I left you in our last heart -to -heart talk
talking about the second coming of the Lord Jesus
Christ. And you will remember that I told you
that there were two stages in this glorious second
coming. So far as we know, Jesus has never been
back. to earth in bodily form since he went away.
But he's coming back. But the first stage of
his coming, he will not touch the earth with
his feet. We will meet him in the air. The first
stage of his return, he comes forth. his saints.
Seven years later, he comes to earth with his
saints. And at that time, the last stage of his
second coming, every eye shall see him. And he'll
return to the very same spot where he left. Know
that. That comes from the highest authority in
heaven and earth. God himself. All right? And
you'll remember that I left you giving you the
scripture as recorded in the 11th chapter of
John when Jesus was talking to Martha just before
he raised Lazarus from the dead. And this is
what Jesus said. I am the resurrection and the
life. He that believeth in me, though he were
dead, and he's referring to those who died in
the Lord, and Moses was the type of those who
had died in the Lord, yet shall he live. That's
the first resurrection. Then he continues. And
whosoever liveth is alive when I come back. And
believeth in me shall never die. And there we
have Jesus himself talking about the great catching
up. The saints who are alive for whom there will
never be a funeral service. And my last words
when I left you. In our last heart -to -heart
talk was the fact that there are those living
this very hour for whom there will never be a
funeral service. But they will be caught up to
meet him in the air. And we call it the great
catching up. The word rapture is not used in
the Bible. The scriptural term is caught up.
They shall be caught up. This will not be visible
to the natural eye. Now, I cannot tell you the
time of the first stage of the second coming
of the Lord Jesus Christ. unto God himself. Even
the very angels, the word of God said, do not
have this knowledge. Only God has this knowledge.
Any man, any person who will set a definite date
and say, there will be the great catching up.
Such and such a day is ignorant of the word of
God. For the angels in heaven do not have this
knowledge. But the times and the seasons we know
and those who are spiritually minded know that
we are living now in the time and the seasons
for this great event. to take place. The time
when the church will be caught up, when the Holy
Spirit leaves, when this dispensation comes to
an end. And this dispensation, the times of the
Gentiles, is quickly drawing to a close. The
Holy Spirit is about to leave. That's the reason.
He is pouring out of himself upon all flesh,
and the last members of the body of Christ are
being born into this great body of believers.
Oh, we're living in times, thrilling times, times
when prophecy is being fulfilled on every side.
Give me my choice. I would rather be living today
than in any generation that I know anything about
whatsoever. After the great catching up, seven
years later, and those of you who will be left,
and you will be left, If you are not ready for
this great event of the great catching up, if
you've never been washed in the blood of the
Lamb, if you've never had that new birth experience,
if you've never been born into this body of Christ,
then you are not ready for the great catching
up and you will be left. You can mark it on your
calendar. after the church has been caught up.
And you can know that seven years later, Jesus
Christ will return in bodily form on the very
spot where he left. He will come back at the
close of the great battle of the Armageddon.
I've taught you over and over that God has a
purpose in everything that he does. His plans
are perfect. He never makes a mistake. Why the
great catching up? Why the first phase of...
This second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Do you want to know something? God loves his
own. I don't think that man has the capacity
to really understand the depth of the love of
God. The love of the Heavenly Father. For his
children. Always when there was a great catastrophe
upon the earth. Always before God has ever sent
a judgment to the earth. He's always given a
warning. And he's always made a way of escape
for his own. Always. Before the floods came.
Before judgment came. God made a way of escape
for Noah and his family. He warned him. He told
him what to do. And Noah believed him. Even as
believers, take him at his word today. I believe
it. I believe everything in the word. Noah believed
the word. of the Lord. And he made preparation.
Just this God's precious children are making
preparation now for the great catching up. And
the great catching up is a means of escape from
the suffering that will come upon the earth in
exactly the same way that the ark was a refuge
and a means of escape for Noah. and his family.
Do you really know what the suffering is going
to be like during those seven years of tribulation?
There will be pestilence. There will be suffering.
As man has never known, it will be the very first
time in the history of mankind that suffering
would be so intense that even in judgment, in
wrath, God will continue to show mercy and will
shorten time just to alleviate the suffering
of mankind. But of course, man brings this all
on himself. God will never destroy man. Man will
destroy himself. Man is bringing on his own destruction,
his own judgment. Because sin has got to be punished.
Whether it's in an individual life, whether it's
in the life of a nation. Sin has got to be punished
or God wouldn't be a God of justice. And it's
like that. When we talk about the great catching
up, when we talk about the rapture, the Word
of God says that we are to be counted worthy
to escape all these things that shall come upon
the earth. If you want to know what the suffering
will really be like, read Those three chapters
in the little book of Joel. Sometime I'm going
to just bring you a series of heart -to -heart
talks on this little book of Joel. For here in
Joel, we have the whole picture of the end time
of this present age, of the times of the Gentiles.
The suffering, all the suffering. A fired...
devoureth before them. Behind them a flame burneth.
The land is as the garden of Eden before them.
Behind them desolate wilderness. Yea, and nothing
shall escape them. Mm -hmm. There you have atomic
warfare. Suffering. Now, mentally. The intelligent
man knows that civilization can be wiped out,
destroyed in a matter of hours. And the hour
is coming literally when one of the world's greatest
cities will be wiped out within an hour. The
Bible says so. Now, that's the reason. that God
has made provision for his own, his children,
to escape all these things that are about to
come upon the earth. That's the why of the rapture.
Read, if you will, please. Oh, maybe you have
read it, but not permitting the Holy Spirit to
be your teacher. Read it again in your own Bible,
the 24th chapter of Matthew. Now learn a parable
of the fig tree, when his branch is yet tender.
And of course, I've taught you, and it's an established
fact by theologians, that the fig tree is a symbol
of Israel. When his branch is yet tender, And
I'll tell you, those branches and those leaves
are getting stronger every day. But for a long
time, they're not going to be so tender. And
put forth leaves, ye know that summer is nigh.
So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things,
know that it is near, even at the doors. There
I say unto you, this generation shall not pass
till all these things be fulfilled. Then to clinch
the whole thing, he says, heaven and earth shall
pass away, but my word shall not pass away. But
of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not
the angels of heaven, but my Father only. Continue.
But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the
coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days
that were before the flood, they were eating
and drinking and marrying and giving in marriage
until the day that Noah entered into the ark
and knew not until the flood came and took them
all away, so shall also the coming of the Son
of Man be. Now he's describing the great catching
up. And this is the event when he comes for his
saints and the meeting is in the air. Two shall
be in the field. One shall be taken. The other
left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill.
One shall be taken. The other left. Watch! Therefore,
for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
We are living in that hour now. The times, the
seasons are upon us. If you are spiritual. If
you had the slightest spiritual perception, you
will agree that the times and the seasons are
upon us. The moment of the great catching up,
only the father knows. But the great event could
take... place this day and not violate one word
of Scripture. And this great event is God's mercy
for the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. God
bless you.