Did you ever notice how the rapture is the one subject in the faith that many absolutely refuse to accept? 

Obviously there are theological differences on many areas from speaking in tongues to tithing.  These differences always bring their own     fireworks to the table.  But top to bottom, the single most divisive issue in the body of Christ is the rapture – or should I say the pre-tribulation rapture.  Have you ever wondered why this is?

You see, while the other theological differences do indeed get hotly debated, ultimately they do not separate the body of Christ as much as the pre-tribulation rapture.  Even mid-tribulation and post-tribulation rapture supporters are more tolerant of each other, and no-rapture supporters are given credibility above the pre-tribulation supporters.

This has always puzzled me.  After all, the rapture is not a salvation breaker.  Aren’t we all destined to end up in heaven, just laughing about who got it wrong and who got it right?

Not so fast.

Something hit me a while back when I was looking into the origins of the opposition to the rapture as a whole.  I was looking through any number of the endless prophecy charts that you can find online.  I came across several charts by the late Charles Larkin.  The name may not ring a bell, but the charts and the artistry will.  Charles Larkin created some of the most iconic charts in the history of the modern church.  There are few Christians that have not seen at least one or two examples of his work.  The image at the top of this page is a Charles Larkin chart.  All of his work has the same flavor and format.

I was looking through his charts and had a chance to review some of the work he had included in a book that he wrote many years ago.  As I was parsing through the online pages I came across something that really struck me.  In the depths of one of his books, Larkin goes into the details of the current climate of those that were critical of the pre-tribulation rapture.  Bear in mind that this is the 1920’s.  The arguments were somewhat different against a pre-tribulation rapture than we see today, and there was something that occurred to me:

The pre-tribulation rapture has always been taught in the church, yet there is always a new argument against it.  The arguments come and go, but the pre-tribulation rapture remains.  It was not widely taught until the early 1800’s however.  That is where some of the deception regarding the rapture originates.  We cover the reasons for this resurgence later in this work.

What I had discovered is that every one of the seven church ages has seen Satan oppose the pre-tribulation rapture.  Turns out this goes all the way back to the early church when Satan sent a letter to the church at Thessaloniki and claimed that the rapture was past, Christ had returned and the church had missed it.  As I asked before – have you ever wondered “why?”

It turns out that there is a very good reason.  Satan wants as many believers as possible to turn from the faith to believe that Christ will indeed return for His bride, at least before the tribulation.  As I would come to learn, it seems that Satan really does understand scripture better than many believers today.  The deep dark secret as to why the pre-tribulation rapture is the single greatest focus of Satan’s attacks centers on a simple premise:

Half a faith in Christ is the same as no faith at all.

Faith is the very heart of our relationship with Christ.  Let me ask you something.  When was the last time you noticed – I mean, really noticed – the giving of any real revelations by God to those that have no faith in the return of the Lord?

When was the last time you found anything in a rapture critic (pre-tribulation or otherwise) that ever truly resembled joy?  Never mind joy unspeakable and full of glory.  Over the last several years I have witnessed what can only be described as a growing bitterness in the rapture critic as we approach the tribulation.

When was the last time you found a rapture critic with anything that resembled real hope?  When was the last time a pre-tribulation rapture critic was content enough in their beliefs to accept that others do indeed believe in the pre-tribulation rapture?

When was the last time you witnessed real evidence of the move of the Lord in the lives of the pre-tribulation rapture critic?  I’m not talking about their spoken claims.  Rather, I am speaking of those undeniable evidences that cannot be imitated, imagined or falsified.  Anybody can say that they have the move of God in their life.  Only those that truly possess such a move of God can prove it.  The move of God itself will be the evidence as it will be unmistakable.

These are the things I had noticed.  Here lately it has gotten much worse as the tribulation has passed from prophetic speculation to impending truth.  It seems that as we have gotten closer to the tribulation Satan has had himself a whale of a time playing on the fears of those that never quite held the faith to believe Jesus Christ when he said “For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth.  Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man” – Luke 21:35-36.

We detail the meaning of escape on a separate page.  It is worth reading as it leaves no doubt as to what the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was speaking to us.

You see, it really does come down to faith.  Do you have faith enough to believe Jesus Christ when He says that those accounted worthy will escape these things?  Here is the problem – anybody can front a false faith when the signs do not point to the end.  However, what has happened is that as each day closes and we can all see where we sit in history, it takes more and more faith to trust in Jesus that He will indeed return, just as He said he would.

Unfortunately, we are finding that many do not have such faith.  They still hold a faith in the things that occur on the other side of eternity.  That is the easy part as there is no danger in finding out that you are wrong (at least not while we yet live).  The tribulation is a far different matter however. 

As the evening news plays out events in the Middle East, the collapsing global economy and the march to totalitarianism in the United States, it becomes a hard thing to send your money to the missions fields instead of the purchasing of weapons, ammunition, gold, silver and emergency food.  As we now sit at the door step of the end times, more and more “believers” have betrayed their genuine lack of full faith and begun to hedge their bets on whether or not the rapture will actually occur.

Most do so with a secret desire to see a pre-tribulation rapture, yet hold an increasing fear that it will not come.  It turns out that this presents the most tragic of circumstances.

1. Many believers that are left behind will not survive the rapture to repent of their lack of faith.  In the waning seconds of the rapture they will pass into eternity – not as a raptured saint – but as a lost soul that died never fully trusting in Jesus Christ.

2. The number of believers that perish or enter the tribulation will be no less than half.  

Of this number, one third fall from hiding their faith and abilities for the Lord in fear, or they fail in the tithes and offerings – with heavy emphasis on the tithes and offerings.

Nearly all of these believers will be active in the faith.  They are those that work for the kingdom, yet will be found as filthy rags.  They do not believe that they can be lost.

3. Those that do survive will know an anguish that cannot be put into words.

This is what Satan has been banking on.  Each believer that turns from full faith in Christ ultimately turns from faith in the salvation of Christ.  It is no mistake that the Bible uses the word salvation itself when it speaks of the rapture.  They are one in the same.

1 Thessalonians 5:1-5, 6-7, 8-11:  But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you.  For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.

For when they shall say, peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.  But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.

Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober.

For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.  But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation.

For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.

Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.

We will detail this revelation in a moment.

I know this is a hard truth to grasp.  When the Lord revealed it to me I was floored.  It took three days of prayer just to recover from the initial shock.  As the days progressed I began to understand the implications of such a revelation.  As hard as it is for you to read this, it was even harder to be the one the Lord decided to reveal this to.

This was both the greatest and the worst day of my walk with the Lord.  I mean that with a great deal of genuine thanksgiving as I would never trade that moment for anything.  You see, on one hand I had just been delivered the worst news this side of hell that a believer can receive.  However, the very fact that my relationship with the Lord was such that he saw fit to choose me for a new revelation was humbling in ways I cannot express. 

I have had an active and fulfilling relationship with Jesus Christ for many years now.  I have trusted Him to guide me and He certainly has.  I enjoy a relationship where He answers most of my questions almost in real time.  I suspect that this comes from my desire to know the things of God simply for the pure joy of knowing.  Years ago I reached a point where I did not care what the Lord decided to show me.  I was thankful no matter what answers He provided.  In fact, I was just as grateful for unanswered prayers as the God of all creation must surely have a perfect reason not to reveal something to me.  After all, is He not God?

It turns out that this was the key.  It was all downhill from there.  The more He showed me the more grateful I felt.  The more I valued even the unanswered prayers.

The simple truth behind the satanic opposition to the pre-tribulation rapture is no different.  After the Lord allowed me time to compose myself He began the confirmation process.  That is another facet of my walk with the Lord.  Every revelation He delivers will always come with multiple scriptures for confirmation.  So it was with this.  Likewise, as the Lord guided my writing He began to reveal the method for introducing this principle of lost faith, or as He calls it – the Final Warning.

Most of you will know the truth of what I say after you read what comes next.  You will not even make it to the scriptural evidences for this revelation without enduring the most profound sense of heartbreak that most of you will ever know.  As you read the following words the Lord will speak to you.  You will feel the Holy Spirit move in your heart even though you will search your soul for a reason – any reason – to discard what you can never “unknow”.

Only prayer can help to heal the hurt.  It took me days and I am still not over it.

Well, we might as well get on with it.

As you have moved through the pages of this site you have gained a new perspective for the rapture and the things to come in the tribulation.  The nearly romantic notion of the tribulation that many hold will certainly be the source of numerous surprises to those that never quite grasped the concept of “wrath”.  The devastation of the rapture will be nothing less than Biblical in its occurrence.  However, for the purposes of the final warning let’s take a step back for a minute and adopt a “simple is better” premise.

For the moment, let us center in on a more traditional view of the rapture.  We can illustrate the final warning with the following exercise.

You are sitting on an airplane at the moment the rapture occurs.  Suddenly, millions of believers disappear leaving only a pile of clothes behind.   Here is the thing, you thought you would go in the rapture or that you knew when it would come , yet here you are.  This presents a problem.

You are sitting on an airplane that is now seconds from fiery destruction as the pilot is now gone.  Likewise, you could be in an automobile running 65 mph down the road watching a now driver-less car head straight for you – with only a second or two before a fatal front end crash.  However, let’s stick with the airplane as this is the most recognized example of the vanishing operator.

It is two seconds since the rapture and five seconds before your plane deposits your corpse into the ground at its next “stop”.  Here is where you stand:

1.  You cannot be a part of “the dead in Christ” – they were the first to be raptured.  That ship has sailed and you missed it.

2.  You were not in the “alive and remain” group either.  You always thought you would be part of this group, but it turns out you misjudged a few things in your life and missed that boat too.

3.  There is always the last group of righteous dead – the “martyrs for Christ”.  Just one small problem – you’re not bowing before the blade.

You’re on an airplane that is but seconds from an express trip to hell.  Unfortunately, that leaves only one option now.

The unrighteous dead.

That’s right, I said the unrighteous dead as in Great White Throne Judgment unrighteous dead.  You did not make the rapture and you will not survive to be a martyr.  That leaves only one possibility – you are lost for eternity.

Your first response to my words will most likely be that I am wrong.  Am I?  Let’s look at this logically.

1.  Obviously you were alive when the rapture occurred so it was not possible to be resurrected with the dead in Christ.  Scratch them off the list.

2.  However, you clearly did not qualify to be raptured with the living saints.  This means that when Jesus Christ came back for His sheep He did not count you among them.  Scratch them off the list also.

3.  There was always the backup route of martyr.  Here is the thing – five seconds from now you will die in a fiery crash that will vaporize you instantly.

The airplane cannot demand that you turn from Christ as a condition to live.  It would not matter how many times you attempted to renounce Allah or plead to Christ.

You’re not going to be a martyr when you die.

That brings us back to the inevitable, terrible truth – you will perish and suffer the fate of the non-believer.  If you had enough in the tank to qualify as an overcomer you would be gone already.

But you’re not because you didn’t.

It doesn’t get any plainer than that.

It is interesting how the Lord reveals such things to men.  After receiving the lightning revelation concerning the rapture and tying it together with the overall picture of the resurrections,  martyrdom’s and judgments I was left with a nagging question.

With that level of death and destruction how do you avoid losing any non-overcoming believers?  How do you not lose believers that don’t believe in the rapture?  It did not take long to formulate an answer – clearly God controls the timing and nature of death in the tribulation.  After all, every scripture that speaks of the death of a believer always shows martyrdom as the cause.  Besides, when the plague of locusts comes upon those that are not sealed with the seal of God they are tormented for five months and wishing for a death that does not come.  As far as I was concerned this was the answer.  I went about my research and prayer for this project and looked to other subjects.

Then one night out of the blue the Lord laid a thought into my head.  “What about all of the believers that don’t go in the rapture?  Does God really supernaturally spare millions of left behind believers?”  I thought this was settled.  However, I had learned over the years to recognize when the Lord was getting ready to show me something.  You see, I was not even thinking about the rapture or anything related.  I cannot remember what part of the project I was working on, but I will never forget how suddenly this came over me.  This time, however, I had an uneasiness about the subject.

I started to run the scenarios through my head asking the Lord of each.  “What about this and what about that?”  I played this out for a bit and settled into a logical train of thought.

“Well, we know that those left behind are not the dead in Christ so that is not part of it.”

“If they are left behind they must die as martyrs.  Bible says so. . .”

“I know millions die during the rapture, but they will die as. . .”

I felt sick and wanted to weep.  As most of you know that have an active relationship with the Lord, there is NO mistaking when He speaks to you.  There is no mistaking when He gives you a revelation.  There is no mistaking that instantaneous confirmation that rolls over your entire body as the Holy Spirit moves to cement the concept on your heart.

It was as though I was hit by lightning.  All I could do is lay there in stunned silence.  For the next several hours all I could get from my lips is “Lord, no – it can’t be. . .”

After a few moments my mind began to search for scripture – any scripture – to counter what I had just learned.  I guess the Lord saw that coming because what I received were scriptures that confirmed what He had just shown me. 

It was as though the lock had been turned.  So many things made sense now.  I finally had the crucial missing piece to the puzzle.  It was about faith.  All of it came down to true faith in Christ.  Did you have the faith to be ridiculed for a belief that there was absolutely no reason to believe?  After all, there would be no proof of the rapture until after it came and went.  Unlike the Second Coming or even a belief in a mid-tribulation or post-tribulation rapture – which would have the “benefit” of three and a half to seven years of tribulation to prove itself.

Now it seems I understand the harsh truth behind “But if that wicked servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed,’ and begins to beat his fellow servants and eats and drinks with drunkards, the master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he does not know and will cut him in pieces and put him with the hypocrites. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Really puts that whole “weeping and gnashing of teeth” into perspective.

Now, figure in the true impact of the rapture.  Unlike most of humanity that has had to wait until the times of the end to finally understand the deeper things of the tribulation (Daniel chapter 12), Satan has known from the beginning what the rapture would consist of.  As we found when we put all of the scriptures together, angels likewise travel and move as lightning.  Likewise, the move of the Lord – and even his voice – are as lightning and thunder.  Ezekiel received a firsthand education in this and now so have we.  Now for the really bad news.

The true nature of the rapture is that it will cause millions of those left behind to perish.  We spoke of this in both the revelation of the things to come and in the page on what the rapture will look like.  The bitter truth is that millions of believers that never held full faith in Christ will walk through the rapture into hell as they never fully turned their life to Christ.  Every time they would speak with others regarding the times of the end and the rapture, the conversation would become an exercise in “I have faith in Christ, but. . .”

It seems that the rapture always brought a “but” to the party.

The Bible is absolutely clear on one simple premise – you cannot have that which you do not believe.  The natural response comes quickly – “but I believe in the salvation of Christ”.  Do you?  Tell me something – can you find a single scripture in the Bible that ever says it is OK not to have full faith in Christ?

Me neither.

I can – and will – present many scriptures that clearly show that any lack of faith in the person of Christ is not acceptable.  The person of Christ – what an interesting subject it is.  How many times do we speak of the attributes of Christ and how they show us who He is?  How many times have we admonished those that would twist His attributes for their own agenda?  How many times have we sprang to the defense of Christ when others would diminish Him for their own designs?

What makes the pre-tribulation rapture critic any different than the leftist that silences Christians with “thou shalt not judge” and the homosexual movement with refrains of “Jesus Christ is love and we love each other so we are right”?  There is an entire section of the Old Testament that is absolutely riddled with “thou shalt not”.  How many rapture critics are quick to point this out to those that seek to pervert the Bible and the words of Christ?

Where does that leave the rapture critic on this:

But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at His coming.

Then cometh the end, when He shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and power – 1 Corinthians 15:23-24.

By now you get the point.

There is one final premise that needs to be addressed before we delve into the scriptural evidence for the doctrine of the Final Warning. There is something that must be understood regarding the rapture and faith in Christ:

Your particular position on the rapture is not relevant if you were born in an age when there was no danger of it actually occurring.  To those that died in the faith prior to the rapture it was simply a doctrinal difference to which they would never be a party to – not from the “alive and remain” perspective anyway.  They would be a part of the dead in Christ.  As such, the only faith required to please God is faith in the first resurrection and salvation.  As they would already be dead in the times before the end it simply did not matter when the first resurrection came.  They needed only to know that it would come.  This is why the rapture was never a central tenant of any church or body in ages past.  It was taught, but never occupied a primary place in the theology of the day.

It is only now – in the end – that the Lord has opened an understanding to the rapture through the eyes of the Jewish Feasts, the Law of First Fruits and the harvest cycles of Israel.  Simply stated, it was not critical to fully understand the rapture until the current age and times.

The rapture doctrine is only critical to those in a position to experience it firsthand.  The promise of his coming is a promise to those that are alive and remain, not to those that are the dead in Christ.  If you remove those that are alive and remain from the equation you the have the first resurrection alone.  It does not matter chronologically when the dead in Christ are resurrected – they’re dead.  Their souls already sit under the altar in paradise.  It makes no difference to them when they are resurrected and they have a different perspective on time as well.

The dead in Christ have run their race.  Only now, in the times of the end does an understanding of the rapture become absolutely critical to the running of our races.

Hebrews 12:1-3 – Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

For consider Him that endured such contradiction of sinners against Himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.

The Bible tells us that Satan was kept in the dark regarding the death of Christ on the cross.  The Bible tells us that if Satan had known the truth of the moment he would have never allowed Christ to be crucified.  So it is with other doctrines in the Bible.  This includes the rapture.

As a doctrine, the rapture has always existed, and it’s occurrence before the tribulation is seen in the presented pictures of the Old Testament.  From Exodus 19 to the ancient Jewish wedding it was there.  As we learned in the page on how much time is left, the pre-tribulation rapture has been a part of God’s plan from the very beginning.  Yet, it was concealed in pictures until the times of Paul.

After its initial telling during the first century church, it became a back page doctrine which would slip from our primary thoughts.  This allowed it move through history unmolested until the times of the end, when the terminal generation would need to understand exactly what they would soon face.

That would be us.

We have witnessed the Lord’s reasoning for hiding the rapture in plain sight, and have done so first hand.

The past 30 or so years have seen an explosion of false doctrines that seek to subvert the pre-tribulation rapture.  These doctrines have sown doubt and fear, as well as build a nearly romantic picture of martyrdom in the tribulation – and the iron saints that literally glorify themselves with what “they” will endure for Christ!  However, this has become markedly worse in the past five years, as a younger generation of believers which grew up in a worldly age of self gratification and “me, me, me” have been unable to take their eyes off of themselves.

Satan will literally defeat an entire generation of believers with the very first lie he ever told:

“You will be like unto the Most High!”

That is what sits at the very heart of every false doctrine concerning the rapture.

If your particular belief in the rapture place even a remote emphasis on what YOU MUST DO – then you are in deception!

That is why the Lord reserved the greatest understandings on the rapture until the early 1800’s.  Given the damage that false doctrine has wrought in just this short amount of time, there is simply no calculating the damage Satan would have done if the rapture was as understood in 1500, 1200, 900 or 600 AD as it is now.

At this point there is nothing left to do but present the listing of scriptural evidences, not that most of you will need them.  However, since we are effectively establishing a “new” doctrine we must present the scriptural evidence to do so.

Establishing the doctrine of the Final Warning:

Since this is effectively a newly revealed doctrine, we will break it into its various parts and utilize the three scripture method (at least three) for establishing each component according to the laws of interpretation and hermeneutics.  It is a revealed doctrine as all doctrines in the Bible are at least 2,000 years old.  We simply have not seen the doctrine as the Lord has blinded us until the times of the end.

This is a requirement of serious Bible scholarship.  For those that are seeking a single verse proof either for or against this doctrine you will not find it here.  Rather, the scriptural evidence will be laid line upon line and precept upon precept to establish the case for the Final Warning.

Also, we will be releasing a “part two” page in the near future.  It deals with the re-branding of sin, hedging your bets that the rapture will not come first, and the debate on “once saved. always saved” – all from Hebrews chapter 10.  It will reveal that “line in the sand” that most believers remain very confused about when it comes to Paul’s words on “willful sin” and no more sacrifice.  When this page is taken with the information presented here in the Final Warning, it will leave no question unanswered – for those willing to hear the answers that is.

We will start with the most difficult piece of the picture:

A. Believers can and will perish in the rapture.

Matthew 24:50-51 – The Lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for Him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Matthew 25:10-12 – And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But He answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.

Matthew 25:30 – And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

For good measure we can add another block of scripture that confirms that the Lord will indeed cast away believers that do not measure up to His standards:

Matthew 7:21-23 – “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.

On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Luke 13:27-29 – But He will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from Me, all you evildoers!’

“There will be weeping there, and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, but you yourselves thrown out.  People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.

If you doubt the reasoning presented for these scriptures you can go and read the context from each.  All four examples are from a direct accounting of what occurs with the unfaithful believer.

Matthew 6:1 through 7:27.

Matthew 24:36 through 25:30.

Luke 13:22-28.

There are three points evidenced in these five blocks of scriptures.

1. Each of these deal with the moment the Lord returns.

2. The believer is cast into outer darkness.

Outer darkness is a reference to the ancient Jewish wedding and the supper which were commonly held at night.  There would be light in the celebration, but outside it would be utterly dark.  Also, it is a reference to the dungeons and prisons of the time.  They were typically underground where there was no outside light.  They were in utter darkness until the master came with his light. 

When the master of the house left there would be a profound sense of anguish as the prisoners would have known the light for but a moment and then they were cast again into darkness.

This is a clear reference not just to the tribulation – it is a reference to hell as well.  We see this established in the next point.

3. There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

This is a double reference.  First, for the believer that survives the rapture there will be a profound sense of anguish, regret and indignation that shall follow them all the days of their remaining life.  They will weep and gnash their teeth in indignation.

However, in Matthew 25:30 we see an additional key to understanding the double reference.  In 25:30, the weeping and gnashing of teeth occurs in what is referred to as “that place”.

Here are additional proofs of the double reference in “weeping and gnashing of teeth” as an indication of death and hell:

Revelation 2:23 – Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her children dead.

Here in Revelation 2:23 we see a reference to both occurring at the return of the Lord – the tribulation and hell.

Matthew 13:40-43 – As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world. The Son of man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; And shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.  Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.

Matthew 13:49-51 – So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,  And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.  Jesus saith unto them, Have ye understood all these things? They say unto him, Yea, Lord.

You can clearly see that “weeping and gnashing of teeth” is a direct reference to hell.  Anytime the Bible makes such a direct reference to something it cannot be disregarded.  It can have an additional meaning as it does here.  However, the plain meaning is the first meaning.  Believers will be cast from the person of the Lord when He returns and some will find themselves in the literal hell.

Fortunately – if you can use that word here – we can see the additional reference to the tribulation.  It tells us that not all left behind believers will be cast into hell.  Some will be cast into the tribulation, or outer darkness only.

B. We know that these are believers – not unbelievers.

Luke 17:30, 34-36 – Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.

I tell you, in that night there shall be two in one bed; the one shall be taken, and the other shall be left. Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken, and the other left.  Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left.

Mark 13:33-36 – Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.

For the Son of Man is as a man taking a far journey, who left his house, and gave authority to his servants, and to every man his work, and commanded the porter to watch. Watch ye therefore: for ye know not when the master of the house cometh, at even, or at midnight, or at the cockcrowing, or in the morning: Lest coming suddenly he find you sleeping.

Matthew 24:40-42 – 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. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.

Matthew 24:44 – Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.

Matthew 24:46-50 – Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.

Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods. But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord delayeth his coming; And shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken; The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

What we see in these scriptures is that each of these are together, paired to the same calling and task.  They are laying in the same bed or working in the same field – each sharing the same task and house.  They are not strangers to each other and they have the same master.  Likewise, we can see that they are to be prepared as they know not when their master will return.

That is the key – they each have the same master – the master of the house.

At this point we need to address something.  There has been a prevalent teaching that the “one that is taken” is indeed the unrighteous person taken for judgment.  Each of these attempts stems from a cursory look at the KJV, and the wording used.  It first glance it appears possible that this is indeed what the scripture says.  Notice I said “possible”, and not “it is”.  Even this interpretation is a bit shaky on initial examination.

However, when you return to the original Greek text, you get the actual wording and what the Lord was saying to the disciples.  It is not that the Lord would return and destroy the wicked, leaving only the righteous.  It is exactly what common sense declares it to say – the Lord returns and removes the righteous.

There is a reason why the Lord addresses Lot’s wife in Luke 17, and how she wanted to look back to what was left – and how she perished for doing so.  There is a reason why THIS is the context for one taken and one left.  Those that seek to be left behind will likewise be destroyed!

We detail Lot’s wife and one taken on another page.  When this conversation is taken with all of the scriptures from Matthew, Mark and Luke it reveals stunning and irrefutable proof of the pre-tribulation rapture.   

These points are confirmed with additional scriptures:

Matthew 25:1-4 – Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

Notice that all ten were virgins.  Also, that each had lamps lit with the light.  However, the five wise kept an extra portion of the Holy Spirit while the five foolish let the Holy Spirit fade away and their flame was extinguished.  Also, it should be noted that this parable begins with a clear indication that these virgins are representative of the Kingdom of God and therefore the virgins are the body of Christ – also likened elsewhere in the scripture to virgins.

Matthew 25:10 – And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was shut.

Here we see that the Bridegroom came and took the wise virgins filled with the Holy Spirit and the light of the world.  They entered together into the marriage of the Lamb and the door was shut.

The foolish virgins (again, all ten were virgins, or believers) were left to the outer darkness.

We also learn that only those seeking the will of the Father shall enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  This is the most critical point that the scriptures make concerning the believer that is lost.  Many set about the work of the Kingdom, yet they do so according to their own understanding and desires.  If we as believers are not willing to seek the will of God first – and discard EVERYTHING that we hold as Holy – then we shall perish.

How many times have you encountered a believer that absolutely derides another believer for a lack of holiness that they perceive?  There is an unfortunate tendency for believers to open only one half of the Bible to justify what they see as holiness and the Kingdom of God.

To the believer that revels in a holiness that they alone achieve there is only the Old Testament.  Every scripture they quote to support their position comes only from the Law of Moses.  They will literally disregard the Gospels and the writings of the Apostles – including Paul!  I even had one lady remark that it does not matter if I pray concerning the will of God.  If what the believer did was not 100 percent from the Old Testament then they were lost.

On the other side of the coin are those believers that no longer give any credence to the Old Testament.   In their thinking it is a return to works and the law.  Likewise, they go through their studies of the scripture devoid of any desire to understand the Jewish roots of the faith.  Unfortunately, most of the current false doctrines stem from this tendency.  These believers will deny the rapture based on the scriptures concerning the last trump – never understanding the beauty and perfection of the Feasts of Israel and what they mean prophetically:

Colossians 2:16-17 – Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

Sometimes you get both wrapped in one.  These believers will brandish their own version of holiness as a baseball bat.  Everyday is an exercise in crushing the joy of the Holy Spirit and the hope of salvation in Christ.  In their thinking it is simply not possible that Jesus Christ would ever permit the church to escape the tribulation.  If Christ had to be scourged and put to death then why should we ever expect anything different?  After all, it only makes sense that the church should be purged of their unworthiness.  The Bride must be purified!

What a sad existence to live.  The entire Bible is based on the premise of justice tempered through mercy.  Does it really make common sense that an 80 year old grandmother who prayed three hours a day for her family, friends and loved ones should suffer the same “purification” as a backslidden believer that sits every day on the computer immersed in pornography?

How do you explain to this same 80 year old grandmother that knelt before God every day with a contrite heart, faithfully seeking His will for her life and contending for the faith. . .

Even as her beloved husband lay dying of cancer;

As her adoring grandson was brought home in a flag draped coffin;

As the treatments for her terminal condition were denied by insurance due to her age.

How do you explain to her that 60 years of blood, sweat and tears for the Gospel of Christ – given freely, with gratitude that she had something to give – merits the same treatment as the unfaithful believer that refuses to give for the Kingdom. . .

Refuses to give up an hour a week (let alone an hour a day) for earnest prayer;

Cannot be troubled to attend church once a week – or a Bible study – or a fellowship meeting – or an online church;

Cannot find their Bible as it is buried under three inches of dust and four sports magazines.

How do you explain to her that while she has crowns waiting in heaven based on the degree to which she served, there shall be no such distinction on earth?  How do you explain to her that while the blood of Christ alone can save, atone and make white – her blood will still be required.

Not because she failed the Father – but because somebody else did.

No, these are the beliefs of those that justify their own failures in the faith.  These are the beliefs of those that seek not the will of God first – rather, they seek the will of God to fit there own perceptions.

We can evidence this even further:

Matthew 25:14 – For it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted to them his property.

Matthew 25:19 – Now after a long time the master of those servants came and settled accounts with them.

However, the tragedy of this tale and the confirmation can be found in the following scriptures:

Matthew 25:23-27 – His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a little; I will set you over much. Enter into the joy of your master.’

He also who had received the one talent came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew you to be a hard man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you scattered no seed, so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’

But his master answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant! You knew that I reap where I have not sown and gather where I scattered no seed? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received what was my own with interest.

Never underestimate the meaning of “I was afraid” mentioned here.  Indeed is that not the very heart of those that refuse to accept a pre-tribulation rapture?  The fear of ridicule, mock and scorn?

“You can’t prove the rapture from the Bible.”

“The word rapture isn’t in the Bible.”

“What if the Lord doesn’t come back for the church?”

On a side note, the Bible deals specifically with those that utter such words:

2 Peter 3:3-4 KJV – Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,

And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

Now we find the fateful result of the actions of the unprofitable servant:

Matthew 25:28-30 – So take the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will more be given, and he will have an abundance. But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

I will be brief – all were servants of the same master.  If you read the all of Matthew 25 you find that the wise and profitable servants invest their time and money in the Kingdom of God.  The unwise and unprofitable servants do not.

The rewards of the unwise are taken from them and given to those that were faithful.   The unfaithful servants – which horded the money and buried their salvation – were cast from the master into the outer darkness.

Also, did you notice this: “But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away.”

There can be no mistaking the meaning.  As with all of the examples cited here we find that all were either virgins or servants with an appointed reward before the Savior.  However, we see here that even the salvation of the servant is taken from him.

“In that place there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

As we mentioned earlier, the last verse, 25:30 is the final key to confirm that the outer darkness is not just the tribulation, but that it is hell also.  We see the reference to “in that place”.  Remember, that while we can think of the tribulation as a place absent from God, verse 30 is not a general or allegorical reference.  It is offering the tense and position of an actual place:

Matthew 25:30 – And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

C. One half of all believers will perish or enter the tribulation.

There is yet another dire warning in the parables of the virgins, servants and the two in the bed, field and grinding.  We can see that many believers will attempt to return to the Holy Spirit at the final moment when it is now too late.  When Jesus Christ returns is not the time to figure out you were wrong.  The Bible tells us that today is the acceptable day of salvation.  The implication in Matthew 24 and 25 is clear – wait until the end to figure it out and you may pay for your failure with your soul.

I want to address something else in the parables of the ten virgins and the servants.  We should learn from the numbers that the Lord presents to the Disciples.  In the case of the virgins there are ten.  In the servants there are three.  Likewise, when we also consider the examples of two in the bed, two grinding and two in the field we see a disturbing pattern emerge.

Of the virgins half perish, or are lost to the tribulation.  Of the servants the number is one out of three.  The example of two in the field, two grinding and two in the bed brings us back to half.  The reasons make this observation even more disturbing.

The virgins tell us that half of all believers do not make it.  They are without the anointing and the Holy Spirit – which they once had.  The servants tell us that of the half, one third perish for unfaithfulness in the tithes and offering and an unwillingness to expose their faith to the ridicule of others.

The examples of two in the bed and two in the field or grinding is more disturbing still.

Half of all believers actively engaged in the work of the kingdom are not right with Christ.  They go through the motions, yet Christ is not their first love.  They wear the garments of the faith, but those garments are no longer white.  They are soiled and spotted.

Matthew 7:21-23 – Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’  And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

Revelation 3:4-5 – Yet you have still a few names in Sardis, people who have not soiled their garments, and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy.  The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before His angels.

Exodus 32:33 –  And the Lord said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against Me, him will I blot out of my book.

Psalms 69:27-28 – Add iniquity unto their iniquity: and let them not come into Thy righteousness.  Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.

In these scriptures we again see the final verdict for these virgins and servants that soiled their garments;

Their names are blotted from the Book of Life.  There is no reprieve for those not found written in the Book of Life – they are lost forever.

Now, how do we know that the numbers given by the Lord in the parables are a direct indication of the numbers of believers that miss the rapture?  We know this as the Bible has numerous scriptures that confirm that every word we utter is accounted by God.  Stated differently, the Bible requires that we speak no useless or vain words.  As the Lord is perfect we can understand that He did indeed utter no accidental or unimportant words.  As such, the Lord did not chose a random number of virgins or servants.  Each number presented in the parables is profitable for understanding.  Here are scriptural proofs of the critical nature of every word spoken in the Bible:

Proverbs 18-21 – Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruits.

Matthew 12:36-37 – I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.

Ephesians 4:29 – Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.

Luke 6:45 – The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

Proverbs 10:31-32 – The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom, but the perverse tongue will be cut off. The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.

These scriptures leave no doubt as to the truth of the exact words chosen by the Lord to be written into His Holy Bible!

D. There is direct confirmation that the church and believers can and will lose their salvation and place with Christ.

Revelation 2:4-5 – But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent.

The lampstand is that which holds the oil and the flame.  Without the lampstand there can be no anointing or Holy Spirit within the believer.

Revelation 3:1-3 – I know your works. You have the reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up, and strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your works complete in the sight of my God. Remember, then, what you received and heard. Keep it, and repent. If you will not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come against you.

Do not miss the implication of the words “you are dead”.  Remember, death is defined as separation from God.  They thought they had the Lord in their lives, yet they did not.  Likewise, this is a somber warning that death is the state these believers are in.  A state of death not repented of before the rapture becomes the state in which you enter eternity during the rapture.

Understand the implication of “wake up” as well.  You were alive, then dead.  Wake up once more, and you shall live once more!

Revelation 3:15-17 – I know your works: you are neither cold nor hot. Would that you were either cold or hot! So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth. For you say, I am rich, I have prospered, and I need nothing, not realizing that you are wretched, pitiable, poor, blind, and naked.

In these three blocks of scripture there can be no doubt.  All had the Gospel of Christ and all were the churches and Body of Christ.  However, all had left their first love behind and were not faithful unto Christ in all things.  We can further evidence these things in the following scriptures:

Revelation 2:20-23 – But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her children dead.

Revelation 3:5 – The one who conquers will be clothed thus in white garments, and I will never blot his name out of the book of life. I will confess his name before my Father and before His angels.

In these two blocks of scripture we see three very disturbing points, but part and parcel to the final warning:

1. Those believers that partake of a sinful life will be cast into the tribulation.

Not just sexual sin, though this is becoming the single greatest stumbling block to the church today.  The full emphasis on a sinful lifestyle is found in the reference to foods sacrificed to idols.  Understand that there is not an abundance of “food sacrificed to idols” these days, but the greater truth is that we consume all manner of foulness in the worship of other gods.  Think about just how many things pull us from the worship of Jesus Christ and into the worship of other things.  That is why the reference is given to the food of idols.  It is a direct correlation between today and what was occurring in the times of Christ and Rome.

2.  Also, as believers become the children of such wickedness they will be killed.

3.  Our names can be removed from the Book of Life.  

We touched on this a moment ago, but see it now once more.

There is additional reference which must be considered:

Matthew 22:11-14 – And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless.

Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness, there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

For many are called, but few are chosen.

This is perhaps the most damning of the scriptures presented so far.  It leaves no doubt as to who the Lord is referring to.  It is the sum total of everything we have discussed so far.

In this passage the king refers to the man as “friend” – a direct reference to Jesus Christ as the friend that sticks closer than a brother.  However, it is the reference to the wedding garment that seals the deal.

Revelation 19:7-9 – Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to Him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His wife hath made herself ready.

And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.

And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

It is the garments of white that the saints of God are adorned in.  Whether it be the white raiment of the overcomers or the robes of white upon the martyred saints, both are the required attire for the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.  It is important to see the implication in Matthew 22:11-14.  There are many called to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, but few are chosen to enter.

Likewise, we see the implication for those that thought they would be granted entry into the feast, yet did not come adorned in their wedding garment.  They indeed try to enter the rest of the Lord by their own devices, yet when the Lord comes they shall be bound hand and foot and cast into outer darkness.

Also, the binding of the man both hand and foot is another direct reference to hell, as opposed to the tribulation also.  It is an indication to the imprisonment of hell and the lower chambers of the earth.  We see on numerous occasions that the bottomless pit and the binding of Satan involves the use of such bindings as chains.  Likewise, the spirits we see being released from the pit are also bound and held.  Indeed, the very imagery of hell is that of being bound.

2 Peter 2:4-7 – For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;

And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an example unto those that after should live ungodly;

And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked.

In reality, this should be the end of the discussion.  Everything the Lord revealed in the Final Warning is contained completely in the scriptures we have covered.  However, as this is a newly revealed doctrine we must endeavor in the role of scholar exercising due diligence.

E.  There are four categories of death before, during and after the tribulation.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 – But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him.

For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.

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: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

1 Corinthians 15:51-53 – Behold, I shew 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.

For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.

1 Corinthians 15:23-26 – But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at His coming.

Then cometh the end, when He shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign, till He hath put all enemies under his feet.  The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.

Revelation 4:1 – After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.

Revelation 6:9-11 – And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:

And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, Holy and True, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

Revelation 7:9-17 – After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands; And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.

And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?

And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve Him day and night in his temple: and He that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes.

Revelation 12:17 – And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

Revelation 13:15 – And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.

Revelation 14:18-19 – And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.

And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.

Revelation 20:4-6 – And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.

But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.

Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with Him a thousand years.

These scriptures declare the four types of death.

F. Faith is the heart and soul of salvation.  Without full faith in God and Christ you have NO faith in Christ.

Let us start by establishing that faith is one of the most covered subjects in the Bible.  How do we know?  Consider this:

Faith is spoken no less than 246 times in the Bible, either as the word faith, faithful, faithfully, faithfulness, faithless and unfaithful.  Of those variations faithful occupies 82 references, faithfully has eight references, faithfulness has 19 references and faithless has four references.

You may be noticing a pattern.

The subject of faith in all its forms are beyond the scope of this page.  These are but a select few scriptures which show the elements of faith in Christ.

These are just the start.

Ephesians 2:8-9 – For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

Hebrews 10:26-27 – For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

Hebrews 10:29-31 –  Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?

For we know Him that hath said, vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge His people.

It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

Hebrews 10:36-38 – For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.  For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry.

Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, My soul shall have no pleasure in him.

Matthew 13:57-58 – And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house.

And he did not many mighty works there because of their unbelief.

1 Timothy 6:12-14 – Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.  I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession; That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:

1 Timothy 5:10-11 – But the younger widows refuse: for when they have begun to wax wanton against Christ, they will marry; Having damnation, because they have cast off their first faith.

Hebrews 6:4-6 – For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

Hebrews 6:7-8 – For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned.

Hebrews 10:19-23 – Having therefore, brethren, boldness to enter into the Holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way, which He hath consecrated for us, through the veil, that is to say, His flesh; And having a high priest over the house of God; let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for He is faithful that promised;)

There are many scriptures that point to faith as the first requirement for salvation and the pleasing of God.  Likewise, nearly every scripture shown as evidence for the Final Warning shows a clear pattern of believers denying full faith in Christ.  Consider once more the weight of the words we have presented:

“And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.”

“But from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away. And cast the worthless servant into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

“Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.”

Can there be any more terrible verses in the Bible?  How many should believe that they have salvation, only to find that they have heard only their own voices?  There are only two verses more terrible in this context:

John 10:27-28 – My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

I know it seems strange to declare these scriptures as terrible.  However, there are many who argue that these two verses alone show that we cannot be lost.  I would offer you this – indeed nobody can take salvation from you.  You can, however, give it back.  That should be painfully obvious by now.  Remember, salvation is a gift – not a forced station of slavery.  We are free to choose salvation and can do so by our actions.

We present a detailed and irrefutable case for this in the page “The Devil’s Body Count”.

Ephesians 2:8 – For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:

As we close the evidences and the delivery of the Final Warning, I want to leave you once more with the words delivered by Jesus Christ concerning the church and their salvation:

“Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of His place, except thou repent.”

“Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.”

“And I will kill her children with death; and all the churches shall know that I am He which searcheth the reins and hearts: and I will give unto every one of you according to your works.”

“Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee.

Thou hast a few names even in Sardis which have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with me in white: for they are worthy.

He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before His angels.”

“To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with Me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in his throne.”

I will complete the evidence for the doctrine of the Final Warning by sharing a section on the full faith in Christ that I wrote for the page dealing with Matthew 24 and the rapture.

Here is the section from Matthew 24 and the rapture:

The context on the rapture given in Matthew 24 is evident in the scriptures that follow verse 36.  We see verses 37 – 39 as a perfect example of the context that Jesus is providing:

But as the days of Noah 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.

Understand that nowhere in the scriptures are the days of the tribulation ever likened to days where mankind is moving along, concerned only with the cares of normal life.  In the tribulation we are not eating, drinking and merry making.  In the tribulation we are not marrying and giving in marriage – at least not as a condition of society.  No – in the tribulation people are being annihilated, either through judgments from God or for the witness of Christ.  However, the single biggest clue is something that Jesus would specifically address with John the Revelator in the second and third chapters of Revelation when he addresses the church – the overcomer and specifically faith.  That is, we can only overcome if we have faith in the Lord that he shall deliver us from the judgments to come.

This is a point we see driven home again in Luke 17:26-27:

And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.  They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.

Likewise also as it was in the days of Lot; they did eat, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they builded; But the same day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven, and destroyed them all.

Even thus shall it be in the day when the Son of man is revealed.

In these scriptures we get the added bonus of the days of Lot as well – who also had the faith to trust the Lord when faith was all that you could have.  We see the confirmation of what the Lord was saying and the faith required in other scriptures as well:

Hebrews 11:1-7 – Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.  For by it the elders obtained a good report.

Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh.

By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.

But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.

By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.

Let us stop and examine this verse for just a moment.

“By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith.”

There is something here that few notice or think about.  The lower case “he” in “he condemned the world” is not God – it’s Noah.  This is another quiet reference to what happens with the rapture.

Try this – “by which Noah condemned the world when he got on the boat and left.”

That is the secret of the verse.  Just as the world was condemned when Noah left, it will be condemned by our leaving.  It is a prophetic reference in a chapter discussing the faith required to secure that reference.  It is another example of the mysteries of God concealed in the Old Testament, yet revealed in the New Testament.

The world was not going to be destroyed while Noah was here!  We see the same thing with Lot.  It was not until Lot was safe in the city of refuge that the judgments could fall.

Genesis 19:23-26 KJV – Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do anything till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.

The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar.

Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven;

And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

It all ties back to the removing of the great restrainer.

This is also a double reference.  It refers to both the rapture at the beginning of the tribulation and the rapture of the 144,000 Jews at the middle of the tribulation.  With the first removal of the restrainer the tribulation comes (remember, the 144,000 Jews are not sealed as believers just yet).  With the final removal the true Antichrist comes.

Once we go there is nothing left to hold back the end times and the tribulation.  Those that remain will have to repent and find Christ again, as they have given up their first love.  The 144,000 Jews are the only reason that the Holy Spirit is still here.  Those that turn to Christ in the first 42 months simply “benefit” from their presence and receives the Holy Spirit because of them.

Indeed, the entire 11th chapter is riddled with the same exact phrase – “by faith”.  The very last verse – verse 40 – is an entire lesson on the rapture itself:

God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

At this point we must ask ourselves a question.  What would have happened if any one of these had not the faith required to overcome?

What if Noah had not built the ark?  Where would we be if he did not have faith to believe though everyone scoffed at him?

Likewise, we see faith confirmed in 2 Peter 2:4-7 KJV – For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an exsample unto those that after should live ungodly; And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked.

And likewise in 2 Peter 2:3-7 – Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished: But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men.

You get the point.  There is no faith in Christ unless there is full faith in Christ.  If you believe in the salvation of Christ, yet possess no faith in His power as God then there can be no salvation.  Either Christ is God or He is not.  Either He has the power to keep His promises or He does not.  It cannot be both.  You cannot say “Jesus Christ can save me from death, hell and the grave – yet He cannot keep the promise of His coming”.  Likewise, if a risen Christ claims the power to save yet you should not believe then you shall not be saved in anywise.

There is little more that requires to be spoken.

In the name of the Most Blessed Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.