Bible-believing Christian who has studied eschatology for years (MTS).

by Rayburne
(Oshawa, ON Canada)

I’m sorry to hear about Dr. Jack’s passing. His was a popular ministry, though I believe he was wrong on many things. In connection with the false Camping prediction, he said it was nonsense for Christians to quote Matthew 24:36 which basically tells us no man can know the day or the hour of Christ’s return. No, Dr. Jack, it is certainly not nonsense:

The pre-tribulation rapture view, which divides the Second Coming of our blessed Lord into to phases (Rapture and Revelation or return) is based on very skewed interpretation of scripture and has serious exegetical problems.

According the dispensational view (Pre-Trib Rapture) , the revelation or return of Christ would take place 7-years after the Rapture. Since the Rapture must take place first, it is possible to know the time of Christ’s return (Revelation) by just calculatng 7-years from the time of the Rapture.

The serious problem with this interpretation is that Christ himself taught concerning the time of His return: “But of that day or hour no one knows, no, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only” (Matthew 24:36).

This is just one serious exegetical problem arising from this division of the Second Coming of Christ into two phases–Rapture and Revelation (actually two second comings of Christ separated by 7-years tribulation.).

There are other serious exegetical problems with Dr. jack’s and Rexella’s eschatology:

2 Thessalonians 1:5-10 teaches clearly that the eternal destruction of the unsaved–”those who do not know God” and “those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 8)–takes place “when He Christ comes, in that Day, to be glorified in His saints,” in other words, simultaneously with Christ’s return or revelation (see verses 7-10), not 1000 years after His return.

Matthew 25:31-46 affirms this same truth–that the judgment that occurs at the Second Coming of Christ in glory issues in everlasting fire (v. 41) and everlasting punishment (v. 46) for the “goats” (the unsaved) and eternal life for the “sheep” (the saved).

Why do pretribulationists still insist then that the judgment of the unsaved must take place 1000 years after Christ’s return (at the Great White Throne judgment ) at the end of the 1000-year-millenium, to be exact, especially when the straightforward description of what happens when Christ returns in 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10 and Matthew 25:31-46 simply doesn’t leave room for a 1000-year earthly reign.

No, my friend, the plain teaching of scripture is that there is that Jesus Christ Second Coming is one event, not two phases (Rapture and Revelation), as the scriptures above show, in which will take place the final resurrection and final judgment of both the righteous and unbelievers.

Pretribulationalists identify the word “Coming” ( Greek, “Parousia”) with Christ’s coming to rapture His church (see 2 Thessalonians 2:1) but verse 8 in the same context of 2 Thessalonians uses the same word for “coming” (“Parousia”) to describe the destruction of “that Wicked” (AntiChrist) “whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his “coming” (same Greek word “parousia”).

I could give more examples to show there are no two phases (Rapture and Revelation) of Christ’s second coming. Christ’s second coming is one event. There is one general resurrection and one final judgment. Daniel 12:2; John 5: 28-29; Acts 24:15; Revelation 20: 13-15 speak of the resurrection of believers and unbelievers as a single event, and do not contain the slightest indication that the resurrection of the righteous and that of the wicked will be separated by 1000 years.

But that is not all that can be said to show the two are contemporaneous. In John 5:21-29 Jesus combines the thought of the resurrection, including the resurrection of the righteous, with the thought of the judgment, including the judgment of the wicked.

I could give more examples, but sufficient to indicate that there is one general resurrection of both the righteous and wicked at a time when both will be judged. Applying this truth to 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18, we see that the rapture of saints living at the time of Christ’s return (read 1 Thessalonians 3 in context) clearly takes place after the resurrection of “the dead in Christ”.

Dispensationalists use this passage to support their contention that because this passage mentions only the resurrection of the “dead in Christ” there must be two resurrections which don’t occur at the same time.

Yet, that is just an inference obtained by reading more into the passage than what it plainly states. The point of contrast here is not between the resurrection of believers and unbelievers, but between the resurrection of “the dead in Christ” (deceased believers) and the Rapture of believers who are still living at Christ’s return.

There is no indication that there are two separate resurrections taught in this passage, especially when we compare scripture with scripture above (I.e. Dan. 12:2; John 5:28-29; Acts 24:15, Revelation 20:13-15, especially 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10 and Matthew 25:31-46.

In Acts 24:15, Paul, in his defense before Felix, says, “I worship the God of my fathers…having a hope in God which these themselves (the jews who are accusing him) accept, that there will be a resurrection of both the just and the unjust” (Acts 24:14-15).

In the Greek, as well as in the English translation, the word “resurrection” is in the singular (“Anastasia“). Can two resurrections a thousand years apart properly be called “a resurrection”? I think not!

The attempt to restrict the resurrection in revelation 20:11-15 is totally unconvincing. This passage clearly describes a general resurrection of all the dead: “the dead, great and small”; “the dead were judged”; “the sea gave up the dead in it”; “Death and Hades gave up the dead in them, and all were judged by what they had done”.

Premillennialists quote Revelation 20:4-6 to support their contention that there will be two separate resurrections, one for believers and and another for unbelievers, separated by 1000 years.

But this belief is based on a literal interpretation of this passage (Rev. 20: 4-6 ) from a highly symbolical book, over against the clear teaching in other passages (I.e. John 5:28-29; Acts 24:15; Daniel 12:2; Matthew 25:31-46; etc.) that the resurrection of believers and unbelievers will be simultaneous.

The recognized rule of exegesis is to interpret an obscure passage of scripture in the light the clear teaching of other passages on the subject, not vice versa. Some exegetes have interpreted “the first resurrection” as a spiritual resurrection, for which I believe there is much support.

Verse 4 says: Then I saw thrones, and seated on them were those to whom judgment was committed.” The first question we must ask is, Where are these thrones? “The word “throne” in the book of Revelation is used 47 times, and that all but 3 of these thrones (2:13; 13:2; 16:10) appear to be in heaven.

When we add to this the plain fact that John sees “the souls of those who had been beheaded” (obviously the intermediate state of disembodied spirits of martyrs who have died for their faith),” we are confirmed in our conclusion that the locale of John’s vision has now shifted to heaven.

We may say then whereas the 1000-year-period described in these six verses is the same throughout, verses 1-3 describes what happens on earth during this time, and verses 4-6 depict what happens in heaven.

It is perfectly clear that scripture teaches the rapture takes place in the context of Christ’s coming (“parousia”) or return, which is one event, not two, and therefore it is biblical and correct to state that if one truly believes what Christ taught concerning His return:

“But of that day or hour no one knows, no, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only” (Matthew 24:36), then, no one can know the day or hour when the rapture of the church will take place.

Tom - BiographyMinistries What IS REALLY scarey is: While the Christians are arguing and bickering among themselves, (about such things as above) the enemy (who knows more about the bible than I do) has already read Genesis 11:6 - And the LORD said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them.

I guess what I'm getting at is the 911 religion R one & they get things done. They don't bicker about what the Koran does or doesn't say!!!