THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH
- Its any-moment occurrence.
A number of events are associated with the end of the age. Jesus promised His disciples, (Jn.14: 3; 1 Thess.4: 16b, 17), Jesus spoke also of great tribulation, (Mt.24: 21). The Great Tribulation is described in detail in the book of Revelation, chapters 6 through nineteen. (See also Dan.12: 1). The tribulation will be caused by Satan, through the agency of one called variously: “The Beast” (Rev.13: 1), the “Antichrist” (1 Jn.2: 18), the “Man of sin” and the “Son of perdition” (2 Thess.2: 3), and the “Little horn” (Dn.7: 8). The Great Tribulation will be concluded by the Battle of Armageddon and the Revelation of Jesus as King of Kings, who will come with His armies of saints to bring judgement upon the “Beast” and his followers (Rev.19; 11-21). The Great Tribulation is followed by the Millennial reign of Christ, the Final Judgement, and the Eternal State (Rev.20: 22; Tit.2: 13).
The Apostle Paul, since he was the apostle to the Gentile church, was given a special Revelation from the Lord Himself regarding the details of the Rapture and its relationship to the Resurrection. In a passage in 1 Corinthians, Paul again speaks of the rapture of the Church together with the bodily resurrection of deceased believers: “Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all 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” (15: 51, 52, NASB). When the Lord comes for His Church, not only will be the living saints be raptured, their bodies will be changed into glorified imperishable bodies. The believer, body and spirit, will become like Jesus (1 Jn.3: 2, 3).
Another reference to the Rapture, by Paul, is found in 2 Thessalonians: “Now we beseech you brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our GATHERING TOGETHER UNTO HIM…” (2: 1). There is a probable additional reference to the Rapture in the same passage: …” that day (the Day of the Lord) shall not come, except there come a FALLING AWAY first…” (v.3). The Greek word translated “Falling away” may also have he meaning “Departure” (see 2 Cor.12: 8, “Depart”). The word in Greek has the definite article; therefore it refers to an event known by the recipients. Since the whole subject is about the “Rapture” and the concern of the Thessalonians that they were already in the Tribulation, the rendering “Departure” is a reasonable one.
Without doubt, the New Testament, especially Paul’s writings, is very clear about a “Rapture” of the living believers at Christ’s Coming. All evangelicals are agreed that a rapture will occur; they are not in agreement about when the Rapture will occur in relation to the tribulation period described in the book of Revelation. While this book will identify itself with the Pre-tribulation Rapture position, which is the historic position of our church, the authors refrain from radical dogmatism in the presentation of the position, recognizing the fact that godly and scholarly teachers take other positions.
- Various Rapture theories.
a. THE POST-TRIBULATION RAPTURE THEORY: Those who hold this theory believe that the believers will go through the Tribulation and that the Rapture will occur simultaneously with, or immediately before, the Lord’s Coming in Judgement. They hold that the Rapture of the Church and Christ’s Return to Rule are simply different aspects of a single event which will happen at the end of the Great Tribulation, and just before the defeat of the Beast and his followers and the beginning of the Millennium. The best contemporary advocates of the Post-tribulation Rapture are: Dr. George .E. Ladd, in The Blessed Hope (Eerdmans, 1973); A Theology of the New Testament (Zondervan, 1977); and .J. Barton Payne, in Encyclopedia of Biblical Prophecy (Harper and Row, 173). (To be continued)
Arksolad Services 