Overtaken Unawares: What You Need to Know About the Rapture, the Antichrist, and the Book of Revelation

things!

INTRODUCTION

1Th 5:2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.

1Th 5:3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

1Th 5:4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

1Th 5:5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

1Th 5:6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober. (KJV)

Luk 21:34 And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. (KJV)

1Jn 2:28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. (ESV)

2Pe 1:10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

2Pe 1:11 For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. (KJV)

Jesus told us that He would return twice. After describing world-wide cataclysms that will be so severe that unless the days are shortened no flesh will survive (Matthew 24:22) He said He would return after the tribulation of those days (Matthew 24:29) in power and great glory, and everyone would see Him (Luke 21:27), but also that He would come when it was unexpected during a time of normalcy (Matthew 24:37-44). The Apostle Paul told the Thessalonians that this day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night at a time of peace and safety (1st Thessalonians 5:2&3). He told us to not be asleep so it can’t overtake us like a thief (1st Thessalonians 5:4&6), and Jesus said to not let it "come upon you unawares (Luke 21:34). This event is what we refer to as the rapture."

The only issue that most Christians seem to care about or are even aware of concerning the rapture is whether it will happen before, during, or after the tribulation. There is also some debate about whether or not there will even be a rapture, but most have not looked beyond these common questions. There are, however, much more vital issues that we need to consider on the subject – issues with potentially drastic and eternal consequences for your life. The purpose of this book is to inform you of these things and warn you about what will happen if you allow yourself to be OVERTAKEN UNAWARES. There is nothing more important in your life than being ready for Christ to return for His church, and if you choose to ignore what scripture tells us concerning this, the consequences will be dire. Scripture gives us clear and repeated warnings about these things, but it is likely that you have heard well-meaning pastors and teachers attempt to explain them away, if they addressed them at all. Why do they do this? Because they can't reconcile these warnings with salvation by grace apart from works, and so interpret them as not applicable to believers. On the flip side, there are those who see that these warnings do apply to believers, but make the opposite mistake and conclude that salvation is the result of faith plus works. Both are wrong. Read on to find out what I have discovered that reconciles these opposing points of view, and what it means to those of us who have put our faith in Jesus Christ, especially now during the end times. In the process we will look at the following topics:

•    The reality of the rapture.

•    The rapture and inheriting the kingdom of God.

•    The rapture and the antichrist.

•    The rapture and the Book of Revelation.

•    Making our calling and election sure.

Precept Upon Precept, Line Upon Line

Isa 28:10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept, Line upon line, line upon line, Here a little, there a little." (NKJV)

This is, first and foremost, a book of warnings; however, as some are not based on a typical understanding of certain things, they must be arrived at through a painstaking process of laying a foundation for them precept upon precept, and line upon line. I know that working through this process in chapters 3, 4, and 5 can be tedious, but I hope that you will do this because these truths are critical to understand, otherwise there is a very real danger that you may be overtaken unawares by these things. Other parts of the book are more interesting and also contain warnings that are vital for you to be aware of, so I sincerely hope that you won't give up before you get that far, but if you find that some of the early chapters are too difficult to follow, please at least read CHAPTER 10 – THE LAMB OPENS THE SEALS and PART 3: THE RAPTURE AND THE ANTICHRIST. However, I still hope that you won't neglect to also finish PART 2: THE RAPTURE AND INHERITING THE KINGDOM OF GOD for the essential foundation it provides.

Methodology

Before we look at these issues, we need to acknowledge that God is very precise in His word, and we may therefore know precisely what He is saying to us through it. Paul knew this and sometimes built whole doctrines out of single statements or even single words from the text of the law and the prophets.

Gal 3:16 Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, And to seeds, as of many, but as of one, AND TO YOUR SEED, who is Christ. (NKJV)

He did this by applying what I call the logic of language, either doing a straightforward analysis as in the above example, or combining analysis with a series of questions that demonstrate what can and cannot be logically deduced from a passage, often supporting his conclusions with derivative if/then statements. Let’s see how this works by deconstructing an example of Paul in action from Romans chapter 4. He had been making a case for righteousness by faith for Jews and Gentiles alike in the end of chapter 3, and now reinforces this concept with the example of Abraham. He opens with a conclusion: Abraham was not made right with God by his good deeds.

Rom 4:1 Abraham was, humanly speaking, the founder of our Jewish nation. What did He discover about being made right with God?

Rom 4:2 If his good deeds had made him acceptable to God, He would have had something to boast about. But that was not God's way. (NLT)

Next, he provides the statement in scripture from which he draws this conclusion:

Rom 4:3 For the Scriptures tell us, Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith. (NLT)

He now illustrates his point by contrasting what we earn by our own efforts (wages) with that which is given without working for it (a gift) and comparing these two ideas to working for righteousness and having faith in God who forgives sinners.

Rom 4:4 When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned.

Rom 4:5 But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners. (NLT)

Paul now shows us that instead of this simply being his own idea, his conclusions are in fact consistent with other statements in scripture on the subject.

Rom 4:6 David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it:

Rom 4:7 "Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight.

Rom 4:8 Yes, what joy for those whose record the LORD has cleared of sin." (NLT)

He now asks leading questions that are designed to cause his readers to logically evaluate potential counterarguments in light of the truth he has just presented so they can recognize that they are false.

Rom 4:9 Now, is this blessing only for the Jews, or is it also for uncircumcised Gentiles? Well, we have been saying that Abraham was counted as righteous by God because of his faith.

Rom 4:10 But how did this happen? Was he counted as righteous only after he was circumcised, or was it before he was circumcised? Clearly, God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised! (NLT)

Now that he has demonstrated the validity of his premise, he can elaborate on its ramifications and draw more conclusions based on the logic he has just established.

Rom 4:11 Circumcision was a sign that Abraham already had faith and that God had already accepted him and declared him to be righteous—even before he was circumcised. So Abraham is the spiritual father of those who have faith but have not been circumcised. They are counted as righteous because of their faith.

Rom 4:12 And Abraham is also the spiritual father of those who have been circumcised, but only if they have the same kind of faith Abraham had before he was circumcised.

Rom 4:13 Clearly, God's promise to give the whole earth to Abraham and his descendants was based not on his obedience to God's law, but on a right relationship with God that comes by faith. (NLT)

Paul has masterfully proven that his ideas are not only scriptural, they provide insight into the meaning of these scriptures and how they fit together as part of the larger picture of God’s redemption of mankind through His son, Jesus Christ. He then sums up his argument in an if/then statement that is not only plainly true based on the preceding analysis and consistency with scripture, it sets limits on what can be concluded from related passages.

Rom 4:14 If God's promise is only for those who obey the law, then faith is not necessary and the promise is pointless. (NLT)

The fact that we believe Paul’s epistles are scripture (also attested to by the Apostle Peter in 2nd Peter 3:15&16) shows that we accept this approach as valid. I will be using the same methodology throughout this book.

PART 1:

THE REALITY

OF THE

RAPTURE

INTRODUCTION

(ESV = English Standard Version, NASB = New American Standard Bible, NKJV = New King James Version, NLT = New Living Translation, NIV = New International Version, ISV = International Standard Version. Emphasis in bold, underlined, and/or bold italic typeface is mine. All scripture has been copied and pasted from eSword by Rick Meyers.)

What does the Bible teach us about the rapture? The first and most obvious question is whether or not it’s even in there. Many claim it is not, so before we can evaluate what scripture tells us about it, we need to discover if it’s biblical in the first place.

CHAPTER 1 – GETTING STARTED

Hmmm… Where to Start?

Understanding scripture sometimes depends on knowing where to start. Where you end up is often determined by your starting point. This is especially true when it comes to the question of the rapture. Many start with Peter, but is this a good idea? Personally, I love the guy! So much to relate to: foot-in-mouth disease, over-promising to Jesus with no clue as to his actual frailty, and that bumbling enthusiasm! First over the side of the boat and first to sink, but also first to recognize his unworthiness and first to weep when he failed his Lord. But should he be our first stop to answer the question of whether or not the Bible teaches the rapture of the church? After all, there are those who build their doctrine against the rapture on what he said:

2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. (NKJV)

OK, let’s see… the day of the Lord – got to be when Jesus comes back, right? Thief in the night – yeah, that confirms it, Jesus said He would be unexpected like a thief when he returned! What’s next… in which – that ties what follows to what he just said: in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up. So, when Jesus comes back on the day of the Lord like a thief in the night, the heavens and the earth will pass away with a great noise and fervent heat. Well, there you have it! This thief in the night business doesn’t have anything to do with the church being whisked away before the trouble starts. Case closed. The rapture is a false doctrine!

Actually, it’s not that simple. We have a lot more scripture to look at, starting with the context:

2Pe 3:7 But the heavens and the earth which are now preserved by the same word, are reserved for fire until the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

2Pe 3:8 But, beloved, do not forget this one thing, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.

2Pe 3:9 The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance.

2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.

2Pe 3:11 Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,

2Pe 3:12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat?

2Pe 3:13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. (NKJV)

Oops! Looks like we jumped to some conclusions. This particular day of the Lord (verse 10) is the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved (verse 12) described in Revelation 20:7 – 21:1. Let’s look at that:

Rev 20:7 Now when the thousand years have expired, Satan will be released from his prison

Rev 20:8 and will go out to deceive the nations which are in the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle, whose number is as the sand of the sea.

Rev 20:9 They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.

Rev 20:10 The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are. And they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Rev 20:11 Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.

Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.

Rev 20:13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.

Rev 20:14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

Rev 20:15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.

Rev 21:1 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. (NKJV)

The day of the Lord that Peter is referring to in his second epistle features the Great White Throne Judgment (2nd Peter 3:7 and Revelation 20:11&12), the destruction of the present heavens and earth by fire (2nd Peter 3:7,10,11,&12 and Revelation 20:11), and the creation of new heavens and a new earth (2nd Peter 3:13 and Revelation 21:1). These things will come as a thief in the night (2nd Peter 3:10) on those who have surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city (Revelation 20:9) when they are destroyed without warning by fire that comes down from God out of heaven (Revelation 20:9); however, this will occur at the end of the millennial reign of Christ, 1,000 years after His return! (Revelation 19:11 – 20:8) Peter’s statement is not a good place to start, it is a good place to end!

More Places We Shouldn't Start

Another place that people who want to dismiss the rapture start is with history. Frankly though, I don’t care if the church fathers taught it or not. I also do not care if Jesuits introduced the idea to combat perceptions among Protestants that the Catholic Church is the antichrist. Furthermore, I do not care if someone in the 19th century who may have been influenced by some little girl introduced it. I only care what God’s word says.

Yet another place where rapture rejecters start is with the experiences of people who have fasted themselves into an altered state of consciousness, or have otherwise had a vision, dream, or revelation. The Holy Spirit does give visions, dreams, and revelations, but when these things come to us, we are to judge whether or not they are from Him by scripture.

A Better Idea

Now that we know where not to start, where should we start? As it turns out, Jesus had plenty to say about what will happen when He returns. Perhaps we should start there!

CHAPTER 2 – JESUS CHRIST ON THE RETURN OF JESUS CHRIST

Working Forward

There is another argument against the rapture that goes something like this: We know that Jesus will come back after the tribulation (Revelation 19:11-21), and every eye will see Him (Revelation 1:7), so there is no such thing as a secret rapture. Paul isn't talking about the rapture (a word that's not even in the Bible!) in 1st Thessalonians 4:13-17; rather, he's describing what will happen to believers at the first resurrection (Revelation 20:4&5) when Christ returns to reign on the earth for a thousand years (Revelation 20:1-6).

When we want to discover what the Bible says about the return of Christ, we tend to start at the Book of Revelation and work backwards. There is a much better way to proceed, however, and that is to start with what Jesus said and work forward. Once, when I was having a debate with someone who taught against the rapture, he finally declared in exasperation: How many second comings of Christ do you think there are, anyway? My reply was: As many as He says there are! Since Jesus described two distinct and separate events when talking about His return, the correct answer is 2!

Mat 24:29 "Immediately after the tribulation of those days the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not