Rethinking the Rapture: Gathering, Not Escaping

Welcome to the Kingdom Family Podcast where we

rediscover our identity as sons and daughters

of Yahweh and learn to live the life of the Kingdom.

Let's jump in to today's episode. Alright guys,

we are back on our Rethinking the End Time series.

This week we're going to be talking about one

of the big ones called the rapture. That's what

we're going to be talking about this week is

the topic of the rapture. I wanted to help you

understand what the rapture actually means. Understanding

some key scriptures that is used to teach it

that kind of thing and kind of help bring some

clarity to this topic. Again through this whole

process it's not important to me that you agree

with me. If at the end of this you still believe

in a rapture, that is completely fine My aim

here is to help you get get some critical thinking

As I said before what I like one of the comments

and statements I like from Damon Thompson. Don't

check your brain at the door Think things through

Ask questions. It's okay. Ask the Holy Spirit

questions Listen, I'm gonna say something really

probably, maybe it comes off controversial, maybe

it comes off offensive, whatever. But if you're

not allowed to ask questions where you're at,

if you're not allowed to question your pastor

or question belief systems or whatever, that's

a concern. You should be able to ask questions

and you should be able to arrive to your own

conclusions without fear of anything else. Holy

Spirit, God gave you a brain for a reason. I

do not think different beliefs is always a bad

thing. If we all believe the same thing and agree

it on every topic, life would be boring. My thing,

as long as we believe that Christ is the center,

it's because of Jesus, it's through Christ, it's

by his blood, this kind of thing, as long as

we can agree on these things, I think as far

as talking about the end times and referring

to the Holy Spirit as she even, I believe that

that's up for discussion. I think that's up for

debate. I think that's not that I want to sit

around and argue with a bunch of people, but

I like talking about and hearing people's perspective.

Regardless or not if I believe their perspective,

that's not important. I like to hear other people's

perspective and then I can understand how they

arrived. To the place that they have I hope that

makes sense So that's what this really this whole

thing is about is just rethinking the end times

given some different perspectives different clarity

to things And like I said in the day if you still

believe in the rapture that that's perfectly

fine. That's no no hard feelings whatsoever But

I'm hoping you can hear my point of view And

we'll just take it from there So I want you to

think about Really if you have a pause this pause

it, but I want you to think about when you hear

the word rapture What comes to your mind? What

emotions floods you a Lot of people are probably

going to say like people disappearing clothes

left behind chaos planes falling airplanes crashing

All kinds of accidents on the freeway The fear

of being left behind. If you grew up in my generation,

we had the left behind movies and different things

of that nature. So left being left behind was

sometimes a fear. If you're a kid and you come

home and there's no parent there, did I miss

the rapture? Like, did I miss something? And

again, this is not about attacking beliefs. It's

just about understanding scripture carefully.

That's it. So I want you to think about what

does the word rapture actually mean? So the English

word rapture comes from Latin, and it's rapturo,

and I may not be saying this right. It's R -A

-P -T -U -R -O. And it means to cease, it means

to carry away, and it means to gather. This Latin

word was used to translate a Greek word in Scripture.

And I'm gonna read to you 1st Thessalonians 4,

chapter 4, verses 15 through 17. This is one

of the main verses connected to the rapture doctrine.

And again, I'm using the passion translation.

It says this, this is the word of the Lord, we

who are alive in him and remain until the Lord

appears will by no means have an advantage over

those who have already died for both will rise

together. For the Lord himself will appear with

the declaration of victory the shout of an archangel

and the trumpet blast of God He will descend

from the heavenly realm and command those who

are dead in Christ to rise first Then we who

are alive will join them transported together

in clouds to have an encounter with the Lord

in the air and We will be joined We will be forever

joined with the Lord so That's that's the main

point the main scriptures that the rapture idea

comes from but I want to look at a couple things

based off of that and For example in verse 17

when it says then we who are alive will join

them transported together That is the Greek word

harpeso h a r p a z o and that means to seize,

to snatch, or to take suddenly and forcefully

which emphasizes a sudden action not a disappearance.

So we're going to look at a few different scriptures

of where that word particular is used just to

help give some clarity and understanding. So

it's used in one part is Acts chapter 8 verses

Acts 8:39–40

39 through 40 and it says when they came up out

of the water Philip was suddenly snatched up

by the spirit of the Lord and instantly carried

away to the city of Ashtad where he appeared

preaching the gospel in that city. I want you

to understand that Philip was not excuse me Philip

was taken from one place and moved elsewhere

not taken to heaven prematurely and he was not

removed from the earth. It says when they came

up out of the water Philip was suddenly snatched

up by the spirit of the Lord and instantly carried

away to the city of Ashtad where he reappeared

preaching the gospel in that city. Another word

this place has used is John chapter 10 verses

John 10:12–13

12 through 13. It says, but the worker who serves

only for wages is not a real shepherd, but because

he has no heart for the sheep, he will run away

and abandon them when he sees the wolf coming.

And then the wolf mauls the sheep, drags them

off, that's the word harpeso, and scatters them.

This word here means to violently grab or seize

And we have one more reference here in 2nd Corinthians

chapter 12 verse 2 and it says someone I'm acquainted

with who was in union with Christ was swept away

14 years ago in an ecstatic experience He was

taken or a harpezzo into the third heaven, but

I'm not sure if he was in his body or out of

his body only God knows. This moment here speaks

to sudden divine transport or seizure, but the

key is in those three verses that we just read,

Acts chapter 8, John chapter 10, and 2nd Corinthians

Acts 8 · chapter mention John 10 · chapter mention

chapter 12, none of this looks like some sort

of secret or invisible or a permanent removal

of any type from the earth. The belief of the

rapture depends on how this word is understood.

If the word means sudden seizure or gathering,

then the real question becomes, what are people

being gathered to? Why are they being gathered?

And what cultural imagery did Paul's audience

recognize? Again, when you're reading these scriptures

and trying to understand things, you have to

think about that audience. What did it mean to

them? Paul says that the believers will be caught

up. Not secretly removed not vanished unnoticed

but gathered to Christ I've got been tickled

recently just with all the UFO things I've heard

people talk about that that's going to be the

way the rapture happens people people will say

that The church was abducted by aliens that to

me big stretch big stretch But that's the thought

processes that I have heard from people Even

regarding the end times and you know again I

go back to I just heard a minister say this maybe

it was today. I was listening to a video That

was talking about all the stuff going on about

how it's so close to the end We're in the final

moments and what they're using to base that off

of is how dark it is And I'm here to tell you

if it's dark around just because the light inside

of you has not been flipped on You're the answer

from the darkness around you. Jesus is not coming

back for a defeated church. And right now, I'm

sorry to say, even if this rapture idea was true,

the church is so divided, there's not a chance

I believe he's coming back anytime soon. Because

the church, the church is divided on every issue

it seems like. We will eat our own in a heartbeat.

It seems like the world has more unity and more

love than the church does these are some real

concerns for the body of Christ and some things

that we as Christians as Christ like individuals

need to seriously think about repent Metanoia

and really take a second glance at some things

Excuse me That's it. You know this path this

past weekend. We they did some kind of rededication

for America Because we do turn 250 years old

as a nation, which is wonderful I love my country

From what I've heard I've never been outside

of America, but from what I've heard This is

probably one of the greatest nations on earth

Not saying we don't have our flaws Because we

do but it's one of the greatest nations on on

planet earth and I'm thankful to be an American

But the big time I kept hearing was that we're

a Christian nation and my question is Maybe we're

a Christian nation, but are we very Christ like

do we have a Christ like nature? These are questions

guys. We got to ask we have to be willing to

Ask the hard questions ask the tough questions

and really think about some of this as we're

moving on in life and trying to represent Christ,

represent the kingdom. So, rabbit hole for that,

but anyhow. Again, we're just asking some real

questions. If it means sudden seizure or gathering,

then there has to be some other questions being

asked with that. Like, what are we being gathered

to? Why are we being gathered? And what cultural

imagery did Paul's audience recognize when he

was writing? Because again Paul says that the

believers will be caught up not secretly removed

Going back to 1st Thessalonians 4 17 Then we

who are alive will join them transported together

in clouds to have an encounter with the Lord

in the air Okay, so it's important to note that

in the Roman world when a king visited a city

Citizens would citizens would go out to meet

him and escort him back into the city. It had

nothing to do with leaving permanently. That

cultural background becomes important when reading

this because, again, the Greek word harpesdo

doesn't mean disappearing to heaven. It means

to seize or to snatch suddenly. It's used for

wolves grabbing sheep. Philip being suddenly

moved and Paul being caught up in a vision So

before we build theology around the word we have

to understand what the word actually means and

then what it also does not mean so Looking at

my notes here, I'm sorry making sure I'm on the

right Okay So Paul Paul wrote this letter to

believers worried about dead Christians It was

not about missing a rapture because the rapture

idea is very new we're going to get to that a

little bit But the rapture idea is very new.

So Paul was not writing this to about a rapture

He was writing to this writing this to believers

who were worried about dead Christians and their

fear was Did those who died miss Christ return?

so Paul is bring in a message of comfort if you

will and he's saying the dead will rise first

no one misses out and no one is forgotten notice

the language here talks about the trumpet of

god the voice of the archangel shout none of

that sounds secretive or like just a sudden vanishing

it sounds loud it sounds public and it sounds

visible nothing about these passages that i've

read sounds quiet or hidden So meeting the Lord

in the air. Let's let's break that down a little

bit Meeting a king outside a city and escorting

him back in this was known as a cultural practice

The citizens would literally go out they would

meet the king and return with him not leave forever

and nothing and They would escort him home So

the meeting is not about escaping earth. It's

about welcoming the king. It's very important

to think about You say well Chris you don't believe

in the rapture so you don't believe that Christ

is coming back and that's not true I Do believe

that Christ will return I do not believe we're

anywhere close to that Just because I don't believe

in a rapture does not mean I don't believe that

Christ is going to return But I believe that

to me and this is what I have Felt Holy Spirit

speak to me said I can only speak on what I have

What I believe has been revealed to me I do believe

Christ comes back and I believe that looks like

when we are lighting it up so well that he has

no choice but to show back up because we're doing

our job we're advancing the kingdom of heaven

we're advancing the gospel the good news we are

we are lighting it up and pushing away darkness

setting it up for our king our father to come

back all right so let's um Oh, I'm sorry. Let

me backtrack just a little bit, because I wanted

to break down one of his words. The word for

an encounter is the word ampetesis. A -P -A -N

-T -E -S -I -S. And it's a meaning specifically

going out to meet someone and escorting them

back, not just a casual meeting. That's that

word I was referring to. So when it says an encounter,

that's that word. It's literally caught up for

meeting with the Lord, not a rapture. It's not

a rapture idea. All right, so let's look at another

scripture. This is gonna be Matthew chapter 24.

Matthew 24 · chapter mention

This is another one that's commonly used to support

rapture ideas. And it says, concerning that day

and exact hour, no one knows when it will arrive.

Not even the angels of heaven, only the Father

knows. For it will be like it was in the days

of Noah when the Son of Man appears. Before the

flood, people lived their lives eating, drinking,

marrying, and having children. They didn't realize

the end was near until Noah entered the ark and

then suddenly the flood came and took them all

away in judgment. It will happen the same way

when the Son of Man appears. At that time, two

men will be working on the farm. One will be

taken in judgment and the other left. Two women

will be grinding grain. One will be taken away

in judgment and the other left. So again, context

is going to matter here, but I want you to think

about something. If you remember the story of

Noah There's a part where Jesus or excuse me.

There's a part where God promises not to flood

the earth again not to destroy The earth with

water But the way I have been taught that how

the end comes is basically the world has just

set on fire and set ablaze Here is my concern

with that and again before Old me would have

just took that in and be like, yep, that sounds

right. But the more I am a dad and the more I

allow Holy Spirit to adjust my lens and see things

differently, I have a problem with that. And

here's my problem. It's almost as like God is

crossing his fingers when he's telling Noah,

you know, I'll never destroy the world again

with water. And he's probably thinking to himself,

one of these days I will destroy it again with

fire. Does that not sound like a problem to you?

Does this not sound concerning to you? Is that

how you would do your children? No, I'll never

destroy with water again. But with fire, I never

said anything about fire, so I will destroy it

again, just not with water. We're gonna do it

with fire next time, because the water just didn't

seem to be good enough. Just observation, something

to question. So... And here's some things in

the story is Jesus compares this to the days

of Noah. So I want you to ask yourself who was

taken away in Noah's day? Think about it. Who

was removed in Noah's day? It was the wicked

taken by the flood. Who was it that remained?

It was Noah and his family the righteous. Noah

is the one who stayed. In Noah's story, being

taken away was judgment, not rescue. And you

can see that in other, Matthew chapter 24 verse

Matthew 24:40

40. At the time, two men working in the farm,

one will be taken away in judgment, the other

left. Which one is left, my friend? Two women

will be grinding grain, one will be taken away

in judgment, and the other left. Again, ask yourself,

who was leaving? Who is saying? I don't have

time. I got some different viewpoints when it

talks about two men, two women. I got some different

viewpoints on that that I'm not getting into

here right now. But it's just important for you

to notate what scripture is clearly saying. This

is Jesus speaking. Who is the one being left

behind? And who is the one in judgment? Just

again, don't check your brain at the door. Think

about this. So now we have context matters a

lot here because Matthew 24 is largely about

the fall of Jerusalem, the collapse of the temple

system, the end of a covenantial age, and judgment

on corrupt leaderships and violent structures.

That's really important for you to understand.

Jesus had just said in verse 38, and now it is

too late since your city will be left in ruins.

So what was swept away? Not humanity itself,

but a corrupt religious system, violent leadership,

and structures that resisted life. So again,

it's important to ask these questions. So is

judgment against people or against what destroys

people? Across scripture, divine judgment consistently

targets things like injustice, violence, oppression,

corruption, false structures, destructive identities.

The goal with judgment in the eyes of Abba is

always restoration. It's never annihilation.

It is constantly restoration. Hebrews 12 29.

It says, for our God is a holy devouring fire.

The Aramaic can be translated into consuming

light. And remember, while fire does consume,

it also purifies. So yes, he's a consuming fire,

but his fire is that to purify and to be restorative,

not to destroy. Not to destroy you anyhow. There

are things that he's destroying in the fire But

in my opinion what is being destroyed in the

fire is those things that are still attached

to you from that old Adamic mindset that he has

crucified effectively on the cross All right

So now let's go back to Matthew chapter 24 verse

Matthew 24:39

39 They didn't realize then was near until Noah

entered the ark and then suddenly the flood came

and took off took them all away in judgment it

will appear the same way when the son of man

appears okay so um appear or coming is the word

parousia and i'm going to again i'll spell that

p a r o u s i a and its basic meaning is presence

arrival official visitation at its core it means

being present with or arrival into presence not

just appearing, but arrival in order to be present.

All right, so I want you to think about that

word that I just spelled out for you, and I want

you to understand what that meant in the ancient

world, okay? This word was used for a visit of

a king or emperor, so when a ruler came, it was

called periusia. Citizens prepared the city,

Roads were cleaned. Decorations were made. Officials

went out to greet the king. The king never destroyed

the city. He came to visit it. So that's... I'm

going to talk about Jesus appearing. It's the

same word there of what I just read to you. That's

what happens. So this matters because Jesus's

audience would have known this usage. They would

have understood this term. And there's much more

you can get into with studying this word that

I'm not taking time to dive into that. Again,

I'm not here to be your answer and source for

all of it. I want you to go and study this if

you would like to learn more about it. All right,

so let's talk about where did the modern rapture

idea come from. So the modern rapture timeline

became popular in the 1800s. Now, there are some

that you can find reference to the word rapture.

I believe it's in the late 1600s. But from what

I have read and studied, that is not the same

definition of how we define rapture. How we define

rapture does not show up until the 1800s. And

it comes through John Nelson Darby, a Bible teacher

who developed dispensational theology. In case

you don't know what that is, that is that this

is a way some Christians read the Bible. where

they believe history is divided into different

time periods, and God deals with people differently

in each one. So it's spread through, and some

of you may know this term, it's the Scofield

Reference Bible, which influenced many, many

churches. That's where this thing began to come

out and pick up traction. So this particular

part, was enough for me when I first looked at

this to make me start asking some real questions

uh because I did understand or discovered that

the rapture was very new it's only like 200 years

old and if it's in the 1800s we're in 2026 do

the math that's only about 200 years old that's

a very very very new concept of our understanding

of rapture the early church fathers would not

have believed this um so it's just interesting

As far as that's concerned Here's just some ideas

to think about if you ever seen the end time

movies where people suddenly disappear and planes

crash because the pilot vanished that whole idea

came from the dispensational theology That's

just what that is that God has Different time

periods Future Rapture then Jesus rules on earth

for a thousand years. That's where a lot of this

stuff came out. But again, this way of understanding

the Bible is not ancient. This is not what early

church fathers believed. So dispensational theology

isn't the only way to read scripture. Understand

that. Go study some of this stuff out for yourself.

It's definitely, it sure is one. system that

people use to understand prophecy, in my personal

opinion, it is not the correct way to do that.

But again, that's just me. You do you. You go

figure out what makes sense to you. And again,

if you want to believe in a rapture, that's certainly

fine. But before the 1800s, Christians believed

in Christ's returning. They believed in resurrection,

judgment, renewal, but just not... secret disappearance

events, not us being raptured out and clothes

being left behind, that kind of thing. Before

the 1800s, Christians did not believe in a rapture

like you see in the movies today and like you

hear about in churches today. They did believe

Jesus would return, but they did not teach that

believers would disappear first or escape the

world. Trying to see if I want to address any

other notes that I have here. Christians have

also believed Jesus would return, but they didn't

believe it would be secret or hidden. They believed

it would be obvious in public. Acts 1 -11 is

an example of that. This same Jesus will come

in the same way you saw him go. They expected

a visible return, not people suddenly vanishing.

Next week we're going to dive into the tribulation

stuff. We're going to dive into that some so

I'm not going to touch on that at the moment.

Just understand that for over 1700 years the

church did not teach a rapture idea. This is

very new. I'm hoping some of this language kind

of helps you understand that there's more to

this than a rapture because it's getting dark

and we need to get out of here so the world can

go to hell in a handbasket. That's kind of how

I have felt when it comes to how people look

at the rapture coming to heaven with me and to

hell with the rest of y 'all because if we really

believed in in this rapture idea we would be

out ministering and loving people just quit our

jobs because it's about time to get out of here

so i don't buy into it if i'm wrong i'm still

going because i know what the prerequisites are

so that's not a concern for me but My concern

is if people are so ready to get out of here,

then they're not going to be prepared to stay

here. And we need some sons and daughters to

be ready to stay here and release the kingdom

upon the earth, to get involved with politics,

to get involved with the school systems, to get

involved with just our world in general and go

find your place in it wherever God is calling

you to be and you go jump into that avenue and

release hope release life speak life declare

declare life over situations be the light of

the world that is within you let that light out

let that hope out let that glory out um yeah

that's kind of where we're at So again, I'm hoping

I was just giving this on my notes to make sure

I was done. I hope this helps you. I hope this

helps you understand that the rapture is a very

new concept. Early Church Fathers would not have

believed in it. There is meanings for these words

that Paul was using, especially in First Thessalonians

and then some other places that we read. These

words have context and it's important. Context

matters. Don't check your brain at the door.

Go and... dig into some research, go study it

for yourself. That's my challenge to you. That's

my encouragement for you is to go and study yourself.

I hope this helps you, my friend. Next week we'll

jump into the tribulation. Until then, be blessed.

Thanks for spending some time with me today on

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