“But of that day and hour
knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father
only. Watch
therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.” Matthew 24:36, 42
“Watch therefore, for ye know
neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.” Matthew 25:13
“But of that day and that
hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son,
but the Father.” Mark 13:32
“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. Revelation 3:3
I find it enlightening that
Jesus provides this information in the books of Matthew, Mark and Revelation.
In Matthew He is the Messiah
King of Israel speaking to His chosen people, the Jews. He is informing them to
watch for Him because He will return. However, they will know neither the day
nor the hour. He tells them three times.
Mark transcribes the message our
Lord gave to Peter for the Romans (Gentiles). As Servant of the Most High God,
again He informs them they will not know the day or the hour.
In the book of Revelation
Jesus is speaking to the church of Sardis with the same message. He is telling
the Church to hold on to what we have learned from Him and repent. He reminds
us that when He comes, it will be as a thief and we will not know what hour He
will come.
Therefore, the three groups
are Israel, the Gentiles and the Church. Israel, His elect, has been warned.
All those outside Israel and the Church, the Gentiles, have been warned.
Finally, the Church has been warned. That covers all of us since there are only
these three groups of people in the world.
Many who are much more astute
on prophecy than I believe these words pertain to the Rapture of the Church and
others with the same astuteness say it is referring to Christ’s Second Coming
at the end of the seven years of Tribulation. Each has their own slant and some
very strong and persuasive arguments, and I certainly respect both views.
I personally believe that
these verses are speaking not just to those of us waiting for the Rapture and
not only to those alive at the end of the seven years of Tribulation. I believe
they are speaking to all of us; the Jews, the Gentiles and the Church. How can
that be though, you ask? This is my opinion. If others disagree, that’s
certainly okay, but this makes more sense to me. Let me explain.
Without fail, God has always
warned people and nations prior to any judgment He may bring upon them. Jesus
return in the clouds (Rapture) and His return to earth (Second Coming) can
either be a warning or a glorious event. It depends of course whose team you’re
on when the dust clears, so to speak.
I view the Rapture, the seven
years of Tribulation and Christ’s Second Coming as one episode with three
parts. In other words, somewhat like a play.
The Rapture is Scene I. The
Tribulation is Scene II, and the Second Coming is Scene III. The play itself
could be called “Jesus, the Son of God Returns.” We see the name of the play
posted in lights on the marquee out front of the theater. The audience would be
the inhabitants of Heaven waiting to see the play, but not knowing when the
curtain will go up. The seats were almost empty, but now most all are seated
since the lights are dimming. The curtain could go up at any time, but still,
no one knows when the play will begin except the Director (God the Father).
So we have one event broken
down into three parts; Rapture, Tribulation, and Second Coming.
Prior to the Rapture, Jews,
Gentiles and Christians are being told that Jesus Christ is going to return at
any time. He will first remove His Bride (Scene I, the Rapture) and then He
will allow the Tribulation (Scene II) to begin. Once it has run its course
seven years later, He will come back (Scene III, Second Coming) with the armies
of Heaven to the earth to render the final judgment.
During the Tribulation (Scene
II), Jews and Gentiles are being told that Jesus Christ will return for those
who do not follow the Antichrist. The Jews, specifically, are being told during
this time that their seventieth week, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, will
soon end and then He will come and liberate them and set up His kingdom.
He has told us in the
Scriptures to look for the signs He will provide that will indicate His coming
is near. There are no signs for the Rapture, so any signs we see are
referencing the seven years of Tribulation, which follows the Rapture. Since
the signs for the Tribulation are casting their shadows upon us today, His
tri-fold event must be very close.
“Now learn a parable of the
fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and putteth forth leaves, ye know that
summer is nigh: So likewise ye, when ye shall see all these things, know that
it is near, even at the doors. Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not
pass, till all these things be fulfilled. Heaven and earth shall pass away, but
my words shall not pass away.” Matthew 24:32-35
“And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up,
and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” (Emphasis mine) Luke
21:28
Only a fool would attempt to
“date-set” our Lord’s return, and unfortunately, there are plenty of those
around. No, we do not know the day nor the hour of Jesus’ return, but He has
given us all these signs for a purpose. He wants us to know when His return is
“at the doors.”
Jesus strongly chastised
Israel for not recognizing the signs of His First Coming. There were more than
enough signs to recognize that He was their long-awaited Messiah.
He is providing us even more
signs that His Second Coming is near. We have been told to watch, because it
will all begin unexpectedly. The curtain will rise before we can blink and the
play will begin. Scene I. Scene II. Scene III. One after the other, and then
The End will come.
Grant Phillips
Email: grantphillips@windstream.net
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready http://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html
