Prophecy and Current Events-6
The Rapture
What is the "Rapture" and is there really such a thing? Will it happen soon? Will it happen before, after or during the tribulation? Or will it happen after the millennium? Will I be in it? Is it different from the resurrection of the dead?
The rapture is the event when Jesus is reunited with all Christians. He will return in the sky (without actually touching earth). The bodies of the Christians who previously died will be resurrected from their graves; their eternal spirits will be joined with these new bodies. The Christians who are living at the time of the rapture will also have their bodies transformed. The new bodies of the resurrected Christians and the living Christians will be lifted into the sky, and they will be with Jesus forever. The word rapture is not in the Bible but comes from the Latin word rapio, which means "caught up." This is a Latin translation of the Greek expression used by the apostle Paul when explained the rapture in I Thessalonians 4:13-17 (New Living Translation)- And now, brothers and sisters, I want you to know what will happen to the Christians who have died so you will not be full of sorrow like people who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and was raised to life again, we also believe that when Jesus comes, God will bring back with Jesus all the Christians who have died.
I can tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not rise to meet him ahead of those who are in their graves. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call (shout) of the archangel, and with the trumpet call (blast) of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from their graves. Then, together with them, we who are still alive and remain on the earth will be caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air and remain with him forever. The rapture is described primarily in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and I Corinthians 15:50-54.
Examples of a rapture in the Old Testament:
- Genesis 5:21-24: When Enoch was 65 years old, his son Methuselah was born. After the birth of Methuselah, Enoch lived another 300 years in close fellowship with God, and he had other sons and daughters. Enoch lived 365 years in all. He enjoyed a close relationship with God throughout his life. Then suddenly, he disappeared because God took him.
- II Kings 2:11: As they were walking along and talking, suddenly a chariot of fire appeared, drawn by horses of fire. It drove between them, separating them, and Elijah was carried by a whirlwind into heaven.
There are several characteristics of the coming rapture:
- There will be a shout and a trumpet blast. God's trumpet blast may very well be sound of a Shofar. This may be similar to the trumpet sounded when the Jewish people were gathered together (e.g,. Numbers 10:2).
- This is obviously a global event that happens at the same time everywhere on earth.This sound will be heard around the world by every single living person.
- The dead in Christ come back to life. Bodies actually rise from the ground, but these are not decomposed corpses - they are healthy human beings with new heavenly bodies and are immediately pulled up into and disappear in the clouds.
- An instant later, millions of people from all parts of the earth are suddenly transformed into new perfect bodies and are also lifted up and disappear into the clouds.
- There is a great reunion in the sky those who were alive with those who died before them.
- There will be major catastrophes- cars will suddenly have no drivers, planes will have no pilots. Panic will grip every city on earth.
- Everyone left behind will be searching desperately for answers on what happened. CNN will be interviewing all the "experts" who will have all kinds of explanations. These "experts" will include many clergy.
- There will be economic chaos - with millions of people suddenly gone, the banking system collapses.
- There will great deception. Some will say the millions of disappeared were abducted by aliens.
Paul also talked about this in I Corinthians 15:50-53: What I am saying, dear brothers and sisters, is that flesh and blood cannot inherit the Kingdom of God. These perishable bodies of ours are not able to live forever. But let me tell you a wonderful secret God has revealed to us. Not all of us will die, but we will all be transformed. It will happen in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, the Christians who have died will be raised with transformed bodies. And then we who are living will be transformed so that we will never die. For our perishable earthly bodies must be transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die.
A quick review of the sequence of events:
- Christ will come down from heaven with a shout. Notice that He doesn't set foot on the earth at this point as He will at the second coming.
- He will bring with Him the spirits of all the Christians who have died.
- The voice of the archangel will be heard.
- At the second trumpet blast, the bodies of all Christians who have died will be raised from the grave, but these will be new, transformed bodies. The eternal spirit of the once-dead Christians will be united with their new resurrection bodies.
- The Christians who are still living at the time of the rapture will never experience death. Their earthly bodies will be transformed into new resurrection bodies.
- The previously dead Christians and the living Christians will have a brief reunion in the sky, and then they will proceed upward to join Christ in the clouds.
- At this point, the tribulation period will begin - which we'll discuss next time.
But, who is a "Christian" who participates in the rapture? Is he or she someone who is a member of the "correct" church or who's been "properly" baptized or observed the proper "sacraments"? Or, are they those who simply believe that Jesus died for their sins and have accepted Him as their personal savior - depending on His grace rather than works? - Ephesians 2:8-10 (New Living Translation): God saved you by his special favor when you believed. And you can't take credit for this; it is a gift from God. Salvation is not a reward for the good things we have done, so none of us can boast about it. For we are God's masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so that we can do the good things he planned for us long ago. (King James Version): For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
What is this new body like?
- It will be like His glorified body: Philippians 3:20-21: But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take these weak mortal bodies of ours and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same mighty power that he will use to conquer everything, everywhere.
- His body had a human shape - not a spirit.
- People recognized Him by sight and by sound.
- His body was solid - James could touch Him.
- He ate food.
- His body could appear and disappear and go through walls.
- I Corinthians 15:42-44: Our earthly bodies, which die and decay, will be different when they are resurrected, for they will never die. Our bodies now disappoint us, but when they are raised, they will be full of glory. They are weak now, but when they are raised, they will be full of power. They are natural human bodies now, but when they are raised, they will be spiritual bodies. For just as there are natural bodies, so also there are spiritual bodies.
Who will be "left behind"? Only those who have made an affirmative, intentional decision to believe in Jesus Christ will be taken. People left behind will be those who don't believe in Christ or didn't accept Him when they had the chance. Those who are left behind will be able to know by judging the empty churches. Is only one church gone, or only select members of every Christian congregation? All the real Christians are gone. The 67% of the world's population that are non-Christian, and aA majority of persons who consider themselves Christians but who have never been saved will be left behind. Only about 35% of American adults consider themselves to have been saved.
When will this occur? Hopefully, very soon. We've studied the signs we should be looking for and the prophecies to be fulfilled. Very little remains. When His disciples asked when the end of the world was to come, He said in Acts 1:7: "The Father sets those dates," he replied, "and they are not for you to know. So, we don't know the EXACT date. Paul said in I Thessalonians 5:1-2: I really don't need to write to you about how and when all this will happen, dear brothers and sisters.[a] 2For you know quite well that the day of the Lord will come unexpectedly, like a thief in the night.
Why the delay? 2 Peter 3:8-10: But you must not forget, dear friends, that a day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn't really being slow about his promise to return, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to perish, so he is giving more time for everyone to repent. But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and everything in them will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be exposed to judgment.
Will the rapture occur before, during or after the "tribulation"? Most, but not all, evangelical scholars believe that the church which is His body will be removed just before the tribulation begins:
First, it is important to recognize the purpose of the "tribulation". According to Daniel 9:27, there is a seventieth “week” (7 years) that is still yet to come. Daniel’s entire prophecy of the seventy weeks (Daniel 9:20-27) is speaking of the nation of Israel. It is a time period in which God focuses His attention especially on Israel. The 70th week, the "tribulation", must also be a time when God deals specifically with Israel. While this does not necessarily indicate that the church could not also be present, it does bring into question why the church would need to be on the earth during that time.
In I Thessalonians 5:9, Paul says For God decided to save us through our Lord Jesus Christ, not to pour out his anger on us. The Book of Revelation, which deals primarily with the time period of the "tribulation", is a prophetic message of how God will pour out His wrath upon the earth during the "tribulation". It would seem inconsistent for God to promise believers that they will not suffer wrath and then leave them on the earth during the "tribulation". The fact that God promises to deliver Christians from wrath shortly after promising to remove His people from the earth seems to link those two events together.
Another crucial passage on the timing of the "rapture" is Revelation 3:10 - ... I will protect you from the great time of testing that will come upon the whole world to test those who belong to this world. There, Christ promises to deliver believers from the “hour of trial” that is going to come upon the earth. This could mean two things: (1) Christ will protect believers in the midst of the trials, or (2) Christ will deliver believers out of the trials. Both are valid meanings of the Greek word translated “from.” However, it is important to recognize what believers are promised to be kept “from.” It is not just the trial, but the “hour” of trial. Christ is promising to keep believers from the very time period that contains the trials, namely the "tribulation". The purpose of the Tribulation, the purpose of the Rapture, the meaning of 1 Thessalonians 5:9, and the interpretation of Revelation 3:10 all give clear support to the Pretribulational position. If the Bible is interpreted literally and consistently, the Pretribulational position is the most Biblically consistent interpretation.
Do some "Christians" believe there is no such thing as the rapture? Yes! Christians who do not believe in the Rapture and the Millennial Kingdom are referred to as "amillennialists". They believe that mankind will simply become better and better through the efforts of the Church, and when mankind becomes holy enough Christ will return. However, the evidence is that mankind is getting worse, not better.
John 14:1-3: "Don't be troubled. You trust God, now trust in me. There are many rooms in my Father's home, and I am going to prepare a place for you. If this were not so, I would tell you plainly. When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.
1 Thessalonians 4:16: For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from their graves.
1 Thessalonians 4:15-16: I can tell you this directly from the Lord: We who are still living when the Lord returns will not rise to meet him ahead of those who are in their graves. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven with a commanding shout, with the call of the archangel, and with the trumpet call of God. First, all the Christians who have died will rise from their graves.
1 Corinthians 15:51-53: But let me tell you a wonderful secret God has revealed to us. Not all of us will die, but we will all be transformed. It will happen in a moment, in the blinking of an eye, when the last trumpet is blown. For when the trumpet sounds, the Christians who have died will be raised with transformed bodies. And then we who are living will be transformed so that we will never die. For our perishable earthly bodies must be transformed into heavenly bodies that will never die.
Romans 14:10: ...Remember, each of us will stand personally before the judgment seat of God.
2 Corinthians 5:10: For we must all stand before Christ to be judged. We will each receive whatever we deserve for the good or evil we have done in our bodies.
1 Corinthians 3:11-15: For no one can lay any other foundation than the one we already have--Jesus Christ. Now anyone who builds on that foundation may use gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But there is going to come a time of testing at the judgment day to see what kind of work each builder has done. Everyone's work will be put through the fire to see whether or not it keeps its value. If the work survives the fire, that builder will receive a reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. The builders themselves will be saved, but like someone escaping through a wall of flames.
Matthew 24:21: For that will be a time of greater horror than anything the world has ever seen or will ever see again.
posted by Oakview Bible Fellowship at 8:48 AM
