THE RAPTURE
1 Thessalonians 4:14-17
“We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in Him. According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.
“For the Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with a trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”
Rapture (RAPT-shur), a sense of pure joy, also means delight, bliss, or cloud nine happiness. (See Paradise Today devotion). The opening Scripture explains what people mean when they use the word “Rapture” in conversation. The Lord will come down from heaven, the dead in Him will rise, and we who are still alive will meet Him (and all other believers) in the air. Can you imagine the delight when we realize what's happening?
Rapture can be a proper noun, or as a regular noun that means inexpressible happiness. The Rapture is a “catch phrase” that encourages fellow believers. Hearing this in conversation, draws smiles with shared common faith. Although the word rapture is not found anywhere in the Bible, it describes believer’s eager anticipation. Jesus will unite the spirit bodies from heaven with the flesh bodies that raie into the air from the graves. Their new bodies will be changed. Glorified bodies will be recognizable as the person was known on earth.
Believers-in-Christ who are still alive, will be transformed as we’re “caught up” to meet the Lord in the air. Then we’ll truly understand Resurrection Prize devotion. Our “resurrected” bodies will be remade glorious, immortal, fit for eternal life. Revived, renewed bodies will never wear out, as our mortal bodies do. Resurrected bodies will never die.
We will live forever!
The Rapture, the second coming of Christ guarantees that cemeteries, coffins, mausoleums or ashes scattered about are just temporary places for the dead to chill-out or rest for awhile.
Take Home Nugget
Really, believers expect Jesus’ appearance at any time. Revelation 22:20 is what keeps people expecting, ready, and waiting throughout the years: “He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’” And yet, what brings human frustration is what Jesus insisted to His disciples in Matthew 24:36: “No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, bur only the Father.”
Verse 42: “Therefore keep watch, because you do not know what day your Lord will come.”
J.D. Griffith
“Our Lord has written the promise of resurrection, not in books alone but in every leaf of springtime.”
Martin Luther
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