The secret rapture theory claims that believers will suddenly disappear leaving their loved ones behind. And all who are “left behind” must then endure the “seven years of Tribulation” and the rise of the Antichrist. But this group will have a “second chance” to be saved.
The secret rapture theory mainly base its doctrine on Paul’s statement that the saints will be caught up to meet the Lord at the same time the dead in Christ are raised. Paul said, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:16, 17). Yet, Jesus affirms about the resurrection of the righteous that the saints will be taken to heaven only at the end of time, “And I will raise him up at the last day” (John 6:40).
So, how could it be the “last day” if the rapture of the saints takes place seven years before the end of the world according to the secret rapture doctrine? And how could the “last trump” sound if it really wasn’t the very last moment of time?
Let’s allow the Bible to explain itself:
Revelation 6:16,17 “When the wicked see Christ come, they cry out to the rocks and mountains, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
Matthew 24:27 “For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be.”
1 Corinthians 15:52 “For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised.”
Psalm 50:3 “Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence.”
Revelation 1:7 “Every eye shall see him.”
Matthew 24:30 “Then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”
Matthew 24:31 “He shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.”
From the above verses, we can clearly see that the second coming of Christ to gather His saints will not be a secret one but will happen at the end of time at the resurrection of the saints.
The secret rapture theory quotes the following passage out of context: “But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left” (Matthew 24:37-41). Here, Jesus is simply saying that the righteous will be taken to heaven to reign with Him while the wicked will be left to perish. There will be no second chance for the unbelievers as the secret rapture theory teaches.
Also, Jesus taught that the wheat and tares would grow together until the “end of the world” and then would be separated (Matthew 13). But the secret rapture theory goes contrary to Jesus’ words for it teaches that the righteous and the wicked would not grow together until the end of the world for the righteous would be separated from the wicked seven years before the end and the wicked will get a second chance to repent.
And the secret rapture theory likens the Lord’s coming to “a thief in the night” and it assumes that His coming must be a quiet and secretive one. But Peter disagrees saying: “The day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat” (2 Peter 3:10). In this verse, the “thief”’ word has nothing to do with secrecy because the heavens will pass away with a great noise and the elements shall melt with fervent heat!
Jesus tells us how a thief’s coming is related to His coming: “Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come. But know this, that if the good man of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up” (Matthew 24:42, 43). This verse shows that a thief would come when the people are not expecting him. In this manner, Christ’s coming will simply take people by surprise but the event itself will not be a secret one.
In His service,
BibleAsk Team
