Defining the Rapture: What is it? What does it mean? Where is it in the Bible?

Real Life presents the Jack Hibbs Podcast with intention and boldness to proclaim truth, equip the saints and impact our culture. Hey you guys we are going to be starting out today with looking at a response to questions that came to us when we asked what do you want to hear about and people said we want to hear about the rapture we want to know if it's real where is it at in the Bible if it is define it place it describe it so stay tuned we're gonna start diving into that right now you can get the outlines of this podcast by going to Jack Hibbs.com slash podcast today if this podcast lifts you up and encourages you to live a more fulfilled life in Christ then make sure you leave us one of those five star ratings to us that's like saying amen or yes then that rating will encourage others to listen now open your hearts to what God's word has to say to you here is Jack Hibbs. Hey everybody welcome to today's installment of our Jack Hibbs Podcast and first of all we're very excited and delighted that the magnitude and multitude of you who have been hitting subscribe and signing up and listening we get to see and I was just recently briefed on the the data behind the scenes on that the the listenership has been amazing so we are encouraged that's the greatest thing that you can do for us is to not only listen but to subscribe and to share and you can do that by of course just simply going to Jack Hibbs.com and telling other people about the content because that's how these things matter so we put out on Facebook I think it was the other day we asked you to provide topics that you or are concerned about are topics that most have come up in your conversations or ones that you're concerned about and so overwhelmingly justifiably so have been the questions regarding last day's events questions from the millennium we're going to talk about it great questions by the way about the millennium questions about the rapture what is it questions about who's the antichrist questions about does the Bible really predict the future what do I do if it does the world around me what's going on so we're not going to cover it all obviously in one session together right now which by the way for those of you who are viewing this you see this really awesome little sticker it says real life I just thought you know the real professional guys that do podcasts have these really cool things and it says like turning point USA or or something like that so so that's what we're doing right here for those of you who are just what are listening right now you have no idea what I'm talking about but this is real life and so we're pretty excited about that so here's a deal let's dive into this let's let's take the next several podcasts let's let's do this let's start from defining the rapture will define the rapture and then in our following podcast we will walk through the biblical chronology of end time events how about that you see why do it that way because if we define the rapture it covers several views we'll look at and it's appropriate that when we lay down that foundation of biblical definition to the rapture then we're going to be able to place it in the right place or argue why it's in this particular place you're going to disagree some of you are going to disagree that's totally cool but no why we disagree we're going to have some fun though together because I got to tell you the reason why I was saved at Calvary Chapel Costa Mason under Chuck Smith and he taught pre-tribulation rapture I believed it as a new believer because he believed it and he taught it and then I started studying other things and I drifted away from a pre-tribulation rapture view and I stopped being a pre-tribulational rapture person and I was I held that position for probably three to five years I would think and yet studying it studying it studying it more and more and more I not only came back to a pre-tribulation rapture view but I came back to a pre-tribulation rapture view with some word of it with some we have a sanctified vengeance or passion I should say because I understand both sides I get both sides and one is have to tell you one takes a lot of faith and one takes a lot of discipline and one takes a big burden off your shoulders and one really sets a fire under you to be ready every day and to be obedient every day the other one causes you to be waiting for other things to happen waiting for looking for other things to take place and it's quite interesting to realize that if there is a concept or a construct regarding the Lord's rapture it matters how and what you believe about it because it's translated in what you get involved in regarding your day-to-day life so we're gonna iron all this stuff out and we'll have some fun so the first thing I want you to do if you're taking notes and all and forgive me you know I don't usually have my computer here but I want to make sure that I step through some verses and some arguments that are going to be quite fun so number one write this down please one of the great questions that was asked was how can you believe in the rapture when the word rapture is not even in the Bible and I understand the question but for those of you who speak Latin or read Latin my grandson's learning Latin right now so he knows he knows the meaning of this word in the Latin Bible the word rapture appears rapture or raptus or what what we would just simply say rapture that's the conversation that we use in our English in the Latin Bible it is the word rapture okay so if you have a Latin Bible it's there and so the question comes from our Western American English position I don't see the word rapture in the Bible so I can't believe in it well the word Bible is not in the Bible but you believe in the Bible right I mean there's a lot of things like that so if you have a Latin Bible the word rapture is there if you have a Greek Bible the word Harpazzo is there for rapture okay if you have an English Bible in a newer translation it may not or most often says cut up two words two English words to describe one word rapture cut up the word rapture means to actually be quite suddenly and violently removed it means to be taken out of or taken away from imagine this in your mind being grabbed and like pulled off the train tracks because maybe you're walking down the train tracks and you're in your death you can't hear that the train's coming and it's coming from behind you to get raptured off the tracks is to be violently grabbed and taken away before the train destroys you okay so let's look at this let's look at what how is the rapture defined in scripture and so we know number one that it is a what we're not talking about when it is let's just lay the foundation that it is it is an event in scripture so what is it so let's define what it is and I want to give you some scriptures so I hope that you guys can either write these down or if you're driving or flying or whatever you're doing you can look at it later but the rapture is specifically mentioned in scripture and context is everything that it's specifically mentioned in scripture regarding the church in our New Testament setting see why do you put it that way because there's been individual raptures that have happened Elijah was taken up into heaven that's a that's a description of a rapture Enoch is a great picture of God translating Enoch from earth right up into heaven that's a type of rapture listen the Bible tells us that Philip in a in a limited fashion remember Philip in the book of Acts he was preaching and people were accepting the Lord and he was preaching to to the Ethiopian Enoch and God's using Philip and then he is lifted and taken by the Holy Spirit and he finds himself suddenly in a different place in the book of Acts I mean that's crazy amazing right so do keep that in mind that the rapture is not an odd thing there are hints of it throughout scripture Isaiah 26 verses 19 to 21 is a pretty cool thing to look at in the Old Testament but the rapture is the removal of the church that's its function okay we'll talk more about that later we may not get to it all in today's podcast but we'll get to it but I'm gonna ask you to write these verses down the the number one overwhelming rapture verse in the scriptures regarding you and I you ready comes from Jesus himself Jesus is the first one to tell us about the rapture I'm gonna ask you to put these puzzle pieces together number one Jesus in John 14 verse one Jesus said to his disciples just before he returned in the greatest sentient of Christ back to heaven he said let not your heart be troubled you believe in God believe also in me in my father's house are many mansions and if we're not so I I would tell you I would have told you I go to prepare a place for you that where I am oh and if I go to prepare a place for you I will come again and receive you to myself that where I am there you may be also so let's march through this for a second Jesus said don't let your heart experience seismology seismos don't have an earthquake of worry and a fear why because if you believe in God believe also in me that's the gospel in my father's house are many mansions we'll talk about what that means in other forthcoming podcasts about mansions what are these dwelling places well whatever entails Jesus said if it were not so I would have told you I'm not kidding I'm not fooling around Jesus is saying this is incredibly happily profoundly serious I go to prepare a place for you so whatever the rapture event that he's describing it's defined this way I'm giving you this promise I'm leaving I'm going somewhere my father's house because I'm going to prepare a place for you in Texas they would say for you all that's really good and if I go to a place for you I'm going to come again and receive you to myself qualifier that where I am there you may be also get that right now everybody take a deep breath and take it in Jesus says I'm going where you going Jesus to my father's house I'm going to go prepare a place for you there's a awesome dwelling place is there for you I'm going to go prepare it what does that mean we have no idea except that he's a contractor Jesus was a contractor when he was living under Joseph's roof in Nazareth that's pretty cool what is this contractor building we don't have a clue but it's going to be amazing but when he's done and when his father says to him go he's going to come and he's going to get you and I or whoever and he's going to take us to where he's been working he's going to take us to where he's been preparing you get it he's going to take us to where he's been building mansions again I'm not going to get into what mansions mean right now is it an actual dwelling is it an apartment is it your body is it is it a is it a city is it we'll talk about that later but the awesome thing is is that Jesus makes it very clear I got to go to go prepare I'm going to come back grab you and take you to where I have been preparing so friends listen if you believe in a post tribulation rapture view as I used to that makes it really tough because in a post rapture view at the end of the tribulation period you've got the church going up into the atmosphere meeting Jesus and coming back down to establish the kingdom how in the world you ever get John 14 fulfilled if that's the if that's the truth doesn't work I look I already did all the gymnastics on this and you just tie yourself in a knot among many other problems but listen I love you anyway so I'm a pre-tribble radical radically so you'll you'll see this but here's one of the reasons why remember we're defining what is the rapture so forget about the placement if you're pre pre-rath mid-trib post trip doesn't matter this is what it is revelation 310 Jesus says because you have kept my command to persevere I also will keep you from the hour which shall come upon the world the word implies the entire globe the entire world to test those who dwell on the earth that's an amazing statement that was given to the church at Philadelphia book of Revelation Jesus says I'm going to keep you from an hour that is going to come upon the earth that will test all those who are earth dwellers that's a cool thing because we're not earth dwellers you and I we have our citizenship in heaven says the Bible we're only here working right now for Jesus we're working for company God to spread the gospel to tell us many women boys men boys and girls the gospel and then we plan on getting out of here so that's that's wonderful again we're talking about defining it okay we're not talking about the placement we're not even talking about yet the why of it so Revelation 4 begin in verse 1 this is very fun so when you look at the book of Revelation which is key the book of Revelation gives you a perfect breakdown of the book when John is told John write this down write down the things that were the things that are and the things that are about to come so the book of Revelation chapter 1 gives an announcement that it's broken up into three chronological we'll just call it dispensations I know the word dispensation drives people crazy but just calm down for a moment don't worry about it dispensations are three let's three epics or how about this if we go to LA and we go to a play or we go to a musical and we're watching Les Miserables they may have three different breaks for the entire three-hour presentation of that musical are you with me think of it that way there are three breaks that which was John the messenger says John write write that down and so what was was the revelation of Jesus Christ write down the things that are the letters to the seven churches he writes those down and the things that shall be and that starts in chapter 4 are you ready here it goes revelation for what after these things the word in Greek is meta touta meta touta is the word meta touta these things after these things of the first compartment the revelation of Jesus Christ this is who he is and by the way go ahead and read it it's awesome it's the book of revelation is all about Jesus Christ it's not about the church it's not about the Jews it's not about the Antichrist it's all about Jesus Christ it is the revelation of Jesus Christ okay so it's so amazing because it tells you they're in chapter 1 that he is the one who lived he came lived died and lives again revelation chapter 1 verses 17 and 18 revelation chapter 2 somewhere around verses 4 through 8 it tells you that it's he who was dead and behold he's alive forever more that awesome it's about him and revelation chapter 1 2 and 3 also carry with it the descriptions and attributes of the Lord in the Old Testament that's why you read about we're not even going to make it I'm looking at the time clock you guys it's like we've been talking for 18 minutes already this is ridiculous we haven't even gotten into this remember when Jesus says in Revelation I walked through the midst of the seven lamp stands not eight not nine seven not six seven and the seven lamp stands are the seven churches those were seven churches in Asia Minor which is Turkey today you can go right now by the way you can fly there and take and go visit those archaeological sites they're there for real they're not made up when Jesus as I walked through the midst of the seven lamp stands it tells you in the Bible that the lamp stands are the churches and that Jesus walks through the midst of them what's amazing about that is that the seven lamp stands in the book of Revelation is the seven lamp stands given to Moses in the book of Exodus and the Vedicus regarding the lamps the menorah and you don't hear anything about it until you have Genesis well you have Exodus and the Vedicus Genesis of course the first five books the Pentateuch's given given two Moses by God mentioning the menorah that was in the wilderness and the menorah that was in the temple later on with the kings with David and all then you don't hear about it until book of Revelation if you read Genesis to Malachi because you're Jewish skip the entire New Testament and read the book of Revelation you'll be shocked as a Jew to see how well you understand the book of Revelation no one's going to understand the book of Revelation without reading the Old Testament it's almost like a test the book of Revelation book of Revelation judges you and I it basically says this hello hi excuse me have you read your Old Testament because don't even start reading here until you go and read the Old Testament because you're not going to get it the dragon the kingdom all the stuff that's the the descriptions of the heavenly and demonic entities you got to go to the book of the Old Testament to understand all that so when it says after these things I looked at John says and behold a door standing open in heaven notice a door is open in heaven John is the last apostle to have lived John he's the author of the book of Revelation he's the pen I should say he's the quill he's the pen the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet like a trumpet it means it wasn't a trumpet it was like a trumpet speaking to me saying come up here and I will show you things which must take place after this after what after you're up here isn't that great think of this walk just listen how this goes out immediately John says I was in the spirit and behold a throne set in heaven and one sat on the throne and he who sat there was like a jasper and a sardis stone in appearance and there was a rainbow around the throne in the appearance like an emerald I have no idea what that means but I think of rainbows I think of the rainbows that you see in on a rainy day this is a rainbow behind the throne of God that is in some way shape or form resembles an emerald I don't know that's weird to me but that's amazing it's going to be incredible around the throne were 24 thrones and on the thrones I saw 24 elders sitting clothed in white robes that's important and on the thrones I saw 24 elders sitting clothed in white robes and they had crowns of gold on their heads and from the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices seven lamps of fire were burning before the throne which are the seven spirits of God you said I thought there was one holy spirit there is one holy spirit but the seven spirits of God is answered in Isaiah chapter 11 verses one and two you can read that later but you'll hear about the spirit of the Lord the spirit of wisdom the spirit of might the spirit of power and it goes on and it gives you the the list there in Isaiah chapter 11 by the way the thrones the 24 elders the 24 thrones we know who these guys are we don't have to guess and we'll find that out later you can read ahead if you want but check it out from all of this it takes place the seven lamb stands are burning which are the seven spirits of God verse six revelation four verse six before the throne there was a sea of glass like crystal and in the midst of the throne and around the throne were four living creatures full of eyes in front and in back that's beyond description of my opinion you should look at some of the the ancients drew some pencil or chalk drawings or charcoal drawings of how they viewed that and quite frankly to scare your pants off it's freaky there's all kinds of angelic creatures before the throne of God they don't all look the same they have different orders different authority different functions different looks and one of these four living creatures if you look at just one of them they have they have eyes all around them by the way we know this for a fact you say how do we know because it doesn't say it they had something that looked like eyes that's typology John's that would be John trying to describe something that he can't figure out no John says the four living creatures were full of eyes in the front and in the back the first living creature was like a lion this is so cool the second living creature like a calf my granddaughter asked me about this last night was it last night or this morning last night the third living creature like the face of a man and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle there's a reason for that so each of these things each of these angelic creatures have one head and they have four faces one head four faces and the four faces represent listen the four faces described here each of these creatures are the symbol types known in scripture that refer to the four gospels they're related to the four gospels those images of those faces for example I'll give you I don't want to spend time on it yet later but we're at a time is one is a face of a man Luke's gospel is Jesus Christ the son of man okay that's just a hint for next time around so you guys like usually if you attend the church here you listen much I didn't get through hardly anything um but we're gonna keep going on this because you've asked some great questions we're gonna give you arguments and answers we're still working on defining the rapture we're gonna define the rapture in our forthcoming podcast so mark this down as installment number one we're gonna have to wrap it up it's been at it for 25 minutes now so listen you guys like always please hit subscribe tell people about this join in make this almost a little small group thing take this podcast get some people together play it talk about it get your bibles open and let's grow um but it's listen it more than ever it's time to live out it's obvious that it's time to live out your your faith it's time to live out what you believe in it and that's why we say it's time for real life look at the days around us it's absolutely insane so again go to jackibs.com we want you to uh hit subscribe uh let us know give us a rating that really helps us it sends it look we're gonna live with with or without your rating but it sends a message to the tech giant guys that people care so that that matters to them but do tell people please let's make this thing grow not because we have to but because we're speaking truth okay get the word out so um next time we'll pick it up in part two of defining the rapture of where does it place and scripture and why does it have to happen all right god bless you guys until next time this jackibs podcast as well as all the broadcast out reach opportunities are listening or supported will you consider partnering with us through a special gift go to jackibs.com to learn more and stay connected