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End TimesSelect one: Rapture, Salvation During, GeneralEnd Times » Rapture[ back to top ]Question:There is some division in the Christian world about the rapture being Pre-, Mid- or Post-Tribulation and I just wanted your thoughts on that. Is there a quick nutshell answer?Answered on 07/19/06:I have one. I think that based on 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 and based on the first four chapters of the book of Revelation, I believe that it is as clear as it can be that the church, the body of Christ, those that are truly believers are raptured or caught away, caught up with Jesus and meeting Him in the air before the full tribulation of Satan and the antichrist manifests in the earth. Now, there is tribulation in the earth right now. Jesus said, “In this world, you’re going to have tribulation.”But the tribulation that is going to be unleashed is written about in 1 Thessalonians and 2 Thessalonians where the Bible says that He that restrains the man of lawlessness is going to be removed and that’s when the man of lawlessness is going to be fully revealed in the earth. And who is that man, or who is that person that is taken away so that the man of lawlessness can be revealed? That person that is restraining that man of lawlessness right now is the body of Christ. Because the Bible says that we are the salt of the earth and the light of the world and the gates of hell cannot prevail against the church. So as long as the Christians, the church, are in the earth, then the antichrist cannot fully reveal himself because we are the restraining force of the antichrist, preventing him from fully manifesting himself. When we are removed, he fully manifests himself. So, built into the system is an inability for the antichrist to fully reveal himself until the body of Christ is removed from the earth according to 1 Thessalonians and 2 Thessalonians. Question:How do we get ready for the rapture?Answered on 04/13/06:Jesus said, “Watch and pray so that you will be ready when the Son of Man returns.” So the first thing that we need to do is we need to be watchful. We need to be opening our eyes and expecting His return.Secondly, we need to be praying, praying for others, praying for people’s salvation, praying for the grace of God to touch the lives of other people. Thirdly, the Bible says in 1 John chapter 3 that we need to long for His coming. And as we long for His coming and desire His coming, we will purify ourselves just as He is pure. So you will experience purity as you pursue a love for the Lord’s return and an expectation for the Lord’s return. Another thing we need to do as we get ready for the rapture is we need to tell others about Jesus. We need to preach the gospel to our loved ones, our friends, our neighbors and get them to hear the gospel. I think those are the things. We need to be watchful; we need to pray; we need to be expecting; we need to love and look forward to His return and we need to be sharing our faith with others. And those are the best ways that I could tell you how to be ready for the rapture. Jesus also in Luke chapter 17, “When the Son of Man returns, will He find faith in the earth?” So, I would encourage you to make sure that you build up your faith because that’s what He’s looking for when He returns; for us to have faith, confidence in His Word and for us to also share our faith in the Lord with others around us. And that’s the best way to get ready for the rapture. End Times» Salvation During[ back to top ]Question:Question:If you’ve heard the Gospel preached and have not made the decision to follow Christ, then the rapture happens, can you still accept Jesus as your Savior during the Tribulation or is it to late? Answered on 07/19/06:First of all, if you have the opportunity to accept Jesus Christ, then you need to take advantage of that opportunity now. If you have that in your heart, or if somebody that you know is being convicted by the Holy Spirit, there’s a gift there, there’s the grace there to receive salvation, then you need to do it. Because God will still accept you after the rapture if you receive Jesus Christ, but the Tribulation that you’ll have to go through will be much greater.And it will be much more difficult to put your faith in Jesus Christ at that time. Because the opposition and the oppression and the persecution that the world will inflict upon anybody that names the name of Jesus will be much more intense. If you think you’re persecuted now in America, for believing in Jesus and believing the Gospel, you have no idea what it’s going to be like. It’s going to be a hundred times worse when you actually may have to forfeit your life physically for your faith in Jesus Christ after the rapture. So get saved now. Get on the first train. Don’t wait for the second one because it will be much harder to get on that one. Now that doesn’t mean you won’t be able to be saved at that. However, your heart may harden so much between now and then that you don’t want to accept Jesus Christ at that time and that you put your faith in the Anti-Christ who’s going to deceive many. And many people are going to believe that the Anti-Christ has the answers for them. So tell your friends or your family, or if it’s you, why put yourself in a situation of uncertainty? Better to be certain by receiving Jesus Christ right here right now before the rapture of the Christians takes place in this earth. Question:What proof is there in the Bible for the rapture?Answered on 03/16/06:Well, 1 Thessalonians 4 is referencing the rapture and Enoch being taken up in Genesis represents the rapture, and Noah being caught up with his family and preserved from the destruction that came to the earth is a foreshadowing of the rapture. Those are some of the places that I would direct you to study that subject. And Revelations chapters 1, 2, 3 and 4.There are many other Scriptures that bring us to the conclusion that there is going to be a rapture. Another one is in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2 or chapter 3 where it talks about the man of lawlessness and how when he that restrains the man of lawlessness is taken away, then the man of lawlessness is going to carry out his power. Well, obviously the man of lawlessness is the antichrist and the only one restraining the antichrist is us, the church, the Christians. We are the light of the world and the salt of the earth. As long as we remain on this earth, the man of lawlessness cannot fully reveal himself. If you think that the world has problems now, you take the salt out of this earth, you take the light our of this world, this world is going to be an absolute disaster and tragedy continually because the church, the salt and light of the world is not in the earth anymore. Look up those chapters and study them out. Question:My question is about the 144,000 that is referred to in Revelations. Could you shed a little more light on their purpose?Answered on 03/16/06:There are two witnesses in the Book of Revelation. Some say they are Elijah and Moses. These two witnesses come and begin to preach the Gospel, and 144,000 Jewish people are converted to Christianity. Those 144,000 represent the 12 tribes of Israel. Those 144,000 Jews are going to preach the Gospel. They are going to evangelize the world – to Jews and Gentiles alike – until Jesus returns in all of His glory. End Times » General[ back to top ]Question:I was wondering what age we’re going to be in heaven? Are the babies the same age as when they die with abortion or the older generation, the people that die? At what age group is going to be in heaven? Is everybody the same age in the same body, both male and female?Answered on 03/16/06:We’re going to be immortal and we’re going to have immortal bodies that are going to be the perfect age. I would think that it will appear as if we’re 30 years old or so. That was the perfect age. That’s when Jesus started His ministry. He went to the cross when He was 33. I would think that it will feel like and appear as if you’re at the prime of your life, whether that’s 30, whether that’s 35, whether that’s 25. You will feel that way forever and your body will be perfect. Babies will be complete adults and they will have the same kind of bodies that everybody else has – an immortal body that cannot be destroyed and will never die.Both male and female? I believe there’ll be male and female in heaven. I don’t see in Scripture where there’s not male and female. We’ll be male and female, but it will be much different because it will be perfect. Now, the Bible says they’re neither married nor given in marriage in the Scripture. So, there’s not going to be a need for marriage because we’re going to be married to the Lord. And we’re going to have our complete fulfillment in Him. You’re not going to be married. So if you’re married now, enjoy it while it lasts because you’re not going to married to that person when you die. You’re going to be with Jesus forever and He’s going to be the love of your life. And He should be now, so we need to practice that now. Question:My question is about the “mark of the beast.” I read the Bible a lot but could you explain to me what “the mark of the beast” means?Answered on 03/16/06:Well, I can say that the Bible says in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4 that when Jesus comes back out of heaven, He will catch away the church – Christians, those that believe in Jesus will be caught up with Him in the air. That’s where we get the words “the rapture” from. The rapture means we’re going to be caught up. It’s where we get the word “to be caught up in something, to have a euphoria, to be enraptured by something.” The rapture is the catching away of the church. It’s when Jesus takes the Christians out of the earth and keeps us with Him until He comes back to the earth to rule and reign for 1000 years.Why am I explaining that? It’s because your question demands a little more behind-the-scenes information first. Because once the Christians are taken out of this earth, then the antichrist will then rule on this earth for 7 years. There will be 7 years of intense tribulation, great tribulation, much more tribulation than anybody is experiencing right now. Great tribulation where Christians have been taken out of the earth, evaporated in a sense, just like the water comes down to the earth and then it evaporates, God is going to evaporate the church in a sense. The Christians, I don’t mean the church buildings, I mean everybody that names the name of Jesus and truly believes in Him, they will be caught up with Jesus and we will be with Him forever and then the antichrist will reign on the earth and extend his kingdom of darkness on the earth for approximately 7 years. During that time, there will be two witnesses that’ll be raised from the dead or come back to life – Elijah and Moses are who most people that are written about in the book of Revelation – they will begin to preach the gospel and 144,000 Jewish people from the 12 tribes of Israel will be saved and they will truly turn to Jesus Christ. And those 144,000 men and women will then begin to preach the gospel to the world the same way that Peter, James and John ant the other apostles preached the gospel 2000 years ago. At that time, the antichrist will demand, in order to keep control of the people, he will demand that people take “the mark of the beast” either on their forehead or on their hand. I don’t know if it’s a number that they put, or if it’s a stamp or if it’s a computer chip, whatever it is – we don’t know what it is – but we know it marks each person to the antichrist’s system of government and adheres and submits themself to the antichrist’s system of peace. And anybody that does not take that mark, he will try to execute those people that refuse to take the mark of the beast. Again, we don’t know if that’s a computer chip that is put inside of somebody’s head or put inside of somebody’s ear or wrist or hand, but it will be the mark that they belong to the system of the antichrist and they do not belong to the system of Jesus Christ. That’s what the “mark of the beast” is. |
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