Rapture

The Rapture

Rapture definition – 1. feeling of intense pleasure or joy. 2. (according to some millenarian teaching) the transporting of believers to heaven at the Second Coming of Christ. 3. (according to some millenarian teaching) transport (a believer) from earth to heaven at the Second Coming of Christ.

Where did the Rapture theology originate?

John Nelson Darby, a 19th-century Irish theologian, is credited with popularizing the pre-tribulation rapture doctrine. This doctrine, which he developed through his analysis of scripture, suggests that the rapture, the sudden, global gathering of believers to meet Christ in the air, will occur before the Great Tribulation, a period of intense suffering and judgment on Earth.

The fact that John Nelson Darby invented the pre-tribulation rapture doctrine around 1830 AD is unquestionably true. All attempts to find evidence of this doctrine before 1830 have failed.

The John Darby Rapture theology was influenced by Margaret MacDonalds visions and utterances. This is the link that shows Margarete’s influence on John Darby, https://www.discerningtheworld.com/2016/05/02/margaret-macdonald-vision-pre-trib-really/.

The Rapture teaches in the end times believers that both living and dead believers will ascend into heaven to meet Jesus Christ at the Second Coming.

The belief in the Rapture emerged from the anticipation that Jesus would return to redeem all members of the church. The term rapture, however, appears nowhere in the New Testament. In his First Letter to the Thessalonians, the Apostle Paul wrote that the Lord will come down from heaven and that a trumpet call will precede the rise of “the dead in Christ” (1 Thessalonians 4:16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first).  Thereafter, Verse 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus, we shall always be with the Lord. The clouds are not referred as heaven.  It appears to mean we will ultimately will be with the Lord here on earth where Adam and Eve resided. Revelation 21:1-2 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. 2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. Deuteronomy 11:21 that your days and the days of your children may be multiplied in the land (earth) of which the Lord swore to your fathers to give them, like the days of the heavens above the earth

Of great concern is believers think that just because they are Believers in Jesus Christ, they can continue to sin without consequences, Romans 6:1-2 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?  Will the raptured be sinless?

Key point is the word rapture is not in the Bible.  The original definitions prior to the rapture theology is: a feeling of intense pleasure or joy.  The other rapture definitions came after John Darby invented the rapture theology.  Caught up in the air in the Bible has no reference to rapture theology. (1 Thessalonians 4:17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord) is not raptured into heaven. 

The Bible talks about the narrow gate.  Who is God referring to?  Matthew 7:13-14, 21-23 “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. 21 “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. 22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’ 23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’ God is talking about us Christians.  Are sure you will be raptured up?  Are those who don’t believe in the rapture theology believe they will be in heaven on earth with God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit?

Lawlessness is being one with sin.  Lawlessness is not reading His Word. Lawlessness is not teaching the Gospel. Lawlessness is not casting out evil spirits. Lawlessness is not praying for people. Lawlessness is not doing anything for God’s Kingdom. 

It’s not about what I think about rapture doctrine.  It’s about what the Bible tells us. Scripture is thousands of years old created by God.  Rapture theology is 195 years old   invented by John Nelson Darby.  Who are you going to believe?

We can’t believe in one word and ignore the totality of God’s Word.

Ephesians 4:14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting.

2 Chronicles 16:9 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose heart is loyal to Him. In this you have done foolishly; Tony Sanchez 5-8-2025 

The Principality of Bitterness

 Note:  Before we get started, we must understand what bitterness does to our bones.

Proverbs 17:22 A merry heart does good, like medicine, But a broken spirit (bitterness) dries the bones.

Proverbs 14:30 A sound heart is life to the body, But envy is rottenness to the bones.

Psalm 6:2 Have mercy on me, O LORD, for I am weak; O LORD, heal me, for my bones are troubled.

Drying of the bones means that it dries the bone morrow and the white T cells that protects us from immune diseases.  In addition, bitterness and anxiety/stress/fear cause cortisol drip.  Excessive cortisol secretion destroys white T cells and soft tissue throughout the body including the brain which leads to dementia.

Bitterness is a principality of the enemy.  Ephesians 6:12 says: For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.

If we are in conflict with one another, I am not your enemy.  You are not my enemy.  The problem here is we are not able to separate the person from their sin.  Their sin is our enemy – Not them!

When someone violates us, we make him or her evil along with the evil they did, don’t we?  You must be able to separate people form their sin.  God didn’t create you from the foundations of the world as a sinner.  God created you from the foundation of the world as saints before Him and as His sons and daughters forever.  Because of sin, we have become separated from God.  Even after conversion, we still have many things to work out.

Bitterness is a principality; under it and answering to it are seven evil spirits (demons) that reinforce bitterness.

1.     Unforgiveness

When the root of bitterness in Hebrews gets a foothold, the first thing that happens is a record of wrongs.

Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled Hebrews 12:15.

How many of you are still having flashbacks from people hurting you?  If I mentioned someone who hurt you, you would probably give me 15 reasons why you don’t like them.  Then, you would tell many others the same 15 reasons.  This results in gossip, slander, and embellishment (making it worse than what it is), especially true with families.  This is unforgiveness.  After unforgiveness gets a foothold and creates a record of wrongs, there’s another dimension of the spiritual dynamics. It is called resentment.

2.     Resentment

Resentment is the record of wrongs being fueled by feelings of holding onto it and starting to meditate on the wrongs.  It’s hard to understand that we have feelings of resentment as we think about the people in our mind   throughout the day.  It’s because you are a spirit being; you have a soul, and you live in your body.

Resentment is a spiritual problem, not a psychological problem.  Bitterness, unforgiveness, and resentment are spiritual problems, not psychological problems.  You can take these keys and use them in any spiritual conflict you have in your life.  This gets us right here in our heart.  This is what separates us from others and it is the foundation of fear which may come later: fear of man, fear of rejection, fear of failure, and fear of abandonment. 

Retaliation

After resentment gets a foothold, then we have retaliation.  We take an attitude of “I don’t forgive, I just get even.”  After resentment has started to simmer, we find ways to get back at the person who caused it.  Most often with gossip, slander, and backstabbing.  Retaliation wants to make the person pay.  They want to get even.

3.     Anger

After retaliation gets a foothold, then anger starts to set in.  Unforgiveness, resentment and retaliation have been building and now a real strong feeling of anger comes along.  Anger is very hard to control.  What we fail to understand is anger is a choice.  Nobody can make you angry unless you allow someone to make you angry.

4.     Hatred

After anger sets in, there comes hatred.  Hatred says this: “Because I’m remembering what you did to me, because I have really been meditation on it and I really resent it, I’m going to get even.  I’m going to get the pressure cooker going because I’m going to add fuel to the fire, and now at this stage you do not have any reason to exist anymore, especially in my presence.”  Hatred says, “There is not even room on this planer for you and me at the same place at the same time.”  Hated says, “You and I cannot stay in the same room together.” Hatred starts to develop into the elimination process.

5.     Violence

After hatred comes violence.  Violence says this:  Before I eliminate you, you are going to feel my pain.  You are going to hear my voice.  You are going to know my hatred.  You are going to experience my hatred.”

6.     Murder   

Once violence erupts, the final fruit of bitterness is murder.  This can be actual physical murder, or murder with the tongue, which is character assassination or verbal abuse.  Whenever I find any of these in a person’s life, all the stuff from here (the mind) to here (the heart) is there.  I know if we do not deal with it, it’s going to go to the heart and take up residence. 

When hatred, violence, and murder are in someone’s life, they feel they are justified and everybody else is going to pay the price.  Have you been a victim of this?  Did you feel defiled? Have you made a victim of someone else on this basis?

I have found that if any one of these seven areas answering to bitterness exists, all of the preceding ones will be there from the one area.  I noticed; if left unchecked, all the rest will surely come.  For example, if you see hatred in a person, unforgiveness, resentment, retaliation and anger always precede.  Also, each of the seven is progressively worse than the one just proceeding it. For example, violence is much more serious problem than resentment. 

Forgiveness:  What God Expects of us – 70 x7

 What does God expect of us when we are forgiving someone else and ourselves?  I mentioned ourselves as well because we can have bitterness towards ourselves and the seven steps can apply to ourselves

Peter and Jesus had an interesting conversation.  Jesus was teaching and Peter asked the Lord, how often should I forgive my brother?  Up to seven times?  Jesus said, no, I do not say until seven times; I say to you seventy times seven.  Matthew 18:22 22 Jesus said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.

What Jesus is saying is that we must continue to forgive until the unforgiveness is not an issue anymore.  When the remembrance of the hurt or offense does not sting anymore.  Forgiving is much more effective if we declare forgiveness out loud consistently. 

You forgive others and yourself because God had forgiven you.   God has told us to forgive and we are His obedient children.  When you forgive your brother his trespasses, then God will release you because you have released your brother from his trespass.  You are now released from the spirit of bitterness and the antagonistic high-octane ping on the inside goes away.  You will always remember the evil that was done to you but you do not have to carry it as a sin in your own life.

You do not have to carry someone else’s sin inside of you.  This is their sin.  God will be their judge.  Your job is to release them, get back before God, get your heart right with God, then keep on moving.  Your freedom does not depend on their resolution – it depends on your resolution.

When you forgive others, you are not letting them off the hook, but giving them to God.  You are off the hook.

When you forgive someone, you continue to hate their sin, but you are commanded to love them.  John 13:34- A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

We are not the judge when it comes to sin.  Sinners cannot judge sinners.  Only God will judge.

Romans 14:10 But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.

1 Corinthians 11:31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged.

When it comes down to it, why are we judging someone to begin with? Because we want retaliation! 

Whether a person responds to you in forgiveness or not, it’s their problem and their sin.  Walk away, keep your heart right, and ask God to bring reconciliation, and pray for them.  Do what you can to bring it about and if you cannot have peace, keep on moving.

Ephesians 4:31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander…. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God forgave you

From Henry Wrights book, A More Excellent Way (p. 99)                                              Tony Sanchez April 29, 2025