We, the following dignitaries, have a very exciting message for all Laodicean Christians, dead and alive! So, read on joyfully!!
I was born in Peru, became a Jesuit priest, moved to Spain, and then to Italy. I was christened and known as EMMANUEL LACUNZA, but when I converted to Judaism I became RABBI JUAN JOSAFAT BEN-EZRA. And to assure you, being converted from Christianity to Judaism is just as God-sanctioned as being converted from Judaism to Christianity, isn't it? Didn't God choose both Israel and the Church?
In the mid-seventeen-hundreds numerous books expressed a keen interest in the coming of the Messiah. I found the subject intriguing, and with the help of the Old and New Testaments, in 1789, I finished a 900-page book in Spanish, entitled, "The Coming of Messiah in Glory and Majesty." It was first published in 1812. I speculated that the Messiah would soon rapture the Church to the clouds for a minimum of 45 days or so, to escape the tribulation that would rage on earth, and then take them right back down to earth again. I could not have imagined that in less than 200 years multiplied millions would be entranced by pre-tribulation, or other pre-millennial rapture theories!
My name is EDWARD IRVING, a Pentecostal presbyter and minister in a London Presbyterian Church. I read LACUNZA's book, translated it, and had it published in England in 1827. I believed the cloud stay would last 3 1/2 years.
I am a 15-year-old Scottish lassie, by the name of MARGARET MACDONALD, from Glasgow. I received the gift of prophecy, and had a number of visions, and I believe that only sufficiently "spirit-filled" believers will be caught up.
So dear Laodiceans, you see we have a solid foundation for our rapture beliefs: a Roman Catholic priest turned Jewish, a Pentecostal elder in a Presbyterian church and a 15-year-old Pentecostal lassie! That combination is hard to beat for authenticity, isn't it?
And I, JOHN DARBY, considered a gifted and persuasive orator in England and the U.S., fortunately came along about this time, became familiar with both the book and the Irvingites, and found this teaching very exciting. With some significant improvements, adding my own revelation and Bible expertise, I was able to propound a very attractive package that was able to keep congregations spellbound! It had all the trappings of being Biblical. It took some doing, but I was quite ingenious. The rapture now would be 7 years, and not only to the clouds, but all the way to heaven!
And I, DR. SCOFIELD, contemporary to DARBY, considered by millions to be an exceptionally brilliant scholar, was so taken with his theories that I included it in my Bible notes, and produced a volume that became known as the "SCOFIELD" Bible. It is now in millions of households, and my notes are considered by many to be as valid as the Bible itself! It is studiously being devoured in Bible Schools and Seminaries, and propagated from thousands of pulpits.
I, CLARENCE LARKIN, having been specially gifted with stick-drawing combined with harmonizing artistry, with copious elaborations of my own, produced and published an admirable volume, called "Dispensational Truth", that corroborates everything that DARBY and SCOFIELD engineered. And you know how effective art is: a picture is worth a thousand words!
And now let's see what W, I, and H have to say for themselves.
I, Dr. W, a fellow-Laodicean and contemporary with you, and publicly acknowledged as a Bible professor, accepted what by now was fast becoming a full-fledged canon of faith, making only minor adjustments as my revelation matured. Because of my national & international standing, I gave this wonderful teaching added creditability.
I admit that this message is not explicitly stated in so many words in Scripture, but rather implied. But this casts little doubt on an otherwise water-proof, air-tight and iron-clad doctrine so well endorsed by millions of others! That the Bible says this event is going to take place at the "last" trump, as indicated from the somewhat parallel passage in I Corinthians 15, presents no insurmountable difficulty! It can easily be seen as taking place before any of the 7 trumpets of the Book of Revelation. Doesn't the last bell of period one come before the first bell of period two? Besides, bells and trumps are similar, aren't they?
The Bible says two are better than one. So I, Rev. I, have my good wife bolster my presentations. And since we have an eminently successful public television and video ministry, we are confident of the soundness of our message! Our videos are selling at a satisfactory pace, and isn't the proof of the pudding in the eating?
And I, Rev. H, a charismatic preacher and miracle worker, come from a preaching family that is supportive of my rapture teachings. I can assure you that God loves you Laodiceans too much to have you suffer during the terrible tribulation time! God is a God of Mercy, not of punishment!!
Now, if you just read on, you will discover that we, the above-mentioned theologians, and others prophets and preachers - too numerous to list here - have been able to consolidate this theory and have stitched enough Scripture to Scripture that you can rest assured that the Bible implicitly supports our message: namely that there is no 7 year - or at least not a 3 1/2 year - tribulation for you luke-warm Laodiceans! And, when the tribulation is over, all you luke-warm Laodiceans will descend from heaven and reign triumphantly with Christ one thousand years. And you don't have to suffer martyrdom in order to qualify to reign!
And now, some specific Scriptures to give our doctrine finesse, so you can rest assured that we, the above-mentioned dignitaries, are completely orthodox. And woe to those who would teach false doctrine! Woe to those who add or subtract from the Word of God, especially from the prophetic Books, and teach men so! God will add to them the plagues written in the Book of Revelation; their names will be stricken from the Book of Life, and entrance to the Holy City forbidden!
Let's look at Revelation 3:10 first. Jesus, through John, assures the Philadelphian Church that they will be spared the temptation that shall test the whole world. We are staunch Dispensationalists, everyone of us, and we believe God gave a uniquely specific message to each of the seven churches, representing, what we devoutly believe, among other interpretations, seven Church ages.
Therefore, we hope you, Philadelphians, won't mind us borrowing a little of your blessings, for we are next door to you, and we are sure you will allow us a little "preacher's license". We believe we should be included in your escape clause. We will be happy to return the favor to you if you want to borrow some of our blessings!
And since the word "church" does not occur after Chapter 4, either the church no longer exists on earth anymore, or else it has been raptured to heaven - a nicer alternative - but take your pick! Although the Bible does not say so explicitly, we believe that the church exists in heaven at this time. If it does not exist on earth, it must surely exist somewhere, and Heaven is the best place we can figure out!
When John is told to "come up hither" (Rev.4:1), and the "man-child" is taken up to heaven (Rev.12:5), they symbolize a rapturing of the Church. The mere fact that John and the man-child are both masculine, and the Church is always referred to as feminine, is a moot point, something nit-pickers will always bring up!
And now more about Paul, who was caught up into the third heaven, and whose testimony we can't dispute. Doesn't he confirm the fact that the Laodiceans will escape suffering when he says that believers have not been appointed unto wrath, but to obtain salvation? (I Thes.5:9) Obviously, what he means is that the wrath referred to is not restricted to damnation, but also includes the Great Tribulation period; and to obtain salvation does not limit itself to being saved from hell and going to heaven, but also includes escape from the tribulation, by being raptured out before it happens, or in the middle of it, or before it gets too bad - isn't that what he says?
And further, when Paul says that "God" is going to bring the "asleep in Jesus" with Him when He descends, (I Thes.4:14) does he not really mean that Jesus is going to do it? Jesus is God, you know! So you can rest assured that what Paul is saying is: Jesus is going to bring the asleep in Jesus with Him when He comes! This, anyway, fits our rapture theory much better, doesn't it? We got to support our document as "Biblically" as possible, don't we? So, the "Lord Himself" in verse 16 becomes "Jesus Himself", a slight grammatical oversight of the antecedent - which verse 14 says is God, not Jesus - which is not too particular, is it? We must compare Scripture with Scripture, and make them dove-tail somehow! And if you say that the Holy Spirit is God, and Jesus is God, and the Father is God, we have no quarrel, just don't say that Jesus is the Holy Spirit, for then it would be said that it was the Holy Spirit who was Crucified, and Jesus poured out on the day of Pentecost. And don't also say that the Father was Jesus, because then maybe they killed the Father and buried Him. Then God would be dead, and that we can't accept!! We draw the lines somewhere!!
And further again, when Paul says that the saints will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air (I Thes.4:17), what he really means is that the saints will go all the way to heaven. That is not said here, but with a little bit of preacher's license again, it fits our theory better. Just to stay in the air for 3 1/2, or 7 years with nothing much to do, seems rather pointless, doesn't it? So why not be whisked up all the way to heaven, enjoy some good harp music, and have a good time? It makes more sense, doesn't it? After all, we got to have practical considerations if we want to cook up an acceptable package!
To be raptured out means to be spared the gruesome sufferings of the Great Tribulation. But since there are going to be untold multitudes slaughtered during this time (Rev. 6, 7), apparently these did not deserved to be spared from suffering, like the Pre-trib Laodiceans. They should have been ready earlier, don't you agree? And all the martyrs of the past centuries that were subjected to martyrdom just were not up to the calibre of you Laodiceans!
And God is going to remove the Holy Spirit at the outset, or in the middle of the tribulation (II Thes.2:8). Proof: the "he who hinders" that must be taken away must mean the Holy Spirit, for otherwise our glorious doctrine neglects the Holy Spirit altogether, and that will never do! He is the Agent Who is present while God, the Father, and His Son, Jesus, are seated in Heaven. So we must find a place for the Holy Spirit while the earth is brewing and spewing below.
Another proof that the Holy Spirit is going to be removed is, that since He indwells the believers, when the believers are caught up, He must go with them! For how can the Church, which is the corporate body of the Holy Spirit, be removed, and the Holy Spirit be left behind? Unthinkable! How the bodies of the multiplied millions, who are going to be saved during the Tribulation, will then not be the temples of the Holy Spirit, like that of the Pre-trib believer's bodies, is a little difficult to fathom, but we got to stick by our guns, don't we?
Now let's look at the I Cor.15 passage. It is believed by most of us to be a parallel passage to I Thes. 4:13-18. This passage clearly states that when this event takes place all the dead will rise and all will be transmuted from terrestrial to celestial states, and that death, the last enemy, will be destroyed. That does not seem to fit a pre-tribulation time-frame, for possibly billions will perish after the tribulation begins. But we are only including Scriptures that fit our schematic! "Evangelistically speaking", our prerogative as ministers of the Gospel, includes not only the privilege of exaggerating revival attendance somewhat, but also ignoring stubborn passages, or else make them fit our mold!
The two passages in Rev.6 & 7, indicate there will be multiplied millions of converts and martyrs during the tribulation. It must then mean that the 144,000 Israelites will be the world-wide evangelists, seeing the Church is gone, even though the Bible does not say so explicitly. Some things we got to figure out for ourselves, you know! These were "sealed", and that guarantees that they were also appointed as evangelists, don't you agree? We never said we could explain everything.
The fact that what the multiplied millions of Church members could not do with the presence and anointing of the Holy Spirit in 2000 years, with enough imagination, can readily be seen to be accomplished by 144,000 Israelites - mind you, John does not say that they are Messianic Israelites, or even Christians - without the Church, and without the Holy Spirit in 7 years or less!
The fact that Jesus never said He was coming twice, or that He would come down half-way for a quickly visit to snatch Laodiceans away from trouble, is no biggie. He did not tell the disciples everything!
And the basic foundation verse and capstone to our exciting message to the luke-warm Laodiceans by Jesus is the comforting Scripture, Rev. 3:15,16: "I would that you were either hot or cold, but because you are luke-warm I will "rapture" you!"
Don't you agree that we have a water-proof, air-tight, iron-clad, and wonderfully harmonizing "doctrine" that deserves to be shouted from the house-tops, proclaimed from every pulpit, touted on every T.V. and radio station, and sold in every bookstore and video shop??
We all believe: "Let God be true, and every man a liar!"
Caution: If you disagree with the above and would really like to know what the Bible teaches about the coming of the Lord, please consult the Bible for yourself! You will be held accountable for what you believe, and there is no excuse if you have access to a Bible if you fall for false teachings. Jesus repeatedly warned the disciples that in the last days there would be anti-christs, false prophets, and world-wide persecution! He never promised a bed of roses, or pie in the sky!
So Christians, beware!!
WOE WOE WOE to the deceivers and the deceived!!
Dr. Cornelius Buhler, 3742 Papai Dr., Sarasota, FL 34232, 941-371-2762.
P.S. I am retired, and available for seminars and lectures. Your prayers and support appreciated to help spread God's Word. God bless!!