John UK wrote:
Hello brother, fellow pilgrim.
Yes I do not see how anyone could really hold to a pre-trib rapture. I've certainly never seen it in scripture.
From what you've said thus far, I would say that it is the same as I have believed myself. Although I have never gone into it in a depthy way.
So you may not be so alone in it as you thought.

If you don't have a hard copy the work is available at:

http://www.full-proof.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Berkhof-Systematic-Theology-b.pdf

Michael Hranek wrote:
John UK
Wow! Have you ever said it my brother! Just dive right into either they're reprobates or if they are elect God will saved them in His own good time without any effort on our parts and one can conviently salve their conscience into doing nothing.
Of course there is so much more to all this like....if we get to know people it ought to break our hearts apart from Jesus Christ they are on their way to the eternal hell, the very punishment we so rightly deserved for our sins.
Paul, spoke of being a debtor. He had the very and only Good News the lost desperately needed to hear...and he was eagar to share it with them knowing the gospel of Christ is the power of God unto salvation.
Sorry if I am rambling I am getting ready to do some traveling.
Blessings.

John 1:12 is talking about recognizing Jesus as the Christ, the son of David, the Lamb of God, and so forth. You can't have Jesus as savior if you are unwilling to have him as king.

If you look at the passages which talk about salvation, you'll see that salvation is for all of us still in the future, in spite of the fact that we already are justified, for example Romans 5:9. And more than one passage says that it is necessary to persevere or hold fast to the end, for example Hebrews 3:6.

Evangelists today don't even mention the Kingdom of Heaven; they don't talk about the cost of discipleship. They don't tell people that they must endure in order to be saved. They don't say that Jesus is already king and is already sitting on the throne. They seldom tell people to repent. They almost never tell people to be baptized. They preach Jesus as savior but not as king.

But almost all of the historic "revivals" and "awakenings" have been nothing but the product of emotion. They have given rise to cults and denominations, but they have not resulted in lasting beneficial changes in society.