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The Secret Rapture?
Is It Biblical?
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Sorry, there is no secret rapture in all of the Bible. Satan delights in the way some learned fellow carves a scripture out of context and builds a doctrine that the Christian world swallows hook, line and sinker. Jesus will come again and very soon. But it will not be in secret. In fact it will be a very visible and noisy event.
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THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST
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1. What did Paul call the second coming? Titus 2:13
"13 looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,"
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2. What promise did Jesus make to His followers? John 14:1-3
"1 “Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. 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. 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."
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Note- Jesus gave His own personal guarantee under oath that He would come back again. See Matthew 26:63,64 "63 But Jesus kept silent. And the high priest answered and said to Him, “I put You under oath by the living God: Tell us if You are the Christ, the Son of God!” 64 Jesus said to him, “It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”" Since scripture cannot be broken, John 10:35 "35 If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken)", you can believe it.
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3. What did the angels tell those who were at Jesus ascension?Acts 1:9-11
"9 Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.”"
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Note- Jesus said He would come in the clouds and the angels confirmed it. Clouds are very visible.
4. Was Jesus flesh and blood or a ghostly spirit after His resurrection? Luke 24:36-43; 50,51
"36 Now as they said these things, Jesus Himself stood in the midst of them, and said to them, “Peace to you.” 37 But they were terrified and frightened, and supposed they had seen a spirit. 38 And He said to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do doubts arise in your hearts? 39 Behold My hands and My feet, that it is I Myself. Handle Me and see, for a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see I have.” 40 When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His feet. 41 But while they still did not believe for joy, and marveled, He said to them, “Have you any food here?” 42 So they gave Him a piece of a broiled fish and some honeycomb. 43 And He took it and ate in their presence. 50 And He led them out as far as Bethany, and He lifted up His hands and blessed them. 51 Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven."
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Note- Jesus ascended to heaven as a flesh and blood human being, He will come again as He left.
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5. What is Jesus coming again with and will it be a visible coming? Revelation 1:7
"7 Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen."; Matthew 24:27 "27 For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be."
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Note- Every man, woman and child alive at the second coming will see Jesus coming in a staggering threefold brightness that will span the horizons. See Luke 9:26 "26 For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels." What is so secretive about all the angels coming with Christ and every eye shall see Him? Lightning is also very visible.
6. How did Paul describe the second coming? 1 Thessalonians 4:16,17
"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. 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.
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Note- A shout and a trumpet blast that wakes the sleeping saints in their graves, not so secret sounding is it?
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7. How did Jesus describe His second Coming? Matthew 24:30,31
"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. 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.
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8. Who will come with Jesus at His Second Coming and why? Matthew 25:31
"31“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory."
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Note- Imagine heaven being emptied as all of the angels in heaven join Him and quickly gather the elect in preparation for the return trip to heaven. So far the second coming is very visible and noisy as well. What's the secret?
9. What is the purpose of Jesus' second coming to earth? Revelation 22:12
"12“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work."; John 14:3 "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.
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10. What happens to those saved who have died since Adam, and what happens to the living saved at his second coming? 1 Corinthians 15:51-54
"51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. 54 So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.”";
Phil 3:20,21 "20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself."
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11. To whom will Jesus appear at his second coming? Hebrews 9:28
"28 so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation."
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12. Does anyone know when Jesus will come? Mark 13:32,33
"32 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 33 Take heed, watch and pray; for you do not know when the time is."
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Note- No one knows, however the Bible is filled with signs and see what Jesus says about the signs in Matthew 24:32,33
"32 “Now learn this parable from the fig tree: When its branch has already become tender and puts forth leaves, you know that summer is near. 33 So you also, when you see all these things, know that it is near—at the doors!
13. How will the second coming affect the earth? Rev 16:18,20
"18 And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth. 20Then every island fled away, and the mountains were not found."; Jeremiah 4:26 "26 I beheld, and indeed the fruitful land was a wilderness, And all its cities were broken down At the presence of the LORD, By His fierce anger."; Isaiah 24:1,3 "1 Behold, the LORD makes the earth empty and makes it waste, Distorts its surface And scatters abroad its inhabitants. 3 The land shall be entirely emptied and utterly plundered, For the LORD has spoken this word.
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14.What was James admonition about the second coming? James 5:7,8
"7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. 8 You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand."
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15. What is the position of the unsaved at the 2nd coming Revelation 6:14-17
"14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. 15 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, 16 and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”"
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16. What will happen to the wicked when Jesus comes again? 2 Thessalonians 2:8
"8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming."
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Note- The lawless one would also include those so called Christians who threw out God's moral law, saying it was nailed to the cross.
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Conditions on earth prior to His second coming
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17. What will be the conditions on earth prior to His second coming? Read Matthew 24:3-14;21-29;37-39
"3 Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” 4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. 6 And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. 10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. 11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. 13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved. 14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.";
"21 For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. 22 And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened. 23 “Then if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or ‘There!’ do not believe it. 24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. 25 See, I have told you beforehand. 26 “Therefore if they say to you, ‘Look, He is in the desert!’ do not go out; or ‘Look, He is in the inner rooms!’ do not believe it. 27 For as the lightning comes from the
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east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 28 For wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together. 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.";
"37 But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. 38 For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, 39 and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be."
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Note- Regarding earthquakes, (Matthew 24:7) as long as records have been kept there have been earthquakes. What is significant about the prophecy Jesus made regarding the signs of His soon coming, is that there has been a dramatic increase in frequency. Earthquakes are occurring daily all over the world in the thousands. Most are small and some never even felt. But what is interesting is the number of earthquakes measuring 6.0 or higher on the Richter scale, in the last five decades. In the 1940's there were only 51. There was 475 in the 1950's; increasing every ten years to 1,085 in the 1980's and it is projected to reach 1,540 by the end of the 1990's. 6.0 and higher are good sized earthquakes and since the 1940's an accurate record has been kept. The increase in the number of seismic locations around the world has been able to monitor a far greater number of the smaller activity. There are many fast fufilling signs of Jesus' soon return. Earthquakes was only one. The recent devastating earthquakes around the world needs our attention. Not only the sudden frquency in events, but tremendous loss of life in minutes.
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18. Satan has spread many falsehoods regearding the second coming, with lying wonders and miracles, how can one be sure they won't be deceived? Matthew 24:4,24
"4 And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. 24 For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect."; Isaiah 8:20 "20 To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them."; Revelation 16:14 "14 For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty."
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Note- No one who studies God's word diligently will be taken in by the miracles Satan and his angels are performing.
19. What is Jesus' warning? Luke 21:34?
"34 “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly."; Revelation 3:11 "11 Behold, I am coming quickly! Hold fast what you have, that no one may take your crown."
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Behold, I am coming quickly!
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20. Jesus final words in the last book of the New Testament that all His followers must believe and understand. Revelation 22:7,12 & 20
"7 “Behold, I am coming quickly! Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”"; "12 “And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work."; "20 He who testifies to these things says, “Surely I am coming quickly.” Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!"
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21. How can I be certain to be ready when Jesus comes? John 6:37
"37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out."; John 1:12 "12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name:"; Hebrews 8:10 "10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people."; 1 Cor 15:57 "57 But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.";
Revelation 3:20 "20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me."
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For more information:
The Mark of the Beast - Exposed
P.O. Box 727
South Hill, VA 23970-0727 US
Email: pastorvaughn@meckcom.net
© Copyright 2008 The Mark of the Beast - Exposed. All Rights Reserved.
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