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Titus 2:13
13 Looking for [prosdechomai] that blessed [makarios] hope [elpis], and [kai] the glorious [doxa] appearing [epiphaneia] of the great [megas] God [theos] and [kai] our [hemon] Saviour [soter] Jesus [Iesous] Christ [Christos]; KJV-Interlinear
13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus; NASB
The appearing of God, is the Rapture of the Christians, thus concluding the dispensation of this Church Age.
The doctrine of the Rapture maintains that it can occur at any moment. No one knows the day or the hour. No one can predict the moment of His appearance. But at some point in the future, Jesus Christ will descend into the clouds. He will not come down to the ground in this Rapture, but will appear in the upper atmosphere, and with a call, with a blast of a trumpet, with some predefined and predetermined signal, that only Christians can hear, Christ will call and snatch up, all Christians from our dispensation. Both those who have died, and those who remain alive at the moment of the Rapture, will be caught up into the air.
When this occurs it will occur in a blink of an eye. Like the magician who moves quicker than the eye can detect, so too, Christ will descend and recover all Christians from this earth.
The clouds will be crowded, but no one who remains behind, all unbelievers, will be able to see anything. Now you see someone and now you don’t. What did you blink?
This is the next great (Biblical scale) event of history. It will be dramatic and overwhelming for believers for certain. Its impact on unbelievers, if they even take notice, will be one of disbelief or of extreme sorrow, having missed out, and being left out.
The Rapture marks the end of our dispensation, and the beginning of the final countdown of the Tribulation. The last seven years of the dispensation of the Age of Israel.
Matt. 16:27
27 ‘For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels; and will then recompense every man according to his deeds. NASB
Matt. 16:28
28 ‘Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who shall not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom.’ NASB
Christ is God. Christ is the only one of the Godhead, who comes to this earth in so dramatic a fashion.
The excitement is in the expectation of His coming, and the principle taught here is in the preparedness in anticipation of His coming.
Though we do not know the day or the hour, nor even if He will come in our lifetime. But we are to be prepared in our spiritual lives, in any case.
We all know that one day we will die. We all know that our death could come at any moment in our life. Therefore, we should not base our spiritual growth on an expectation of His coming in the distant future. Many do that and many procrastinate or put off their interest in their spiritual life. This is to their detriment.
For those who have a genuine interest in their future, for those who have a genuine interest in their spiritual life, then this event is an exciting expectation, like a child waiting to go to a fun park for the first time, only greater.
When the Rapture occurs, every believer will be lifted up into the air. Every believer will be instantly changed from their earthly physical bodies, into their new and permanent resurrection bodies. Every believer will see Christ face to face. Every knee will bend, every head will bow to His phenomenal glory and presence. Then the second great procession, parade, will occur taking believers from this earth into heaven. With fanfare, and choirs of angels, and whatever else you associate with a great parade, this parade will be our greatest moment in life up to that point.
The first great procession occurred after the Cross, when Christ led ‘captives,’ all Old Testament believers, out of Paradise, and into heaven.
When the Rapture occurs, human history will be only 1007 years away from the new universe and the eternal state. That era is described as beyond our imagination. No sorrow, no death, no lack for anything ever again.
Far better than the life that we all have in this world today.
While the earth is nose diving into near extinction and the most terror filled time of history during the seven year Tribulation, Church Age believers will be in heaven receiving their evaluation before the Judgment Seat of Christ, celebrating at the wedding feast, and preparing to accompany Christ in the Second Advent.
The most exciting time of in all of history, repeat, all of history, up until now, is only one event away.
As we witness the unbelievable events of our contemporary times, of the government taking over the financial markets, the take over of the auto and other industries, setting aside and restricting unprecedented quantities of land from energy development in the name of green, of the many nations growing ever closer to a one world policy with this world economic crisis, with all of the signs too numerous to list, then this is indeed a fascinating time to live in, regardless of the hardships you may be enduring even now.
Jesus Christ controls history. Man plays the game of world domination with arrogance, but God possesses many chess moves ahead, and the pieces of His plan will all fall together. All we can do it watch and prepare, and wait.
So, whether you go to your meeting with Christ by means of your physical death, or by means of the Rapture, should make no difference. You should not enter into His presence unprepared.
