The Rapture Is a Biblical Event

The Rapture Is a Biblical Event – Jonathan Brentner - https://www.jonathanbrentner.com/https/jonathan-brentner-g8fgsquarespacecom/config/2022/1/17/the-rapture-is-a-biblical-event Early in the twentieth century, belief in the Rapture became a mainstay at Bible-believing churches in America and throughout the free world. Pastors boldly encouraged theirflocks with the hope of Jesus’ imminent appearing. Unfortunately, much has changed during the past twenty-five years. The word “Rapture” has become taboo in most churches, even in many that claim to believe in the inspirationand inerrancy of Scripture. Last year, I listened to a former pastor of mine preach on 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. He avoided all references to Jesus’ return for His church and said nothing whatsoeverabout verse 17. He changed our biblical hope in Jesus’ imminent appearing to a far distant resurrection that does little, if anything, to encourage the saints during these perilous times I often ask myself this question, “Who are these scoffers who exert so much influence over what is taught regarding the Rapture?” For those who desire to present the truths of our “blessed hope” in a persuasive and cogent way, I am offering a guide, beginning with this post. You will not convince themockers of our hope, but this will enable you to help those willing to listen understand the firm scriptural basis for what you believe about the Rapture. The first step is to present the Rapture is a biblical event, which it surely is. SCRIPTURE CLEARLY DESCRIBES THE SEQUENCE OF EVENTS THAT WE REFER TO AS THE RAPTURE Scripture clearly outlines a series of events that we call the “Rapture.” Consider the following quote from Dr. Ed Hindson in his wonderful book, Future Glory: “If you disagree on the timing of the rapture, please don’t tell people, ‘There’s never going to be a rapture.’ No, there must be a rapture or the Bible is not true. Theremust be a time when the archangel shouts, when the trumpet sounds, and the dead in Christ are raised and the living are caught up (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). We may differ on the timing of the rapture but not the fact of the rapture.”[i] The best place to begin talking about the Rapture is how it’s presented on the pages of the Bible, as an actual future event. We can establish the Rapture as scripturally sound event irrespective of its relationship to the Tribulation period. As Dr. Hindson alludes to in the above quote, theremust be a time when the actions that Paul describes in 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 happen or God’s Word is not true: “For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. Forthe Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them inthe clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.” This is the same event that the apostle wrote about in Corinthians 15:50-53: “I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall notall sleep, but we shall all be changed, 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. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, andthis mortal body must put on immortality.” Our biblical hope as New Testament saints consists of the following sequence of events all of which will happen very quickly, almost simultaneously: •Jesus appears; He descends from heaven (1 Thessalonians 4:16; 1 John 3:2-3; Colossians 1:4). •There’s a “cry of command” and the shout of the archangel (1 Thessalonians 4:16). •The “trumpet of God” sounds (1 Thessalonians 4:16). •Jesus raises the dead in Christ and joins them the souls that He brings with Him at His appearing (1 Thessalonians 4:14-16; 1 Corinthians 15:52). •Believers living at the time of Jesus’ appearing receive their immortal bodies (1 Thessalonians 4:17; 1 Corinthians 15:50-54; Philippians 3:20-21;Romans 8:23-25). •Jesus takes His bride, the church, to the place He’s prepared for them in His Father’s house (John 14:2-3, 17:24; Colossians 3:4). We appear withJesus in glory. There’s no greater comfort than this hope, as outlined above, as we journey through these perilous times. Paul told the Thessalonian saints to encourage each other withthese things (1 Thessalonians 4:18, 5:11). Is this not something we should be doing as the days grow darker in the shadow of the rapidly approaching Tribulation period? THE NEW TESTAMENT REPEATEDLY CONNECTS THE RAPTURE WITH THE GOSPEL In 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10, we learn that Paul’s initial proclamation of the Gospel in Thessalonica included the fact of Jesus’ appearing to take believers away from a futuretime of wrath upon the earth (aka the Rapture): “For they themselves report concerning us the kind of reception we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait forhis Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.” Their conversion stories consisted not only of turning away from idols, but included that of waiting for Jesus’ appearing (as described in the previous section). Pay close attention to the words in Romans 8:23-25: “And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” The event Paul alludes to is what we today call the Rapture; this is the time when we receive our immortal bodies (“the redemption of our bodies”), and the Lord completesour adoption into God’s forever family. Notice what the apostle says about our anticipation of this event, “For in this hope we were saved.” The Rapture is an essential aspect our hope, the future tense of the Gospel. For New Testament saints, the Rapture marks the time when we fully experience the eternal life that we inherited at the moment we first believed. Paul’s descriptions ofJesus’ appearing simply adds details to Jesus’ promise of eternal life for all those who would believe in Him. The Rapture is either mentioned or alluded to in these additional New Testament texts: Philippians 3:20-21, Colossians 3:4, 1 Corinthians 1:7, Titus 2:11-15, Hebrews 9:28,James 5:7-8, 1 Peter 1:3, 1 John 3:2-3, and Revelation 3:10-11a. The event we call the “Rapture” is the essence of our eternal hope; it’s the Gospel future. It was never an afterthought in the New Testament church as it has become today. JESUS REFERRED TO THE RAPTURE, TOO In John 14:1-3, as Jesus sought to comfort His disciples after telling them He was about the leave them, He referred to the event we know as the Rapture. “Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to preparea place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” The Greek word for “place” indicates that Jesus is preparing a physical residence for us in His Father’s house. And, Jesus promises to take us to that place. It’s not complicated;Jesus is coming for us to take us to the place He’s now preparing for us. Consider the words of Colossians 3:4, “When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.” When Jesus appears (aka the Rapture), we appear “in glory” with Him. We do not remain on the earth, but the Lord will catch us up just He promises us in 1 Thessalonians4:17 and take us to glory as He says He will do in John 14:2-3 and Colossians 3:4. Pastors, some will take issue with you and possibly leave your church at your mention of the Rapture. These scoffers, however, are those who do not accept something that’splainly taught in God’s Word. Please understand that it’s such people that cause division in your congregation (see Jude17-20; Proverbs 22:10), not you. People have called me a heretic and false teacher more times that I can remember. But remaining true to God’s word is what matters, not the opinion of others. And the Lordcontinues to bless my ministry in spite of the intense opposition and in spite of me as well. The first step is to discuss the Rapture as a biblical event that’s either described or referred to throughout the New Testament. Next, I will demonstrate why we can assert that the Rapture is different from the Second Coming of Jesus. They absolutely cannot be the same event. Click here for my nextpost. My new book, The Triumph of the Redeemed-An eternal Perspective that Calms Our Fears in Perilous Times, is now available on Amazon and at the DefenderBookstore. Jonathan C. Brentner - Website: OurJourney Home ---------------------------- The Rapture Cannot Happen at the Same Time as the Second Coming � Jonathan Brentner - https://www.jonathanbrentner.com/https/jonathan-brentner-g8fgsquarespacecom/config/2022/1/24/the-rapture-cannot-happen-at-the-time-of-the-second-coming In my previous post in this series, we established the Rapture as a biblical event; we have a firm scriptural basis for the series of closely related events that constituteour �blessed hope� (Titus 2:11-14). This next step consists of presenting the Rapture in a persuasive and cogent way that establishes it as unique event. Many insist that the Rapture happens when Jesus returnsto earth, especially those who falsely dismiss biblical references to the Tribulation as allegory and deny that a time of God�s wrath is coming to our world. You will not convince those who belong to this group of deniers that Rapture is unique, but for those who interpret prophetic texts in the Bible according to the intentof the author, you will be able to make a solid case for separating the Rapture from the Second Coming. The following points, which I have condensed from my book The Triumph of the Redeemed, demonstrate that we cannot combine the two events into one. 1. THE PLACE OF THE RESURRECTION IN THE SEQUENCE OF EVENTS In 1 Thessalonians 4:13�18, Paul states that the �dead in Christ will rise first.� We see this same order of events in 1 Corinthians 15:52; when Jesus comes for His church,He raises the �dead in Christ� first. The resurrection of New Testament saints occurs first in the rapid sequence of events in the biblical event that we call the Rapture. In Revelation 20:1�4, however, the resurrection of dead Tribulation saints occurs after Jesus� triumphal return to earth, His defeat of the vast armies gathered againstJerusalem, His destruction of the False Prophet and Antichrist, the imprisonment of Satan, and the setting up of numerous thrones for judgment. After all these time-consuming events, the Lord raises the dead Tribulation saints from the grave (Revelation 19:11�20:6). Do you see how the place of the resurrection in the order of events differs significantly during the Rapture versus the Second Coming? In the Rapture, Jesus raises the �deadin Christ� first, before He does anything else. With the Second Coming, the resurrection happens after a series of events; it may not even occur on the same day as Jesus� return to the earth. It�s impossible to merge the two events into one based on the placement of the resurrection of the dead saints in the sequence of events. 2. THE PARTICIPANTS Not only does the placement of the resurrection differ significantly between the Rapture and Second Coming, but so does the identification of its participants. John wrotethe following about the resurrection that occurs at Jesus� Second Coming: Those who had been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on theirforeheads or their hands. (Revelation 20:4). This group represents martyrs from the Tribulation whom we refer to as the �Tribulation saints.� When Paul writes about the Rapture, he says that Jesus resurrects the �dead in Christ� (1 Thessalonians 4:16; 1 Corinthians 15:52). It�s clear that this applies to all NewTestament believers that have died rather than just the subset of the saints that John attributes to the resurrection that occurs after the Second Coming. The identity of the participants in the resurrections further distinguishes the Rapture from the Second Coming. 3. THE PLACE WHERE JESUS GATHERS THE SAINTS In 1 Thessalonians 4:17, Paul states that all living believers at the time of the Rapture will be �caught up�to meet the Lord in the air.� At His appearing, Jesus gathersus to Himself in the clouds and takes us back to the place He�s preparing for us in His Father�s house (see John 14:2�3). The passages describing the Second Coming don�t mention a meeting in the air. Jesus arrives amid much fanfare as He defeats the armies of the world in a climactic battle.It�s only after conquering the vast army arrayed against Jerusalem that He sends out His angels to gather both living believers and unbelievers for judgment at a location on the earth (Matthew 25:31�46). With the Second Coming, there�s no meeting in the air; everyone stays on the earth. With the Rapture, we will meet Jesus in the clouds. 4. THE DESTINATION OF BELIEVERS The accounts of Jesus� Second Coming in the Gospels and in the book of Revelation do not include a return to heaven. During Jesus� return to earth, the feet of those alivenever leave the ground. The account of the Second Coming in Revelation 19:11�20:4 doesn�t include a trip to heaven; everyone remains on the earth. Such is not the case according to the passages from God�s Word regarding the Rapture. In John 14:2�3, Jesus said: In my Father�s house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will comeagain and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. The Greek word for �place� in John 14:2�3 denotes a physical residence. Jesus is preparing a special �place� for us in His �Father�s house.� And, why would He mention roomswithin His �Father�s house� in this context if He didn�t intend to take us there at His appearing? Consider the words of Paul in Colossians 3:4: When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. When Jesus appears, we �appear with him in glory�; we depart from this earth to be with Jesus and witness His glory. This is the Rapture! The Rapture and Second Coming cannot be the same event, because in one case the saints go to glory with Jesus and in the other instance, everyone remains earthbound. 5. THE TRANSFORMATION OF LIVING BELIEVERS In 1 Corinthians 15:51�54, Paul emphasizes the transformation of living believers that takes place at the moment Jesus appears to take us home. The Lord not only raisessaints from the dead with immortal bodies, but also gives imperishable bodies to those alive at the time. The apostle again highlights the aspect of our new bodies in Philippians 3:20�21, where He promises that when the Lord comes for us, He �will transformour lowly body to be like his glorious body.� This is the Rapture. The passages that describe the Second Coming do not contain any reference to the transformation of living believers. Although Jesus sends His angels to gather the elect,the text does not say that He gives them imperishable bodies. This only happens during the Rapture. 6. THE PRESENCE OF REBELLION DURING THE MILLENNIUM Since Jesus gives all believers�whether alive or dead�glorified, resurrected bodies at His appearing (Philippians 3:20�21; 1 Corinthians 15:51�55; Romans 8:23), combiningthe Rapture with the Second Coming would signify that no one would enter the millennial kingdom in natural bodies, which would make sin impossible during the thousand-year rule of Jesus, since everyone would possess glorified and imperishable bodies that arefree from the presence of sin. Such a premise, however, directly contradicts what the Old and New Testaments tell us about the Millennium. Zechariah 14:9�19 reveals that during Jesus� earthly reign, peoplewill have the capacity to disobey Him by refusing to go to Jerusalem to worship. Furthermore, why would Jesus need to rule over the nations �with a rod of iron� during the Millennium (Psalm 2:9) if everyone has a sinless and immortal body? Who wouldrebel at the end of Jesus� thousand-year reign (Revelation 20:7�10) if everyone enters the Millennium as a glorified saint incapable of sinning or reproducing? The Rapture must happen well before the Second Coming takes place to allow time for people to come to faith in the Savior and survive the Tribulation. The sin and rebellion that occur during the Millennium can only happen if people enter it with their natural bodies. This necessitates that a significant amount of timemust transpire between the Rapture and Second Coming. 7. THE DIFFERING EMPHASES The emphasis of the Second Coming is judgment. During Jesus� return to earth, He destroys the armies gathered against Him, throws the Antichrist and False Prophet into thelake of fire, locks up Satan for a thousand years, and gathers those who survive the Tribulation before His throne for judgment (Revelation 19:19�20:4). The message of the Rapture, however, is one of comfort and encouragement (1 Thessalonians 4:18, 5:11); it�s something that we can use to build up each other in the faithand this applies to today as much as in any previous time in church history. Our sudden departure from earth will signify judgment for the world, but for those of us in Christ, it constitutes our joyous anticipation and comforting hope. The uniqueness of the Rapture, as demonstrated by the above differences between it and the Second Coming, does not by itself confirm that the Rapture must happen beforethe Tribulation, but it does require that it must take place well before the Lord�s return to earth at the end of this time. Because the scoffers of our hope in Jesus� imminent appearing continue to bring up church history as their way of refuting the Rapture, I will discuss this matter in mynext post. My intent will be to give you a sure defense against such attacks and establish that early in the history of the church, theologians regarded Jesus� appearing for His church and the Second Coming as two separate events. Note: Please consider signing up for my newsletter on the homepage of my website at https://www.jonathanbrentner.com/. It will greatly help me in reaching more people. Thanks! My new book, The Triumph of the Redeemed-An eternal Perspective that Calms Our Fears in Perilous Times, is now available on Amazon. Jonathan C. Brentner � Website: OurJourney Home