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.
haha look I keep saying I don't understand how it conflicts and you continue to not share any verses on how it does conflict, so I have a feeling you do not fully understand the pre-trib rapture perspective.
Let me address your main post. You said verses are often referenced in Matthew, well I will not reference any of those as they are often referring to the Jew anyway and not the bride of Christ, so that eliminates that point of contention.
In terms of the 1 Thessalonians reference.... I'm glad you don't have any problem with that but keep in mind that we are caught up in the clouds WITH them, so I don't see how that is an issue with the pre-trib rapture.
1 Corinthians 15:51-52 (notice it says it is a mystery, hence why some seem not to understand it) says, "Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep(die), but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed." This verse clearly shows that not all saints will be dead at the rapture, however in the Tribulation all saints are killed except for 144,000 Jewish males, in addition to that, those few righteous Jews who make it through the Tribulation are not caught up with Christ in the clouds but rather Christ lands and splits the mount of Olives on the ground to set up his 1000 year reign. And who comes back with him? Us saints who have died for the last 2000 years and were alive for the rapture. This is in stark contrast to the references in Revelation where all the saint's souls who have been killed must remain under the altar until all of them are killed.
Revelation 6:9-11 shows us that the souls of those who are saved and do NOT take the mark of the beast are under the altar of God and must remain until the rest are killed, completely different from those who "are alive and remain" in 1 Thessalonians. Things like this are crystal clear and must not be thrown out over semantics in any capacity.
These next three verses clearly show we are not appointed to God's wrath which is literally what the Tribulation judgements are for.
Romans 5:9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
1 Thessalonians 1:10 And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
1 Thessalonians 5:9 For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ
The Tribulation is SATAN'S wrath, not God's.
Instead of hopping around and picking at individual verses, try reading Matthew 24. Jesus Himself speaking directly about the end. Read it carefully. There's no room for a rapture. Funny Jesus didn't mention it.
Really bruh? These verses are all from Revelation alone. Yes the Devil has wrath but God also uses that in conjunction with other judgements...read these verses and tell me again it's not God's wrath....
"And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:"
"The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:"
"And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God."
"And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God."
"And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever."
"And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth."
"And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath."
Oh and bro, Paul's books are the ones written to us Christians today. Learn the difference between books that are written FOR us versus books that are written TO us, it will help a lot in "rightly dividing the word of truth". I will NEVER ever go to Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John to correct doctrine laid out in Paul's books.
The Pauline routine? Westcott and Hort would be proud. Find a rapture theologian from before the 1830s...there aren't any. New truth isn't truth. Spurgeon? Other baptist/non-Catholic thought leaders before Darby, selling pre-trib rapture? There aren't any.
BTW, Matt chapters 24-25 has more direct from Jesus on the end times than almost any subject He discussed at one time. Only the Sermon on the Mount was longer....Paul's LETTERS don't disprove anything Jesus said, and the suggestion that He was talking to someone else---"the Jews" etc is just a load of crap. "Oh He was speaking to the Jews only". Prove it.
Jesus words. Black ink on white paper. Deny it if you want, but its the sloppiest bald assertion imaginable, strung together by cherry-picked pieces of chapters of multiple books in the NT.
btw--Nelson Darby made it popular in the US in the 1830-50s....Where'd HE get it? Scotland. A teen-aged girl. Catholic mystic.
Honestly, why doesn't someone just cut out all the parts that are for "the Jews" already and save us all the unnecessary reading? To try to be fair, I think sometimes there can be more meaning drawn from some scripture by acknowledging the immediate audience. But to suggest that the gospel writers were so narrowly minded (especially after the great commission) is just absurd.
Good job.