Rapture Verses

[Finestwheat]

Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if [it were] not [so], I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, [there] ye may be also. John 14.1-3.

How do you get there if not raptured?

Mat 24:36 But of that day and hour knoweth no [man], no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. Mat 24:37 But as the days of Noe [were], so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Mat 24:38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, Mat 24:39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Mat 24:40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Mat 24:41 Two [women shall be] grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Mat 24:42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. Mat 24:43 But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Mat 24:44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

This can't be about the coming of the Romans separating families, but is about Christians being watchful.

80% of scholars believe the taken are unsaved who took the mark and the left are the saved. This is wrong also because this is a call to believers who are all saved. The goodman is a Christian and Christ is the Lord of the Christian.

It would be wrong also to say that the taken is saved and the left is unsaved, obviously since the both the taken and the left are saved; whereas, Matt. 25.31-46 discusses the dividing of the good and bad nations, which includes dealing with those who take the mark.

What is needed to be taken at the first rapture?

Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is. Mark 13.33

Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things [Tribulation] that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man. Luke 21.36

Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is. And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure. 1 John 3.2-3

Those who say they are Christians but do not expect the return of the Lord live overtly carnal lives. Those who do not accept the rapture also have a fleshly existence. They do not know Ex. 29.39: "The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning; and the other lamb thou shalt offer at even."

And now, little children, abide in him; that, when he shall appear, we may have confidence, and not be ashamed before him at his coming. 1 John 2.28

So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation. Heb. 9.28

For Christ could return in our lifetime.

[ignite]

Finestwheat-

This is my first post lucky you. I'm not saying that as an antagonist by the way, I am saying this in love. But I'm leaving the burden of proof on any of you who call yourselves annointed teachers because you are trying to convince me (the reader) and everyone else that you have all truth. Not only of a rapture, but many other questionable things. I don't want to fight, and I don't want to be banned for no good reason either. This is not meant to be contentious even though I may be blunt. I really believe God's word. We are commanded to study to show ourselves approved unto God, and to tell the truth. I fear God way too much to come here and lie to anyone.
Having said that.
Your first scripture reference was Jn 14:1-3. This is the one that seems to "prove" or settle the rapture supposition. It's what the majority believes through tradition, not sound doctrine. It sounds right at first, but not when you do begin to do extensive word studies. The problem is that man is lazy, most preachers are lazy as well, they don't study things out in full. They usually only go so far as to prove their position, and what their denomination teaches. Few laypersons ever question anything that they hear from the pulpit or read on the internet.
This is not wise because the worse crimminal in the world is a false teacher so we must strive not to be yet another one.
I'll tell you flat out, I do not believe in a rapture because the bible doesn't teach it. It teaches ressurection, both literal, and figurative.
The problem with the rapture, parital or otherwise, is that the Jews didn't believe in a rapture of any kind, no they did not. It is never mentioned in any way in the Old Testament. Even the unbelieving house of Israel referred only to ressurection. So why do you want me to believe something that the natural branch doesn't?
Job is the oldest book of the bible and in it he says something that people rarely consider Job 14:14. Also Job 19:25.
How did Job know this? He was before the prophets, he was his own priest! You can learn this from history. If you recall the first chapter of Job, he offererd sacrifices to God for himself, and all of his children. How did he know about the redeemer, or his requirements?

Second point. When Jesus said "I go to prepare a place for you" he said this before there was any New Testament written for us, it was not written until after the death of all of the apostles. They warn continually about false teaching. So they refer to what was already written, and this is the part that most so-called believers fail to remember or are never taught. If you miss this, you miss everything and what we have now is the result of inheriting so many lies. Truth has become today, a plethora of denominations all teaching partial, if any truth at all.

Jesus did go to prepare a place for man, this is true. But he did this at calvary here on this present earth not in Heaven. Heaven is not given to man, it is the habitation of God and the angels who didn't fall with the Devil. That is why you can be sure that all those stories and books about people going to heaven and coming back to tell about it is a bunch of malarkey. That is imagination,tradition of man, flat out lies, and it's also paganism by the way.
The earth is given to man, this is exactly what the bible tells us. Ps 24:1, 33:14,34:16,37:9,37:22, is a place to start studying this for yourself.

There is going to be a new heaven and a new earth. And this is what the gospel is all about. Resurrection to inherit it! The bible speaks of it 41 times. AGAIN, the new testament was not written yet! You cannot get stuck on a few pet scriptures and make sense out of this.

Read Revelation 7:14-15. This throne is on the present earth.
How do we know this?
Because there is still a night and day being spoken of. In eternity there is no night or day. Can't you people see this? Again, exhaustive word studies, this takes a lot of time and effort to break out of your presuppositions, but that is how you will see what I'm talking about here.

Ignite.

[Finestwheat]

I don't claim to know all things, why accuse so? I am glad you could find nothing wrong with my post, but are misunderstanding.

Rapture is implied in resurrection. To get to heaven, one who is asleep first must be resurrected, then he can be raptured like Jesus was. While some are going to be raptured alive, taken up and not go to sleep like Enoch and Elijah. The saints are seen in heaven in Rev. 7.9 who are raptured first for keeping the word of His patience. The completion of the rapture of the saints occurs in meeting the Lord in the air at the last trumpet. Non-overcomers will go to outer darkness.

The only way to get to the throne is by rapture. The method God employs to transfer us from here to there is rapture. Nobody is in 3rd heaven yet, not even David. Many will come before the throne in 3rd heaven which will occur first before the saints who overcometh return with Christ to reign on earth for the 1000 years. Think of this meeting in 3rd heaven as the great celebration to the consummation of this age. Very simply this explains what is going to happen.

Rev. 7.14-15 speaks of eternal blessings on the new earth where heaven and earth come together after the 1000 year reign of Christ on earth. Future Mars rotates with day and night.

Rev. 7.11 is the throne in 3rd heaven, where the 24 archangels are and the four beasts. The great multitude is here also which come out of every nation and tongue (verse 9). Why is this throne in 3rd heaven?

How do we know that this is the scene in heaven of the raptured church? The reasons are given below.

(1) The number: "a great multitude, which no man could number" (7.9). At the first rapture there cannot be such a vast number. Hence this must be a conglomeration of several raptures.

(2) "Standing before the throne and before the Lamb"—Since 4.2 reads that "there was a throne set in heaven", those who now stand before the throne here must have arrived in heaven.

(3) The great tribulation spoken of in 7.14 is the same as mentioned in John 16.33. Therefore, the countless number here includes all who have been persecuted throughout the centuries: some have gone through martyrdom, many have been raised from the dead. Those who are resurrected will naturally surpass in number those at the first rapture.

Please note that 7.9-17 narrates the period from the rapture (the first rapture) to eternity (the new heaven and the new earth). What is described in 7.15-17 depicts the same scene as is found in 21.3-7.

Note also that 7.9-17 only deals with rapture generally, not exclusively; and neither does it speak exclusively of the scene of eternal blessing. Consequently, we must not conclude that what is given here is indicative of the rapture of the whole church once and for all; for nothing is said as to how this vast multitude got there, it only states that they are there.

7.9 "After these things . . . , standing before the throne and before the Lamb"—This word implies that before the opening of the seventh seal there must be a rapture.