When will the rapture occur

The events that must come to pass before Jesus comes for His church

There are two events that must take place before Jesus comes for His church. Jesus coming for His church is known as the rapture, and in the Greek the word is harpazo.

Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God (II Thessalonians 2:1-4).

The phrase “falling way” in the Greek is the word for apostasy. One can see from history that since the first century apostasy has been taking place. During the time that we are living today, one can observe that apostasy has been increasing as we see pastors and other church leaders living in a homosexual lifestyle. Paul in his epistle to Timothy wrote about the events that will take place in the last days:

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; 3 Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth (I Timothy 4:1-3).

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come.2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away (II Timothy 3:1-5).

As one watches the news, it is evident that the last days are upon us. The Christian’s hope is His return for His church which appears to be very soon. Jesus declared that He is coming quickly (Revelation 22:7). We need to watch and be ready for our Lord to appear.

The revealing of the antichrist

There are many verses that describe the antichrist and his character in the Scriptures, and how he is to be revealed. The list below will detail some of the most important ones:

1. There is one that is keeping him from being revealed.

7 For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. 8 And then shall that Wicked be revealed … (II Thessalonians 2:7-8).

The appearing of the Lord Jesus to take His church home to heaven is coming very soon. Are the days of the Holy Spirit restraining the kingdom of antichrist coming to an end? With the increase of lawlessness around the world, this is a sign that Jesus Christ is coming soon.

2. He will rise to power after the ten kings of the final world empire come into power.

23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces. 24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings. 25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time. 26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end. 27 And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him (Daniel 7:23-27).

The antichrist will rise to power after the fourth and final kingdom of man will be established. This final kingdom will rule over all people of the earth. One can certainly see that there are powers behind the nations today that are seeking for a one world government to be established upon the earth. In the news one can observe the unrest that is occurring throughout the world. A one world government would be seen as a solution by some people for this unrest.

3. He will confirm a covenant with the nation of Israel for one week (seven-year period).

And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate (Daniel 9:27).

The antichrist will confirm “the covenant” with many for a seven-year period. In the middle of the seven-year period, the antichrist will break his covenant and will defile the Jewish Temple and will place an idol in the Temple that will bear his image. When this event occurs, the Great Tribulation will commence and this period will last three-and-one-half years.

4. He is seen as a rider on a white horse and he goes forth to conquer.

And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see. 2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer (Revelation 6:1-2).

36 And the king shall do according to his will; and he shall exalt himself, and magnify himself above every god, and shall speak marvellous things against the God of gods, and shall prosper till the indignation be accomplished: for that that is determined shall be done. 37 Neither shall he regard the God of his fathers, nor the desire of women, nor regard any god: for he shall magnify himself above all. 38 But in his estate shall he honour the God of forces: and a god whom his fathers knew not shall he honour with gold, and silver, and with precious stones, and pleasant things. 39 Thus shall he do in the most strong holds with a strange god, whom he shall acknowledge and increase with glory: and he shall cause them to rule over many, and shall divide the land for gain. 40 And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. 41 He shall enter also into the glorious land, and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom, and Moab, and the chief of the children of Ammon. 42 He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape. 43 But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans and the Ethiopians shall be at his steps. 44 But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many. 45 And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him (Daniel 11:36-45).

The Scriptures portray this man of sin to be a mighty leader and a mighty military commander. His appearance on a white horse signifies government authority. He is given a crown which indicates that he is awarded a position of authority. His military victories make him appear invincible.

5. He will cause the sacrifices in the Temple to cease and he will desecrate the most holy place in the Temple.

And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate (Daniel 9:27).

The man of sin will desecrate the Jewish Temple by placing an image of himself in the most holy place in the Temple. He will declare that he is god and will demand to be worshipped as god. The most holy place in the Jewish Temple was where the Ark of the Covenant was located. It was a meeting place between God and man.

6. He has a deadly wound that will be healed and the entire world will wonder after this man.

And I saw one of his heads as it were wounded to death; and his deadly wound was healed: and all the world wondered after the beast (Revelation 13:3).

The man of sin will seek to imitate the resurrection of Jesus Christ as a proof that he is the Messiah.

7. His false prophet causes all to receive a mark in order to buy or sell.

14 And deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. 15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. 16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. 18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six (Revelation 13:14-18).

His reign will impact the entire earth. There is no one that will be able to escape his influence and his government authority. Everyone on the earth will be required to receive his mark and to worship his image if they want to buy or sell.

Conclusion

Before the Day of Christ (harpazo), the antichrist must be revealed to the faithful church as Paul taught in II Thessalonians 2:1-4 under the anointing of the Holy Ghost. The Christian is not appointed to wrath as Paul declared in I Thessalonians 5:9. The wrath of God begins with the plagues of the sixth seal. Let us watch and pray always that we may be accounted worthy to escape all of these things that shall come upon the earth and to stand before our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, 2 That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand. 3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God (II Thessalonians 2:1-4).

For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ (I Thessalonians 5:9)

12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; 13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? (Revelation 6:12-17).

The Greek word for wrath in I Thessalonians 5:9 is the word orge which means anger, judgment, punishment. There are two Greek words for wrath used in the Book of Revelation. One is orge and the other is thumos. Thumos is the word for fierce anger, punishment and judgment. Thumos first occurs in the seven bowl judgments that will be poured out upon the earth. Orge is first used in Revelation 6:16-17. The orge of God commences with the plagues of the sixth seal. Paul, when writing to the church at Thessalonica, is declaring that the church will not experience the plagues from the sixth seal. From Paul’s teachings, we can safely observe that the rapture (harpazo) will occur sometime after the antichrist is revealed but before the plagues of the sixth seal are unleashed upon the earth.

The Christian is not to lose faith when the final one world government is established and Christ Jesus has not yet appeared to take His bride home to heaven. We must remember what Jesus taught about those who believed that the Lord was delaying His coming and they lost faith in His appearing:

42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. 43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. 44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh. 45 Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season? 46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing. 47 Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods. 48 But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; 49 And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; 50 The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, 51 And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matthew 24:42-51).

We need to be ready and watching always for the appearance of Jesus Christ to take His church home to heaven to be with Him for all eternity. My fear is that the doctrine of the “pre-tribulation rapture” will lead many to depart from their faith in the Lord Jesus as they become discouraged that Jesus has not come to take His church home when they experience persecution from the one world government that is coming. The Christian is not to lose hope when the new kingdom is established and the church is still here on the earth. The Christian’s hope is in the coming King (Lord Jesus). We find comfort in His promise to deliver us and keep our soul safe.

The phrase “pre-tribulation” does not appear in the Scriptures. The word tribulation occurs 25 times in the Scriptures and nowhere does it refer to a seven-year period. The Scriptures teach a “Great Tribulation” that will last three and a half years, but there is no Scripture that refers to a tribulation period that will last for seven years. The theory of a pre-tribulation rapture is not supported by the Scriptures.

Summary

In summary, it appears that Christ Jesus will be returning to take His church home to be with Him very soon. We do not know the day nor the hour, but we are to be ready for His sudden appearing. When we see these events beginning to come to pass, we should lift up our head as our redemption is drawing near.

May God richly bless you as you continue to grow in the Word of God.

“Revelation Pray Always to Escape All These Things That Will Come Upon the Earth” looks at the end-time prophecy events in detail. Many of the scriptures concerning the end-time events are inserted in the book to assist the reader. Included in the book are also the ten views of the timing of the rapture of the church along with graphical timelines. The book is fully referenced with many sources.

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