Thursday, June 26, 2008

When These Things BEGIN to Happen

Today lets play a game called "reading plain english"


Luke 21:25 And there shall be signs in sun, and moon, and stars, and on the land is distress of nations with perplexity, sea and billow roaring; 26 men fainting at heart from fear, and expectation of the things coming on the world, for the powers of the heavens shall be shaken. 27 'And then they shall see the Son of Man, coming in a cloud, with power and much glory; 28 and these things BEGINNING to happen bend yourselves back, and lift up your heads, because your redemption doth draw nigh.'

So, for all of us who pretend to know how to read english, can you tell me what BEGIN/BEGINNING means? Not too hard right? So...with the plain english definition of "beginning" in mind, here's your first test of the day:

If you were standing outside my house, there was a storm moving in and I told you "when it BEGINS to rain, I will bring you an umbrella," when would you start looking for me?

a. When it BEGINS to rain

b. Halfway through the storm

c. After the storm is over

You don't have to be a rocket scientist to answer this question do you? No, and yet there are LEGIONS of people today who argue that the umbrella will show up halfway through the storm, or after the storm is over. How much sense does that make?

Did Jesus say that our redemption draws near halfway through the events listed in Luke 21:10-28? NO

Did Jesus say that our redemption draws near at the end of the events listed in Luke 21:10-28? NO

When did he say our redemption draws near? AT THE BEGINNING. How much more clearly could he have said it? We use the bible to interpret the bible right? Okay, great, so lets do that. Jesus says in Luke 21:10-28 that when we see the tribulation events coming our way, at the BEGINNING of them, to LOOK UP FOR OUR REDEMPTION IS NEAR. That my friends is proof of a pre-tribulation rapture. Other places in the bible make this rock solid:

Luke 21:36watch ye, then, in every season, praying that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that are about to come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.'

How could we escape all that's about to happen? I'll tell you how, when our redemption occurs AT THE BEGINNING, not the middle, not the end of the tribulation. This is not rocket science, this is plain english, the Holy Spirit is not the author of confusion. Get ready, stay in the faith, pray for all the brothers, our time is short here. Grace and peace