The 2nd Coming of Christ. Pt. 5 Enoch, Elijah and Philip were caught away

Good Morning!  The sun is gloriously shining this morning here in
Ohio.  Our feathered friends are flying into their open air restaurant near our kitchen window, and our bushy tailed friends in our front yard are enjoying their feast in front of our majestic Pin Oak tree.  May the simple things in life put smiles on each of your faces this day!

As we continue our study of the rapture of the believers I would like to look at some unusual examples of men who were taken from the earth into the presence of God.

Elijah was caught up alive to heaven

2 Kings 2:9-11 And it came to pass, when they were gone over, that Elijah said unto Elisha, Ask what I shall do for thee, before I be taken away from thee. And Elisha said, I pray thee, let a double portion of thy spirit be upon me
And he said, Thou hast asked a hard thing: nevertheless, if thou see me when I am taken from thee, it shall be so unto thee; but if not, it shall not be so. And it came to pass, as they still went on, and talked, that, behold, there appeared a chariot of fire, and horses of fire, and parted them both asunder; and Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.    

Elijah was a mighty prophet and he had an apprentice named Elisha. The time drew near for Elijah to be taken to God and Elisha was priviledged to see this happen as chariots of fire separated the men and a whirlwind caught up Elijah and transported him to heaven.

Philip  was caught up by the Spirit

and transported 23 miles away

Acts 8:37-40 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.     And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.     But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.     

“Caught Away" is from the same Greek word translated “caught up” in 1 Thessalonians 4. The Spirit of God quickly transported Phillip 23 miles away from the Ethiopian eunuch to the city of Azotus. 

Enoch was taken by God to heaven

Genesis 5:22-24 And Enoch walked with God after he begat Methuselah three hundred years, and begat sons and daughters:     

And all the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty and five years:     And Enoch walked with God: and he was not; for God took him

Hebrews 11:5   By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God.    

Enoch was a godly man who pleased God by walking with Him in faith. He was also taken to heaven. The word "took" means to take by the hand and carry along or carry away. The New Testament states that he was "translated" which means conveyed away, passing over or being transferred to another place.

The three men all walked with God by faith and pleased Him. All three served the God of Glory in ways that advance His purposes. They were taken from this earth suddenly and quickly. 

The 2 witnesses in tribulation period will be resurrected and caught up.

Revelation 11:8-12  And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. 9  And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. 10  And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth. 11  And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. 12  And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them. 

Many think that the 2 witnesses will be Elijah and Moses. Whoever they will be, they fulfill their mission of testifying for God against the Anti-Christ and are martyred. Their bodies are left in the streets as people partied over their death. However, after 3 days, God raises them up and brings them to heaven in a cloud. Great fear fell on the sinners who were celebrating moments before. 

Points to Ponder....

• Each of these men knew the Lord. They had a relationship with Him.

• Each of these men worked for the Lord doing what He asked them to do.

• Each of these men walked with the Lord by faith.

• Each of these men were caught away quickly and taken into the presence of God.

We have some remarkable examples of what it will be like when the Rapture happens. Do we have a relationship with the Lord? Are we serving the Lord? Are we walking by faith? I pray that we can answer "Yes" to each of these questions.

Bob