Rapture, The Tribulation, And The Second Coming Of Christ

This book will attempt to discuss and to defend perhaps the most difficult and the most challenging parts of the scriptures by looking at the rapture of the church, at the Great Tribulation, and at the second coming of Christ. Those are items of interest to almost every person alive. But there are also probably just as many viewpoints about those events as there are people alive. Thus, this book will begin at the beginning by suggesting that the literal approach for interpreting those future events is probably superior to trying to interpret them figuratively. The position of this text is that they will literally happen at some point in the future. Therefore, everything about them in this text will be presented based upon that standpoint.

So after the first chapter which will present the rationale for interpreting the end-time events literally, chapter two will express five arguments and provide multiple scriptural passages that seem to support a literal rapture of the church. In fact, it will even be shown during the discussion of Revelation 19:11-16 and I Thessalonians 4:13-18 that a literal rapture is consistent with Jewish culture and with the seven-day marriage feast for newlyweds. In that chapter, it will also be shown from the seventy-week prophecy in Daniel 9:24-27 why the expected duration of the Great Tribulation will probably be seven years. Then in chapter three, some of the details of the rapture will be discussed. For one thing, that is probably when the saints of God will stand before the judgment seat of Christ and receive their rewards. In chapter four while the events of chapter three will be happening, it will be presented that the Great Tribulation will also probably be beginning in the earth. Then during the next five chapters of this text, the major events of the Great Tribulation will be discussed by looking at the seven seal judgments, the seven trumpet judgments, the events that will be concurrent with the trumpet judgments, the seven vial judgments, and the events what will be concurrent with the vial judgments. As will be seen throughout those chapters, many things will be happening in the earth during that presumed seven-year period. The Antichrist will be revealed. Several seemingly natural disasters will occur. Some demonic creatures will be unleashed upon those human beings that will be trying to live and to survive through the Great Tribulation. The one hundred and forty-four thousand Jewish messengers will be revealed and will have their ministry. The two witnesses will have their ministry. Then halfway through, the Antichrist will suddenly change and force people either to get the mark of the beast or probably to starve to death. In the final chapter, the Lord will come to the earth for a second time. On that occasion, He will overthrow the devil once and for all. But it will not be a difficult task. Because He is omnipotent, He will easily get Satan out of the way so that He can begin His literal, earthly one thousand year reign. After that will be the white throne judgment to deal with the satanic trinity, with the demons of Satan's army, and with all of those people that will not have come to the Lord by faith in the right spirit and with the right attitude in this life. Thus, the goal of this book is not simply to guess about what the future might hold about this existence. The first real goal is to tell every person about the importance of coming to Christ by faith to be saved while that window of opportunity is still open. The second goal is to exalt the Lord and to give honor and glory to Him.