Mysteries of the Rapture By Joel Joseph Researched by Pastor Gary Boyd
In the previous edition we looked at some of the mysteries of God and what that really means. By way of a quick summary, here are some main points: The word “mystery” in the original is “mysterion” used 27 times in the Bible meaning hidden from those on the outside, or hidden from the ungodly, generally mysteries, religious secrets, confided only to the believer and not to ordinary unsaved men. It does not mean that those things are hidden from the believer – quite the contrary. Romans 16:25 “Now to Him who is able to establish you according to the gospel and preaching of Yeshua the Messiah, according to the revelation of the mystery which was kept secret since the world began but now has been made manifest and by the prophetic scriptures has been made known...”
The rapture of the church is one of these mysteries: 1Corinthians 15:51 “Behold I show you a mystery: We shall not all sleep (die) but we shall be changed in a moment in a twinkling of an eye...” This is why the unsaved cannot even comprehend what the rapture is, and why they mock us! To them it’s all a closed up mystery - an Enigma. Unveiled and revealed Bible prophecy is vitally important in so many respects, least of all in assisting us to fear the Lord. Only those who know and understand the fear of the Lord, have access to true deeper revelation and biblical wisdom.
But why does a huge part of the church not teach on these wonderful things? Is it still a mystery to them, or are they just deceived, teaching only nice, happy, motivational, me-now sermons? Is your church destroying you by preaching from the Bible? If you or your church will not hear or receive or teach on the prophetic word, especially the prophecies of the greatest prophet ever – Yeshua, you are in danger of being destroyed. You must “heed the prophetic word.” (2 Peter 1:19) One of my early mentors from the 70s, Derek Prince, often said, “Ignore the prophetic word at your own peril!” Some are thinking – that’s a bit outrageous Joel! Who are you telling I’m going to be destroyed because I ignore prophecy? Don’t you know I’m a Christian and I love Jesus? The thing is though, prophecy is 27% of scripture, you then would be ignoring almost a third of God’s written word. Okay, well here is the word of the Lord, out of the Bible for you and all church leaders: Acts 3:22-23 “Moses truly said to the fathers: ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet (Yeshua) like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you. And it shall come to pass that every soul who will not hear that Prophet shall be utterly destroyed from among the people.’” So, I say again, is your church destroying you? Is your minister leading you to destruction by teaching you nice happy motivational sermons
week after week and teaching nothing on prophecy? Just read that verse above again! The churches, ministries and individuals who won’t teach Bible prophecy are a great danger to you, but also an affront to our Lord. They are rejecting prophecy, a major aspect of the greatest prophet of all – Yeshua! No wonder their churches are dead and being destroyed in great numbers. Do you know that a huge number of churches are falling apart right now? They are “being utterly destroyed.” The numbers are staggering. But what is more staggering is that there is one consistent common cause. They are all Spirit-less churches, mostly denominational, which don’t believe, preach or teach end-time prophecy, including the rapture! Perhaps an even greater, unsurprising tragedy is that the “utter destruction” that the Bible promises to these who won’t teach prophecy is resulting in the Spirit of God moving out to let in an evil, dark spirit – and they can’t even see it. On the other hand, a large part of the church is seeing phenomenal growth amongst those who would dare not reject the prophetic teaching of our Lord. This is especially true in the eastern nations today. Again, I ask, is your church or minister preparing you for destruction by what he won’t teach? And please don’t tell me that this is the way it’s always been. My friends, this time things are different! You see, it’s not a matter of what you want to believe. It’s not a matter of cherry-picking your doctrine. I tell you as a believer, if you do not
know or get to know prophecy in these dark days – you are headed for destruction! This does not mean that we all have to agree on every last, little detail, but we must agree on the big, major, doctrinal issues. Hebrews 6:1-2 NLT says, “So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don’t need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds[a] and placing our faith in God. You don’t need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.” Here’s a nice little prophecy for those who won’t preach the fullness of the word: Isaiah 29:11-14 “The whole vision has become to you like a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one who is illiterate, saying, ‘read this please’; and he says, ‘I cannot for it is sealed’...Inasmuch as these people draw near to Me with their mouths, and honor Me with their lips, but have removed their hearts far from Me, and their fear towards Me is taught by the commandments of men...Therefore the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hidden.”
What happens to our bodies and when? Thankfully, all true believers will soon get new resurrection bodies. These will be new supernatural eternal, glorious bodies, completing our salvation.
Our new bodies, will be given to the “dead in Messiah” and “we who are alive” at the time. It will occur in a blinding flash at the rapture. The same thing happened to Jesus in the tomb when he was translated. Here is the classical rapture verse: 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 “The Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Messiah 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.” Now, note what happens as the rapture occurs: 1 Corinthians 15:51-53 “Behold, I show you a mystery: We shall not all sleep (die), but we will be changed, in a moment in a twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet (for the church age.) For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible (old bodies) must put on incorruption, and this mortal, immortality.” These new bodies will neither marry nor produce children. That is very important to remember! Matthew 22:30 “In the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels of heaven.” In regards to marriage and childbearing, we will be like the angels who do not marry. Other verses reveal additional, incredible supernatural qualities, which we will receive. We will be just like Him. (Romans 8)
Now consider this huge difference in the Millennium: Isaiah 65:20-25 NLT says, “No longer will babies die when only a few days old. No longer will adults die before they have lived a full life. No longer will people be considered old at one hundred! Only the cursed will die that young! 21 In those days people will live in the houses they build and eat the fruit of their own vineyards. 22 Unlike the past, invaders will not take their houses and confiscate their vineyards. For my people will live as long as trees,
and my chosen ones will have time to enjoy their hard-won gains. 23 They will not work in vain, and their children will not be doomed to misfortune. For they are people blessed by the Lord, and their children, too, will be blessed. 24 I will answer them before they even call to me. While they are still talking about their needs, I will go ahead and answer their prayers! 25 The wolf and the lamb will feed together. The lion will eat hay like a cow. But the snakes will eat dust. In those days no one will be hurt or destroyed on my holy mountain. I, the Lord, have spoken!� Do you see what I see? It is huge! If there is no pre-tribulation rapture and only a post-tribulation rapture, this would mean that all the saints together - of the church age and the tribulation, would get their resurrection bodies together as we go into the Millennium. So, would we all be marrying and producing kids and working like normal in the Millennium? Or would be in resurrection bodies, not marrying, like the angels?
Sorry, you can’t have it both ways. The answer is an incredible proof of a pre-tribulation rapture. It is another group, the tribulation saints (ones left after Armageddon who were not killed but remained alive) who go into the Millennium in natural bodies, but with longevity restored! Wonderful Rapture Meanings: What’s in a name you ask? Here are some of the words used to describe the rapture in the Bible: ●The catching away. (1 Thessalonians 4:17) ●The escape. (Luke 21:36) ●The gathering. (2 Thessalonians 2:1) ●The transformation. (Philippians 3:20) ●The rescue and deliverance. (1 Thessalonians 1:10) ●The blessed hope. (Titus 2:13) ●The mercy. (Jude21) (not a mercy) ●The instant changing. (1 Corinthians 15:51) ●The manifestation of the sons of God. (Romans 8:18) ●Redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:18) Let’s string those together. The rapture is described as:
●The catching away. ●The escape. ●The gathering, ●The transformation. ●The rescue. ●The deliverance. ●The hope. ●The mercy. ●The changing ●The manifestation. ●The redemption. Does that paint a glorious picture or what? Just those words alone reveal a great deal about the mystery of the rapture.
Glorious pre-tribulation rapture types: ●Enoch is a well-accepted type of the rapture of the church. He was taken alive by God, before the flood of Noah, a type of the tribulation. (Hebrews 11:5) The Bible says, “God took him.” (Genesis 5:24)
This amazing phrase is Strong’s H3947 “Laqach.” Meanings: Take, carry away, seize, capture, stolen, capture as flash of lightning, receive in marriage. Isn’t that the rapture, perfectly pre-figured in the Old Covenant? How incredible is that! ●Joseph has so many types and meanings associated with his story. Let’s have a look at a few: Just as Joseph gets ready to reveal his true identity to his brothers, something amazing occurs: Genesis 45:1 “Joseph could not restrain himself before all those that stood before him, and he cried out, ‘make everyone go out from me!’ So no one stood with him while Joseph made himself known to his brothers.” Who are these that are taken away before Joseph reveals himself to his brothers? In type, we could say that this was the church. The great revealing is done to the Jews alone. Joseph is a type of our Messiah, who has no helpers or missionaries or church evangelists with him. He does the work alone, as is seen in many other verses. There is a similar type in the story of Daniel and the fiery furnace. The three children of Israel are thrown into the fire, but Daniel himself, a type of the church here, is nowhere to be found! There are many other glorious types of the rapture hidden in the stories of the Bible.
More on the mystery of the rapture in the Old Covenant:
Is this amazing passage below a hidden story of the rapture? Is the church not the “faithful man” and the “first ripe fruit”? Micah 7:1-4 “Woe is me! For I am like those who gather summer fruits...there is no cluster to eat of the first ripe fruit, which my soul desires. The faithful man has perished (disappeared) from the earth, and there is no one upright among men...The day of your watchman and your punishment comes; now shall be their perplexity.”
The word translated “perish” is Strong’s H6, “Abad.” Meaning: “escape, flee, taken, perished, void” Is this verse below not another Old Covenant verse which could apply to the rapture? Isaiah 26:20-21 “Come my people, enter your chambers, and shut the door behind you; hide yourself as it were, for a little moment, until the indignation (tribulation) is past. For behold the Lord comes out of His place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. The earth will also disclose her blood, and will no more cover her slain.” Ephraim and Manasseh are the modern day Christians of the West. Some say they are the British, some say the US. They are neither. They are the redeemed of the nations which would include the true bornagain disciples of all these nations. Hosea 9:11 “As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird – no birth, no pregnancy, no conception!” The surrounding context of the verse above speaks of the rebellion of Israel and its coming troubles. But right here we have this astounding verse! Is it not a type of the rapture? No one knows! – Rubbish! Even the unbelievers know and repeatedly misquote this verse, as do many Christians: Matthew 24:36 “Of that day and hour no one knows, no not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.” They all say, you see, it says no one knows when the rapture will be!
Prepare for a big shock! If you read the preceding verses they are speaking of the tribulation period. In fact a previous heading is “The Great Tribulation.” If you read the verses following Matthew 24:36, again they are speaking of the tribulation period. If you read the other parallel gospel accounts, again, they are speaking of the tribulation period. So why then, right in the middle of a lengthy and involved discourse on the tribulation period, would there suddenly be a verse saying “no one knows” when the rapture of the church will be? The answer is simple. Matthew 24:36 is not talking of the rapture at all. In fact, it is not talking of anything that has to do with time! Are you surprised? Let’s do a quick word study: Matthew 24:36 “Of that day and hour no one knows...” It is the conditions of the time (tribulation) which are being spoken of. It is saying...of these horrendous tribulation conditions no one knows! That changes the entire meaning doesn’t it? That also makes it completely consistent with the surrounding context. Now let’s dig a bit deeper! Matthew 24:36 “Of that day and hour no one knows...” What “day and hour”? Is it the rapture? No it is not. Again the presumption is wrong, wrong, wrong! The Bible uses the term “Day of the Lord” for various events. One usage is to describe the entire church age. One usage is to describe the very
last day of the tribulation and the Second Coming. The most common usage is to describe the seven-year tribulation period. You have to go by context to see which one is being referred to. So now we have the word “day” as a reference to the tribulation. Let’s go on: Revelation 3:10 “I will keep you from the hour of trial that will come upon the whole world...” The Bible uses the word “hour” to refer to the entire seven year tribulation. So now we have “day” and “hour” as references to the tribulation period. So, let’s go back to Matthew 24:36. This is what it is saying: Of these terrible conditions in the tribulation period, no one knows. He can’t even imagine how bad it will be. Again that satisfies the surrounding tribulation-context and the context of the parallel verses. But what about the term, “no one knows the day and hour,” being used as an idiom for the Feast of Trumpets, the next to be fulfilled prophetically? This feast is also known as the feast of which no one knows the day and hour, due to it beginning on the new moon, which could occur over two days? If Matthew 24:36 is a reference to the tribulation period as a whole, and the Feast of Trumpets marks the start of the tribulation then we can rightly use this as a marker for a pre-tribulation rapture as well, because they occur in conjunction with each other.
So now, please get rid of the use of that verse saying no one knows the time of the rapture!
Will we see the rapture coming? There will be numerous signs of the coming tribulation, so yes we will, because it occurs as the tribulation begins. Apostasy: A mystery revealed: 2 Thessalonians 2:3 states, “Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away (apostasy) comes first and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition.” The verse above has been the source of much confusion and debate over the years. Many people have taken it to mean that the rapture can’t happen until the apostasy or falling away of the church. The “Day” spoken of in this verse refers to the entire seven year tribulation period. The word “apostasy” can also be translated as “departure.” If you do a word study, you will find something amazing. “Apostasy” is used 18 times. It is used 16 times as a verb and twice as a noun. Four times it means leaving the faith. That means that 14 times it means depart or get up and leave – permanently. We must take the context into consideration as well as the frequency of the use of the word. So, it should say: 2 Thessalonians 2:3 “Let no one deceive you by any means, for the tribulation period, will not begin unless the departure (rapture of the church) happens first and the man of sin is revealed.” Doesn’t that now make a whole lot of sense? And we have not violated or changed the word, just corrected erroneous translations!
The tragedy of unbelief: There is a principle revealed in the Bible, which people would do well to take heed of. It’s not” when I see it, I’ll believe it”! It’s just the opposite. You must come to the Lord in belief, and then you will see. Matthew 13:58 “He did no mighty works there (Nazareth) because of their unbelief.” Hebrews 3:19 “They could not enter into the Promised Land because of their unbelief.” Psalm 78:21-22 “The Lord was furious; so a fire was kindled against Jacob, and His anger came up against Israel, because they did not believe in God, and did not trust in His salvation.”
Psalm 95:10 “This is a people who go astray in their hearts and they do not know My ways, so I swore in My wrath, they shall not enter My rest.” Psalm 106:14-15 “They (Jews) lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and tested God in the desert, and He gave them their request, but sent leanness into their soul.” Psalm 55:19 “Because they do not change, therefore they do not fear God.” Do you see why so many will remain blind and dumb to the things of God? My friends in Christ, unbelief in any of these spiritual issues, including the rapture, will blind you! Finally: I have so much more on these subjects, never shared, which I will in future editions. Some of the material I have for you is truly amazing – we are heading for exciting times! I encourage you to know these things well. They may just be your lifeline in the rapture of the church. As it appears now in history we are indeed very close to his coming.