Title: Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11)
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The word “rapture” itself does not appear in the Bible. But the words that can be expressed as the rapture are clearly recorded in the Bible.
“Paul, the man of God, also mentions the “rapture” not only in 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11, but also in 1 Corinthians 15:51-54.
“Behold, I tell you a mystery, we will not all sleep, but at the last trumpet we will all be changed in an instant. At the sound of the trumpet, the dead will live incorruption, and we will also be transformed. When this perishable puts on immortality, and this mortal puts on immortality, then the written word will come true: Death will be swallowed up in victory” (1 Corinthians 15:51-54).
Jesus himself told us about the rapture.
“If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, there you may be” (John 14:3).
“I tell you, that night two men will be lying in one bed, and one will be taken and the other left; and two women will be grinding together, and one will be taken and the other left. ” (Luke 17:34-35)
“Rapture” (English: Rapture) comes from the Latin “Rapio”, which means “Catching up”, meaning to move from one place to another. This is used by hawks or eagles when they suddenly snatch prey. The original Greek word for the New Testament is “harpazo”, which means “to grab and move suddenly.” It has the meaning of “to take away with strong force” or “to quickly draw into oneself”. “Harpazo” is used in the decisive word “lifted up” in 1 Thessalonians 4:17, where the word about the rapture of the saints is recorded.
In addition, the term is used in the New Testament to refer to other events.
For example, “take away” (Acts 23:10). “delivered” (1 Thessalonians 1:10), “delivered” (2 Timothy 4:17), “led away” (2 Corinthians 12:2,4), “will you plunder” (Matthew 12:29), “plunder” and” (John 10:12), “the one who will take away” (John 10:28), and so on.
In Luke 17:34, 35, where Jesus spoke of the “rapture,” “to be taken away” is the Greek word “paraambano”, which means “to take to come near”, “to be taken to oneself”. It means “to lead”.
When looking at these terms related to “rapture” collectively, the rapture is first a sudden event, second, an event caused by force rather than magnetic force, and third, an event that moves from one place to another.
In what order does the rapture take place? The rapture is a momentary event that cannot be expressed in any sequence or process.
However, the Bible describes the order of the rapture like this:
First, the resurrected Jesus is coming back into the air in the clouds of heaven. At this time, there will be the shout of the Lord, the voice of the archangel, and the trumpet of God.
“You have said it, Jesus said, but I tell you that after this you will see the Son of Man seated at the right hand of power and coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matthew 26:64).
“If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also those who sleep in Jesus will God bring with him” (1 Thessalonians 4:14)
“For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God” (1 Thessalonians 4:16).
Second, the dead saints are resurrected first.
“The dead in Christ rise first” (1 Thessalonians 4:16).
“When the trumpet sounds, the dead are raised to immortality” (1 Corinthians 15:52).
Third, the bodies of living saints change.
“We will also change” (1 Corinthians 15:52).
“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from there we await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the work of him who is able to subject all things to himself. ” (Phil 3:20-21)
Fourth, the resurrected dead saints and the changed living saints are lifted up together in the cloud.
“After that, we who are alive and remain are caught up together with them in the clouds” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
Countless archangels will come with Jesus when he returns in the air.
“When the Son of Man comes in his glory with all the angels” (Matthew 25:31)
At the same time, when Jesus returns in the air, He will bring the souls of the dead saints.
“If we believe that Jesus died and rose again, so also those who sleep in Jesus will God bring with him” (1 Thessalonians 4:14)
All these events will happen in an instant and suddenly as the Bible says.
“Behold, I tell you a mystery, that we will not all sleep, but will all be changed in an instant at the last trumpet” (1 Corinthians 15:51).
“Beware of yourselves, or your hearts will be weighed down with debauchery and drunkenness and the anxieties of life, and that day will come upon you unexpectedly like a trap” (Luke 21:34).
The event of the Rapture is not an event that only takes place in a specific area. The rapture will happen all over the world at the same time. Jesus said.
“As it was in the days of Noah, so will the coming of the Son of Man be” (Matthew 24:37).
“This day shall come upon all who dwell on the whole earth” (Luke 21:35).
Why does the rapture happen?
The rapture is, first, for the fulfillment of Jesus' promise. When Jesus was on this earth, He promised to come back and take the Saints back.
“I am going to prepare a place for you; if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself, that where I am, you may be also” (John 14:2-3).
Second, the rapture is to receive Jesus at the Second Coming.
“He will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
It is only natural for the saints to be lifted up into the air to welcome the return of Jesus for his chosen people, the saints.
Third, it is to avoid the great tribulation on earth.
“For there will be great tribulation at that time, such as has not been from the foundation of the world until now, and never will be” (Matthew 24:21).
“Therefore, watch and pray always, that ye may be able to escape all these things that are to come, and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:36)
The Lord, who loves the saints, does not want the saints to be put into a time of great tribulation that has never been since the creation of the world and will never happen after that event. So He takes the saints ahead of time.
Fourth, to be with the Lord always.
“So we shall always be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).
When living on this earth, the saints are people who have always wanted to dwell with the Lord.
This earnest wish is fulfilled by Jesus, who is coming again.
After the saints are raptured, they have no reason or need to leave the Lord. From then on, you will be with the Lord forever.
Fifth, it is to give the saints true victory and the completion of salvation.
“This perishable must put on incorruption, and this mortal will put on immortality. When this perishable puts on incorruption and this mortal puts on immortality, then the written word will come true: Death will be swallowed up in victory. Where is your sting, O death? The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. We thank God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:53-57).
“In the same way Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many, and will appear a second time, free of sin, for salvation to those who are waiting for him” (Hebrews 9:28).
When will the rapture take place? Can we know when not?
We do not know the day when Jesus will come again. Likewise, the day of the rapture of saints is unknown. Because the rapture of the saints is an event that will happen at the same time as Jesus comes again.
Please see the following Bible.
“But that day or hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Matthew 24:36).
“Watch therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord will come, for you also know that if the owner of the house had known at what point the thief was coming, he would have been awake and would not have broken through the house” (Matthew 24:42-43).
“Therefore, be ready, for the Son of Man comes at an hour you do not expect” (Matthew 24:44).
“The master of the servant came on an unexpected day and at an hour unknown” (Matthew 24:50).
“Therefore, be on the alert, for you do not know the day or the hour” (Matthew 25:13).
“Brothers, there is nothing to write to you concerning times and seasons, for you yourselves know in detail that the day of the Lord is coming like a thief in the night, when they say, ‘Peace and safety, Likewise, sudden destruction will come upon them, from which they will by no means escape” (1 Thessalonians 5:1-3).
Some people deceived many people by saying that the second coming of Jesus and the date of the rapture were revealed. These are lawless people, they are Satan's workers.
We must believe the Bible as it is, interpret it correctly, understand its meaning, and believe rightly. What does 1 Thessalonians 5:4 mean if we do not know the day of the second coming of Jesus and the rapture of the saints? That means:
Although Jesus spoke in detail, he gave the appearance of the world, the events that would take place, and the characteristics of the times before Jesus returned.