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50 Evidences for the Pre-Trib Rapture
by Bob Syme

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Historical Doctrine of Imminency

1.               The early church believed in the imminency of the Lord's return. While it can be debated which church father said what, there is a consistency in the early church on imminency which is essential to the pre-trib position and in opposition to some other positions.

2.               The Pre-trib position is the ONLY one which truly teaches imminency.

3.               The fact that there is a greater development of the doctrine in recent centuries does not preclude it from the early centuries. In the very early years of the church you see the development of great fundamentals doctrines of Trinity, Deity, God-man, canon of Scripture, etc. Following those early church councils is a time of decline in the corporate church into great apostasy. The teaching of that time are built on many of the heresies of Augustine. When the Reformation comes, there is a period of reestablishing the foundational doctrines of salvation. Now, in these last days there is both and ability and a need in the church to better understand the doctrines of eschatology and the Spirit is continuing His ministry of guiding the church in all truth.

4.               The exhortation to be comforted by the "coming of the Lord" (1Thessalonians 4:18) is valid only in the context of the pre-trib view. It could even be a fearsome thing in a post-trib view.

5.               We are exhorted to look for the "Glorious Appearing of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ." (Titus 2:13) If there are any prophetic events  (ie: tribulation) to come first, then this passage is nonsensical.

6.               Again, we are to "purify ourselves" in view of his coming. (1 John 3:2-3)  If his coming is not imminent then the passage is meaningless.

7.                The church told *only* to look for the Coming of Christ. It is Israel and the tribulation saints that are told to look for signs.

 

Nature of the Church

(Those who do not understand the nature of the church as unique in the program of God will continually be confused about the nature of His coming for the church.)

8.               The translation of the church is never mentioned in any context dealing with the second coming of Christ at the end of the Tribulation.

9.               The church is "not appointed to wrath" (Rom 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10) The church cannot enter into the "great day of their wrath."

10.           The Church will not be "overtaken by the Day of the Lord." (1 Thessalonians 5:1-9) (Day of the Lord is another term for the great tribulation.)

11.           The church will be "kept from the hour of testing that shall come upon all the world." (Revelation 3:10)

12.           The believer will escape the tribulation (Luke 21:36).

13.            It is in the character of God to deliver His own from the greatest times of trial. (Lot, Rahab. Israel, Noah, etc.)

14.            It is clear that there is a time interval between the translation of the church and the Return of Christ. 
(John 14:3)

15.            Only the pre-trib position does not divide the Body of Christ on a works principle as does partial rapture does so clearly and others to a lesser extent. It becomes a climatic finale to the grand plan of salvation by grace alone.

16.            The Scriptures are adamant that the church is undivided. In this age the church is divided by the continuing old nature in the believers. When we are glorified at the coming of Christ, the church is no more divided.

17.            The godly remnant of the tribulation has the attributes seen in OT Israel and not the church. The church is not present in the prophecies of Revelation.

The pre-trib view, unlike the post-trib view does not confuse terms like elect and saints which apply to believers of all ages, as opposed to terms like church and in Christ, which apply only to those who are the body of Christ in this age.

The Work of the Holy Spirit

18.            The Holy Spirit is the Restrainer of evil in the world. He cannot be taken out as prophesied unless the church which is indwelt by the Holy Spirit is taken out.  [NOTE FROM PEGGY:  The Holy Spirit will NOT be removed from the earth, as He is omnipresent and two of His major functions are convicting people of their sins and bringing them to salvation, but He will no longer be working THROUGH the Church, because we will be in Heaven during the Tribulation... us verbal, mouthy, troublemaking Christians.  :-)  He will still be working in the 144,000 and through the 2 witnesses.  The Church indwelt by the Holy Spirit is the restrainer.]

19.            The Holy Spirit will be taken out before the "lawless one" is revealed. That lawless one will certainly be revealed in the tribulation. In fact, the tribulation begins with the signing of the covenant between that lawless one and Israel. That act will reveal him.

20.            The "falling away" in 2 Thessalonians 2:3 would better be understood in its context as "the departure." This is a reference to the departure of the Holy Spirit as He indwells the church.

21.            The work of the Holy Spirit making the church like Christ where they submit to death and persecution, whereas the OT saints (see many of the Psalms) and the tribulations saints cry out for vengeance 
(Revelation 6:10)

22.       The work of the Holy Spirit making the church like Christ where they submit to death and persecution, whereas the OT saints (see many of the Psalms) and the tribulations saints cry out for vengeance 
(Revelation 6:10)

 

The Hermeneutical Argument

23.           Only the pre-trib view allows for a truly literal interpretation in all of the OT & NT passages regarding the great tribulation.

24.           Only the pre-trib position clearly distinguishes the church and Israel and God's dealing with each. The Necessity of an Interval of Time between the Rapture and the Second Coming

25.           All believers must appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10). This event is never mentioned in the account of events surrounding the second coming.

26.           The "four and twenty elders" in Revelation 4:1-5:14 are representative of the church. Therefore it is necessary that the church, undivided, be brought to glory before those events of the tribulation.

27.           There is clearly a coming of Christ for his bride before the second coming to earth. Revelation 19:7-10.

28.           Tribulation saints are not translated at the second coming of Christ but carry on ordinary activities. These specifically include farming, construction, and giving birth. (Isaiah 65:20-25).

29.           The Judgment of the Gentile nations following the second coming (Matthew 25:31-46) indicates that both the saved and the lost are in a natural body which would be impossible if the translation had taken place at the second coming.

30.           If the translation took place at the same time as the second coming, there would be no need to separating the sheep from the goats at the subsequent judgment. The act of the translation would be the separation.

31.       The Judgment of Israel (Ezekiel 20:34-38) occurs after the second coming and requires a regathered Israel. Again, the separation of the saved and the lost would be unnecessary if all the saved had previously been separated by a translation at the second coming.

Differences between the Rapture and the Second Coming

32.           At the Rapture, the church meets Christ in the air. At the second coming, Christ returns to the Mount of Olives.

33.           At the time of the Rapture, the Mt of Olives is unchanged. At the second coming it is divided forming a valley east of Jerusalem.

34.           At the time of the rapture, saints are translated. No saints are translated at the time of the second coming.

35.           At the time of the rapture, the world is not judge for sin, but descends deeper into sin. At the second coming, the world is Judged by the King of kings.

36.           The translation of the church is pictured as a deliverance from the day of wrath, whereas the coming of Christ is a deliverance for those who have suffered under severe tribulation.

37.           The rapture is immanent whereas there are specific signs which precede the second coming.

38.           The translation of living believers is a truth revealed only in the NT. The second coming with the events surrounding it is prominent in both OT and NT.

39.           The rapture is only for the saved, while the tribulation and second coming deals with the entire world.

40.           No unfulfilled prophecy stands between the church and the rapture. Many signs must be fulfilled before the second coming of Christ.

41.       No passage in either OT or NT deals with the resurrection of the saints at the second coming nor mentions the translation of living saints at that same time.

The Nature of the Tribulation

42.           Only the pre-trib view maintains the distinction between the "great tribulation" and the tribulations in general which we all experience.

43.           The great tribulation is properly understood in the pre-trib view as a preparation for the restoration of Israel. (Deuteronomy 4:29-30. Jeremiah 30:4-11, Daniel 9:24-27, Daniel 12:1-2)

44.           Not one single passage in the OT which discusses the tribulation, mentions the church.

45.           Not one single passage in the NT which discusses the tribulation, mentions the church.

46.           In contrast to mid trib or pre-wrath views, the pre-trib view offers an adequate explanation for the beginning of the great tribulation in Revelation 6. These others are clearly refuted by the plain teaching of Scripture that the great tribulation begins long before the 7th trumpet of Revelation 11.

47.           There is no proper groundwork provided that the 7th trumpet of Rev is the last trumpet of 1 Corinthians 15. It is accepted only on the basis of assumption. The pre-trib view maintains the proper distinction between the prophetic trumpets of the church and the trumpets of the tribulation.

48.           The Unity of Daniel's 70th week is maintained by the pre-trib view. By contrast, the mid-trib view destroys the unity and confuses the program for Israel and the church. The post trib view usually denies the clear teaching of the 70th weeks by subverting it into some form or another of allegory.

49.           The gathering of saints after the tribulation is done by angels whereas the gathering of the church is done by "The Lord Himself."

50.            Revelation 22:17-20 And the Spirit and the Bride say come. And he that heareth, let him say come ... He who testifieth of these things saith

 

"Yea, I come quickly, AMEN. COME LORD JESUS.

http://www.raptureready.com

Understanding Daniel's 70th Week

David J. Nixon

As you study eschatology, and particularly in my articles, you will come across many references to “Daniel’s 70th Week” and be left with the impression that this is somehow an important event in the End Times. Well you would be right in thinking that! The 70th Week of Daniel is arguably one of the most significant prophecies given in the entire Bible, as well as being one of the most important still unfulfilled prophecies at our current time.  

To set the scene, the Prophet Daniel is a prominent captive in the nation of Babylon and has been praying to God for the promised deliverance from the hands of Israel’s captors after 70 years of Exile, as prophesied by Jeremiah. He is visited by the angel Gabriel (Daniel 9:21), who is the herald of this important message as well as the good news of the conception of Jesus Christ to Mary some 500 years later. Gabriel informs Daniel of God’s timetable for Israel until He “puts an end to sin, and to atone for righteousness, to seal both vision and prophet, and to anoint a most holy place” (9:24). This plan will unfold over a period of “70 weeks” according to Gabriel.  

Initially, it is crucial that we come to an understanding of what this term – “70 weeks” – refers to. In Hebrew the word “week” simply means “set of seven” and that is why some of our English Bible translations render it as “70 sevens” in this passage. From this it follows that God has decreed 490 units of time until He ushers in the kingdom on Earth and completes His plan for national Israel. Now it is possible that we could debate whether the unit of time is a day, week, month or year. It would seem sensible in a prophetic context to take it as a year and indeed when we examine the content of the passage a year seems like the best interpretation.  

However, we are greatly aided here by the fact that this is a prophecy which has been fulfilled in history and so we have confirmation that it is indeed to take place over a period of 490 years. The progression of the prophecy is as follows: there will be 7 and 62 weeks from the going forth of the command to rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah, Jesus Christ, comes into the world (9:25). The Messiah will be cut off during the 69th week and then the Temple will be destroyed by “the people of the prince who is to come” (9:26). Now before examining in detail the historical fulfilment of the prophecy up until this point we need to note in passing that a few decades passed between the Crucifixion of Jesus Christ and the Temple’s destruction. This is a crucial point that we need to return to in detail once we have seen the historical evidence for fulfilment of the prophecy up until the 69th week’s conclusion.

I have argued in the past that this prophecy is an incredible apologetic resource given the fact that it predicts the timing of the Crucifixion almost exactly, something which would be impossible 483 years in advance – unless of course God who is outside of time and knower of all things told us in advance, as Daniel claimed. If you consult the table below I have set out some points in Israel’s history and paralleled it with the corresponding prophetic developments which substantiate their divine origin:

(Historical Event => Prophetic Correlation)

 

- 538BC Cyrus defeats Babylon and issues an edict allowing the return of the Jews. => Cyrus's victory was exactly prophesied by Isaiah 200 years before; Daniel receives 70 weeks prophecy

- 536BC 50,000 Jews return to Jerusalem with Zerubbabel to rebuild the temple after Cyrus returns the articles stolen by Nebuchadnezzar (but the work stops after 1 year). Daniel dies. => Completion of 70 years of captivity, as prophesied by Jeremiah. Return prophesied by Isaiah, Jeremiah and Ezekiel

- 515BC Temple reconstruction completed

- 464BC King Artaxerxes takes the Persian throne

- 458BC Artaxerxes allows Ezra the priest to return with more people to Jerusalem to revive the spiritual condition of the city -

444BC Artaxerxes grants Nehemiah’s petition to allow the rebuilding of Jerusalem and issues the decree. => Commencement of 70 weeks prophecy-

443BC Nehemiah returns to Jerusalem and has the walls rebuilt

- 396BC Jerusalem’s walls, moat and plaza rebuilt. => Completion of 7th week of Daniel’s Prophecy

- 333BC Alexander the Great, leader of Grecian Empire, invaded Israel but allowed the Jews to continue Temple worship

- 323BC Alexander dies and his Empire is divided between his 4 generals. This 4 way division was prophesied by Daniel over 100 years previously

- 320BC Alexander’s General Ptolemy I seized control of Jerusalem, having already controlled Egypt

- 198BC Antiochus III of Syria (General Seleucus founded kingdom of Syria/Seleucid on ruins of Alexander’s Empire) defeats Egypt to take control of Israel

- 167BC Antiochus IV Epiphanies attacks Jerusalem and the defiles the Temple. => Abomination in the Temple prophesied by Daniel almost over 350 years before

- 164BC Jews retake Jerusalem and cleanse the Temple under Judas Maccabees

- 63BC Jerusalem conquered by Rome under General Pompey. => Prophesied by Daniel

- ~4BC Jesus Christ born in Bethlehem. => Prophesied by Isaiah

- 30/33AD Jesus Christ Crucified in Jerusalem => Prophesied by Isaiah and Daniel. Completion of the 69th week of Daniel’s Prophecy

- 70AD Destruction of Temple by General Titus. => Prophesied by Daniel 500 years before and Jesus 40 years before

By studying this table you will come to see the incredible accuracy of Biblical prophecy, and these are but a few of the prophetic developments that I have noted briefly so the totality of the subject is overwhelming evidence for the Bible as God’s inspired truth. However, there is still the matter of why Daniel 9:26 describes the crucifixion and says that it will be followed by the destruction of the Temple and then after that the final 70th week of the prophecy will happen. The entire prophecy should have been completed in either 37 or 40AD at the latest (depending on your date for the crucifixion, which is a matter of debate today), yet the Temple was not destroyed until 70AD and the events of the 70th Week have not transpired. With all the evidence for the accuracy of Bible prophecy what has gone wrong with the 70 weeks prophecy just as it enters into its final lap? Even Jesus made reference to the 70th weekwhen He commanded Israel to flee to the mountains when she saw the Abomination of Desolation in the future which had been described by Daniel in Daniel 9:27 (Matthew 24:15), so He certainly saw it as still awaiting future fulfilment!  

The answer is quite simply that there appears to be a very important pause in God’s timetable for Israel’s redemption – notice that I say pause because the Apostle Paul is very clear that this is only temporary and normal service will resume in the future (Romans 11:25-27). Now God is working through the body of Christ, the Church, to bring the gospel message to the whole world so that the Gentiles might too receive redemption through Jesus Christ (John 10:16). When that time is complete then Christ shall return for the Church (2 Peter 3:1-10) and pick up with Israel where He left off with the initiation of the 70th Week. (For more detail and scriptural exposition on this particular point please consult my article:

“Signs of the Times Concerning Israel and the Church”)The rebirth of Israel as a nation was prophesied (Isaiah 66:8; Ezekiel 37; Matthew 24:32-35) and forms the basis for the countdown towards the recommencement of 70 Week programme for the redemptive history of Israel. Jesus said that by the end of the 70th Week that Israel would return to Him and declare: “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord” (Matthew 23:39). So we now turn to consider how this happens.

The 70th Week begins with the character of the “Prince” of the people who destroyed the Temple in 70AD (9:26) who is referred back to in the Hebrew pronoun commencing Daniel 9:27: “And he shall confirm a covenant with the many for one week”. This person is therefore somehow connected with the Roman Empire and based on an understanding of the synthesis of the visions in Daniel 2 & 7 I believe that the identification of the Prince as being one in the same with the “little horn” who arises into power in a resurrected Roman kingdom in Europe is entirely well founded scripturally. As a result we can conclude we are dealing with the person of the Antichrist described in Revelation 13.

Daniel tells us that Antichrist will break his peace agreement with Israel after 3.5 years and John in Revelation 13 describes how the Antichrist will be empowered for a similar period of 3.5 years and so again we can safely conclude we are dealing with the same character and events here during the latter half of the 70th Week. The breaking of the covenant will involve an attack on the Temple in Jerusalem and the Antichrist declaring himself to be god (2 Thessalonians 2:4). The 70th Week will then conclude with the rescue of Israel and the remnant of Believers in the world from the clutches of the Antichrist, who will be judged and thrown into the Lake of Fire. Christ will then usher in the Millennial Kingdomand reign physically from Mount Zion as prophesied throughout the Old Testament as the kingdom comes to Israel. (For more detail and scriptural exposition on these points please consult my article on “The Unholy Trinity Operating in the Last Days”).So hopefully now you will understand why we talk about the 70th Week of Daniel and why it is 7 years long and still a future event we are awaiting to happen.  

Appendix:

Please note that if you want to do the calculations yourself to verify the 70 weeks prophecy then you must take into consideration the progression from 1BC to 1AD and also the fact that the 70 weeks prophecy was given in the Hebrew Calendar of 360 days per lunar year. As a result the calculation would look something like this:

 

The Jewish year is 360 days long (not our 365.242 days – remembering the .242 is why we have a leap year every 4 years!) so when calculating the dates of the 70 weeks prophecy’s fulfilment some mathematical calculation is needed to convert the dates! Since there would be 69 weeks (7 weeks + 62 weeks) between Artaxerxes decree and the Messiah being cut off there were 173,880 days (483 years multiplied by 360 days in Jewish calendar). Divide 173,880 by 365 to convert to the number of years in the Gregorian calendar giving ~476.07 years; when taken from 444BC goes to 33AD.

 

We know from history that Artaxerxes made his decree in early March so our calculation would place the end of the 69th week at the end of March/beginning of April in 33AD. This is also the time of Passover in the Jewish calendar, which you will recall is when Jesus was crucified. Therefore to virtually the exact day Daniel’s prophecy predicted the crucifixion if you accept the later 33AD date – otherwise the 30AD date is still safely within the 69th Week to count as fulfilment!

 

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http://www.pretribulation.com/signs.htm

Signs of the Last Generation

The Bible says...	Scripture Reference	Fullfillment
The final generation will be the one that witnesses the blossoming of the "fig tree."	Hosea 9:10	Israel returned as a nation in 1948 fulfilling God"s promise to Abraham. Israel is always referred to as the "fig tree" and Christ taught that Israel"s forefathers were the first fruits in his fig tree.
There will be wars and rumors of wars.	Mark 13:7	The last 100 years have seen more wars than any time since creation.
An army called "the Kings of the East" will march into the Middle East at the battle of Armageddon and have the Euphrates river dry-up before them.	Rev. 16:12	Dams built in the 1970"s have given Turkey the ability to dry-up the Euphrates. In 1990 they stopped the river for a month to fill a reservoir. Now you can see why Turkey must be part of the Islamic camp....to make way for the three different attack routes the Russians and Arabs will utilize in their Magog attack on Israel.
There will be Earthquakes in diverse places.	Matthew 24:7	Earthquakes have increased in frequency and intensity some 2,000% since Israel returned to the land in 1948.
An end-time global government will arise and break the world into ten regions described as the "Revived Roman Empire."	Rev. 13:1-2 & Rev 17:12-13	The same year Israel returned to the land a group known as the "Club of Rome" signed what was called the "Treaty of Rome" creating the European Union that plans to divide the world into ten regions. The Pope has called the EU the "Revived Roman Empire." Signers of the treaty were quoted as saying: "We felt like real Romans that day....purposely recreating the Roman Empire."
Jerusalem will be trodden-down by the Gentiles until the time of the Gentiles has come to an end. This is to happen just prior to the return of Christ.	Luke 21:24	The Israelis recaptured Jerusalem in the 1967 war.
In days to come Jacob will take root, Israel will bud and blossom and fill all the world with fruit.	Isaiah 27:6	Samuel Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, traveled the barren desertland of Palestine in 1863. He claimed in his book Innocence Abroad that in his journey from Jerusalem to Galilee he saw only one Arab. Aside from Jerusalem and Jaffa, most of Palestine was very sparsely settled, primarily because no one could live in the barren land. Israel now provides over 90% of all citrus fruit consumed in Europe. Since 1948 more than 200 million trees have been planted. This combined with modern irrigation has transformed the precipitation cycle which governs the weather system of Israel (aka Palestine).
the generation alive at the time Israel returns to the land will not all pass away before all things, including the return of Christ with his saints, are accomplished.	Luke 21:29-32	Pending. Depending upon the scripture reference a Biblical generation may be anywhere from 40-70 years. We are more than 50 years into that time frame.
During the Great Tribulation, God will have to shorten the daylight hours because the sun will be scorching man.	Rev. 16:8-9	Global ozone depletion is being blamed for the blinding of kangaroos in Australia as well as penguins and polar bears at the So. Pole where animals are also developing cancerous tumors. Children in So. America are being told to wear sun glasses while most of the krill off the tip of So. America are gone. This is the bottom of the food chain. Paint is oxidizing faster than normal in Australia where sperm counts in men have dropped precipitously. Frogs are mutating and dying in No. America where skin cancers and cataracts are up 50-75%. The U.N., reports that some areas of the Earth have lost nearly all ozone. The ozone hole is now 3-times the size of Europe and nearly continuous volcanic eruptions are exacerbating the situation. Scientists are experimenting with ways to grow more algae in the oceans because of the death of large areas of plankton and algae. They are responsible for 1/4th of our oxygen supply.
storms will become increasingly worse.	Luke 21:25-26	There have been record numbers of tropical storms, hurricanes and tornadoes beginning in the 1990"s. (Sustained winds routinely top 200MPH now.)
famines and pestilence will be common-place.	Luke 21:11 & Rev. 6:8	There have been more deaths from famine since 1950 than any other time in history. Old diseases are gaining the upper-hand and new diseases are appearing regularly that have no cure.
The Antichrist will bring a 7-year peace and protection pact for Israel but when they say "Peace and safety" sudden destruction will come upon them.	1 Thes. 5:3	Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose name means "Gift from God," has stalled the peace process with the Palestinians by demanding "Peace with safety and peace with security" prompting Arafat to turn to Europe, (the Revived Roman Empire), to join in the peace process. Now that Arafat is dead, will Mohammed Abbas pick up where Arafat left off?
The end-time apostate church will be clothed in scarlet and situated on seven hills.	Rev. 17:3-6 and 9	The Roman Catholic church uses scarlet, sits on the seven hills of Rome, has the nickname-"Babylon," has a pope that says the church has fallen into irreversible apostasy, most of it"s leaders don"t acknowledge Christ as Messiah. The pope has expressed fears his successor may be the false prophet. The "Revived Roman Empire" will be a seven-headed beast that is scarlet in color with ten horns. The apostate church will be symbolized as a woman riding the beast. The E-U will use the same image on it"s single currency known as the "Euro." The image they minted on the first E-U coin was of Charles V. (The first emperor of the Roman Empire).
Knowledge shall be increased and man will run to and fro about the face of the Earth.	Daniel 12:4	Mans" knowledge took 1,450 years to double the first time. It now doubles every two years and science is forecasting that in the 21st Century it will double every few months.
if Christ does not return no flesh will be saved.	Matthew 24:22	Nuclear weaponry makes this the first generation capable of annihilating all life on Earth.
the Antichrist will allow the Jews to rebuild the temple and renew sacrifices.	2 Thes. 2:3-4	Gershon Solomon and the Temple Mount Faithful have found the red heifer ashes necessary to purify the new temple, may have located the Ark of the Covenant, have computerized all Levitical priests" names for temple service, attempted to lay the cornerstone on the Temple Mount and have recreated nearly all implements necessary for temple worship. In fact, a snail used for the blue line on the bottom of the priest"s garment returned to Israel for the first time in 2,000 years when they began to work on the garment. Also, the first red heifer in two thousand years has been born in the Holyland.
Jerusalem will become a burdensome stone and a cup of trembling to the world just prior to Christ"s return.	Zec. 12:2	What is holding-up the peace process in Israel is the insistence that the Jews will never give-up or even share Jerusalem. Look for war!
Russia will lead an Arab confederacy in an attack on Israel.	Ezekiel 38:14-16	Presently, every nation mentioned in the Bible as being part of the attack is aligned with Russia and is being armed by them or China.
In the last generation men will be proud and boastful, lovers of themselves and pleasure rather than lovers of God and that children will be disobedient.	2 Tim. 3:1-5	Look at modern day America!
The end-time population will not repent of their sorceries, from the Greek word "pharmakea" from which we get the word "pharmacy". So, they will not repent of their drug abuse.	Rev. 9:21	Drug usage is on the rampage worldwide and up 141% among American teens.
in the "last days" people will not want to hear sound doctrine.	2 Tim. 3	Turn on the TV and you'll see that most ( but not all) TV Evangelists are hollering about prosperity, self-help, personal empowerment, dry, empty sermons for the most part. Ok, you can turn the TV off now, READ THE BIBLE.
First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. They will say, "Where is this `coming' he promised? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation."	2 Peter 3:3-4	The New Age movement, Wicca, and even university religion courses mock Christ's Word.
there will be signs on the sun, the moon and in the stars.	Luke 21:25	Look at the accomplishments of the space age giving us the ability to see asteroids impact Saturn, comets, and even planets outside of our own galaxy.
The Bible says: a strong delusion will accompany the end-times.	2 Thes. 2:11	The New Age belief that man is God. The same lie Satan told in the Garden of Eden.

Accept Christ today, It's later than you think!

NOTE:The Bible says: The Antichrist will come from the same people who destroyed Jerusalem...the Romans. (Hence, the Revived Roman Empire.)

http://www.pretribulation.com/signs.htm

http://www.bereanwatchmen.com/j.r.lawendowski/why-a-pre-trib-rapture.html

Why a Pre-Trib Rapture?

The Differing Theories Before I go into why I believe that a Pre-Tribulation Rapture is the most correct, doctrinally based interpretation of scripture I feel it fair to at least present the other views of rapture timing held by other people. There are 5 main views for the timing of the rapture. The diagram below lays them out on a timeline with the Tribulation: Let me define each theory for you: The Pretribulational Rapture The Rapture will occur before the tribulation period begins. The Midtribulational Rapture The Rapture will occur at the midpoint of the Tribulation. The Posttribulational Rapture The Rapture will occur at the end of the Tribulation right before the second coming of Christ back to earth; believers will be raptured up to meet Christ in the air and then will return immediately with Him back to the earth. The Partial Rapture Faithful, devoted believers will be raptured before the Tribulation, but the rest of believers will be left to go through the purging of the Tribulation. The Prewrath Rapture The Rapture will occur about three-fourths (five and a half years) of the way through the Tribulation, when the wrath of God begins to be poured out on the earth. Of these views the Pre and Post Tribulation Rapture theories are the most common. What is the Rapture? The Rapture is the Blessed Hope amongst Christians. After it occurs those who are left behind will be in a state of confusion and sorrow, they will be searching for answers. There are those who may call it the Vanishings, the disappearances or one of many other names, but you will know that millions of people vanished in the twinkling of an eye. There will be those that try to concoct many different stories of what occurred. It may be alien abductions, some freak nuclear accident or they may even say it was God removing "evil" from the world. Be mindful, it was not one of those things, it was what Christians call the Rapture. In <1 Thess 4:13-18>, <John 14:3> and <1 Cor 15:51-58> it can be seen what has occurred, the Lord himself has returned for his Church. The word rapture comes from a fourth century Latin vulgate translation of the Greek word harpadzo(occurring in 1 Thess 4:17) and has been picked up by many as the best single word to express the event it describes. Some translators have rendered the word "caught up" or "snatched". Basically the Lord will return and with the sound of a trumpet all both those who have died in Christ (accepted Christ prior to their death) and those who are alive in Christ (current believers) will be taken up to meet the Lord in the air in the twinkling of an eye (by the way that's 1/1000th of a second). Why do I feel the Pre-Trib Theory is the best? I have many reasons for believing that the Pre-Tribulation Rapture position is the correct one. When one reads through the primary and supporting verses of the Rapture and takes into account the prophecies relating to the Tribulation and the Second Coming it really becomes quite clear. Also the Rapture is not a unique concept in the Bible, for example Enoch experienced something similar to the Rapture...really? An Old Testament Rapture?...Sure, take a look at <Genesis 5:24.> A book I recently read lays out seven key points to support a Pre-Trib view and even had an acronym to make it easy to remember: P - Place of the church in the book of Revelation. R - Removal of the restrainer E - Exemption from the divine wrath T - Twenty-four elders R - Rapture of the Church versus the return of Christ I - Imminence B - Blessed hope. P - Place of the church in the book of Revelation. None of the key New Testament passages that deal with the Tribulation mention the presence of the church. R - Removal of the restrainer Though it may be hard to believe, the age in which we now live is described as the age of restraint 2 Thess 2:6-7>. Something or someone is holding back the full blast of evil that is to come when the Antichrist is unleashed. That someone is the Holy Spirit working through the church. When the church is removed, the Holy Spirit will be "removed" thus the restrainer is removed. The way I see it is at this point in time (now) the Holy Spirit is both working through the church and actively "knocking" on the hearts of men. Following the Rapture the Holy Spirit will be waiting to be asked in (so to speak). E - Exemption from the divine wrath The Bible promises that God's people are exempt from the coming Tribulation <1 Thess 1:9-10>, <1 Thess 5:9>, <Rev 3:10&gt along with others). T - Twenty-four elders In Revelation there are 12 references to a group of beings called the "twenty four elders" (Rev 4:4,10;5:5;6,8,11,14;7:11,13;11:16;14:3;19:4). The fact that they are mentioned twelve times makes them key players in Bible Prophecy. There are four main views concerning the identity of these elders. There are clues throughout Revelation that lead me to believe that they represent the Raptured church. They are "the Title", "the Number", "The Position", "The Crowns", "The Clothing", "the Praise", "the Distinction" and "the Location". R - Rapture of the Church versus the return of Christ Set the events of the Rapture parallel to the Second Coming and you decide: Rapture Second Coming Jesus coming FOR His Church. John 14:1-3, 1 Thess 4:14-17 Jesus coming WITH His Church Col 3:4, Zech 14:5, Jude 14, Rev 19:14 Caught up with Him in the air 1 Thess 4:13-18 Jesus' feet touch the earth Zech 14:4, Rev:11-21 Christians taken first, unbelievers are left behind. 1 Thess 4:13-18 Wicked are taken first, the righteous (Tribulation saints) are left behind.Matt 13:28-30 Purpose: To present the Church to Himself and to the Father 2 Cor 11:2, Rev. 19:6-9 Purpose: To execute judgment on earth and set up His Kingdom Jude 14-15,Rev 19:11-21, Zech 14:3-4 MARRIAGE: Marriage of Lamb in heaven after the Rapture WAR: Marriage is followed by war on earth at the 2nd coming Happens in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye (too fast for eyes to see) 1 Cor 15:52 Slow coming, people will see Him come back.Zech 12:10 Matt 24:30, Rev 1:7 Only Christians will see Him 1 John 3:2, 1 Cor 15:52 Every eye will see Him Rev. 1:7 Jesus descends with a shout(for resurrection) 1 Thess 4:16 No shout mentioned Rev. 19:11-21 A resurrection takes place 1 Thess 4:13-18, 1 Cor 15:51-54 No resurrection mentioned Rev 1:7, 19:11-21, Zech 12:10, 14:4-5 Can happen at any time Rev 3:3, 1 Thess 5:4-6 Occurs at end of 7 years of Tribulation Dan 9:24-27Matt 24:29-30, 2 Thess 2:3-8 No angels are sent to gather (resurrected people don't need angels to help them) Angels sent forth to gather people together for judgment Matt 13:39, 41, 49, 24:31, 25:31, 2 Thess 1:7-10 Spirits of those dead in Christ return with Jesus to receive their their resurrected bodies 1 Thess 4:14-16 Christians return with Jesus in already resurrected bodies riding on white horses. Rev 19:11-21 Jesus does not return on a white horse Jesus returns on a white horse Rev 19:11 For the Church only (those in Christ) 1 Thess 4:14-17 For redeemed Israel & Gentiles Rom 11:25-27, Matt 25:31-46 A message of hope and comfort 1 Thess 4:18, Titus 2:13, 1 John 3:3 A message of judgment Joel 3:12-16, Rev 19:11-21, Mal 4:5 I - Imminence The Rapture is presented in the NT as an even that from man's viewpoint could occur at any moment, and believers are to be looking for it all the time (1 Cor 1:7; 16:22, Phil 3:20; 4:5; 1 Thess 1:9-10; Titus 2:13; Heb 9:28; Jude 1:21). Only the pretrib position allows for an imminent, any moment, signless coming of Christ for His own. B - Blessed hope. The truth of the Rapture is intended to be a comfort and blessing to the Lord's people. It is our "blessed hope" (Titus 2:13). The blessed hope of the Rapture is that Christ will come for the faithful prior to a time of worldwide devastation. What Bible passages support the Pre-Trib Rapture? There are three primary verses that teach about the Rapture: 1 Thess 4:13-18, 1 Cor 15:42-56, and John 14:1-3. Furthermore there are MANY verses that support the Rapture position in what they speak of in context to the end times and the Rapture. Here are several supporting verses: Romans 8:16-25; Romans 14:10-12; 1 Cor 3:13-15, 4:5, 7:29-31, 15:22-23; 2 Cor 4:14, 5:1-5,10; Eph 4:30, 5:27; Phil 1:6,10, 2:16, 3:9-11; Col 3:4; 1 Thess 1:10, 2:19-20, 3:12-13, 5:9, 5:23; 1 Tim 6:14-15; 2 Tim 1:12, 4:8; Titus 2:13; Heb 10:25,37, 11:35; James 1:12; 1 Peter 1:5,7,13, 4:7, 5:4; 2 Peter 1:11; 1 John 2:28, 3:2-3; 2 John 1:8; Rev 4:1-11, 5:1-14, 22:12. Isn't the Pre-Trib Rapture a recent view? One of the arguments most opponents to the Rapture use is that it can't be right as it was a theory developed much later in comparison to other views. They all say that it began around 1830 through the ministry of J.N.Darby. Actually the pretrib rapture position does have historical precedent. A sermon was delivered in AD 373 by the Byzantine leader Pseudo-Ephraem entitled "On the Last Times, the Antichrist, and the End of the World" or "Sermon on the End fo the World". This includes a concept very similar to the pretrib rapture. Read that sermon by Clicking Here. When will the Rapture Occur? Honestly, time will tell. There are no specific dates nor events that are required for the Rapture to occur. And to set a date for a projected return is not a good thing to do, no one knows but the Father (Matt 24:36, 42, 44; 25:13; Acts 1:7). If you hear someone setting a date for the Rapture you can know two things right away...He's wrong and he's not paying attention to what's written in the Bible. Are those left behind lost? Will they have a second chance? Since God is the God of second chances, I believe everyone will have a "second chance" if you will. If you read through Revelation, it has a purpose to cause people to repent. More importantly look at the Two Witnesses and the sealed 144,000. Their sole purpose is to evangelize and bring people back into the fold. Furthermore there are references in Revelation to the innumerable amount of people who were saved in the Tribulation (Rev 7:9-17). Click here for the video teaching series on this topic. Resources: Are we Living in the End Times? LaHaye and Jenkins, Tyndale House, 1999 101 Answers, Mark Hitchcock, Multnomah Publishers, 2001 Kent Crockett Compilation-Pastor of Cornerstone Church

Some people today have made a hobby out of studying Bible prophecy. While it's a good thing to study, Bible prophecy is not there to simply tantalize or entertain us.

When we study Bible prophecy, and we ought to, it should be for a reason. It should motivate us toward personal godliness and bold evangelism. It should cause us to want to live holy lives.

The Bible tells us that when the prophet Daniel was studying the book of Jeremiah, he realized God's impending judgment was coming upon the nation of Israel. How did that affect him? Daniel said, "Then I set my face toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, with fasting, sackcloth, and ashes" (Daniel 9:3 NKJV).

As Daniel studied prophecy, he was moved personally.

It is worth noting that whenever the subject of the Lord's return comes up in Scripture, there is usually an exhortation or admonition to take action. In James, we find four important principles to follow as we await the Lord's return.

First, we are to be patient. James tells us, "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" (James 5:7 NKJV). The word James uses for "patient" does not mean passive resignation, but being expectant, waiting on the Lord.

He cites the example of a farmer who looks for rain. Of course, the farmers of that day did not have the modern irrigation systems that we do. They were completely dependent on the rain to sustain their crops.

In Israel, the early rains would usually come in late October and early November. Anxiously anticipated by the farmer, they would soften the hard soil for plowing. The latter rains would come in late April and May. They were essential to the maturing of the crops.

Now if the farmer was impatient and tried to harvest the seed before it was ready, he could uproot the entire process. So he had to wait. And so do we.

We must understand that God has His own schedule and is not bound by ours. When the time is just right, Jesus Christ will return again to this earth.

Selected from Greg Laurie

http://www.according2prophecy.org/perhaps.html

Perhaps Today: The Imminent Coming of Christ

by Thomas Ice

The New Testament teaching that Christ could return and rapture His church at any-moment, without prior signs or warning (i.e., imminency), is such a powerful argument for pretribulationism that it is one of the most fiercely attacked doctrines by pre-trib opponents. Non-pretribulationists sense that if the New Testament teaches imminency, then a pre-trib rapture is virtually assured.

DEFINITION OF IMMINENCY

What is the biblical definition of imminency? Dr. Renald Showers defines and describes imminence as follows:

1) An imminent event is one which is always "hanging overhead, is constantly ready to befall or overtake one; close at hand in its incidence." ("imminent," The Oxford English Dictionary, 1901, V, 66.) Thus, imminence carries the sense that it could happen at any moment. 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.

2) Since a person never knows exactly when an imminent event will take place, then he cannot count on a certain amount of time transpiring before the imminent event happens. In light of this, he should always be prepared for it to happen at any moment.

3) A person cannot legitimately set or imply a date for its happening. As soon as a person sets a date for an imminent event he destroys the concept of imminency, because he thereby is saying that a certain amount of time must transpire before that event can happen. A specific date for an event is contrary to the concept that the event could happen at any moment.

4) A person cannot legitimately say that an imminent event will happen soon. The term "soon" implies that an event must take place "within a short time (after a particular point of time specified or implied)." By contrast, an imminent event may take place within a short time, but it does not have to do so in order to be imminent. As I hope you can see by now, "imminent" is not equal to "soon."1

A. T. Pierson has noted that, "Imminence is the combinatioin of two conditions, viz,: certainty and uncertainty. By an imminent event we mean one which is certain to occur at some time, uncertain at what time."2

IMMINENCY IN THE NEW TESTAMENT

The fact that Christ could return, but may not soon, at any moment, yet without the necessity of signs preceeding His return requires the kind of imminence taught by the pre-trib position and is a strong support for pretribulationism.

What New Testament passages teach this truth? Those verses stating that Christ could return at any moment, without warning and those instructing believers to wait and look for the Lord's coming teach the doctrine of imminence. Note the following New Testament passages:

1 Corinthians 1:7-"awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ,"

1 Corinthians 16:22-"Maranatha."

Philippians 3:20-"For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ;"

Philippians 4:5-"The Lord is near."

1 Thessalonians 1:10-"to wait for His Son from heaven,"

1 Thessalonians 4:15-18-"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, shall not precede those who have fallen asleep. 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 shall rise first. 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. Therefore comfort one another with these words."

1 Thessalonians 5:6-"so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober."

1 Timothy 6:14-"that you keep the commandment without stain or reproach until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ,"

Titus 2:13-"looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus;"

Hebrews 9:28-"so Christ . . . shall appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him."

James 5:7-9-"Be patient, therefore, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. . . . for the coming of the Lord is at hand. . . . behold, the Judge is standing right at the door."

1 Peter 1:13 -"fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ."

Jude 21-"waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life."

Revelation 3:11; 22:7, 12, 20-"'I am coming quickly!'"

Revelation 22:17, 20-"And the Spirit and the bride say, 'Come.' And let the one who hears say, 'Come.'"

"He who testifies to these things says, 'Yes, I am coming quickly.' Amen. Come, Lord Jesus."

It is significant that all of the above passages relate to the rapture and speak of the Lord's coming as something that could occur at any-moment, that it is imminent. This is why believers are waiting for a person-Jesus Christ-not an event or series of events such as those related to the tribulation leading up to Christ's second advent in which He returns to the earth and remins for His millennial reign.

IMMINENCE AND PRETRIBULATIONISM

As we consider the above passages, we note that Christ may come at any moment, that the rapture is actually imminent. Only pretribulationism can give a full, literal meaning to such an any-moment event. Other rapture views must redefine imminence more loosely than the New Testamnet would allow. Dr. Walvoord declares, "The exhortation to look for 'the glorious appearing' of Christ to His own (Titus 2:13) loses its significance if the Tribulation must intervene first. Believers in that case should look for signs."3 If the pre-trib view of imminence is not accepted, then it would make sense to look for signs related to events of the tribulation (i.e., the anti-christ, the two witnesses, etc.) and not for Christ Himself. But the New Testament, as demonstrated above, uniformly instructs the church to look for the coming of Christ, while tribulation saints are told to look for signs.

The New Testament exhortation to be comforted by the Lord's coming (John 14:1; 1 Thess. 4:18) would no longer have meaning if believers first had to pass through any part of the tribulation. Instead, comfort would have to await passage through the events of the tribulation. No, the church has been given a "Blessed Hope," in part, because our Lord's return is truly imminent.

MARANATHA!

The early church had a special greeting for one another, as recorded in 1 Corinthians 16:22, which was "Maranatha!" Maranatha consists of three Aramaic words: "Mar" ("Lord"), "ana" ("our"), and "tha" ("come"), meaning "our Lord, come." As with other New Testament passages, Maranatha only makes sense if an any-moment or imminent coming is understood. Such an understanding supports the pre-trib position.

No wonder these ancient Christians coined such a unique greeting which reflects an eager expectation of the Blessed Hope as a very real presence in their everyday lives. The life of the church today could only be improved if "Maranatha" were to return as a sincere greeting on the lips of an expectant people. Maranatha! W

ENDNOTES

1 Renald Showers, Maranatha Our Lord, Come! A Definitive Study of the Rapture of the Church (Bellmawr, N.J.: The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, Inc., 1995), pp. 127-28.

2Arthur T. Pierson, Our Lord's Second Coming as a Motive to World-Wide Evangelism (published by John Wanamaker, n.d., cited in Showers, Maranatha, p. 127.

3 John F. Walvoord, The Rapture Question: Revised and Enlarged Edition (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1979), p. 273.