What if no prophetic event remains between the church and the return of Jesus Christ?
Pastor David Jeremiah says that is precisely what Scripture teaches. In a recent message aired on Daystar, Jeremiah explained that the Rapture is imminent and can occur without warning.
“Our task is to be looking for Him to come at any moment and not looking for something to happen before that time,” Jeremiah said. “Nothing has to happen before the Rapture occurs.”
Jeremiah pointed to Jesus’ promise in John 14:1-3, where Christ told His disciples that He was going to prepare a place for them and would return to receive them.
“He didn’t say, ‘After this happens I will come again. After that happens I will come again,’” Jeremiah said. “He just said, ‘I’m going to heaven. I’m going to prepare a place for you, and sometime in the future I’m going to come back.’”
Order Abby Trivett’s New Book, “The Power of Suddenly” on Amazon.com!
Paul expressed that same expectancy in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 when he described those who would be alive at Christ’s return as “we.”
“Paul is talking about this like it could happen to him,” Jeremiah said. “When the apostle Paul described the Lord’s coming for the church, he used personal pronouns that show that he clearly was convinced that he himself might be among those who would be caught up.”
The Church Is Not Appointed to Wrath
Jeremiah said biblical imminency also supports the pretribulation Rapture. If the church must first endure the Tribulation, Christ’s return cannot occur at any moment.
“You cannot have something be imminent if something has to happen before it takes place,” he said.
Jeremiah also pointed to Revelation’s structure. The word “church” appears 19 times in the first three chapters but disappears from chapters 4 through 18, which describe the Tribulation. The church then returns with Jesus in Revelation 19.
“That doesn’t mean we aren’t going to have trouble now,” Jeremiah said. “In this world, we suffer difficulty. In the Tribulation, it’s the wrath of God coming down on the earth.”
The Rapture is not merely a doctrine to place on a prophetic timeline. It should produce comfort, expectation, consecration and honest self-examination.
“If you’re a Christian, and you’re just playing around with your Christianity, stop doing that,” Jeremiah said. “Get serious. Realize you could meet the Savior, the One who died for you on the cross, could be standing in your presence at any moment.”
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a journalism background from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and at the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine. For interviews and media inquiries, please contact [email protected].
