Awaken Bible Prophecy Update 5-10-23: Blame Scripture for Partial Rapture Reference

Here we go again. Once more I’m compelled to bring up this topic simply because I read the Bible. To give you a sense of this, since I was saved in 2005, I’ve on average read the entire Bible front to back very close to two times per year. There have been multiple years I’ve read the entire Bible three to four times in twelve months, others only once in a year. This doesn’t make me any more righteous or holy than anyone else; what is does do is provide a very sound basis for my Scriptural exegesis. I’m not so hot at memorizing verses, but God has given me the means to know His Word pretty thoroughly. The other thing He has done is given me the capability of reasoning through the Bible: to read, to comprehend, and to explain using Scripture as proof for other Scripture. Again, this doesn’t make me necessarily right all the time, but in my doing this, I’m being obedient to what God commands through the Holy Spirit.

What do I mean by that? God says in Isaiah 1:18:

“Come now, let us reason together, says the Lord:
though your sins are like scarlet,
they shall be as white as snow;
though they are red like crimson,
they shall become like wool.”

Yes, this is in context about God pointing out the sins of His people so that they will understand their need to repent, however, the sense also is that God wants His people to think and to use logic in relation to Him and His ways. Confirming this principle is the praise for the Bereans in Acts 17:11:

Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

The implication is that the Jews in Thessalonica did not research what Paul said. They didn’t critically read the Scriptures. Their understanding was limited and flawed since they had no basis for their feelings and beliefs that ran contrary to what Paul preached. As a result, they came against Paul to persecute him so that he had to flee.

With this as background, let me just say: Hey, don’t blame the messenger. I’m just doing my best to interpret what God had His scribes relate for all of us to read. If you have issues as to what I’m going to expound on here, I certainly understand and encourage you to contend for the faith as you understand it. But listen, that does not mean simply saying: “I disagree.” It does not mean simply quoting a bunch of Bible verses that you believe oppose my conclusions. No, if you want to argue against my reasoning, then you likewise need to reason. If I’m attempting to use logic to explain what I conclude, then you also should use your mind to provide rationale for your opposition. Is that too much to ask?

My challenge to you is to seriously consider the arguments I make here and address them specifically. Why is my reasoning flawed? How is my interpretation of what I read and understand in God’s Word contrary to your understanding? What do you think the Scriptures I comment upon mean?

Sources:

Carnal Christians
https://www.gotquestions.org/carnal-Christian.html

Awaken Bible Prophecy Update 2-22-23: A Controversial Rapture Discussion
https://garyritter.com/awaken-bible-prophecy-update-2-22-23-a-controversial-rapture-discussion/

Biblical Audio Commentary – Since We’ve Been Discussing the Partial Rapture – Here’s More
https://garyritter.com/biblical-audio-commentary-since-weve-been-discussing-the-partial-rapture-heres-more/

Gary Ritter website: books & blog
http://garyritter.com/

Kindle Vella story: Tribulation Rising
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B099Z462WD

Please note that the transcript is available on my website blog under the post with the same title.