BAC is there a reason , you didn't post Matthew 24:29, cause you did post verse 30
I've never said we would not be caught up, so yes if you want to call it a rapture, that's fine
But I believe we, as believers need to understand when.
Or we we will be found , bearing false witness, to God's word
Rapture simply means "caught up".
Matt 24:29; “But immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
Matt 24:30; And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.
Matt 24:31; And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.
Ok, there it is....
It could mean the rapture is after the tribulation.... or...
It could just be those who got saved during the tribulation. ... or...
"the tribulation of those day" is not the same thing as the great tribulation.
Rev 7:13; Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, “These who are clothed in the white robes, who are they, and where have they come from?”
Rev 7:14; I said to him, “My lord, you know.” And he said to me,
“These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
Rev 7:15; For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them.
They will actually go up first.. the "rest of the dead" don't go until later.
Rev 20:4; Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of
those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and
those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
Rev 20:5; The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were completed. This is the first resurrection.
This is the "first" resurrection, apparently the rest of the dead go up in a "second" resurrection.
So the question becomes.... if Jesus only comes back one time and takes all the Christians with Him at the "first/only" coming.
Where is he taking them? That may seem like an obvious question, but I would like to hear the answer. Why is this important?
Immediately after the tribulation Jesus comes to earth reign for a thousand years. So if the rapture is the same thing as the second coming,
there is no need for Him to take them up to.. (heaven?) Because He is going to be here on earth for at least the next thousand years.
He might as well leave them here. yet the Bible says some will be taken up, and some will be left behind. It doesn't say everyone will
left here on the earth. On the other hand, if it's pre-trib or even mid-trib, then they will be up in (heaven?) with Jesus for at least 3 1/2 or
7 years before He returns for the millennial reign.
That's only those who are actually still living at that time. There is also the question of the dead. Another reason this is probably two separate events
is because "the dead in Christ rise first" ( 1 Thes 4:16; ) and are taken before those who are still alive at that time. If that's true, why didn't the
"rest of the dead" come back to life until after the millennial reign?
You might say, well that's just the un-saved dead. But 1 Thes 4:16; says it's the dead "in Christ". So either those two verses are wrong
or else it's two separate events. Also another thing to consider is... there will be a final war with Satan and his army "which numbers like sand of the sea" after the millennial reign. ( Rev 20:7-10; ) I would have to think we would have to agree those in Satan's army are probably considered
un-saved. If all the Christians are up in heaven, who are they fighting against? Also when they are defeated by Jesus, what happens to their
souls if "the rest of the dead" have already been taken up before the millennial reign? It could be they are a special case and nothing happens to
them, but it's more likely there is a second resurrection after the millennial reign (even after the final war with Satan).
You might say.. well the saved just went to the New Jerusalem... but the New Jerusalem doesn't appear until after the millennial reign either.
