Why You Should Know Bible Prophecy and Believe in the Rapture of the Church by Rev. Frieda Fritz Porter (Portions excerpted from On the Brink of the Rapture by Rev. Porter) But I charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge the living and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom. II Timothy 2:1 There are various comments that I have heard over the past few years as I have shared prophetic scriptures and what they mean. Perhaps, you have heard them, too. Or, maybe you have even said them. I know that I did. Let me share with you some of the reactions people have about learning Bible prophecy. #1 Reaction to Learning Prophecy Oh, I am not into THAT! you might say. Oh, really? So, you do not believe in THAT? Do you believe in the Lord s Prayer or the Apostle s Creed? If you do, then I remind you that if you pray the Lord s Prayer, one of the lines is Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven and if you recite the Apostle s Creed, then you say the line whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead. These are, in fact, statements of prophecy. THAT is said as if you were referring to a strange, occult religion or voodoo philosophy or some kind of wacky knowledge with which you should not even be acquainted. You had better get into THAT! Now the Bible is nearly one-third prophecy. God COMMANDS that we know prophecy. God COMMANDS THAT WE KNOW THE SIGNS of the times. God 1
COMMANDS that we be warned and that we warn others. Prophecy is not a suggestion; it is a COMMAND. See, I have told you BEFOREHAND. - Matthew 24:25 These are Jesus words: Watch Give strict attention to Be cautious Be active! #2 Reactions to sharing prophecy Well, OK, I believe you, but I don t believe it is my job to go around telling other people this, you might say. To these people, the only thing worse than knowing prophecy is sharing it! To them, I say, Wrong! Wrong! Wrong! The Bible says that if you see your brother in sin, and you do not warn him, then his blood is on your hands. If you warn him or her and they do not heed you, the blood is not on your hands. (Ezekiel 3: 18-21) The Apostle Paul says, Let me say plainly, that no man s blood can be laid at my door for I did not shrink from declaring all God s message to you. Acts 20:26 It is our job to warn others who are in sin, and especially in the light of what is taking place on earth today. It is our job to declare all God s message to everyone. God warned Noe (Noah) and God warned Lot. Is this not our example to follow? I know that if the spiritual shoe were on the other foot, I would want someone to love me enough to tell me. Wouldn t you? Also, I Thessalonians 4: 17 says, Therefore comfort one 2
another with these words. What are the words of comfort about? These words are found in the 16th verse and are the words about the catching up or the Rapture? Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus, we shall always be with the Lord. - I Thessalonians 4:17 I would ask why would you not want to warn others? It is because you are afraid of ridicule? Are you afraid of being taken off the A list? Well, you may be thinking, this stuff scares people. It is not scary if you know Jesus and if you are watching, praying, and are active in your witness. It is only scary if you do NOT know Jesus as your Savior and/or if you are involved in a willful, sinful life. And on some have compassion, making a distinction, but others save with fear, pulling those out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh. - Jude vs. 22-23 These verses sounds like some will come in faith and some in fear, and I do not see any preference given here. Please, if you love someone, warn him or her. Share your knowledge of prophecy while there is still time. Again, let me ease your mind. It is not your job to convince anyone of anything. This is the job of the Holy Spirit. It is only your responsibility to tell the good news of the Gospel and to share the warnings and rewards of prophecy. Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, Who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. - Jude vs. 24-25 3
#3 Reaction to the word Rapture I do not see the word Rapture anywhere in the Bible, so I do not believe in it, you might say. To them, I say, You are correct! The word Rapture does not appear in scripture. But, do not let this trouble you. Being a Christian does not mean committing mental suicide. You still get to use your brain cells to deduce a matter or meaning. You have indeed heard about the TRINITY, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit; yet, you cannot find this word in the scripture. Trinity is a word that we have adopted to describe God in three persons. Another example is the word BIBLE, which does not appear in Scripture, yet we know that when we say BIBLE, we refer to the book that includes both the Old and New Testaments. This is not a light bulb experience; it is recognition of a commonly used word. I Thessalonians 4:17 says, Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. The Greek word for caught up is harpezo. What? Caught up! Where? In the clouds, that s where! We, the prepared believers, will be caught up or raptured in the air to meet with Jesus Christ and it is sooner than you think! What is a prepared believer? According to scripture, he or she is 1. One who is watching for the signs. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour the Lord is coming.- Matthew 24:42 2. One who is praying daily that they will be worthy to escape what is coming upon the earth: Watch therefore and pray always that you may be counted worthy to 4
escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man. - Luke 21:36 3. One who is active in their witness for Jesus Christ: Matthew 24: 45-51, the parable of the faithful servant and Matthew 25: 14-30, the parable of the talents Does this describe you? I truly hope so. In My Father s house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And, if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. - John 14:2-3 God is going to remove the prepared believers before the Tribulation. He has been preparing a place for us since his resurrection. At the end of this seven year period, Jesus will come a second time and bring us with him to rule and reign on earth forever. Dr. Hilton Sutton, noted prophecy scholar, teacher, and author reminds us that there have been other raptures reported about in the Bible. Enoch, the father of Methuselah, was taken away or raptured. By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, and was not found because God had taken him for before he was taken he had this testimony that pleased God. - Hebrews 11: 5-6. Genesis 5:24 speaks about this rapture of Enoch with just a few simple words: And Enoch walked with God and he was not, for God took him. Elijah also experienced this taking up or rapture and his protégée or assistant, Elisha, knew in advance that this rapture was going to take place and he actually 5
witnessed the event. And it came to pass, when the Lord was about to take up Elijah into heaven by a whirlwind - II Kings 2:1 Now the sons of the prophets who were at Bethel came out to Elisha, and said to him, Do you know that the Lord will take away your master from you today? And he said, Yes, I know; keep silent. - II Kings 2: 3 Then it happened; as they continued on and talked, that suddenly a chariot of fire appeared with horses of fire, and separated the two of them; and Elijah went up by whirlwind into heaven. - II Kings 2:11. The Apostle Paul tells us about his catching up or rapture in II Corinthians 12:2 & 4: And I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago whether in the body I do not know; or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows such a one was caught up to the third heaven v.4 how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter. Another example of a person in the Bible who was caught away from this earth and taken into heaven is the Apostle John, the Revelator: After these things I looked and behold a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, Come up here and I will show you things which must take place after this. Immediately I was in the Spirit and behold a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne. - Revelation 4:1-2 Finally, we read about the most talked about Rapture of them all; Jesus Christ as he ascends into Heaven to sit with his Father 40 days after his resurrection. So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God. - Mark 16:19 6
Now it came to pass, while He blessed them, that He was parted from them and carried up into heaven. - Luke 24:55 I hope that these examples help you to see that the Rapture or catching up or catching away is nothing new. It is not a theory devised by man, as some would have you believe; it is a promise to the prepared believer that God the Father will not let us endure His wrath that is coming upon the earth. He took Noah up, above the waters of His judgment, in an ark. He took Lot out of Sodom and Gomorrah before His wrath descended upon them. The angels even told Lot that the cities could not be destroyed until he was gone (Genesis 19:22). This is our picture, or a shadow, of things to come. God will not do less for the prepared believer before the Tribulation than he would do for Noah and Lot for His words says that He is no respecter of persons (Acts 10:34). My friends, there is going to be the Rapture of the Church for those who are watching the signs, praying always to escape and who are active in their witness. Please, get ready! #4 Reaction to knowing about the Rapture Well, if it s real (the Rapture), then it s going to happen, so why do I need to know more about it? I ll just go! you might say. To these people with this question I would say that the Rapture is for those who are WATCHING, PRAYING, and are ACTIVE in their witness. This is why you need to know more about it. The Bible is very clear; the Rapture is going to occur! Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the 7
air. And, thus, we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore, comfort one another with these words. I Thessalonians 4: 17 & 18 Consider these scriptures: Matthew 24:42 WATCH, therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. Revelation 16:15: Blessed is he who WATCHES and keeps his garments. Luke 21: 36: WATCH therefore and PRAY always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass and to stand before the Son of Man. Matthew 24:13: But he who ENDURES {is active} to the end shall be saved. Matthew 24: 33 &34: So, you also, when you SEE all these things (at the same time) KNOW that it is near, at the doors! Assuredly, I say to you, THIS GENERATION will by no means pass away until ALL these things take place. Revelation 2:26: He who OVERCOMES and OBEYS my commandments and DOES {is active} what pleases me to the very end Revelation 3:5:. He who CONQUERS will be clad in white garments and I will not erase his name from the Book of Life. (I infer here that those who do not conquer will have their name erased from the Book of Life.) Revelation 3:10: Because you have GUARDED and KEPT {been active} my Word, I will keep you from the hour of trial. (This is one of the best scriptures to prove that the RAPTURE will take place before the TRIBULATION, the hour of trial.) 8
Jesus said that the servant who is doing God s will is fortunate and happy and to be envied. The servant who is not will be put with the pretenders (hypocrites). Remember, there were 10 virgins awaiting the coming of the Bridegroom; five were READY and five were not. The five who were READY went in to meet the Bridegroom while the five who were not MISSED the whole event. We are to WATCH, PRAY, AND OBEY {BE ACTIVE} God s commandments (God s will) so that whenever God tells Jesus, Go get the Church; bring them home! We are ready to go. A Christian who is married and at the No-Tell Motel with another man s wife or husband, need not think they will hear the trumpet sound. Oh, yes, this person is saved and will go to heaven, but they will miss the greatest event in history, the RAPTURE, and will be around to suffer through the greatest disaster of all times, the TRIBULATION. Make no mistake about it, there are no secret sins; nothing is hidden from God (El Roi, the God Who sees) and what happens any place on earth does not stay just there, regardless of one city s slogan. NOW is the time to turn from your so-called hidden sins. Get ready to meet the Lord! In my opinion, not teaching about the RAPTURE is one of the churches greatest omissions. How can you get ready for an event about which you know nothing? God help the pastors who are not preparing their flocks for this great event. I would plead with pastors to get the blessing of God in your church by reading aloud the words in 9
Revelation (Revelation 1:3) and to get your church ready! It is time for you TO WAKE UP and TO WAKE UP your congregation! #5 Reaction to setting a time for the Rapture No man knows the hour or the day! you might say. It is not the words here that are incorrect, but rather the tone with which they are said. You can hear a true meaning here as if to say, Don t you dare say another word to me about it, and I mean it! To them, I say, You are 100 percent correct! No man knows the time, not the day and not the hour. Satan does not know, the angels in Heaven do not know, and Jesus himself does not know. Many in history have tried to divine a time for the rapture: Martin Luther (1546), Pope Clement (1690), Cotton Matther (1691), William Miller (1843), and John Nelson Darby (1840), just to name a very few. I did not write a book nor am I teaching this lesson TO SET the time; rather, it is written to help you DISCERN the times in which we are living. God Himself tells us to WATCH and LOOK FOR the signs of the times. This is what On the Brink of the Rapture intends to do; it is written to show you what the Bible says will be occurring on the earth just before the Rapture of the Church and the beginning of the Tribulation period, which will last seven years. This is the sole purpose of the 40 Reasons Why We Are THE Generation Spoken of in Matthew 24: 33 &34. 10
More importantly, this is the first time in history that all of these signs are occurring at one time or are all TAKEN TOGETHER (Matthew: 24: 33&34). This is a key to understanding prophecy that these signs must be occurring SIMULTANEOUSLY and CONCURRENTLY, within a given period of time called a generation, which they are! So, I tell you, THIS GENERATION is the multitude of people living at the SAME time and in a PARTICULARLY explicit period of time. This is the group of people who shall not pass away until all these things TAKEN COLLECTIVELY take place. This is my generation! Remember, God says in Amos 3 that He will do NOTHING until he WARNS His people of impending judgment and this is EXACTLY what He is doing NOW! He is warning and preparing the Church for the Rapture, which is to occur soon (suddenly)! Please WAKE UP and take heed to the warning given to you by a loving and just God. #6 Reaction to the Book of Revelation I believe that the Book of Revelation is an allegory. I do not think that it is ever meant to be understood, but rather it should be searched out by generation after generation, throughout the ages, you might say. There seems here to be some sort of belief that the Book of Revelation should be mystic and that it should mean whatever you want it to mean, in light of your generation. This is just plain, flat, and no-doubt-about-it wrong! In the first place, God surely picked a strange name for the book if it is never to be understood. The word REVELATION means the unveiling, the revealing. It is the book of the unveiling or revealing of Jesus Christ, who He is. It is disclosure and, yes, 11
we can understand the Book of Revelation. It is more a book about who Jesus is than a book on prophecy. For the first century church, this book brought encouragement in the face of great persecution; for the 21 st century church, it is reassurance that good will prevail against evil in the end. The story is told from three different perspectives or from three witnesses: Heaven s viewpoint (Revelation 4-11) Earth s viewpoint (Revelation 12-16) Hell s viewpoint (Revelation 17-18) by the mouth of two or three witnesses, every word may be established. - Matthew 18:16 I would offer that these are pretty impressive witnesses. In the second place, we read the following in the very beginning Revelation 1:3 which admonishes us to READ, HEAR, and KEEP (Heed) the words written in the book: Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it, for the time is near. Does it make sense that God would offer a blessing for reading this book and keeping the things written in it if we cannot even understand what is said (Revelation 1:3)? No. Does it make sense that God would bring a curse on anyone who attempts to alter even one word of it if they could not understand it in the first place? (Revelation 22: 18 & 19)? Heavens to Betsy, no! That elephant just won t fly! No way, Jose. Anyone who is in the spirit (Holy Spirit) can understand the Book of Revelation. Understand? 12
The Head Coach is blowing the whistle and says, LISTEN UP! He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. - Revelation 2:7; 11:17& 9; Revelation 3:6, 13& 22 13