“Astrape” and “Parousia”

Next Part PART TWO – PROMISED PROTECTION

Revelation 1:16 describes Christ’s appearance as “the sun [that] shines in his strength.” That is bright! Jesus Himself describes His Coming this way: “For as the lightning comes out of the east, and shines even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Matt. 24:27).

Two Greek words should be noted here. These are altered and misapplied by rapturists to change Jesus’ intended meaning.

“Lightning” comes from a strape, meaning “lightning, glare, bright shining.” Would any suggest that people could not see lightning occurring worldwide? Some do suggest this about Christ’s Return, even though it is foretold to be as a GLARE and BRIGHT SHINING that “comes out of the east, and shines even unto the west.”

The word translated “coming” is parousia, meaning “being near, coming, presence.” Rapture supporters claim this does not really mean “coming,” but instead, a “secret nearness” or “invisible presence.” Ridiculous! This is plain dishonesty with Scripture. Jesus said what He meant. Had He meant “secret nearness,” He would have said this to His disciples—and to all who would read ever after.

Parousia is used in many other scriptures (Matt. 24:3, 27, 37, 39; I Cor. 15:23; 16:17; II Cor. 7:6-7; 10:10; Phil. 1:26; 2:12; I Thes. 2:19; 3:13; 4:15). In all of them they refer to the same meaning—not some mysterious “secret nearness.” Remember, rapture theorists speak of Jesus’ secret coming and His visible coming. The secret one is fiction, fantasy, invention—PURE IMAGINATION. It may be real in its authors’ minds, but it is not in the Bible.

Christ’s Second—Final—Coming

As we have seen, the rapture theory has some truth mixed with MUCH error. The difference between this teaching and what God’s Word really says about Christ’s Return is astounding.

Recall that God’s Word reveals a future last fulfilment of the “abomination of desolation,” when a religious-political-economic-military force stops the daily sacrifices at the Temple in Jerusalem. This destruction will be one of the two aspects of the sign for God’s people to flee, again, as you will learn in greater detail in Part Two, to a physical place of protection. Soon after, the Tribulation will strike the world—to the complete surprise of all its inhabitants.

This is explained by the apostle Paul in I Thessalonians 5:2: “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.” The apostle Peter underscored this: “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up” (II Pet. 3:10).

While no one knows when a thief is going to come, homeowners certainly do know when he has broken and entered their house. This worst time of trouble in history will last three and a half years—the duration of the reign of the Beast and False Prophet. No one will—or could—miss it.

Revelation 1:7 declares, “Behold, He comes with clouds; and every eye shall SEE Him [again, nothing secret here]...and all kindred's of the earth shall wail because of Him.” Also, how could anyone miss such a verse? It practically screams off the page! Jesus further confirmed in Acts 1:9-11 that He will return in the clouds.

Sadly, most just do not read their Bibles, choosing to trust deceived ministers instead.

Let’s repeat from Matthew 24:1-51 “And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn [this would be closely connected to wailing], 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 with a great sound of a TRUMPET, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds [the “dead in Christ” will be resurrected—not raptured—from their graves], from one end of heaven to the other” (Mt 24:30-31). This should be literally impossible to misunderstand. Christ and His saints will then rule for 1,000 years in the established kingdom of God. This is the PLAIN TRUTH about what will occur at Christ’s Second Coming.

Do not be fooled by teachings claiming that Christ has already returned a second time, or that He is returning in secret. Christ clearly warned in Matthew 24:23-27: “Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For there shall arise false Christ's, and false prophets [what follows should sober you], and shall show great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect. Behold, I have told you before [this is then a repeated warning]. Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth: behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it not. For as the lightning comes out of the east, and shines even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (vs. 23-27).

The events preceding Christ’s Return are certainly horrible to contemplate. How to get through them naturally engenders more than worry—it begets great fear. So, it is also natural to want to escape what is coming. The rapture is merely a humanly devised path for escaping the horror of the Tribulation. The problem has always been that it is not what GOD says!

Jesus warned that many false teachers would arise. Deception about His Second Coming would not be an exception. Peter warned: “For we have not followed cunningly devised fables[Greek: a tale, fiction, myth], when we made known unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ...” (II Pet. 1:16).

While this verse refers to accurately representing Christ’s First Coming, the principle applies to His Second. The rapture is a tale—a myth—aimed at giving what is false hope to the unwitting and unsuspecting! The Bible records the unmistakably LOUD and BRIGHT Coming of Christ. His Second—FINAL—Coming will mark the end of the three-and-a-half-year period of the Great Tribulation and Day of the Lord, and will inaugurate the 1,000-year reign of Christ and His saints on the earth.

Jesus Christ built His Church—the true Church—the only one He built—2,000 years ago. This Church believes and teaches the truths of the Bible—all of them—not human ideas—any of them! The people of this Church have always stood in the plain certainty of what God does promise for those alive at the end—not the false hope of human inventions.

Reject the fiction of the rapture theory—and accept the TRUTH of what God really promises in your Bible.