The danger in believing Pre or Mid trib

[Guest Genxpastor]

I want to ask all of you, Would it shake your faith (as a pre pr mid trib believer) to wake up in the tribulation? To turn on your Television and see and reconize the anti christ on your television. Would you think that you were left behind? Or would you just shrug your shoulders and say, "oops, I guess I was wrong...we are going to have to go through this".

The reason this is something to be talked about is because there will be alot of christians who believe in pre and mid trib that will lose out with God when they wake up in the middle of the great tribulation. This is something to be concerned about. will we lost a significant percent of christians at the last minute?? A long with winning lost souls to God we should also be concerned with those who believe this way. It has the potential to be dangerous.

Back to my original question, Would it shake your faith (as a pre pr mid trib believer) to wake up in the tribulation?

Sabrina

No it wouldn't shake my faith. I've read Revelation....God wins!

[Qun Mang]

I think I am a mid-tribber but I am not firm in that belief. I know somewhere in revelation this is mentioned but I am not sure where at the moment (something about 3 1/2 years- if someone knows it maybe you can put it up?).

Anyway, an observation on the initial question posed- I don't think that anyone can truly believe they missed the rapture. After all, if a bunch of people go missing at once it would make headlines, if from nothing else then from the resulting chaos. It may be harder to tell at mid-trib than pre-trib due to the chaos that would already be underway but still quite noticable. And certainly one should have first-hand experience if it were to happen as God's children are everywhere doing all manner of things. If there is no such news or first-hand experience then why would people think they missed it?

Of course there is still the problem of people thinking they were lied to if rapture doesn't happen as expected. I wonder if we should not be teaching people that "this is the way it's going to happen, period" since there is such controversy in how to interpret the prophecies. Maybe we should be teaching them, "this is a tough thing to interpret, but this is why I believe it will happen this way..."

[One Way]

The rapture question is first one of ecclesiology, then eschatology. If you understand who the church is, it is not hard to understand why it is not part of the seventieth week.

Amen! The Church dispensation is completely independent of the 70 weeks laid out for Israel. We're talking apples and oranges here.

Blessings...

[Jedi4Yahweh]

I think I am a mid-tribber but I am not firm in that belief.

[whatsitmean]

Lets look at another aspect of this (?) question that bothers me a great deal. Say we do go through the tribulation in these very bodies we are in right now, should we be making preparations like food and water storages, leaving the cities, what?

How do you think we will be used by God during that time? I keep seeing this verse used in this context:

Dan 11:32

[Jedi4Yahweh]

Lets look at another aspect of this (?) question that bothers me a great deal.

[whatsitmean]

Not unless the God told you to.  God may at some point tell his people how to prepare just has he told Noah how to prepare for the coming danger.  God is able to protect his people and even if we die from tribulation and persecution it will be a witness for God.

Well that would certainly take the edge of uncertainty off the end times, if all the Christians suddenly get a message from God, "I'm in the school with a loaded shotgun. Get out of the building" or something like that.

[Jedi4Yahweh]

Not unless the God told you to.

[One Way]

Not unless the God told you to.

[whatsitmean]

Ok, so we have listened to God's voice and obeyed, we are all out or the city or what ever, now we are to the second issue. What are we there for? The Gospel has gone around the world, before the tribulation started, every one has had a chance to hear it. People of the world have rejected the message from the church, refuse the Grace of God for their eternal slavation and are ready for the final judgement.

They still have a chance to get saved through the witness of the 144,000, the two witnesses and angels flying in mid heaven proclaiming the everlasting gospel. Does the church still have a purpose with all this going on? How are you going to testify to someone being tormented by locusts having the sting of a scorpion? Are you going to sing Softly and Tenderly Jesus is calling to him?