Thessalonians 1&2 Lesson #9

v     MEMORY VERSE:  1COR 1:30

v     READ 1THE 4:15

Ø      THE PHRASE, “…WE WHICH ARE ALIVEAND REMAIN UNTO THE COMING OF THE LORD…”, REFERS TO THE POINT IN TIME WHEN THERAPTURE OCCURS. 

§         IF THE RAPTURE WERE TOOCCUR 5 MINUTES FROM NOW, YOU WILL PROBABLY BE ALIVE.

·        THE PERTINENT QUESTION IS, WHICHLIVING HUMAN BEINGS WILL BE RAPTURED AND WHICH LIVING HUMAN BEINGS WILL REMAIN ON EARTH?

¨      THERE ARE SOME CHRISTIANS WHO TEACH THAT NOTALL BELIEVERS WILL BE RAPTURED.

Ø      READ REV 3:10

§         IN THE CONTEXT OF THE BOOKOF REVELATION, THERE ARE 7 MESSAGES TO CHURCHES THAT EXISTED WHEN JOHN WROTE THE BOOK. INTHESE MESSAGES, THERE ARE PROMISES TO THOSE WHO “OVERCOME”. REV 3:10 IS ONE OFTHOSE PROMISES.

·        THEREFORE, THOSE BELIEVERS WHO“OVERCOME” WILL ESCAPE THE EXPERIENCE OF LIVING IN THE TRIBULATION PERIOD OF 7YEARS.

¨      IF THAT IS TRUE THEN, LOGICALLY SPEAKING,SOME CHRISTIANS WHO ARE NOT “OVERCOMERS” WILL NOT BE RAPTURED. THIS ARGUMENTCOMES DOWN TO THE FACT OF DEFINING AN “OVERCOMER” OF WHICH THERE ARE AS MANYDEFINITIONS AS THERE ARE BELIEVERS!

¨      PAUL IS THE ONE WHO WROTE ABOUT THE RAPTUREIN THESSALONIANS AND CORINTHIANS. WHAT DOES PAUL SAY?

Ø      IN 1THE 4:16 PAUL SAYS THAT THOSE WHO AREDEAD “IN CHRIST” ARE RAPTURED. THEREFORE, THE SAME CONDITION MUST BE PRESENT FORTHOSE WHO ARE ALIVE. THEY MUST BE “IN CHRIST”.

Ø      IN 1COR 15:57-58 PAUL SAYS THAT IT IS CHRISTWHO GIVES US THE VICTORY AND ALL WE NEED TO DO IS REMAIN STEADFAST AND UNMOVEABLE “INTHE LORD”

§         THEREFORE, WE CAN CONLUDETHAT IT IS NOT EFFORT AND WORKS ON OUR PART THAT MAKES US WORTHY TO GO IN THE RAPTURE. ITIS THE GRACE AND MERCY OF GOD THAT ENABLES US TO GO IN THE RAPTURE. IT IS CHRIST WHOCAUSES US TO BE “OVERCOMERS”. ALL WE HAVE TO DO IS TO BE “IN CHRIST”.

¨       WHATDOES IT MEAN TO BE “IN CHRIST”?

Ø      READ 1COR 1:30

§         THOSE WHO ARE “INCHRIST” ARE REDEEMED AND SANCTIFIED. IN OTHER WORDS, THEY ARE BORN AGAIN HAVINGRECEIVED JESUS CHRIST INTO THEIR HEARTS. HE REDEEMED AND SANCTIFIED THEM.

¨      WE CAN CONCLUDE THAT THOSE WHO ARE THE TRUEBELIEVERS IN JESUS CHRIST ARE THOSE WHO WILL BE RAPTURED.

Ø      OLD TESTAMENT PROPHETIC ILLUSTRATIONS OF THERAPTURE:

§         WE CAN GAIN SOME INSIGHTINTO THE RAPTURE BY EXAMINING SOME OLD TESTAMENT PROPHETIC HINTS.

·        HOWEVER, WE MUST REMEMBER THATNOWHERE DOES THE OLD TESTAMENT TALK EXPLICITELY ABOUT THE RAPTURE.

§         ENOCH  GEN 5:22-24

·        THE BIBLE SAYS THAT ENOCH WALKEDWITH GOD, AND GOD TOOK HIM.

¨      THIS MAN HAD A CLOSE PERSONAL RELATIONSHIPWITH GOD.

Ø      OTHER PEOPLE IN THE OLD TESTAMENT HAD A CLOSEPERSONAL RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD BUT THEY WERE NOT TAKEN WITHOUT FIRST GOING THROUGHPHYSICAL DEATH. WHAT WAS SO SPECIAL ABOUT ENOCH? NOTHING.

§         EVEN IN THIS OLD TESTAMENTILLUSTRATION, IT IS BY GOD’S MERCY AND GRACE THAT A PERSON IS RAPTURED AND NOT BY HISOWN WORKS OR HIS ABILITY TO “OVERCOME”.

§         ELIJAH  2KI 2:8-10

·        THE TWO PROPHETS, ELIJAH ANDELISHA, WERE TOGETHER. THEY CROSSED THE JORDAN RIVER ON DRY GROUND. THEN ELIJAH WAS TAKENUP INTO HEAVEN WHILE ELISHA REMAINED ON EARTH.

¨      PROPHETICALLY IT IS AN ILLUSTRATION WHEREELIJAH REPRESENTS THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH, RAPTURED OUT OF THE WORLD. ELISHA REPRESENTSTHE NATION OF ISRAEL LEFT ON EARTH.

Ø      THIS IS EXACTLY WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN THERAPTURE OF THE CHURCH OCCURS. THE NATION OF ISRAEL WILL BE LEFT ON EARTH TO ENDURE THEPRESSURES OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD UNTIL THEY ACCEPT CHRIST AS THEIR MESSIAH.

Ø      REMEMBER THAT ELISHA ASKED FOR A DOUBLEPORTION OF GOD’S POWER ON HIS LIFE.

§         DURING THE TRIBULATIONPERIOD, THERE WILL BE A DOUBLE PORTION OF GOD’S POWER ON THE LIVES OF THE 144,000JEWISH WITNESSES AND THE 2 WITNESSES.

§         SOLOMON’S TEMPLE  2CHR 2:17-18  1KIN 6:7  2CHR 7:1-3

·        WHEN SOLOMON FINISHED BUILDINGTHE TEMPLE IN JERUSALEM, IT WAS ABSOLUTELY PERFECT. GOD WAS PLEASED. FIRE CAME DOWN FROMHEAVEN AND CONSUMED THE SACRIFICE OF DEDICATION, AND THE GLORY OF GOD FILLED THE TEMPLE.

¨      GOD IS BUILDING HIS CHURCH, THE BODY OFCHRIST. HE ADDS TO IT EVERY DAY, THOSE PEOPLE WHO ARE BEING SAVED. THE BIBLE SAYS THAT THECHURCH IS LIKE THE TEMPLE.

Ø      READ EPH 2:19-22

§         WHEN CHRIST’S CHURCHIS COMPLETE, THE RAPTURE WILL OCCUR.

·        CHRIST’S PURPOSE FOR THECHURCH:

¨      TO SPREAD THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST SO THATMANY MIGHT COME TO KNOW CHRIST AND BE SAVED.

¨      TO ENCOURAGE THOSE BELIEVERS TO MATURITY INJESUS CHRIST SO THEY WOULD BECOME A SPOTLESS BRIDE.

Ø      THE CHURCH AND ISRAEL ARE 2 SEPARATE GROUPSOF GOD’S PEOPLE. DURING THE TIME GOD WORKS WITH ONE GROUP, THE OTHER IS EITHER ABSENTOR DORMANT.

§         THROUGH THE OLD TESTAMENT,GOD WORKED WITH ISRAEL. THERE WAS NO “CHURCH”.

§         THROUGH THIS NEW TESTAMENTAGE, GOD IS WORKING WITH THE CHURCH. ISRAEL IS LYING DORMANT IN SPIRITUAL BLINDNESS.

§         DURING THE TRIBULATIONPERIOD, GOD WILL WORK AGAIN WITH ISRAEL. THE CHURCH WILL BE ABSENT BECAUSE OF THEPRE-TRIBULATION RAPTURE.

v     MAT 24:3-44  THESIGNS OF THE END TIMES

Ø      THERE IS MUCH CONTROVERSY ABOUT THEINTERPRETATION OF MAT 24.

§         WHAT WE MUST REMEMBER ISTHAT MAT 24 WAS WRITTEN TO THE JEWS. JESUS ANSWERS QUESTIONS ABOUT THE JEWISH TEMPLE ANDTHE FALSE JEWISH MESSIAH. THEREFORE, EVERYTHING ELSE ABOUT THE CHAPTER WILL ALSO RELATE TOTHE JEWS AND NOT TO THE CHURCH.

Ø      MAT 24 IS OFTEN MIS-INTERPRETED AS RELATINGTO THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH WHEN IN FACT IT IS NOT ABOUT THE RAPTURE. IT IS ABOUT THETRIBULATION PERIOD AND THE EVENT OF THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST

Ø      THE DISCIPLES WERE JUST AS CURIOUS ABOUT THESECOND COMING OF CHRIST AS YOU AND I ARE. THEY ASKED JESUS ABOUT IT IN THE FORM OF 3QUESTIONS. (MAT 24:3)

§         -1- “WHEN SHALL THESETHINGS BE?” 

·        READ THE ANSWER IN MAT 24:15-28

¨      THE QUESTION REFERS TO JERUSALEM AND THETEMPLE.

Ø      DEFILEMENT OF THE TEMPLE IN THE MIDDLE OF THETRIBULATION PERIOD WHEN THE ANTI-CHRIST ESTABLISHES THE WORSHIP OF HIS OWN IMAGE.

Ø      THE FLIGHT OF THE JEWS AT THE DEFILEMENT OFTHE TEMPLE (70 AD AND IN THE MIDDLE OF THE TRIBULATION)

Ø      THE GREAT DECEPTION ON THE JEWS DURING THETRIBULATION.

§         -2- “WHAT SHALL BE THESIGN OF THY COMING?”

·        READ THE ANSWER IN MAT 24:29-31

¨      THE QUESTION REFERS TO THE EVENT OFTHE SECOND COMING:

Ø      SIGNS IN THE HEAVENS.

§         -3- “WHAT SHALL BE THESIGN OF THE END OF THE AGE?”

·        READ THE ANWER IN MAT 24:4-14

¨      THE QUESTION REFERS TO GENERAL SIGNS BEFORETHE TRIBULATION AND CONTINUING INTO THE TRIBULATION PERIOD.

Ø      SPIRITUAL DECEPTION AND APOSTASY.

Ø      WARS AND RUMOR OF WARS.

Ø      NATION AGAINST NATION, KINGDOM AGAINSTKINGDOM.

Ø      FAMINE, PESTILENCE, EARTHQUAKES.

Ø      PERSECUTION OF CHRISTIANS.

Ø      FALSE PROPHETS.

Ø      THE PREACHING OF THE GOSPEL.

¨      READ MAT 24: 32-51  SIGNS BY EXAMPLE:

Ø      ISRAEL EXISTING AS AN INDEPENDENT NATION.

Ø      AN ABUNDANCE OF SIN AS IN THE DAYS OF NOAH.

§         THE DAYS OF NOAH …ONETAKEN AND ONE LEFT (MAT 24:30-42)

·        DOES MAT 24:37-42, WHERE THEREARE TWO IN THE FIELD WITH ONE TAKEN AND ONE LEFT, REFER TO THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH OR TOTHE EVENT OF THE SECOND COMING OF CHRIST?

¨      THERE ARE MANY WHO USE THIS PASSAGE TO REFERTO THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH. HOWEVER, THERE IS A BIG PROBLEM WITH THIS INTERPRETATION IFIT REFERS TO THE RAPTURE. THE CONTEXT INDICATES THE EVENT IS LIKE THE FLOOD OF NOAH. INNOAH’S FLOOD, WHO WAS TAKEN OUT OF THE WORLD? IT WAS THE NON-BELIEVING SINNERS. THOSELEFT IN THE WORLD WERE THE BELIEVERS, NOAH AND HIS FAMILY.

¨      IN THE RAPTURE, WHO IS TAKEN OUT OF THEWORLD? THE BELIEVERS, WHILE THOSE LEFT IN THE WORLD ARE THE NON-BELIEVERS. THEREFORE, MAT24:37-42 CANNOT REFER TO THE RAPTURE.

¨      INSTEAD, MAT 24: 37-42 REFERS TO THE EVENTOF THE SECOND COMING WHERE NON-BELIEVERS ARE KILLED AT THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON AND TAKENOUT OF THE WORLD JUST LIKE IN THE FLOOD OF NOAH.

v     HOMEWORK
v     1THE 4:16
THIS IS A SELF-STUDY. PLEASE DO NOT SEND HOMEWORK ANSWERS TO THE TEACHER FORCORRECTION.

v     APPLICATION FOR 1THE 4:15

Ø      ARE YOU SURE YOU ARE “IN CHRIST”AND WILL GO TO HEAVEN IF THE RAPTURE OCCURS BEFORE YOU DIE?

Ø      HOW DO YOU KNOW FOR SURE YOU ARE “INCHRIST”?

v     PREPARATION FOR 1THE 4:16

Ø      READ 1THE 4:16

§         READ PSA 47

·        IN WHAT VERSE OF PSA 47 DO YOUSEE THE RAPTURE?

§         READ MAT 25:1-13  THE PARABLE OF THE VIRGINS

·        WHAT DO YOU THINK THE OILREPRESENTS?

·        WHY COULD SOME VIRGINS NOT SHAREOIL WITH OTHER VIRGINS?

·        WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE MESSAGEOF THIS PARABLE?

v     MEMORY VERSE:  MATTHEW 25:13