The Removal of the Church

May 3, 2108

Mark 13:24-37

“But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.  And then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.  And then he will send out the angels and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.”

Much is written about God’s elect, and I believe Jesus was not referring to the Church, for the Church was a mystery at the time Jesus was giving this message.  The church was a mystery until the Holy Spirit came to live in the followers of Christ at Pentecost.  Harlan Caton had this to say about the Church; “It must be clearly stated that the Church is a new and separate body called out for a special purpose and period of time.”  A new thing had happened, Jesus Christ had come to live in one body, the Body of Christ, of which He is the Head, and we are the members.  You can find that in 1 Corinthians 12:13,27; Ephesians 1:22, 23; 5:22,30,32 and Colossians 1:18.  (Taken from page 109 “The Second Coming of Jesus Christ).

We do not find the Church in the Old Testament but we do see the Tribulation.  In Deuteronomy 4:29-31 we have Moses telling the people who are coming out of Egypt what will take place in the future of Israel.  “But from there you will seek the Lord your God, and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. ³⁰ When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the Lord your God and obey his voice. For the Lord, your God is a merciful God. He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that he swore to them.”

But to get a better picture of that history, you will need to go back to Deut. 4:23 and begin there.  Moses tells the people that after many generations they will have forgotten the God who brought them out of captivity and worship gods of stone and wood, gods that cannot see or speak.  And He will judge them and scatter them between the nations and destroy many of them.  And then God reveals to them through Moses about the great tribulation. 

The one thing that is of utmost importance in the Parable of the Fig Tree is verse 31, “Heaven and earth will pass away,” but My word will never pass away.”  Only God can make such a claim.

“But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.  Be on guard, keep awake.  For you do not know when the time will come.  It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake.  Therefore stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning— lest he come suddenly and find you asleep.  And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.” (Mark 13:32-37)

Let me close with a few remarks from Harlan, for I loved that man, he was my pastor, and I believe my first Pastor/teacher of the Scripture.  I was blessed to sit under his teaching for 3 ½ years and I consider him my friend. 

“The Church is to Watch for the imminent return of Christ (I Corinthians 15:51-52; Philippians 3:20; I Thessalonians 1:9-10).  “The believer is to live as though the Rapture could happen any moment.  However, if the Church is to go through the Tribulation, then we would know when the Lord will return.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice