I was a critic of the theory that the Rapture would transpire on September 23, 2015 all the way back in 2011. Unsurprisingly, September 23, 2015 came and went without any significant event happening. The following was a video I posted back in 2015 critiquing a popular September 23, 2015 Rapture theory. If you are unable to see the video below, you can access it at the following link:
In this article, I want address why the September 23, 2015 Rapture predictions failed.
A Very Wrong Assumption
As I mentioned in the video, the September 23, 2015 Rapture theories were built on the wrong assumption that we were already in the tribulation (also known as the 70th week of Daniel and we had already seen the abomination of desolation. The claim that we have already seen the abomination of desolation is preposterous. Christ told us that the great tribulation would occur immediately after the abomination of desolation:
“(15) When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) (16) Then let them which be in Judaea flee into the mountains: (17) Let him which is on the housetop not come down to take any thing out of his house: (18) Neither let him which is in the field return back to take his clothes. (19) And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! (20) But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: (21) For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. (22) And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” (Matthew 24:15-22)
The great tribulation will be a time of unprecedented persecution throughout the world (Matthew 24:22). If we were living in the great tribulation as some claimed, most of us would probably be already dead because the great tribulation will be the worse persecution in history. Claiming that we already are in the great tribulation shows a lack of understanding of how bad the great tribulation will truly be.
Joel 2:30-31
Some theories surrounding September 23, 2015 connected the date with the four blood moons, which was a series of lunar eclipses between 2014 and 2015 that some believed would usher in a major end time event (like the Rapture). I believed it was wrong to link the Rapture to the blood moons because Joel 2:30-31 indicates that the moon’s change in appearance prior to the Rapture will be due to the presence of smoke in the air instead of a lunar eclipse:
“(29) Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: (30) And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” (Matthew 24:29-30)
“(30) And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. (31) The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come.” (Joel 2:30-31)
Those who argued that the Rapture would occur on September 23, 2015 because of the four blood moons missed this key point from Joel about the cause of the change in the moon’s appearance.
Matthew 24:36
Finally, we should not forget that Christ said that no one knows the day and hour of His Coming. Only His Father knows:
“But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.” (Matthew 24:36)
The proponents of a September 23, 2015 Rapture date challenged this verse by setting a date for the Rapture. Unfortunately, date setting gets a lot of attention these days and many people unknowingly get caught up in the hype. September 23, 2015 is not the only example of this. People hyped September 23, 2017 and nothing significant happened on that date as well. Be leery of people who set dates.
If you would like to learn how to determine if we are living in the tribulation, click this link for my article on the topic: How to Tell If We Are Living in the Tribulation
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