50 Days to Understanding the End-Times More Accurately - Day 22 - "Olivet Discourse": Armageddon or Rapture - 1

DAY 22 - “Olivet Discourse”: Armageddon or Rapture? - 1

Concerning the “Olivet Discourse” (Matthew 24 & 25, Mark 13, & Luke 21), there are at most two possibilities of what “coming” of Jesus Christ these passages speak of.

If the coming addressed is the rapture, as I believe it is, then we should find some evidence for that.

If the coming that is mentioned is Jesus’ return for the “Battle of Armageddon”, then there should be something in the passage that demonstrates that.

If we use what the Bible tells us about each of these events, and compare it to these passages, we should be able to reach some sort of conclusion.

“Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.” (Zechariah 14:3-5)

“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 Thessalonians 4:16-17)

The first passage speaks of Christ’s return for the “Battle of Armageddon”; the second of His return to rapture the saints before the “Day of the Lord”.

We will first look at the differences in these two passages, and then see which one is compatible with the “Olivet Discourse”.

In Zechariah, we see that Jesus’ “feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives… and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof”.

Also, He “shall come, and all the saints with” Him.

The three events to remember from this passage are; Jesus stands on the Mount of Olives, the Mount of Olives splits, and Jesus comes will “all the saints”.

A very different picture is painted when 1 Thessalonians describes the rapture.

When “the Lord himself shall descend from heaven”, there will be “a shout, the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God”.

After “the dead in Christ… rise”, the saints “which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air”.

This passage speaks of an angel and a trumpet, saints being caught up (raptured) to the Lord, the dead rising, and Jesus being in the air.

Using these differences, we can evaluate which one correlates with the “Olivet Discourse” tomorrow.

Point #1: The “Olivet Discourse” describes a coming, or return, of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Point #2: At most, it could be describing either the rapture return of Christ, or His coming for the “Battle of Armageddon”.

Point #3: When Christ returns for Armageddon, He will come with all His saints, stand upon the Mount of Olives, and the mountain will split.

Point #4: When Christ returns to rapture the saints, an angel shouts with a trumpet of God, the dead rise, and the saints who are still alive meet the Lord while He is still in the air.

2+2=4

Thanks, @narrowminded

---

In case you missed them,

Introduction
Back Cover
1 : The Foundation
2 : The Tribulation
BONUS : A Biblical, New Testament Understanding of Tribulation
3 : The Seventieth Week of Daniel
4 : Not Appointed to Wrath
5 : Wrath vs. Tribulation
6 : The Day of the Lord
7 : The Lord Alone
8 : The Exaltation of the Antichrist
9 : Promises
10 : The Presupposition
11 : 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4
12 : The Revealing of the Antichrist
13 : Same Day - 1
14 : Same Day -2
15 : Hand in Hand
16 : Overtake You as a Thief
17 : Another Thief
18 : Not Knowing the Day or Hour - 1
19 : Not Knowing the Day or Hour - 2
20 : Not Knowing the Day or Hour - 3
21 : Ignorance