50 Reasons for the Pre-tribulation Rapture

[HAZARD]

Christs church will be raptured before the tribulation as Scripture clearly teaches;

The purpose of the rapture is to resurrect the just from the dead and take all the saints out of the world before the tribulation comes, in order that they may have fulfilled in them the purpose for which God has saved them. Jesus told the disciples that some would escape the terrible things that were to transpire on the Earth in the last days. He said, “Pray that you may be accounted worth to escape all these things of, Matt. 24, 25; Luke 21:1-19, 25-28, that shall come to pass, and stand before the Son of man,” Luke 21:34-36. These two passages in Luke 21:34-36 and John 14:1-3, are the only ones in the Gospels that are clear concerning the Rapture. Jesus did not reveal this, it was revealed by Paul many years later in 1 Cor. 15:51. The disciples did not have the slightest idea as to how they were to escape, unless they thought that Christ would deliver them from these things through His power. The how was not revealed or even mentioned before Paul explained how they were to escape.

The Rapture of the church should never be confused with the second coming or second advent of Christ, for He does not come to the earth at that time.

The Rapture is a distinct coming in itself, not to the Earth, but in the air where Christ meets the saints and then takes them back to Heaven to present them blameless before God the Father, John 14:1-3; 1 Thess. 3:13; 4:16, 17.

The Rapture takes place several years before the literal advent of Christ to the Earth, for they, the saints come back with Him at that time. The saints are
in Heaven before God, and not in the air, from the time of the Rapture to their coming again with Christ to reign as kings and priests, Jude 14; Rev. 19:14; Zech. 14:5.

At the Rapture, the Lord comes from Heaven as far as the air, or Earthly Heavens and the saints will be caught up to meet Him in the air.

At the second coming, the saints are not raptured, and neither is Christ, but both will come back to the Earth together.

The rapture takes place before theTribulation, whereas the second Advent takes place after the Tribulation. The Rapture could occur at any time, whereas the second Advent cannot occur until after the tribulation.

[Omegaman 3.0]

3 hours ago, HAZARD said:

Christs church will be raptured before the tribulation as Scripture clearly teaches;

If scripture clearly taught that, everyone would agree. For 1800 years, almost no one in church history thought that to be true. Even in modern times, it is still hardly universally accepted, though it is pretty common in the Western church. The fact is then obviously, that it is NOT clear. Thinking that it is, is making an assumption, based on your own prejudice,  just as the pre-trib rapture doctrine itself, is an assumption.

Quote

The purpose of the rapture is to resurrect the just from the dead and take all the saints out of the world before the tribulation comes

Two thoughts/questions about the above comment.

First, where does scripture state that the purpose of is to do what you claim it's purpose is?

Second, to assert that the rapture and the ressurection are the same thing, is to ignore scripture. The rapture, is the catching up of the living saints to be with the Lord in the air:

First Thessalonians 4:17 “Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.”

The bold 'caught up', is the Greek word Harpazo, that IS the rapture, by definition. Notice, that that verse begins with "Then we who are alive". That points out that something happens before the rapture, let's look at what that is:

For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.

Unlike your assertion of what scripture clearly teaches, this is what scripture actually teaches, if you take it at it's own words, without adding your own ideas to it:

The dead in Christ, rise first THEN we who are alive are caught up together to be with them in the air, it is a very specific sequence, that anyone can see, yet some insist on denying.

Gee, if only we knew when these events occur, with respect to the tribulation. Oh, wait a minute, we do! Who would think that God would have thought to include such details?

In  Revelation 20, verse 4 it says:

I saw thrones on which were seated those who had been given authority to judge. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony about Jesus and because of the word of God. 

Notice a couple of things in that text. These people were beheaded, you might almost think that these were in the tribulation, beheading in pretty troubling. I wonder why they were beheaded? We do not have to wonder - they were beheaded for their testimony about Jesus, says the text.

There are two kinds of people. Those who believe in Jesus, and those who do not. What do we call believers in Christ? I call them Christians! I refuse to make up terms like "tribulation saints" as though there is some other class of Christians that would allow me to make up a group of Christians who escape in a pre-tribulation rapture, that the Bible never mentions even one time.

Of course, one might legitimately wonder, if these particular Christians, are in the tribulation, or at some other time. After all, Christians have been killed for their faith and testimony of Jesus for 2000 years! Why should we conclude these are Christians in the tribulation?

Well, our faithful God did not leave us in the dark there either:

The second part of verse 4 says "They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years."

Those who know anything about eschatology know that the beast and it's image, and it's mark, are events of the tribulation. So again, there is nothing vague here, this is quite clear and specific. You do not have to like it, but that is what scripture says.

So, so far we have had revealed to us these things in sequence:

The resurrection of the dead in Christ then the rapture of the living believers . . .

and we know that there are Christians who die as martyrs, in the Tribulation. Now we need to know, how these things relate in sequence.

Verse 5 and 6 then, goes on to say:

5 This is the first resurrection. 6 Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. The second death has no power over them, but they will be priests of God and of Christ and will reign with him for a thousand years.

So then, putting it all together, we know that the Bible shows us that:

There is a thing, called the first resurrection. In that, we see that those who are in it, reign with Christ in  the millennium. We see that some of those who are in this first resurrection, were also in the tribulation. We saw that they are resurrected, before the living are caught up in  the rapture.

Now, if there is a first resurrection, which happens after the tribulation, and before the millennium, and that the rapture does not happen until AFTER that Resurrection, then necessarily, the rapture also HAS TO BE after the tribulation. It is just a matter of "doing the math".

Those who are open to hearing what the Bible says, and who see scripture as more authoritative than what we hope will happen, do not believe in a pre-trib rapture. Not only does the Bible not speak of a pre-trib rapture, it excludes it, and we should agree with the apostle when he says in 1 Thess 4:

According to the Lord's word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.

I hope those who read this, enjoyed looking at scripture on the sequence of eschatological events. Remember,  your salvation and your inclusion in the events of eschatology, are not dependent on your views about the topic. This is a peripheral topic,  and there is no reason to break fellowship over it. You do not even need to think it is important to understand these things.

However, in my opinion, I think that these details are included in the Bible, so that we can study  and  understand them, if we are willing to do the work of study, that scripture encourages us to do.

By the way Hazard, you do not need to respond to this (if you even see it). It was not really written for your specific benefit, but for all those who will come along, perhaps for years to come, who are interested in knowing about the sequence of eschatological events, according to scripture. I could be wrong in my understanding, but the Bible is not, Here, people may look at relevant verses and decide for themselves what scripture has to say.

[HAZARD]

1 Thess. 4:16-17,   v.16, For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
    17, Then they which are alive and remain shall be caught up together WITH THEM IN THE CLOUDS, to meet the Lord IN THE AIR: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

 

Jesus will come to take all the saints out of the world before the tribulation comes, in order that they may have fulfilled in them the purpose for which God has saved them. Jesus told the disciples that some would escape the terrible things that were to transpire on the Earth in the last days. He said, “Pray that you may be accounted worth to escape all these things of, Matt. 24, 25; Luke 21:1-19, 25-28, that shall come to pass, and stand before the Son of man,” Luke 21:34-36.

[Daniel 11:36]

Here are the scriptures that relate to the pre-tribulation event

[1 Corinthians 15:20-23; 15:51-36; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 5:1-9; 2 Thessalonians 2:1; Revelation 3:10; 4:4; 5:1-10; 7:9-17; 11:1; 13:6; 17:14; 18:4; 20:1-4 .... those on thrones] 

[Steve_S]

2 hours ago, HAZARD said:

1 Thess. 4:16-17,   v.16, For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
    17, Then they which are alive and remain shall be caught up together WITH THEM IN THE CLOUDS, to meet the Lord IN THE AIR: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

1Th 4:16  For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 
1Th 4:17  Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 

Mat 24:29  "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 
Mat 24:30  Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 
Mat 24:31  And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. 

[Omegaman 3.0]

7 hours ago, Daniel 11:36 said:

Here are the scriptures that relate to the pre-tribulation event

[1 Corinthians 15:20-23; 15:51-36; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 5:1-9; 2 Thessalonians 2:1; Revelation 3:10; 4:4; 5:1-10; 7:9-17; 11:1; 13:6; 17:14; 18:4; 20:1-4 .... those on thrones] 

Well Daniel, why not quote them (the words) and explain how they need to be understood in a pre-trib way, and how they refute one thing that I said. Did you notice that I actually laid out a sequence using scripture, can you do the same? I am sure we would all like to see that, I know I would!

[Omegaman 3.0]

9 minutes ago, Steve_S said:

1Th 4:16  For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 
1Th 4:17  Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. 

Mat 24:29  "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 
Mat 24:30  Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. 
Mat 24:31  And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. 

Nice Steve, just let the scripture speak for itself, no need for creative interpretation!

 

[HAZARD]

Matt. 24:31, And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds,  from one end of heaven to the other.

He shall send His angels: Literal angels will accompany Jesus to earth (2 Thess. 1-12), to gather Israel (Dt. 30:3; Isa. 11:11-12), and separate the tares from the wheat (Matt. 13:38-50).

Four directions of the earth, the earth which naturally is under the heavens. Examples;

Isa. 11:11-12, v. 11, And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath, and from the islands of the sea.
    12, And he shall set up an ensign for the nations, and shall assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth.

Rev. 7:1-3, 1, v. And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth,  that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.
    2, And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,
    3, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

Rev. 20:8, v.  8, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea.

From a previous post of mine, The Rapture of the church should never be confused with the second coming or second advent of Christ, for He does not come to the earth at that time.

The Rapture is a distinct coming in itself, not to the Earth, but in the air where Christ meets the saints and then takes them back to Heaven to present them blameless before God the Father, John 14:1-3; 1 Thess. 3:13; 4:16, 17. The Rapture takes place several years before the literal advent of Christ to the Earth, for they, the saints come back with Him at that time. The saints are in Heaven before God, and not in the air, from the time of the Rapture to their coming again with Christ to reign as kings and priests, Jude 14; Rev. 19:14; Zech. 14:5.

[Steve_S]

55 minutes ago, HAZARD said:

The Rapture is a distinct coming in itself, not to the Earth, but in the air where Christ meets the saints and then takes them back to Heaven to present them blameless before God the Father, John 14:1-3; 1 Thess. 3:13; 4:16, 17.

I'd like to demonstrate how pre-trib theology works for those who may be watching. A narrative is given, the narrative in this case is:

"The rapture is a distinct coming in itself, not to the earth, but in the air where Christ meets the saints and then takes them back to heaven to present them blameless before God the Father"

Now, we are given three passages, a total of 6 verses, which, one would think, would roughly speak to the narrative. Let's take a look at the verses:

Joh 14:1  "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 
Joh 14:2  In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 
Joh 14:3  And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

Alright, here we are told, basically, that Christ is going to prepare a place for believers. That's pretty awesome to hear, if you are a believer, because if God builds something for you to enjoy, you can bet you're going to enjoy it. However, this says nothing at all about the timing of Christ's return or the idea that the saints will return to heaven with Christ in order to avoid the tribulation. It certainly does not have anything to do with a "distinct" first second coming (as opposed to what would have to be the second second coming, if there is a first one). It just simply states that Christ is preparing a place for us. I would even go so far as to argue that this is probably referring to new heaven and new earth and new jersualem in revelation 21, which is actually after the millennium, which means it would have no bearing whatsoever on this conversation.

Second passage:

1Th 3:13  so that He may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.

Again, no timing mentioned, whatsoever, no allusion to timing at all. No "distinction" made regarding a first second coming, either. This verse is certainly factual, but it has no bearing on rapture timing. The "coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints" could be either at a pre-trib or post-trib point.

Third passage:

1Th 4:16  For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 
1Th 4:17  Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.

Again, no timing here is mention and no "distinction" made that this this is a coming that is separate from the second coming. There are theological extrapolations that are made in order to arrive at this point, but the scripture itself doesn't say it. However, when the case is made, it is stated as fact, with the scriptures presented as footnotes, even though they do not themselves contain the information given.

I will address the second half of the assertion in another post.

[Steve_S]

1 hour ago, HAZARD said:

The Rapture takes place several years before the literal advent of Christ to the Earth, for they, the saints come back with Him at that time. The saints are in Heaven before God, and not in the air, from the time of the Rapture to their coming again with Christ to reign as kings and priests, Jude 14; Rev. 19:14; Zech. 14:5.

Again, we have an assertion made. Let's just look at the very first part of the first sentence:

"The rapture takes place several years before the literal advent of Christ to the Earth"

Now, we are given three verses here that supposedly prove this. I'm just going to post these verses and let everyone decide for themselves if they actually say that.

Jud 1:14  Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, "Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints,

Rev 19:14  And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses.

Zec 14:5  Then you shall flee through My mountain valley, For the mountain valley shall reach to Azal. Yes, you shall flee As you fled from the earthquake In the days of Uzziah king of Judah. Thus the LORD my God will come, And all the saints with You.

 

Now, it doesn't look to me like any of those verses says explicitly, or implicitly, that "the rapture takes place several years before the literal advent of Christ to the earth"... but, that's just me.

And I'm sure folks may wonder where all those saints that are with God in heaven come from that are being mentioned here. Well, actually, the bible does specifically address that!

Rev 7:13  Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, "Who are these arrayed in white robes, and where did they come from?" 
Rev 7:14  And I said to him, "Sir, you know." So he said to me, "These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. 
Rev 7:15  Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in His temple. And He who sits on the throne will dwell among them.

As an aside, notice how it mentions up there in revelation 19:14 that the armies in heaven are clothed in fine linen, white and clean? The saints explicitly mentioned in Revelation as having white robes are the ones who come out of the tribulation, in fact not once in Revelation (nor anywhere else in the bible) are we told that saints are raptured before the tribulation and put in white robes.