Posted on 10/14/2017 7:21:30 PM PDT by pastorbillrandles
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. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation. For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,( I Thessalonians 5:1-9)
I Do believe we are really close now. Certainly closer than when we first believed.
But I think it a really bad idea(and witness) for believers in the Rapture to fight about it. The goal should be to alert people utterly asleep to wake up and see that Jesus is coming very soon. That is surely something we can all agree with, right? Jesus is coming!!!!
Many do not believe this, even in the church, so we should rejoice in that remnant which does believe in the second coming and the Rapture.
The issue, is to be ready.
Be ready for the Rapture (make sure your sins are forgiven, and your heart is right with God, keep short accounts) and remain ready for the difficulties of the last days. Even if you insist that we will not be going through the great Tribulation, you have to admit that scripture teaches that as we draw near to the end, all believers will be exposed to some greater levels of difficulty and rejection.
“All that will live godly in Christ Jesus, shall suffer persecution….”
Why fight over the timing? I know, it seems so clear to you, (your particular position) , but is it not possible that people of equally good will can think they see something else (as clearly)?
Someday soon it is all going to happen, and on this point one or maybe all positions currently championed will be proven to be in the wrong. Will we not all rejoice together anyway, and praise the LORD in his presence for coming to rescue us all?
Or do you have to be precisely right on the rapture to get to heaven? (the answer is no, thank God).
This all gets really ugly when disagreement descends into personal attack.
Disagreeing with a particular position on the timing of the Rapture is not necessarily a “Satanic Attack” of the enemy.
Shouldn’t we all go back to this assumption; we are brothers and sisters, and we all desperately want Jesus to come back? Besides this we all share this burden, we want as many as possible to wake up and be saved before the terrors to come descend upon the earth.
I am all for scriptural discussions, and I don’t believe someone has to be a PHD level scholar to engage in them. I do believe that there are people who know more than others, who have a greater education in scripture or capacity to understand Greek and Hebrew which is no doubt a tremendous help. But God can speak to anyone who seeks him and show them things out of his Word.
How about just dialing back and entering into civil and loving discussion ? It is not too late to recover our first love and remember that simple disagreements about issues which are non salvific, should not make enemies or expose the church to the charge of lovelessness.
Paul tells us that we know in part…(but I thank God for the part I know). Grace and Peace and the Love of the Father be multiplied to you…Maranatha!
I think infighting has to do with semantics. I’m looking forward to the 2nd Coming. Not that into the logistics of being taken up to Heaven should I still be alive when He returns.
The most important question is this:
“When the Son of Man returns to the earth, will He still find faith?”
I really have a problem with the term “Second Coming”. Did Jesus really say He would come only one more time? Where is that written?”
I do believe He came in judgement - just as He said He would - at the destruction of the Temple at the end of the age.
And I do believe He will come again, at the end of this age - just, please - stop saying “second coming.”
Regardless. . . Prepare! No one is guaranteed a next breath. http://www.patburt.com/
The NT in fact does speak of Jesus’ second coming.
Hebrews 9:
24 For Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;
25 nor was it that He would offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the holy place year by year with blood that is not his own.
26 Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the ages He has manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.
27 And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment,
28 so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.
The second coming reference here happened in 70 AD, when Jesus came in Judgement against the non-believing Jews and their Temple and for salvation for the martyrs.
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