I have read with interest and did my own research on your article about the Rapture and I have been convinced that there will be a pre-trib rapture. However, How do I answer someone who says that “the apostles in Jesus’ time were persecuted and went thru horrible times, so what makes us think that we will escape the Tribulation and not go thru the Tribulation?”
I tell them that the proof is in the Bible and have pointed out the scriptures that you have given, but this person still believes because the Apostles went thru bad times and were killed in Jesus’ name that we will be also. Also, this person listens to a “prophet” who does not believe in the Rapture. Any help on answering this other than what I have already pointed out in the bible would be helpful.
Your friend is listening to someone whose views aren’t consistent with Scripture, but but is giving those views greater weight than God’s Word. Until he or she is willing to restore the Bible to the place of ultimate authority on these matters there’s not much you can do. Fortunately the Rapture is like gravity. It will happen whether we believe in it or not.
I’ve heard a lot of people use the fact that early Christians suffered through horrible times as a reason to doubt the rapture. But a careful study will show that the rapture was only promised to one generation, and that’s the one who would be alive on Earth just before the end times judgments begin. For example, to the church that was suffering the terrible persecution by the Romans, Jesus said, “Be faithful, even to the point of death and I will give you the crown of life” (Rev. 2:10).
But to the Church who will be on the Earth when the end times judgments are about to come, He said, “Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to judge those who live on the Earth” (Rev. 3:10). the Greek word translated “from” means “away from the time and place”, and there hasn’t been a world wide judgment since the Great Flood, so He had to be talking about the end times.
In summary, it doesn’t matter what has happened in the Church’s history, What matters is what the Lord has promised for the Church’s future.