As much as our government has been infiltrated by the enemy, so has the church. Maybe even moreso.
This is a dangerous doctrine. IT IS NOT FROM SCRIPTURE.
I do realize some big lofty names in the bible scholar community are big time rapturists. Moody - for example. But I've been on a quest for a week or so to find anyone of them making solid arguments with actual scriptural foundation to support the dubious claims of the rapture doctrine - and they just simply cannot support it in the scripture.
If you want me to explain further I'll be happy to. But what you should do is go to the bible and find where it makes any claim that Christians will be removed from earth BEFORE or in the middle of the tribulations described in prophecy.
The oft cited verses in Mathew are literally right after Jesus warns you not to be deceived and explains how not to be deceived by knowing the signs of the season of His return. In Luke he even says that "two men will be lying in one bed, one will be taken the other left behind." I don't know why there are two dudes in one bed but I want the rapturist to question why someone sleeping in bed would be raptured (I notice many claiming that you must be alert and watching at the special time).
In Thesolonians 4: Paul clearly teaches that the dead in Christ will be resurrected before the beloved verse about we who are alive at the time going to meet Jesus in the air. I don't have a problem with that - just don't misunderstand that the dead in Christ go "FIRST".
In Rev 20 - Jesus gives us more clarity and explains that in the "First resurrection" people who refused the mark of the beast unto death would rise in that "First resurrection" too.
The rapture doctrine is dangerous for our generation. We appear to be appointed for this time, please do not be deceived.
The tribulation and rapture are depicted in the story of the fiery furnace in the book of Daniel. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego represent three of the four churches from Revelation. The fourth church of Philadelphia is not represented by these three men, but by Daniel. Daniel was spared the wrath of the king, while his friends were to be burned in the 7 times hotter fiery furnace, which is a model of the great tribulation. Daniel is set aside from this judgment and abides in the king's palace, just as the church, the bride of Christ, is removed from the tribulation and lives with Christ in the place prepared for them in heaven for the duration of the tribulation. The ones who remain through the tribulation are kept safe from harm just as the 3 were thrown into the 7 times hotter fiery furnace but not a hair on their heads was singed.
This is interesting insight. I just don't see how you get past the direct teachings from Jesus when telling his disciples about his second coming. He's very clear about the timeline. So yes Jesus will protect us through the fire according to His sovereign will, but ultimately our life here is already due a fleshly death. There's no point, no reason to spare this tiny fraction of humanity from some hard times. You may suffer and you may die in exactly the kind of world that God destroyed with a flood. Actually it's a worse world judging by how powerful the beast is described. I just think people are more likely to lose faith and turn to false gods (like the Israelites did in Exodus) if they were misinformed about a secret magical extraction which serves no actual purpose to the Kingdom.