Author Todd Hampson is on a mission to help people understand the Rapture, a Biblical concept that often provokes mixed reactions among Christians.
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As many know, the Rapture is the belief that Jesus will take believers into the sky before the horrors of the end times begin in earnest. This is considered the Biblical salvation plan that saves Christians from many of the prophetic events and events detailed in Revelation.
Hampson’s book, The Non-Prophet Guide to the Rapture: Bible Prophecy for Everyone, explores this subject in detail.
“The rapture is at the end of the church age,” he told CBN News. “All believers will be raptured…The Greek word is ‘harpazo’, which means ‘physical taking’.”
Hampson continued, “If you look at the Old Testament, it’s like Elijah was taken away. It’s like a version of the Old Testament, but it was literally removed from the earth.”
The author and end-times expert said he decided to write his latest book to help people comprehensively explore the theology behind the rapture because the concept of the rapture is “currently under attack.”
“There are a lot of different opinions,” Hampson said. “I believe that pre-tribal is what it is. Pre-tribal means before or before the seven-year tribulation period. So I believe that the church will be removed before the active wrath of God falls on the earth.”
In contrast, the Mid-Tribulation Rapture is a period in which “believers pass through the first half of the Tribulation and are raptured at the halfway point,” and the Post-Tribulation Rapture is one in which the Rapture and Second Coming are generally viewed as one single event.
“And there’s another perspective that comes before anger,” he said. “They kind of put it towards the end. Not quite a post-trib, but almost a post-trib, and last but not least, a pan-trib. People who are like, ‘I don’t know, but I know it’s going to work out somehow in the end.'”
Hampson said that while the latter view of the rapture may be appealing, people should take the time to wrestle with the Bible’s text and walk away determined where they stand.
The author of The Non-Prophet’s Guide to the Rapture spends time in his book presenting some of the best evidence he believes supports a pre-tribal rapture, and points out that looking at the Bible as a whole supports his view.
The jubilant conversation is clearly part of a broader story about what’s happening in the world today and whether the end times are approaching faster.
“Even the unbelieving world senses that this is going downhill,” Hampson said. “Things are broken on every level. … The Biblical answer is that no one knows the day or the hour and we should not set a date. That is damaging to those of us who have to overcome sensationalism and who are trying to study and teach prophecy.”
Yet, people are taught in the Bible to understand the times in which they live by searching for trend lines and always being spiritually prepared. Hampson believes that Israel becoming a state again in 1948 was a major sign of the end times.
“Every Old Testament prophet except Jonah predicted that Israel would be present in the land, that the people would return to the land, and that the land would be restored in the last days,” he said. “And if you look carefully, there are some passages that quote them being there in unbelief. So it’s not like… it’s a country full of Christians.”
As anti-Semitism rages on and cultural chaos and lawlessness pervade, Hampson believes we are seeing some of the signs recorded in the Bible actively unfolding.
“These are all signs that the stage is set,” he said.
Regarding Israel, Hampson said the Bible is clear about the nation and the Jewish people. Unfortunately, he said, some major voices in pop culture are helping to create confusion around this issue. As Hampson said, the word “eternal” in reference to God’s covenant meant that it would never end.
“They’re confused,” he said. “Read the Bible. As people of the Bible and as people of God, we have to decide: Will we follow someone else’s opinion or conspiracy theory…or will we follow the clear, infallible, inspired, authoritative Word of God?”
See Mr. Hampson’s explanation above.
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