It's basically an evacuation; viz: God wants Christ's church out of here, and off of here, before the dreadful events depicted in the book of Revelation begin to take place.
●1Thess 1:10 . .Wait for His son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead-- Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.
● 1Thess 5:9 . . For God has not destined us for wrath
Who constitutes Christ's "church" do you think? When I read Matthew 7:21-23 I see Jesus at the judgment rejecting "many" who claim him as their "Lord". They seem shocked that Jesus would do that seeing as how they thought of themselves as good Christians, doing things like prophesying, expelling demons and performing powerful works in his name....yet he tells them that he NEVER knew them. So who are these ones that Jesus has never known? NEVER means "not ever".
The rapture is not predicted in the Old Testament, rather; in the New.
Yes, the Jews were expecting Messiah to establish his Kingdom on earth and to bless all mankind through them. Only with the coming of Christ were his disciples made aware of the spiritual nature of the Kingdom.
It would rule from heaven, but over earthly subjects. Remember that God created humans to live forever on earth. If Adam had not sinned, no human would have ever gone to heaven because the Kingdom and the savior would not have been necessary. Have you ever contemplated that?
There is no date given for the rapture, nor any signs or warnings given to alert people to start getting ready. People have been watching for it ever since the first century because it's an impending event; i.e. imminent.
Jesus actually did give a warning if you read Matthew 24:3-14. The apostles asked him about when they could expect the Kingdom to come and the end of the age. He did not give them a specific time but indicated that a series of world events would signal that he had begun his rulership in heaven. It was the sign of his "presence" (parousia) not of his "coming", which was to occur at the end....at the judgment.
People will be levitated rather than disappearing so it's likely the event will be witnessed by just about everybody on Earth; and there's an order to it.
Are you expecting this resurrection to be in the flesh? Will humans "levitate" and drift off into the sky?
Is that what the Bible says?
First of all: the dead in Christ from day-one till now will be restored to life; viz: resurrected; which is pretty interesting because not everyone's dead body is an intact corpse. Some have been completely dissolved, some are ashes, and some have either been eaten by beasts or blown to bits in explosions.
Yes, it would be hard to resurrect someone whose body has been lost somehow. But does God need the remains of someone to resurrect them?
The resurrections in the Bible were back to this life. But the ones performed by Jesus when he comes to take his anointed ones "home" is the same kind of resurrection that he himself experienced.
The apostle Peter said.....
"For Christ died once for all time for sins, a righteous person for unrighteous ones, in order to lead you to God. He was put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit." (1 Peter 3:18)
What do you think that means?
Anyway, after all of Christ's dead are revived, then everybody in Christ-- those who are still living and those who were deceased --will be levitated all at the same time, en masse, to rendezvous with Christ up in the sky; like an alien abduction, so to speak. Exactly how far up in the sky I don't know.
Sounds like a sci-fi movie. Are you sure about all of that?
I assume so because the Bible says that the raptured people will be with Christ from thence and forever.
Does the word "rapture" appear anywhere in the NT?
I should think it's because heaven will be safer there than here.
Have you ever traced the Bible's narrative from Genesis to Revelation? It is one story that begins with creation, humans failing the test of obedience, the penalty and its consequences, God's rescue mission in sending Jesus Christ, and finally the restoration of all that was lost in the beginning. Lessons about the appropriate use of free will mean that it will never happen again.....and precedents are set about obedience to God's laws for all time to come. Its an amazing read when you put all the pieces together. Did you ever wonder what the point was in God choosing a nation as his own, when they could never get their act together?
I'm guessing that first off they'll be sent to a sort of Bible Camp where they'll get some of their spurious interpretations debunked; and then given the right ones so that all the debating will cease. It is God's wishes that Christ's people be unified.
Later, they'll be transferred to a brand new cosmos that's in the works. Exactly what they'll do in the new cosmos I don't know.
The Bible repeats the phrase "a new heavens and a new earth" in Isaiah's prophesies and in Revelation and also it is used by the apostle Peter. (2 Peter 3:13) Some people see this as literal, but on reflection, we have to ask what is wrong with the literal heavens and the earth that would require God to scrap them and make new ones?
We have an instance in the past where God destroyed a world of corruption in Noah's day. He cleansed the earth by means of a flood but he did not destroy the planet. Jesus used the flood of Noah's day to indicate what the world would be like again when it was time for his return.....and here we are. (Matthew 24:37-39)
We don't need a new planet...we just need to clean up the old one and rid it of wickedness. Jesus said that the
"meek shall inherit the earth"....this is where God put us in the first place....it is where he intended us to live in peace and security in paradise conditions for all time to come.
Ecclesiastes 1:4 says....
"A generation is going, and a generation is coming,
But the earth remains forever."
And there is nothing wrong with the universe so "the new heavens" must refer to something else. Perhaps it is the governmental arrangement that needs replacing as well. God's kingdom is going to "come" and "crush" all existing human rulership out of existence, and replace it. (Daniel 2:44)
I should think it's easier to believe the moon is made of green cheese than to believe in a rapture.
It sounds really silly to me. Those who go to heaven are not the only ones saved. Their resurrection is spiritual, not fleshly and they are said to be rulers and priests with Christ in his kingdom. (Revelation 20:6) So who are they ruling? And for whom do they act as priests? There are no sinners in heaven.
Not me! its too involved and too complex. And besides; Christendom is divided on this issue; very divided. However, I can recommend a couple of scriptures that you might find helpful.
1Cor 15:35-53
1Thess 4:13-17
Does it have to be complex? I see it all rather simply......what God started in the beginning was going to be completed at the end. (Isaiah 55:11)
