In this brief article, Fr. Anthony expresses with clarity the truth of the false teaching known as the “Rapture” and how much it distorts the teachings of the Lord in the Holy Scriptures.Posted on 07/27/2016 8:46:41 PM PDT by NRx
By Fr. Anthony M. Coniaris
In this brief article, Fr. Anthony expresses with clarity the truth of the false teaching known as the “Rapture” and how much it distorts the teachings of the Lord in the Holy Scriptures.
As I was driving one day I encountered a bumper sticker admonishing me:
“WARNING! In the event of Rapture, this car will be driverless.”
The strange belief in the Rapture teaches that some day (sooner rather than later), without warning, born-again Christians will begin to float up from the freeway, abandoned vehicles careening wildly. There will be airliners in the sky suddenly with no one at the controls! Presumably, God is removing these favored ones from earth to spare them the tribulation of the Anti-Christ which the rest of us will have to endure.
Unfortunately the Rapture has been promoted widely by the Left Behind series of books that have sold over 70 million copies.
The Rapture represents a radical misinterpretation of Scripture. I remember watching “Sixty Minutes”a year ago and was appalled to hear the announcer say that “the Rapture is an unmistakenly Christian doctrine”. It is not!
It is a serious distortion of Scripture.
It is astonishing that a belief so contrary to Scripture and the tradition of the Church could be propagated by so-called “Christians”.
According to the Bible and according to the belief not only of Orthodox Christians but also of the Roman Catholic and most Protestant mainline churches, the true Rapture will not be secret; it will be the great and very visible Second Coming of Jesus at the end of the world. That is the one and only “Rapture”. It will not be a separate, secret event but one that every eye shall see (1 Thess. 4:16-17).
The word rapture is not found in Scripture but hearkens to 1 Thess. 4:17 where St. Paul says that when the Lord comes again
“we who are alive…shall be caught up…in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.”
This “being caught up…in the clouds”—arpagisometha in Greek, is translated by some as “raptured”. The word itself is not found in Orthodox theology.
The notion of a rapture in which Christ comes unseen to take believers away secretly, and only later comes back again for everyone else publicly—this whole teaching is quite novel. It was almost unheard of until John Nelson Darby formulated it in the 1800s as part of a new approach to the Bible, sometimes called “dispensationalism”.
The purpose of the “Rapture” is to protect the elect from the tribulations of the end times. Yet Jesus said nothing about sparing anyone from tribulation. In fact, He said,
“In the world you have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world.”
Nowhere did Jesus ever say that He would return secretly to rapture the elect. Rather, He promised to be with His elect in all tribulations.
“Lo, I am with you always. I will never leave you or forsake you.”
He even had something good to say about being persecuted:
“Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 5:10).
Those who espouse the Rapture claim that Matthew 24:40-41 refers clearly to the rapture of the just,
“Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.”
The entire passage, however, refers to Christ’s second coming where He will judge the living and the dead and separate the just from the unjust.
Darby taught as dogma that when the Scriptures reveal that the Lord will reign on earth for a thousand years (Rev. 20:4), this figure is to be taken literally, rather than as a symbol for eternity as we believe. The Council of Ephesus in A.D. 431 condemned as heresy this teaching which is called chialiasmos (millenianism or 1000 years).
In fact, the Seven Ecumenical Councils (325-787 A.D.) in which the essential truths of the Christian faith were defined never mention a rapture. Yet evangelical Christians and Pentecostals keep using obscure passages of the book of Revelation which purport to give a detailed timetable of what will happen at the end of the world, despite the fact that Jesus Himself warned that no man knows either the day or the hour when the Son of Man shall return.
A major problem with the Rapture is that it ends up teaching not two but three comings of Jesus—first His birth in Bethlehem; second, His secret coming to snatch away (rapture) the “born-again”; and third, His coming at the end of the world to judge the living and the dead and to reign in glory. Yet only two not three comings of Christ are mentioned in the Bible. We have the clearest definition of this in the Nicene Creed when we confess that
“the Lord Jesus Christ…will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. His Kingdom will have no end…. I expect the resurrection of the dead. And the life of the ages to come.”
There is no mention of a “Rapture”.
As already stated, most Christians, Orthodox, Roman Catholics and Protestants do not believe in the Rapture. In fact, one Protestant pastor, John L. Bray, summarized magnificently what we Orthodox and most other Christians believe about the Rapture when he wrote these remarkable words,
Though many believe and teach this “Pre-Tribulation Rapture” theory, they erroneously do so, because neither Jesus, Paul, Peter, John, nor any of the other writers of the Bible taught this. Nor did the early church fathers, nor any others for many hundreds of years…. Did you know that NONE of this was ever taught prior to 1812, and that all forms of Pre-Tribulation Rapture teaching were developed since that date? …. If I were to preach something, or believe something, supposedly from the Bible, but cannot find that ANYONE ELSE before 1812 ever believed it or taught it, I would seriously question that it is based on the Bible.
Thus the Rapture is foreign to the Bible and to the living tradition of the Church. It is what we call a heresy, a false teaching. False teachings, such as this, happen when people—like John Darby—believe that they have the right to interpret the Scriptures individually apart from the Living Body of Christ—the Church—where the Spirit of Truth abides and leads us to all truth.
I can think of no better words to conclude than those of Jesus when He speaks of the one and only “Rapture”, the Second Coming:
“Be on guard. Be alert! You do not know when that time will come…keep watch…if he comes suddenly, do not let Him find you sleeping. What I say to you, I say to everyone: Watch!” (Mark 13:32-37).
Well good...Paul in writing to the Ephesians was then similarly well covered as he studied them both!
Were it written in your heart, would you be kicking against it?
Those whose hearts have Torah live by it joyfully, Keeping his Sabbath, appointed times, and living instructions.
Well then go thou then yourself and do so as your heart has been instructed to do!
And I shall do as I have been instructed.
So what is the argument?
You were the one doing the arguing, and much accusing too.
What have I accused you of?
Where are your accusers? Have you done anything wrong? I certainly don’t condemn you! Go in peace and be satisfied in Him!
Read your posts.
.
“Works of the law” is the following of the Pharisees false law.
That was what was tripping up the Galatians, and in our time tripping up the Jewabies that call their nicolaitan “Rabbi.”
I have read my own comments and I think I have shown you great restraint and have considered your ideas...
None of us will ever “arrive”...until we are fitted with our resurrection bodies and see Him as he is! Until then we must all try to live as the living Torah instructs each of our hearts, through our individual circumstances(known as crosses) ...and when we fail, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness!
Now...Go live in peace with His Countenance lifted upon you and live as “THE WORD MADE FLESH” should instruct your heart by His Spirit!
You keep SAYING this...
You seem to want US to keep Torah; are YOU keeping it FULLY?
You keep SAYING this...
I post the two verses for comparison and contrast...context is important...In DEUT Moses has set up an Altar on Mount Elba and was setting up for the noted blessings and curses sermon in chapter 28; he was 120 years old on that day and it was just prior to sending Israel off to Israel. Moses of course would not be allowed to go over.
Galatians 3:10
For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.”
Deut 27:28
26Cursed be he that confirms not all the words of this law to do them. And all the people shall say, Amen.
Finally...…Gal 3: 11And it is clear that no one is justified before God by the Law, because, “The righteous will live by faith.” 12The Law, however, is not based on faith; on the contrary, “The one who does these things will live by them.” 13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree...”
And now a puzzle to consider...the waters divided in the Jordan and Israel walked thru on dry land and Jesus Walking ON the Water....Mount Sinai and Mount Zion....Aaron and Melchizidek....condemnation and redemption.....the dead rod of Aaron bearing fruit flowers and nuts and the empty grave! Progressions, progressions...from glory to glory, from everlasting to everlasting...what remains constant and shall never pass away?
“Faith” is living by Yehova’s commandments.
That point is repeatedly made throughout the word.
The apostles kept saying it.
All that is applicable under present circumstances.
The Temple conditions are no longer applicable, that was signaled by the red ribbon no longer turning white.
“Going up” to the temple is no longer possible, but the temple will be replaced by Yeshua when we return with him after the wedding feast. Mortal Earth dwellers will again be under the requirements, and those nations that “go not up” will have their rain cut off.
The “oral law” was not written.
Only Yehova’s word was written.
Today all “churches” have their own false law similar to that of the Pharisees. The Catholics call theirs the catechism.
THIS IS MY COMMANDMENT THAT YE LOVE ONE ANOTHER THAT YOUR JOY MAY BE FULL...(You know that Love God with everything you are and love your neighbor as your self thingy...as the outworking of love and grace begins, everything we are supposed to be and do and are will be revealed to us and built into us as the Spirit in dwells us... and that is the True Torah!)
So just ignore Galatian 3 and Ephesians 2 then as they stand in stark contradiction...well as I said before...we all have our individual paths to walk and our crosses to bear, but it will be Yeshua who will be leading us home!
PS : Yeshua Mashiach is come in the flesh! Do you agree?
Of course he has come in the flesh.
He will come next in the spirit to gather us to his wedding feast. Then we will return with him bodily to the Earth, having received the incorruptible bodies at the last Trump.
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