Q. Does
the man who is going to be the Antichrist know beforehand what
his role is going to be during the Tribulation Period?
Q. What is 666, the mark of the Beast?
Q. Will the mark of the Beast be used worldwide?
Q: During the millennium, why would Jesus
need to reign “with
a rod of iron” (Rev 12:5, 19:15)? Satan will be bound for
one thousand years (Rev:1:3), so there will be no tempter
or sin, correct?
Q. Will the born-again Christians who are out of fellowship
with God - those who are lukewarm or carnal- be caught up in
the Rapture?
Q. How did the word rapture come to be identified with
the catching up of the Church?
Q. How do we know that there will be a Rapture?
Q. Does
the man who is going to be the Antichrist know beforehand
what his
role is going to be during the Tribulation Period?
A. The Scriptures do not reveal whether or not
the person will know his assignment prior to the Tribulation.
I
believe
Satan
will enter him just as he did Judas. Judas was a type
of the Antichrist.
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Q. What is 666, the mark of the Beast?
A. The mark of the Beast is discussed exclusively in
Revelation 13:16-18. It is a mark of the System headed by
the Antichrist,
used to identify all people who worship and follow the Beast.
Verse 18 declares it to be a triple six, which represents
the unholy trinity.
This mark is to be borne either on the forehead or in the palm
of the right hand.
There can be no salvation for those people who take the mark
of the Beast. The moment they take it, they seal their eternal
doom.
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Q. Will the mark of the Beast be used
worldwide?
A. Satan intends for the mark to be used worldwide.
However, since God does not allow Satan to run without restraint,
the
best Satan can do is gain control over nations in the European
area
with pockets of followers in other countries. At the height
of his success, the Antichrist is able to bring only ten
nations of the European-Mediterranean area under his control.
He does
not become a world dictator or president.
If everyone in the world took the mark, no one would survive
the Tribulation. We know from Isaiah 19 and Zechariah 14 that
the Arabs survive without taking the mark. Also, the remnant
of Israel survives (Rev. 12:14), as well as survivors of all
nations. (Zech. 14:16.) The mark of the Beast will not be used
worldwide.
You may find more information on this subject in Dr. Sutton's
latest book
The Antichrist.
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Q: During the millennium, why would Jesus need to
reign “with
a rod of iron” (Rev 12:5, 19:15)? Satan will be bound
for one thou-sand years (Rev:1:3), so there will be no tempter
or sin, correct?
A: Incorrect! Yes, Satan will be bound
until the end of the thousand years, when he will be released
for a moment and then
finally cast forever into the Lake of Fire (Rev 20:7-10).
However, neither he nor any of his demons are required for
someone to
sin! Please note James, Chapter 1, verses 14 and 15: “But
each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires
and enticed. Then, when desire has con-ceived (with the will),
it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings
forth death. (NKJV)
All of the righteous returning from heaven with Jesus to rule
and reign with Him will have glorified bodies, and will be
eternally righteous. These will include all the righteous since
Adam res-urrected at the moment of the Rapture of the Church,
the Great Mid-Tribula-tion Multitude (Rev 7:9-17), the 144,000
Jewish Evangelists (Rev 14:1-5), the Two Witnesses (Rev 11:11-12),
and all the Tribulation martyrs (Rev 6:9-11).
Those saved during the second half of the Tribulation, including
the Jewish Remnant (Rev 12:13-17), and all the unsaved who
also survive the Tribu-lation to live during the millennium
will still have mortal bodies. They and all their offspring,
both saved and unsaved, will still have the capacity to sin.
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Q. Will the born-again Christians who are out of fellowship
with God - those who are lukewarm or carnal- be caught up
in the Rapture?
A. Some controversy surrounds this very interesting question
concerning the catching up of the Church. The answer, I'm
sorry to say, is that they won't be.
This viewpoint is based on the story of the ten virgins in
Matthew 25 and on the description of the lukewarm church in
Revelation 3.
With careful examination of the story of the ten virgins- five
wise and five foolish- you will discover that the wise went
into the marriage chamber with the bridegroom. Studying the
book of Revelation, you will discover that the marriage chamber
is in heaven, not on earth. Revelation 19, beginning with verse
1, clearly establishes that the Wedding and the following Marriage
Supper of the Lamb, again, takes place in heaven, not on earth.
The foolish virgins had everything the wise ones had, including
oil.
Their lamps burned, but were going out, because they hadn't
kept themselves ready for the event. The foolish virgins did
not go into the marriage chamber. The wise virgins- those who
were ready- did. This means that the wise virgins made it to
heaven. From the we see that the Church must be taken to heaven.
Revelation 3 describes the Laodicean church which was neither
hot nor cold, but lukewarm. Lukewarm Christians have lost their
first love and are spiritually bankrupt. They are much the
same as the foolish virgins who simply were not ready for a
prophesied event. Strong statements are made about both groups.
The foolish virgins did not go into the wedding chamber with
the bridegroom. The lukewarm Christian is "spewed out" of the
mouth of the Lord! (Rev. 3:16)
So, you see, it is possible for a born-again believer to miss
the Rapture. However, for this to happen, one has to become
careless about his daily walk with Jesus Christ and become
a lukewarm Christian, unprepared for the Rapture of the Church.
The foolish virgins had the same opportunities as the wise.
Missing the Rapture is not equivalent to being lost, but it
does mean going through part of the Tribulation.
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Q. How did the word rapture come to be identified with the
catching up of the Church?
A. Rapture means “the state of being carried away with
joy, love, and pleasure, resulting in ecstasy.” It is
often used to replace the following biblical terms: “received
of the Lord: (John 14:3), “caught up to meet the Lord” (1
Thess. 4:17), and “gathered together unto the Lord” (2
Thess. 2:1).
Upon studying the above scriptures in the context of the rest
of the Bible, we discover the events to be depicted as a joyous,
comforting celebration of great magnitude, a connotation which
coincides with the definition of rapture.
Any believer can use the word rapture knowing that it sums
up all the joy in the biblical phrases referring to that event. [ Top of Page ]
Q. How do we know that there
will be a Rapture?
A. Hebrews 9:28 says, Unto them that look for him shall he appear the second
time without sin unto salvation.
This verse clearly declares that Jesus’ appearance to those who look for
Him has nothing to do with sin but with finishing their salvation. The final
act of their bodies becoming incorruptible, immortal, and glorified is the finished
work of salvation. This will happen at Jesus’ appearance as He receives
the Church unto Himself. (1 Cor. 15:51-53.)
Jesus said, If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive
you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also (John 14:3). This statement
certainly declares a change of location for Jesus’ followers. He is going
to take them unto Himself.
Jesus also said, 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 21:36). Without question, this statement establishes that
the followers of Jesus who are watching and praying will escape by being quickly
removed from their earthly scene. They will escape all the events of the future
Tribulation and stand with Jesus. By no stretch of the imagination does the word
escape mean “to be hidden away.” It means “to go quickly out
from.”
Consider other Bible truths which picture the Church in heaven. The Church will
get to sit down in Jesus’ throne as He is seated with His Father in heaven.
(Rev. 3:21.) John describes the Church in heaven watching the preparation of
the Wedding to be followed by the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. (Rev. 19:1-10.)
The prophet Zechariah tells us that the saints return with Christ from heaven
on the final day of the Tribulation. (Zech. 14:5; confirmed by Rev. 17:14 and
19:14.)
No Bible student can dispute the clear-cut picture the Bible gives of the Rapture.
Do you know why? There are too many Rapture events described in the Scriptures
for any honest Bible student to deny the Rapture.
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