Three theories examined
There are different theories concerning when the rapture will take place:
Pre-Tribulation, Mid-Tribulation, Pre/Mid-Tribulation, Post-Tribulation.
(The mid and pre/mid will be treated as just mid-tribulation).
PRE-TRIBULATION THEORY
The pre-tribulation theory states that the purpose of the rapture is to get believers off the earth before it experiences God’s wrath, including the first three and a half years of peace. They figure that the earth has been wicked, rejected God, and is due a good beating - a sense of fair play. Only the most holy and worthy Christians are taken off and the others are left behind.
Argument one for - 1 Thessalonians 5:9. The basic scripture for the pre-tribulation belief is 1 Thess 5:9, For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. The Great Tribulation is for God's wrath to be poured out on non-believers; and therefore, the Church is not present. Although the book of Revelation does refer to Christians during the Great Tribulation, these must be people who came to faith after the Church was raptured at the beginning.
Response. The problem with using this verse is that Paul likes to use comparisons, and the use of wrath here is made to compare it to salvation. In verses 4 and 5, he compares darkness and light. In verse 6, he compares being asleep with being alert and self-control. Verses 7 and 8 talk about being drunk at night compared to being self-controlled during the day. Then in verse 9, he compares wrath with salvation and concludes with verse 10 by saying awake or asleep. He did this before. In Romans 5:8, Paul writes, But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath, through him. So whether we are looking at 1 Thessalonians or Romans 5, Paul is comparing what the believer has experienced - salvation from wrath. There is no indication from these two passages, that the Great Tribulation period or any other end time events are implied at all. Therefore, this scripture cannot be used to prove a pre-tribulation rapture.
Argument two for - Revelation 4:1. Another scriptural basis for the pre-tribulation theory is the idea that the Church age ends at the conclusion of Revelation chapter 3. Jesus speaks to the seven churches, and then they are not mentioned anymore in that book. People do concede that Christians are mentioned later, just not the whole Church. Some others note that everything drastically changes at verse 4:1. "After these things," writes Chuck Smith, means the church has finished her testimony on earth and the rapture takes place at Revelation 4:1 (Chuck Smith, What the world is coming to (Costa Mesa, CA: The Word for Today, 2001), 47, 49. Although the pre-tribulation rapture has been around for centuries, it was popularized partly by the work of John Nelson Darby (1880-1882), who developed the idea of dispensationalism - a divine ordering of God's affairs with people from Genesis to Revelation. This allows for the idea that the Age of Grace and of the Church ends when Satan takes over during the Great Tribulation, so the Church must be gone - raptured.
Response. First, the transition from the end of Revelation chapter 3 to the beginning of chapter 4 is a natural progression for John, who is having the visions. In the Greek, it says, Meta tauta eidon, After this I saw. John had a profound vision of Jesus speaking to the seven churches, telling them to get ready to overcome hardship, then his focus changed - he had a change in direction. At the beginning of chapter 4, the angel says, Come up here and look at this... It is just a simple transition: you saw what we wanted you to see down there, now come up here and look at these things.
It is true that the emphasis has changed. In the Old Testament we learned about the entry of sin into the world, the Chosen People - Israel, the Law, and the God of Israel. In the New Testament, we see the birth of God's son, Jesus Christ, learn about God's love and grace, his sacrifice for sin, and the birth of the Church. In Revelation, Jesus warns the Church of coming events, then the focus is on Satan and the seven year reign of terror. Christians are mentioned all through Revelation, and where Christians are mentioned, the Church is present.
Argument three for - 2 Thessalonians 6-8. The pre-tribulation theory uses this passage to suggest that the Holy Spirit kept Satan under control, then leaves the earth completely as Satan takes over. Since the Holy Spirit leaves Earth, the Church must also be gone.
Response. In 2 Thessalonians 2:6-8, Paul writes, And now you know what is holding him back, so that he may be revealed at the proper time. For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till HE is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed…
First, the word HE is not in the Greek of this passage. The Greek word for out of is ek, a primary preposition which denotes origin and from, as in out of time. The next Greek word is mesoo, which means middle. Mesoo can be translated as midst when speaking of a group of people, Jesus appeared in the midst of them. But when associated with a preposition denoting time, or an event in time, middle is more appropriate. So in the Greek the passage reads, ...until out of the middle time it comes. Early Greek manuscripts did not have it: instead they had the man of lawlessness. So this passage and the next verse more correctly reads, until out of the middle time the man of lawlessness comes, and then will be revealed the lawless one.
What we have here is the Holy Spirit stepping aside in the middle of the Great Tribulation, after the period of peace, so Satan, through the Antichrist, can declare war on the saints to harm them - something God has not allowed until now. Revelation 13:7 tells us, He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. These are the same people found in Revelation 3:14, believers who do not worship the image of the beast and are killed. Yes, the Church is present and has been given the honor of sharing in the sufferings of Christ as a witness against those who are perishing.
MID-TRIBULATION AND PRE/MID-TRIBULATION THEORIES
These theories (mid and pre/mid) also believe that the purpose of the rapture is to spare the more holy Christians from God's wrath poured out on the Earth, but they note that something is happening in the middle of the Great Tribulation with the Church of Philadelphia.
Argument for. The Rev. Morgan Edwards (1722-1795) mentions the rapture in his book, Millennium, Last Days Novelties (1788), but shows the Great Tribulation as 3 1/2 years of God's wrath with the rapture taking place just before. This puts the rapture in the middle of the seven year Great Tribulation.
Response. Something is happening with the Church of Philadelphia, but it is not the rapture. In Revelation 3:7-8, we read, To the angel of the Church of Philadelphia write: These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens, no one can shut; and what he shuts, no one can open. I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name. Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole earth to test those who live on the earth.
Who would be members of this church? Who does this passage describe? Is it Christians in America? Is this another look at rapture? The members have little strength, kept his word, did not deny his name, have endured patiently, and do not need to go through more trials and testing, because they already have. This describes the persecuted Church world-wide - Christians in the Great Tribulation suffering for their faith, primarily in parts of Asia, Africa, and South America.
The Philadelphia Door
To be spared the coming world-wide trials and testing in the last half of the Great Tribulation, they are given a choice: an open door will be presented to them in a dream or vision, and they will have the option of entering it or not. Some will stay to witness to their loved ones, towns, and villages. But others, most of them, will step through the Philadelphia Door and close it behind them and be spared the last half of the Great Tribulation. The Prophet Isaiah (26:20) has a special message for these saints: Come, my people, enter your chambers, and shut your door behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until the wrath is past.
POST-TRIBULATION THEORY
Why would the rapture include the saints who had already died, if its only purpose was to spare the living from the Great Tribulation? Why would the the Wedding Feast of the Lamb take place during the Great Tribulation, when it is obvious that the Church is going through the time of testing and the Two Witnesses are there, who are probably guests of honor at the feast. Because the purpose of the rapture is for all believers, past and present, to be present at the Second Coming of Jesus Christ - the preeminent event of world history.
We read in Luke 19 about the greatest event in the history of the world, at that time - the Messiah, God's only Son, entering Jerusalem as its king. But he was rejected and by some accounts he wept because his heart was broken. Still, it was a time of triumph and rejoicing. Lk 19:39-40, Teacher, rebuke your disciples! Jesus replied, I tell you, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out!
Now come forward 2,000 years. Our King and Savior, the long awaited Bridegroom of the Church, is returning as he said. Not on a colt, but a white charger; not as a humble servant, but in the lead of a powerful conquering army; not with a rebuke for narrow minded Pharisees, but with a Word from his mouth that instantly destroys the armies of the Antichrist. For 2,000 years believers gave their lives to Jesus Christ, and he wants them there to witness his majestic and promised return. The dead and the living believers, will form a great valley of people going up from the Mount of Olives into the distant sky, Gathered Over Jerusalem. Zechariah 14, On that day his feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, east of Jerusalem, and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west, forming a great valley, with half of the mountain moving north and half moving south…Then the Lord my God will come, and all the holy ones with him.
The Last Trumpet
There is only one last trumpet in the Bible, the 7th trumpet of Revelation. This trumpet sounds at the end of the Great Tribulation – Rev 11:15, The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were voices in heaven, which said: The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign forever and ever. Paul. 1 Cor 15:51-52, Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed – in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. Jesus speaking of the Second Coming and the rapture in Matthew 24:31: At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
Argument one against. If the rapture is at the end of the Great Tribulation, we will know the day and hour. Matt 24:36, No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father…Short answer: No.
Response. We do not know the exact day and hour it will end, because there is a mysterious 45 day period at the end: The 45 Day Window. Daniel 12:11-12: From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days (3 ½ years). Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days. The Second Coming will occur in this window.
Argument two against. Won’t the rapture come like a thief in the night? Short answer: No. Only non-believers will be surprised.
Response. 1 Thess 5:2,4 For you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. BUT YOU, brothers are not in darkness so that this day should surprise you like a thief. After stating that no one will know the timing of the Second Coming, Jesus went on to state that it was like in the time of Noah. While Noah didn’t know exactly when the flood would take place, he knew enough to get ready and was shut up in the ark by God seven days before the floods came (Gen 7:7-10). Jesus speaking to the Church of Laodicea said, But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you (Rev 3:3).
Jesus also said: But understand this: IF the owner of the house had know at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So, you also must be ready… (Matt 24:43).
Argument three against. Then we should go off into the hills of Oregon or Central America with our guns and isolate ourselves until the end (Chuck Smith, What the World is Coming to, 190-191). Short answer: No - that is plainly not what God would want.
Response. We already read how the Church of Philadelphia will be spared. God's plans for his people include protection overall, but some believers are chosen to share in the suffering of Christ, like their brothers and sisters before them for the last 2,000 years.
Only people with the mark suffer
At times during the outpouring of God's wrath on the earth, the only people who suffer are those with the mark of the beast, who worship the image of the beast. The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly and painful sores broke out only on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image Rev 16:2. Only those people who worship the beast and his image and receive his mark on their forehead or on the hand will drink the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath Rev 14:9-10.
Some shielded, sealed, protected
Tim Lahaye said there are no scriptures in the Bible that tell Christians how to prepare for and live during the Great Tribulation (Revelation Unveiled Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1999, 106-8.)...but there are - and examples. Exodus 12:13 shows how the blood of the lamb on the doorposts and lintels protected the Israelites from the angel of death. In 1 Kings 17, Elijah tells the widow at Zarephath, For this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: The jar of flour will not be used up and the jug of oil will not run dry until the day the Lord gives rain on the land. Jesus performed this miracle several times, and many others will do the same during the Great Tribulation.
Just as the lamb's blood protected the Israelites in Egypt, today, God seals us with the Holy Spirit. 2 Corinthians 1:21-22, He anointed us, set his seal of ownership on us, and put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come. Ephesians 1:13, Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession – to the praise of his glory. 1 Peter 1:4-5, …who through faith are shielded by God’s power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. Psalm 91 is particularly relevant for believers going through the Great Tribulation: protection from pestilence, protection from night terrors and arrows in the day, protection though others are destroyed.
Some removed
Then it seems that God takes the elderly and infirm to heaven before it gets real bad. Isaiah 57:1, The righteous perish, and no one ponders it in his heart; devout men are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from the evil.
Some chosen to suffer
People who do not worship the image are killed, Rev 13:14. Some are just meant to suffer for their faith – like Jesus and all Christians down through history. He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them Rev 13:7. During the last half of the Great Tribulation, a voice from heaven says, Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. Yes, says the Spirit, they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them. Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been killed was completed Rev 6:9. 1 Peter 4:12-13. Jesus said, Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life Rev 2:10. [10 days – last hours of Great Tribulation - the darkest, coldest part of the night is just before the dawn.]
Suffering for Christ is not something to be avoided and feared. Peter and Paul and thousands of other saints through the ages until now were honored to be chosen to share in Christ's suffering. I'm not saying we should go looking for martyrdom; yet, if it comes to us, know it is God's will and we should rejoice. Paul wrote, I know that you stand firm in one spirit, contending as one man for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you. This is a sign to them that they will be destroyed, but that you will be saved – and that by God. For it has been granted to you on behalf of Christ not only to believe on him, but also to suffer for him Phil 1:27-29. Peter wrote, Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial you are suffering, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice that you participate in the sufferings of Christ, so that you may be overjoyed when his glory is revealed.
Isaiah 41, Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God…