Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. --Psalm 119:105
Most of our readers know that we do not believe the Pre-Tribulation Rapture to Heaven doctrine is biblical. Our biblical proof against pretribulationism is well documented in our two books, The End Times Passover and Why Christians Will Suffer Great Tribulation (Author House Publications).
The author spent over 25 years of research and writing about a subject matter that was not popular in the least, nor accepted by the predominant premillennial dispensational community. Our position is still not popular; however many other writers and authors have surfaced in the last ten years who agree with the premise of our studies that began in the late seventies. Authors such as Stephen Sizer, Stephen Wohlberg, Barbara Rossing, Ted Noel, Arnie Suntag and one of the most prolific opponents of the Pre-Trib Rapture for over 35 years, my dear friend, Dave MacPherson, present evidence against “Pre-Trib” on a daily basis.
Many say it’s not important whether there will be a Pre-Tribulation Rapture to Heaven (meaning that Jesus Christ will snatch believers up into the air and taken to Heaven) to avoid great tribulation, as long as we believe in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. This is true to a great extent.
However, if there will not be a Pre-Tribulation escape to heaven before Armageddon, are believers prepared to endure the onslaught from anti-Christians forces? It’s nice to say that the Christian will not have to endure persecution because God did not intend them for wrath. True! God has said we are not destined to wrath but we are destined for great tribulation, as Paul claims in Acts 14:22, Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
But, why would God allow the believer to suffer great tribulation? God is a good God and wouldn’t allow His children to suffer? But, yet, throughout recorded history, we see where millions of believers have suffered persecution and even death for the cause of Christ. Why should today’s believers (especially American Christians) be exempt or favored more so than those brave believers who have given up their lives for Jesus in the past. They shouldn’t, but most premillennial dispensationalist believers (and authors) support and promote heavily an unbiblical doctrine that makes that claim. So be it!
Those of us who do not believe in the Pretribulational Rapture will continue spreading the truth because we want to apprise the believer they will remain on earth until Jesus Christ returns to rule and reign right here on terra firma for an eternity. Believers will remain for one specific purpose, which is to broadcast the eternal Gospel of Jesus Christ so that each and every remaining soul will have the opportunity to repent from their unbelief and enter into the eternal fold of the body of Christ and His kingdom.
Still, many will question our position, and will accuse us (non-pretribulationalists) of folly. But, we are convinced. God has said so often in so many scriptural verses too numerous to mention. He has said that we will remain on earth until His final return, therefore we must prepare to endure great persecution, through repentance and prayer.
Therefore, this coming year I personally will crank it up (broadcasting God’s word) several notches through our blogs, emails, speeches, lectures and through whatever means necessary to bring more people closer to the reality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Many will say, “Joe! Lighten up, enjoy life as God intended. Seek happiness! Seek joy and love! Seek God’s blessings as He intended!
Don’t worry, be happy! This may be the prevailing feeling by many Christians; I know it’s the dominant attitude by the majority who don’t believe in Jesus Christ, those who see this world as a playground, rather than the spiritual battleground for our souls! Personally, I trust the word of God before any man. The living Bible is the word of God!
As many of you know, A.W. Tozer is one of my favorite Christian writers, an individual who has captured my deep and inner most feelings about God’s word and he said it best in one of his books, This World: Playground or Battleground? In this following excerpt, Tozer begins by quoting one of my favorite all-time scripture verses:
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path, Psalm 119:105
"Every New Year is an uncharted and unknown sea. No ship has ever sailed this way before. The wisest of earth's sons and daughters cannot tell us what we may encounter on this journey. Familiarity with the past may afford us a general idea of what we may expect, but just where the rocks lie hidden beneath the surface or when that tempestuous wind called “Euroclydon (penalty or penance for sins committed) " may sweep down upon us suddenly, no one can say with certainty....
Now more than at any other time in generations, the believer is in a position to go on the offensive. The world is lost on a wide sea, and Christians alone know the way to the desired haven. While things were going well, the world scorned them with their Bible and hymns, but now the world needs them desperately, and it needs that despised Bible, too. For in the Bible, and there only, is found the chart to tell us where we are going on this rough and unknown ocean. The day when Christians should meekly apologize is over--they can get the world's attention not by trying to please, but by boldly declaring the truth of divine revelation. They can make themselves heard not by compromise, but by taking the affirmative and sturdily declaring, 'Thus saith the Lord.'" This World: Playground or Battleground? Pp 9-10 by A.W. Tozer.
God said it; that’s good enough for me!
For more information about Joe’s two books, his blogs and various articles, click on any of these sites contained here: Joe Ortiz web and blog sites
Many say it’s not important whether there will be a Pre-Tribulation Rapture to Heaven (meaning that Jesus Christ will snatch believers up into the air and taken to Heaven) to avoid great tribulation, as long as we believe in the saving grace of Jesus Christ. This is true to a great extent.
However, if there will not be a Pre-Tribulation escape to heaven before Armageddon, are believers prepared to endure the onslaught from anti-Christians forces? It’s nice to say that the Christian will not have to endure persecution because God did not intend them for wrath. True! God has said we are not destined to wrath but we are destined for great tribulation, as Paul claims in Acts 14:22, Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.
But, why would God allow the believer to suffer great tribulation? God is a good God and wouldn’t allow His children to suffer? But, yet, throughout recorded history, we see where millions of believers have suffered persecution and even death for the cause of Christ. Why should today’s believers (especially American Christians) be exempt or favored more so than those brave believers who have given up their lives for Jesus in the past. They shouldn’t, but most premillennial dispensationalist believers (and authors) support and promote heavily an unbiblical doctrine that makes that claim. So be it!
Those of us who do not believe in the Pretribulational Rapture will continue spreading the truth because we want to apprise the believer they will remain on earth until Jesus Christ returns to rule and reign right here on terra firma for an eternity. Believers will remain for one specific purpose, which is to broadcast the eternal Gospel of Jesus Christ so that each and every remaining soul will have the opportunity to repent from their unbelief and enter into the eternal fold of the body of Christ and His kingdom.
Still, many will question our position, and will accuse us (non-pretribulationalists) of folly. But, we are convinced. God has said so often in so many scriptural verses too numerous to mention. He has said that we will remain on earth until His final return, therefore we must prepare to endure great persecution, through repentance and prayer.
Therefore, this coming year I personally will crank it up (broadcasting God’s word) several notches through our blogs, emails, speeches, lectures and through whatever means necessary to bring more people closer to the reality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Many will say, “Joe! Lighten up, enjoy life as God intended. Seek happiness! Seek joy and love! Seek God’s blessings as He intended!
Don’t worry, be happy! This may be the prevailing feeling by many Christians; I know it’s the dominant attitude by the majority who don’t believe in Jesus Christ, those who see this world as a playground, rather than the spiritual battleground for our souls! Personally, I trust the word of God before any man. The living Bible is the word of God!
As many of you know, A.W. Tozer is one of my favorite Christian writers, an individual who has captured my deep and inner most feelings about God’s word and he said it best in one of his books, This World: Playground or Battleground? In this following excerpt, Tozer begins by quoting one of my favorite all-time scripture verses:
Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path, Psalm 119:105
"Every New Year is an uncharted and unknown sea. No ship has ever sailed this way before. The wisest of earth's sons and daughters cannot tell us what we may encounter on this journey. Familiarity with the past may afford us a general idea of what we may expect, but just where the rocks lie hidden beneath the surface or when that tempestuous wind called “Euroclydon (penalty or penance for sins committed) " may sweep down upon us suddenly, no one can say with certainty....
Now more than at any other time in generations, the believer is in a position to go on the offensive. The world is lost on a wide sea, and Christians alone know the way to the desired haven. While things were going well, the world scorned them with their Bible and hymns, but now the world needs them desperately, and it needs that despised Bible, too. For in the Bible, and there only, is found the chart to tell us where we are going on this rough and unknown ocean. The day when Christians should meekly apologize is over--they can get the world's attention not by trying to please, but by boldly declaring the truth of divine revelation. They can make themselves heard not by compromise, but by taking the affirmative and sturdily declaring, 'Thus saith the Lord.'" This World: Playground or Battleground? Pp 9-10 by A.W. Tozer.
God said it; that’s good enough for me!
For more information about Joe’s two books, his blogs and various articles, click on any of these sites contained here: Joe Ortiz web and blog sites
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2 comments:
Joe: You are just like Jesus in so many ways! I just spotted your January 1st blog, which has Jesus right at the beginning, and then looked at your recent blogs and came to the conclusion how much like Jesus you really are. No one had more love for humanity than the Saviour, and your love shows through also. Even though Jesus loved everyone, He had much rebuke for the religious leaders of His day (such as the Pharisees) and rebuked them for their greed, hypocrisy, superficiality etc. And today we have the same sort of thing with certain Christian leaders obsessed with dishonest money that they get with their promotion of the latter-day import from Britain known as the pre-tribulation rapture which, as some have documented, is fraught with sheer dishonesty in so many ways - and I for one am so happy to see you rolling up your sleeves and exposing and rebuking the hucksters in $500 suits who exploit trusting, unsuspecting pew-sitters by telling them they should buy the latest pretrib rapture book or video because "the rapture is imminent so don't hang on to your money but sent it to us right away!" Well, if the rapture is that imminent, why should the pew-sitters send it to the preachers? If the preachers include themselves in a rapture that could happen at any moment, even the preachers won't be on earth to spend the money, so the pew-sitters should realize that they are being fooled with a huge dishonest gimmick that the preachers undoubtedly don't believe anyway. In fact, one well-known rapture trafficker on the west coast puts his millions (which since 1970 he's garnished from selling books promising an "imminent" rapture) into long-range investments in California real estate and even into an antique Corvette collection! Well, if rapture promoters can constantly lie and cover up facts about their rapture's history, should we be surprised that Americans now have leaders who constantly lie to the citizens? Jesus did say that with the same measure we treat others, we will be treated back in the same way. If Christian leaders lie and deceive, then the Lord will give us leaders who lie to us - it's that simple and Scriptural! Back in the 1830s some misguided, emotional souls in Britain decided to launch a groundless theory known as the pre-trib rapture which had never been part of any Christian theology or heard in any church before that time. Not long after that, the Lord allowed another groundless theory - godless evolution - to arise in that part of the world. The effects of both theories are still with us and the Lord's warning about the "same measure" is still true. If we continue to love a groundless escapist lie that the greatest Greek NT scholars have never accepted, in the same measure the Lord will allow the world to push the anti-God evolution down our throats which has now produced a worldwide generation of godless "animals" who collectively will fulfill Jesus' prediction that in the end times true Christians will be "hated above all nations" for His name's sake! Is it a coincidence that the more the greedy pre-trib merchandisers lie and exploit us, the more the Lord responds by letting us have lying and exploiting political leaders? If "my people" will "turn from their wicked ways" (II Chron. 7:14), only then will God heal us and our land! Only when true believers stop supporting lying Laodiceans will God begin turning things around in America!
Jeremy
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