THE RAPTURE

[KiwiChristian]

THE RAPTURE

Jesus Christ’s Second Coming for the Church

Bible Reading: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; John 14:2,3; 1 Corinthians 15:51-53; Titus 2:13; Rev. 4:1,2.

Aim: To comfort and motivate one another with the truth of Christ’s return to take us to heaven.

Introduction: Jesus Christ’s return will be in two stages. One for His bride the Church, known as the “catching away” or “rapture”. (1 Thess. 4:13-18). The rapture will be followed by a seven year period known as the Tribulation. This will begin with the Antichrist from Europe making a treaty with Israel and breaking it after three-and-a-half years. The last three-and-a half years of the Antichrist’s reign will be the Great Tribulation spoken of by Christ in Matthew 24:21. This will be followed by the second stage of Christ returning to earth with believers to rule the world in righteousness. Zech 14:1-5; Jude 14

Definition: The term “rapture” comes from the Latin word for “caught up” in I Thessalonians 4:17. Before the seven year tribulation, Christ will descend from heaven, and catch up the Church to heaven to be with Himself. The Tribulation will then be unleashed on an unbelieving world.

The Scriptures teaching the “catching away” are as follows:

a) “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.

Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” I Thessalonians 4:16-18.

b)     Jesus said: “I go to prepare a place for you (v.2). And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself: that where I am, there ye may be also.” John 14: 2,3. 
c)     “We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and…must put on immortality.” I Cor. 15:51-53 
d)     “Looking for that blessed hope (rapture), and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ.” Titus 2:13. 
e)     John experienced the rapture: “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me: which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter…And immediately…..in heaven.” Revelation 4:1,2. 

    We may summarise the main events of the rapture from I Thessalonians 4:6-17, as follows: 
i)     One day, Jesus Christ will descend from heaven and we will hear a shout, a voice and a trumpet. 
ii)     All dead believer’s bodies will be resurrected to rejoin their spirits and souls in the air. iii)All living believers will receive resurrection bodies, and be caught up to meet the Lord in the air. 

iv)We will receive immortal, resurrection bodies, a place Christ has prepared for us in heaven, comfort forever in the presence of Christ, and rewards promised in 2 Corinthians 5:10.

The rapture is called a comfort and a blessed hope. Notice several things about the rapture. 1. Rapidity of the Rapture = Immediately (I Corinthians 15:51,52).

“we shall all be changed in a moment (Greek: atomos 823),in the twinkling (Gk: rhipe 4493) of an eye.”
The speed with which the rapture will occur is described by these two Greek words which mean:
a) “atomos” = without a cut, indivisible. This is the word from which “atom” is derived, meaning “that which cannot be divided.” When referring to time it means “an indivisibly small instant of time; a point of time which cannot be divided.” It means “immediately.” b)“rhipe” = a quick motion, such as a fling or toss. A blink, wink, jerk, or twinkle of an eye. The least duration of time. People will not have time to call on Christ for salvation, or to do what they planned.
Believers must serve Christ now so that we won’t be ashamed at His coming. (I John 2:28).

2. Reason For The Rapture = To keep the Church out of the Tribulation.

The Church will be caught out of the world to be kept from the 7 year Tribulation period. The rapture will be as unexpected as a thief in the night. (I Thess.5:2-4). “God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation (deliverance from the tribulation wrath) by our Lord Jesus Christ.”I Thessalonians 5:9. Christ said to the faithful, Bible-loving Philadelphian church, “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from (Greek: ‘ek’ = out of) the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them which dwell upon the earth.” (Revelation 3:10).

Christ will spare His bride from going through the wars, famines, Antichrist’s persecutions, earthquakes, and other judgments that will come on an unbelieving world.
The purpose of the Tribulation is to bring Israel and unbelieving nations to repentance (Rev. 9:18-21). In Revelation 6:8, 25% of the world’s population are killed.
In Revelation 9:18, 33% of the rest are killed. This leaves only 50% of the world’s population alive.

3. Requirement to be Raptured

Only those who have been saved by calling on Christ to save them from their sins, will be raptured. “The dead in Christ shall rise first.” (I Thessalonians 4:16).
“we (all living believers) which are alive and remain shall be caught up….” (v.17). Q: Are you trusting Jesus Christ to save you, or your good works to gain God’s acceptance?

Some people in this room may be left behind if Jesus Christ returned today.
Q: Would you be taken to be with Christ, or would you be left behind to enter the 7 year Tribulation?

Can you imagine what it would be like to be left behind?

a)     You phone your Christian friends, and they are nowhere to be found. 
b)     The newspapers and television report millions of missing people. 
c)     Many driverless cars will have crashed on the roadside. 
d)     People will panic about their missing family and friends. They will demand an explanation. Was it the rapture predicted in the Bible? Antichrist will offer a false yet plausible explanation that many will believe (2 Thess. 2:8-12), maybe that UFOs took Christians who were resisting the new world order. 

Q: Will you be saved and taken, or lost and left behind? Receive Jesus Christ as your Saviour today.

4. Rewards after the Rapture.

Following the rapture, all Christians will appear before the Judgment Seat of Christ (2 Cor. 5:10; Romans 14:10,12; 1 Cor. 3:10-15) to receive rewards according to the quality of our service to Christ after salvation. Some Christians will suffer loss of rewards that they could have earned. (1 Cor. 3:15).
“every man shall receive his own reward according to his own labour.” (I Corinthians 3:8).

Q: Will you win rewards, or will you lose rewards?

5. Revelation of the Sons of God.

When Christ appears, we shall be just like Him, even though we may now appear unattractive and unimportant. We will have a glorious, immortal body just like Jesus Christ has now.

“Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” 1 John 3:2.

“For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God.” Romans 8:18,19.

God has predestined every believer to be conformed to the image and likeness of Christ. (Romans 8:29)

6. Our Response to the Rapture.

‘And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself (sanctification), even as he is pure.’1 John 3:3

Question: How should we now live? If we knew we’d be “caught up” next year, we should:

a)     Live pleasing to God by reading/studying the Bible, and praying daily. 
b)     Learn How to win people to Christ so they’ll be caught up to heaven and won’t go through the Tribulation. Pastors should conduct a soul-winning training session this week. We want to rejoice with people in heaven who we have led to Christ on earth. We only have a short time to do soul-winning. We are in a war for eternal souls now. Don’t be lazy, but get busy rescuing people from hell. After the rapture you’ll have no chance to pluck people from hell. You’ll never see your unsaved family and friends again. You can rest forever in eternity, but now is the time to win souls to Christ. 
a)     Confess and Forsake any known sins. 1 John 1:9. 
b)     Dedicate your life wholeheartedly and completely to winning souls and serving Jesus Christ. 

7. “Be ye also Ready, for in such an hour as ye think not, the Son of Man cometh.” (Matthew 24:44).
“Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” Ephesians 5:16.

Conclusion: Are you ready to face Christ? Are you saved? Are you winning souls daily or weekly?
Is there any known sin in your life that you need to confess and forsake? Do so today.

[Justin Adams]

As much as I respect you Sir, I think you might have a few things not quite correct.

It so happens I read a treatise on this subject only yesterday and copied it. It answered quite a few of my unformed questions and a general unease about the whole 'rapture' subject. It is quite long and in depth so I am unsure if I can post it here and not blow the server out of the water...

[MorningGlory]

3 minutes ago, Justin Adams said:

As much as I respect you Sir, I think you might have a few things not quite correct.

It so happens I read a treatise on this subject only yesterday and copied it. It answered quite a few of my unformed questions and a general unease about the whole 'rapture' subject. It is quite long and in depth so I am unsure if I can post it here and not blow the server out of the water...

Just post a link to it, Justin.  Very long posts are ignored by most anyway.

[MorningGlory]

On 9/16/2017 at 6:59 AM, KiwiChristian said:

THE RAPTURE

Jesus Christ’s Second Coming for the Church

I've only one problem with your post; the Second Coming and the Rapture are not the same event.  Jesus does not come to Earth for the Rapture; He snatches up.  He descends to the Mt. of Olives at the Second Coming.

[Justin Adams]

Ok. Will do if can find it. Found it.

http://c96e50a40991046dcbfa-71bc4c8fd3e50b4ee0e248e517d3026f.r87.cf2.rackcdn.com/uploaded/e/0e4616743_1445626001_e-o-d-testing-the-pre--trib-rapture-transcript.pdf

[missmuffet]

Question: "What is the difference between the Rapture and the Second Coming?"

Answer: The rapture and the second coming of Christ are often confused. Sometimes it is difficult to determine whether a scripture verse is referring to the rapture or the second coming. However, in studying end-times Bible prophecy, it is very important to differentiate between the two.

The rapture is when Jesus Christ returns to remove the church (all believers in Christ) from the earth. The rapture is described in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 and 1 Corinthians 15:50-54. Believers who have died will have their bodies resurrected and, along with believers who are still living, will meet the Lord in the air. This will all occur in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye. The second coming is when Jesus returns to defeat the Antichrist, destroy evil, and establish His millennial kingdom. The second coming is described in Revelation 19:11-16.

The important differences between the rapture and second coming are as follows:

1) At the rapture, believers meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17). At the second coming, believers return with the Lord to the earth (Revelation 19:14).

2) The second coming occurs after the great and terrible tribulation (Revelation chapters 6–19). The rapture occurs before the tribulation (1 Thessalonians 5:9; Revelation 3:10).

3) The rapture is the removal of believers from the earth as an act of deliverance (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17, 5:9). The second coming includes the removal of unbelievers as an act of judgment (Matthew 24:40-41).

4) The rapture will be secret and instant (1 Corinthians 15:50-54). The second coming will be visible to all (Revelation 1:7; Matthew 24:29-30).

5) The second coming of Christ will not occur until after certain other end-times events take place (2 Thessalonians 2:4; Matthew 24:15-30; Revelation chapters 6–18). The rapture is imminent; it could take place at any moment (Titus 2:13; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:50-54).

Why is it important to keep the rapture and the second coming distinct?

1) If the rapture and the second coming are the same event, believers will have to go through the tribulation (1 Thessalonians 5:9; Revelation 3:10).

2) If the rapture and the second coming are the same event, the return of Christ is not imminent—there are many things which must occur before He can return (Matthew 24:4-30).

3) In describing the tribulation period, Revelation chapters 6–19 nowhere mentions the church. During the tribulation—also called “the time of trouble for Jacob” (Jeremiah 30:7)—God will again turn His primary attention to Israel (Romans 11:17-31).

The rapture and second coming are similar but separate events. Both involve Jesus returning. Both are end-times events. However, it is crucially important to recognize the differences. In summary, the rapture is the return of Christ in the clouds to remove all believers from the earth before the time of God’s wrath. The second coming is the return of Christ to the earth to bring the tribulation to an end and to defeat the Antichrist and his evil world empire.

https://www.gotquestions.org/difference-Rapture-Second-Coming.html

[Omegaman 3.0]

12 hours ago, missmuffet said:

4) The rapture will be secret and instant (1 Corinthians 15:50-54).

50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. 53 For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. 54 When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”

Okay, read that and missed it, where is the secret part?

[KiwiChristian]

16 hours ago, MorningGlory said:

I've only one problem with your post; the Second Coming and the Rapture are not the same event.  Jesus does not come to Earth for the Rapture; He snatches up.  He descends to the Mt. of Olives at the Second Coming.

good point.

 

there are TWO second comings, arent there?

[Neighbor]

Not all Christians believe there is a rapture of any kind at any time, others believe there are multiple raptures at various times, but most all believe there is a second coming of our Lord Jesus.

[OneLight]

Live like Jesus will return any second, but be prepared for Him not to return in your lifetime.  It really doesn't matter when.  What matters is that it will happen.  Live for Jesus every moment of your life and you will not care of the when.