Greek word ̔αρπαζω (harpazō) that appears in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 in the original text.
“rapio”
Look at the phrase "caught up" in 1 Thessalonians 4:17.
g0726. ἁρπάζω harpazō; from a derivative of 138; to seize (in various applications): — catch (away, up), pluck, pull, take (by force).
Here's the Latin Vulgate Latin to English translation.
16 Deinde nos, qui vivimus, qui relinquimur, simul rapiemur cum illis in nubibus obviam Christo in æra, et sic semper cum Domino erimus.
16 Then we who are alive, who are left, shall be taken up together with them in the clouds to meet Christ, into the air, and so shall we be always with the Lord.
If you study your origin of Scripture, the Latin Vulgate played a pivotal role in obtaining our English Bible. Therefore, the word "caught up," or the Latin "rapiemur" or "rapio" or our English word "rapture" is present in the original text.
We must remember that during the final week of Daniel's prophesy, the Lord will pour out His wrath upon the earth.
Many have disputed that we don't know when the Lord will pour out His wrath on the earth.
But you have 7 seals on 1 scroll, 7 Trumpets and 7 Bowls.
They're all happening in an interlocking fashion. Meaning that you'll see some, not all of the events occur together. Not just 7 plagues, then 7 plagues, then 7 final plagues.
In Revelation 6 and 7, you have a great multitude that no one could number that will be beheaded for the testimony of Christ, but if you read it carefully, this is the 5th seal that was broken by the Lord and the multitude that can't be numbered came out of the great tribulation.
The great tribulation occurs during the middle of the week of Daniel's 70th week according to Daniel 9:27, Matthew 24:15, and Revelation 13:11-18.
We all know what the wrath of God is because it was on full display when Israel was delivered from Egypt when God poured on the Egyptians 10 plagues. Israel was in the land of Goshen and they've seen the plagues from Goshen. After the plagues were completed, Pharoah allowed the children of Israel to leave Egypt. But Pharoah wasn't through. Pharoah pursued Israel and Pharoah and his horsemen were drowned in the sea (See Exodus chapter 1 through 15).
My point of the Exodus? The children of God never experienced the plagues or the wrath of God that were placed on Egypt.
Also you have Noah's flood. 8 were saved (Genesis 6). Then you have Lot, his wife, and two daughters that were saved from the wrath of fire and brimstone on Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18 and 19).
If you look at Revelation 11, you have the 2 witnesses. Here's their assignment.
Revelation 11:3-6 (NKJV) "And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”
These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands standing before the God of the earth.
And if anyone wants to harm them, fire proceeds from their mouth and devours their enemies. And if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this manner.
These have power to shut heaven, so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy; and they have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to strike the earth with all plagues, as often as they desire."
Some have speculated that it's Moses and Elijah because of the transfiguration of the Lord Jesus in Matthew 17 or Enoch and Elijah.
Remember. Enoch and Elijah were the only ones that were taken up into heaven. Enoch in Genesis 5:21-24, Hebrews 11:5, and Elijah in 2 Kings 1:11-14. Moses died on Mt. Nebo in Deuteronomy 34:1-8.
Remember Hebrews 9:27.
"And as it appointed unto men once to die after this the judgment."
But I digress.
Getting back to the subject at hand.
With the rapture, you have 1 Corinthians 15:50-57 and of course, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.
In 1 Thessalonians 5:9 (NKJV)...
"For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ" to contend with.
So how can we say that the church will go through some or all of the tribulation in His wrath, when Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 5:9 (NKJV)....
"For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ..."
If you don't want to escape, just ask the Lord if He would allow you to stay and experience God's wrath.
If you're having difficulty comprehending the rapture, the best thing to do is to do three things.
Watch, pray, and be ready.
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