Some further theological considerations

You may be struck by how my understanding of the wise and foolish virgins and the Rapture combines both the classic pre-tribulation and the post-tribulation views. Some Christians will be delivered and translated to the safety of heaven before the dark night of the Tribulation, and others will need to persevere through the fire of affliction unto death or the Second Coming of the Lord Jesus at the end of the age. This approach also helps answer inevitable questions, such as the reason why there are so many instructions for believers during the Tribulation. One such passage concerns what the Jewish people should do when they see the Antichrist desecrating the temple in Jerusalem.[1] If all the Bible believers are taken, then who remains to apply the Scriptures to matters of salvation, discipleship and navigation through the final week of Daniel? However, if backslidden Christians, including some Bible teachers and ministers, are left here on earth because they were not considered worthy to be included in the Rapture of the Church, then they will know exactly what is going to happen. They would be highly motivated and equipped, if they turn back to the Lord, to prepare others, including those whom they lead to the Lord at that time.

   The partial Rapture theory is believed to have been developed by Robert Govett MA (Oxon) (1813-1901). He was a former Anglican turned non-denominational pastor and theologian with a reputation for having brilliant intellectual and analytical capabilities. He founded Surrey Chapel, Norwich, in 1854. Charles Hadden Spurgeon commented that Robert Govett was writing 100 years before his time and that, in the future, his work would be highly treasured.[2] Govett took the view that the Rapture is for the watchful, consigning the remainder of believers to the Day of Trouble. He made much of the analogy to which Jesus refers concerning the days of Noah,[3] and took the view that there will be several Raptures.[4] His writings are still available, including “The Parable of the Ten Virgins” and “The Saints’ Rapture.”[5] Robert Govett was succeeded at Surrey Chapel by D.M. Panton, B.A. (Cantab.) (1870-1955) who also adhered to a partial Rapture perspective and promoted this teaching as editor in “The Dawn (London),” where writers such as Ira E. David, Sarah Foulkes Moore, William Leask and C.G.A. Gibson-Smith contributed articles in support.[6] Other proponents of a partial Rapture include the British Brethren Bible teacher G.H. Lang (1874-1958), G.H. Pember (1837-1910), the English theologian and author affiliated with the Plymouth Brethren,[7] and Joseph Seiss (1823-1904), the American theologian and Lutheran minister. The Canadian interdenominational minister Albert Benjamin Simpson (1843-1919) gave serious consideration to the doctrine.[8] Watchman Nee (1903-1972), the Chinese church leader, likened the Rapture to a harvest where only the ripe crops (mature believers) are gathered. He believed that most Christians would require the process of the Tribulation in order to “ripen” and become mature overcomers.[9] A selective Rapture has always been a minority view over the centuries of church history. However, that is no reason to dismiss it as being without merit. We already understand that “... narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”[10]

   The emphasis of Jesus’ teachings in the Olivet Discourse[11] is on being ready for the Rapture. Believers who are interested in the End Times will have different attitudes on what it means to prepare. Many in the pre-tribulation camp eagerly focus on monitoring the various signs such as the situation in Israel, as well as global earthquakes, pestilences, and wars. Those with a mid-tribulation, pre-wrath or post-tribulation view may well be particularly interested in personal practical preparation for the dark days ahead. Surely, whatever our conviction on the timing of the Rapture, we should all be directing our energy to growing in holiness. Theological terms can be very off-putting.  Perhaps the best term for the view here being presented is “Bridegroom readiness!” John the Baptist understood this role of the Messiah and so told his own disciples: “He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice.”[12]

   This leads us to consider other ways in which this writing may jar with the theology of some.  The idea of a level of conditionality for Christians to be admitted to the marriage supper of the Lamb cuts across standard pre-tribulation doctrine, which tends to view the foolish virgins as those who were never truly the Lord’s. The foolish are considered as those only able to briefly light a dry wick because they never had any oil in their vessels to start with.[13] The pre-tribulation theologian and Bible teacher, John F. Walvoord, presents a staunch rebuttal of the concept of a partial Rapture, which he describes as “heterodox,” meaning that it is not the generally accepted view of pre-tribulationists. One of his main objections is that just as salvation is not by works, neither is the consequential benefit of salvation, the Rapture.[14]  Dr Thomas Ice, Executive Director of The Pre-Trib Research Center, amusingly writes that even those Christians not expecting the Rapture, and who have to be taken “kicking and screaming,” will nevertheless be taken![15] He also quotes Randolph Yeager,[16] who wittily remarked that a partial rapture seems to imply rupture in the Body of Christ. The Lord wants us to be alert and watchful, looking forward to the Rapture: “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.”[17] Is it possible that some Christians who fail to heed this advice, rather than being taken “kicking and screaming,” could be overlooked and miss the marriage supper? “Blessed are those servants whom the master, when he comes, will find watching. Assuredly, I say to you that he will gird himself and have them sit down to eat, and will come and serve them.”[18] When Jesus comes to collect His bride for the marriage supper, surely He is looking for watchful believers who enjoy spending time in His presence. If this is the case, then the result would indeed lead to the rupture of the church alluded to by Randolph Yeager.

   A simple internet search will reveal a string of names of Christian leaders, teachers and well-known personalities, who have over the last five years or so, spectacularly fallen from grace into repugnant sin.[19] We may even be personally acquainted with Christian leaders who are habitually unholy in conduct or speech or abusive towards their flock. This sad state of affairs surely cannot be explained by the excuse that none of these individuals were ever truly the Lord’s, that they never belonged to Him and never experienced the oil of the Holy Spirit. It is more likely that they are “foolish virgins.” While we were bringing up our three sons, my late mother-in-law used to wisely say that some children learn the easy way, whilst others learn the hard way. How true this will be for prodigals and backsliders who enter the Tribulation, but subsequently cry out to the Lord for His salvation and mercy, purpose not to take the Mark of the Beast, and are willing to lay down their lives for the Faith.

   The parable of the prodigal son and the father who waits for his return[20] gives us every reason to hope, intercede and believe for the prodigals to return to His sheepfold, even if they do not make the Rapture. There are two situations whereby Christians clearly will irretrievably lose their salvation. Firstly, those who publicly deny the Faith as a consequence of their backsliding and unbelief,[21] and, secondly, those who take the Mark of the Beast.[22] However, there is hope for foolish virgins who have let the Lord down and consequently miss the Rapture. When considering this subject and our personal assurance of salvation,  we can rely on verses like, “I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand,”[23] and, “the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out.”[24] Surely, we are safely held in the hands of our Good Shepherd, yet we are free to make the choice to step out of the sheepfold and, subsequently, if we do not harden our hearts nor take the Mark of the Beast, we can step back in genuine repentance by the bountiful grace of God. Consider what Daniel describes and how this will apply to those who backslide and miss the Rapture: “And some of those of understanding shall fall, to refine them, purify them, and make them white, until the time of the end; because it is still for the appointed time.”[25]

   In biblical times there were two types of sheep pens. There was the large public sort in a city or village which could accommodate more than one flock at a time. This was protected by a gatekeeper and the shepherd would call his own sheep, who would respond and come out because they recognised his voice. Then out in the rural areas, there would have been rough sheep pens built from piles of stones with a gap in the makeshift wall to enable the sheep to come in and out. At night in the countryside, the shepherd would sleep across the entrance and he would literally be the human door.[26] Any thief who wanted to snatch the valuable sheep would have to go through the barrier of the shepherd. This is the background to Jesus describing Himself as the door (or gate) in John 10. No one can snatch us away because He is protecting His sheep.

   Next, we come to the objection that the gifts of the Spirit such as prophecy ceased after the completion of the New Testament.  Does this presentation offend those who hold to cessationism? Indeed it may, since it alludes to prophetic dreams. Many will be familiar with the arguments of those who contend for cessationism, and may well be persuaded by them.[27] Paul instructs us in 1 Corinthians 13 that prophecies will cease (v8), and also, “... we know in part and we prophesy in part. But when that which is perfect has come, then that which is in part will be done away.”[28] Each of us has to decide what is meant by “that which is perfect.” There is a sharp debate in the Christian community on this subject. On one side we have cessationists who believe that prophecies ceased when the canon of Scripture was completed. Then, we have continuationists who axiomatically believe that such gifts continue until the end of the age. If the perfect is marked by the completion of all the books in the Bible, then it follows that Paul’s writing about the gifts of the Spirit in the previous chapter was only intended to hold true for a relatively short period of time. There is nothing to indicate this in the Scriptures.[29] On the contrary, if the perfect is the return and rule of the Lord Jesus, this fits much better with the Old Testament prophecy about God pouring out His Spirit on all people in the Day of the Lord, old men dreaming dreams and young men seeing visions.[30] The American revivalist Jonathan Edwards witnessed notable manifestations of the Holy Spirit in the First and Second Great Awakenings in the 1730s and 1740s.[31] George Whitefield (1714-1770) claimed to receive fresh teachings and communications daily from the Holy Spirit. He attributed the very words that he preached to the Holy Spirit and maintained that it was thus unnecessary to prepare what he was to say. His first sermon was so powerful that it is said that it drove 15 people mad![32] If we are praying for revival in these perilous End Times, we should be expecting even greater outpourings of the Holy Spirit. Yet more oil for our lamps!

   We are now moving on to consider whether paying attention to dreams and visions is somehow unspiritual and of the flesh, cutting across the strict warning: “Do not add to His words, lest He rebuke you, and you be found a liar.”[33] Regarding the words contained in the book of Revelation, we are also told: “If anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes away from the words of this book of prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and the holy city, which are described in this book.”[34] Two different Greek words used in the original New Testament text both translate as “word” in English.  Logos is the word used for the unchanging written Word of God, the Holy Bible, the final authority in all matters of faith and conduct. It occurs in the warning we have just looked at in Revelation, besides other verses in the New Testament.[35] Nevertheless, when Jesus quotes from Deuteronomy: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God,”[36] the Greek word used in the text is not logos but rhema. This term rhema refers to the spoken word and occurs in other New Testament verses too.[37] So, should we confine ourselves to the reliable logos Word, or could the Holy Spirit possibly give us further enlightenment through certain rhema dreams and visions, providing that they do not contradict the written logos? It is my opinion, for reasons I will explain, that authentic dreams and visions from the Lord may well be playing a part in the progressive revelation in these Last Days.

   The prophet Daniel was told: “... shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.”[38] In these Last Days, people are increasingly poring over the book of Daniel, their eyes running over the text and gaining further insight into its meaning. The Apostles were told by the risen Lord Jesus that it was not for them to know the times, nor the seasons, which the Father had fixed by His own authority.[39] However, we are no longer in that position. Israel, the fig tree, blossomed in 1948,[40] heralding the season of the fast-approaching Second Coming. I believe that God Himself is sending dreams and visions in these days to unseal and clarify biblical prophecy, increasing knowledge of the End Times and preparing His people for what is shortly ahead.  We are instructed in the Gospel of John that the Holy Spirit will tell us things to come.[41] Many of us have read the fine book by Corrie ten Boom, “The Hiding Place.”[42] Corrie recalls a conversation when her father taught her that God will give His children the grace to face death exactly when they need it, in just the same way that he only gave his young daughter her train ticket moments before they boarded a train. Are the dreams and visions referred to part of the heavenly ticket many of us need before the sudden arrival and instantaneous departure of the “train” of the Rapture?

   In ancient times, it was accepted that God speaks to men through dreams. In Job, the oldest book of the Bible, Elihu, one of Job’s would-be comforters states, “For God may speak in one way, or in another, yet man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls upon men, while slumbering on their beds.”[43] In Genesis 41, we read of Joseph interpreting Pharoah’s dream of seven years of abundance followed by seven years of famine. This led to Joseph being in a position to save the family of his father Jacob, also known as Israel, from starvation in the land of Canaan. In the book of Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar demanded an accurate interpretation of his dream concerning the statue with a head of gold.[44] If a later Joseph, the foster-father of Jesus, had disregarded the dreams he was given, he would not have married Mary, the mother of the Messiah, and the young Child would have been murdered, along with the other innocents below the age of two.[45]

   Why should we pay attention in this day and age to contemporary dreams and visions? We already are blessed with a multitude of high quality online biblical teachings, not to mention access to a rich library of theological tomes, written by deeply esteemed godly Christians. These resources provide an essential solid Scriptural foundation for our understanding. By contrast, those reporting these dreams tend to be people whom the world would look down upon. Ken Peters reported that sharing his dream in churches only got him into trouble and so he concentrated instead on being a missionary in Guatemala. Brandon Biggs was a church janitor when he had his Tribulation dream.  During His first coming Jesus prayed, “I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.”[46] Is it possible that this pattern of divine concealment and revelation is being repeated in these latter days leading to the Second Coming? Perhaps, in weighing all this up, we need to be reminded that: “God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty.”[47] We may want to ask ourselves instead; is it wise to disregard the messages in biblically-tested modern-day dreams and visions? How else could God be expected to increase knowledge in these Last Days? How does the Lord Himself feel about what is ahead? We get an idea of the importance of this matter to Him by the sheer bulk of prophetic verses in the Word of God. It has been estimated that about one-eighth of the Bible still has a future fulfilment.[48] Surely, He wants His people to understand and prepare accordingly, to heed voices in the wilderness, however faint, crying out “prepare the way of the Lord.”[49]

   Mainstream Christian doctrine is clear that salvation is by faith alone.[50]  Nevertheless, in considering the implications of the parable of the wise and foolish virgins, I would urge attention to working out our own salvation with fear and trembling.[51] Ponder too on the reason why the Apostle Paul expressed concern about being disqualified after preaching to others,[52] and for James telling us that faith without works is dead.[53] It is not sufficient to proclaim this message of the significance of sanctification and drawing near to the Lord, nor just to believe it. “Even the demons believe—and tremble!”[54] We have to additionally manifest our faith by practical steps to deepen our walk with Him.

   For some, the idea of a partial Rapture may raise as many questions as it seeks to address. What degree of unwatchfulness, stubborn sinful ways, compromise and backsliding may disqualify an individual believer from being granted access to the marriage supper? Does the Lord exercise a different level of judgement and grace over His followers in the End Times than upon those who died in Christ previously? Why is there such a paucity of explicit teaching in the Scriptures on the subject? Some things we can only leave with the One who said: “for My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways.”[55]As Abraham said to the Lord when he was interceding for Sodom: “shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?”[56] This is also a good opportunity to remind ourselves of the verse we considered in the introduction: “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter.”[57]

[1] Mark 13:14

[2] www.themillennialkingdom.org.uk “ROBERT GOVETT, M. A.” 

[3] Matthew 24:36-39

[4] For details of his view see his article reproduced on www.watchman-nee.nl/partial.htm: “Unwatchful believers of the Church will be left in the Great Tribulation.”

[5] www.icmbooksdirect.co.uk

[6] www.raptureofchurch.com/Eschatology/4.htm

[7] www.myrtlefieldhouse.com. “Some observations on the doctrine called ‘Partial Rapturism’ or ‘Conditional Kingdom’” and www.brethrenarchive.org 

[8] prophecycountdown.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/09/Oil-In-Your-Vessel1.pdf

[9] www.watchmannee.org/scriptural-teachings.html  section on Rapture

[10] Matthew 7:14

[11] Matthew 24 and 25

[12] John 3:29

[13] www.ccel.org/ccel/edersheim/lifetimes.x.vii.html

[14] walvoord.com/article/63

[15] www.rapture-notes.com/wise-and-foolish-virgins

[16] American theologian, former University professor and author of such books as “The Renaissance New Testament.”

[17] Matthew 25:13

[18] Luke 12:37

[19] For example, “A respected Christian leader has been caught in serious sin. Now what?” Premier Christianity Magazine 3rd October 2022 and “Church Leadership Scandals and the Miracle of Ordinary Faithfulness” Firebrand Magazine June 25th 2024

[20] Luke 15:11-32

[21] Hebrews 6:4-6

[22] Revelation 20:4

[23] John 10:28

[24] John 6:37

[25] Daniel 11:35

[26] Got Questions Internet article: “What did Jesus mean when He said ‘I am the door?’ (John 10:7)?”

[27] A good outline is provided in the internet article “Got Questions –  Is cessationism biblical? What is a cessationist?”

[28] 1 Corinthians 13:9-10

[29] Chris Reed, Brandon Biggs: “Where are we on God‘s prophetic time clock?” YouTube Last Days. See too www.samstorms.org “Does the Existence of a Completed Canon of Scripture Preclude the Need for Signs, Wonders, and Miracles” and “Does Cessationism Still Stand? A Response to Tom Pennington”

[30] Joel 2:28

[31] lexloiz.wordpress.com “Jonathan Edwards Defends the Effects of the Power of the Spirit”

[32] “Refreshings of God’s Spirit in My Soul: George Whitefield and the Role of the Holy Spirit in Preaching” Frankie Melton, Jr

[33] Proverbs 30:6

[34] Revelation 22:19

[35] Luke 8:11, John 1:1,14 , 6:60, 17:17, Philippians 2:16, Hebrews 4:12

[36] Matthew 4:4

[37] Luke 1:38, John 6:63,68,  Acts 11:16, Romans 10:8-9,17, Ephesians 5:26, 6:17, 1 Peter 1:25, Hebrews 11:3

[38] Daniel 12:4

[39] Acts 1:7

[40] Matthew 24:32-33. Israel’s declaration of independence took place on 14th May 1948.

[41] John 16:13

[42] Hodder & Stoughton edition published 2004

[43] Job 33:14-15

[44] Daniel 2

[45] Matthew 1:20-21, 2:13,19

[46] Matthew 11:25

[47] 1 Corinthians 1:27

[48] Got Questions website: “How Much of the Bible is Prophecy?”

[49] Luke 3:4

[50] Got Questions: “Is salvation by faith alone, or by faith plus works?”

[51] Philippians 2:12

[52] 1 Corinthians 9:27

[53] James 2:20

[54] James 2:19b

[55] Isaiah 55:8-9

[56] Genesis 18:25

[57] Proverbs 25:2

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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®.