Summary of Bible references on the Rapture
- Thread starter ZNP
- Start date
-
Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.
If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!
To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
We have the 12 days of Shavuot. In Numbers each tribe brought an offering to the Lord one day at a time. This is very reminiscent of the "12 days of Christmas" which is the time from when Jesus was born to the time the wise men brought gifts. Of course it was definitely more than 12 days till the wise men came and Jesus was definitely not born on December 25th. But God is sovereign so there is still a lot of hidden meaning in those dates. The Julian Calendar is 13 days off from the Gregorian, so you could see the 12 days of Christmas as the time between these two dates. The promise to the church in Philadelphia is that the Lord would make the synagogue of Satan to know that the Lord had loved them and they would come and bow down. This could be a reference to the 12 days after the rapture with churches and Christians confessing that Jesus was with those who were raptured and giving them gifts.
Does Christmas depict the rapture?
Isaiah 46:9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
Only the Bible has prophecies and all of these prophecies have either been fulfilled or will be fulfilled because the God of the Bible is God. No one else can do this and so this leaves everyone without excuse.
Colossians 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: 17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
Here we see that Holy days are dress rehearsals for things that will take place in the future. This is why many people have been looking at the Holy days in the Bible to see a shadow of the coming rapture.
Now many will quote the verse that no one knows the day or the hour, this was spoken in Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32. But those books have a special agenda, Matthew to the Jews salvation and Mark to the salvation of those left behind. The gospel of Luke has the agenda for those raptured before the seven year tribulation. So let’s focus on what Luke says.
Luke 12:39 And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.
He doesn’t say that you don’t know the hour, rather if you had known and had watched you would have prevented your house from being robbed. So then do we have a holiday where there is a dress rehearsal of your house being robbed by Satan? Passover is a holiday where Pharaoh’s house was robbed and all of Egypt. The people who were watching had put blood on their door which prevented their house from being robbed. This holiday would be a mirror image of that, only on this holiday many Christians would not be watching and Satan would creep in some way other than the front door to rob the house.
Luke 12:40 Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.
This is the Luke equivalent of “no one knows the hour” from the other two gospels. In this gospel He doesn’t say “no one knows” but rather it is an hour that you think not. What hour would that be? Most Christians are not watching, they hold to the verse “no one knows the hour” and that is that. But for those who are watching they are focused on the holy days in the Bible. They consider the seven feast days, they consider Pentecost which is only tangentially referred to (it is the Feast of new wine which is 50 days after the day Christianity thinks) and they think of Hanukah which is referenced in the gospel of John. Those are the days that we have naturally thought of because God tells us the end from the beginning and because the holy days are a shadow of things to come. However, Jesus said He would come at an hour when ye think not. Therefore we need to think outside of the box. Think outside of the Old Testament holy days.
This brings us to Pentecost, the feast of New Wine, when the church was formed. This was the official start of the church age and so should be the official end to the church age as well. However, the rapture is not the end of the church age, when the two witnesses are taken up into heaven, that is the end of the church age. Interestingly, Pentecost is on the same day that the two witnesses (Joshua and Caleb) gave a good report. This is what the two witnesses do, they also give a good report. The next day is the ninth of Av which is the day of the evil report and God pouring out His wrath, which is the appropriate day for the Great tribulation to begin, the last 1,260 days of the seven year tribulation.
Now the ministry of the two witnesses is 1,260 days. After that they are killed and lie dead for 3 ½ days. So then if we subtract 1,264 days from the 8th of Av we come to February 1 in 2026 which is the Feast of Trees. The two witnesses are also called two olive trees and those who are left behind are told to go to these trees and buy the oil. So it makes sense that their ministry would be likened to a feast of trees and that it would begin on the Feast of trees.
Therefore we should look for a day and an hour prior to the Feast of Trees that depicts Satan sneaking into your house like a thief at night and robbing you. It turns out that Christmas does depict Santa (an anagram for Satan) climbing into your house some other way than the front door. He leaves gifts, but what those gifts really are is simply junk from the Mall designed to defraud you of the real gift, Jesus Christ. What is interesting is that Christmas is 38 days before the Feast of Trees! When the Israelites were forced to continue to wander in the wilderness it was for 38 years. The penalty was for 40 years but they had already wandered for two of those years. The situation is the same with us, it has been “two days” since Jesus was crucified, ascended and poured out the Spirit on the church.
So then let us consider Christmas as a possible dress rehearsal for the rapture
Definition of Christmas – Christ means anointed one. Mass means assembly of the believers. Christ Mass means a gathering of the ones anointed by the Holy Spirit. That is what the pre-tribulation rapture is.
When I was younger I thought we celebrated Christmas because we were remembering Jesus' birth in a manger. The Bible says to the pure all things are pure. So it is certainly plausible that there are those whose worship of Jesus at Christmas is pure. The rapture is likened to the Manchild in Revelation 12 being caught up so celebrating the birth of Jesus who is the King and rules the nations is a fitting dress rehearsal for the raptured saints who will also rule and reign with Christ.
But along with what is clearly a wonderful worship of Jesus based on the account of His birth in Luke we also have other stories.
The Apostasy
As a child I did not know the Bible so I assumed it was all part of the same story. Santa gave you this distorted view of the Bible and of prayer (letter to Santa). Flying reindeer and elves at the North Pole gave you a distorted view of heaven and the rapture. Pretending that Santa visits every home and gives presents to the kids was perpetrating a lie. Some think this is a good thing, but like all lies the day comes when the kids realize they have been lied to. Then you think all parents are liars. You also think religion is a lie because you thought those stories were in the Bible. This is what the apostasy is, it mixes human traditions with the Bible. The rapture is not just about the saints who are caught up to God, it is also about those who are left behind and Jesus dealing with false prophets, false teachers and the apostate church.
At this point Christmas is no longer pure, you have mixed crystal clear water from Luke with all kinds of Chemicals like Chlorine and Fluorine. Why do you think so many people assume that Jesus is a myth just like Santa is?
But then when you do receive Jesus you learn that He is Lord. Nothing happens on earth that He does not allow. There would be no worship of Jesus' birth at Christmas Eve if it were not for Jesus allowing it. There would be no crass commercialism of this holiday if Jesus did not allow it. The dichotomy in this celebration is crystal clear, some are pagans and prefer to call this Xmas, eliminate Christ the Messiah altogether. Others would be happy to eliminate the commercialism altogether and the only part they like is the Christmas eve service singing hymns to the Lord and worshipping the incarnated Lord.
I don’t celebrate the commercial Christmas. I do not have a tree. I do not lie to my kids. However, I buy them gifts at this time because it is part of Satan's plan to portray anyone who doesn't buy into the whole Santa clause story as a miser, a Scrooge, and a Grinch. I also use this to explain to them how the world lies, what is true and what is a lie. I don't want my kids to be ignorant of Satan's devices. But unlike all other holidays, this one is shoved down your throat. It is assumed everyone celebrates this holiday, the radio is incessantly playing the songs, anyone who says one word about it is mocked as a “grinch” and more importantly, this is the one day of the year that is associated with Christians. That is significant. Jesus was crucified precisely as the Passover lamb on the day and time so that all the Jews would know He was the Messiah. The rapture needs to take place on a day and time that everyone in the world will associate with Christians. There is going to be a great deception, the Antichrist will claim all the people who were taken were bad and were removed by the aliens to bring peace and harmony to earth. Therefore, it is essential that the timing of the rapture be a strong testimony that these were Christians. The entire world knows that Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ.
Isaiah 46:9 Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure:
Only the Bible has prophecies and all of these prophecies have either been fulfilled or will be fulfilled because the God of the Bible is God. No one else can do this and so this leaves everyone without excuse.
Colossians 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: 17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
Here we see that Holy days are dress rehearsals for things that will take place in the future. This is why many people have been looking at the Holy days in the Bible to see a shadow of the coming rapture.
Now many will quote the verse that no one knows the day or the hour, this was spoken in Matthew 24:36 and Mark 13:32. But those books have a special agenda, Matthew to the Jews salvation and Mark to the salvation of those left behind. The gospel of Luke has the agenda for those raptured before the seven year tribulation. So let’s focus on what Luke says.
Luke 12:39 And this know, that if the goodman of the house had known what hour the thief would come, he would have watched, and not have suffered his house to be broken through.
He doesn’t say that you don’t know the hour, rather if you had known and had watched you would have prevented your house from being robbed. So then do we have a holiday where there is a dress rehearsal of your house being robbed by Satan? Passover is a holiday where Pharaoh’s house was robbed and all of Egypt. The people who were watching had put blood on their door which prevented their house from being robbed. This holiday would be a mirror image of that, only on this holiday many Christians would not be watching and Satan would creep in some way other than the front door to rob the house.
Luke 12:40 Be ye therefore ready also: for the Son of man cometh at an hour when ye think not.
This is the Luke equivalent of “no one knows the hour” from the other two gospels. In this gospel He doesn’t say “no one knows” but rather it is an hour that you think not. What hour would that be? Most Christians are not watching, they hold to the verse “no one knows the hour” and that is that. But for those who are watching they are focused on the holy days in the Bible. They consider the seven feast days, they consider Pentecost which is only tangentially referred to (it is the Feast of new wine which is 50 days after the day Christianity thinks) and they think of Hanukah which is referenced in the gospel of John. Those are the days that we have naturally thought of because God tells us the end from the beginning and because the holy days are a shadow of things to come. However, Jesus said He would come at an hour when ye think not. Therefore we need to think outside of the box. Think outside of the Old Testament holy days.
This brings us to Pentecost, the feast of New Wine, when the church was formed. This was the official start of the church age and so should be the official end to the church age as well. However, the rapture is not the end of the church age, when the two witnesses are taken up into heaven, that is the end of the church age. Interestingly, Pentecost is on the same day that the two witnesses (Joshua and Caleb) gave a good report. This is what the two witnesses do, they also give a good report. The next day is the ninth of Av which is the day of the evil report and God pouring out His wrath, which is the appropriate day for the Great tribulation to begin, the last 1,260 days of the seven year tribulation.
Now the ministry of the two witnesses is 1,260 days. After that they are killed and lie dead for 3 ½ days. So then if we subtract 1,264 days from the 8th of Av we come to February 1 in 2026 which is the Feast of Trees. The two witnesses are also called two olive trees and those who are left behind are told to go to these trees and buy the oil. So it makes sense that their ministry would be likened to a feast of trees and that it would begin on the Feast of trees.
Therefore we should look for a day and an hour prior to the Feast of Trees that depicts Satan sneaking into your house like a thief at night and robbing you. It turns out that Christmas does depict Santa (an anagram for Satan) climbing into your house some other way than the front door. He leaves gifts, but what those gifts really are is simply junk from the Mall designed to defraud you of the real gift, Jesus Christ. What is interesting is that Christmas is 38 days before the Feast of Trees! When the Israelites were forced to continue to wander in the wilderness it was for 38 years. The penalty was for 40 years but they had already wandered for two of those years. The situation is the same with us, it has been “two days” since Jesus was crucified, ascended and poured out the Spirit on the church.
So then let us consider Christmas as a possible dress rehearsal for the rapture
Definition of Christmas – Christ means anointed one. Mass means assembly of the believers. Christ Mass means a gathering of the ones anointed by the Holy Spirit. That is what the pre-tribulation rapture is.
When I was younger I thought we celebrated Christmas because we were remembering Jesus' birth in a manger. The Bible says to the pure all things are pure. So it is certainly plausible that there are those whose worship of Jesus at Christmas is pure. The rapture is likened to the Manchild in Revelation 12 being caught up so celebrating the birth of Jesus who is the King and rules the nations is a fitting dress rehearsal for the raptured saints who will also rule and reign with Christ.
But along with what is clearly a wonderful worship of Jesus based on the account of His birth in Luke we also have other stories.
The Apostasy
As a child I did not know the Bible so I assumed it was all part of the same story. Santa gave you this distorted view of the Bible and of prayer (letter to Santa). Flying reindeer and elves at the North Pole gave you a distorted view of heaven and the rapture. Pretending that Santa visits every home and gives presents to the kids was perpetrating a lie. Some think this is a good thing, but like all lies the day comes when the kids realize they have been lied to. Then you think all parents are liars. You also think religion is a lie because you thought those stories were in the Bible. This is what the apostasy is, it mixes human traditions with the Bible. The rapture is not just about the saints who are caught up to God, it is also about those who are left behind and Jesus dealing with false prophets, false teachers and the apostate church.
At this point Christmas is no longer pure, you have mixed crystal clear water from Luke with all kinds of Chemicals like Chlorine and Fluorine. Why do you think so many people assume that Jesus is a myth just like Santa is?
But then when you do receive Jesus you learn that He is Lord. Nothing happens on earth that He does not allow. There would be no worship of Jesus' birth at Christmas Eve if it were not for Jesus allowing it. There would be no crass commercialism of this holiday if Jesus did not allow it. The dichotomy in this celebration is crystal clear, some are pagans and prefer to call this Xmas, eliminate Christ the Messiah altogether. Others would be happy to eliminate the commercialism altogether and the only part they like is the Christmas eve service singing hymns to the Lord and worshipping the incarnated Lord.
I don’t celebrate the commercial Christmas. I do not have a tree. I do not lie to my kids. However, I buy them gifts at this time because it is part of Satan's plan to portray anyone who doesn't buy into the whole Santa clause story as a miser, a Scrooge, and a Grinch. I also use this to explain to them how the world lies, what is true and what is a lie. I don't want my kids to be ignorant of Satan's devices. But unlike all other holidays, this one is shoved down your throat. It is assumed everyone celebrates this holiday, the radio is incessantly playing the songs, anyone who says one word about it is mocked as a “grinch” and more importantly, this is the one day of the year that is associated with Christians. That is significant. Jesus was crucified precisely as the Passover lamb on the day and time so that all the Jews would know He was the Messiah. The rapture needs to take place on a day and time that everyone in the world will associate with Christians. There is going to be a great deception, the Antichrist will claim all the people who were taken were bad and were removed by the aliens to bring peace and harmony to earth. Therefore, it is essential that the timing of the rapture be a strong testimony that these were Christians. The entire world knows that Christmas celebrates the birth of Christ.
Since we are looking for a dress rehearsal for the rapture let’s identify some of the key aspects to look for.
1. It should be a great victory of the believers. A joyful holiday.
2. It should depict the ascension of believers who are victorious over the enemy. Those who are praying that Emanuel would come.
3. Like Pentecost I want to see the Levites take a stand for the Lord and the apostasy to be judged. So we should see a minority of Christians taking a stand against the pagan rituals that are mixed in with the worship of the Lord. Songs like “Santa Baby” depicting the orgy we saw in the Old Testament when Moses came down from the mountain and broke the ten commandments.
4. I want to see that this is "pre tribulation", I also want to see the apostasy, I want to see the Antichrist, Satan robbing your home, defrauding you of your prize, but only after the gathering of the anointed saints.
5. This needs to be a judgement, a "reward" like a gold medal at the Olympics for the faithful ones. The Lord has a book of life and those who are taken will be those whose names are written in that book while those who are left will be those who are written in the book of sinners. To make it real simple a ‘naughty and nice’ list.
6. Before we can have a restoration of all things we need a restoration of holiness, godliness and the gospel. The rapture is a judgement on all that are left behind for their loving the world and the things in the world.
7. It needs to be a New Testament feast. The Lord's table is one of our feasts. We have other holy days like Pentecost, resurrection day, etc. But this feast must be the day that unbelievers and those in the world associate with Christians.
8. As for the apostasy they also celebrate Christmas. I think Christmas refers to the birth of the Antichrist and so I believe this is when the Antichrist will be revealed, the thief in the night. Amos says He will turn your songs of joy on your religious holidays to mourning. I think that is a definite reference to Christmas carols. Joy to the world, the Lord is come, becomes “judgment to the world, the Lord has come, and you were left behind”.
9. Also, I like winter the best for the pretribulation rapture because 42 months later it won't be winter. The Lord told them in Matthew to pray that your flight be not in winter referring to the Jews fleeing Jerusalem when the temple is desecrated. Using a timeline that begins with Christmas would mean the Jews flight would be on the 9th of Av, a fitting day.
10. In Jeremiah he says the harvest is past (Thanksgiving is our harvest festival), the summer is over (for us the first day of winter is December 21st, the winter solstice) and we are not saved indicating they are left behind. This fits with a Christmas rapture.
11. Then consider one of the “Christmas specials” most associated with this holiday, the Peanuts Christmas special. In this special they bicker and fight about everything until finally Charlie Brown in exasperation asks “does anyone know what Christmas is all about” to which Linus answers by reading from Luke and telling us that Jesus Christ is the gift given to us by God. This holiday is fully intertwined with the good news that God so loved the world that He gave His only Son to us as the gift. As a result Satan does his best to spoil that by throwing all the hoopla about Christmas at us.
12. The other “Christmas specials” are Charles Dickens' “ A Christmas Carol” which is very similar to “It’s a wonderful life”. Both stories put eternal salvation at the heart of the story. This is the time to examine your heart and reflect on your walk with the Lord. In a Christmas Carol there is a redemption for the greedy man. In “Its a wonderful life” there is a depiction of a rapture as He is snatched out of the claws of Satan and lifted up and exalted at the end on Christmas eve.
1. It should be a great victory of the believers. A joyful holiday.
2. It should depict the ascension of believers who are victorious over the enemy. Those who are praying that Emanuel would come.
3. Like Pentecost I want to see the Levites take a stand for the Lord and the apostasy to be judged. So we should see a minority of Christians taking a stand against the pagan rituals that are mixed in with the worship of the Lord. Songs like “Santa Baby” depicting the orgy we saw in the Old Testament when Moses came down from the mountain and broke the ten commandments.
4. I want to see that this is "pre tribulation", I also want to see the apostasy, I want to see the Antichrist, Satan robbing your home, defrauding you of your prize, but only after the gathering of the anointed saints.
5. This needs to be a judgement, a "reward" like a gold medal at the Olympics for the faithful ones. The Lord has a book of life and those who are taken will be those whose names are written in that book while those who are left will be those who are written in the book of sinners. To make it real simple a ‘naughty and nice’ list.
6. Before we can have a restoration of all things we need a restoration of holiness, godliness and the gospel. The rapture is a judgement on all that are left behind for their loving the world and the things in the world.
7. It needs to be a New Testament feast. The Lord's table is one of our feasts. We have other holy days like Pentecost, resurrection day, etc. But this feast must be the day that unbelievers and those in the world associate with Christians.
8. As for the apostasy they also celebrate Christmas. I think Christmas refers to the birth of the Antichrist and so I believe this is when the Antichrist will be revealed, the thief in the night. Amos says He will turn your songs of joy on your religious holidays to mourning. I think that is a definite reference to Christmas carols. Joy to the world, the Lord is come, becomes “judgment to the world, the Lord has come, and you were left behind”.
9. Also, I like winter the best for the pretribulation rapture because 42 months later it won't be winter. The Lord told them in Matthew to pray that your flight be not in winter referring to the Jews fleeing Jerusalem when the temple is desecrated. Using a timeline that begins with Christmas would mean the Jews flight would be on the 9th of Av, a fitting day.
10. In Jeremiah he says the harvest is past (Thanksgiving is our harvest festival), the summer is over (for us the first day of winter is December 21st, the winter solstice) and we are not saved indicating they are left behind. This fits with a Christmas rapture.
11. Then consider one of the “Christmas specials” most associated with this holiday, the Peanuts Christmas special. In this special they bicker and fight about everything until finally Charlie Brown in exasperation asks “does anyone know what Christmas is all about” to which Linus answers by reading from Luke and telling us that Jesus Christ is the gift given to us by God. This holiday is fully intertwined with the good news that God so loved the world that He gave His only Son to us as the gift. As a result Satan does his best to spoil that by throwing all the hoopla about Christmas at us.
12. The other “Christmas specials” are Charles Dickens' “ A Christmas Carol” which is very similar to “It’s a wonderful life”. Both stories put eternal salvation at the heart of the story. This is the time to examine your heart and reflect on your walk with the Lord. In a Christmas Carol there is a redemption for the greedy man. In “Its a wonderful life” there is a depiction of a rapture as He is snatched out of the claws of Satan and lifted up and exalted at the end on Christmas eve.
Romans 8:1-30 -- A Christmas story (part 1)
The Gift of Christ Jesus
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh,God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
It is fascinating to me that there are two distinct variations here, those that live according to the flesh and those who live according to the Spirit. No where is that more evident than in the celebration of Christmas for Christians versus the celebration of Xmas for non Christians. We have seen the “battle to put Christ back into Christmas”. This festival reveals those who have the mind of the spirit versus those who have the mind of the flesh. We see this battle between Mr. Potter and Mr. Bailey in “It’s a Wonderful Life”.
5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
Once again, there are those whose mind is on the flesh. You have Christmas parties, gifts, and all kinds of ads to get you to buy stuff you don’t need. On the other hand you have beautiful Christmas plays and pageants, beautiful hymns of praise, candle light services and many other examples of those who are celebrating with the mind set on the Spirit. In this festival you are in the Spirit and Spirit is in you. Mr. Potter steals $8,000 from Mr. Bailey even though he doesn’t need the money and Mr. Bailey is focused on helping poor people get a better life for themselves.
The Spirit of Christ / The Christmas Spirit
9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. 12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
This holiday comes with an obligation. I have always been against the commercial aspects and worldly aspects of this holiday. Yet even so there is an obligation on you because your children will not understand and will think that being a Christian means you are stingy and cheap. So I have always given gifts to my children, I just don’t pretend that there is a “Santa”, I don’t watch the most egregious children’s Christmas shows with reindeer and Santa, and I try to purge the celebration from the demands of the flesh. I find it interesting that “Santa” is merely a rearrangement of the word “Satan”. The story is a lie and they try to force parents to lie to their children and then have children equate this lie with the Bible. If Santa flying around in a sleigh is a lie that was told to you by people you trusted, what about the rapture? It is an evil poison designed to inoculate young children from believing and receiving the gospel. However, according to the Spirit there is an obligation to treat others with love and charity during this time. We even call it “the Christmas spirit”.
The adoption to sonship = rapture of the overcomers
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God Are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
Christmas is a holiday for children. My parents really went all out, I would be up at the crack of dawn and sure enough something had happened from the night before. New gifts were there and the stockings were filled. Those gifts testified that you were children of your parents and heirs. The rapture is a testimony that all who are raptured are children of God and coheirs with God. This term “adoption” refers to a legal declaration that you are heir to the father’s business. This is a big deal in families where a father has a great business. Some children of the father may find themselves disqualified from being heirs, that is sad, but it happens. At the rapture some will be left behind, they will get a second chance but it will still be sad. As it says in Amos if you are not raptured on that day it will be a bitter day for you. Your singing will turn to mourning. The evening before you were singing hymns and carols of praise, thanksgiving and joy. But the next morning if you are left behind those songs will be like gravel in your mouth.
The idea of Santa in the middle of the night coming down chimneys and giving gifts is the photographic negative of Jesus Christ rapturing all the overcomers who are likened to a treasure and the rapture to the Lord coming as a thief (by coming down the chimney?). In the world those the world despises will very often turn out to be the ones the Lord treasures.
The Gift of Christ Jesus
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh,God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
It is fascinating to me that there are two distinct variations here, those that live according to the flesh and those who live according to the Spirit. No where is that more evident than in the celebration of Christmas for Christians versus the celebration of Xmas for non Christians. We have seen the “battle to put Christ back into Christmas”. This festival reveals those who have the mind of the spirit versus those who have the mind of the flesh. We see this battle between Mr. Potter and Mr. Bailey in “It’s a Wonderful Life”.
5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
Once again, there are those whose mind is on the flesh. You have Christmas parties, gifts, and all kinds of ads to get you to buy stuff you don’t need. On the other hand you have beautiful Christmas plays and pageants, beautiful hymns of praise, candle light services and many other examples of those who are celebrating with the mind set on the Spirit. In this festival you are in the Spirit and Spirit is in you. Mr. Potter steals $8,000 from Mr. Bailey even though he doesn’t need the money and Mr. Bailey is focused on helping poor people get a better life for themselves.
The Spirit of Christ / The Christmas Spirit
9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you. 12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
This holiday comes with an obligation. I have always been against the commercial aspects and worldly aspects of this holiday. Yet even so there is an obligation on you because your children will not understand and will think that being a Christian means you are stingy and cheap. So I have always given gifts to my children, I just don’t pretend that there is a “Santa”, I don’t watch the most egregious children’s Christmas shows with reindeer and Santa, and I try to purge the celebration from the demands of the flesh. I find it interesting that “Santa” is merely a rearrangement of the word “Satan”. The story is a lie and they try to force parents to lie to their children and then have children equate this lie with the Bible. If Santa flying around in a sleigh is a lie that was told to you by people you trusted, what about the rapture? It is an evil poison designed to inoculate young children from believing and receiving the gospel. However, according to the Spirit there is an obligation to treat others with love and charity during this time. We even call it “the Christmas spirit”.
The adoption to sonship = rapture of the overcomers
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God Are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
Christmas is a holiday for children. My parents really went all out, I would be up at the crack of dawn and sure enough something had happened from the night before. New gifts were there and the stockings were filled. Those gifts testified that you were children of your parents and heirs. The rapture is a testimony that all who are raptured are children of God and coheirs with God. This term “adoption” refers to a legal declaration that you are heir to the father’s business. This is a big deal in families where a father has a great business. Some children of the father may find themselves disqualified from being heirs, that is sad, but it happens. At the rapture some will be left behind, they will get a second chance but it will still be sad. As it says in Amos if you are not raptured on that day it will be a bitter day for you. Your singing will turn to mourning. The evening before you were singing hymns and carols of praise, thanksgiving and joy. But the next morning if you are left behind those songs will be like gravel in your mouth.
The idea of Santa in the middle of the night coming down chimneys and giving gifts is the photographic negative of Jesus Christ rapturing all the overcomers who are likened to a treasure and the rapture to the Lord coming as a thief (by coming down the chimney?). In the world those the world despises will very often turn out to be the ones the Lord treasures.
Romans 8:1-30 -- A Christmas story (part 2)
Creation waits in eager expectation
18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
Christmas is all about wearing brand new Christmas clothes. There is a glorious celebration and children wait in eager expectation for this day. In the rapture we are “liberated from the bondage of decay”. He doesn’t just say “believers” but rather “creation”. What about our pets? If you were raptured what would happen to your dog or cat? Creation is waiting eagerly because they all will be liberated from decay.
A child is born – the babe of Bethlehem
22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
This is the hope of the gospel. The rapture is likened to the birth of the manchild. Once again Paul is talking about the hope that we wait for patiently, just like we had to wait each year for Christmas. Here we see that the eager expectation, the Spirit of Christ, the gift given to us, this is all tied in with the birth of a child, the manchild.
Pray for what we ought versus the “letter to Santa”.
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
Another part of this religious festival is that kids are to write a letter to Santa praying for things they want. This can be fleshly or it can be spiritual with the Spirit interceding for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
Christmas – the gathering of the anointed ones
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
These are the things we need. We need to be conformed to the image of His Son, we need to know the firstborn Son of God and we need to be born again to be the children of God. We need to be called, we need to be justified, and after all that we need to be glorified. Again, the rapture is the glorification of those who have been born again, called and justified.
A festival of Gifts
31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
This is another aspect of this holiday. “Santa knows whose been naughty and nice”. There is a judgement on this holiday. There are those who get “coal in stocking” signifying the fires of hell. But for others God “gives them all things”. The best gift is Jesus but with Jesus we also get all things.
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
This is a holiday that is all about the love of God. But it is also about conquering through Him who loved us. Conquering what? A major story is “the Christmas Carol” that talks about scrooge getting a new heart. This was then turned into a cartoon with “How the Grinch stole Christmas” by Dr. Seuss. This is a holiday where we conquer selfishness and greed and it speaks to the New Covenant where God gives us a new heart, a heart of flesh.
Creation waits in eager expectation
18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope 21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.
Christmas is all about wearing brand new Christmas clothes. There is a glorious celebration and children wait in eager expectation for this day. In the rapture we are “liberated from the bondage of decay”. He doesn’t just say “believers” but rather “creation”. What about our pets? If you were raptured what would happen to your dog or cat? Creation is waiting eagerly because they all will be liberated from decay.
A child is born – the babe of Bethlehem
22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.
This is the hope of the gospel. The rapture is likened to the birth of the manchild. Once again Paul is talking about the hope that we wait for patiently, just like we had to wait each year for Christmas. Here we see that the eager expectation, the Spirit of Christ, the gift given to us, this is all tied in with the birth of a child, the manchild.
Pray for what we ought versus the “letter to Santa”.
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
Another part of this religious festival is that kids are to write a letter to Santa praying for things they want. This can be fleshly or it can be spiritual with the Spirit interceding for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.
Christmas – the gathering of the anointed ones
28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.
These are the things we need. We need to be conformed to the image of His Son, we need to know the firstborn Son of God and we need to be born again to be the children of God. We need to be called, we need to be justified, and after all that we need to be glorified. Again, the rapture is the glorification of those who have been born again, called and justified.
A festival of Gifts
31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”
This is another aspect of this holiday. “Santa knows whose been naughty and nice”. There is a judgement on this holiday. There are those who get “coal in stocking” signifying the fires of hell. But for others God “gives them all things”. The best gift is Jesus but with Jesus we also get all things.
37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
This is a holiday that is all about the love of God. But it is also about conquering through Him who loved us. Conquering what? A major story is “the Christmas Carol” that talks about scrooge getting a new heart. This was then turned into a cartoon with “How the Grinch stole Christmas” by Dr. Seuss. This is a holiday where we conquer selfishness and greed and it speaks to the New Covenant where God gives us a new heart, a heart of flesh.
Paul does not need to tell us when Christmas is.
1 Thessalonians 5:1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
When God declares a holy day everyone knows when it is, no one needs to tell you. Does anyone on earth not know about Christmas?
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
This is the holiday that comes like a thief in the night. Santa sneaks into your house by coming down the chimney. He comes in the middle of the night. Supposedly he is coming to bring you gifts, but in reality he is exchanging the blessings of God for junk from the Mall.
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
This holiday has the catchphrase "peace and good will to all" and is also celebrating the sudden birth of a child. BTW it is the day that the US rejoiced over the collapse of the USSR, something that has caused a root of bitterness to grow in Putin. Everyone cried out Peace and security when the USSR collapsed. The result is "sudden destruction". This term doesn't mean that destruction comes immediately after everyone saying Peace and Security, instead what it means is that one thing leads to the next, and when the destruction comes it will be sudden, like Pearl Harbor or 911 only much, much bigger.
4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
An interesting analogy here, we usually have a Christmas eve service around 6pm, if you are at that service you are worshipping the Lord.
5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
Children of the darkness are waiting for Santa, an anagram for Satan, while children of the Light are worshipping Jesus the Messiah who has already come. Those in darkness are looking for a Messiah to come.
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
To watch and be sober is related to the night. We have night watchmen, not day watchmen. This is the only holiday that is celebrated at night.
7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
This holiday is also filled with debauchery, and pagan worship.
8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
They exchange myths for faith, Christmas spirit for love, and hope of gifts for hope of salvation.
1 Thessalonians 5:1 But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.
When God declares a holy day everyone knows when it is, no one needs to tell you. Does anyone on earth not know about Christmas?
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.
This is the holiday that comes like a thief in the night. Santa sneaks into your house by coming down the chimney. He comes in the middle of the night. Supposedly he is coming to bring you gifts, but in reality he is exchanging the blessings of God for junk from the Mall.
3 For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
This holiday has the catchphrase "peace and good will to all" and is also celebrating the sudden birth of a child. BTW it is the day that the US rejoiced over the collapse of the USSR, something that has caused a root of bitterness to grow in Putin. Everyone cried out Peace and security when the USSR collapsed. The result is "sudden destruction". This term doesn't mean that destruction comes immediately after everyone saying Peace and Security, instead what it means is that one thing leads to the next, and when the destruction comes it will be sudden, like Pearl Harbor or 911 only much, much bigger.
4 But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
An interesting analogy here, we usually have a Christmas eve service around 6pm, if you are at that service you are worshipping the Lord.
5 Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness.
Children of the darkness are waiting for Santa, an anagram for Satan, while children of the Light are worshipping Jesus the Messiah who has already come. Those in darkness are looking for a Messiah to come.
6 Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.
To watch and be sober is related to the night. We have night watchmen, not day watchmen. This is the only holiday that is celebrated at night.
7 For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.
This holiday is also filled with debauchery, and pagan worship.
8 But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.
They exchange myths for faith, Christmas spirit for love, and hope of gifts for hope of salvation.
Satan himself is transformed into Santa, an angel of light
13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Santa is a story about how Satan transforms himself into an angel of light. I was helping out in children's ministry and I was reading this book to some very young children, one page in the book was about Halloween, so I told the kids I would skip that page because I don't like Halloween. One of the little girls told me that Halloween was good. I asked her why? She said because you get a bag of candy. Do not be deceived, children get sucked into Christmas and then feel like the church and the Bible deceived them when they realize they were deceived. They equate the holiday to the church even if the church never mentions Santa, reindeer, or all the other pagan rituals.
AntiChrist is a counterfeit to Christ.
Santa is a counterfeit to Jesus
Visiting every home in one night and delivering gifts is a counterfeit to the rapture
The letter to Santa is a counterfeit to prayer
He knows if you've been good or bad is a counterfeit to the omnisicient God.
Getting coal in your stocking is a counterfeit to eternal damnation and hellfire.
The flying sleigh is a counterfeit to the chariot of Elijah
Living at the North Pole is a counterfeit to Jesus in the heavens.
Jesus Christ is Lord, all things are under His sovereignty, the reason that Christmas is such a big holiday in the US (not so much in many other countries) is because of His sovereignty. Therefore it is perfectly reasonable to look at this holy day and the songs of mirth associated with it, all being part of the apostasy, but also being part of the Lord's sovereignty to us. It was the Lord who likened His coming to a "thief in the night". This is because He knew the vast majority of people would not be raptured prior to the tribulation (70th week).
Christmas
21 I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
Christmas is not a NT or even an OT feast. It belongs to the apostate church. It is a feast day of the apostate church.
22 Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
Yes, it is true that apostate churches will have big, beautiful services with "Holy Night" and "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" with a beautiful choir. A presentation of Handel’s Messiah is a huge undertaking for any choir.
23 Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.
But God rejects all that.
24 But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
These are the weighty things of the law.
25 Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?
The apostate church wants you to believe that the Christmas tree, and all of the trimmings are not important, what is important is that they are remembering Jesus' birth. But God does not see it that way. Think about all the effort that goes into Christmas, most of that effort is not for the worship of the Lord.
26 But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.
That star on the tree, that is the star of their god. That angel on the tree, that is their image. That tree, that is a symbol of the Babylonian religion. The apostate church justifies a mixture because that is the only way they will even lift the name of Jesus. But if you put poison into a gold cup the gold does not make it safe to drink the poison. If you wrap up a poisonous snake with Christmas paper that doesn't make the snake less poisonous. Christmas involves worship, it involves carrying this burden, and it isn't for the Lord, it is for the idolatrous gods you worship.
13 For such are false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the apostles of Christ. 14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.
Santa is a story about how Satan transforms himself into an angel of light. I was helping out in children's ministry and I was reading this book to some very young children, one page in the book was about Halloween, so I told the kids I would skip that page because I don't like Halloween. One of the little girls told me that Halloween was good. I asked her why? She said because you get a bag of candy. Do not be deceived, children get sucked into Christmas and then feel like the church and the Bible deceived them when they realize they were deceived. They equate the holiday to the church even if the church never mentions Santa, reindeer, or all the other pagan rituals.
AntiChrist is a counterfeit to Christ.
Santa is a counterfeit to Jesus
Visiting every home in one night and delivering gifts is a counterfeit to the rapture
The letter to Santa is a counterfeit to prayer
He knows if you've been good or bad is a counterfeit to the omnisicient God.
Getting coal in your stocking is a counterfeit to eternal damnation and hellfire.
The flying sleigh is a counterfeit to the chariot of Elijah
Living at the North Pole is a counterfeit to Jesus in the heavens.
Jesus Christ is Lord, all things are under His sovereignty, the reason that Christmas is such a big holiday in the US (not so much in many other countries) is because of His sovereignty. Therefore it is perfectly reasonable to look at this holy day and the songs of mirth associated with it, all being part of the apostasy, but also being part of the Lord's sovereignty to us. It was the Lord who likened His coming to a "thief in the night". This is because He knew the vast majority of people would not be raptured prior to the tribulation (70th week).
Christmas
21 I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
Christmas is not a NT or even an OT feast. It belongs to the apostate church. It is a feast day of the apostate church.
22 Though ye offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
Yes, it is true that apostate churches will have big, beautiful services with "Holy Night" and "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" with a beautiful choir. A presentation of Handel’s Messiah is a huge undertaking for any choir.
23 Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs; for I will not hear the melody of thy viols.
But God rejects all that.
24 But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
These are the weighty things of the law.
25 Have ye offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Israel?
The apostate church wants you to believe that the Christmas tree, and all of the trimmings are not important, what is important is that they are remembering Jesus' birth. But God does not see it that way. Think about all the effort that goes into Christmas, most of that effort is not for the worship of the Lord.
26 But ye have borne the tabernacle of your Moloch and Chiun your images, the star of your god, which ye made to yourselves.
That star on the tree, that is the star of their god. That angel on the tree, that is their image. That tree, that is a symbol of the Babylonian religion. The apostate church justifies a mixture because that is the only way they will even lift the name of Jesus. But if you put poison into a gold cup the gold does not make it safe to drink the poison. If you wrap up a poisonous snake with Christmas paper that doesn't make the snake less poisonous. Christmas involves worship, it involves carrying this burden, and it isn't for the Lord, it is for the idolatrous gods you worship.
Let's talk about the timing of the rapture.
1. Summer is over and we are not saved
Jeremiah 8:20 The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.
So at the end of summer we have a harvest festival. Halloween was an ancient Celtic harvest festival and Thanksgiving is a more modern American harvest festival. Jeremiah is describing being left behind after the rapture and it is after the harvest festival. Jeremiah also says summer is "ended", that would mean this is after December 21st, the winter solstice and the official start of winter. I understand this verse in Jeremiah to be a reference to the rapture from those who are left behind. This is why I believe that the first rapture is during the early winter. If we were in January or February I don't think you would be saying "the harvest is past" or "the summer is ended". You are already in the dead of winter. I think this gives us the sense that summer just ended, the harvest, and everything related to that was just completed and finished. Crops are harvested and in the barn, and the festivals are over.
2. I will turn all your songs into lamentation
Amos 8:10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
This is the last occurrence of songs in the Old Testament. I believe this term "your songs" that go with "your feasts" and the reference to "an only son", all three of these things point to Christmas songs. We know that from Thanksgiving to Christmas the radios play Christmas songs. Because of that I believe this is a reference to this time period between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The word for "end" is used to refer to the Last days.
Now consider how bitter Christmas carols would be if you woke up on Christmas day to learn you were left behind from the rapture.
Lamentations 5:15 The joy of our heart is ceased; our dance is turned into mourning.
This is a companion verse with Amos 8:10. Songs are turned to a dirge, and the dance is turned to mourning. But it is even more precise. They start the Christmas songs after Thanksgiving, but the dance, that would refer to the Christmas parties, generally one or two weeks before Christmas. God is saying they were singing these songs and dancing just yesterday, it was joyful, and now today it is bitter mourning.
Daniel 5:30 In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain
If we were standing on the North pole one day = one year. The sun rises on the Spring equinox (March 21), reaches the highest point on the summer solstice (June 21) and then sets at the Fall equinox (September 21). So in this analogy twilight would begin at the end of September. Midnight would be the winter solstice (December 21).
We are told about the "midnight cry" and using the analogy of the North Pole where one day = one year, midnight would be December 21.
Matthew 25:6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
The appointed day
Proverbs 7:20 He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed.
This has always been one of my least favorite verses. You have this adulterous woman telling us when the Lord is going to return and she says it will be on a full moon. Why of all people would she know? I think that this aligns with the verse in Luke which says the Lord will come at an hour when you think not. The full moon is the day that Passover is celebrated and it is also when the 15th of Av is celebrated. The 15th of Av is the Jewish “Valentine’s day”. This verse demonstrates how despicable this woman is. She is committing adultery while at the same time thinking the Lord will come on Valentines day for her.
Revelation 3:3b If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
If the Lord tells Sardis this, then surely that will apply to this adulterous woman as well. So I have always felt she was clueless about when the Lord is going to return.
Now Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. In the Old testament we are told all the Holy convocations that tell you the day and the hour that key events will take place. All of the feasts applied to Jesus, the last Adam. But after the church was built from the blood and water from his side I expect that there will be an appointed day for her rapture.
Matthew 24:44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
During the Lord's earthly ministry He made it clear there was no Holy convocation for His return.
However, Jesus is Lord. Everything in the epistles represents His heavenly ministry and instead of giving us a Holy Convocation with a day and hour, He gave us a whole lot of signs to watch for. There are many prophecies to watch for, like night watchmen.
Also, Satan can do nothing without Jesus' permission. Jesus is Lord. I have looked at Thanksgiving and that does apply to the US, but not to the rest of the world. Is there an appointed day for the rapture to take place and for the Antichrist to be revealed? An appointed day where a thief comes in the night? A day that all the nations celebrate and know of? The reason God does things on appointed days is because it confirms the prophets and it is a strong message to those that Jesus is the Messiah and He is God. That is why I expect the rapture and destruction of Babylon should take place on a day that is significant to those left behind.
The USSR collapsed on Christmas, so you can be sure that is a very significant day for Putin. He was greatly insulted at the west rejoicing over the collapse so for him to attack the US on Christmas is a significant day that sends a message. Likewise N. Korea promised to give the US a Christmas gift. So this would also be a significant day for them. Christmas is a pagan holiday and although some may be worshipping Jesus with a pure heart on this day, most are worshipping mammon and pagan idols. This is a Babylonian holy day for the birthday of one of their gods who is a shadow of the Antichrist. It is the ideal day to reveal the antichrist.
You can be sure that on the evening of December 24th people are singing Christmas songs in all the churches. If the rapture were to take place at that time then for those left behind those songs would be turned to a dirge and lamentation.
Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned H2015 into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
When is the sun turned into darkness? When is it changed? If you are at the North Pole this could be a reference to the Fall equinox. For everyone in the Northern hemisphere it could be a reference to winter time. This word could be a weird way to refer to the winter solstice, December 21.
1. Summer is over and we are not saved
Jeremiah 8:20 The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.
So at the end of summer we have a harvest festival. Halloween was an ancient Celtic harvest festival and Thanksgiving is a more modern American harvest festival. Jeremiah is describing being left behind after the rapture and it is after the harvest festival. Jeremiah also says summer is "ended", that would mean this is after December 21st, the winter solstice and the official start of winter. I understand this verse in Jeremiah to be a reference to the rapture from those who are left behind. This is why I believe that the first rapture is during the early winter. If we were in January or February I don't think you would be saying "the harvest is past" or "the summer is ended". You are already in the dead of winter. I think this gives us the sense that summer just ended, the harvest, and everything related to that was just completed and finished. Crops are harvested and in the barn, and the festivals are over.
2. I will turn all your songs into lamentation
Amos 8:10 And I will turn your feasts into mourning, and all your songs into lamentation; and I will bring up sackcloth upon all loins, and baldness upon every head; and I will make it as the mourning of an only son, and the end thereof as a bitter day.
This is the last occurrence of songs in the Old Testament. I believe this term "your songs" that go with "your feasts" and the reference to "an only son", all three of these things point to Christmas songs. We know that from Thanksgiving to Christmas the radios play Christmas songs. Because of that I believe this is a reference to this time period between Thanksgiving and Christmas. The word for "end" is used to refer to the Last days.
Now consider how bitter Christmas carols would be if you woke up on Christmas day to learn you were left behind from the rapture.
Lamentations 5:15 The joy of our heart is ceased; our dance is turned into mourning.
This is a companion verse with Amos 8:10. Songs are turned to a dirge, and the dance is turned to mourning. But it is even more precise. They start the Christmas songs after Thanksgiving, but the dance, that would refer to the Christmas parties, generally one or two weeks before Christmas. God is saying they were singing these songs and dancing just yesterday, it was joyful, and now today it is bitter mourning.
Daniel 5:30 In that night was Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans slain
If we were standing on the North pole one day = one year. The sun rises on the Spring equinox (March 21), reaches the highest point on the summer solstice (June 21) and then sets at the Fall equinox (September 21). So in this analogy twilight would begin at the end of September. Midnight would be the winter solstice (December 21).
We are told about the "midnight cry" and using the analogy of the North Pole where one day = one year, midnight would be December 21.
Matthew 25:6 And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him.
The appointed day
Proverbs 7:20 He hath taken a bag of money with him, and will come home at the day appointed.
This has always been one of my least favorite verses. You have this adulterous woman telling us when the Lord is going to return and she says it will be on a full moon. Why of all people would she know? I think that this aligns with the verse in Luke which says the Lord will come at an hour when you think not. The full moon is the day that Passover is celebrated and it is also when the 15th of Av is celebrated. The 15th of Av is the Jewish “Valentine’s day”. This verse demonstrates how despicable this woman is. She is committing adultery while at the same time thinking the Lord will come on Valentines day for her.
Revelation 3:3b If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.
If the Lord tells Sardis this, then surely that will apply to this adulterous woman as well. So I have always felt she was clueless about when the Lord is going to return.
Now Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. In the Old testament we are told all the Holy convocations that tell you the day and the hour that key events will take place. All of the feasts applied to Jesus, the last Adam. But after the church was built from the blood and water from his side I expect that there will be an appointed day for her rapture.
Matthew 24:44 Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.
During the Lord's earthly ministry He made it clear there was no Holy convocation for His return.
However, Jesus is Lord. Everything in the epistles represents His heavenly ministry and instead of giving us a Holy Convocation with a day and hour, He gave us a whole lot of signs to watch for. There are many prophecies to watch for, like night watchmen.
Also, Satan can do nothing without Jesus' permission. Jesus is Lord. I have looked at Thanksgiving and that does apply to the US, but not to the rest of the world. Is there an appointed day for the rapture to take place and for the Antichrist to be revealed? An appointed day where a thief comes in the night? A day that all the nations celebrate and know of? The reason God does things on appointed days is because it confirms the prophets and it is a strong message to those that Jesus is the Messiah and He is God. That is why I expect the rapture and destruction of Babylon should take place on a day that is significant to those left behind.
The USSR collapsed on Christmas, so you can be sure that is a very significant day for Putin. He was greatly insulted at the west rejoicing over the collapse so for him to attack the US on Christmas is a significant day that sends a message. Likewise N. Korea promised to give the US a Christmas gift. So this would also be a significant day for them. Christmas is a pagan holiday and although some may be worshipping Jesus with a pure heart on this day, most are worshipping mammon and pagan idols. This is a Babylonian holy day for the birthday of one of their gods who is a shadow of the Antichrist. It is the ideal day to reveal the antichrist.
You can be sure that on the evening of December 24th people are singing Christmas songs in all the churches. If the rapture were to take place at that time then for those left behind those songs would be turned to a dirge and lamentation.
Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned H2015 into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.
When is the sun turned into darkness? When is it changed? If you are at the North Pole this could be a reference to the Fall equinox. For everyone in the Northern hemisphere it could be a reference to winter time. This word could be a weird way to refer to the winter solstice, December 21.
Ten Virgins with lamps & The Candlelight service on Christmas Eve
At any given moment on Earth you have all 24 hours. If it is midnight at one place, it is noon at another. However, if we look at one year as one day at the North Pole then midnight is the winter solstice on December 21.
7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
Imagine a festival of lamps in the middle of winter. That is what Hanukkah is. If Jesus delays then we can imagine this takes place after Hanukkah is over. Hanukkah ended December 21. If you were hoping the rapture would be during Hanukkah and it is on Christmas then Jesus is “four days late” just as He was when He raised Lazarus from the dead.
8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
This is the story of Hanukkah, they didn't have enough oil and God performed a miracle so there would be enough oil. However, there is no record of that miracle in the historical accounts. Sounds like the traditions of men designed for foolish virgins. It is OK to only have one day of oil because God will perform a miracle. Apparently not.
9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
Those who buy sound like the two oil trees in Zechariah, the two witnesses during the tribulation. It would make sense to me that their ministry would begin on the Festival of Trees which in 2026 is February 1, 38 days after Christmas which is also significant.
10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
They miss the pre tribulation rapture. This festival of light points to Hanukkah, foolish virgins run out of oil at this point and are told to go buy from the two witnesses, that is Feb 1, but before they can buy the oil the rapture takes place and they are locked out. Sounds like the Rapture is between December 21 and Feb 1.
11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
Think about that. Right now the door is open, but in an instant everything changes and if you aren't ready that door is shut.
12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
In other words the Lord spoke to the foolish ones and they ignored Him. He warned them, He told them they were being foolish but they completely ignored Him. They didn't know Him, they didn't know His voice, and so He in turn didn't know them.
13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.
What "watch" means here is always be ready at the drop of a hat to step in with your light burning. This is what Paul told Timothy, be instant in season and out of season.
Likewise what is unique to Luke that is not in all the other books? It is the Christmas story.
Why do the Jews miss the pre tribulation rapture? They don't know the Messiah and they are foolish. They miss Him when He comes at the midnight hour which would be around the winter solstice, and around Hanukkah.
So Enoch appears to be a picture of the rapture of the church. He was the seventh and the number seven is typically used to refer to the church. Samson pushing out the pillars depicts the destruction of the apostate church and the death of many adulterous believers similar to Elijah calling fire down from heaven and then having the 400 prophets of Baal killed.
Elijah and Enoch depict two aspects of the rapture. Just as the church will have both pre tribulation rapture and tribulation saints. With Elijah we also have Elisha. Elijah signifies the ministry of the saints before the rapture and Elisha signifies the ministry of the tribulation saints.
Now with Samson we are told the pillars are pushed out during a great sacrifice to Dagon. I would think the two biggest sacrifices to Dagon today are Christmas and Easter (Dagon signifying the Catholic church, the Pope wears the same hat that the priests to Dagon wear). So then Samson points to a great sacrifice to Dagon, a big celebration of the Catholic church. We know it is in the winter, it is at night, and it is filled with joyful songs. Sure sounds like Christmas. It also fits with Jesus telling the disciples that "no one knows the day or the hour". That would apply to Christmas and the Catholic church because neither of them existed at that time.
The Vatican's midnight mass will be from 7:30 to 9:30 pm, Rome time, that is 1:30 to 3:30 pm EST 24th of December.
Imagine the rapture takes place during this time and around the world people are being raptured and yet no one at that ceremony is taken. That would bring the temple down on their own heads and expose the false prophet.
At any given moment on Earth you have all 24 hours. If it is midnight at one place, it is noon at another. However, if we look at one year as one day at the North Pole then midnight is the winter solstice on December 21.
7 Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
Imagine a festival of lamps in the middle of winter. That is what Hanukkah is. If Jesus delays then we can imagine this takes place after Hanukkah is over. Hanukkah ended December 21. If you were hoping the rapture would be during Hanukkah and it is on Christmas then Jesus is “four days late” just as He was when He raised Lazarus from the dead.
8 And the foolish said unto the wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
This is the story of Hanukkah, they didn't have enough oil and God performed a miracle so there would be enough oil. However, there is no record of that miracle in the historical accounts. Sounds like the traditions of men designed for foolish virgins. It is OK to only have one day of oil because God will perform a miracle. Apparently not.
9 But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
Those who buy sound like the two oil trees in Zechariah, the two witnesses during the tribulation. It would make sense to me that their ministry would begin on the Festival of Trees which in 2026 is February 1, 38 days after Christmas which is also significant.
10 And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
They miss the pre tribulation rapture. This festival of light points to Hanukkah, foolish virgins run out of oil at this point and are told to go buy from the two witnesses, that is Feb 1, but before they can buy the oil the rapture takes place and they are locked out. Sounds like the Rapture is between December 21 and Feb 1.
11 Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
Think about that. Right now the door is open, but in an instant everything changes and if you aren't ready that door is shut.
12 But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
In other words the Lord spoke to the foolish ones and they ignored Him. He warned them, He told them they were being foolish but they completely ignored Him. They didn't know Him, they didn't know His voice, and so He in turn didn't know them.
13 Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.
What "watch" means here is always be ready at the drop of a hat to step in with your light burning. This is what Paul told Timothy, be instant in season and out of season.
Likewise what is unique to Luke that is not in all the other books? It is the Christmas story.
Why do the Jews miss the pre tribulation rapture? They don't know the Messiah and they are foolish. They miss Him when He comes at the midnight hour which would be around the winter solstice, and around Hanukkah.
So Enoch appears to be a picture of the rapture of the church. He was the seventh and the number seven is typically used to refer to the church. Samson pushing out the pillars depicts the destruction of the apostate church and the death of many adulterous believers similar to Elijah calling fire down from heaven and then having the 400 prophets of Baal killed.
Elijah and Enoch depict two aspects of the rapture. Just as the church will have both pre tribulation rapture and tribulation saints. With Elijah we also have Elisha. Elijah signifies the ministry of the saints before the rapture and Elisha signifies the ministry of the tribulation saints.
Now with Samson we are told the pillars are pushed out during a great sacrifice to Dagon. I would think the two biggest sacrifices to Dagon today are Christmas and Easter (Dagon signifying the Catholic church, the Pope wears the same hat that the priests to Dagon wear). So then Samson points to a great sacrifice to Dagon, a big celebration of the Catholic church. We know it is in the winter, it is at night, and it is filled with joyful songs. Sure sounds like Christmas. It also fits with Jesus telling the disciples that "no one knows the day or the hour". That would apply to Christmas and the Catholic church because neither of them existed at that time.
The Vatican's midnight mass will be from 7:30 to 9:30 pm, Rome time, that is 1:30 to 3:30 pm EST 24th of December.
Imagine the rapture takes place during this time and around the world people are being raptured and yet no one at that ceremony is taken. That would bring the temple down on their own heads and expose the false prophet.
Does the rapture need to be on an appointed feast day?
Well lets consider this, what if Jesus had not been crucified on Passover? Suppose he had not gone into the grave at the start of the feast of unleavened bread? Suppose He did not rise from the dead on the Feast of the First Firstfruit? Would that have made a difference?
Yes, it would. The fact that all those things happened precisely at the time they did helps us to understand them and apply all the words in the Bible to those events. This fulfilled John the Baptist's prophecy "behold the lamb of God". During Passover you are to inspect the lamb before sacrificing it and we saw that Jesus was inspected for the 3 1/2 days before He was crucified. But God gave us 3 1/2 years to inspect the lamb of God.
So how else would you know that Jesus' crucifixion was the fulfillment and that He was the Messiah?
In the same way, how does anyone know that the rapture is not aliens removing bad people from earth? How are we to know who the prophets of Baal are and who the genuine prophets of God are that we can trust? If Jesus had not been crucified on Passover He would not have had God's good housekeeping seal of approval. The same with the rapture, it must be on an appointed day.
So then I do believe the rapture will be on an appointed day with a lot of significance so that those left behind will know what it was. However, when Jesus said "no one knows the day" I understand that to mean it is not an appointed feast in the Old Testament. Everyone listening to Him at that time knew those days.
Therefore I am looking for an appointed day that the Lord Jesus has allowed to be established during the church age.
The rapture is the gathering of all those who are spirit filled. The biblical term for Spirit filled is "Anointed". It is the gathering or the assembly of the anointed ones.
It is also, according to the story of Samson, going to be during a great sacrifice to Dagon. Because of the similarity of the Pope's hat and the priests of Dagon's hat I would say the modern equivalent will be a great Catholic celebration. Obviously it should be during a midnight Mass that is live streamed to the whole world. Because like Elijah calling down fire the whole world needs to see who the prophets of Baal are that have been lying to you.
Is Hanukkah a rapture scenario?
Yes and no. I think the celebration correlates nicely with the ten virgins with lamps that are lit. The foolish ones don't have any oil. That oil will take them through the tribulation just as Hanukkah describes oil lighting the lamps lasting for seven days when it was only enough for one day. But think about it, the lamps go out for the foolish ones, that indicates that Hanukkah is over.
I think the celebration definitely would kick off the tribulation and that the tribulation begins (hour of trial) right after the pre-tribulation rapture. So in that sense it nicely correlates. But Lazarus was raised from the grave four days after he died, so four days after Hanukkah also makes sense.
Antiochus Epiphanes is a type of the Antichrist, so Hanukkah should be seen as a celebration of tribulation saints taking a stand against the antichrist. They are rededicating the temple after being left behind because their worship was defiled. How so? Well a rapture on Christmas would explain that.
Also, in the New Testament when Jesus is celebrating the feast of Dedication (Hanukkah) they ask Him how long He is going to keep them in suspense, tell them clearly if He is the Christ. I think you can say that the rapture is when Jesus tells them clearly that He is the Christ.
Now what I am looking for is something similar to Revelation 12 with the birth of the manchild who is snatched up before the dragon can devour him. A Christian day, a celebration that was dedicated to that with Hanukkah immediately preceding it to light the lamps, but only the lamps of the wise virgins are still lit when this day comes. Also I expect this festival to be celebrated at night, Jesus comes as a thief in the night, and not at sunrise like we do on Resurrection day. Again, all things pointing to Christmas.
Well lets consider this, what if Jesus had not been crucified on Passover? Suppose he had not gone into the grave at the start of the feast of unleavened bread? Suppose He did not rise from the dead on the Feast of the First Firstfruit? Would that have made a difference?
Yes, it would. The fact that all those things happened precisely at the time they did helps us to understand them and apply all the words in the Bible to those events. This fulfilled John the Baptist's prophecy "behold the lamb of God". During Passover you are to inspect the lamb before sacrificing it and we saw that Jesus was inspected for the 3 1/2 days before He was crucified. But God gave us 3 1/2 years to inspect the lamb of God.
So how else would you know that Jesus' crucifixion was the fulfillment and that He was the Messiah?
In the same way, how does anyone know that the rapture is not aliens removing bad people from earth? How are we to know who the prophets of Baal are and who the genuine prophets of God are that we can trust? If Jesus had not been crucified on Passover He would not have had God's good housekeeping seal of approval. The same with the rapture, it must be on an appointed day.
So then I do believe the rapture will be on an appointed day with a lot of significance so that those left behind will know what it was. However, when Jesus said "no one knows the day" I understand that to mean it is not an appointed feast in the Old Testament. Everyone listening to Him at that time knew those days.
Therefore I am looking for an appointed day that the Lord Jesus has allowed to be established during the church age.
The rapture is the gathering of all those who are spirit filled. The biblical term for Spirit filled is "Anointed". It is the gathering or the assembly of the anointed ones.
It is also, according to the story of Samson, going to be during a great sacrifice to Dagon. Because of the similarity of the Pope's hat and the priests of Dagon's hat I would say the modern equivalent will be a great Catholic celebration. Obviously it should be during a midnight Mass that is live streamed to the whole world. Because like Elijah calling down fire the whole world needs to see who the prophets of Baal are that have been lying to you.
Is Hanukkah a rapture scenario?
Yes and no. I think the celebration correlates nicely with the ten virgins with lamps that are lit. The foolish ones don't have any oil. That oil will take them through the tribulation just as Hanukkah describes oil lighting the lamps lasting for seven days when it was only enough for one day. But think about it, the lamps go out for the foolish ones, that indicates that Hanukkah is over.
I think the celebration definitely would kick off the tribulation and that the tribulation begins (hour of trial) right after the pre-tribulation rapture. So in that sense it nicely correlates. But Lazarus was raised from the grave four days after he died, so four days after Hanukkah also makes sense.
Antiochus Epiphanes is a type of the Antichrist, so Hanukkah should be seen as a celebration of tribulation saints taking a stand against the antichrist. They are rededicating the temple after being left behind because their worship was defiled. How so? Well a rapture on Christmas would explain that.
Also, in the New Testament when Jesus is celebrating the feast of Dedication (Hanukkah) they ask Him how long He is going to keep them in suspense, tell them clearly if He is the Christ. I think you can say that the rapture is when Jesus tells them clearly that He is the Christ.
Now what I am looking for is something similar to Revelation 12 with the birth of the manchild who is snatched up before the dragon can devour him. A Christian day, a celebration that was dedicated to that with Hanukkah immediately preceding it to light the lamps, but only the lamps of the wise virgins are still lit when this day comes. Also I expect this festival to be celebrated at night, Jesus comes as a thief in the night, and not at sunrise like we do on Resurrection day. Again, all things pointing to Christmas.
John 4:39 And many of the Samaritans of that city believed on him for the saying of the woman, which testified, He told me all that ever I did.
I knew a brother who preached the gospel faithfully using the formula of "Acknowledge, Believe, Confess" and then would have the person repeat a prayer with him.
I knew another brother who also preached the gospel faithfully always concluding with Romans 10 that if you call on the name of the Lord you shall be saved.
But that is not how I got saved. No one led me in prayer, I was seeking to know who God was and prayed that I wanted to see the Lord when He comes down in those clouds.
My point is that we have different people, different experiences, and in the gospel it was not one formula that Jesus used, instead He told people all that ever they did. I was saved at 12 years old, the testimony of a Meth addict getting saved has nothing to do with my salvation experience. It will resonate with others who have become drug addicts, that is great. I heard a compelling testimony from a man who was in a street gang and went to prison for murder. Again, for some people that testimony will resonate. I enjoyed his testimony, but that was not the Lord telling me all that ever I did.
No, I was saved at 12 but had no one to lead me in my spiritual growth. I had this desperate hunger to know what the bible said but every time I tried to read it I felt like it was a closed book to me. My prayer was that the Lord would give me a crow bar so that I could open this word. A couple of years later I met a group that was based on the ministry of Watchman Nee. That was when the word of God was opened to me. Later I read his book "The Ministry of God's word". I was a poor student and couldn't afford a lot of books so I went over that book in very careful detail.
We have Christians who have many functions, many ministries. This is based on them coming from many different backgrounds and experiences. The Lord tells us this is because when He speaks through His body He can speak to each one of us "all things ever I did".
So going back to those two brothers who preached the gospel faithfully, one brother, the one who would always lead people to Romans 10, he encouraged us to each share from our own experience. That was the basis for a powerful campus ministry. The other brother became very strident that everyone needed to imitate him. He turned a blessing from the Lord to him, into a curse to others. Condemning others and slandering others because they didn't preach the gospel the same way he did. I would spend time with both brothers in evangelism and I never had the slightest burden to preach the gospel like either of them. I appreciated what they did, but I wanted to be one with the Holy Spirit moving in me, not to imitate some other brother's ministry.
I knew a brother who preached the gospel faithfully using the formula of "Acknowledge, Believe, Confess" and then would have the person repeat a prayer with him.
I knew another brother who also preached the gospel faithfully always concluding with Romans 10 that if you call on the name of the Lord you shall be saved.
But that is not how I got saved. No one led me in prayer, I was seeking to know who God was and prayed that I wanted to see the Lord when He comes down in those clouds.
My point is that we have different people, different experiences, and in the gospel it was not one formula that Jesus used, instead He told people all that ever they did. I was saved at 12 years old, the testimony of a Meth addict getting saved has nothing to do with my salvation experience. It will resonate with others who have become drug addicts, that is great. I heard a compelling testimony from a man who was in a street gang and went to prison for murder. Again, for some people that testimony will resonate. I enjoyed his testimony, but that was not the Lord telling me all that ever I did.
No, I was saved at 12 but had no one to lead me in my spiritual growth. I had this desperate hunger to know what the bible said but every time I tried to read it I felt like it was a closed book to me. My prayer was that the Lord would give me a crow bar so that I could open this word. A couple of years later I met a group that was based on the ministry of Watchman Nee. That was when the word of God was opened to me. Later I read his book "The Ministry of God's word". I was a poor student and couldn't afford a lot of books so I went over that book in very careful detail.
We have Christians who have many functions, many ministries. This is based on them coming from many different backgrounds and experiences. The Lord tells us this is because when He speaks through His body He can speak to each one of us "all things ever I did".
So going back to those two brothers who preached the gospel faithfully, one brother, the one who would always lead people to Romans 10, he encouraged us to each share from our own experience. That was the basis for a powerful campus ministry. The other brother became very strident that everyone needed to imitate him. He turned a blessing from the Lord to him, into a curse to others. Condemning others and slandering others because they didn't preach the gospel the same way he did. I would spend time with both brothers in evangelism and I never had the slightest burden to preach the gospel like either of them. I appreciated what they did, but I wanted to be one with the Holy Spirit moving in me, not to imitate some other brother's ministry.
Leviticus 7:8 And the priest that offereth any man's burnt offering, even the priest shall have to himself the skin of the burnt offering which he hath offered.
If you are wondering why you are not protected from the cold, it could be that you have not given yourself wholly to the Lord as a burnt offering. When you, as a priest, offer yourself fully to be a burnt offering on the altar then you receive the skin of that burnt offering as a covering. If you don't have this covering it could be that you have never offered yourself on the altar as a burnt offering.
If you are wondering why you are not protected from the cold, it could be that you have not given yourself wholly to the Lord as a burnt offering. When you, as a priest, offer yourself fully to be a burnt offering on the altar then you receive the skin of that burnt offering as a covering. If you don't have this covering it could be that you have never offered yourself on the altar as a burnt offering.
How to deal with Trolls
Romans 16:17 Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
You should do two things, mark them and avoid them. These are people who try to cause divisions.
18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.
Now the word "For" is an explanation. They are trying to cause divisions to serve their own belly. In other words they want to slice a piece of the church off for them. They are not doing what Paul did, preach the gospel to the unbelievers and then raise up a church. No, they are grifters, come in with good words and fair speeches like politicians, and try to get an existing church to split in half with them being in charge of half the church. Now their good words and fair speeches are contrary to the doctrine we have learned from the New Testament. Prosperity gospel, Calvinism, LGBTQ+, these are all examples of doctrine that is contrary to the New Testament.
19 For your obedience is come abroad unto all men. I am glad therefore on your behalf: but yet I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple concerning evil.
Again, this explains why they are showing up. It isn't because the church has a problem, it is because the obedience of the church has come abroad to all men, including Satanists and those involved in witchcraft. The Bible spends very little time talking about these ones because the goal is that we would be wise unto that which is good. As long as we are wise unto that which is good we can be simple concerning evil. Witchcraft has no power against those who are wise unto that which is good. However, if the church is obedient unto the Lord and unto His word those in the occult will become aware of this church and target it for attack. This means if you are building up a beautiful expression of the Body of Christ you also have to build up prayer warriors to defend this church from attack because the attack will come.
20 And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
Romans 16:17 Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them.
You should do two things, mark them and avoid them. These are people who try to cause divisions.
18 For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple.
Now the word "For" is an explanation. They are trying to cause divisions to serve their own belly. In other words they want to slice a piece of the church off for them. They are not doing what Paul did, preach the gospel to the unbelievers and then raise up a church. No, they are grifters, come in with good words and fair speeches like politicians, and try to get an existing church to split in half with them being in charge of half the church. Now their good words and fair speeches are contrary to the doctrine we have learned from the New Testament. Prosperity gospel, Calvinism, LGBTQ+, these are all examples of doctrine that is contrary to the New Testament.
19 For your obedience is come abroad unto all men. I am glad therefore on your behalf: but yet I would have you wise unto that which is good, and simple concerning evil.
Again, this explains why they are showing up. It isn't because the church has a problem, it is because the obedience of the church has come abroad to all men, including Satanists and those involved in witchcraft. The Bible spends very little time talking about these ones because the goal is that we would be wise unto that which is good. As long as we are wise unto that which is good we can be simple concerning evil. Witchcraft has no power against those who are wise unto that which is good. However, if the church is obedient unto the Lord and unto His word those in the occult will become aware of this church and target it for attack. This means if you are building up a beautiful expression of the Body of Christ you also have to build up prayer warriors to defend this church from attack because the attack will come.
20 And the God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.
I have added two key New Testament patterns aligning with Christmas. The story of the wise men giving gifts and Palm Sunday. These two patterns give us a clearer vision on where Christmas aligns with the rapture.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UqT9Iw9Wy3Q2OnF63QWdhHSIqGzmE9VD/view?usp=sharing
Does Christmas Depict the rapture.
This link gives you a more complete account than the last link and the last link has been deleted.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1UqT9Iw9Wy3Q2OnF63QWdhHSIqGzmE9VD/view?usp=sharing
Does Christmas Depict the rapture.
This link gives you a more complete account than the last link and the last link has been deleted.
Some people need to see the rapture before they will believe
John 10:32 Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?
This is the situation today, Christians have done many good works, why are they being persecuted?
33 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
This is the entire point of the Noahide laws and the ecumenical movement where Jews, Muslims and Catholics all agree. They are persecuting Evangelical Christians because they preach that Jesus is God. Why are they doing that? Because the whole world is beginning to open their eyes and see, if they don't do something their religions will be gone.
34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? 35 If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; 36 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?
Yes, it is incredibly hypocritical of both Catholics and Jews to participate in this persecution.
37 If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. 38 But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.
This is where we come to at the time of the rapture. Everyone has heard the gospel, some believe, some reject. The rapture is the works of God that should cause those holdouts to believe.
John 10:32 Jesus answered them, Many good works have I shewed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me?
This is the situation today, Christians have done many good works, why are they being persecuted?
33 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God.
This is the entire point of the Noahide laws and the ecumenical movement where Jews, Muslims and Catholics all agree. They are persecuting Evangelical Christians because they preach that Jesus is God. Why are they doing that? Because the whole world is beginning to open their eyes and see, if they don't do something their religions will be gone.
34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods? 35 If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken; 36 Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?
Yes, it is incredibly hypocritical of both Catholics and Jews to participate in this persecution.
37 If I do not the works of my Father, believe me not. 38 But if I do, though ye believe not me, believe the works: that ye may know, and believe, that the Father is in me, and I in him.
This is where we come to at the time of the rapture. Everyone has heard the gospel, some believe, some reject. The rapture is the works of God that should cause those holdouts to believe.
You are way off the mark here. The only ones persecuting evangelical Christians today are Muslims. Catholics are your brothers and sisters. They preach that Jesus is God. I attend a Catholic Church, and they all know I'm non-trinitarian but I'm accepted as a believer in Jesus miraculous conception, his virgin birth, sinless life, miracles, crucifixion, burial, resurrection, ascension, and sitting at the Fathers right hand.