Compared to the few verses that contemporary Christianity employs to support the rapture theory, I have noted a contrary and recurring theme that runs through the entire span of the Holy Bible from old testament to new. That theme is that all people on the face of the earth must endure tribulation; must 'pass through the fire'. It is to be the shaking of the tree to see what falls; a test that brings those who have into a humbler relationship with God, and takes those who have not further into their sin. (Read the parable of the talents with this in mind.)
I have heard many teachings about the rapture, but never have I heard one tempered with the parables of my Lord. Contemporary Christianity puts forth several judgements, and multiple resurrections. The parables of Christ, however, speak of a single action that performs more than one task. In His own words, Jesus speaks of the end days, judgement, resurrection, and regeneration. This study attempts to explore those things which are not taken into account when contemporary Christians speak about the rapture.
Consider the parable of the man who sowed good seed. The man's enemy sowed tares among them, and the servants, when they discovered it, wanted to remove the bad from the good. The master would wait, however, being concerned for his own, and told the servants to allow the bad to grow up with the good. At the harvest (judgement) the reapers (angels) are to first remove and burn the tares, then gather the good. This parable speaks of a single harvest that is to accomplish two things in a given order. After the parable, Christ explains these things to His disciples in no uncertain terms.
Consider another parable that imparts the same message. It is the parable of the net. The fishermen gather of all kinds; the good with the bad. When the net is pulled in, they separated the two. Notice how Jesus ends the parable: look not only at what He says, but the order in which He says it. "So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just."
Let us look at yet another parable. This one is about a king and the marriage he has prepared for his son. This parable is not obscure; it is often used in sermons. It, too, speaks of end days, and a single judgement on the king's part to reject the one and receive the other. It is comparable to a fourth such illustration: the one about the ten virgins. In the fourth parable there are two sets of virgins: the one and the other. The one is received and the other is sent away. With the former of these two parables, the servants gathered both good and bad and brought them into the feast: both were there together until the king judged that the bad should be removed from the good. Still another: the one of the sheep and goats, tells of a single judgement with the sheep on the right hand, and the goats on the left hand. They are there together, and the judgement decrees that the goats must leave.
In discussing the last days with His disciples, Christ made two high profile statements: "the end is not yet" and "these are the beginning of sorrows". These expressions were used in conveying that much must transpire before the actual end comes. Jesus is speaking to His own about what His own must go through in regard to tribulation. He makes this statement in that regard: "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." Someone tell me how anyone can endure a thing that they are not directly and thoroughly immersed in. Try reading Matthew 24 with this in mind.
Christ, in the book of Revelation, uses these concepts while speaking directly to the churches: ‘overcome’; ‘endure’; 'unto the end'. And check out the wording of Revelation 7:14. It goes like this - "out of great tribulation" rather than 'a great tribulation' or 'the great tribulation'. The wording of this verse speaks of something held in common. And finally consider Revelation 14:13. This occurs in the midst of tribulation, with the gospel still being preached. The verse speaks of those who might otherwise have been caught away, saying, "blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth".
As an after thought, I would like to add the saying of the two houses; one built on sand, the other founded upon a rock. The thing that struck me about that scripture is that the very same series of catastrophic events were applied to both houses. The good house was in no sense removed from the storm.
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