Now we must see if God has given us any idea of timing or the ‘rapture’ of the church. Many, within the Christian ‘community’, ascribe to an overall ism in regards to understanding biblical truths and doctrines. Unfortunately, the ‘ism’ often has to bend scripture, be selective in using scripture, or/and reinterpret scripture to make their ‘ism’ appear to be the one and only correct one.
The Pre-trib rapture is such a doctrine of the Dispensationalism belief system. Let us see if this doctrine can be supported by scripture.
First, why did Jesus use parables so often in His teaching.Mat 13:10 And the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"
Matthew 13:11 Jesus answered them, "To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted. 13:12 "For whoever has, to him more shall be given, and he will have an abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has shall be taken away from him.
This is a very chilling revelation from Jesus! There are some, even the majority, that will not understand because God has prevented them from understanding.
13:13 "Therefore I speak to them in parables; because while seeing they do not see, and while hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.
Just, as God hardened Pharaoh’s heart, after he had hardened his heart, God keeps some people in the dark and out of His kingdom.
13:14 "In their case the prophecy of Isaiah is being fulfilled, which says, 'YOU WILL KEEP ON HEARING, BUT WILL NOT UNDERSTAND; YOU WILL KEEP ON SEEING, BUT WILL NOT PERCEIVE;
13:15 FOR THE HEART OF THIS PEOPLE HAS BECOME DULL, WITH THEIR EARS THEY SCARCELY HEAR, AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES, OTHERWISE THEY WOULD SEE WITH THEIR EYES, HEAR WITH THEIR EARS, AND UNDERSTAND WITH THEIR HEART AND RETURN, AND I WOULD HEAL THEM.'
So here we come up to another element of the created trying to understand the Creator in areas that escape our abilities and finite concerns with justice and fairness in our eyes.
13:16 "But blessed are your eyes, because they see; and your ears, because they hear. 13:17 "For truly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it. In this chapter of John, Jesus used a number of parables; Matthew 13:3 And He spoke many things to them in parables…
13:24 Jesus presented another parable to them, saying, "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field. 13:25 "But while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went away. 13:26 "But when the wheat sprouted and bore grain, then the tares became evident also.
This is a parable that references wheat farming, which is one of the primary occupations within Israel at the time and one everyone should have had some understanding.
It is also an example of the spiritual battle that rages around us even to this day.
13:27 "The slaves of the landowner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?'
This could very well reach back to the creation story in Genesis. God did create everything and called it good, but Satan quickly came to destroy the good that God had created.
13:28 "And he said to them, 'An enemy has done this!' The slaves *said to him, 'Do you want us, then, to go and gather them up?' 13:29 "But he *said, 'No; for while you are gathering up the tares, you may uproot the wheat with them. God’s mercy is seen in the long-suffering He exhibits by not immediately all who disobey Him. He knows which is the wheat and which is the tares, as does His heavenly messengers, angels.
13:30 'Allow both to grow together until the harvest; and in the time of the harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather up the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them up; but gather the wheat into my barn."'"
This parable ends with a question that the ‘isms’ often miss. What or who is gathered first?
Rapture proponents maintain that the ‘church’ is raptured first, to keep the godly from the wrath of God. But, here we read that at the time of the harvest, the last days, the ungodly are gathered up first! Since this is true, the godly must still be on the earth i.e. gathered second.
The great judgment separates the godly from the ungodly. The ungodly are gathered up first, to eventually face their eternal punishment.
We will go to other passages to make sure we correctly understand this parable and the truth of the timing of the godly being gathered unto the Lord.
More later.