by David A. DePra
| The
Last Trumpet |
by David A. DePra |
| Behold, I show you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we |
| shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, |
| at the last trump. For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead |
| shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. |
| (I Cor. 15:52) |
| 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. (I Thes. 4:16-17) |
| These two passages are most commonly quoted to prove |
| the rapture theory which is prevelant today in Christian end-time |
| teaching. Those who believe in a "pre-trib" rapture say that |
| Jesus will come for His church before the tribulation. They say |
| that after the tribulation, He'll return to earth again with those |
| whom He raptured during this first, secret event. |
| There are problems with not only that interpretation of this |
| passage, but with the entire teaching of the rapture as it is |
| usually presented. But there is space here only to center in on |
| one point from the above verses. It has to do with the "last |
| trumpet." I Corinthians 15:52 clearly says that the "last trump" |
| will signal the return of Jesus Christ for His saints. Regardless |
| of what we think that really means, it is nevertheless a fact that |
| this "last trump" does signal the event. |
| The problem for those who interpret this according to current |
| end-time theories is this: In the Book of Revelation, there are |
| seven seals, the last of which is comprised of seven trumpets. |
| The seventh of these seven trumpets is the last trump. So |
| if we insist upon a timeline in these seals and trumpets, the last |
| trump comes AFTER all of the other events which the seals and |
| trumps represent. So how can Jesus come for His saints |
| BEFORE events like the great tribulation if the last trump occurs |
| AFTER them? |
| The problem is inescapable. If the last trump is really the |
| last trump, then there aren't any others after it. And if there aren't |
| any others after it, then the return of Christ for His saints -- the |
| event the last trump announces -- must come LAST. Everything |
| else, great tribulation included, must come before it. |
| Actually, the argument here isn't between "pre-trib" and "post- |
| trib." The argument is whether the doctrine of the rapture, as |
| taught today, is correct to begin with. The issue is really whether |
| the end-time prophecy interpretations which have become so |
| wide-spred today, as we approach the new millenium, are the |
| Truth? |
| Could it be that history is repeating itself -- again? It is possible |
| that the church as a whole could be dead wrong as to the nature, |
| time, and substance of the return of Christ? Jesus IS coming |
| again. But have God's people not learned anything from the |
| repeated error which we have committed for centuries of trying |
| to draw a road map for His return? |