The simple Rapture Timing Truth

The simple Rapture Timing Truth

Let’s begin with two of the most direct and specific textual pillars used by the “pre-trib” advocates.

Question: Is this the “rapture” here in 1Corinthians 15?

42)   So also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; …….51)  Behold, I tell you a mystery: We all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed,
52)   in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound,
        and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

and is THIS also the rapture in 1 Thess?

1Thess. 4:13 But we would not have you ignorant, brethren, concerning them that fall asleep; that ye sorrow not, even as the rest, who have no hope.

14)   For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also that are fallen asleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
15)   For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we that are alive, that are left unto the coming of the Lord, shall in no wise precede  them that are fallen asleep.
16)   For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven, with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God:
===> and the dead in Christ shall rise >>> first<<<

17 then we that are alive, and remain, shall together with them (the dead in Christ) be caught up in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

It is all about the "pre-trib"rapture they say, correct?

RESURRECTION:  Anastasis Strongs 386 def: a raising up, a rising from the dead , that of Christ that of all men at the end of this present age the resurrection of certain ones history who were restored to life

Perhaps you just noticed the mention of “them that are fallen asleep” (-them that have died in Christ),  precedes the phrase  “caught up in the clouds”.
The resurrection of the dead is the raising up of our physical bodies which “sleep” in physical death.
 ( the spirit of a saint is with the Lord, only our physical body sleeps. Jesus modeled this in His death when His physical body was in the tomb, His spirit was in Paradise releasing the saints. When Jesus rose from the dead, his body was transformed when his spirit re-entered it.)

The raising of the dead (our physical bodies) is mentioned throughout Old and New Testaments:

Job 19: For I know that my redeemer lives, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God:
Luke 20:37  But that the dead are raised, even Moses showed, in the place concerning the Bush

Luke 20:35          But they that are accounted worthy to attain to that world, and the resurrection from the dead, neither marry, nor are given in marriage
John 11:24          Martha said to him, I know that he (Lazarus)  shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day.

The “FIRST” RESURRECTION  immediately precedes the gathering to Christ.

-as stated in the supposed “pre-trib rapture” verses in 1Thess. 4 up above (read them again).

The “pre-trib” rapturists believe Christians will escape martyrdom, the “mark of the beast”, and the events of “great tribulation but let’s set these in order.

Now that we have shown that them that are asleep in Christ are raised immediately before those that are alive and remain to the coming of the Lord, and that the dead are raised in the resurrection on the “last day”…………….

Here is the simple truth:

Rev. 20:4   And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them:
 === > and I saw the souls of them that had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus
and for the word of God, and such as worshipped not the beast, neither his image, and received not the mark upon their forehead and upon their hand;
and they lived, and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

5 …….. This is the first resurrection.
The rest of the dead lived not until the thousand years should be finished.
6)   Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection
over these the second death hath no power; but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

The first resurrection  of  “them that are fallen asleep” that is near simultaneous with the "harpazo" of 1Thess. 4 and 1Cor. 15  is in Rev 20 and includes the martyred tribulation saints!

There is not a 2nd resurrection of beheaded saints after the tribulation because the dead in Christ rose first at the supposed “pre-trib” rapture! There is not a "FIRST resurrection" part 1 and 2.

The "first resurrection” includes those refusing the mark and the martyrs.
 If the “first resurrection” is before the tribulation, then the “first resurrection” that includes martyred saints who refused the mark cannot be first because the first rising of “them that are asleep” were raised before the “first resurrection”.

Therefore there can be no pre-trib rapture. In the "rapture" the "dead in Christ rise "first" just as the dead in Christ that refused the mark are raised together in the "first" resurrection...

This is the simple unmovable truth and the "first resurrection".
No lie is of the truth. The "pre-trib rapture" is not true and our prayer is the Lord will open your eyes to the truth and deliver you from the writers and sellors of the pre-trib rapture error...

The Narrow Way of Ministery According to Jesus

About 33 AD

And today, Circa 2014 A.D.

There is an amazing contrast from the weekly pulpit ministry of today and Jesus.
As Jesus achieved some fame they sought to kill him.  But the suited Sunday orators bear little resemblance to the meek and humble Jesus Christ of Scripture. 

The temptation of Jesus bears mention, who tempted Jesus with the highest position in the building?

Matthew 4:5 (NLT)

5 Then the devil took him to the holy city, Jerusalem, to the highest point of the Temple…

Do you think there were no people around to see the potential miracle and show?

Contrast with the popular, author-pastor who literally filled Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles in April 2010 with a huge crowd. 

 And we read how the devil took Jesus to the high place in God's temple building that his disciples described in : Mark 13:1 - And as he went out of the temple, one of his disciples said to him, Master, see what manner of stones and what buildings are here!" 

You see, Jesus could have jumped and put on a great show to impress the crowd below.
-But no,  it was not deliverance from the temptation of suicide that was being offered, it was the temptation to use worldly means to gain recognition..
Every time His disciples or followers tried to take him and promote Him in the eyes of man, Jesus hid Himself.

 John 6:15 - When Jesus then perceived that they would come and take him by force to make him a king, he departed again into a mountain alone.."

 Rather than seeking fame and a large "ministry", Jesus did not use self-promotion so commonly practiced in the church world. Yet even His own family urged Him to advertise and promote His ministry!!

John 7:3-5 (NLT)
³ and Jesus’ brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, where your followers can see your miracles!

 ⁴ You can’t become famous if you hide like this! If you can do such wonderful things, show yourself to the world!” 

 That's right,  His own carnal "brethren" were all for Jesus using worldly means to promote His "message".  

Why did they think in terms of using worldly promotion
The next verse says: "For neither did his brethren believe in him." 

-And neither do these self-promoters with their body guards, "faith partners", telethons, appeals for support, and laying up of their treasures here on earth contrary to what Jesus spoke. They are preaching "another Jesus" as Paul warned.

Notice how Jesus refused opportunity:
Matthew 8:4 - And Jesus said to him, See thou tell no man; but go thy way, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.
Mark 7:36 - And he charged them that they should tell no man
Mark 8:26 -  he sent him away to his house, saying, Do not go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town.
Mark 8:30 - And he charged them that they should tell no man of him.
Mark 9:9 - And as they came down from the mountain, he charged them that they should tell no man what things they had seen, till the Son of man were risen from the dead.
Luke 8:56 - And her parents were astonished: but he charged them that they should tell no man what was done.

Compare Jesus with many famous present day representatives of Christianity today:
John 7:18 - He that speaks of himself seeks his own glory: 
John 5:41   I do not receive honor from men.
John 5:43   if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive.

How we honor the great orators and pretty faces in our day!
But Jesus warned:

John 5:44 "How can ye believe, when you receive honor one of another, and seek not the honor that comes from God only?" 

In our church experience it became nauseating to hear the flowery, men-honoring introductions of visiting preachers. And usually those well paid speakers would in turn pay flattery tribute to the pastor. In our old denomination the pastor was exalted and I remember testimonies of the glory of pastor's life and ministry.

 Did you notice how Jesus pointed out the religious leaders would get honor from each other and this would hinder their ability to believe His Word?  

Notice the way of Jesus in John 5:13 (ASV): But the man who was healed did not know who healed him,  as JESUS HAD SLIPPED AWAY while there was a crowd in that place".

Surely Jesus missed a golden opportunity  for showmanship in the style of countless other "name brand" ministries of today.  What Jesus could have done was taken that fella by the hand and skipped him around the temple a few times so folks would know the healer was in the house.

If He wore a tailored, white, Italian made Jewish robe, had body guards, and Gucci sandals, could He quickly attract a vast following?

But He also missed a chance to give a 50 minute sermon to proclaim his "vision for the church" too, and especially the chance to receive some tithes and offerings from the great crowd in the place in order to finance His ministry. 

He was completely unlike the preachers who rarely pass an opportunity for a bit of "seed sowing" from the folks.  Elaborate church platforms and lighting bear witness to who is seeking the attention of the crowd.

-Acts 8:9 But there was a certain man, called Simon, which before in the same city used sorcery, and bewitched the people of Samaria, giving out that himself was some great one: 

10 To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God. 

11 And to him they had regard, because that of long time he had bewitched them with sorceries

13 Then Simon himself believed also: and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip..when Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Ghost was given, he offered them money

19 Saying, Give me also this power.. 20 But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money".

Yet today the modern merchants of Babylon have an industry in Christianity selling "anointed" cloths, Holy Spirit Crusades, Books on "blessings", CD's and syllabus’s, impartation, conferences.... the list is endless.  22 Repent therefore of this thy wickedness... -Peter told Simon when he wanted to buy a ministry.

In 3 John :9 another character is mentioned illustrating what happens to a man who is lifted up: 

"I wrote unto the church: but Diotrephes, who loves to have the preeminence among them, received us not.  

Simply put , Diotrephes was a  man in charge of a church that loved his position.
"Preeminence" is defined: Superior to or notable above all others; to stand out .  That one verse should give a serious heart-check for hidden motives.

      

Acts 20:30 gives another clue:  "Also of your own selves (ministers) shall men arise (be lifted up), speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples to follow after themselves". (making followers of their ministry (teachings-ideas, and words)  

Whose disciples are we/ Who do we seek to emulate?

            Rev. 2:14   "But I have a few things against you, because you have (in the church) them that hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balac to set a stumblingblock in front of the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit fornication.

The Lord brought  mention of both Balaam and the doctrine of the Nicolaitanes in forceful terms in this passage.  Let's see if we can apply this word to modern ministry.  Balaam, a messenger and servant of God sold out for personal gain and was impressed by the gifts and status of the men Balak sent to him. "And Balak sent yet again princes, more, and more honorable...".
Balaam was drawn away from obedience to God by his respect of persons that flattered him, and God tested his heart..     

The Christian "stars" and celebrities of this present world are the idols of God's people.  So often too is the local pastor people seek to follow and promote as the voice of God.

Those who build the visible, man-made kingdoms of "the earth" certainly appear to fill the warnings given to "beware of false prophets".   Put them in their "temples" and you have God's people following them preferring their words and ministries in place of personal study and prayer. 

And the people still continue to bring their gifts, sacrifices, and offerings to the modern idols of stone and wood called "churches".

Compare the manner and ministry of Jesus, Paul, and the believers in Acts, see an honest picture of what real Christian ministers look like. And there is not one flashy, self-promoting, self-serving, glorified one in the bunch. Period. 

Sadly, it is God's people who magnify and enable these men to become the spiritual giants they are. And God forgive us for the "glory-to-the-pastor" testimonies and blind loyalty cultivated in our churches.

 Drawing close to God's Word and Spirit will enable us to take the sword of the Spirit and cut off the head (leadership and influence) of these religious giants so Christ can reign in us.

Jesus Who? Call Him What?

?

Call Him Jesus?

by Rory Moore

If we did not already have confusion in Christianity today, there seems to be a growing number of Christians, or should we say Yahoshuans, Yeshuans, or Christianos that put forth an interesting array of apellations for the Saviour.
Jeshua, Yeshua, Yeshuah, Yehshua, Yehshuah, YESHUA, YESHUAH, YEHSHUA, YEHSHUAH, Yeshouah, Y'shua, Y'shuah, Jeshu, Yeshu, Yehoshua, Yehoshuah, YHVHShua, YHVHShuah, Yhvhshua, Yhwhshua, YHWHShua, YHWHShuah, Yhvhshuah, Yhwhshuah, Yahvehshua, Yahwehshua, Yahvehshuah, Yahwehshuah, Jahshua, Jahshuah, Jashua, Jashuah, Jahoshua, Jahoshuah, Jehoshua, Jehoshuah, Yashua, Yashuah, Yahshua, Yahshuah, YAHSHUA, YAHSHUAH, YASHUA, YASHUAH, Yahushua, Yahoshua, Yahoshuah, Yaohushua, YAOHUSHUA,  Iahoshua, Iahoshuah, Iahushua, or Iahushuah?? 

Now while there are various spellings and pronunciations, sometimes folks can slip into the  legalistic side of how we call on the Savior. (and He still shows up!)

I culled a few variations from a number of sources: Yahshua YESHUA Yeshua Adonai Yeshua HaMashiach Iesous Ieshoua yehÖshÙa yehoshua Y'SHUA Yĕhowshua YAHUSHUA came from someone correcting me. Yahusha "Yahusha and this Yahweh? That's a mistransliteration of G-D's name! The word is meaningless! .. “Yeshua is not the Hebrew name of Jesus. It would be Yeshai" -was seen on a YouTube post. and from a FaceBook post: "YAHUWSHUWA" ... can also we spell c-o-n-f-u-s-i-on?

If you are Japanese, He is YaeSu Nim; in Tamil, YaeSu Nim; in Fiji, Jisu;  or in Russia: Иисус Христос, -Iisus Khristos, A Serbian calls on ISUS, a Slovakian Jezis.

Why do we need to make such a simple thing so complicated?
If you are reading this, God bless you, I sincerely mean no insult or offense to anyone from any of the various camps. Folks go to verbal fighting over their pet version and Jesus saves no matter what language you speak. 

There are a lot of people named in the Bible, why stop with only another translation version of Jesus?    Here is a list in Romans of NAMES of saints:
Rom. 16:
8  Ampliatus...
9  Urbanus... and Stachys my beloved.
10 Apelles... the household of Aristobulus.
11 Herodion...  Narcissus...
12  Tryphaena and Tryphosa.. Salute Persis....
13  Rufus ....
14  Asyncritus, Phlegon, Hermes, Patrobas, Hermas...
15  Philologus and Julia, Nereus and his sister, and Olympas, and all the saints 

And do not forget Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Timothy, Titus, Paul, Peter,  Philomen, Cornelius, Dorcas, and others.

Hopefully, you will see some humor in this exercise by now. 

The chances are very good that if you are reading and understanding these words it is because you read and understand English no matter what your ancestry might be.  And if you are the typical American Christian, you probably read and believe in the Bible Scriptures that you read in English, even if we get a bit tongue tied over some of the Biblical names.

One lady told me how she had become confused of how to address God in prayer because of the variations of Jesus' name.  SAD! 

Well I hope many of us take comfort in the fact that even though some of us do not read Hebrew, Aramaic, Latin, or Greek, the truth of Scripture is not limited or hindered by our lack of ability to read and/or speak those languages. 

If you are Latino, God bless you in the name of Jesus (Hay-soos) Christo.If you are from Alabama and speak with a Southern accent, Jesus saves.
If you are praying and in need, calling on "JEEE-sus", or it comes out sounding like "JeSUS!", fear not.  God hears and answers our cry.

Years ago, before religion got to me, in repentence and brokeness, I called on to Jesus to save me.  HE did, and my life was changed by Him from that day forward.  No, the Lord did not send someone over to correct the sylables I had uttered or instruct me in the Hebrew, Latin, or Greek pronounciation.  I just started reading the Bible and prayers answered when I asked in Jesus' name.

Later, as a Holy Spirit baptized believer, I began to experience healing and the casting out of demons through the Name of Jesus.
Yes, people were healed, saved, and delivered all through the name of Jesus that I read about in my Bible. Praise the Lord JESUS.    

There is absolutely no irreverence or disrespect in this writing, nor is it meant as a slap to any of our Jewish brethren that choose to call on "Yeshua" or the like. What God did for me through Jesus, He will do for a Jewish believer in Yehoshua, or a Latino who calls on "Hey-soos Christo". 

The point is why get hung up over the correct pronunciation  from a language you don't even speak?

Some of the contenders go as far as saying Jesus was really Zeus, the Greek pagan god.
That is sheer RIDICULOUS and absurd.  

God ordained the New Testament to be written in Greek,
Over 911 times it was spelled in the Greek form IESOUS, as a Greek lexicon will prove.

Even though Jesus is rooted in the Hebrew Old Testament, the New Testament never gave us the Hebraic form, so relax.  
Even when Old Testament verses are quoted in the New Testament, they are in the Greek language.

What is most important is that you read God's Word in the language you understand, and call on Jesus in your language in faith knowing that God hears you.

 If you are an English speaker, I assure you devils are cast out in Jesus' name, lives changed, healings and miracles are done. When we pray, God hears and answers, in Jesus name.When we read our English KJV, ASV, NKJV, NASV, or even the NIV, there is no need to stumble over the English version of Jesus on the printed page, the same is true for a Chinese, Korean, or Russian Christian reading their translated version of the Name of Jesus. God still hears and answers.
Here it is in Greek: Ihsou=v The Transliterated Word  Phonetic Spelling
  Iesous     ee-ay-sooce' 

May Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God, the Messiah, the Savior, deliver us from un-necessary strife over syllables, vowels, and silliness.