caught up in the clouds
together with them to meet the Lord in the air; and so we will be with the
Lord forever.
The book
of Joel is quoted in Peter’s sermon on Pentecost in Acts 2:17.
17 'In
the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit
upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your
young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.
18 Even upon my slaves, both men and women, in those days I will pour out
my Spirit; and they shall prophesy.
19 And I will show portents in the heaven above and signs on the earth
below, blood, and fire, and smoky mist.
20 The sun shall be turned to darkness and the moon to blood,
before
the coming of the Lord's great and glorious day.
21 Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.'
22 "You that are Israelites, listen to what I have to say: Jesus of
Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and
signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know--
Notice who
Peter was addressing. What did he mean by “You that are Israelites”? Peter
knew that the gathering of Israel to God was to happen at the end time. As
he understood conditions, he believed it WAS the end time.
However,
much time would pass before Israel would come back. Instead, new
developments took place within the sect. Looking at a simple timeline we
can see that 9 years passed before Gentiles even become a topic of
discussion,