Come up here – the rapture
Part 11 of the Two Witnesses Series
Rev 11:11 And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” Then they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them.
Verse 11 is what is commonly called the rapture. When it comes to end time prophecy, nothing has caused more division and strife than the various doctrines surrounding the rapture. We were all raised with the pre-tribulation rapture theory. It is very appealing since it says the church is taken away before the tribulation starts. After all, who wants to go through the tribulation?
I have been studying the end times since the Six Day War in 1967. That’s when the whole church suddenly got excited about the last days. Initially, I was a follower of the pre-tribulation rapture theory. Who wasn’t? However, over the years I began to have doubts about its scriptural basis. Eventually, I could no longer justify it and now I have rejected it outright.
I have come to realize that it is a false doctrine that is misleading the church. Remember, there is a special blessing to those who read and heed the words of the book of Revelation. The prophecies in Revelation are to prepare the church for what is coming. They are to warn the church so that she is not deceived. What did Jesus say when the disciples asked Him about the end of the age?
Matt 24:3 As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things happen, and what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” 4 And Jesus answered and said to them, “See to it that no one misleads you. 5 For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will mislead many.
Jesus warns the disciples about being misled or deceived. Many will come saying Jesus is the Christ and mislead many. These are not false messiahs. They are Christian teachers who come in Jesus’ name and who say Jesus is the Christ and mislead many. Jesus didn’t say they would mislead a few. He said they would mislead many.
It is not the purpose of this teaching to discuss all the rapture theories that are circulating in the church today. I will give you, what I believe, is a Biblical short summary of the rapture here. I encourage you to do your own research into all the things I have written in this book and decide for yourself.
Daniel’s 70th Week
Daniel’s seventieth week is the timeline for the last seven years of the age of grace before the return of Messiah to the earth and the beginning of the millennium kingdom. This seven-year period is divided into two three and a half year periods. Little is written about the first three-and-a-half-year period. I believe it is the time of birth pangs for the church. It will be in this time period that the church will be pressured to compromise the Word of God and to deny His name. It will be a time of decision.
This is when the last day church will be divided into Philadelphia or Laodicea. Those who keep the word of His perseverance and do not deny His name will be Philadelphia. It may cost them everything. These are the overcomers. These are the worshipers. They will be kept from the hour of testing that is coming upon the whole earth.
Those who compromise the Word of God and deny that the blood of the Lamb is the only way of salvation will be Laodicea. Since they have removed all the offending issues from the faith, it will not cost them anything. As a matter of fact, they will prosper during this time. This is the apostate church of the last days.
At the midpoint of the seven years, the dragon is cast out of heaven to the earth. This begins the second three-and-a-half-year period called the great tribulation. The overcomers, the two witness company, will persecute and torment the dragon’s people during the tribulation. However, the apostate church will be persecuted by the dragon during the tribulation. She will be stripped of everything she has. She will be disciplined and reproved. Much more on this in Part II.
At the end of the three-and-a-half-year tribulation, the rapture takes place. The two witness company is raised from the dead and they hear a voice from heaven saying come up here. The dead in Christ will also be raised and those who are alive and remain will be caught up together to be with the Lord. Those who are alive and remain are the ones from the apostate church that have been disciplined and reproved. This all takes place at the end of the tribulation.
Rev 11:14 The second woe is past; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.
The rapture takes place at the end of the second woe and before the third woe. The second woe is the two witnesses. I discuss more on the woes in a later teaching in this series.