WRONG! The following quote clearly indicates that the modern concept of the rapture was understood in the early church and is much much older than 175 years.
What's more it's clear in the scripture. I've already posted the verses that say, alive Christians will meet Jesus in the air after the dead in Christ rise. Tell me what your view makes of that statement.
"All the saints and elect of God are gathered together before the tribulation, which is to come, and are taken to the Lord, in order that they may not see at any time the confusion which overwhelms the world because of our sins."-Pseudo-Ephraem (c. 374-627)
Ancient Pretrib rapture statement
There's a real rapture and a real tribulation coming! I don't know when. But it might be in our lifetimes.
"WRONG! The following quote clearly indicates that the modern concept of the rapture was understood in the early church and is much much older than 175 years."
"All the saints and elect of God are gathered together before the tribulation, which is to come, and are taken to the Lord, in order that they may not see at any time the confusion which overwhelms the world because of our sins."-Pseudo-Ephraem (c. 374-627) Ancient Pretrib rapture statement " ~ DannyTN #249
Not hardly.
Pseudo-Ephraem - a deliberate coverup
Computer researchers who have clicked on the much repeated claim that Morgan Edwards (1722-1795) was a pre-tribulation rapturist probably have been unaware of the incredible cover-up of historical facts! Paul Alexander, the expert on Pseudo-Ephraem that Grant Jeffrey, Thomas Ice, and Hal Lindsey deceitfully lean on, has two summaries (textual and outline) of P-E's sequence showing that P-E saw only one (post-trib) coming following the great tribulation-------everything deliberately covered up by these (and by many other) pre-trib leaders!
Danny TN: "What's more it's clear in the scripture. I've already posted the verses that say, alive Christians will meet Jesus in the air after the dead in Christ rise. Tell me what your view makes of that statement. ...."
In the 19th and 20th centuries (as I posted previously) a certain variety of premillennialism that holds to a pretribulational coming of Christ became popular. This became known as the "pretribulation rapture" view because it holds that when Christ first returns the church will be "raptured" or snatched up into heaven to be with him. Those holding that latest pop-culture view believe that the tribulation mentioned in Matt. 24 applies to Jewish belivers during the tribulation and not to the church generally (since it was already "raptured up to heaven").
The main underlying purpose - the bottom line premise for the people who hold that view is the desire to preserve a destinction between the church (raptured to heaven) and Isreal (which they think will constitute the people of God on earth during the tribulation and then during the millennial kingdom).
Unfortunately, the New Testament does not support a distinction of this kind between Isreal and the Church. God does not have two distinct plans for two different groups of people. Nor does he stage two second comings; one before the tribulation and one after the tribulation 7 years later.
The same trumpet - the trumpet that is blown in Matt. 24:34; 1 Thess.4:16, and 1 Cor.15:51-52 is the last trumpet wherein Jesus returns the second time as he promised [John 14:3] . At that time there will be the resurrection of both believers and unbelievers, the final judgement and the new heaven and the new earth. (Revelation 20 is now being fulfilled in this, the "church age" -- an indeterminate period of time described by the figure of speech, "a thousand years" -- which will continue until Christ returns the second time where all those end-time events occur at once.)
"For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek..." [Romans 10: 12.] There is only ONE olive tree. [ Romans 11:24].
Abraham is the father of ALL the faithful.[Romans 9: 6-8].