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To: The_Republic_Of_Maine
The Him is Jesus, it is future, at the Rapture of the church.

Your statement makes no sense.
I went to the Internet and IT made oodles more sense than you did. Sorry.

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From the Internet: Question: "What is the Rapture of the church?"

Answer: The word “rapture” does not occur in the Bible. The concept of the rapture, though, is clearly taught in Scripture. The rapture of the church is the event in which God removes all believers from the earth in order to make way for His righteous judgment to be poured out on the earth during the tribulation period. The rapture is described primarily in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15:50-54. God will resurrect all believers who have died, give them glorified bodies, and take them from the earth, along with those believers who are still alive and who will at that time also be given glorified bodies. “For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

The rapture will be instantaneous in nature, and we will receive glorified bodies at that time. “Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed—in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed” (1 Corinthians 15:51-52). The rapture is the glorious event we should all be longing for. We will finally be free from sin. We will be in God's presence forever. There is far too much debate over the meaning and scope of the rapture. This is not God’s intent. Rather, in regard to the rapture, God wants us to “encourage each other with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18).

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From Wikipedia:

Rapture is a term in Christian eschatology which refers to the "being caught up" discussed in 1 Thessalonians 4:16, when the "dead in Christ" and "we who are alive and remain" will be "caught up in the clouds" to meet "the Lord in the air".

The term "Rapture" is used in at least two senses. In the pre-tribulation view, a group of people will be left behind on earth after another group literally leaves "to meet the Lord in the air." This is now the most common use of the term, especially among fundamentalist Christians and in the United States. The other, older use of the term "Rapture" is simply as a synonym for the final resurrection generally, without a belief that a group of people is left behind on earth for an extended Tribulation period after the events of 1 Thessalonians 4:17. This distinction is important as some types of Christianity never refer to "the Rapture" in religious education, but might use the older and more general sense of the word "rapture" in referring to what happens during the final resurrection.

12 posted on 05/29/2014 5:51:55 PM PDT by cloudmountain
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To: cloudmountain

The second definition is a bit more comprehensive than the first, which only really deals with one kind of belief about “the rapture”. Pretty much all Christians believe in the event that some Christians call “the rapture”, but only certain types (pre or mid-tribulation rapturists) believe this:

“The rapture of the church is the event in which God removes all believers from the earth in order to make way for His righteous judgment to be poured out on the earth during the tribulation period.”

The texts which most clearly refer to the “rapture” event don’t actually describe that, it is an interpretation built from linking in other texts and applying them to this event. So, the “rapture” terminology can be confusing. Some are referring just to the event described in the Bible, and others are referring to that event, and a specific interpretation laid on top of it as well.


14 posted on 05/29/2014 6:09:37 PM PDT by Boogieman
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To: cloudmountain

Pastor JD Farrag recently pointed out that in the Latin version of the Bible the word is the Latin word for “rapture.”


20 posted on 05/29/2014 11:55:36 PM PDT by firebrand
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To: cloudmountain
>>>The rapture of the church is the event in which God removes all believers from the earth in order to make way for His righteous judgment to be poured out on the earth during the tribulation period. The rapture is described primarily in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15:50-54. God will resurrect all believers who have died, give them glorified bodies, and take them from the earth, along with those believers who are still alive and who will at that time also be given glorified bodies. “For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).<<<

Are you familiar with this resurrection in Daniel?

    "And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. And many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt." (Dan 12:1-2 KJV)

The first thing to notice is that it occurs only for Daniel's people: thy people, the children of Israel. Note also that it is a partial resurrection--many shall awake, not all. Finally, note that both the wicked and the just are resurrected, similar to the resurrection in the parable of the sheep and the goats:

    "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory: And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats: And he shall set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. Then shall the King say unto them on his right hand, Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world . . . Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels:" (Mt 25:31-34, 41 KJV)

And it is similar to this resurrection:

    "Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation." (Jn 5:28-29 KJV)

Note that in all three passages there is not a whisper of separate resurrections for the just and the unjust.

My question is, how does that resurrection (or resurrections) fit into the scheme of the rapture?


As aforementioned, Paul wrote in Thessalonians:

    "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." (1Th 4:13-18 KJV)

It is obvious from the text that Paul was trying to comfort early Christians who has lost loved ones. The fact that he did not mention the unjust, does in no way exclude them from the resurrection, albeit the resurrection of damnation, as afore-named by Jesus.

Also note that Paul was expecting to be alive when the resurrection occurred: hence his use of we instead of they. That expectation, of an imminent resurrection, was held by all the apostles.


With those considerations, is it possible that the first resurrection was only for the early Christians, and, as Daniel implied, only for the children of Israel (many of them?) That would explain the 144,000 in the Revelation 7 being all Israel, with no mention of any Gentile servant anywhere in the Revelation. It would also explain the wording of other verses, such as Revelation 14:4 and 20:4-6; even 1 Thess 4:17, where the exegesis of the words "so shall we ever be" reveals it to mean "in this manner shall we ever be," that is, "forever with the Lord in the air or clouds." Or, in plain language, those resurrected are forever in heaven with the Lord.

If that be the case, the final resurrection that occurs in Revelation 20:11-15 (our resurrection,) will also be for both the just and the unjust. Otherwise, why would Jesus make this statement?

    "And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be." (Rev 22:12 KJV)

Philip

45 posted on 05/31/2014 8:04:18 AM PDT by PhilipFreneau
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