[Steve Myers] Have you ever thought of a Bible passage and then when you actually read what that passage said, it said something a little bit different than what you thought it said.

A situation like that came up over the weekend, had a question on our program on the rapture. On Beyond Today we had the program, "The Rapture: Hope or Hoax?" and the question came in, someone messaged to me and said, "One reason I believe in a rapture is that God says He promises to protect His people in heaven." And of course they're referring to the Great Tribulation because they put up this passage in their message. And in that message they cited the book of Revelation and in 3:10 was that message, or that passage that they were referring to.

So I got out the Bible to make sure I remembered exactly what it says, and here's what that passage actually says, it says, "Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world to test those who dwell on the earth."

And so reading that passage, you put it in the context of the letters to the churches that John was recording here that God's people it says - you could certainly imply they will be protected.  It says God will keep you from the hour of trial, which seems to certainly imply the Great Tribulation.

Now here's the question though. If protection is being mentioned here, is it telling us where that's going to be?

See, JJ who messaged to me assumed that it was saying protection in heaven so that somehow you'd be raptured off to heaven and protected from the Tribulation. But when you actually read that passage it doesn't say that at all. It mentioned a protection, "I'll keep you from the hour," but it doesn't say where. So when you put all of the passages together you can plainly see that it doesn't mean heaven. In fact, a few passages a little bit lower Revelation 12:14 talks about a place in the wilderness. It doesn't even talk about heaven at all. So I think that's something that we should all take to heart that if we really think a passage says something be sure and check it out.

Get out your Bible. Look it up. Notice what exactly it says, and then we'll be able to tell more specifically what the Bible really is talking about. So don't take anything for granted. Look it up. Hopefully you'll take that challenge and see what the Bible really says.

That's BT Daily. We'll see you next time.