Introduction

The prophet Ezekiel was called by the Lord to be a watchman and to pass on to Israel the warnings he heard from the Lord. If he failed to warn the wicked that they would die, Ezekiel would have personal responsibility for their death. If one of his listeners disregarded the warning, their blood would be upon their own head. It must have been a heavy and extremely unpopular burden for Ezekiel to bear. Since we are at the end of the age, there is undoubtedly a watchman’s warning to be given.

   Christians are deeply divided in their opinion about the timing of the Rapture, the snatching away of believers, as described in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18: “the dead in Christ will rise first. 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. Therefore comfort one another with these words.” Will this comforting reunion with the resurrected dead to meet Jesus in the sky happen before the last seven years of this age (pre-tribulation), at the end of that time (post-tribulation), or at some point during this time of trouble coming upon the earth in the Last Days (mid-tribulation)?

   I have heard it said that irrespective of which view one takes on the timing of the Rapture, there are biblical problems. Indeed, over my nearly 50 years of being a Messianic Jewish believer in the Lord Jesus, with a long-term interest in the End Times, I have shifted positions several times on the matter. Over the course of the decades, I have moved from post-tribulation to pre-tribulation, then to pre-wrath, and more recently to partial pre-tribulation. I have, in my time, been an avid reader of the popular “Left Behind” series by the late Tim LaHaye (staunchly pre-tribulation). Subsequently, I have learned much from the writings and teaching of Joel Richardson (post-tribulation) and, over the last couple of years or so, my favourite online end-times teacher has been Nelson Walters (pre-wrath). In recent days, I have felt the Lord impress upon me a different view, which forms the subject of this writing. I am not attempting a rigorous theological treatment of all the Rapture theories. Whichever view you favour, I trust you will find this to be a timely challenge to make spiritual preparation for what lies ahead. Search the Scriptures to see whether the ideas I present are supported by the Word of God. “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter.”[1]

   Many Bible teachers and ministers have been embarrassed in recent years to give instruction on the doctrine of the Rapture. Much of this stems from an understandable desire to distance themselves from the legacy of individuals such as the late Harold Camping. As part of a 100 million US dollar campaign, Camping broadcast on his Family Radio network, initially predicting the Rapture would occur in September 1994, and then subsequently proclaiming the correct date would be in May, then October, 2011.[2] After the May 2011 date failed to materialise, the Daily Mail[3] featured a photograph of a man standing outside an atheist “Rapture party” holding a billboard proclaiming the mocking message, “The End was Nigh or so they say...” But, in our desire to distance ourselves from such ridicule, are we throwing the baby out with the proverbial bathwater? Is the Lord pleased with such an attitude? Is this a wise or foolish response to public false date-setting predictions? Surely, we want to be among those who are eligible for the crown of righteousness because we have craved His appearing.[4]

[1] Proverbs 25:2

[2] www.christianitytoday.com  “Died: Harold Camping, Christian Radio Host Who Predicted the World’s End”

[3] www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article “Paradise postponed: World will now end on OCTOBER 21 says preacher who was surprised we all survived Saturday”

[4] 2 Timothy 4:8

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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®.