If you have read our testimony found on our home page, ‘Walk His Way’, as to how Abba (Father God) called us out of our very own proverbial Egypt or Babylon to follow His cloud so to speak wherever He leads us, then you know He has incorporated the ‘Feast of Tabernacles’ also known as the ‘Feast of In-Gathering’ into our journey. In the beginning of this peculiar quest, my husband and I had an elementary understanding of this prophetic and important feast of Yahweh. I certainly did not know then what I know now and am so grateful His Spirit (Ruach) continues to teach us more and more about Him and His way the more we surrender the lies we once believed and instead embrace His truth.
I must warn you though it is far harder to surrender a lie than it is to embrace the truth.
It is far harder to surrender a lie than it is to embrace the truth.
The Gathering
Did you know what most refer to as “the rapture” is more accurately referred to as the gathering throughout Scriptures? Here are a few examples:
- “And then He will send His angels, and gather together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest part of the earth to the farthest part of heaven.” Mark 13:27 (NKJV)
- “For I will take you from among the nations, gather you out of all the countries, and bring you into your own land.” Ezekiel 36:24 (NKJV)
- “And it shall come to pass in that day (day of the LORD – see verse 1), that the LORD will thresh, from the channel of the River to the Brook of Egypt; and you will be gathered one by one, O you children of Israel.” Isaiah 27:12 (NKJV)
- “For a mere moment I have forsaken you, but with great mercies I will gather you.” Isaiah 54:7 (NKJV)
To read more about gathering, study these verses: Deuteronomy 30:3-4; 1 Chronicles 16:35; Nehemiah 1:9; Psalms 106:47; 107:2-3; 147:2; Isaiah 11:11-12; 43:5; 56:8; Jeremiah 29:14; 31:8,10; 32:37; Ezekiel 11:17; 20:34,41; 28:25; 34:13; 37:21; 39:27-28; Hosea 8:10; Micah 2:12; Zephaniah 3:20; Zechariah 10:10.
Now that we have established the more accurate terminology is referred to as the gathering of the saints verses the not once mentioned word of the rapture according to Scripture, we can investigate where believers are gathered to.
All of YHVH’s Feasts are His Holy Holidays and prophetic in nature. The Spring feasts being Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and even Pentecost/Shavuot were already fulfilled in Yeshua/Jesus’s first coming while the Fall feasts of YHVH will be fulfilled at His second coming. It is no coincidence the Bible connects the gathering with the ‘Feast of Ingathering’ for that is when they would rejoice in the gathering of their harvest and celebrate their freedom from sin and a corrupt culture such as their freedom from Egypt (Exodus 23:16; 34:23; Leviticus 23:33-44). Remember, ‘Feast of Ingathering’ is also referred to as ‘Feast of Tabernacles’ or ‘Sukkot’ in Hebrew.
Where Are Believers Gathered To?
Scripture makes it very clear where we are gathered to upon Yeshua’s second coming. At the last trumpet, the graves will open, the sleeping saints or sleeping beauties if you will, shall awake..shall be resurrected when the Prince returns, and the saints who endured the horrible persecutions of the tribulation shall be gathered to a specific location where Yeshua, the Prince, will rule and reign along with His saints (Matthew 24-26; 1 Corinthians 15:50-58; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 5:1-11; 2 Peter 3; Revelation 11; 14; 20).
Contrary, to popular modern doctrines of mainstream Christianity, we aren’t whisked away to heaven at Yeshua’s return with the ‘to hell with ya’ll mentality’, although we do meet Yeshua in the air (I Thessalonians 4:17), we are gathered to…
- “Therefore prophesy and say to them, ‘Thus says the LORD GOD: “Behold, O My people, I will open your graves and cause you to come up from your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel.” Ezekiel 37:12 (NKJV)
- “So it shall be in that day; the great trumpet will be blown; they will come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria, and they who are outcasts in the land of Egypt, and shall worship the LORD in the holy mount at Jerusalem.” Isaiah 27:13 (NKJV)
- “I will bring My righteousness near, it shall not be far off; My salvation shall not linger. And I will place salvation in Zion, for Israel My glory.” Isaiah 46:13 (NKJV)
- “So the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing, with everlasting joy on their heads. They shall obtain joy and gladness; sorrow and sighing shall flee away.” Isaiah 51:11
- “Blow the trumpet in Zion, and sound the alarm in My holy mountain! Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the LORD is coming, for it is at hand:” Joel 2:1 (NKJV)
- “And it shall come to pass that whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved. For in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem there shall be deliverance, as the LORD has said, among the remnant who the LORD calls.” Joel 2:32 (NKJV)
- “But on Mount Zion there shall be deliverance, and there shall be holiness..” Obadiah 1:17 (NKJV)
- “Thus says the LORD: ‘I will return to Zion, and dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. Jerusalem shall be called the City of Truth, The Mountain of the LORD of hosts, The Holy Mountain.’ ” Zechariah 8:3 (NKJV)
- “I will bring them back, and they shall dwell in the midst of Jerusalem. They shall be My people and I will be their God, in truth and righteousness.” Zechariah 8:8 (NKJV)
- “Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His Father’s name written on their foreheads.” Revelation 14:1 (NKJV)
To read more verses about where we are gathered to, study Psalms 2:6; 48:1-2; 74:2; 78:68; 87:1-7; 102:16; 125:1; 132:13-14; Isaiah 2:3; 59:20; Jeremiah 3:14-18; Micah 4:2, as some examples. If you only pick one of these to follow up, read Jeremiah 3:14-18.
So where are we gathered to at Yeshua’s return?
Is it heaven? Where are verses stating we are raptured to heaven? There is none. Instead, Scriptures state very clearly we are gathered to..
MOUNT ZION, JERUSALEM, ISRAEL.
Shalom and Amen.
Carrie R. Turner
As if all that wasn’t enough, please understand we must refrain from not only taking verses out of context, but from reading them through a Western/Greek perspective when they are written by Messianic Jews for Peter warns many will twist Paul’s word and lead people to lawlessness (2 Peter 3:14-18). Also, ponder the fact that when Yeshua returns to reign on earth, He teaches us the laws of God (see Isaiah 2, Micah 4) and we keep the feasts of the Lord (see Zechariah 14) and God’s laws, even the sacrifices, are reinstated (see Ezekiel 36+). So, knowing all this, why would the majority of Scripture advocate the importance of honoring our Heavenly Father by obeying His Voice, His written word, His Torah, but then say in this era it is no longer relevant, but when He returns it will be?
Over and over again all throughout the books of the prophets, the Spirit of Yah would fall on and cause the prophets to implore the Israelites (both houses, the north and the south), to repent, to turn back to following the way God/Yah instructed. But the Israelites (and “strangers” within their group see Exodus 12:49; Numbers 15:15) refused to obey His Voice -His Word- His Torah; rather, they committed adultery by doing what THEY thought was best – their OWN theology – their OWN doctrines instead of heeding to the Torah, the Word. They continually tweeked their faith or religion or abandoned it all together to fit their own deceived hearts, their own agendas, their own ideologies. Historically, Jews have added to God’s laws while Christians subtract from them (Deut 4:2; 12:32). Consequently and finally, because of their ongoing adulterous ways, Yah/God divorced Israel (Isaiah 50) after many many years of patiently beckoning them to honor Him and their covenant (marriage vows). Per the Torah (Deut 24) once a woman (Israel) is cut off from her Husband (God) through a certificate of divorce, due to having been with another (i.e. adultery – their false doctrines/false gods or remarriage in general), she (Israel) cannot remarry nor go back to her original husband. For as long as the ex-husband lives, then she is bound to his law (Deut 24; Romans 7:1-2). But once he dies, the woman, per the Torah, is free to remarry (Romans 7:3). Having found fault with THEM (meaning Israel – see Hebrews 8:8) not His covenant/Torah/law, the sovereign, but merciful Yah/God provided His Son, God in the flesh, the husband, to die so that the previously divorced adulterer Israel could eventually remarry or come back into covenant with Yah/God. Hence, why Yeshua/Jesus, the Living Word, the Torah in the flesh (John 1), perfectly lived out God’s Instructions/law and and even obeyed the law unto the point of death by dying for the LAWLESS ways (sin – see 1 John 3:4) of His adulterous ex-wife and world in general (John 3:16-21). When Yeshua, the perfect Passover Lamb of God died (lots of metaphors in the Scriptures), Yah/God/Yeshua provided away for Israel to again be in covenant with Yah/God for now upon the former husband dying, the x-wife (so to speak) being Israel could now be engaged/betrothed/eventually marry Yah again and be in a renewed covenant with Him (see Romans 7:1-12)! HalleluYah!
God/Yah, in His all-knowing ways and graciousness, made a way for His bride to remain in covenant with Him by providing the promise, like an spiritual engagement ring, or symbol, that being the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of Grace, an empowering Spirit to remind her and counsel her in Yah’s desires, bringing His bride into a deeper, intimate, submissive covenant with Him for the job of the Spirit is to remind and bring His bride into all truth (John 14:15-18; 1 John 2:24-27), into a greater knowing of her beloved by causing her to honor their covenant..causing her to walk in His statutes..His laws…His Torah..His covenant vows (see Ezekiel 36:27; Jeremiah 31:33; John 14:15-21; Romans 7:4-6; Romans 8:1-10; Ephesians 1:13-14; 4:17-30; Hebrews 10:26-32; James 1:22-25; 1 John 1:4-7; 3:18, 24, 4:12-13; 5:3). After all, Scripture and Yeshua reveal His ways are not too hard or burdensome, but were designed for their/our own good.. for their own wisdom and righteousness (Deuteronomy 5:29; 6:24-25; 10:12-13; 2 Timothy 3:14-17; 1 John 5:3). This is why it says there is no fear in love on judgment day (1 John 4:17-19) because the truth, being God’s Torah, His Word (Psalm 119:142; John 17:17), is hopefully being perfected in us, sanctifying us, through our obedience to it as the Spirit highlights more and more intimate truths to us causing us to surrender and cheerfully give of ourselves (2 Corinthians 9:6-15) in obedience. This, dear brothers and sisters, is what Yeshua/Jesus meant when He said the Father is looking for worshippers of Spirit (John 3:3-8) and truth (Psalm 119:142). He made a way for us to live righteously, the way He intended in covenant with Him, but graciously provided a better “promise” (Acts 1:4-8; Hebrews 8:6) to teach us and empower us to do so!
As stated earlier, there will indeed be a great shaking for we fail to “know” (Jeremiah 9:3,13-16; Hosea 4:6) our Messiah, our God, and fail to love Him even after He offered his abundant and amazing grace. Incidentally, notice in Jeremiah 9:15, the Lord reveals He will send forth Wormwood and verses 13-14 tell us why. Where else do we learn about ‘Wormwood’? Revelation 8:10-11.
The Spirit will cause us to grow in an intimate and reproducing relationship with Him..fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5) for the two will become one. The husband/wife, physical/spiritual, heaven/earth, God/His Son, Spirit/Truth, House of Israel/House of Judah, Gentile/Jew, the two olive trees, are one. There are always atleast 2 witnesses, per the Torah, for better or worse. What does the world witness in your life? Are we like the Jews only having the truth/Torah, but no Spirit, or are we like the typical Christian, having a “spirit” without the truth/Torah? The two are one and both will testify against us one day, for better or worse. You cannot add to the law like the Jews nor subtract from it like the Christians (Deut 4:2; 12:32). May we come into a greater depth recognizing we are grafted-in to the Commonwealth of Israel and the fruit as worshippers of spirit and truth is to provoke not just others to want an authentic relationship with Yah through Yeshua, but to provoke our elder brother Judah to also want an intimate and obedient relationship with Yeshua, The Messiah (Romans 11).
So long as some continue to twist Paul’s words, a Messianic Jew, by the way, false teachers pave their own destruction while leading others to the error of the lawless/torah-less (2 Peter 3:14-18), they will never provoke the Jews to be jealous of our relationship with the Father. False teachers and their lawless followers prevent the salvation of our big brother Judah for Scriptures warn to never follow a “god” that teaches them to not obey Yah’s/God’s laws (Deut chapters 13 & 18). Hence, why Jews today see “Jesus” as a false god/prophet/teacher/imposter – not because of Yeshua, but because of false teachers and their followers’ lawlessness.
In the brief premonition, or open-eyed vision, if you will, I had just been severely struck while driving and handed my cell phone to the first responder weakly asking him to call my husband. Just that quick, the premonition vanished. I shrugged it off as a weird thought and happily went about my business.
Sure enough I froze in fear upon seeing a metal grill of black large pickup truck about to t-bone my tiny Fiat Pop. I cried out, “Oh, God, help me!!” And instantly, my foot punched the gas pedal. I’m not even sure if it was actually me or perhaps an angel pressed my foot on the pedal because my being felt paralyzed in fear and braced for potentially fatal impact. I heard my car’s wheels squeal in urgent motion. It was awful, sudden, and perplexing how I miraculously ended up safely parked in the post office parking lot. Once the realization of the incident hit me, I sobbed as I called my husband to tell him what just occurred.