Posted on 05/24/2011 10:27:46 AM PDT by topcat54
"This scheme has two returns of Jesus at the end of the times: one ... just for his saints and then his final return after the tribulation," Sproul summed up.
Disagreeing with this view, Sproul pointed to the imagery that the Apostle Paul used in his account of the rapture in the NT book of 1 Thessalonians.
"The whole point of the imagery here echoes and reflects something that was commonplace in the contemporary world in which Paul wrote – namely, the pattern and practice of the triumphal return to Rome of the Roman armies," the Reformed theologian stated.
After winning a battle, Roman armies would camp outside the city and send a messenger to announce their arrival. The city would then be prepared with decorations and an arch of triumph. At a prearranged time, a signal would be made whereby trumpets would be blown. That is when the armies would march in triumph into the city.
"But before they began their march at the signal of the trumpet, everyone who was an actual citizen of Rome was invited to come outside the city to join the parade to march back in through the arch of triumph with the victorious army," Sproul said.
With that, the Pittsburgh native concluded, "What I hear Paul saying is that when Jesus comes, he's going to come back to this earth with his whole church; the church will be caught up to meet him as he descends and he will continue to descend along with his whole entourage of believers."
More specifically, citing Paul's teaching, Sproul stated that those who died will rise first and be taken up into the air and those who are alive at the second coming of Christ will also be taken up to meet the Lord as he descends.
(Excerpt) Read more at christianpost.com ...
The saints triumphant (in their souls) return with Christ at the Second Coming to be reunited with their bodies that rise from the grave.
There's going to be a wedding in heaven...The Groom will be there...And the soon to be Bride will be there...
The Groom Jesus will be in his Glorified Body...Jesus is not going to marry the souls of his Bride while their bodies are still unglorified and in the ground...
And as you ignore the rest of it: We who are still ALIVE and remain will go up as well...Bodies and all...
So you are saying the Bride consists of some bodies with souls and some souls without bodies...That leaves Jesus coming back at the 2nd Coming with most of his troops invisible because they have no bodies...
No matter how hard you try, you just can't justify your Preterist views whithout ignoring or destroying much of the scripture...It don't work...
Concur
I’m certainly catholic (universal), but no longer Roman Catholic (sectarian).
I didn’t ignore anything. In fact I explicitly dealt with the saints militant. Take off your rapturist glasses and read more carefully.
At Christ Second Coming the souls of the saints who have “fallen asleep” return with Christ to be reunited with their bodies (first), then the saints who are alive are translated body and soul, and both classes of saints are with Christ in their resurrected bodies.
There is no direct indication in the Bible that the “marriage supper” of the Lamb takes place in heaven. While this is asserted in rapturist theology, the fact is it will take place when the Bride is fully prepared, at the Second Coming at the (one and only) resurrection, perhaps in the new heavens and new earth.
Yes.
[There is no direct indication in the Bible that the “marriage supper” of the Lamb takes place in heaven.]
Good gosh. Oh well. (blast from the past)
Just the fact that Israel is a nation now and about to celebrate it’s 70th anniversary destroys the preterist fallacy.
They just won’t give up! LOL!
Yep - The State of Israel and indeed the recapture of Jerusalem both destroyed it, separately. And Zechariah 12 was kicked into gear.
Bump
Are you still with us?
(good comment - hope you are here to read this)
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