The Rapture?

What is The Rapture?You may have seen a bumper sticker with the words, “In the event of the rapture this car will be driverless!” Many people are expecting Jesus to come again “to rapture the faithful.” According to this theory, the faithful will be caught up to be with the Lord. Their disappearance will be sudden and will seem mysterious to those who will be left on the earth.

The Bible does not contain the word “rapture”, and the concept is not taught in the Bible. Three Bible passages are frequently given in support of the rapture. We want to carefully examine each of these. We do not want to add to, nor take away from, God’s Word.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-17
The idea of being “caught up” is found in the Bible. Is this the rapture? Let’s read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17 carefully: “But we do not want you to be uniformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve, as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. For this we say to you by the Word of the Lord, that we who are alive, and remain until the coming of the Lord, shall not precede these who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the air, and thus we shall always be with the Lord.”

Here are four reasons for concluding that Paul is not describing the rapture:

(1) The context indicates the subject to be the final return of Christ; not the rapture. In Thessalonica, some were worried fearing that if they died they would miss the coming of Christ. Paul warned then to understand that those who had fallen asleep (died) before the return of Christ would not miss His return. This is why he explained that the dead in Christ would rise first.
(2) There would be a shout and the voice of the archangel; not some mysterious appearance only to be raptured.
(3) “... Thus we shall always be with the Lord.” This is the eternal state. The rapture theory would have Jesus catching away the faithful for a period of time and then returning to the earth,
(4) “The coming of the Lord” is His final coming. The rapture theory would have the Lord returning several times.

1 Corinthians 15:51-52
In 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, Paul wrote, “... we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye ...” To think of this as the rapture is to lift the statement from it’s context. A casual reading of the chapter will show that the subject is the resurrection. To those who wondered how we could be with God in eternity Paul gave the explanation of verses 51 and 52. The subject is the resurrection, not the rapture!

In verse twenty-four of this chapter, Paul mentions the coming of Christ at the resurrection. The Bible does not speak of a coming to rapture the church and a coming to establish a millennial kingdom and another coming to judge. There is only one coming yet in the future.

Matthew 24
Statements from the twenty-fourth chapter of Matthew are frequently quoted in support of the rapture, but the rapture is not discussed here. The disciples of Jesus asked Him questions concerning the distruction of the temple. In response, He warned them of the destruction of Jerusalem and of judgment. He gave them several signs to indicate the time of the distruction of Jerusalem. This occurred in 70 AD exactly as Jesus foretold. He also spoke of tribulation (suffering) which would occur during that time. He said, “... this generation will not pass away until all these things take place.” (Matthew 24:34)

ConclusionChrist taught His disciples to prepare for His coming --- not the rapture, but His coming to judge. Please read Matthew, Chapter 25. Peter wrote of the day of the Lord as a time when the earth will be destroyed. See 2 Peter 3:9-12.

Promoters of this theory have described the rapture as the hope of the believer. The Bible speaks of the resurrection as the hope of the believer. See Acts 24:15. Jesus spoke of a resurrection followed by the judgment (John 5:28-30).

Hope in the “rapture” is a false hope because it is not taught in the Bible. Many are being led to expect something God has not promised. The result will be disillusionment and doubt.

Through the centuries people have tended to teach doctrines not found in the Scriptures. We should study the Bible and follow it alone. Let us have faith in Christ as the Son of God and hope for a resurrection like His. May we be found faithful when He returns to judge all men.

WHAT CAN YOU DO? You can accept the authority of Christ by doing what He commanded (Matthew 7:21; John 14:15; 15:10-14; Luke 6:46). Notice the pattern for becoming a Christian as revealed in the Scriptures. The Gospel was heard, resulting in faith (Romans 10:17). Repentance of (turning away from) sin (Acts 17:30) and confession of Jesus as the Son of God followed (Romans 10:10). Believers were baptized INTO Christ for the remission (forgiveness) of sins (See Galatians 3:27; Colossians 2:12; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Mark 16:16; Romans 6:3-5; 1 Peter 3:20-21), and added to His church (Acts 2:47). Christians were taught to be faithful even to the point of death (Revelation 2:10).

WE WELCOME YOU Following the instructions of the Scriptures, members of Christ’s body [collectively called the “churches of Christ” Romans 16:16),] assemble as congregations for worship, encouragement, and Bible study. The congregation in your community welcomes you to investigate the Bible with us. With a spirit of brotherly love we would seek to reconcile any differences by following the Bible ONLY. We recognize the Bible as God’s inspired word, the ONLY reliable standard of faith and practice. We desire the unity for which Christ prayed and which the Bible emphasizes in the expression, “one Lord, one faith, one baptism.” Together we seek to maintain “the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

A friendly welcome awaits you. We do not wish to embarrass you in any way. You will not be asked for contributions. We assemble for Bible study and worship each Sunday morning and we welcome you to meet with us. We would be happy to talk to you about your questions and we want to be of encouragement.

If you have any comments or questions --- or would like the location and contact names of a congregation of the church belonging to Jesus Christ near you, please e-mail me at BibleTruths@hotmail.com or call 253-396-0290. Thanks Dennis Crawford, editor