WHEN THE LORD WALKED ACROSS THE SKY; THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH VISION OF MAY 17,2004 BY DR. OWUOR

T

HE DAY OF RAPTURE is that special day that has been set aside by god almighty as the fearful moment of reckoning when the lord Jesus will return from heaven to literally take his holy church from this earth into the glorious kingdom of heaven. It is a secret event that will happen in a flash, and in the twinkling of an eye, as no man can fathom. It is a day that will come like a thief in the middle of the night, without any notice or announcement whatsoever. Upon the realization of that day, the gates of heaven will swing open, followed by the loud command, and the voice of the archangel, and then the mighty trumpet call of god. That is when the lord Jesus will finally appear in the clouds, and the dead in Christ who are currently asleep in the dust of the earth will awake. These holy dead  Christians will resurrect and be the first to rise up in the air, to meet the lord in the clouds. It is only after then, that those Christians who will still be alive at the time of rapture, yet having lived godly lives in complete holiness at the time, will be lifted up to catch up with the rest in the air, to meet the lord in the sky.

VISION OF RAPTURE

It is extremely astounding that way back in the year 2004, the lord god almighty of heaven had already began to engage with me on this weighty matter of the glorious coming of the messiah, and the preparations required of it. It was on that memorable may 17th day of the year 2004, that the lord decided to speak with me about the coming of the messiah. In that vision, he showed me how the most  anticipated and revered day of the glorious rapture of the holy church of Christ would take place. It all happened in the vision of night when the lord asserted unto me the need for the church in the four corners of the earth to repent, walk in holiness and prepare for the glorious rapture. The creator of Israel showed me that vision in two segments that may 17th 2004 night. The first part of this visitation was so profound that it took my breath away. This is because in that vision of god, i found myself standing here on the earth while looking right into the skies above. It was while i was still gazing at the sky, that events began to unfold on the right hand part of the sky, in a manner never witnessed before. On that right hand part of the sky, all of a sudden, horizontal golden rings appeared in the sky.  Those two horizontal mighty rings that appeared on the right-hand side of the sky were so flexible that they changed their formation all the time. Then the glory of the lord hit the two wedding rings as they changed their formations. Every time they changed their formations horizontally they were placed side by side and gave a formation that looked like the figure 8 written horizontally. The rings themselves were made up of beautifully decorated crown-like dotted design running all around their surfaces.

TRUMPET BLASTS

As all this went on with the glorious wedding rings, then all of a sudden the loud shout from heaven occurred and shocked me a great deal. Following that shout from heaven, that is when i heard the mighty voice from heaven announce at that extreme right-hand side of the sky saying, “LOOK! THE LORD IS ABOUT TO APPEAR IN THE SKY.” Then the glory of god shone very brightly and intensely on that right- hand part of the sky. At that moment,
a new unfolding was about to unravel. This was immediately followed by the sounding of the mighty trumpet call of the lord god almighty in heaven. The trumpet blasts that i heard, sounded on that very right-hand side of the sky where the rings were. 

THE GLORIOUS CROWN

At this point the glory of the lord suddenly appeared at the exact position where the wedding rings were. At that point, god almighty made me know that the final culmination of events were about to occur in the sky. That is when finally the lord walked out of heaven into the sky, and stood there right in front of me, and looking at me. I could very clearly see his beautiful crown that he wore, and his whiter than white robe, including the red cloth that run across his shoulder from right to left. The crown the lord had on, was glittering with such immense glory of rich gold and some bluish beautiful decorations that no man can envisage. The beautiful rich bluish gold that was mounted on the crown indeed stood out and highlighted its decoration.

That is when the lord deliberately drew my attention closer to his mighty crown that i may be able to observe it clearer including its finest details. At that time, that is when the lord took his nail-pierced left-hand and stretched it towards me in order to show me the nail-print that it beheld. The nail-pierce that i saw on the lord's hand was so glorious as was his hand. Once the lord our redeemer was sure that i had paid complete attention to his nail-pierced left-hand, that is when he finally decided to take that hand and use it to prepare his glorious crown on the head. At that point, upon preparing his highly decorated crown, the lord then turned and faced the left-hand side of the sky, and then in a most stunning event, he shockingly walked across the sky all the way towards the  left-most extreme end of the sky. This was the most stunning event i had ever witnessed in my entire life. The lord Jesus the messiah now literally walking across the sky towards the left most end, as i looked on. However, as he mightily walked on across the sky, what trembled me most and caused me to fear, was the fact that every footstep he made on the sky, left behind an astonishing footprint of glory that literally glowed across the sky.

The glorious footprints that the lord left across the sky, could literally be traced way back from the right- hand side of the sky where he began his journey from. One other shocking thing that i was privileged to witness, was the fact that immediately the lord appeared in the sky, he seems to have taken total charge and full control of the skies above the earth, that nothing else could be of any consequence again. On that day, i got to taste a little glimpse of what the reign of the messiah and his authority thereof, will entail. However, when the lord finally reached the far left end of the sky, he stopped and turned to face me. Then he immediately took his right nail-pierced hand and prepared the crown that he wore. Very much aware that i was now fully focussed on him, the lord then took his right nail-pierced hand and deliberately stretched it towards me in a move that was meant to show me the nail-prints that today mark his right-hand too.  As i was still caught up in the shock and awe of the nail-print on his right-hand and the glory it beheld, that is when all of a sudden, the lord turned, and heaven opened, and he literally walked right into heaven as i watched by. I remember at this point crying out to him while saying, 'lord, please take me with you.' the feeling and experience of being in his close proximity and physical presence was so overwhelming that all men could never trade it off for anything however great and costly. I still vividly recall that as i cried out to him to take me with him into the heaven he had walked towards, my  tears dropped as he walked in, and the clouds began to cover him inside there. That is when the god of heaven spoke to me aloud by voice saying, 'look, he is coming back soon!' then, i resigned to pursuing his taking me with him. But at that time, i now remained focussed on the sky and totally amazed at the glorious footprints he left behind across the skies. That is when i woke up and was so shocked at what had just happened to me, that i could not hold myself. I collapsed!

THE REVELATION

During his entire public ministry here on earth, our lord Jesus had on several occasions promised the church that one day he would depart from them and go up into the father's house in heaven, and prepare a place for them. In that most celebrated promise, the lord alluded the fact that there are many rooms in his father's house and he would undertake the task of preparing those rooms for the glorious holy church (john 14:1). It is astounding that in the process of endeavouring to fulfil this promise, one day Jesus took his disciples to the mount of olives. It was after he had accomplished his mission to deliver man, and gloriously resurrected from the dead, that the lord Jesus took his disciples onto the eastern slopes on the mount of olives at a place called Bethany. At that place, he lifted up his nail-pierced hands to bless them in what could be considered as his farewell statement unto them. It was however while he was in that process of blessing them, that god's cloud appeared and lifted him up into the glorious kingdom of heaven. That cloud literally raptured the lord Jesus into heaven. There are several outstanding biblical scriptures that not only document, but also highly celebrate the day of rapture as the most significant day in the calendar of heaven. One of those biblical scriptures clearly comes out to promise that the day of rapture would be a very highly secretive and hidden day whose synonym can be equated none other than a thief that comes to steal in the middle of the night (rev 16:15). Likewise, some of the other scriptures that document the events at rapture, have gone ahead to describe the unimaginable speed with which the rapture takes place as being equivalent to a flash, in the twinkling of an eye (1cor15:50-56). Nonetheless, the most outstanding scripture that clearly lays out the mechanism and protocol through which the rapture will take place is the book of first Thessalonians chapter 4 verse 16 through 17. 16 for the lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of god, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 after that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the lord in the air. And so we will be with the lord forever (1thess 4:16-17).

THE SHOUT OF GOD

This important scripture vividly choreographs the events at rapture as occasioned in the may 17th 2004 vision above. We can see that following precursor events, the lord Jesus himself will literally come down from heaven to take his holy church. However, before the lord himself comes down to take his holy elect, the heavens must first retain him till the restitution of all things. After the biblically proclaimed restoration of all things, the lord Jesus will then appear in his glory, though this time around, not as he did in his first appearing. While he may have appeared at the first time in a meek and humble way at that Bethlehem manger, his coming at rapture nonetheless is by no means humble. This appearance of the lord however will be with great pomp and power as has not happened since the earth was created. We can clearly see that in this may 17th 2004 vision of the rapture, before the lord appears in the sky, there was the loud shout of god almighty, followed by the voice  of the archangel and then the trumpet call of god. By the bible affirming that the lord himself will come with those prerequisite announcement events, he basically means that those precursor events will be concomitant circumstances attending to his appearance. And by highlighting the shout of the voice of god from heaven before the messiah appears, we can see clearly that the lord infers to the fact that the shout is meant to be a signal that the king is coming with power and the authority. The shout of god is intended to portray the authority of the conqueror who is coming. It is important to note that in this vision, when the lord appears, the first thing he does is to prepare his beautifully decorated glorious crown, which conveys a clear message to the nations to the fact that this time around he is coming as the victorious king and conqueror. The command of god therefore is meant to give order to the heavenly host in his train that they may prepare for he is coming out. It is also a command that essentially gives directive for the heavenly hosts who attend him to know that the last onslaught of his final assault and triumph over sin, is underway.

THE ARCHANGEL'S VOICE

In this may 17th 2004 vision, when the voice of the archangel appeared, he shouted on the left-hand side of the sky while saying, “look! The lord is about to appear in the sky.” We can see that the voice of the archangel that came before the messiah appeared in the sky, was essentially intended to summon up the innumerable heavenly angels who are to tend him on that day as he comes back for the holy elect. In this way, the archangel will give notice of the approach and the glorious appearance of the great redeemer and judge.

THE TRUMPET OF GOD

After the announcement of the archangel that the lord is about to appear in the sky, we can clearly see that, it is an announcement that is further proclaimed by the trumpet call of god. For when the trumpet sounds, its role is to awaken the asleep in Christ Jesus. These are the Christians who are in the dust of the earth and hence they are summoned by the trumpet blasts of god. This trumpet call is the same trumpet blast that normally accompanies the revelation of god when he himself comes down in the glory of his might. We can equally see that earlier on too, this same trumpet blast was used to convene god's people Israel, into a holy convocation at the time when Jehovah himself decided to descend from heaven and visit them on mt. Sinai. 16 on the morning of the third day there was thunder and lightning, with a thick cloud over the mountain, and a very loud trumpet blast. Everyone in the camp trembled (ex 19:16). 5 god has ascended amid shouts of joy, the lord amid the sounding of trumpets (psalm 47:5). 2 “make two trumpets of hammered silver, and use them for calling the community together and for having the camps set out (num 10:2). From time immemorial it has always been god's routine to employ the use of trumpet blast to summon the Israelite community together so that they may observe a sacred assembly. Here too in this vision, we can distinctly see that the lord is using his trumpet blast to convene god's elect to gather in a major preparatory step for their glorification as the rapture commencement. Again, if the trumpet does not sound a clear call, who will get ready for battle? (1cor 14:8).
The lord himself by proclaiming that the lord himself will on that day come down, the scriptures essentially imply that on the day of rapture, the lord will come down in all his majesty and presence
in person as seen in this vision, and will not deputize it to any agency of heaven. In other words the lord will on this occasion not deputize anything to the angels, nor to the spirit of the lord, but undertake to take charge himself in person when it comes to that midnight kidnapping of the royal bride. He will descend from heaven and come into the air and the space above the earth, in order to accomplish that heavenly cherished noble task. It is amazing that the lord jesus ascended into heaven after his resurrection and passed through the same material heavens into the upper higher heavens. In the same way at rapture, he will himself pass through these same material heavens in order to come down into the air to meet the glorious church. This will by no means be a simple silent event, but a great event of full pomp and massive power from the upper heaven. He will descend into the skies above the earth even as he ascended upon resurrection 11 “men of galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.” (acts 1:11). Therefore, when that day of rapture realizes, the lord Jesus the messiah, will come down from heaven in the same way he ascended. This vision becomes a very important iconical conversation that firmly establishes that the bible is true and is now coming to fulfilment.

THE DEAD IN CHRIST ARISE

The dead in Christ are those who have fallen asleep in Christ Jesus. And in this case, we can undoubtedly see that death does not annihilate them for they are just asleep and caught up in an undisturbed rest. These Christians have basically retired out of this troublesome world to rest from their labours and sorrows as they rest in Christ Jesus. Therefore, being still one in Christ, and in union with him they sleep under his  special care and protection and in so doing, their souls are in his presence and under his power so that they are not lost and neither are they loosers. On the contrary, they are great gainers in death and their removal from the world is for their better. They are hence the ones that shall be raised up for the dead and awakened from of their sleep. These doctrine of the resurrection of the dead at the coming of the Christ, is what serves as the great antidote against the fear of death that most often consume all men and women, plus children. For Christ himself having risen from the dead have become the first fruit from those that are asleep. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep (1cor 15:20). Therefore, this vision goes a long way to underscore that those who are dead in him are indeed not lost neither are they perished. Christ's resurrection has become the confirmation and litmus proof of all he ever said in the gospel. The word of god has hence brought light and immortality of life as he promised. That can only mean that the state of being asleep in Christ Jesus, can only get better since on the day of rapture they shall be glorious and happier as they receive their eternal imperishable bodies. Therefore, from this vision we see that the dead in Christ are those Christians who at the point of death were living repentant and holy righteous lives. It does not in any way refer to all Christians who have died, but directly points to only those who in their Christian walk, were in relentless pursuit of righteousness, holiness and the godliness entailed thereof.

THOSE WHO ARE ALIVE

As the scripture elaborates, the elect dead in Christ shall hence be resurrected, raised and given glorious eternal bodies first, before those holy Christians who are alive in Christ are translated. However, those holy Christians who will be alive at the time  of rapture will have to undertake the privilege and honour of undergoing a significant change that is actually similar to dying and resurrecting. This is because they will have to be changed from this mortal realm to the immortal, imperishable realm of the lord. In that way, they will have to be transformed from their mortal bodies into the immortal bodies of heaven. It must be said here that this change is so mysterious that no man can fathom in this lifetime. This mortal body will have to undergo a significant conversion into the immortal which the current flesh and blood is not in any way capable of undertaking. 51 listen, i tell you a mystery: we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— (1 cor 15:51). Thus, all those that will be taken up at rapture will essentially then meet the lord in the sky in the clouds in order that he may congratulate them for a job well done. Most likely, this is when the rewarding ceremony according to what they have done, shall take place. The raptured saints will then receive their crowns of glory in a ceremony that will be the bliss of all those raptured as they meet the lord face to face. And when the bible says that we will be together with them, the lord practically refers to uniting of the resurrect dead and the resurrected living Christians in order to form one body of god's rapture elect.

IN THE CLOUDS

On the day of rapture, the god of heaven will confer upon the holy saints the same honour as was conferred on our lord Jesus.  Just as he was taken up in the clouds at his ascension, so shall the raptured saints be taken up in the cloud at their ascension.
9 after he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight (acts 1:9). It is indeed incredible and absolutely amazing that this is the same cloud with which the lord shall return into Jerusalem after the rapture, as we draw nearer to the close of time. 7 “look, he is coming with the clouds,” and “every eye will see him, even those who pierced him”; and all peoples on earth “will mourn because of him.” So shall it be! Amen (rev 1:7). These clouds indeed belong to the lord together with the triumphal chariots that they behold at his advent 3 and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters. He makes the clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind. (psalm 104:3).

MEETING THE LORD IN THE AIR

When the scripture says that we will meet the lord in the air, it essentially means that all the raptured saints will be caught up in the region just above the earth, and that is the place where the meeting between the lord and the saints will take place. In Matthew 25:1, we definitively see that the holy saints who are designated by the wise virgins do go out to meet the bridegroom. This is the holy church that has the anointing of the holy spirit symbolized by a jar of oil that they may walk. But most important in their walk is that they go out to meet the bridegroom. 25 “at that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom (matt 25:1). In this way the lord is saying that the saints will be ascending while the lord will be descending, so that they may meet in the air above the earth. The
saints will be essentially ascending towards heaven while the lord descends towards the earth until they meet in the air above here. 6 “at midnight the cry rang out: ‘here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ (matt 25:6). Moreover, when the lord said, 'and so shall we be with the lord forever.' it became yet another indication that upon the rapture there will be no more parting between the saints and the lord. Considering that the wise virgins went out to meet the lord, then this essentially implies that there will be no more going out. 12 him that overcometh will i make a pillar in the temple of my god, and he shall go no more out: and i will write upon him the name of my god, and the name of the city of my god, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my god: and i will write upon him my new name. (rev 3:12). The most important issue being that at this point, the dead in Christ shall be on equal advantage point with those whom the messiah finds alive and holy. And therefore, based on this may 17th 2004 vision of the rapture of the saints, we can vividly see that it was indeed a very profound conversation with the bride of Christ. And there shall be the loud command of god, followed by the voice of the archangel, and then the mighty trumpet blast of god. After which the lord himself shall come down from heaven as the holy and righteous elect ascend towards heaven, and they shall meet in the clouds up in the air above the earth, and the lord and the raptured saints shall be forever together in the glorious kingdom of god. Amen. ■

Adapted from repentandpreparetheway.org. ( Repentance and Holiness Ministry) shared free of charge, without any commercial gain for the Glory of Jesus Christ