MILLIONS
MISSINGWIVES HUSBANDS B CHILDREN A FATHERS B MOTHERS I YOUNG MEN E YOUNG LADIES S SWEETHEARTS GRANDFATHERS GRANDMOTHERS
YES - ONE DAY -- "...that day and hour
knoweth no man..." (Matthew 24:36)--
MILLIONS of people, of all ages, will
leave this earth in a SECOND -- "in
the twinkling of an eye" (I Corinthians
15:52).The Word of God teaches this truth in
WORDS EASY TO UNDERSTAND, and
all who want to know the facts about
this MOMENTOUS event can find the
facts clearly stated in the Scriptures.SCORES of prophecies concerning the
first coming of Jesus (His birth) are
found in the Old Testament. ALL WERE
FULFILLED TO THE LETTER; not one
prophecy concerning His birth failed to
be fulfilled.
Since the same prophets prophesied
of His second coming also, I expect
these prophecies to be fulfilled in every
detail--and they will!3
Jesus told His disciples, "...all things
must be fulfilled, which were written
in the law of Moses, and in the prophets,
and in the psalms, concerning me"
(Luke 24:44).THERE HAS NEVER BEEN A DAY ON
EARTH SINCE THE CREATION OF THE
WORLD SUCH AS THAT DAY WILL BE.First, Jesus is coming FOR HIS SAINTS
(I Thessalonians 4:13-18).Then LATER Jesus will return to this
earth with His saints (Jude verse 14).Is this something DREAMED UP by a
preacher?
Is this some man-made doctrine used
to FRIGHTEN people into becoming
Christians?
Let me answer those questions with
the Word of God.DO YOU BELIEVE THE WORD OF GOD?
If you do, we can find the answer to
ALL questions concerning the second
coming of Jesus; if you do not believe
the Scriptures, NO ONE CAN HELP YOU.4
Listen to the words of Jesus:
"Let not your heart be troubled: ye
believe in God, believe also in me. In
my Father's house are many mansions:
if it were not so, I would have told you.
I go to prepare a place for you. And
if I go and prepare a place for you,
I will come again, and receive you
unto myself; that where I am, there ye
may be also" (John 14:1-3).This is a promise made by Jesus, and
He CANNOT break His promise. When
Jesus told His disciples He was going
back to His Father in Heaven, it deeply
troubled them; but Jesus told them why
He was leaving and assured them that
He would return for His children and
receive them unto Himself:"I am going to the Father's house----
I WILL PREPARE A PLACE FOR YOU----
I WILL COME AGAIN AND RECEIVE YOU
UNTO MYSELF----THAT WHERE I AM
THERE YE MAY BE ALSO." Jesus did
GO; He is preparing the PLACE HE
PROMISED; He will COME AGAIN for
His children.5
When Jesus was taken up into Heaven
forty days after His resurrection, the
disciples saw Him disappear in a cloud.
"And while they looked stedfastly toward
heaven as he went up, behold, two men
stood by them in white apparel; Which
also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand
ye gazing up into heaven? this same
Jesus, which is taken up from you into
heaven, shall so come in like manner
as ye have seen him go into heaven"
(Acts 1:10, 11).These two passages of Scripture teach
us that Jesus is COMING back a second
time. There are scores of passages
throughout the Word of God that clearly
teach us that Jesus will come again,
but space will not permit me to give
them here. In fact, ONE verse out of
every TWENTY-FIVE in the New Testa-
ment refers to the second coming of
Jesus.It would require a large book to discuss
ALL the details of the second coming
of Jesus----6
the Rapture, the catching away of the
saints; the Tribulation (with the Anti-
christ, the beast, and the false prophet);
the Revelation, at which time "every eye
shall see him" (Revelation 1:7); the
Millennium, when He will reign here on
earth for one thousand years (Revelation
20:5, 6); and all phases of the second
coming of Jesus.
Therefore we will, in this booklet, dis-
cussTHE NEXT WORLD-SHAKING EVENT--
THE RAPTURE --the EVENT described in First Thessa-
lonians, First Corinthians, and The Gos-
pel of Luke; the EVENT that will take
MILLIONS out of this earth in a SECOND,
"in the twinkling of an eye" (I Corin-
thians 15:52).
In the church in Thessalonica some
of the believers had departed to be
with the Lord; their loved ones were
distressed and discouraged, and the
Holy Spirit sent this message to them
through Paul:7
"But I would not have you to be ig-
norant, brethren, concerning them which
are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even
as others which have no hope. For
if we believe that Jesus died and rose
again, even so them also which sleep
in Jesus will God bring with him.
"For this we say unto you by the word
of the Lord, that we which are alive
and remain unto the coming of the Lord
shall not prevent them which are asleep.
For the Lord himself shall descend
from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the
trump of God: and the dead in Christ
shall rise first: Then we which are alive
and remain shall be caught up to-
gether with them in the clouds, to
meet the Lord in the air: and
so shall we ever be with the Lord.
"Wherefore comfort one another with
these words" (I Thessalonians 4:13-18).Paul is saying here: "I do not want
you to be ignorant concerning your de-
parted loved ones. I do not want you to
be filled with sorrow like unbelievers8
who have NO HOPE. If we believe
that Jesus died and that He conquered
DEATH AND THE GRAVE, then we have
the assurance that our saved loved ones
who have died are with Him in Paradise
RESTING, and when He comes, He will
BRING THEM WITH HIM."ALL WHO HAVE DIED IN THE LORD
ARE HAPPY, AND THEY ARE RESTING
(Revelation 14:13).There is NO EXCUSE for ignorance
concerning spiritual things. "All scrip-
ture is given by inspiration of God....
For the prophecy came not in old time
by the will of man: but holy men of
God spake as they were moved by
the Holy Ghost....when he, the
Spirit of truth, is come, he will
guide you into all truth.... But
the anointing which
ye have received of him abideth in
you....the same anointing teach-
eth you of all things, and is
truth, and is no lie..." (II Timothy
3:16, 17; II Peter 1:19-21; John 16:
12-15; I John 2:27).9
THE HOLY SPIRIT gave the WORDS in
the Scriptures to holy men, THE SAME
SPIRIT abides in the HEART of every
born again believer, AND THE SPIRIT
IS THE ONLY TEACHER OF THE WORD
OF GOD!"Now we have received, not the
spirit of the world, but the spirit
which is of God; that we might know
the things that are freely given to
us of God" (I Corinthians 2:12).Then Paul gives a CLEAR, understand-
able account of what BELIEVERS can
EXPECT and look forward to concerning
not only our departed loved ones who
were saved, but also concerning LIVING
BELIEVERS WHEN JESUS COMES THE
SECOND TIME.ALL who believe that Jesus "died and
rose again"--and one must believe this
to be saved (Romans 10:9, 10)--should
KNOW that ALL who have died in the
Lord "will God bring with him"; that is,
when Jesus comes in the Rapture at
the first resurrection.10
These WORDS, penned down by Paul
in I Thessalonians 4:13-18, are THE
WORDS OF THE LORD! Notice:--"For this we say unto you by the
word of the Lord...."These are not the words of a man, or
men, or angels; IT IS THE WORD OF
THE LORD. WE CAN BELIEVE IT! He
CANNOT lie (Hebrews 6:18; Titus 1:2)."...we which are alive and remain
unto the coming of the Lord shall not
prevent [hinder, or go before] them
which are asleep" (resting--Revelation
14:13).
"For the Lord himself shall descend
from heaven with a shout, with the
voice of the archangel, and with the
trump of God:..."AND THEN --
"the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and re-
main shall be caught up together with
them in the clouds, to meet the
Lord in the air: and so shall we
ever be with the Lord."11
HERE IS THE PICTURE:----
INSTANTLY at death the spirit of a
believer goes to be with the Lord: "Then
shall the dust [the body] return to the
earth as it was: and the spirit shall
return unto God who gave it" (Ec-
clesiastes 12:7).
ALL believers who have departed this
life are now resting in Paradise (Luke
23:42, 43; Revelation 14:13).
When Jesus comes in the Rapture, He
will bring them with Him (I Thessalonians
4:14). The bodies of departed believers
will rise from the graves before LIVING
BELIEVERS ARE CHANGED. The spirits
of departed believers will UNITE with
their resurrected bodies. THEN, ALL
BELIEVERS will be CHANGED (I Corin-
thians 15:51, 52), and TOGETHER we
will be "caught up" to meet Jesus
in the air!
When Jesus comes in the Rapture, He
will not touch this earth; He will descend
to the atmospheric (cloud) area and
CALL US UP TO MEET HIM THERE.
He will stand on the earth at a later
time (Zechariah 14:4).12
THE RAPTURE WILL BE TWOFOLD: 1. The resurrection of the "dead in
Christ[.]"2. The translation of the LIVING saints.
As I have said, the spirit of the believer
goes to be with Jesus IMMEDIATELY at
death. Let me give you Scripture for
that statement:"For we know that if our earthly house
of this tabernacle were dissolved, we
have a building of God, an house not
made with hands, eternal in the heavens.
For in this we groan, earnestly desiring
to be clothed upon with our house which
is from heaven: If so be that being
clothed we shall not be found naked.
For we that are in this tabernacle do
groan, being burdened: not for that we
would be unclothed, but clothed upon,
that mortality might be swallowed up of
life....
"Therefore we are always confident,
knowing that, whilst we are at home in
the body, we are absent from the Lord:
(For we walk by faith, not by sight:)13
We are confident, I say, and willing
rather to be absent from the body, and
to be present with the Lord" (II Corin-
thians 5:1-8).There is no such thing as "SOUL
SLEEP," a doctrine which teaches that
when a person dies the WHOLE MAN--
soul, spirit, and body--goes to the grave
and remains there until the resurrection.
This is unscriptural. The body is the
HOUSE in which the soul and spirit live.
At death the INNER MAN goes to Para-
dise; THE HOUSE (BODY) goes back to
dust. So the believer is "absent from
the body, and...present with the
Lord" (verse 8).Paul had a desire to go to be with
Jesus. He said:
"For I am in a strait betwixt two,
having a desire to depart, and to be
with Christ; which is far better: Never-
theless to abide in the flesh is more
needful for you" (Philippians 1:23, 24).
The only desire Paul had to remain
on this earth was to help his fellow
believers.14
It is not wrong or sinful for a Christian
to have a desire to go to be with the
Lord. The last prayer in God's Word is
for the SOON COMING OF JESUS:
"He which testifieth these things saith,
Surely I come quickly. Amen."
(Jesus spoke those words.) John then
prayed:
"Even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Rev-
elation 22:20).The TWOFOLD character of the Rapture
Jesus clearly revealed to Martha when
He talked with her just before He raised
Lazarus from the dead. Lazarus had
been dead four days. Jesus said to
Martha:
"I am the resurrection, and the life:
he that believeth in me, though he were
dead, yet shall he live [Jesus is speak-
ing of the first-resurrection saints, those
who will be raised from the dead when
the Rapture occurs]: And whosoever
liveth and believeth in me [ALL
BELIEVERS who are alive when the Rap-
ture occurs] shall never die" (John
11:25, 26).15
There will be a HOST -- MILLIONS --
of believers to leave this world without
dying. They will never know "The
sting of death[.]" THEY WILL NOT
PASS THROUGH "the valley of the
shadow of death" (I Corinthians
15:55, 56; Psalms 23:4). I would love to
be one of those millions--but if I am
NOT, I am not afraid of death; I know
the Lord Jesus will "walk through
the valley of the shadow" with me!This TWOFOLD character of the Rap-
ture is emphasized by Paul in his immor-
tal chapter on the resurrection. I trust
you will read all of the chapter; I will
give you seven verses of it here:"Behold, I shew you a mystery; We
shall not all sleep, but we shall all be
changed, In a moment, in the twinkling
of an eye, at the last trump: for the
trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall
be raised incorruptible, and we shall be
changed. For this corruptible must put
on incorruption, and this mortal must
put on immortality. So when this cor-
ruptible shall have put on incorruption,16
and this mortal shall have put on immor-
tality, then shall be brought to pass the
saying that is written, Death is swallowed
up in victory. O death, where is thy
sting? O grave, where is thy victory?
The sting of death is sin; and the strength
of sin is the law. But thanks be to God,
which giveth us the victory through our
Lord Jesus Christ" (I Corinthians 15:
51-57).Again I say, it is not wrong for believers
to desire not to be "unclothed" BY
DEATH, but to be "clothed upon"
by immortality WITHOUT DYING (II Co-
rinthians 5:4).What a GLORIOUS thing it would be
to be instantly translated into the
presence of Jesus WITHOUT DYING!"Behold, I shew you a mystery"--
A MYSTERY SHOWN is no longer a
mystery: "Behold, I shew you a mys-
tery...." God made known to Paul
the "blessed hope...the glorious
appearing of the great God and our
Saviour Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13).17
God made known to Paul the blessed,
comforting HOPE that when Jesus comes
the second time, ALL believers who have
departed to be with Jesus will return
with Him, and their mortal bodies will
be RAISED IMMORTAL. The glorified
bodies of ALL believers will be just like
the glorious resurrection body of Jesus
(I John 3:2).God revealed to Paul that not ALL be-
lievers will DIE, but ALL will be changed
when Jesus comes in the Rapture--and
IT WILL ALL TAKE PLACE IN "the
twinkling of an eye[.]"The dictionary defines a "twinkle" as:
"The time occupied by a single wink of
the eye."THAT IS FAST! DID YOU KNOW----while I sit here
typing this message, THE RAPTURE
COULD OCCUR! DID YOU KNOW THAT?
Should the Rapture occur as I type,
IT WOULD BE ALL OVER BEFORE I
COULD STRIKE ONE KEY!!!18
Are you saved? Are you ready for the
coming of Jesus? If you are not a born
again believer, YOU ARE NOT READY.
But you can get ready this very moment
if you desire to be saved.
If you are not saved when Jesus comes,
YOU WILL BE LEFT ON EARTH----left
to go through the horrible tribulation
period when men will "seek death, and
shall not find it...desire to die, and
death shall flee from them" (Revela-
tion 9:1-6).
WINK YOUR EYE, FRIEND----that is
how rapidly every born again person
will leave this earth! GET READY, IF
YOU ARE NOT READY.
Jesus revealed what will take place
when He comes in the Rapture:
"I tell you, in that night there shall be
two men in one bed; the one shall be
taken, and the other shall be left. Two
women shall be grinding together; the
one shall be taken, and the other left.
Two men shall be in the field; the one
shall be taken, and the other left" (Luke
17:34-36).
This passage teaches that the Rapture19
will occur the world over at the same
time:
Two in bed (while part of the earth is
light, part is dark; not all people sleep
at the same time).
Two women grinding grain to make
bread for the day. (The women in Bible
lands grind their flour in the morning;
this speaks of the dawn, morning.)--and
Two men in the field (signifies later in
the morning, or in the afternoon).SO--when Jesus comes in the Rapture,
SOME WILL BE IN BED, SOME WILL BE
GRINDING, AND SOME WILL BE IN THE
FIELD.TO THE UNSAVED, a FRIGHTENING
TRUTH is made known here:--In each
case ONE is taken and ONE IS LEFT!TWO IN ONE BED --
ONE TAKEN, ONE LEFT!Many a husband will wake the next
morning after the Rapture and find his
wife's nightclothes in the bed beside
him----BUT HIS WIFE WILL BE GONE!
The same thing will happen to many20
wives; their born again husbands will
be missing----only their nightclothes will
be in the bed where the husband was
the night before.ALL LITTLE BABY BEDS will be EMPTY!
Not ONE baby will be left to suffer in
the tribulation that will follow after the
Rapture.LITTLE CHILDREN will be gone!----
Would you like to live in a world without
ONE BABY or ONE INNOCENT CHILD?Unsaved young people will search for
THAT GODLY MOTHER who pled with
them to be saved, but they laughed and
went on their sinful way. THE LAUGH-
ING WILL CEASE IN THAT HOUR WHEN
THESE YOUNG PEOPLE REALIZE THAT
JESUS HAS COME AND TAKEN THEIR
MOTHER BACK TO HEAVEN WITH HIM.TWO AT THE MILL GRINDING,
TWO IN THE FIELD --
ONE TAKEN, ONE LEFT!This speaks of working people--people
in the stores, shops, plants, and fields.21
In the GIANT INDUSTRIAL PLANTS, AS-
SEMBLY LINES WILL RUN WILD when
born again workers are taken from their
positions and their posts are left un-
attended.THIS SUDDEN REMOVAL OF MILLIONS
FROM THE EARTH will bring about a
mysterious world crisis; CONFUSION,
CHAOS, AND PANIC such as this world
has never known WILL ENGULF THE
WHOLE EARTH!
Scores of DRIVERLESS cars will rush
pell-mell down the highways piling up
in horrible wrecks----
BIG TRUCKS carrying tens of thou-
sands of gallons of explosive gasoline
and chemicals will wreck and cause fires
and explosions that cannot be described
in words----
Buses and trains loaded with passen-
gers will pile up--WRECKED----
MANY GIANT AIRLINERS will plunge to
the ground when the born again pilots
are removed from the controls!DEATH, MISERY, AND CONFUSION
WILL BE EVERYWHERE.22
ARE YOU SAVED? ARE YOU PREPARED
FOR THE COMING OF JESUS?
If you are not, you WOULD be left here
on earth----YOU COULD be a passenger
in an automobile, plane, or train----
YOU COULD BE AN EYEWITNESS TO
ALL THIS CHAOS AND CONFUSION!
DO NOT TAKE A CHANCE! BE SAVED
NOW!
While automobiles PILE UP on the
highways . . . airplanes PLUNGE to the
ground or FALL into the oceans . . .
trains run wild, JUMP the tracks, roll
down mountainsides and CRASH------
HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS who are
left will run to the streets, up and down
the lanes of the countryside, TERRIFIED
AND IN SHOCK, screaming and search-
ing for MISSING LOVED ONES! (Saved
husbands, wives, children, parents will
be MISSING.)
Many will try to use their phones but
cannot, because circuits will be JAMMED!
Phone and news service will be para-
lyzed because of FIRES and LINES DE-
STROYED by wrecked trucks, trains, and
automobiles.23
Tens of thousands of policemen will be
taken in the Rapture; therefore CRIME
AND LAWLESSNESS will be widespread.THE RAPTURE WILL BE A SURPRISE
There will be no announcements in the
newspaper, on radio or television as to
when the Rapture will take place.When a hurricane is sweeping across
the ocean toward our shore, there is a
period of warning by radio, television,
and the papers. People can prepare,
to a degree, for the BIG STORM! We
also have advance warning when a TOR-
NADO is sighted in our area----
BUT --
There will be no announcement made
by man concerning the COMING OF
JESUS IN THE RAPTURE.THE ANNOUNCEMENT HAS ALREADY
BEEN MADE!"Watch therefore...be ye also
ready: for in such an hour as ye
think not the Son of man cometh"
(Matthew 24:42, 44).24
THE WARNING HAS BEEN GIVEN!!!
"Behold, I come as a thief. Bless-
ed is he that watcheth..." (Revela-
tion 16:15)."...the Lord so cometh as a
thief in the night" (I Thessalonians
5:2).Why is the coming of Jesus in the
Rapture compared to the coming of
a thief?
The reason is easy to understand when
we consider HOW and WHY a thief
comes, and WHAT he TAKES and WHAT
he LEAVES BEHIND.A thief COMES UNANNOUNCED! A
thief does not call on the telephone
and say, "I am coming over tonight and
rob you."When Jesus comes in the Rapture,
He will come UNANNOUNCED.Why does a thief come? He comes
to take away things of value--jewels,
silver, furs; he leaves the brooms, mops,
and dustpan.25
When Jesus comes in the Rapture, He
will come to get His JEWELS, the born
again----"And they shall be mine...
in that day when I make up my
jewels..." (Malachi 3:17).When a thief comes, he usually leaves
more than he takes--much more!When the Rapture occurs, the children
of God (His jewels) will be taken out--
but there will be MORE PEOPLE LEFT
ON EARTH than there will be taken out
to meet Jesus in the clouds in the air.THE MASS of mankind on the earth today
do not know anything about the second
coming of Jesus, and they do not care
to know; therefore those of us who
DO KNOW and ARE SURE that His com-
ing is VERY NEAR must do everything
we can to WARN THE UNSAVED, and
we must use every opportunity we have
to win them to Jesus, to get them to
become Christians, before it is too late.
The UNCONCERNED ATTITUDE of the
masses is one of the sure signs that
His coming is VERY NEAR.26
WHY DO I SAY HIS COMING IS NEAR?
??????????????????????????????BECAUSE THE SCRIPTURE TEACHES
AND POINTS OUT TO US CLEARLY
THE CONDITIONS THAT WILL EXIST
AND THE THINGS THAT WILL HAPPEN
JUST BEFORE THE SECOND COMING
OF JESUS . . . ."as it was in the days of Noe....
as it was in the days of Lot...thus
shall it be..." (Luke 17:26-30).In Genesis chapters 4, 5, and 6 we
have an account of the days just before
the FLOOD--the Noah days. In Ezekiel
16:48-50 we find the sins of the Lot days
named.NOAH DAYS:
In the days of Noah, men went away
from the presence of God.Check your ball parks, race tracks,
sport arenas, highways, lakes, and other
places of amusement ONE SUNDAY,
and you will see that the masses are
not interested in God.27
Noah days were days of city building.
Cain "builded a city" and named
after his son Enoch.
If you will LOOK AROUND a little, I
believe you will agree this an age of
CITY BUILDING!In the days of Noah, for the first time
men began to marry TWO WIVES.
Check your divorce courts today.Noah days produced the first BUSI-
NESSMEN. They travelled, lived in tents,
and went in THE CATTLE BUSINESS.It was an AGE OF MUSIC . . .
they played
"the harp and organ."DO WE HAVE MUSIC???
???????????????????It was an age of EDUCATION; men
were taught to PRODUCE AND USE
"brass and iron[.]"Noah days were days of MURDER.
Read today's newspaper, listen to the
news; you have the answer. COURT-
HOUSES ARE TOO SMALL TO HANDLE
THE MURDER CASES.28
In the days of Noah there was a POPU-
LATION EXPLOSION! "...men began
to multiply on the face of the
earth..." (Genesis 6:1).
The population of the world today is
growing LEAPS and BOUNDS--hun-
dreds of MILLIONS of babies born each
year.(Read Genesis chapters 4, 5, and 6;
especially Genesis 4:16-24.)LOT DAYS:
"Behold, this was the iniquity of
...Sodom [Lot lived in Sodom],
pride, fulness of bread, and abun-
dance of idleness..., neither did...
strengthen the hand of [or help]
the poor and needy. And they
were haughty, and committed abom-
ination..." (Ezekiel 16:49, 50).YOU KNOW, and I KNOW, that America
is GUILTY of EVERY SIN committed in
the days of Noah and the days of Lot.PERSONALLY, I am convinced in my
heart, after almost forty years of studying29
and preaching the Word of God, that
THE RAPTURE IS VERY NEAR!!! I
do not know THE DAY NOR THE HOUR,
and I would not be so foolish as to
SET A DATE or name AN HOUR----
but I do say without any hesitation--
There is not ONE VERSE--or even the
least PART OF A VERSE--in the Word
of God that must be FULFILLED before
Jesus comes in the Rapture. ALL HAS
BEEN FULFILLED----much in the last
few years.AND I WILL SAY IN WORDS OF
JESUS:
"Watch therefore: for ye know
not what hour your Lord doth come[!]"
(Matthew 24:42).DO YOU WANT TO BE SAVED? DO
WANT TO GO IN THE RAPTURE
SHOULD IT OCCUR TODAY?
Then heed God's Word:"if thou shalt confess with thy mouth
the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in
thine heart that God hath raised him
from the dead, thou shalt be saved.30
For with the heart man believeth unto
righteousness; and with the mouth con-
fession is made unto salvation" (Romans
10:9, 10).Believe on Jesus NOW. Ask Him to
save you NOW--and He WILL! (Read
John 3:16; Acts 16:31; and Romans
10:13.)
Just say: "I do now confess that I am
a sinner, and I now repent & receive Jesus as
my Saviour. I pray, Lord Jesus come
into my heart, forgive my sin, and save
my soul. THANK YOU, JESUS, FOR
SAVING ME. Amen."....................................
(Sign your name here.)Send your testimony to me, and allow
me to share your joy.Evangelist Oliver B. Greene
The Gospel Hour, Inc.
Box 2024, Greenville, S. C. 2960231
[ Christian Helps Ministry (USA) ] [ Christian Home Bible Course ]