Behold, he cometh with clouds, and every eye shall see him. Rev. 1:7
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A Secret Coming of Christ?
The following is a modified excerpt from the book 'Escape or Passover' by Paul Benson. A Secret Coming? I have heard many a speaker proclaim a secret invisible Coming of Christ to 'rapture' the Church' as an integral part of the teachings of God’s Word, but I have never heard anyone quote a passage which actually says such a thing! Try as they might to garner Scriptural support for this notion, there is none. There is not one passage in the Bible which explicitly puts forth this concept. It has to be presupposed, and then collaborated by bits of verse pulled out of context. Let's look at what the Scriptures really do have to say about the Return of Christ. The Coming Of Christ Will Be Visible! When the Scriptures speak of the Second Coming of Jesus Christ there is a reoccurring theme which is quite evident. The plain truth that his Coming will be out in the open, and visible to all, is taught in a great number of places. But what is not taught in the Bible is a secret non-visible coming of Christ as proposed by those preaching the ‘rapture theory'.
When Jesus was giving us the rundown on end-time events, he gave us a wealth of information on the subject of his Return. He made some comments on this issue that many have purposely chosen to ignore. They just don't jive with their story. Accept Only A Visible Coming
When Jesus was teaching about these things he gave us some very straight-forward instruction about the possibility of someone coming to us who would be trying to convince us of a secret appearance of Christ. He said, “Believe it not!” He was telling us not to believe anything other than a completely visible event. His Coming will be as visible as a flash of lightning! But the ‘pre-trib rapture’ doctrine has us vanish to meet an invisible Jesus in a ‘secret chamber’ for a 7 year wedding feast. (I hope you're hungry!) This is just the type of falsehood Jesus was warning us of. Plus don’t you think the Father would wait to throw a wedding feast for the Bride and Groom until the Bride has completely arrived? There are going to be believers on earth right up until the Second Coming! Only after the great tribulation and the Return of Christ could the wedding supper rightly take place. The ‘pre-trib’ teaching has part of the Bride missing out on her own wedding feast (although some actually teach the Old Testament and 'tribulation Saints' are not a part of the Bride of Christ and don't rise in the Resurrection of the Just. They say they are Jehovah's Bride. Yes, they teach God has two Brides! You might be surprised at all the elements of dispensational theology you never hear about because of the controversy preaching them causes!)
When preachers are using the phrase ‘like a thief in the night’ to teach their ‘rapture’ they seldom include these last two verses. That is because they describe sudden destruction immediately following the catching away. That doesn't fit the rapture story, but is does fit the true teaching of the Resurrection and catching away taking place at the Second Coming. And also the passage says Christ's Return will not take the awake believer by surprise; the Bible says we are not in darkness that that day should sneak up on us! That doesn't fit their fable either. Jesus gave us a great number of indicators to watch for that would herald his Return. Here are a few Luke listed: The Signs of Christ's Coming
A similarity many prophesies concerning the Lord’s Return share is their description of the signs in the sun, moon, and stars. Some unbelievable things are going to take place that are going to literally scare people to death! These signs are always given as preceding the Coming of Jesus. Notice that when Jesus gave these signs he said when you see them look up for your redemption draws near. He said 'when you see them because we will be here to see them; and look up because that’s where he will be: visible in the sky! Not a secret coming of an invisible Jesus, but a visible Return in the clouds for all to see! His Coming Will Be The Reverse Of His Departure!
The angels were very specific in pointing out the fact that when Jesus descends again it will be a visible event. Please take a moment and think about something here. If the pretrib rapture theory was correct, and it is the event we are to be looking for, would not the angels at this time have commented on that event instead of a visible Return the Church would not even be on earth to be looking for? What would be the sense of describing something believers wouldn't be here waiting for, while giving no information on the event that they would be here for? The angels in Acts 1 would not have spoken the way they did if there was going to be a pretrib rapture! They were saying, “Here's what to expect when he returns again; the reverse of what you are seeing here! He rose visibly and he will descend visibly.” Believing What The Bible Says Not Man
We can thumb through the Scriptures and find verse after verse after verse which give us an account of a visible and glorious Return of Jesus to this earth; and the Church being resurrected and caught away at that time. But any passages thoroughly expounding on the aspects of a secret non-visible non-return seven years earlier? Zero, zilch, zip, nope, nyet, notta single one! Why should we be believing a teaching you cannot find in the Bible? |
