The only eschatology that contains unknown timing

Jesus said, "But of that [exact] day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Matthew 24:36 Amplified Bible, Classic Edition). Only the pre-Tribulation Rapture provides the framework for this verse to be true. Only on the pre-Tribulation Rapture timeline do we not know the day or hour of Christ's coming. If the Rapture happens in the middle or the end of the seven-year judgment, the church would be able to pinpoint the exact time of Jesus' return because we know how long the Tribulation will last. Only the pre-Tribulation Rapture position leaves the timing of the heavenly gathering of the church a mystery.

Many prophecy scholars have pointed out that the most evangelistic times in the church's history have been the first three centuries (the early church) and the 19th and 20th centuries. It is no coincidence that these times correspond with the times when the church expected the imminent return of Christ while embracing Jesus' words that no one could know the exact time. This truth underscores the need to always be ready because you never know which "today" will be the day. "All of us who look forward to his Coming stay ready, with the glistening purity of Jesus' life as a model for our own" (1 John 3:3 The Message). It's only logical that this would increase the desire to evangelize. Who wants the people they love and care about the most to go through the Tribulation when there is no guarantee how long they will survive? You're not even guaranteed one more moment in the present age, let alone during that awful time. When all the death tolls prophesied are added up, it has been put forth that three out of the four people who will go through the Tribulation will not survive the entire seven years. So if you are left here to face the Tribulation, you only have a 25% chance of surviving to the end. People who understand this have an even greater urgency to evangelize, even more so than the Christian who understands that not even the next moment of life is guaranteed right now. What greater motivation could there be for living with an eternal perspective?

Lifeway Research did a study not too long ago on Christians' beliefs about the end times. The good news is the most accepted view was still the pre-Tribulation Rapture. The bad news is that was only 36% of the respondents. A combined 39% held one of the other views, and shockingly, 25% said there would be no Rapture at all! This even though two raptures have already occurred in history. The pre-flood genealogy tells us about a man named Enoch. "After the birth of Methuselah, Enoch lived in close fellowship with God for another 300 years, and he had other sons and daughters. Enoch lived 365 years, walking in close fellowship with God. Then one day, he disappeared because God took him" (Genesis 5:22-24 New Living Translation). Later, the Old Testament describes the ascension of Elijah this way: "Elijah and Elisha were walking and talking together. Suddenly, some horses and a chariot came and separated Elijah from Elisha. The horses and the chariot were like fire. Then Elijah was carried up into heaven in a whirlwind" (2 Kings 2:11 Easy-to-Read Version).

Then, of course, there are all the passages of the New Testament that talk about the Rapture. When these are examined in comparisons with the quotes on Jesus' return at the end of the Tribulation, one can easily see that the Rapture and Jesus' return at the end of the Tribulation are not at all the same event. Tim LaHaye, a co-author of the Left Behind series and one of the best prophecy teachers of all time, has some great charts and lists describing both events and their differences. We will examine all the Bible passages on both events and summarize their differences in the next post.