Once Saved Always Saved? Part 2 of 2

(Continued)

Now, concerning Heb 6:4-8, there are different interpretations. The main ones include:

1. Those in Heb 6:4-8 are Christians who have fallen away and lost their salvation;
2. They are Jews who have tried Christianity but returned to Judaism;
3. This passage talks about the loss of rewards for backsliders but not the loss of salvation;
4. This is a hypothetical case to warn Christians about the dangers of apostasy, but it did not happen.

I will discuss each briefly and then tell my position:

Saved and then lost. This assumes that Christians are preserved by their perseverance. If they endure, they are saved. If they don’t, they will be lost. But according to:

• 1 Pet 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

Christians are protected by God’s power, not the strength of their perseverance. So, this interpretation is not valid.

Jews who are not yet Christians. According to this view, these are seekers who tasted the goodness of the gospel but never embraced it and returned to the law when they faced trials. Let’s check what they have experienced to see if they are believers:

Enlightened. To give light, to shine, light up, or illumine. The same Greek verb phōtizō occurs one more time in Heb 10:32 But remember the former days, when, after being enlightened, you endured a great conflict of sufferings.

So, the group in Heb 6 enjoyed the same enlightenment as the Christians in Heb 10.

Tasted of the heavenly gift (v 4), tasted the good word of God (v 5), tasted the powers of the age to come (v 5). Tasted translates the Greek verb geuomai, which means to try the flavor of, partake of, or enjoy. Heavenly gift is not further defined. Some suggest it to be the free “gift of God” (Rom 6:23) or eternal life. Others believe the gift is grace (Eph 2:8). Some interpret “the word of God” as the Scriptures or the gospel. Some equate “the powers of the age to come” to be “signs and wonders and various miracles” (Heb 2:4). This school contends that since the Heb 6 group only “tasted” the benefits of belief but did not swallow them, they were only seekers but not yet believers. However, besides Heb 6:4 and 5, tasted also occurs in Heb 2:9 But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.

Jesus did not just “taste” death partially. He died the most cruel death invented by men, for men! Hence, the premise that “tasted” falls short of full participation is not substantiated.

Partakers of the Holy Spirit. Greek adjective metochos. Sharing in, or a partner in a work or office. Some interpret this to be sharing or having fellowship with the Holy Spirit. Again, this word’s other usage in Heb indicates otherwise:

• Heb 3:1 Therefore, holy brethren, partakers of a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the Apostle, and High Priest of our confession;
• Heb 3:14 For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end,
• Heb 12:8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

If a person shares in the heavenly calling, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the Father’s discipline, having a part with all three Persons of the Trinity, he is an insider, not an outsider! Heb 6:4 is particularly relevant because of Rom 8:9b, “But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.”

My conclusion based on the evidence is that these are not just Jews but Christians.

Lose rewards but not salvation. Proponents claim that the writer of Hebrews is not talking about losing salvation in chapter 6, only the rewards of salvation. What does the text say? We have already examined what these people experienced in v 4-5 to be part of the salvation process. What about v 6? Fallen away translates the Greek verb parapiptō, which means to deviate from the right path, turn aside, wander, to error. It occurs only once in the NT in Heb 6:6. What is the outcome of this falling away from true faith? It is impossible to renew them again to repentance. They have repented before. If they fall away, they cannot renew their repentance again. Repentance from what? The word repentance is the Greek noun metanoia, translated uniformly as repentance in the KJV, a change of mind or reversal of decision. Of particular interest is its occurrence in Hebrews besides v 6:

• Heb 6:1 Therefore leaving the elementary teaching about the Christ, let us press on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God,
• Heb 12:17 For you know that even afterward when he (Esau) desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears.

Both were genuine repentance, not false. I conclude that Heb 6:6 is about the consequence of falling away from faith in God, not just rewards not even specified in the entire paragraph.

Hypothetical for warning. This school contends that this verse presents a hypothetical case based on KJV (NKJV, RSV):

• Heb 6:6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

They believe the “if” in “if they shall fall away” is a matter of possibility, but had not happened. Opponents point out that the premise does not stand, as there is no “if” in Greek. The phrase is a participle and can be translated as “having fallen away” (see Interlinear). Another objection is, “If this were hypothetical, why bother warning someone against something that can’t happen?”

Nevertheless, there is some merit in this interpretation given:

• Heb 6:9 But, beloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and things that accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this way.

My view is that of the four common interpretations, the first three have serious difficulties. I am not fully satisfied with the fourth, but the problems are less serious than the others. My interpretation principles are to start with exegesis instead of imposing a theological system to explain an idea, and to use clear passages to clarify more obscure verses.

On balance, I believe the “once saved, always saved” view to be valid, as this article tried to demonstrate.

Once Saved Always Saved? Part 1 of 2

Q. Heb 6:4 For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit, 5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come, 6 and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame. 7 For ground that drinks the rain which often falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God; 8 but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and close to being cursed, and it ends up being burned.

Can you explain “Once Saved, Always Saved”? Can a truly born-again Christian walk away from God and lose his position as God’s child?

I will answer the primary question before addressing Heb 6:4-8. The primary issue is whether our salvation ultimately depends on God’s promise or on us. My position is it depends on God, not our ability to hang on. Let us review two passages of what God promised:

• John 10:27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me; 28 and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand.
• Rom 8:33 Who will bring a charge against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies; 34 who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. 35 Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 36 Just as it is written, “For Your sake we are being put to death all day long; We were considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The conclusion is no enemy is greater than God to snatch us out of the Lord’s and the Father’s hands. Nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. The natural question is, “OK, no one is greater than God, but can’t we walk away from God ourselves?”

My response depends on whether that person is really a born-again Christian. If he is a genuine Christian, then God will discipline a wayward child to bring him back:

• Heb 12:5  and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by Him; 6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, And He scourges every son whom He receives.” 7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

However, if he is a counterfeit Christian, then his walking away from God is a case of:

• 1 John 2:19 They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.

They are Christians in name only, but their lack of perseverance shows that they do not have saving faith and were not truly born-again.

Books have been written by both proponents and opponents of eternal security to support their position. Space does not allow me to address their arguments in this short article, but the above sums up my view.

(To be continued)

Fruit

Fruit-bearing

Q. In John 15, what does Jesus mean by “fruit”? Can it mean making disciples?

A. The word “fruit” occurs 10 times in 7 verses in John’s writings:

• John 4:36 Already he who reaps is receiving wages and is gathering fruit for life eternal; so that he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together.
• John 12:24 Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.
• John 15:2 Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit, He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit, He prunes it so that it may bear more fruit.
• John 15:4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me.
• John 15:5 I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.
• John 15:8 My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit, and so prove to be My disciples.
• John 15:16 You did not choose Me but I chose you, and appointed you that you would go and bear fruit, and that your fruit would remain, so that whatever you ask of the Father in My name He may give to you.

Many commentators relate fruit qualitatively as the “fruit of the Spirit” in Gal 5:22-23. This is certainly true in the sense that a disciple cannot bear the Spirit’s fruit unless he abides in Christ. However, I believe we can also interpret fruit quantitatively as “making disciples,” for two reasons:

1. The word “fruit” itself implies reproduction, in the sense of “fruitful and multiply,” which occurs 11 times in the Bible (Gen 1:22, 28; 8:17; 9:1, 7; 17:20; 28:3; 35:11; Lev 26:9; Jer 23:3; Ezk 36:11).
2. As John used the word in his gospel, he used it quantitatively (much fruit in Jn 12:24, 15:5, 8; more fruit in Jn 15:2).

No one can make disciples unless he/she abides in Christ, and the Father is glorified when we reproduce many disciples.

So my conclusion is that the Lord meant fruit in both a qualitative and quantitative sense, as in Christian character and making disciples.

Imminence Part 2

Q. I find it illogical reasoning. Pre-tribulation believers say that the word Church is not mentioned after Revelations chapter 3, which means the Church won’t be on earth (raptured out). Jesus was giving messages to the churches, so naturally, the word church was no longer mentioned subsequently. But what about the words “the saints” and “God’s people”?

Pre-tribulation supporters say the rapture is secret. How could it be secret when suddenly millions or billions of people disappear and accidents everywhere (driverless cars), missing family members, and children orphaned?

They say Rev. 3:10 means to take out of (raptured), but the original text means to protect. If Rev. 3:10 means raptured out, then no need for verses 11 and 12 as they won’t be on earth!

The problem may arise from a mindset that prioritizes ease and comfort. When someone with that mentality reads a verse such as:

1 Thes 1:10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come,

the interpretation would focus on being delivered from trouble altogether.

However, historically, that had not been God’s way. For example, He kept Noah’s family safe through the Flood. He did not whisk them away before the Flood came. When God delivered the Israelites out of Egypt, He delivered them through the Red Sea. God did not “rapture” them to safety. Throughout Israel’s history, He kept the nation as He promised the patriarchs but allowed them to suffer the consequences of their sins so that they would learn to follow Him. The same is true throughout church history. Why would He change His method to favor the last generation of Christians when most people’s love has grown cold (Mt 24:12)? So they won’t face trouble and learn? Hardly!

To justify their assertion, pre-tribulation proponents use circumstantial “evidence.” For instance,

• Rev 3:10 Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

They claimed that “keep you from the hour of testing” means “keep you from the time of trouble,” i.e., take or rapture you away to avoid that period altogether. You pointed out that the New Living Translation is:

• NLT Because you have obeyed my command to persevere, I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world.

But what is God’s method of protection? Remember the Ten Plagues?

• Ex 9:6 So the Lord did this thing on the next day, and all the livestock of Egypt died; but of the livestock of the sons of Israel, not one died.
• Ex 9:26 Only in the land of Goshen, where the sons of Israel were, there was no hail.
• Ex 10:23 They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the sons of Israel had light in their dwellings.
• Ex 12:23 For the Lord will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to smite you.

God’s way has always been to protect through the time of testing, not avoiding it. So, the argument based on the wording “hour” or “time” is not supported by actual examples.

What about the absence of the word “church” after Rev 3? Does that mean the Church has been raptured and is no longer on earth? Some even suggest that Rev 4:1’s “come up here” refers to the rapture:

• Rev 4:1 After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.”

This misinterprets Scripture as the phrase applies strictly to John, not the Church.

The above is an example of an “argument from silence,” a weak form of evidence. Borrowing from forensic investigations, direct physical, written, or verbal evidence is needed to “prove” a case. Circumstantial evidence can support an argument but is insufficient to prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. Your observations of “the saints” and “God’s people” are direct evidence in referencing the Church. But of course, pre-tribulation supporters claim that these apply only to the Jews or Christians saved after the rapture. If the mind is closed, you can find all kinds of excuses to justify yourself, which is sad!

Imminence

Q. People who believe in a pre-tribulation rapture claim that the Bible says the rapture will happen at any time, and we won’t know when. So, this is possible only if the rapture is pre-tribulation. If the rapture is post-tribulation, we would know it is after the 7-year tribulation. What is your view?

A. First, let us start with what the Bible says about rapture, imminent, and imminence, not what people say. While the concept of rapture or translation of Christians to meet the Lord is well-known, the word “rapture” itself does not appear in most English translations in use today. [It appeared once in DBY (Darby Translation, Songs 2:3) and four times in BBE (Bible in Basic English, Ps 28:7, 45:15, 51:8, and Prov 5:19). However, in these cases it is used in the sense of being rapturous, ecstatic, or extreme excitement. This is NOT “a seizing by violence; a hurrying along; rapidity with violence,” which is Webster’s definition and what most Christians understand rapture to mean.]

The adjective “imminent” appeared once in the NASB (New American Standard Bible), AMP (Amplified Bible), and LSB (Legacy Standard Bible) – 2 Pet 1:14, and three times in the NET (New English Translation) – Ps 27:3, Prov 10:14, and Hos 9:7. The noun “imminence” does not appear in contemporary English versions at all. The Greek word for imminent in 2 Pet 1:14 is transliterated tachinos, which means “swift, quick” of events soon to come or impending. Tachinos appeared twice in the Greek NT:

• 2 Pet 1:14 knowing that the laying aside of my earthly dwelling is imminent, as also our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.
• 2 Pet 2:1 But false prophets also arose among the people, just as there will also be false teachers among you, who will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing swift destruction upon themselves.

In 2 Pet 1:14, Peter was talking about his impending death, while in 2 Pet 2:1, he was referring to punishment that will quickly fall upon the false prophets and teachers. In neither case was he referring to the rapture of the Church.

So, what do pre-tribulation proponents base their claim that “the rapture is imminent” on? They based it on deductions from their interpretation of certain verses, not on direct biblical statements.

Second, let’s review the two primary passages that describe the rapture:

• 1 Thes 4:16-17 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
• 1 Co 15:51-52 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Note the following:

• The rapture – the resurrection of the dead in Christ followed by those alive being caught up together to meet the Lord – will happen when the Lord descends from heaven. It will be a public event with loud sounds, not a secret rapture. Even pre-tribulation supporters agree that the Lord’s return will be after the tribulation and not before it.
• It will take place in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet of God. That is, it will happen very quickly. The text did not say at any moment or imminent, as pre-tribulation proponents claimed.

Then where does the idea of imminence come from? Let me quote a few verses cited by the pre-tribulation school to support their argument:

• Mt 24:36 But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.
• Mt 24: 42, 44 “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. For this reason, you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.
• Mt 25:13 13 Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.
• See also the parallel passage Mk 13:32-37

Their reasoning is since no one knows, not even the Son, the only conclusion is that it could happen at any moment or at any time. If something else needed to happen before the rapture, for example, the great tribulation, then that would be a sign, and we would know. On the surface, that sounds reasonable. But is that the only solution?

When the day or the hour of an event is not known, at any moment is one possible solution. Another possibility is that it is in the future, for which timing is indefinite, with or without signs. For example, when a child is born, the day or the hour of his (or her) death is unknown. Under normal circumstances, the current life expectancy for Canada in 2024 is 83 years. If he (she) has a fatal disease (with signs) or an accident (without signs), the life span would be cut short. The death may be imminent, but not necessarily. The timing of the death is unknown but need not be imminent. Similarly, the rapture’s timing is unknown but need not be imminent. This is simply logic.

Third, any Bible passage’s interpretation must be consistent with the context. What does the context of the quoted passages say?

• The immediate context of Mt 24:36 is the parable of the Fig Tree (Mt 24:32-41), which follows Christ’s glorious return in v 29-30, “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. 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.” It refers to Christ’s Second Coming after the tribulation, not a pre-tribulation rapture.
• Mt 24:42’s context follows the parable of the Fig Tree, with the Lord warning His disciples to be ready for His coming. The subject has not changed. It is still after the tribulation.
• Mt 25:13’s context is the parable of the Ten Virgins (Mt 25:1-13). In Mt 25, the Lord taught two parables, the Ten Virgins followed by the parable of the Talents (Mt 25:14-30), before describing the Final Judgment (Mt 25:31-46). The entire chapter teaches about Judgment after the tribulation. It is not talking about a pre-tribulation rapture.

You can search other verses cited by pre-tribulation proponents to see whether they support their premise. But my bottom line is: how can we legitimately apply Bible passages describing post-tribulation events to justify a pre-tribulation and imminent rapture? We can’t! Period.

Fourth, one well-known author explained “imminence” as follows:

• Other things may happen before the imminent event, but nothing else must take place before it happens. If something else must take place before an event can happen, then that event is not imminent. In other words, the necessity of something else taking place first destroys the concept of imminency.

Unfortunately, his definition is what destroys their understanding of imminency.

Let me cite two examples in which the biblical characters involved did not expect an imminent rapture would derail what they thought would happen:

• Jn 21:18-19 Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go.” Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, “Follow Me!” The Lord was prophesying how Peter would die. Remember, according to pre-tribulation supporters, He did not know the day and hour of the rapture. Did He assume an imminent rapture, which could occur before Peter’s death, to nullify His prophecy? I don’t think so.
• What about Paul? Was he an advocate of an imminent rapture by which God would deliver him out of his trials and tribulations? No. When he bid farewell to the Ephesian elders, he said in Acts 20:22-23, 25 And now, behold, bound by the Spirit, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there, except that the Holy Spirit solemnly testifies to me in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions await me. And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about preaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face. Paul did not know what would happen to him except that imprisonment and persecution awaited him in Jerusalem. He will not see the elders from Ephesus again. He also knew he would testify in Rome because the Lord told him. Acts 23:11 But on the night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, “Take courage; for as you have solemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also.”  This must occur before the rapture because the Lord said so, which destroys imminency according to the pre-tribulation school’s definition.

I can continue to provide a rebuttal for other points raised, but this is a short article, and I have written enough to show you my train of thought. If there are issues you want me to address, please specify them, and I would be glad to discuss them when I have time.

Heliocentrism

Q. Is the Church still holding on to geocentrism as in Galileo’s days? If the Church recognizes heliocentrism is true, how can any Christian think the sun is created after the earth? I think Genesis 1:16 was written in Hebrew without a past participle as we understand it today. The sun was created in Genesis 1:1 when God created the universe, and He was outside of it. In verse 2, God came into the universe. Genesis 1:3 is a different day when God started to create things on earth, and he was in the universe. Genesis 2 gives a different chronology of creation and makes me think that it is not trying to give a chronological account of the creation, just like the books of the Bible, maybe for the same reasons.

A. Geocentrism, or the geocentric model, is the belief that the Earth is at the center of the universe, with the sun, moon, stars, and planets orbiting around it. Heliocentrism, or the heliocentric model, is the belief that the sun is at the universe’s center, with the earth and planets revolving around it. [Technically, the sun is NOT at the center of the universe. It is on one of the spiraling arms of the Milky Way. And our galaxy is just one of the millions or billions of galaxies in our universe.]

No, the Church is not holding onto Geocentrism. That was the 17^th century and prior. While most Christians believe in heliocentrism, those who trust the Bible to be inspired and inerrant also believe in the order of creation as recorded in Genesis. The issue today is not so much on cosmology (Geocentrism versus heliocentrism) but on the “Book of Nature” versus the “Book of Scripture,” whether Science or the Bible is the final authority on matters of faith. I am sad to say that science increasingly has the upper hand, despite its tentative conclusions, often superseded by the latest discoveries as men realize how little they know. This is particularly sad when scientists make assertions beyond their field of expertise, and people and the media follow their doctorates, even though they may know little about Scripture. I was a professional engineer before I became a pastor, grounded in science and the Bible, so I know what I am talking about.

Genesis 1:1 is a summary statement for Genesis chapter 1 – that God is the Creator of the universe. Let me quote Genesis 1:1-5 to respond to your comments:

Gen 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

2 The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.

3 Then God said, “Let there be light” and there was light.

4 God saw that the light was good and God separated the light from the darkness.

5 God called the light day, and the darkness He called night. And there was evening, and there was morning, one day.

Note the following:

• The earth, not the sun, was created on Day 1. Since it was formless and void, it was not like the earth we observe now. You might call it the creation of matter out of nothing (i.e., no preexisting material), without structure.
• In v 3, God created light, still before the creation of the sun. Commentators understand this to refer to the creation of energy. It was still Day 1, as Day 2 was not described until v 6-8.

The sun is part of the heavenly bodies created on Day 4:

Gen 1:14 Then God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years;

15 and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth”; and it was so.

16 God made the two great lights, the greater light to govern the day (the sun) and the lesser light to govern the night (the moon); He made the stars also.

17 God placed them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth,

18 and to govern the day and the night, and to separate the light from the darkness, and God saw that it was good.

19 There was evening, and there was morning, a fourth day.

Please note that the sun, the moon, and the stars were all created on Day 4. People ask, “How can there be light before the sun was created?” The sun was not the source of energy; God was. This is true not only at the beginning of creation but also at the end:

• Rev 21:23 And the city has no need of the sun or of the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God has illumined it, and its lamp is the Lamb.
• Rev 22:5 And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them, and they will reign forever and ever.

What’s my point? It is that while the Church had made mistakes in its understanding of science, the same can be said of atheist scientists when they make dogmatic assertions about the origin of the universe, the origin of life, and the supernatural. They are to be commended for their pursuit of truth in the physical realm, but disregarding the spiritual dimension when they cannot observe or measure it is arrogant. Both sides can learn from each other.

For me, the Book of Scripture trumps the Book of Nature because only God is omniscient, omnipotent, and infallible. Human knowledge is only a tiny fraction of intelligence in our universe. How can we who know so little shake our fists in God’s face and ask Him to step aside?

Multiple Raptures? (Part 4 of 4)

4. The Rapture is secret and instant (1 Co 15:50-54); the Second Coming is seen by all (Mt 24:29-30, Rev 1:7). I won’t repeat 1 Co 15:51-52 nor Mt 24:29-30, but the other verses are:

• 1 Co 15:50, 53-54 Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. … For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality. But when this perishable will have put on the imperishable, and this mortal will have put on immortality, then will come about the saying that is written, “Death is swallowed up in victory.”
• Rev 1:7 Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.

The Rapture is certainly instant – in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye (1 Co 15:52), but how can it be in secret when it is preceded by a shout and the trumpet of God (1 Thes 4:16)? The transformation from perishable to imperishable, mortal to immortal is not in secret either, but public. Every eye will see the Lord coming, but they will see the sign of the Son of Man too – the resurrection and rapture! Hence this assertion is simply not valid.

5. The Rapture is imminent, likely to happen at any moment (1 Co 15: 50-54, 1 Thes 4:13-18, Titus 2:13); the Second Coming will not happen until certain events take place (Mt 24:15-30, 2 Thes 2:4, Rev 6-18).

• 1 Co 15:50-54, 1 Thes 4:13-17, Mt 24:29-30 see above.
• 1 Thes 4:18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
• Titus 2:13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus,
• Mt 24:15-28 “Therefore when you see the abomination of desolation which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place (let the reader understand), then those who are in Judea must flee to the mountains. Whoever is on the housetop must not go down to get the things out that are in his house. Whoever is in the field must not turn back to get his cloak. But woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days! But pray that your flight will not be in the winter, or on a Sabbath. For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will. Unless those days had been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect, those days will be cut short. Then if anyone says to you, ‘Behold, here is the Christ,’ or ‘There He is,’ do not believe him. For false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders to mislead, if possible, even the elect. Behold, I have told you in advance. So if they say to you, ‘Behold, He is in the wilderness,’ do not go out, or, ‘Behold, He is in the inner rooms,’ do not believe them. For just as the lightning comes from the east and flashes even to the west, so will the coming of the Son of Man be. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather.
• 2 Thes 2:4 who opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, displaying himself as being God.
• Rev 6-18 Please refer to the Bible.

For sure, certain events must precede Christ’s return, including:

• The abomination of desolation (Antichrist) standing in the holy place (the temple of God), displaying himself as God;
• Great tribulation;
• False Christs and false prophets;
• Deception to mislead the elect (believers), plus others.

But these signs do not nullify the Lord’s plain statement:

• Mt 24:24, 42 But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. Therefore, be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.
• Mt 25:13 Be on the alert, then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.
• Mk 13:32-33 But of that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone. Take heed, keep on the alert, for you do not know when the appointed time will come.
• Mk 13:35 Therefore, be on the alert—for you do not know when the master of the house is coming, whether in the evening, at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning—

The whole point is to “be on the alert,” even though we do not know the exact day and hour. Take heed.

And since the Rapture and the Second Coming are concurrent, being ready for the Lord’s return is being prepared for the Rapture. How else are we to look for “the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus” when there are no signs as the separate incidents schools suggested?

Now, let me return to your original question, “Is the Second Coming a single event or a series of events, and can we have multi-raptures?” My answer is the Second Coming is a single event, and we do not need multiple raptures. Let me borrow from Dan 9:24. The purpose of the Second Coming is:

• to finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for iniquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness, to seal up vision and prophecy, and to anoint the most holy place.

The Rapture brings all of God’s children home. Christ’s Return brings justice to punish all evil. Both purposes are accomplished in a single event at the consummation of the age. I believe the various schools are arguing over superficial differences. Feel free to disagree and show me what I overlooked. Blessings!

Multiple Raptures? (Part 3 of 4)

The asserted differences consist of:

1. In the Rapture, believers meet the Lord in the air (1 Thes 4:17); in the Second Coming, Christ comes to the earth with His saints (Rev 19:14).

The Greek verb for “meet” is apantēsis, used when VIPs made a formal visit, and a welcoming party went out to meet and escort him back to their city or house. This word occurs three times in the NT, the other two being:

1. Mt 25:6 But at midnight, there was a shout, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.
2. Acts 28:15 And the brethren, when they heard about us, came from there as far as the Market of Appius and Three Inns to meet us. And when Paul saw them, he thanked God, and took courage.

In Mt 25, the wise virgins were ready and returned to the wedding feast with the bridegroom. In Acts 28, the brethren came from neighboring towns to accompany Paul to Rome. So, my interpretation of 1 Thes 4:17 is those believers went to meet the Lord in the air, then returned with Him to earth. It was one single event, not two separate incidents.

2. The Rapture is before the Tribulation (1 Thes 5:9; Rev 3:10); the Second Coming is after (Rev 17-18).

First, what do the passages say?

• 1 Thes 5:9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,
• Rev 3:10 Because you have kept the word of My perseverance, I also will keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.
• Rev 17-18 Please refer to the Bible.

Pre-tribulation, mid-tribulation, and pre-wrath supporters claim that “not destined us for wrath” and “keep you from the hour of testing” imply that believers will be removed or raptured before the tribulation or wrath. That is one possible assumption. Another interpretation is that God will keep believers safe even as they go through tribulations all around them, as when the Lord made a distinction between Israel and Egypt during the ten plagues (Ex 8:22, 9:4, 26, 10:23, 12:13). The latter is God’s pattern, not the former. Throughout biblical and church history, God protected and delivered His people, not by removing them from the scene, but as they underwent trials.

• The Rapture is God delivering believers from the earth (1 Thes 4:13-17, 5:9); the Second Coming is God taking away unbelievers to judgment (Mt 13:41-42, 24:40-41, Rev 19:20-21). I will cite only those Rapture verses not already quoted above. The Second Coming passages are listed in full.

• 1 Thes 4:13-15 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. For this, we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
• Mt 13:41-42 The Son of Man will send forth His angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place, there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
• Mt 24:40-41 Then there will be two men in the field; one will be taken, and one will be left. Two women will be grinding at the mill; one will be taken, and one will be left.
• Rev 19:20-21 And the beast was seized and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.

The Second Coming verses indicate God judging unbelievers, the Antichrist, and the false prophet, but do they prove that it is separate from the Rapture? My answer is NO. The difference in focus is easily explained by the respective context. In 1 Thes 4, Paul was comforting the Thessalonian Christians who thought the dead in Christ had missed the resurrection and were grieving over them. So, his emphasis was on explaining the sequence of the Rapture, not the details of Christ’s return. In Mt 13, 24, and Rev 19, Matthew and John were describing the end times and final judgment, so the focus was on the Lord judging the unbelievers.

What I find surprising, however, is that supporters of the separate incidents missed “the sign of the Son of Man.” As I have demonstrated, this can be none other than resurrection. In other words, the resurrection and rapture of Christians take place when Christ returns to judge the world, and the two are simply two sides of the same event!

(To be continued)

Multiple Raptures? (Part 2 of 4)

The classic texts for the Rapture are:

• 1 Thes 4:16-17 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
• 1 Co 15:51-52 Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.

Note the following:

• The Lord will come with a shout and trumpet call, i.e., it will NOT be secret;
• The dead in Christ will be raised imperishable and rise first (resurrection);
• The alive in Christ will be changed, from perishable to imperishable, mortal to immortal, and be caught up (raptured) together with them to meet the Lord in the air;
• This will happen in the twinkling of an eye, i.e., instantaneous.

The primary texts for the Return of Christ are:

• Mt 24:29-31 “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. 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. 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. (Also Mk 13:24-27; Lk 21:25-27)
• Rev 19:11-16 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness, He judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems, and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”

Again, note the following:

• Christ’s return will be after the tribulation;
• There will be cosmic cataclysms;
• The sign of the Son of Man will appear, which we will examine next;
• Heavenly armies will follow Him;
• He will send His angels with a great trumpet to gather His elect i.e., Christians;
• He will strike down the nations with the wrath of God.

Before we compare the Rapture to the Return, let’s see what this sign of the Son of Man is. The scribes and Pharisees repeatedly asked the Lord for a sign. His answer was:

• Matthew 12:39-40 But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation craves for a sign; and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet; for just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
• Jonah 1:7 And the Lord appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.
• Matthew 16:4 An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and a sign will not be given it, except the sign of Jonah.” And He left them and went away.
• Luke 11:29-30 As the crowds were increasing, He began to say, “This generation is a wicked generation; it seeks for a sign, and yet no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah. For just as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so will the Son of Man be to this generation.

Some people thought the sign of the Son of Man was the cross. But the Lord Himself said unequivocally that His sign is the sign of Jonah, which is being raised from the dead after three days and three nights, i.e., resurrection. With this understanding, let us evaluate the claims of the separate incidents schools.

(To be continued)

Multiple Raptures? (Part 1 of 4)

Q. I identify the two prophets in Rev 11:3, 10 with Moses and Elijah as a result of their powers (Rev 11:6). Not only had their souls (or souls and bodies if the stolen dead body of Moses mentioned in Jude 1:9 was taken away by God for this purpose) already come down in the Transfiguration, but will come again in the end times in body and soul as the event in Rev 11 appears to happen on earth (because there will be death in Rev 11:9 and call from heaven to go up there later in Rev 11:12).

Some say Christ had already demonstrated His multiple ascensions and descents. He had descended to the visible sky of the earth to call Paul to service (Acts 9:3-5). If this is not a strong enough argument on descent from heaven as it was only a vision, then His own words that the women should not touch Him after His resurrection until He had ascended to meet the Father (Jn 20:17), but later His letting them hold on to His feet (Mt 28:9) should hint that He had ascended to meet the Father and descended again to appear on earth.

So my question is whether the so-called Second Coming is a single event or a series of events, and whether, based on the above study on Moses, Elijah, and Lord Jesus Christ, we can have multi-raptures, i.e. pre-tribulation, mid-tribulation, and post-tribulation raptures can be all-embracing, i.e. they co-exist and are not at odds. And the dead believers may be raptured before the 7-year tribulation, descended in the middle of the tribulation, then raptured again, descended again at the end of the tribulation, to be raptured again?

1. First, let us define our terms. Let me quote from Wikipedia:

The “Rapture” is an eschatological position held by some Christians, particularly those of American evangelicalism, consisting of an end-time event when all dead Christian believers will be resurrected and, joined with Christians who are still alive, together will rise “in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.” (1 Thes 4:16b-17a)

Based on this generally accepted definition, the Rapture relates to all Christians, dead or alive, being caught up to meet the Lord. The examples you cited concerning Moses, Elijah, and the Lord Himself are all individuals ascending to heaven or descending to earth, not all Christians (the Church). So, technically, scholars would not classify them as raptures.

Second, before determining whether there are multiple raptures, we need to discern a broader subject of whether the Rapture and the Second Coming of Christ are separate incidents or one and the same event. The common schools or views of the Rapture can be divided into two broad categories:

1. Those who treat them as separate incidents, with a “secret” rapture sometime before Christ’s public Second Coming. These include the:
   • Pre-tribulation view, with the Rapture taking place at the beginning of a seven-year Great Tribulation;
   • Mid-tribulation view, with the Rapture happening at the mid-point or three-and-a-half years into the Great Tribulation and
   • Pre-wrath views, with the Rapture before the seven bowls of God’s wrath judgments.

All three views have Christ’s Second Coming as a separate event at the end of the Great Tribulation, defined differently in each school.

2. Post-tribulation view that sees the Rapture and the Second Coming as one and the same event happening simultaneously.

Which category is correct? Proponents of the separate incidents views focus on their supposed differences. Let’s review the evidence.

(To be continued)