The Rapture vs. The Day of the Lord - by Pastor Doug Riggs

by John Mark on 09/25/24

This was originally recorded on November 30, 2016.

My notes:

If one believes in the imminency of Christ's return, than one must believe in a pre-day of the Lord rapture. Otherwise, "you're looking for some other signs that will be associated (with) or accompany the day of the Lord." The signs in Matthew 24 and Mark 13 lead up to the second advent, not the rapture of the church. Doug corrects those who misunderstand the example of the one in the field taken. They are taken out to judgment, not taken up in the rapture. The one left is the believer who enters into the Millennial Kingdom. This is consistent with the parable of the sower (Matthew 13) "where the angels come and they take out of the world the unrighteous, and the wheat, or the righteous, go into the barn, or the Millennial Kingdom of Christ." The contexts of these passages in the Gospels is about Israel, not the church. The church was at that time a mystery, a sacred secret, only to be unveiled through the Apostle Paul years later (see Romans 16:25,26; Ephesians 1:9-11; 3:1-11; Colossians 1:24-27). The rapture of the church is before the judgment on Israel and the nations. "You can't be looking for Jesus Christ and be looking for the antichrist."

People accuse those of us who believe the rapture will occur before the day of the Lord, as being heretical. Paul describes those who don't understand the pre-day of the Lord rapture are under deception, "the same level of deception as Satan deceiving the woman in the garden." That's serious.

I remember many years ago Doug teaching on John 3:29 about the bride and the bridegroom, equating it to Adam and Eve being created at the same time. However, Eve was not manifested until later. She was hidden in Adam and only later taken out from his side and presented to him as his wife. Such a beautiful and romantic picture of the church, chosen IN Christ Jesus before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4) to be presented to Him at the rapture once the bride has made herself ready.

Doug also corrects the error in assuming the 10 virgins mentioned in Matthew 25, the invitation to the celebration of the wedding of the Lamb. "Those are the attendants to the wedding feast. That's not the church." Notice, there's no bride mentioned. "Why? She's hidden. She's part of the mystery." Only years after the death and resurrection of Christ do we discover who the bride of Christ is.

The questions that needs to be asked is, "Is the Bridegroom going to have a section of His bride have to go through the great and terrible day of the Lord? That would be the Bridegroom not judging the whole body of Christ (because most of the body of Christ is in heaven)." Is it so that "God's going to have the last generation of the church go through a part or all the tribulation, so the Bridegroom can judge His bride? The bride would have to go through that time of that which is specifically designated in the prophets as God's judgment against Israel and the nations?"

One of Doug's memorable sayings was, "It's real; but it's not the truth." The Thessalonians were suffering persecution and tribulation. That was real; but what was the truth? Were they in the day of the Lord? No! They were in tribulation, but not THE 7-year tribulation. We will see that in the coming months - tribulation coming on the church. We need to be knowers of the time (1 Chronicles 12:32) so we can tell others in the church what they should do. People who don't understand this eschatology get the "mark of the beast" confused with what we need to be looking out for. We won't be here - so it's impossible for any Christian to take the mark of the beast and be damned for eternity. Yes, God judges His people, but the judgment we as the church have gone through and will go through is not the same nor the level of what is coming for Israel and the nations. Besides, to misunderstand this is to misunderstand eternal security of the believer. If we are born again, in Christ, sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, we cannot do anything (i.e.: taking the mark of the beast) to lose the gift of God given to us at our new birth.

Doug taught us there a huge difference between the day of the Lord and the day of Christ (see Philippians 1:6,10; 2:16) - they're not the same. However, "the day of God" (2 Peter 3:12; Revelation 16:14) is synonymous with "the day of the Lord".

We need to remember when we read the word "salvation" in the scriptures, these don't all mean the exact same thing. There is initial salvation; when we receive Jesus Christ as God's gift of eternal life. There's progressive salvation, "being saved"; that's the course and journey we are on to obtain our inheritance in Christ and for Christ to be fully formed in us. Then there's final salvation; that's the Lord's return to snatch up His church, His bride. "It's the culmination of the body of Christ coming to the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ; believers growing up into Christ in all things... When God sees Christ fully formed in His church, we're out of here."

Once one has the revelation of the mystery of the Christ, "It's so clear; you're never going to be shaken by anybody saying the church is in the tribulation." Otherwise, "You're not grounded in the word."

Take note that this was recorded in November 2016, way before Covid. Giving a hypothetical appeal from the "aliens": "By the way, if you take this mark that has the DNA-upgrade, you shall not die, and you shall be disease-free." Those that take the mark will be those who "did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved" (2 Thessalonians 2:10). Because of this, "God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false (literally the lie)." Doug defined "a deluding influence" to be "a supernatural energizing that leads to error".

Doug describes the imagery of a Jewish wedding to depict details that parallel those of the rapture. You may want to watch a beautiful video narrated by Kevin Sorbo called Before the Wrath (https://www.beforethewrath.com/) that does an amazing job depicting a Galilean wedding.

Speaking of the rapture of the church, "Before the Lord returns for the church, the church will be in a place where when Jesus returns, He literally rescues us from the wrath to come." This goes with 1 Thessalonians 5:9, speaking of the day of the Lord, "For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ." Doug clears the confusion of those who believe the rapture will come for those who are ready, but those who are not will have to go through some period of time to get purged during the 7-year tribulation and then get raptured. In a sense "partial rapture" is correct, but it is only the part of the church that is alive and those who survive the day of visitation that will all together at the same time be seized by force and rescued by the Lord at the rapture. No Christian will go through any part of the day of the Lord. That's reserved for Israel and the nations. "When the body of Christ is raptured, the whole body of Christ meets together with the Lord." Those who died before the rapture will be raised first; then those who are alive and survive.

"We're not going into the day of the Lord. Read Zephaniah Chapter 2. It's a day of gloom and thick darkness."  The doctrine of the rapture is called "the blessed hope" and is something that brings comfort to those looking for our Lord to take us home. "You can't comfort someone if you're looking for antichrist - you’re looking for the signs." The day of Christ (the rapture) is not the day of the Lord (that refers to Daniel's 70-th week, 7-year tribulation).

Doug not only contended earnestly for correct and accurate doctrine, but always included the importance of the experiential application that applies to our conduct. God doesn't have a certain date on a calendar marked "Today!" for when He will send His Son to fetch His bride. We must attain to what is required for the bride to have made herself ready. He isn't coming back for a bride who is covered in dirt and chasing after other paramours. She is to be without spot (sins) and without wrinkle (old humanity - living in soul-life). The story of the 10-virgins (Matthew 25) is an application (not the interpretation) of the distinction between those who will be ready when the bridegroom comes, and those who are not. This is about Israel and who will be prepared for His return (2nd Advent), but it applies to the church. Our conduct and readiness for the Lord's arrival to take us home is much more important than knowing when it will happen. If you're one of the remnant who survives and is still alive, you're outta' here - even if you believe in a mid-trib, post-trib, pre-wrath, partial rapture, or no rapture at all. But it would help if we are all of the same mind, looking for the blessed hope and the morning star arising in our heart. Remember, the morning star announces the promise and expectation of the soon-coming sunrise.

Link to Audio: https://dougriggs.s3.amazonaws.com/Assemblies/11-30-16%2Bwednesday.mp3

Recommended resource:
The Future Foretold by John Mark (https://bookministry1.s3.amazonaws.com/docs/The+Future+Foretold.pdf)

Maranatha!

John Mark

...hereby committing this unto the providential care of the enthroned Head of the Church; whose Name is blessed forevermore, Yeshua Mashiach - Jesus Christ!