Rapture debate

[LittleLambofJesus]

ooops.......no post. Sorry.

 

[Dispy]

Here is the scripture that Jesus talks of the raputre When Christ comes at the glorious Appearance He sets His kingdom up on earth. "1"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. 2In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.

You have quoted John 14:1, 2. The Lord says a few chapters later in this same book:

"I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil" (John 17:15).

If the Lord was speaking about taking the apostles out of the world with the Rapture in John 14, why would He pray and ask God not to take them out of the world in John 17?

But as for John 14:3 itself, I think sometimes it is assumed that the Lord is saying that heaven was unprepared to receive the apostles, and so He would have to go to heaven to prepare a place for them. However, what would that mean? Was heaven unprepared to receive them? Did the Lord need to tidy up a bit?

I think rather the Lord was saying that His "going," i.e., His death, would be the thing that would prepare a place in heaven for them.

However, this does not mean that the Lord was speaking of the Rapture here. Let me explain.

Sometimes grace believers are confused about I Peter 1:4, where the Lord talks about Israel's inheritance which was "reserved in heaven for you." But we know that Israel's hope is the kingdom of heaven on earth (II Peter 1:11). What is Peter talking about?

Well, at the time Peter wrote those words, we must ask, Where was the kingdom? While it would eventually be on earth, it was at that time in heaven. Remember, it was "the kingdom of heaven." When the Lord died, He went to heaven to get the kingdom for Israel, and to bring it back to the earth.

We know this from the parable in Luke 19. The Lord told this parable because they thought the kingdom was about to appear (v.11). He told the parable to let them know that He had to die before the kingdom could appear.

The "certain nobleman" in Verse 12 is Christ. The "far country" He goes to is heaven. He is speaking about dying and going to heaven.

Notice that He says that the purpose of His death is "to receive for Himself a kingdom, and to return." As far as Israel is concerned, that was the purpose of the Lord's death. He had to die to go get the kingdom and return with it to earth.

Before He left earth, He charged His disciples to maintain His things while He was gone (v.13). These are the apostles, to whom He gave the Great Commission and other commands.

"But His citizens hated Him, and sent a message after Him, saying, We will not have this man to reign over us" (v.14).

The "citizens" here are of course the citizens of Israel. How did they sent a message after the Lord after He died? How do you send a message to someone in heaven? Well, it is a bit gruesome, but they did it by stoning Stephen. When they stoned Stephen, they sent a message loud and clear to God the Father that they did not want the Lord Jesus to reign over them.

"And it came to pass, that when He was returned, having received the kingdom, then He commanded these servants to be called unto Him..."

Here we jump to the future, the 2nd coming of Christ. When the Lord returns at the 2nd coming, He will bring with Him the kingdom of heaven. He will then command "these servants to be called unto Him..." This is the "receive you unto Myself" that you are reading about in John 14:3.

It wouldn't make much sense to make John 14:3 to speak of the Rapture, though, for the parable goes on to talk about how the Lord is going to reward His servants by giving them command over the different "cities" of earth (19:17,19). This is Israel's hope. The 12 apostles will sit on 12 thrones, judging the 12 tribes of Israel (Mt.19:28), and faithful Jews under them will also be helping them rule.

However, it is the teaching of the Apostle Paul that we will "judge angels" (I Cor.6:3). That is why Paul in I Thessalonians 4:13-18 says that we will be Raptured to heaven, to reign in the heavenlies.

This is also spoken of in Revelations when we see that the bride. Comes back with Him.

The Church, the Body of Christ, is not the bride of Christ. We members of the Body of Christ will have been raptured to heaven "to ever be with the Lord" (1 Thess. 4:17) in heaven, prior to the events of the book of the Revelation.. We have no earthly promises.

God Bless.
Live Well, Laugh Often and Love the Lord!