Category Archives: Rapture

January 24, 2026 · 6:45 am

THE ABIDING OF GOD: TRUTH, PURITY, AND THE SPIRIT WHO REVEALS THE SON

Trying to grasp Christ’s mystical thoughts is like reaching for a golden butterfly shimmering in the sun—beautiful, near, yet always slipping beyond the grasp of our earthbound minds. And then we blink, and the revelatory thought evaporates before our outstretched arms.

Yet Christ did not speak to bewilder us; He spoke to draw us into the mystery of God’s own indwelling. He declared, “I am…the truth” (John 14:6), and truth is the condition of His abiding presence. God will not take up residence where falsehood remains. Christ teaches that the Spirit of truth comes only when we cease knowing Him “after the flesh” (2 Corinthians 5:16) and begin to see Him as the ascended Son who sends the Comforter.

Therefore, the central claim of this essay is that God’s abiding presence enters the believer only when false concepts are purged, for the Spirit of truth—whom Christ sends after we stop clinging to Him as a mortal—guides us into all truth and reveals the Father dwelling in the Son.

1. God’s Abiding Presence Requires Truth

God offers us His abiding presence—His very life dwelling within us. But because He is truth, He will not inhabit a heart governed by falsehood. Christ’s own words establish this: “I am…the truth” (John 14:6). Truth is not merely a doctrine; it is the very nature of God. Therefore, abiding cannot occur where untruth remains.

Before God takes up residence in us, the old belief system must be purged of its errors. False concepts about God create a dwelling place unfit for His presence. The heart must be cleansed of misconceptions, distortions, and inherited traditions that obscure the true knowledge of Christ. Only then can the abiding begin. [Several false teachings are found here: false doctrines | Immortality Road]

2. The Spirit of Truth Is the Means of Abiding

Christ reveals that the abiding presence comes through the Comforter, “the Spirit of truth.” He says, “When the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth…he shall testify of me” (John 15:26).

The Spirit of truth does not speak of Himself. He speaks of Christ. He unveils Christ as He truly is—not as we imagine Him, not as we have been taught by human systems, but as the Son of God in His present glory.

Abiding begins when the Spirit comes. And the Spirit comes only in truth. He cannot testify of Christ to a heart still clinging to falsehood. He cannot reveal the Son where the mind refuses to be renewed.

3. Christ Must Depart Before the Spirit Can Come

Christ makes a startling statement: “If I do not go away, the Comforter will not come unto you. But if I depart, I will send him unto you” (John 16:7).

This departure is not merely physical. It is spiritual. Something in our perception of Christ must depart. We must release our limited, flesh-bound view of Him.

As long as we cling to Christ as a mortal man—full of passion, pain, and the limitations of flesh—we cannot receive Him in His ascended form. The Spirit cannot reveal the glorified Christ to a heart still fixated on the earthly Christ.

The departure Christ speaks of is the departure of our old way of seeing Him.

4. We Must No Longer Know Christ “After the Flesh”

Paul echoes this truth: “Though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more” (2 Corinthians 5:16).

This is not a denial of Christ’s incarnation. It is an invitation to move beyond it.

We must not cling to Christ merely as the suffering man of Galilee. We must see Him as He is now—the ascended, spiritual-bodied King who reigns at the right hand of God. Only when we release the fleshly view can He return to us in a spiritual way, in the capacity known as the Holy Spirit.

5. The Spirit Reveals the Father in the Son

The Spirit of truth guides us “into all truth” and “shows us things to come” (John 16:13). This is not abstract knowledge. It is revelation. It is the unveiling of the Father in the Son.

Christ pleaded with His disciples, “Believe me that the Father is in me…doing the works” (John 14:10–11). This is the truth the Spirit reveals. The Father dwelling in the Son, and the Son dwelling in us through the Spirit—this is the abiding.

The Spirit’s work is to manifest Christ within us, and in manifesting Christ, to manifest the Father. This is the mystery of the abiding presence. Knowing Christ “after the flesh” must go before He can come to us “after the Spirit.”

Conclusion

Christ’s teachings on the abiding presence are not easily grasped. They shimmer with spiritual light, always just beyond the reach of natural understanding. Yet He has given us the key: truth. God abides only in truth. The Spirit of truth comes only when we release our fleshly view of Christ and allow Him to reveal the Son as He truly is. When the Spirit comes, He guides us into all truth, testifies of Christ, and unveils the Father dwelling in Him. And in that revelation, God takes up His residence within us. This is the abiding. This is the promise. This is the life of God in the soul of man.     Kenneth Wayne Hancock   [If this and other articles have helped you, please hit the “like” button and subscribe.]

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December 23, 2025 · 4:01 pm

A Biblical Examination of the Pre‑Tribulation Rapture Doctrine

For generations, millions of Christians have been taught that the church will be removed from the earth in a “Rapture” before the Tribulation begins. Yet when this teaching is examined by the biblical standard for establishing truth, the evidence does not support a pre‑tribulation rapture.

This article argues that Scripture consistently places the resurrection, the transformation of believers, and the gathering to Christ after the Tribulation, not before it. By applying the biblical method of establishing truth “in the mouth of two or three witnesses,” we find that the pre‑tribulation rapture doctrine lacks standing and contradicts the plain testimony of Scripture.

To determine what is true or false, Scripture provides a clear method. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 13:1 that “in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.” The term established (Strong’s G2476) carries the sense of standing firm or being supported by evidence. Just as a court case cannot stand without sufficient proof, a doctrine cannot stand without scriptural evidence.

Paul reinforces this principle in 2 Timothy 3:16–17, teaching that all Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction. Truth, therefore, must be established by Scripture itself, not by tradition or popular teaching.

Applying this standard to the doctrine of a pre‑tribulation rapture reveals significant problems. The term rapture does not appear in Scripture; instead, the doctrine is built on interpretations of a few passages. One commonly cited text is Matthew 24:40–41, where “one shall be taken and the other left.”

However, Jesus sets the context in verses 37–39: “As it was in the days of Noah.” In Noah’s day, it was the wicked who were taken away in judgment, while the righteous were left. Far from supporting a secret removal of believers, the passage warns of sudden judgment and calls for faithful readiness (v. 46). Thus, this text provides no standing for a pre‑tribulation rapture.

Another key passage is 1 Thessalonians 4:17, where believers are “caught up… in the clouds.” Yet Paul’s subject is not escaping tribulation but comforting believers about those who have died. He emphasizes that “we which are alive and remain” will not precede the dead at Christ’s coming. This aligns with 1 Corinthians 15:52, which places the resurrection and transformation of believers “at the last trump.” Revelation identifies seven trumpets (Rev. 8:2), and Christ returns at the seventh—the last. This timing places the resurrection after the Tribulation, not before it.

Additional witnesses confirm this pattern. In Revelation 7:13–14, the great multitude “came out of great tribulation,” implying they first went into it. In Revelation 12:17, the dragon wages war against the remnant who “keep the commandments of God” and hold the testimony of Yahshua. If all believers were removed beforehand, who are this faithful remnant?

In conclusion, when Scripture is allowed to interpret Scripture, the pre‑tribulation rapture doctrine cannot be established. The biblical evidence consistently places the resurrection, gathering of believers, and return of Christ after the Tribulation. By the standard of two or three witnesses, the pre‑tribulation rapture has no standing and must be regarded as a false teaching. May all who seek truth be strengthened and blessed in Yahshua’s name.    John Boyer

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April 13, 2025 · 4:39 pm

Few Enter through the Narrow Gate into the Spiritual Dimension

Few Enter through the Narrow Gate into the Spiritual Dimension

Christ commands us: “Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.” The small and narrow gate leads to life and “only a few find it” (Matthew 7: 13—15 NIV). The wide easy gate is bad. Destruction looms.

In the very next breath, He warns us of something bad—false prophets. “Take heed that no man deceive you…And many false prophets shall rise and shall deceive many” (Matt. 24: 4,11; II Peter 2:1). Obviously, they are bad. In fact, these false prophets are the shepherds, the pastors, who appear in “sheep’s clothing” and preach false doctrines. These are false teachings about Christ. Millions of well-meaning people flock to their meetings. They are leading the people through the wide, easy to get into gate. Bad plus bad equals bad.

Question: Are the billions of deceived people in the pews the “few” who find life, who find what Peter, James, John, and Paul found? Who found the other dimension, the dimension where Peter and John healed the man with cerebral palsy! He had never walked upon this earth! This was not our holy King healing in person. It was his Spirit inside of Peter and John who had healed the poor man. This can be us, brothers and sisters.

In that scene, we see Peter and John entering God’s spiritual dimension. They had found the entrance into the spiritual dimension! No one can deny that they were the “few” who had entered “through the narrow gate.”

And why is it a narrow and small gate? It is narrow because it does not allow false teachings about Christ to pass through it. It is a narrow entrance gate because it compels us to “purge out the old leaven,” the old false teachings that have been handed down through the centuries.

The entrance is likened unto a small, narrow gate. It is narrow because very few we’ll dig deep to prove out all that they have been taught. Very few will study earnestly. For example, they will cling to ancient Pagan festivals. Most don’t even know that their holidays are of Pagan origin. Billions celebrate these festivals, but few ever research it.

There is a extremely wide door that receives the billions. But it is a narrow gate that “leads to life.”  But Yahweh still says, “Learn not the way of the heathen, who cuts down a tree and decks it with silver and gold (Jeremiah 10:2-4).

Another false teaching concerns the “time of the end.” Billions have been taught that they will escape the Tribulation Period, that they will be saved by a rapture. Billions of Christians floating up, up, up above the devastation prophesied over the earth. Sounds like a very wide gate. The billions must be told that the rapture doctrine is a false doctrine. [Much more on the rapture found here: rapture | Search Results | Immortality Road].

“In conclusion, the narrow gate symbolizes the path of truth, righteousness, and spiritual discernment—a path few are willing to pursue. It demands the rejection of false teachings, worldly traditions, and complacency in favor of diligent study, spiritual growth, and abiding in the Word of God. While billions may be led astray through the wide gate by deception and ease, Christ calls us to strive for the narrow way that leads to life. This journey requires commitment to uncovering genuine teachings, purging old falsehoods, and standing firm against the allure of superficial doctrines. Ultimately, it is through the narrow gate that we enter the true spiritual dimension, where the Spirit of God works powerfully within His faithful few. Let us seek this gate with all our heart and mind, ensuring our walk aligns with His truth” [Conclusion written by Co-pilot, based on essay].

Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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August 19, 2022 · 9:09 am

Endurance Needed to Reach the Heavenly Goal

As we have seen, patience is the fourth addition to the faith. To mature spiritually, we need patience working in our lives. It is the patience that God alone possesses. Patience is endurance, the ability to outlast the hardships. It is in the fiery crucible that coal is transformed into diamonds.

But it is not the puny patience that we humans try to use when the going gets tough. No, we need the endurance that is part of God’s very own divine nature. God is the standard for patience.

But God’s patience is to endure for a cause. To endure, we must first have a goal. But it must be a finer goal than just self-preservation. It must be a heavenly goal, one that agrees with our Maker’s goal. He sets our goal in this life if we are open to it. And that goal is this: You and I are to grow into full spiritual maturity–to be just like the apostles and Christ.

We have learned that God’s patience is part of His divine nature that He wishes to share with us. This attribute is vital for our ability to get through the fiery furnace of trials and tribulations that will befall all of God’s “born from above” children. If Christ and His apostles went through it, then is it any wonder that God would have us go through trials, also?

Why do new Christians stumble and fall away? Because they have not added patience/endurance in their hearts and minds. The cause goes much deeper. Modern churchianity has concocted doctrines that preclude the need for endurance for Christians. False teachers, preachers, and priests say that we will not go through the Great Tribulation. They say that we will be raptured out of the earth before the tribulation begins. This is false. The scripture teaches just the opposite, for “all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus (Yahshua) will suffer persecution” (II Tim. 3:12 NKJV).

But Paul knew that “tribulation works patience” (Rom. 5:3). I.e., trials and hardships produce endurance and perseverance. And endurance/patience is what we will need to come to full spiritual maturity and grow up into the manifested sons and daughters of God (Rom. 8: 18-19).      Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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July 29, 2022 · 2:23 pm

The “Sure Foundation”–The True Christ

The sons and daughters of God need a “sure foundation” upon which to build their new spiritual life. They need a foundation that is sure and steady. And, of course, we know that the sure foundation is Christ.

But it must be the true Christ and His vision for the world. For many teach a false Christ based on their imaginations as to who Christ is. And therein lies the problem. Many talk about Christ, but few have met Him at His special meeting place–the cross. Few speak of their own cross experience in their testimony. Their pastor would not dare lead them to the old rugged instrument that puts to death their sinful heart. They teach a soft Christ, a feel-good Christ, a different Christ than what the apostles wrote about in the Scriptures.

Dare I say it? The hireling pastors teach false doctrines about the entity they call Christ. They do not know that this meeting place is where their old sinful lives have perished with Him on the cross. Few want to go there. Few speak of their spiritual death with Christ. Few are buried with Him. But a few “are risen with Him through the faith of the operation of God, who has raised Him from the dead.” (Col. 2:11; Romans 6:1-12).

The apostles and Christ Himself warn us about false Christs in many passages of scripture. They teach a rapture and an escape from the tribulation. They say that they have made an agreement, that they will be spared when disaster strikes. They believe that they will be mystically delivered from the horrors coming upon this world (Isaiah 28:15).

But God calls this “believing a lie.” Instead, the Spirit through Isaiah says, “See, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone for a sure foundation; the one who trusts will never be dismayed” (verse 16).

And then He slams the lid on those who trusted in the erroneous false doctrine of the rapture: “Your agreement with death [that you will be spared] will be annulled…When the overwhelming scourge sweeps by, you will be beaten down by it.” The disaster is likened to what God did at Mount Perazim and at the Valley of Gibeon. He rained down meteorites upon them. And he will do it again through the trumpets and vials of wrath in Revelation (I Chronicles 14:10-11; Joshua 10:10). David and Joshua had Christ as their “sure foundation.”

Now we, like them, are “lively stones,” a part of Him, and He in us. A huge part of Christ’s foundation is having the true knowledge of His purpose and His plan to fulfill it. His purpose is to reproduce Himself, for He is agape Love. And He has a plan to do that. His purpose and plan are sure; nothing can prevent Him from carrying out His plan. Our part is to surrender to Him and learn of His purpose and plan.

Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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March 10, 2018 · 6:17 pm

Fig Tree Is the Sign of Christ’s Return–Rapture Debunked

Christ told His disciples that every stone on the temple mount in Jerusalem would be thrown down (this is still to be fulfilled, for the Wailing Wall still stands). Then they asked Him, When is this going to happen? And what shall be the sign of Your coming and of the end of the world? They asked for the sign that would tell them when it would all come down (Mt. 24: 1-3).

He then relates many prophecies as to the condition of world affairs before His return: Deceivers, wars, famines, pestilences, earthquakes, persecutions, betrayals, false prophets, the true gospel preached, rebuilding of the temple, the abomination of desolation, great tribulation, and false Christs all would come before His return. Then the appearance of the Son of man in heaven and  His angels gathering His elect out of the earth would take place (v. 4-31). There’s the scenario, but what is the sign that would tell His followers the right century and even the decade of His return?

The Fig Tree

Christ gave them the sign in the parable of the fig tree (v. 32). First, we must remember that parables speak of “things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world” (Mt. 13: 35). In them are hidden the mysteries of God. And there is no greater mystery than when He is coming back.

Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh: so likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near even at the doors (Mt. 24: 32-33). The fig tree is the symbol of the nation of the Kingdom of Judah with its capital at Jerusalem (Jer. 24: 1-10). Remember that Christ had cursed the fig tree, a symbolic gesture as to the sordid spiritual condition of the Judah nation.

But in this parable, we see that the fig tree is revived; it has tender branches and is putting on leaves. Summer is very near. The fig tree of Judah became a nation again in 1948. When we see all of the aforementioned prophecies take place after 1948, then we will know that Christ’s return is soon and so is the end of the world.

How soon? Christ continues the parable. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Which generation won’t pass? The generation that is alive when the fig tree nation is revived in 1948! Somebody alive in 1948 will still be alive when all these prophecies are fulfilled. That includes Christ’s return!

He continues. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away” (v. 35). Which words? Keep it in context; He is speaking about the words He has just uttered about the fig tree generation, how that some people alive in 1948 will still be living when He returns!

Ironically, the next verse is totally misinterpreted. It is taken out of context, plucked out of thin air with no regard to the flow of Christ’s teaching here in Matthew 24. But of that day and hour knoweth no man…but my Father (v. 36). What day and hour? The day when heaven and earth will pass away. Only the Father knows that day. But rapture teachers holler about how no one will know when the rapture will happen. But this verse is talking about when heaven and earth shall pass away.

“But…” This conjunction signals a contrast and opposition to the sentence just before. It means “to the contrary.”  But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be (v. 37). Nobody knows when heaven and earth shall pass away, but Noah knew when the flood was coming. God had told him. For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights…(Gen. 7 : 4). Noah knew the exact day seven days before it happened! The “coming of the Son of man” back to this earth will be like it was in Noah’s day; God’s righteous ones will know. The masses will not.

Rapture Totally Debunked

Christ’s second coming is like the coming of the flood in Noah’s day. The flood was disastrous back then, and Christ’s second coming at first will be a disaster for the world. In Noah’s day, two groups were assembled, the righteous and the unrighteous. One group was saved. The other group was taken by the flood.

Taken. Trust me on this. We don’t want to be “taken.” They were eating and drinking…and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be (Mt. 24: 38-39).

To be “taken” is a disaster. It means death in one verse: “The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away” (Job 1: 21, Job speaking of his dead children).

In lieu of all this, incredibly, the rapture teachers will use the very next verse to support their theory. Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left (v. 40). Being “taken” is always disastrous in the word of God. Just consult the concordance under “taken away.” Always negative. And yet they want to be taken on a rapturous journey through the clouds.

No! It is simply not true. The above is further proof that the rapture is a false doctrine that must be repented of, if they want to grow to be like Him. Christ is coming back to earth to establish His government and peace, and He wants us to remain here and help Him in His work.

However, there is a destination for those who are “taken away” in these last days. Christ said, “And cast ye the unprofitable servant into outer darkness: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 25: 14-30, from the Parable of the Talents). Oh, the heartache for some, who heard the word of truth, but did not receive it nor believe it. Nor did they grow it, but rather they held on to false doctrines that yielded no fruit. Brothers and sisters, please don’t reject this teaching without slowly and openheartedly studying this out to see if this agrees with the scriptures.   Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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January 9, 2016 · 7:08 pm

Lord’s Prayer–“Which Art in Heaven”–He Is from Above, Not Beneath

Our Father is the God of heaven. That is a profound thought that is easily passed over. In other words, the true God is not born of the imagination of earthly man.  This is what we are to take away from the words in the Lord’s prayer, “Which art in heaven.”  There are “gods many, but for us there is only one God.”  These “gods many” are conjured up by natural unregenerated man–“cunningly devised fables,” false conceptions of Christ.

And the masses are deceived.  “Satan deceives the whole world.”  How can he do that?  “For Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.  Therefore it is no great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of righteousness” (II Cor. 11:14-15). But every “Christian minister” will tell you that they are a teacher of the truth. Just ask them. But they all cannot be right because they disagree so wildly in their doctrines. So we must ask ourselves: Who then are Satan’s ministers who speak about Christ and yet deceive the whole world with their teachings? Since there is no idle word in God, somebody is fulfilling this word right now!

Wait a minute.  Paul has just said that Satan will come as a messenger of truth and light by having priests, pastors, and preachers bringing forth sermons about Christ and His righteousness!  Satan’s ministers will be preaching about Christ in the last days.  But it will not be the true “gospel of the kingdom of heaven.”  It will be “another gospel” other than the one that the apostle Paul preached.  It will not be from heaven, but it will be from beneath.

It will be a gospel concocted by the vain imaginations of natural thinking men.  It will be based on “what God can do for you,” and not “what God can do through your vessel.”  They will claim to be His servants, but at the end, He will say, “Depart from me you workers of iniquity.  I never knew you.”  You wanted prosperity instead of Me. You wanted your spin on the end time and not My timetable.  You wanted a rapturously easy way out of the hard times ahead and not “to endure hardness as a good soldier of Christ.”

This false gospel from beneath will emanate from an “earthly, sensual, and devilish” wisdom and not from heaven above.  This false gospel will spout “in Jesus’ name” but their hearts will be far from the God of Heaven and far from His heart.

This false gospel comes in many colors and flavors.  Most people shop around until they find a church with their kind of “Jesus” in it.  Most depend on the pastor to do their studying for them.  Few dig deep and “prove all things” with the Spirit’s help. This false gospel of Jesus is not from our Father, which is in heaven.  It is not from above, but from beneath. {Note: Church is a way station only on our pilgrimage to the Holy City.  We must eventually leave the way station, grow out of it, etc.}

Our Father and His plan of reproducing Himself in His sons and daughters is from heaven, not from sinful man’s imagination of what they thought God meant.  No, our Father emanates from the finer spiritual dimension we call heaven.  He is far above the selfish, conniving imaginations of un-spiritual man trying to be religious, leaning to his own understanding.

His thoughts are not our thoughts.  “It is a heavenly vision, a heavenly faith, a heavenly destiny, a heavenly plan, a heavenly purpose, a heavenly blueprint, a heavenly way, a heavenly thought of a heavenly Father, who is above all this on earth and is in us whom He has called”   (quoted from The Unveiling of the Sons of God  https://immortalityroad.wordpress.com/ebook-the-unveiling-of-the-sons-of-god/ ).

We must keep this in mind in our communication to Him because He is “Our Father, which art in heaven.”  He’s from above and not from beneath.     Kenneth Wayne Hancock

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September 6, 2014 · 2:36 pm

The Manifestation of the Sons of God–The Hope for Immortality, Christ’s Return, and the “Strong Delusion”

Turn on the news and what do you see? Suicide bombings, children slaughtered, ethnic cleansing, civil wars, domestic violence–the results of hatred at every turn. The “perilous times” that the apostle Paul wrote about are upon us. The Savior said as much. “In the world you shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” And He promised that we could overcome also.

But what constitutes this overcoming the world? How did He overcome the world? We will find the answer in the power of His resurrection. This power spearheads the ultimate victory that He promised His followers. “You shall overcome also.”

You shall become like Me, He is promising. You shall walk with Me and be like Me in My immortal state. You shall receive an immortal spiritual body just like mine. John confirms this. “When He shall appear, we shall be like Him; for we shall see Him as He is. And every man who has this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure” (1 John 3: 2-3). Our hope is to be like Him–immortal.

Let’s savor these words a moment. “When He shall appear, we shall be like Him.” Christ is immortal, and so will we be when He shall appear. So when will that be?

When will Christ appear?

Christ Himself said that He will appear upon His return to earth “immediately after the tribulation of those days” (Matt. 24: 29). Which tribulation? It will be “great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no nor ever shall be” (24: 21). It will be so destructive that God will have to intervene and stop it before all mankind is wiped out. “But for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened” (v. 22). God’s precious elect, His sons and daughters, will evidently be in danger, for He cuts the tribulation short to spare them from collateral destruction.

Furthermore, during this great tribulation period, deception and delusion will permeate the earth through the teachings of the false Christs and false prophets. They will be so convincing that it will almost deceive God’s elect, who are obviously still here on earth. For they could not be deceived by Satan if they were already with God in heaven. For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Matt. 24: 24.

This is the environment of Christ’s return to earth. And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven…and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He shall send his angels…and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds…

It is a time of “great tribulation” in the earth. Christ returns at the end of this tribulation. In fact, His presence brings peace and tranquility to the earth.

And when He shall appear at this time, then “we shall be like Him.” His Spirit will be living in us fully. And this is our hope. We shall receive immortality and become just like Him–right here on earth. Not in the sky by and by. No. Right here. How can I be sure of that? Because He has promised in His word that He is coming back to earth, the same way He left earth!

Our hope is to receive immortality, thus escaping a certain physical death that stalks humans on this earth.

Our hope of everlasting life

Paul admonished the church of the Thessalonians to have this very hope of receiving a new immortal body. He mentions that if you are sorrowful because of brethren who have died, you are acting like you have no hope (I Thess. 4: 13). Hope of what? He speaks of Christ dying and rising from the dead. The same power that raised Him from the dead will give the dead in Christ a new body when He comes back to earth. Those who die or “sleep” in Jesus (Yahshua), “God will bring with Him” (v. 14).

God will be bringing with Him His saints who have died before His return to earth. Where will He be bringing them from? And to where? The answer is found in verse 16: He “shall descend from heaven with a shout.” He is coming from heaven to this earth, and the dead in Christ will be coming with Him.

Those of us who do not die before His return will not precede the Christians that have died. “We which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent [precede] them which are asleep” (v. 15). Precede them in what? Those of the elect who are still alive at His return will not go before the dead in Christ in getting their immortal, spiritual body (See I Cor. 15: 23). They will get theirs first, then we will receive our immortal bodies, and we will join them, “caught up together with them in the clouds to meet Christ in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (v. 17).

Rapture doctrine erroneously based on one verse

The rapture doctrine has been built upon one major verse: I Thessalonians 4: 17. Of course, “rapture” is not in the scriptures. A closer study of this passage reveals events quite differently than what those waiting for the “rapture” envision. They imagine that they will be conveniently whisked away from the “time of trouble,” the great tribulation period, that shall ravage the earth at the time of His return. They base this primarily on one verse.

But let us dig deep into it and see what it really says. First, He is coming back to this earth. When He gets into the atmosphere of this planet, the dead in Christ will receive a new immortal, spiritual body, rising up to meet Him.  Those of us who are still living will join them “in the clouds…in the air.”

So there is a “catching away,” a rising up into our atmosphere. “Clouds” and “air” are components of the very atmosphere that we mortals breathe as we stand here on earth. The dead in Christ will join Him upon His return, and then those alive in Him will be changed and “caught up together with them in the clouds to meet Christ in the air.” Our change, when “this mortal shall put on immortality,” shall take place in the very atmosphere that we now breathe.

There will be air and clouds there. The Greek manuscripts are clear on this. Now take note of the next line in v. 17: “And so shall we ever be with the Lord.” This   part of the passage is never quoted. We will join up with Him in our atmosphere rising in our new spiritual bodies from the earth, and then we will come right back down onto terra firma! We will come back down to earth after that short ride because He is immediately coming back to earth. And we are coming back down to earth with Him, for we shall “ever be with Him.”

This is our hope–to be eternally with Christ

We will forever be with Him at this time–all of His people down through the ages and those of His who are alive when He returns. That is our hope! The first step that He will take will be right here on earth.

Paul continues to explain to the Thessalonians about how Christ’s return will be “as a thief in the night” to those who walk in darkness. “But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.” Those in spiritual darkness will not know when He is coming back, but the elect will know and not be overtaken. “You are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness’ (I Thess. 5: 2-9).

God’s children will be changed into immortals and will not be taken in the “sudden destruction” coming upon all those in darkness. Paul says that at the time of end, the world system will be trying to induce an artificial man-made peace throughout the globe. They will say that everything is fine now. “Peace and safety” will be the talk of the land, but real peace will not reside in the hearts of the earth’s inhabitants. In reality, a godless darkness will cover the land.

Yet, this earth in all of its end time spiritual darkness will be the stage for man’s greatest disaster and greatest triumph. The New World Order and its enforced peace will crumble under the onslaught of God’s missiles, His heavenly bodies that will literally crash down onto this earth, wiping out whole civilizations. It will be a “time of trouble” never seen before on earth.

Rising out of the ashes

But, rising out of the wasteland will come striding God’s chosen ones, His elect, His sons and daughters, His ambassadors–the princes and princesses of God’s kingdom. They will have God fully formed in them. Nothing will harm them, for they are from another dimension–a heavenly one that has transcended earthly matter. They will no longer be of this earth. They will have been “changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump.”

This at once terrible and glorious day will come on the world as “a thief in the night.” Darkness will envelop the land, literally and spiritually. But, as Paul exhorts, you are “the children of light…we are not of the night, nor of darkness” (I Th 5: 4-5). The very fact that we have the Spirit within us, will make us where we can see the “thief” who operates out in the night of the world system. God’s elect will know. We will know by the signs of the times, for we will be “sober, armed with the armor of God, “the breastplate of faith and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation.” This “hope of salvation” is the hope of our deliverance  from the dusty tombs of our mortal earthy existence. This “hope of salvation” is the looking forward to us receiving our new spiritual body at His coming–whether we be dead or alive upon His return.

At the end of this present age, the earth, totally immersed in the evil world system, will be a crucible of wrath, bathed in fire and blood. Yet this earth’s most painful travail will with supreme irony give birth to the sons and daughters of the great Father Yahweh. They will be the first immortals to take up residence on this earth since Christ Himself did for 40 days after His resurrection. They will have His Spirit fully residing within, and they “will build the old waste places” (Isa. 61: 1-4). Paul and the Thessalonians looked forward to this day, our day. In fact, their spirit still looks forward to the day of Christ’s return, which will fulfill our hope–our hope for immortality.

 

 

 

 

 

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December 6, 2013 · 9:57 pm

Disproving the Pre-Tribulation Rapture Theory

Scant few scripture passages are used to “prove” the erroneous pre-tribulation rapture theory. Some people use this one: “Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left” (Mt. 24: 40). They will just pluck it up out of its context, prop it up, display it, and use it to try to prove that the rapture happens before the Tribulation Period begins.

I agree that the word “taken” here is a good thing, for the Greek word (#3880) is translated in other places as “receive,” as in receiving the word of God [ http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?strongs=G3880&t=KJV ]. So, yes, one is “received” or “taken” by God and the other is left. But, when does this take place? Is it before the tribulation starts or after? That is the question whose scriptural answer cannot be ascertained by just plucking the verse out of context.

So let’s dig deeper into the “one taken, the other left” passage. This verse starts with the word “Then.” “Then” signifies that something else has had to have happened before “one is taken.”

And that something that Christ alludes to is the flood of Noah, as seen in verses 37-39, just before the “taken/left” passage. We are talking ultimately here about the “coming of the Son of man” (v. 37). Noah and his family were those who were taken or received by God and preserved through the tribulation of the flood. The others would not listen to Noah and “knew not until the flood came” (v. 39).

But Noah knew when the flood would come! “For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights…” (Gen. 7: 4). Noah knew that in seven days the flood would start. He knew, for God told him. And, yet, unenlightened preachers  expound in pulpits across the land that “no one can know the day or hour of His coming.” And they cite this very passage! But Noah knew! In seven days the flood would come. Will God tell a righteous man in our day when His coming will be?

What no man will know is when “heaven and earth shall pass away” in Matt. 24: 35! “But of that day and hour knows no man” (v. 36). “But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (v. 37). Christ likens when the coming of the Son of man will be just like it was in Noah’s day. Noah knew and was “taken” by God in the Ark, and the others were left.

This is the context leading to verse 40: “Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.” The Tribulation has already started! The “abomination of desolation has already taken place in verse 15, which is further context for v. 40.

The Anti-Christ standing in the rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem is a stupendous sign. “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be” (24: 21). The Tribulation Period starts here, 19 verses before the supposed rapture-proving verse 40 where one is taken, one left.

“And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved” (v. 22). Great calamity and distress and destruction is happening. But for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened” (v. 22). The elect chosen ones of God, His church, are in grave danger of being destroyed in the tribulation. They are on earth in harm’s way, and to spare them, God shortens the time of destruction; He cuts it short to save their lives.” They are still on earth, for why would God have to spare them if they were with Him in heaven, having been raptured out of danger earlier?

And make no mistake who the elect in this passage are.  They are His church, His body of believers. And since they will be “caught up to meet Him in the air,” upon His return, it must be after the tribulation period ends.

The going will get rough for the last generation of His elect, those alive when Christ returns to set up His kingdom here on earth. For they will have to endure the Great Tribulation Period. But He is faithful to protect us from those hard times.                                                     [For other articles disproving the pre-tribulation rapture theory click here: https://immortalityroad.wordpress.com/?s=rapture ]

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January 19, 2013 · 7:33 pm

More on Adding Temperance to Knowledge

In previous posts we have seen that in order to secure “an entrance…into the everlasting kingdom of our…Savior,” we must add certain spiritual attributes to the faith that God has endowed us with [1].  In so doing, we “give diligence” in making “our calling and election sure” [2].

We are told by the apostle Peter to add “temperance” to the knowledge of God and His plan for our perfection.

Since our very spiritual growth in Christ is in the balance here, a bit deeper examination of this word “temperance” is fruitful.  It is translated from the Greek word egkrateia (#G1466).  Thayer’s Lexicon states that it is “the virtue of one who masters his desires and passions, especially his sensual appetites.”

It is derived from a Greek adjective egkrates (#G1468), meaning “strong, robust; having power over; mastering, controling, curbing, restraining.”  So “temperance” is from Greek words meaning “to have control over.”

So How Does the Holy Spirit Help Us Get Control Over Bodily Appetites?

Knowing the truth will make us free, Christ said–of whatever ails us [3].  “Ye shall know the truth…”  Know.  There’s that “knowledge” spoken by Peter again, as in “add to you faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge…”  What knowledge?  The knowledge of truth, which is the mind of Christ, simply put.  Yes, the mind of Christ–His thoughts, plans, and purposes.  He did say, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” [4].  So, first knowing Christ’s thoughts, plans, purposes and His word, and then doing them–this will make us free of and give us control over sensual appetites.

There is another “knowing,” and this one is huge.  “Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with [Him], that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin” (Romans 6: 6).  Our old sinful self, in God’s eyes, was crucified with Christ on the cross.  And our old sin-soaked heart, which was enslaved to sin, is now free from all fleshly pulls.  This knowledge, straight out of the plan and purpose and mind of our Savior, is the truth that makes us free from unrighteous haunts.  Period.

Now.  The ball is in our court.  We are forced by Him to either believe this truth, which is His word and plan written down in plain English, and thereby be freed from the slavery of sin and sinning, or we continue on in unbelief.  That is the choice.  Chosing to believe this truth opens up the way to add these spiritual qualities like temperance, that He has admonished us to add to our faith, thus enabling us to “go on unto perfection.”

Temperance, then, is an integral part of the character of one who is an elder of the body of Christ, one who is mature [5].  This is a description of a temperate man, one who has his earthly body under control, leading him to be able to “hold fast the faithful word as he has been taught.”  After adding temperance, the man of God will have the power to not soon be shaken through any temptations of the devil.  He will be able to walk in the power of the word of God.

The elect of God will begin to realize that gaining control over the earthly body is a necessary pre-requisite in fully becoming the manifested sons and daughters of God.  And because temperance is one of the fruits of the Spirit, the stronger the presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives, the more temperance we will exhibit (Gal. 5: 22-23).  More Spirit in us, more self-control.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance…And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the passions and lusts.”  This last sentence is the very next verse, v. 24.  Isn’t it astounding that the word goes right back to being crucified with Christ?  In another translation we read, “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires” (NIV).

Here it is in plain black and white:  There is a direct correlation of having the “fruit of the Spirit” operating in our lives and being crucified with Christ.  In fact, the crucifixion with Christ of our old nature is the very key in receiving His Spirit, which in turn yields the fruit of the Spirit in our lives–one of which is temperance or self-control.  It is much easier to control one’s self after knowing and then believing that it is dead.

Earlier in his letter to the Galatians, Paul writes, “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me” (2: 20).  And there it is.  Our bodies live on now, but it is not our old selves anymore living in them.  But rather it is Christ’s Spirit that lives now in us.  And this life that we live is because of His faith in His own plan, now believed on by us, that by believing that He is raised from the dead, we too are now risen “to walk in a newness of life.”

It is this Rock that we are building up each other as the temple of God in the earth.  This is the solid Rock foundation that we must build upon.  Because the weather coming soon to this earth is going to shake and crumble all houses not built on the right understanding of His word, plan, purpose, and thoughts.  If it is built on a faulty foundation, then the house will come crashing down.  Tribulation is coming upon the earth, and it will touch us all.  Only He is our safety net–not some imagination of a rapture that someone dreamed up in the 19th century.

The Great Tribulation is coming.  We must prepare by first “knowing the truth.”  For Satan is going to deceive many in these latter days.  “Let no man deceive you,” Christ warned.  For the “falling away” or apostacy is already in full odious bloom.  The churches have been duped and lied to by false teachers and false prophets.  Many pastors are ignorant of this deception and yet, they continue to pollute the flock and inoculate them with poisonous doctrines and concepts.  But “the wise will understand” (Dan 12; 10).

[1]  https://immortalityroad.wordpress.com/2012/11/27/the-additions-to-your-faith-prerequisites-of-receiving-immortality/

https://immortalityroad.wordpress.com/2012/12/02/add-to-your-faith-virtue-gods-strength-and-power-2-peter-1-5/

[2]  II Peter 1: 10

[3]  John 8: 32

[4]  John 14: 6

[5]  Titus 1: 7-9

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