Aliens and the Antichrist: Unveiling the End Times Deception (29 page)

Concerning resurrections from the dead, the Bible speaks of a number of them (Elisha’s bones—2 Kings 13:21, Lazarus—John 11:44, a little girl—Matthew 9:24-25), but some are distinguished with a special type of resurrection where the physical body is actually glorified and raised to eternal life with complete angelic immortality, then taken to heaven. This special type of resurrection is called a “rapture” (a term that stuck from the Latin vulgate “rapiemur,” which in English is usually translated as “caught up”).
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Jesus was the first person to be raptured (1 Corinthians 15:23).

1 Corinthians 15:20-23
(bold emphasis added)

But now is
Christ rose from the dead, and become the first fruits of them that slept.
For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order:
Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

Some might argue that Enoch (Genesis 5:24) and Elijah (2 Kings 2:11-12) were raptured before Jesus, but they were not translated into complete immortality, because they are the two witnesses spoken of in Revelation who will be killed by the beast that will ascend from the bottomless pit to make war against them (Revelation 11:7). This would be impossible to do if they were immortal like angels.

Revelation 11:7
(bold emphasis added)

And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that will ascend out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

The first resurrection of the dead encompasses a total of five raptures, all pertaining to different groups of people. These groups are referred to as “orders” (1 Corinthians 15:23), and only
one
of them is the rapture of the church, even though the rapture of the tribulation saints will also be a “church” in the sense that it will be part of the body of Christ. Scripture simply distinguishes the Gentile church of this day and age from the tribulation saints of the future, because the prophetic emphasis in the days of the great tribulation will be focused on the nation of Israel and on the Jews in particular, rather than Christians throughout the world.

1 Corinthians 15:23

But every man in his own order: Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.

Concerning the five raptures, they are listed as follows: First, the going to heaven of Christ and the saints that were resurrected from the dead immediately after Jesus was resurrected from the dead (Matthew 27:52; Ephesians 4:7-11; Acts 1:11). Second, the rapture ofthose who are Christ’s at his coming—which is widely known as the “rapture of the church” (1 Corinthians 15:23; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17). Third, the rapture of the 144,000 Jews in the middle of Daniel’s seventieth week, under the seventh trumpet (Revelation 12:5, 14:1-5; Daniel 12:1; Isaiah 66:7-8). Fourth, the rapture of the two witnesses (Revelation 11:312). Fifth, the rapture of the tribulation saints who will be resurrected near the end of the great tribulation and right before the second coming of Christ (Acts 2:16-21, and also Revelation 20:4-6, with their spirits, but not necessarily their resurrected bodies, mentioned in Revelation 7:9-17, 15:2-4).

Matthew 27:52—first rapture
(bold emphasis added)

And
the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose,
and came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the holy city, and appeared unto many.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-17—second rapture (rapture of the church)
(bold emphasis added)

But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even
so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.
For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 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: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air:
and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Revelation 12:5—third rapture1
(bold emphasis added)

And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and
her child was caught up unto God,
and to his throne.

*For more information linking the “man child” with the 144,000 Jews, see God’s

Plan for Man.
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Revelation 11:3–12—fourth rapture (bold emphasis added)

And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. And if any man will hurt them, fire will proceed out of their mouth, and devour their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. These have power to shut heaven that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will. And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that will ascend out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt
on the earth.
And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud;

and their enemies beheld them.

Revelation 15:2-4—fifth rapture
(bold emphasis added)

And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and
them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass,
having the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? For thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.

The first (when Jesus was crucified), third (144,000 Jews), and fourth (two witnesses) raptures are easy to identify and differentiate from the second (the church) and fifth (tribulation saints) raptures. The common mistake is confusing the second and fifth raptures, because Christians will be killed during the entire period of the great tribulation, so many people assume that the rapture won’t occur until the second coming of Jesus. This can’t be accurate, however, because Jesus said it was possible to escape the tribulation (Luke 21:34-36). Nevertheless, why won’t the tribulation saints escape the tribulation? Simple: because they won’t believe until after the rapture of the church, after which they will believe, and many will then be martyred for their faith. In fact the rapture of the church will probably play a large role in the impetus of the newfound faith of these tribulation saints.

The old wives’ tale about there being no hope after the rapture of the church has no scriptural support whatsoever. Nowhere in the Bible does it say anything that even hints that there is no hope for salvation during the great tribulation. Unbelief in the Gospel of truth will be widespread, but that doesn’t mean that salvation won’t be available. As long as we haven’t died yet, and we haven’t accepted the mark of the beast, his name, or the number of his name (Revelation 13:17; 20:4), and the day is not Judgment Day (Hebrews 9:27), then there is hope—and not a single scripture in the entire Bible can refute this fact.

Revelation 13:16-18

And he causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

Revelation 20:4-6
(bold emphasis added)

And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years.

Hebrews 9:27

And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment.

In summation, to keep these scriptures from contradicting each other, as well as others I have yet to mention, a rapture must take place both before the great tribulation begins and near the end of the great tribulation, when it is almost complete. The rapture before the great tribulation applies to the
church
specifically, while the one that occurs at the conclusion of the great tribulation applies to those who accept Christ during the great tribulation.

In order to be fair, I welcome all readers to study the rebuttal to the pretribu- lation rapture of the church by going to
http://www.graceonlinelibrary.org
, and reading an article titled
Is the pretribulation rapture biblical
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After reading this article, be sure to read all the comments posted beneath it. As I stated before, there is quite a bit of emotionalism in this article and in the comments that follow it, but I just ignore it and focus on the facts.

While having a bunch of contradictory views swimming around in one’s head can be overwhelming, it’s a healthy aspect of critical thinking. Back when I took a critical thinking course in college, I had to defend abortions, the legalization of drugs that are currently illegal, and argue against the application of the death penalty, because my professor made us argue against the views we believed in. He did this because one cannot sufficiently defend a position unless he or she is well versed in the opposing position. My textbook for the course,
Current Issues and

Enduring Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking and Argument, with Readings,
was full of pros and cons on numerous controversial issues.

To apply a basic critical thinking technique to the topic of the pretribulation rapture of the church, one can simply make a list of pros and cons, and categorize each argument as weak or strong. Check to see if each argument and argument rebuttal is sufficiently answered. Analyze each argument individually, and then view all arguments for a particular case together as a collective whole. In many cases, taking a position on a particular subject is a simple mathematical process.

My critical thinking course helped me a great deal in researching topics and developing conclusions after studying both sides of an argument. None of the students in my class ever knew what positions our teacher believed in, except for one. He said he believed in the death penalty, because he had a personal list of people he wished would receive it. Of course, he was joking,
I think.

Back to the topic at hand, concerning the rapture that will take place near the end of the great tribulation, exactly when will the tribulation saints be raptured? Revelation 6:9-11 states that many tribulation saints will be martyred before the fifth seal, which is during the first three and one-half years of the Antichrist. This period is expected to occur almost immediately after the rapture of the church. Certainly Satan won’t waste time after the restrainer (the church) is removed from Earth (2 Thessalonians 2:6-8).

Revelation 6:9-11
(bold emphasis added)

And when he had opened the fifth seal,
I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God,
and for the testimony which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season,
until their fellow servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.