Biblical Audio Commentary – The Rapture Loophole or The Rapture Privilege

Biblical Audio Commentary – The Rapture Loophole or The Rapture Privilege

Transcript:

What if I said to you that the pre-Tribulation Rapture is a privilege?  Have you ever thought about it that way?

Consider this . . .  God through His grace has given us the privilege of being saved through the sacrificial gift of His Son, Jesus Christ.  Because we have accepted the mercy of the Lord, and we trust in Him for our salvation, He has deemed us righteous and acceptable to enter His presence.  Our sin has been forgiven, and God sees Jesus when He looks at us because of His atoning death.

He has given us the means by which to enter the straight gate after walking the narrow path.  This is rare, as we know, since the road to destruction is broad and many travel on it to hell.  Entering the presence of the Lord is a privilege if I ever heard one!

Likewise, since God’s wrath will soon descend upon this unbelieving, God-hating world, those who are living on the earth during the Tribulation will experience the most horrific existence ever known.  Satan will be unleashed and be allowed for a time to do his worst.  There will be lying signs and wonders to deceive most of mankind.  Supernatural beings will likely walk freely and have their way with any humans crossing their paths.  Lawlessness unlike any ever known will be the norm.  Even as these terrible conditions exist, God will reign down His awful plagues.  Humanity will be in the midst of unceasing torment – and this is all before the unbelieving masses go to hell in the Lake of Fire for all eternity.

For those of us in the pre-Trib Rapture community, it’s a blessing to know we won’t be here when all this happens.  None of us would have it any other way, and we’re exceedingly grateful to the Lord for His promise to remove us from this world prior to the gates of hell opening upon it.

But there are those who spurn this idea of deliverance.  Astoundingly, they appear to love the world more than the blessing of being rescued from it.

There are actually two primary groups in this camp: the post-Tribulation Rapture adherents and those who believe in a-millennialism.  The a-millennialists think that the idea of a literal Millennium of 1,000 years is symbolic, and the world will just go on as it has until Christ returns someday.  I tend to concentrate on the post-Tribbers in my discussions and will do so today as well.  They believe that any Rapture that happens will be at the end of the 7-year Tribulation.

From my observations, and what I’ve heard from many of you, there are a whole lot more post-Tribbers out there than pre-Tribbers.  We’re a minority from everything I can tell.

It seems as if those who believe the post-Trib ideology really want to enter the Tribulation.  These are the preppers, by and large.  They’re planning for the future for when the people rise up and take back what the globalists have stolen.  It’s extremely obvious that they have no concept of how awful the Tribulation will be.  They think that by huddling in sustainable communities and preparing to barter with gold, and by having their guns at the ready, they’ll be able to resist and thrive.

One of the hallmarks of such folks is their disdain for us who believe in a pre-Trib Rapture.  You can hear the sneer in their voices when they talk about how we’re escapists who aren’t facing reality.  Often, they’ll accuse us of causing great harm to other Christians because we’re telling them they don’t have to be ready for what’s to come.  As such, they’ll perish – and it’ll all be our fault!

You see, they’ve discovered a loophole from being Raptured, which they very much don’t want for themselves.  They’ve decided that the world is a much better home than heaven and being with the Lord.  They’re dug in deeply in this world and don’t want to be dislodged.

The loophole is that they can despise God’s Word with its promise to redeem us out of this world.  By doing so, they can remain here on the earth when the rest of us leave.

This worldview causes them to keep their focus here rather than on Jesus.  If they’re not looking for Him, then they don’t have be concerned about His glorious appearing.  By maintaining an earthly mindset, they can proudly declare that they know God’s plan, and it certainly doesn’t include missing out on the excitement of whatever minor disturbance the Tribulation brings.  They have generations ahead of them and their families, and they certainly don’t want God to disturb their plans for the next several decades.

or post-Tribbers, the idea of a pre-Trib Rapture is not a privilege, it’s a nuisance, and one they simply don’t want.

One other item to throw into this mix is what I discussed more fully in my latest Prophecy Update titled: The Dangers of Replacement Theology.  Those who believe this false doctrine seem to dislike or even hate Israel.  They certainly have no use for this nation, thinking that God has abandoned her.  Hate Israel – hate God; that’s really the stand that these people take.  I say: Good luck with that.

What will God do with these Christians?  And note that I don’t dispute that they are born again.  I just wonder about them along the lines that we discuss atheism.  Don’t we always say that God is gentleman?  As such, there’s no way that He’ll force anyone to come live in His presence.  We have to choose to want that glorious privilege.

I’m just asking . . .  Why would God Rapture these believers if they really don’t want to be with Him – in fact, they prefer living on the earth?  They obviously don’t consider the earth an alien locale like we do.  More than that, they disdain God’s love for Israel.  By hating Israel, they likewise end up hating God.  I don’t think that’s a helpful way to get into the Lord’s good graces.

We long to get out here.  Not them.  Not the post-Tribbers.  So, why wouldn’t God honor their desire, being the gentleman that He is?

This all remains to be seen, but I can’t think of a better loophole for getting out of the Rapture than to disdain it by rejecting God’s promise to be whisked away in the twinkling of an eye and wish for more time on this planet.

Will the Lord Jesus force these folks to join all of us in His Father’s house for the consummation of our marriage to the true church?  Or will they be among those who aren’t dressed for the wedding, and are cast into outer darkness, i.e. the Tribulation, where there is wailing and gnashing of teeth?