You Asked For It – Part 1
Question: I know the Bible says we will leave in the twinkle of an eye, but will we be aware of ourselves rising to meet Jesus in the air?
You cannot ignore prophecy in the Bible because 1 in 3 scriptures in the Bible is prophecy.
Just because people get prophecy wrong does not mean that we don’t need to give it the attention that we should.
Bible prophecy can be greatly misunderstood if the proper rules of Bible interpretation are not used when you are studying it.
You Can Understand Bible Prophecy!
Rules of interpretation of Bible prophecy that we are to follow:
- In His dealings with humanity, God divides people up into three categories: The Jews, the Gentiles, and the Church.
1 Corinthians 10:32 NKJV (32) Give no offense, either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the church of God,
- When Jesus made reference to the disciples being dragged into the synagogues, He was not talking to the Gentiles.
- When the Bible talks about judgment coming on the world, it is not speaking about judgment coming on the Church.
When looking at Bible prophecy, you must ask yourself the question, is God talking to the Jews, the Gentiles, or the Church.
- In reading Bible Prophecy, you must understand that God will never punish the righteous with the wicked.
Genesis 18:25 NLT Surely You wouldn’t do such a thing, destroying the righteous along with the wicked. Why, You would be treating the righteous and the wicked exactly the same! Surely You wouldn’t do that! Should not the Judge of all the earth do what is right?”
When God decided to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah, He sent angels in to remove the righteous ones from the cities beforehand.
Nahum 1:2 NKJV God is jealous, and the LORD avenges; The LORD avenges and is furious. The LORD will take vengeance on His adversaries, And He reserves wrath for His enemies;
1 Thessalonians 5:9 NKJV (9) For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
God does not order His children to taste of His wrath.
1 Thessalonians 1:10 NKJV (10) and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, even Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.
This is a spiritual principle.
- In the Bible, there are symbolic terms that are used.
Jesus made reference to the fig tree. (Hosea 9:10)
Matthew 24:32-33 NKJV “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. (33) So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near–at the doors!
- That which has been, shall be again.
If there is something that the Bible says is going to come to pass, there is a reference to it in the Scripture happening before.
Ecclesiastes 1:9 AMP The thing that has been–it is what will be again, and that which has been done is that which will be done again; and there is nothing new under the sun.
- There is reference in Jeremiah 3, Jeremiah 31, and Isaiah to an Exodus of Jews that will come out of Russia that will be greater than the Exodus coming out of Egypt. There is not just one Exodus but two.
- The Bible talks about the Tribulation period and the fact that the antichrist will push people to take a mark on the forehead or right hand that will be an act of worship to him.
Numbers are important in the Bible.
According to Revelation, 6 is the number for man. Three is the number for God. When you have three sixes it is obviously a reference to man saying, “I am God.”
- Nebuchadnezzar built the statue of himself and wanted the people to worship it. It was 60 cubits high, 6 cubits wide and it was worshipped when 6 musical instruments were played.
- When David went out to fight Goliath, Goliath had a spear that weighed 600 shekels, he stood 6 cubits and 6 pieces of armor but David beat him.
What is the Rapture?
That which has been, shall be again.
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 NLT (13) And now, dear brothers and sisters, we want you to know what will happen to the believers who have died so you will not grieve like people who have no hope. (14) For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus returns, God will bring back with Him the believers who have died. (15) We tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not meet Him ahead of those who have died. (16) For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. (17) Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Then we will be with the Lord forever. (18) So encourage each other with these words.
Harpazo – to seize, pluck, pull, catch
Harpazo translated into Latin as raptiere. It is then translated into English as rapture.
Hebrews 11:5 NKJV By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “AND WAS NOT FOUND, BECAUSE GOD HAD TAKEN HIM”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.
2 Kings 2:11-13 NKJV Then it happened, as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven. (12) And Elisha saw it, and he cried out, “My father, my father, the chariot of Israel and its horsemen!” So he saw him no more. And he took hold of his own clothes and tore them into two pieces. (13) He also took up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood by the bank of the Jordan.
Acts 1:9-11 NKJV Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. (10) And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, (11) who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”
1 Corinthians 15:51-52 NKJV (51) Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed– (52) in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
- The Bible does not say we will rise in the twinkling of an eye, it says we will be changed in the twinkling of any eye.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 NKJV (16) 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. (17) 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.
- The Bible does say that the dead in Christ will rise and then we shall be caught up together with them in the clouds.
Why does God not reveal the day that Jesus is going to catch away the Church?
Because if we knew the date, there are many that would live like the devil and then try and get things right at the last minute. It’s human nature.