The Rapture

1. The Rapture - 14th
November2015
The Rapture isan "endtimesevent" andis a wordknownby manyChristianswhichisalsoknownasa
“eschatological"event inreference tothe secondcomingof JesusChrist.It broadlysaidthat believers
whoare "alive andremainshall be caughtup together…inthe cloudstomeetthe Lordinthe air" as we
can read in 1 Thessalonians4:16-17 – “For the Lord himselfwill come down fromheaven, witha loud
command,withthe voice ofthe archangel andwith the trumpet call ofGod,and the dead in Christwill
rise first. 17
Afterthat, we whoare still aliveand are left will be caught up together with them inthe
cloudsto meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever”
This clearlyrefersto the time of the secondcoming,where eachChristianreceiveshisorher
resurrectedbody.Firsttoreceive theirnew bodiesare those whohave diedasChristians,andthen,
those whoare "alive andremain." Takenotice,I amtellingyou a secret. We shall notall die butwe
shall all be changed,in a moment, inthe twinklingofaneye, at the last trumpet call.For the trumpet
will soundand the dead will be raised imperishable,andwe shall all be changed"(1Corinthians15:51-
52).
Many Christianfaithsbelieveandteachabouta future,end-timeseventwhenall true believerswhoare
still alive before the endof the worldwill be takenfromthe earthbyGod intoheaven.The term
describingthiseventis"the Rapture."Althoughthe term"rapture"isnotfoundinthe Bible,the theory
isbasedon Scripture.Those whoacceptthe Rapture theorybelievethatall non-believersonthe earth
at the time will be leftbehindforthe tribulation period.MostBible scholarsagree the tribulationperiod
will lastforsevenyears,the final sevenyearsof thisage,until Christreturnstosetuphis earthly
kingdomduringthe Millennium.The Englishword"rapture"isderivedfromthe Latinverb"Rapere"
meaning"tocarry off,"or "to catch up."
Almosteveryonewhohasheardthiswantsto know whenwill the Rapture occur? There are three main
beliefsregardingthe time frame of the Rapture: Pre-TribulationRapture: The mostpopularlytaught
viewamongChristianfaithsis knownasthe Pre-TribulationRapture,or"Pre-Trib"theory.Those who
accept thisperspectivebelieve the Rapture will happenjustbeforethe tribulation period,atthe
beginningofthe seventiethweekofDaniel.The Rapture will usherin the final sevenyears of this age.
True followersof JesusChrist will be transformedinto their spiritual bodiesinthe Rapture and taken
from the Earth to be in Heaven withGod. Non-believerswill be leftbehindtoface severe tribulation
as the antichrist preparesto take hisplace as the Beast half way through the sevenyear period.
According to this view,non-believerswill still come to accept Christ,in spite of the Church'sabsence
during thistime;however,these new Christianswill endure extreme persecution,tothe pointof
death.
The Post-TribulationRapture isthe other popular viewwhich isknown as the Post-Tribulation
Rapture, or "Post-Trib" theory.Those who accept this perspective believethatChristianswill remain
on the Earth as witnessesduringthe sevenyeartribulation period,until the very end of this age.
According to this view,believerswill be eitherremovedorprotected from the terrible wrath of God
predictedtoward the endof the sevenyears inthe book of Revelation.Andthe third viewis the Mid-
TribulationRapture: It is lesspopular viewis known as the Mid-TribulationRapture,or "Mid-Trib"
theory. Those who accept this perspective believe thatChristianswill be taken from the Earth to be in
Heavenwith God at some pointduring the middle ofthe sevenyear periodof tribulation.

2. Accordingto several versesinthe Bible,believerswill suddenly,withoutwarning,disappearfromEarth
inthe "twinklingof aneye." The rapture will be instantaneous, asstatedin 1 Corinthians15:51-52. But
as Christianswe mustknowthatthe Scripture nowhere encouragesustotryto determine the date of
Jesus'return.Rather,we are to ‘keepwatch’:“Therefore keep watch, because youdo not know on
what day yourLord will come” (Matthew 24:42). We are to be ready,because the Sonof Man will
come at an hourwhenwe do notexpectHim as we can learnfrom Matthew 24:44 – “So youalso must
be ready, because the Son of Manwill come at anhour when you donot expect him”.
The timingof the Rapture sparksa great debate within Christianity.Doesitoccurbefore,during,orafter
the tribulationperiod?The tribulationisaseven-yearperiodthatimmediatelyprecedesthe returnof
Christand the establishmentof Hismillennial kingdom,which isbelievedtolast for1,000 years.The first
3 ½ yearsof the tribulationwill be atime of peace andcooperation,andthe second3 ½ yearsof the
tribulationwill be atime of war and catastrophe.Atthe midpointof the tribulation,the Antichristwill
proclaimhimself godandrequire worshipfromall people of the world.Manywill bow downand
worshipthe Antichrist,includingtakinghis markof worldwideregistration.Somewillrefusetoworship
the Antichristandreceive hismark,andmanywill be killedforthisactof disobedience.The secondhalf
of the tribulationisreferredtoasthe "GreatTribulation."There willbe extraordinarycatastrophesall
overthe worldduringthisperiod. Tolearnmore and for scriptural support, we canread: “Sinceyou
have kept my commandto endure patiently,I will alsokeep you from the hour oftrial that is goingto
come on the whole worldto test the inhabitantsofthe earth (Revelation3:10) andalso through
Matthew 24; Mark 13 and Luke 17.
So,the maindebate onthe Rapture is notwhat itis,but whenitwill occurin relationtothe tribulation
and whetherthe timingmatterforbelieversinJesusChrist! The pre-tribulationrapture isawonderful
hope forbelieversinJesusChrist.However,whetherwe live tosee apre-tribulation,mid-tribulationor
post-tribulationrapture,orwhetherwe die priortoany type of rapture at all,the keyto eternal
salvationis,inall cases,ourbelief andfaithinJesusChristalone. ThereforeasChristianswhatis
importantisthat we are secure inour relationshipwithChrist, because nothingelsereallymatters!We
can learnfromthe gospelsthatJesussaid: "...ForI am going away to prepare a place for you. And
whenI have gone and have prepareda place for you, I will come again and take you to Myselfso that
where I am, you also will be"(John14:2-3).
“I will come again and take you to Myself so that where I am,
you also will be"(John 14:-3).