Since this is the last message in this series I want to try and clarify several things just so you have a clearer understanding. The way I want to do that is by addressing some of those I have been reading who criticize the Partial Rapture Theory. Some of the critics believe this theory confuses grace with works, stating that if not everyone goes in the rapture then they believe we are teaching that we have to earn our salvation.
That comes from the false premise that the rapture is inclusive with salvation. If you believe that every Christian goes in the rapture and then you hear a teaching that says some may not go because they did not live an overcoming life – your natural conclusion is that that points to salvation by works. But it doesn’t. Salvation is by the blood of Christ only. However, there is no indication in the Word that leads us to believe that if we are saved we automatically go in the rapture. That has always been an assumption because we equated the rapture with being saved. In fact there are far more teachings that point to the fact that some don’t make it than anything else.
Last week we looked at the parable of the Ten Virgins. Five were wise, five were foolish. Five went into the wedding supper of the Lamb, five did not.
Luke 17:30-35 "It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. (31) On that day no one who is on the roof of his house, with his goods inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. (32) Remember Lot's wife! (33) Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. (34) I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. (35) Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left."
These verses start off by basically telling us to not live for the things of this world. If you are on the roof of your house and you see the Lord coming – don’t worry about what’s in the house. You cannot be taken up with the things of this world and be taken up with Jesus at the same time. Verse 33 brings that out vividly.
Two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. This is not a picture of a Christian and a non-christian. These are two of the same spirit. The little phrase, “in one bed,” tells us that they had the same heart. However, only one of them goes in the rapture. Two women will be grinding grain together, one will be taken and the other left. Again we have the same situation. They were of one heart, grinding grain together, one is taken, one is left. There are far more illustrations of believers being left behind than there are illustrations of every body going.
Look at verse 32. Right in the middle of this teaching he says, “Remember Lot’s wife.” Lot’s deliverance from Sodom and Gomorrah is a type of the pre-trib rapture of the church. They leave just before the destruction comes. What do we remember about Lot’s wife? She did not go with the rest of her family. She had the same heart as the rest of her family, she was a believer in God and yet she did not make it out of the destruction. She looked back and turned into a pillar of salt.
The only other way to look at these teachings is to say that they were all examples of believers going and non-believers staying. If that were the case then what is the purpose of a warning. We all know that the non-Christian is not going to go in the rapture so who are the warnings going out to?
Remember Lot’s wife! That’s the lesson. She is a believer who does not make it.
Once you accept the fact that the rapture is not inclusive with salvation then you can see that there is no blending of works and grace at all. We are saved by grace. That is all there is to it. The rapture comes by works, that’s all there is to it. To miss the rapture does not mean you are not a Christian. It simply means you lived foolishly and did not live an overcoming life. If you were to die today as a carnal Christian you would go to heaven, but you would not rule and reign with Christ during the Millennium.
There are also critics who say that God would not divide his family. He would not leave some here and take others with Him. They really cannot be serious about that. Is not the family divided right now? Are there not uncounted millions of believers who have died in the faith who are in the presence of God now while we are still on earth? Do we consider that unfair? No! We simply realize that that is how it is.
At the time of the rapture the carnal Christian is not going to say, “This is not fair, why did I get left, I should be in heaven along with everybody else.” I doubt very much that his reaction will be that of pride. If anything he will be humbled by the fact that he was left behind and will accept his plot and ultimately die as a martyr.
Remember, God is not fair; God is just. Nowhere does the Bible call God fair – it calls Him just. If God were fair then he would have to treat all people the same, which would mean that everybody who is born-again would go in the rapture. But God is just. God does what is right for each one of us.
Foreshadows
1 Corinthians 10:1-6 For I do not want you to be ignorant of the fact, brothers, that our forefathers were all under the cloud and that they all passed through the sea. (2) They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. (3) They all ate the same spiritual food (4) and drank the same spiritual drink; for they drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ. (5) Nevertheless, God was not pleased with most of them; their bodies were scattered over the desert. (6) Now these things occurred as examples to keep us from setting our hearts on evil things as they did.
1 Corinthians 10:11-12 These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come. 12 So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!
Jesus is talking about Israel’s wilderness wanderings and how these things happened to them as examples for you and I. Isn’t that an incredible thought! Israel went through what she did because you and I needed an example to look at so that we would not fall into the same trap. And that trap was that of thinking that once you are saved you no longer have a thing to worry about.
Verse 12 said, So if you think you are standing firm, be careful. That is a direct reference to going in the rapture. We could probably rephrase that to say this, “So if you think your salvation is a guarantee to make the rapture be careful.” Remember, the 40 years in the desert is a lesson for us about the rapture. To deny this parallel is to overthrow inspiration, to ignore the parallel is to silence the Scripture: to admit the parallel is to reveal a potential peril to the believer in Christ. We cannot just ignore the lessons of the Bible. We cannot simply write them off as only being pertinent to another generation. If we deny this parallel we suggest that the, Bible is not inspired by God. If we ignore it we silence the scriptures. However, if we see it – we also see the lesson it has for you and I.
Here is the great lesson about the wandering. We will take it right from 1 Corinthians 10. “Our forefathers were all under the cloud.” That refers to the covering of their sin. They were redeemed by the blood of the Lamb which was put on their doorpost, the night of the Passover. “They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea.” This is symbolic of water baptism and their separation from the world. “They all ate the same spiritual food and drank the same spiritual drink.” This is symbolic of their communion with Christ even in the desert thousands of years before His birth. So here we have them saved, baptized, and in communion with Christ. YET only two of them enter the promise land.
Do you know who those two were? Joshua and Caleb.
Numbers 32:11-12 `Because they have not followed me wholeheartedly, not one of the men twenty years old or more who came up out of Egypt will see the land I promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob-- 12not one except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun, for they followed the LORD wholeheartedly.'
Out of that entire original generation, which was delivered from Egypt only Joshua and Caleb make it to the promise land. The promise land is symbolic of the Millennial Reign, not heaven. It was a land flowing with milk and honey. It was to be a place of rest from their lifetime of wandering through the desert.
Entering into His Rest
Hebrews 3:7-11 So, as the Holy Spirit says: "Today, if you hear his voice, (8) do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion, during the time of testing in the desert, (9) where your fathers tested and tried me and for forty years saw what I did. (10) That is why I was angry with that generation, and I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray, and they have not known my ways.' (11) So I declared on oath in my anger, 'They shall never enter my rest.'"
The “rest” referred to in verse 11 is the Millennial Reign of Christ. The Millennium is symbolic of the seventh day of creation where God rested. We have had six thousand years on this earth, which is symbolic of the first six days of creation and on the seventh day, or the final “thousand years,” God rested. Those who were tried and failed did not enter into God’s rest. They will not rule and reign with Christ. They will not live again until the thousand years are finished.
5 Crowns
Did you know that there are five crowns that will be handed out at the Judgment seat of Christ? What I want to do now is compare the 5 crowns to the 5 qualifications for the rapture.
The First Crown is the crown of Incorruption.
1 Corinthians 9: 24-25 Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. 25And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
The crown of incorruption is attained by faith. One of the 5 qualifications for living an overcoming life is to live by faith. When Jesus comes back will he find faith on the earth? Corruption comes from unbelief. The book of Romans says anything that does not come from faith is sin. All the corruption of the world comes from sin.
Joshua and Caleb entered into God’s rest because of faith. We just read in Hebrews chapter three that God did not allow the Israelites into the promise land because of their unbelief. In that light I want to read from Hebrews chapter four.
Hebrews 4:1-6 Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. (2)For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith. (3) Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said, "So I declared on oath in my anger, `They shall never enter my rest.'" And yet his work has been finished since the creation of the world. (4) For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: "And on the seventh day God rested from all his work." (5) And again in the passage above he says, "They shall never enter my rest." (6) It still remains that some will enter that rest, and those who formerly had the gospel preached to them did not go in, because of their disobedience.
By faith Moses kept the Passover. By faith they passed through the Red Sea. They never did doubt the essentials of their salvation. They rejected the report of the godly spies and subsequently, did not enter into the promise land. The incorruptible crown is attained through faith.
Secondly there is the crown of life.
James 1:12 Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
To persevere under trial, to resist temptation, even to die as a martyr all relates to being spirit-filled. Last week we talked about this qualification. If we go back to the wilderness wandering account we see something very interesting. Do you remember our two heros?
Numbers 14:6-8 Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had explored the land, tore their clothes (7) and said to the entire Israelite assembly, "The land we passed through and explored is exceedingly good.
Now look at verse 10
Numbers 14:10 But the whole assembly talked about stoning them.
Really the only difference between the overcomer and the overcome is his spirit. The spirit-filled man has a whole different perspective on life. He lives by faith. He sees what God sees. He doesn’t see defeat.
Look at Numbers 14:24, But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, (here’s the good news) I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it.
In the parable of the ten virgins, the difference between the foolish and the wise was their spirit.
Matthew 25:8 The foolish ones said to the wise, `Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.'
The lamp of the wise was filled with oil. The lamp of the foolish was not.
In the parable of the ten virgins, the difference between the foolish and the wise was their spirit.
Matthew 25:8 The foolish ones said to the wise, `Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.'
The lamp of the wise was filled with oil. The lamp of the foolish was not.
The third crown is the crown of righteousness.
2 Timothy 4:8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.
The crown of righteousness goes to those who love his appearing. One of the 5 qualifications for the rapture is that we must be looking for Christ. The thought behind that is that those who do not look for him will not see him. Longing for his appearing prompts us to perform acts of kindness, acts of mercy and compassion. If we live in anticipation of his return we will do what we can to store up treasures in heaven.
The fourth crown is the crown of crown of rejoicing.
1 Thessalonians 2:19 For what is our hope, or joy, or crown of rejoicing? Are not even ye in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ at his coming? KJV
This crown relates to our work for Jesus. One of the qualifications for the rapture is that you must be a working Christian in the service of the Lord. The idea behind any thing we do for Jesus is the salvation of mankind. It doesn’t matter if all you do is shovel the snow off of our sidewalks – if you do it, as unto the Lord, then it all comes back to the overall mission of the church. Those who work for the Lord will one day be able to rejoice in those whose lives were affected by their labors.
Can you imagine that folks. One day we will see the full fruit of our labors. Apparently, we will be able to rejoice along with Jesus over their lives.
The final crown is the crown of glory.
1 Peter 5:1-4 1 To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder, a witness of Christ's sufferings and one who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2Be shepherds of God's flock that is under your care, serving as overseers-not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not greedy for money, but eager to serve; 3not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.
This is the crown for the shepherds. This is so intimidating to me. To think that there is a special crown for those who shepherd makes me take a more serious look at what I do. The qualification that matches up with this is the one of purity. The first qualification we looked at was the one that says, we must live a purified life.
One of the verses associated with this is Titus 2:12; It teaches us to say "No" to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age.
That is not only descriptive of someone with a pure heart – it must also be the heart of God’s shepherds. The pure in heart see God, or you could say, the pure in heart see what God’s sees. When we see from God’s perspective we go about his work with more diligence and passion.
*So these are the crowns, The crown of incorruption, The crown of rejoicing, The crown of glory, The crown of righteousness, and The crown of life.
That is not only descriptive of someone with a pure heart – it must also be the heart of God’s shepherds. The pure in heart see God, or you could say, the pure in heart see what God’s sees. When we see from God’s perspective we go about his work with more diligence and passion.
*So these are the crowns, The crown of incorruption, The crown of rejoicing, The crown of glory, The crown of righteousness, and The crown of life.
So here is the big question? Do you qualify for one of these? Jesus is probably the only one who will receive each of these crowns. Do you see yourself in this picture? I can see some of you qualifying for the crown of incorruption because of your life of faith. Others I can see with the crown of rejoicing because of your evangelistic efforts. I trust you can see yourself somewhere on this list. If you cannot see yourself on this list at all – you need to check your life.
The value of these crowns is based on what they imply rather than for what they are. Satan is not trying to steal the actual physical crown as much as he is out to thwart our efforts to gain one of these crowns. Whoever earns a crown will simultaneously bring glory to Christ. We don’t seek the crown for the sake of self-glory but rather to glorify Christ.
2 John 8, Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully.
Someone once said, “What would it be like to see God’s original draft of what our life was to be like, if only we would have fully obeyed.” But do you know what? We have a God of mercy. The whole nature of warnings comes from God’s desire to do good to us. The bible says that God will restore what the Locust has eaten away. That means that even if you feel that most of your life has been wasted – God can still bring good out of it. He is a God of the second, third, fourth, fifth, 490th chance. He forgives and forgives and forgives. He forgives and forgets and then forgets that he forgave.
