John 11:25-27, “Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? She saith unto him, Yea, Lord: I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world.”
The satanic Jehovah's Witnesses religious cult teaches that Jesus DIDN'T
raise up BODILY; but rather, only in spirit. This is totally unbiblical
rubbish. The Word of God plainly teaches that Jesus Christ was SEEN
physically by OVER 500 BRETHREN AT ONCE. 1st Corinthians 15:4-7, “And
that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the
scriptures: And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that,
he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once;
of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen
asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles.”
We also read that Jesus ASCENDED BODILY and the disciples watched Him ascend into THE CLOUDS. Acts 1:9-11, “And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight. 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.”
Amen! Jesus was resurrected BODILY and He ascended into Heaven BODILY, and the Bible teaches that the Lord will return at the Rapture BODILY, and then 7-years later at the Second Coming BODILY!!!
Again, the Jehovah's Witnesses demonic cult errantly teaches that the Lord only returned in spirit in the early 20th century (not bodily), which they claim has been manifested by World War I and World War II. They claim that their earthly organization (that is, Watchtower) is God's visible organization on earth to usher in God's Kingdom on earth. In sharp contrast, the Bible teaches something very different than the JW's. The Word of God teaches that Jesus has NOT returned yet. When the Lord returns at the pretribulation Rapture FOR His own, He will only appear to the saved (as was the case when He raised up from the dead). Yet, the Lord will return BODILY at the Rapture, “TO MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR” (1st Thessalonians 4:17).
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Jesus came 2,000 years ago TO His own (the Jews)
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Jesus will come at the Rapture FOR His own (the saints)
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Jesus will return at the Second Coming WITH His own (the saints)
The Bible plainly teaches that when the Lord returns at the Second Coming, He will APPEAR to all mankind. Acts 1:11, “...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.” Jesus left the earth 2,000 years ago BODILY, and that is exactly how He will return. The fact that the Bible says in 1st Thessalonians 4:17 that we will meet with the Lord IN THE CLOUDS is evidence that the Rapture and the Second Coming are NOT the same event.
In contrast to 1st Thessalonians 4:17 when we “MEET THE LORD IN THE AIR,” we read in Revelation 1:7 that Jesus will return to the earth, “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.” Just like in Acts 1:9-11, Jesus will come again WITH (or from) THE CLOUDS. This is very different than 1st Thessalonians 4:17 where only the saints are “CAUGHT UP” into the clouds.
It is a fundamental doctrine of Christ in the Bible that Jesus was resurrected after three days from the dead, bodily. He was seen by over 500 Christians at one time before He went to Heaven. When the Lord ascended 40 days later to leave, He ascended bodily. And when Christ returns at the Rapture, we will SEE HIM. 1st John 3:2, “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” Could the Bible be any plainer that Christ will return BODILY? I think not!
Jesus is alive today in Heaven, sitting BODILY upon His throne on the Father's right-hand (Romans 8:34; Colossians 3:1-3). Christ's Spirit, that is, the Holy Spirit, lives within the body of every Christian believer (Romans 8:9; 1st Corinthians 3:16-17). Please read, THE BODY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT, chapter 28 from Dr. Jack Hyles eye-opening book, MEET THE HOLY SPIRIT.
