No — believers are not appointed to God's wrath; they will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air before the tribulation's judgments begin.
Les Feldick points to Paul's plain statement that God has 'not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ' (1 Thessalonians 5:9). He describes the church's exit as a quiet disappearance — a catching up to meet the Lord in the air — not an event of cataclysmic judgment. The pronoun shift from 'we' in 1 Thessalonians 4 to 'they' in chapter 5 shows that the sudden destruction and wrath of the day of the Lord are appointed for the unbelieving world, not for believers.
1 Thessalonians 5:9 — Paul's explicit statement that God has not appointed believers to wrath but to obtain salvation.
1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 — The passage describing believers being caught up to meet the Lord in the air before judgment falls.
In 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, Paul describes the coming of the Lord for believers: 'For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.' Then, in 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3, Paul turns from the believer to the day of the Lord: 'For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.' The promise that answers the question is 1 Thessalonians 5:9: 'For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ.'
Les Feldick teaches that believers will not be on earth to experience the wrath of the tribulation. He points to Paul's promise that the Lord 'has not appointed us unto wrath, but rather we're going to be saved out of it' (Clip 1), and that the church is 'insulated' from the seven bowl judgments because it will be taken out before they come to pass (Clip 2). Les describes the rapture as a quiet disappearance — not a cataclysmic event. There is nothing of Christ coming to the Mount of Olives, no cataclysmic judgment, and no wrath of God falling all around (Clip 0). His most distinctive teaching is the pronoun shift between 1 Thessalonians 4 and 5: believers are the 'we' who are 'caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air,' while those who say 'peace and safety' and face sudden destruction are 'they' and 'them' — the unbelieving world (Clips 4, 7). When the tribulation does come, multitudes will believe and be martyred, but these are not members of the body of Christ; the tribulation is the time of God dealing with Israel, and Les groups those believers with Old Testament believers (Clip 3).
Les Feldick calls the pronoun change the best example in all of Paul's writings of how he distinguishes believers from the unbelieving world. In chapter 4, the pronouns are 'we' and 'you' — 'we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air.' In chapter 5, the pronouns switch to 'they' and 'them': 'when they shall say peace and safety, then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child, and they, the unbelieving world, shall not escape' (Clips 4, 7).
Les describes it as a quiet disappearance. 'There's nothing of Him coming to Mount Olives and standing there. There's nothing of cataclysmic judgment here. There's nothing of the wrath of God falling all around us.' Instead, the Lord descends with a shout and the trump of God, the dead in Christ rise first, and living believers are caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air — and so shall they ever be with the Lord (Clip 0).
Yes, Les says. After the rapture, the seven years of tribulation will see multitudes believe and be martyred — Jews and many Gentiles. But these tribulation believers are not members of the body of Christ; the tribulation is the time of God dealing with Israel, and Les groups them with Old Testament believers (Clip 3).
Les teaches that believers will never face their sin at the judgment seat of Christ — sin was already judged at the cross and is under the blood. The judgment seat is only to determine rewards for how a believer behaved; it never determines eternal destiny. The great white throne judgment is for the lost of the ages (Clip 6).
Les says believers can read about the seven bowl judgments without fear of going through them, because the church is taken out before they come to pass. For those who are not ready — who have never expressed salvation by faith — the judgments are a warning. They involve physical pain, suffering, and no hope of escaping (Clip 2).
The Rapture: A Quiet Disappearance
Les describes the rapture as a quiet disappearance rather than an event of cataclysmic judgment or wrath falling around believers; the dead in Christ rise first, then living believers are caught up to meet the Lord in the air.
Not Appointed Unto Wrath
Les says the Lord has graciously promised that believers are not appointed unto wrath but will be saved out of it, and will not be here when the tribulation events take place.
Church Taken Out Before the Bowl Judgments
Les explains that the church is insulated from the bowl judgments because it is taken out before they come; believers have been saved from wrath, not saved to it.
Tribulation Believers After the Rapture
Les teaches that during the tribulation multitudes will believe and be martyred, but they are not members of the body of Christ — the tribulation is God's time with Israel.
The Pronoun Shift: 'We' vs. 'They'
Les contrasts the pronouns in 1 Thessalonians 4 and 5: believers are 'we' who are caught up to meet the Lord, while the day of the Lord comes on 'they' as a thief in the night.
Believers Translated Before the Tribulation
Les notes that believers will be translated before the tribulation and come back in resurrected bodies, while only flesh-and-blood survivors enter the earthly kingdom.
Sin Already Judged at the Cross
Les teaches that believers will never face their sin at the judgment seat of Christ — sin was judged at the cross; only rewards are determined there, and the great white throne is for the lost.
'They' Shall Not Escape
Les shows that those left behind who say 'peace and safety' are the unbelieving world — 'they' and 'them' — who shall not escape sudden destruction.
1 Thessalonians 4:15: For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.
Les opens his teaching with this verse to show that living believers at the Lord's coming will not precede the dead in Christ.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17: For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Les quotes this passage to show that believers are caught up to meet the Lord in the air — not left on earth to face wrath (Clip 0).
1 Thessalonians 5:2-3: For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.
Paul uses 'they' and 'them' for those who face destruction — the pronoun shift Les points to as the key distinction (Clips 4, 7).
1 Thessalonians 5:9: For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ,
The explicit promise that believers are not appointed to wrath, which Les references when he says God has not appointed us to wrath (Clips 1, 2).
No. Les Feldick teaches from 1 Thessalonians that the Lord has not appointed believers to wrath. The church will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air — a quiet disappearance — before the tribulation's judgments begin (Clips 0, 1).
It means God's wrath during the tribulation is not the believer's appointment. As Les explains, believers have been saved from wrath, not saved to it; the church is taken out before the bowl judgments fall (Clips 1, 2).
The unbelieving world — the 'they' of 1 Thessalonians 5. When they say 'peace and safety,' sudden destruction comes upon them and they shall not escape. During the tribulation many will believe and be martyred, but the church is already gone (Clips 3, 7).
Watch the Teaching: The Rapture vs. The Second Coming — What's the Difference?