The Church as an entity was unknown until it was revealed to Peter by Jesus, following his inspired confession that Jesus was “the Christ, the son of the living God”. (Matthew 16:16-17)
In other words, not until more than halfway through the Gospel of Matthew. Until that point the Lord’s emphasis was entirely on the Kingdom, and then, suddenly, he introduced the Church — ‘out of nowhere’! Only then did Jesus begin to speak of his forthcoming rejection by the leaders of his people, and his death at the hands of the Roman authorities.
Thereafter, opposition to him began to gather pace. The high point of his acceptance had been his ride into Jerusalem on a donkey, which fulfilled a well-known prophecy and identified him as his people’s long-promised Messiah. From then on, Jesus spoke more of his crucifixion and their redemption.
The Church did not replace the Jew’s religion but fulfilled it! Nor was it a new concept, since a generational “remnant” had existed since the birth of Isaac, Abraham’s promised son. Abraham then became “the father of faith” and Isaac the “son of promise”. (The firstborn Ishmael’s rejection lies behind the hatred that Arabs have had ever since for the Jews.)
The Church, which ‘came out of nowhere’, so to speak’ will one day disappear ‘into the blue’? Not in the final resurrection of Daniel 12:2 and Revelation 20: 11-15, when all will be judged. but in a surprise resurrection the Lord mentioned by Jesus in a few parables and later revealed in detail to the Apostle Paul.
This “first resurrection” will be the “catching away” of all dead and living believers, and will take place when the world is descending into a state of mayhem and chaos that no one had imagined but which the Bible long ago foretold.
Sad to say, even worse things will follow. None of them, however, will relate to the Church, which is not the object of God’s fury and certainly not His punishment. The Church is not mentioned in the End Time account of Israel in the Book of Zechariah. It was a “mystery” hidden in God until revealed by Jesus in Matthew 16:16, and later to the Apostle Paul, in 1 Thessalonians, chapter 4. The Church by this time will have vanished from the scene.
Fathers, mothers, sisters, brothers — not all but only those who will have been looking for and expecting the Second Coming of Jesus. They will suddenly and unexpectedly disappear from earth — taken up into heaven by Jesus at the sound of a trumpet — in the blink of an eye! Leaving the world without its only restraint: those annoying Christians who did nothing but warn everyone, again and again, day after day, that those who miss out will experience ‘hell on earth’. The sudden absence of Christians will probably be thought of (and approved of with some relief) as their removal by aliens!
I could write much more about this, but if the above doesn’t scare you out of your wits, likely nothing will. Just watch the news — on channels or handhelds that screen the real news, if you can find any — and in the meantime see this post as an urgent warning. Who knows? It might be the last one you’ll read. The information blockage system will close and you’ll know only what those who manage it will allow you to see and hear.
Just don’t end up as the one in your believing family who missed out. May God help you to act on what you do believe about Jesus, and to accept His forgiveness while it is still available! I can only pray that you do. Indecision is a passive decision not to make one, and surrendering is life to the Lord Jesus is the most important one you’ll ever make!