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!

Shocked! 2

(Continued from yesterday)

However, something went wrong during the conference. I do not know the details as I was not in attendance. From what I heard, he spoke strongly against cheap grace, and urged the students not to be self-deceived like those in Matthew 7:21-23, but to make every effort to enter through the narrow door (Lk 13:24). Those who agreed with him believed that he was preaching a much-needed message of “Lordship Salvation”. But the organizers disagreed, thought that he was preaching salvation by works, and stopped him before the conference was over. After that he returned to Montreal where he focused on training disciples in the Christian Disciples Church, which he founded in 1976.

The Lord blessed that ministry too, and after sending out many teams personally trained by him, that one church had multiplied into 25 churches in 12 countries: Australia, Canada, China (Hong Kong), India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Nepal, Philippines, Singapore, Spain, Thailand and Vietnam. With a background like that you can see why we were so surprised that he renounced the fundamentals of the faith. It appeared that the change took place in 2008, when he claimed he received new revelation to write a book called “The Only True God”, and amended the church’s statement of faith. Many members left the church because of this departure from orthodoxy, including some pastors he himself trained.

Do not assume that he does not know his theology. I heard some of his sermons in the mid 70s. Even though I was a young Christian then, I had read extensively works by great expositors like Martyn Lloyd-Jones, John Stott, John MacArthur etc. Rev. Chang’s careful exegesis and exposition was on par with the best preachers in those days, and far superior to much of the watered-down pablum so prevalent these days. Many just regurgitate what they read in commentaries, but not him, who always challenged you to think deeply about the biblical teaching and apply it in your life. It is just sad how he ended, but sadder still for those led astray. Jas 3:1 Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.

What did I learn from this news? To be fair, I have not read his book, but had confirmed that the rumors are true. I also know monotheism’s teachings through evaluation of cults and sects like Christadelphians, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Oneness Pentecostals, The Way International etc. The first thing that comes to mind is the need for discernment. There are so many half-truths out there that we really need to pray for a discerning mind and heart. Half truths are even more deadly than outright lies, because with the latter we are on guard, but with the former we are baited by what’s true and swallow the lies that are mingled in.

The second is that we need to watch and pray so that we do not fall into temptation (Mt 26:41, Mk 14:38). If a man of that caliber can deviate, what about the likes of us? Solomon was wiser than any other man (1 Kings 4:31), but as he grew old, his wives turned his heart after other gods, and his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God (1 Kings 11:4). The LORD became angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the LORD (1 Kings 11:9). He started out well, but he did not finish well. We need to finish strong, and we can do that only by keeping a close walk with the Lord who is able to keep us from falling and to present us before His glorious presence without fault and with great joy (Jude 1:24).

The third is that the end is getting closer and closer. Our Lord’s most repeated warning about the end times is that of deception (Mt 24:5, 11, 24; Mk 13:6, 22; Lk 21:8). The easiest way to deceive is to bend truth slowly and gradually over time. As the end draws nearer and nearer, deception increases. Let no one deceive you with empty words (Eph 5:6) or fine-sounding arguments (Col 2:4). Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus (2 Tim 2:3). You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised (Heb 10:36). Watch!