Re: Re: pre trib
By: Andeddu to kleb on Tue Sep 27 2022 02:13 am
Pre-tribulation makes no sense whatsoever and is clearly a false doctorine. could there be mass persecution of Christians AFTER they have already been raptured? The order, which is clearly stated in Revelations, is the anti-Chr takes his seat in the temple, reveals himself half way into the "week" as th anti-Christ, begins the abomination of desolation (which will be when the ma apostasy occurs) followed by the rapture and God's subsequent Wrath.
This position is usually based on a hidden assumption that there is no
"run-up" to the Tribulation, and/or there can only be one "bunch" of resurrected believers--all necessarily part of the singular rapture event. These assumptions don't mesh with Pre-Trib theology, and Pre-Trib is what
ends up getting abandoned, rather than the offending assumptions.
Consider the alternative:
The world stage, the players, and the culture
mechanations are all in constant, preparatory (forgive the term) evolution.
Revelation is clear that evangelistic activity during the Tribulation is not only present, but effective. It is these evangelists (the 1st being the 144,000 intentionally "left behind," tasked with Tribulation evangelism)
and their subsequent converts that face Tribulation persecution.
The Church has been raptured, which is why we can say that the Church is preserved from the Tribulation, and why there is not only an urgency to be saved from eternal damnation, but also saved from the threat of being "left behind" after the rapture. Both are correct and proper motivations for salvation today.
It also squares with Christians being persecuted during the time of the Tribulation; these are Tribualtion converts.
Also, considering beyond Trib period, this squares with Isa. 65 & Zech. 8's revelation of apparent lifespans during the Messianic Kingdom to follow:
At the end of the Trib, when God "truncates" ("Unless the days be shortened") the Trib at the 7-year mark, there are alive Christians - "sheep" - to be seperated from the "goats" at the inaugeration of the Millennial Kingdom. It
is these persons who will continue to have children during the Millennium.
This explains why there are those who will feign allegiance to Christ as
King, but side with Satan when given the opportunity to openly band together
in rebellion, foolishly believing in their ability to overthrow God, just as the angels were once convinced they could do the same, in Heaven's history preceeding human history (Rev 20).
Recall how I John 4:2-3 where John indicates that the spirit of the
antichrist is already in the world? That's because Satan does not know when the rapture will be, either. I am convinced that Satan is always influencing world powers and has earmarked certain individuals to hold the Tribulation "offices" once it has begun. Whoever the antichrist ends up being, he will already have the globally influential position needed to execute the treaty with the Jews that is the "clock-starter" of the Tribulation, and have
the national dictatorial command necessary to allow/protect Jews to practice
OT temple worship again in Jerusalem. But he'll recind at the 3.5 year mark, signalling the events of the latter half of the Tribulation.
Satan must continually be ready for this, because it can only happen
at the yet unknown time when the Holy Spirit
(II Thess 2:7 - He who letteth [permits/restrains] will continue to do so, until He) is withdrawn at the time of the Rapture. This is consistent with God's statment in Genesis 3 that His Spirit will not always strive with [restrain] man. He will be removed to allow man to express the fullness of
his rebellion, seeing the "perfect specimen" arise to the station of deity from within his own ranks - The Antichrist - man's counterfeit/substitute version of God's Christ in an attempt to be his own god, once and for all.
The apostasy is simply those who practice a faithless religion. It happens today, it will happen then. Fallen humanity is self-presevationist,
even among those who claim to be Christian-leaders and followers alike.
The revealed history-future tracks, just as it was offered. Remember,
revealed isn't revealed unless it's revealed. It can't be mystified at the
same time.
1. There is a church -the collective of all true believers- now. (Matt 16:18, Rev chapters 1-3)
2. The church will be raptured before the Tribulation (I Thess 5:9)
by Christ calling unto Himself His Bride, the church (John 14:3), which He purchased though a betrothal contract executed by His own blood (I Cor
11:35). Note how Revelation 4 starts: "This is what will happen after these things," with "these things" referring back to the instructions given
to the whole church by proxy of the seven particular churches.
After dealing with the church, Christ inagurates his direct rule of Creation
by receving from God the Father (Rev 4) the Title Deed of Creation (Rev 5),
and purge the earth of the unrighteous squatters (Rev 6:1 thru Rev 20:3).
3. There will be evangelists given to the Tribulation time (Rev 7:1-8, 11:3)
4. There will be those who convert during the Tribulation (Rev 7:9-17)
5. These converts will be vigorously persecuted (Rev 7:8-12, 13:7)
6. God will punish the rebellious and purge the earth of their control. (Tribulation weeks: Daniel 9:24 gives the ultimate purpose of general tribulation-to purge sinfulness and rebellion-culminating in the 70th week
and the Great Tribulation of Matt 24:21)
7. Satan will be bound/removed from the world during the Millennium. (Rev 20:2-3)
8. God will inagurate the Millennial Kingdom, wherin will enter the few surviving Tribulation Christian converts, alongside the resurrected saved. (Matt 25:31 > Trib converts + I Cor 15:51-52 > Ressurrection and rapture of saved in Christ + Rev 20:4-5 > Resurrection of Tribulation martyrs)
9. The earth will return to an Edenic state, but the "mortals" will still be marred by their carnality and rebellious heart - proof that it is our own sin nature and not "the devil that makes us do it." (Rev 20:3, Isaiah 11:6, 65:25)
10. Satan is loosed to consolidate those opposed to God and Christ in their heart into an actual army, for a final attempt at the coup Satan has desired since his fall. (Rev 20:7-9, Isa. 14:13)
11. Christ effortlessly obliterates this rebellion. (Rev 20:9)
12. Satan is cast into the Lake of Fire. (Rev 20:10)
13. Unsaved dead resurrected from Hell and cast into the Lake of Fire. (Rev 20:5, 20:14)
14. Sin-scarred creation discarded. (II Peter 3 seems to indicate that
creation is "disbanded" at the sub-atomic level)
15. Creation and inauguration of the New Heaven and New Earth - one not
touched with the scar of sin (together with the resurrection of all believers into a glorified body) shows that God intends a wholeness for those He loves and died for, a wholeness that we are made aware of, but is actually beyond
our true comprehension. (Rev 21-22)
The timeline here ends with a glorious culmination of the Gospel--and a
gospel itself at that--peace, life, liberty, wholeness, and communion with
the God of our creation and salvation.
I don't think there is any reason to think anything but the linear, standard interpretation of Revelation and related Scripture.
It all fits and flows together just the way it was revealed.
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