One deranged dictator with nuclear weapon capabilities could send this planet over its shaky precipice into oblivion. One rogue nation with poisonous chemicals could wipe out major population centers. Weapons of mass destruction detonated by an evil regime could cause destruction on a scale unknown to man. Such dictators, rogue nations and an unknown number of states armed with chemical weapons do exist in our world . Academic scenarios drawn up in war rooms of the generals have been replaced with a clear and present danger.
The scriptures boldly prophesy that catastrophic events like this will take place in the end of time. As we grow closer to the appointed time, the blurred images construed from passages of scripture by prophecy preachers of the past have continued to sharpen in focus until it takes little imagination to picture such scenes around the world today. Add to this the present evidence that the other calamities outlined in Revelation have progressed to the imminent threat level, and you have a serious case for the rapture of the church.
Jesus Christ will rapture His church at the appointed time in the future. Yet, despite the frightening trends of our present world, this belief is not based on the status quo, but upon clear statements from the Word of God. Readers who profess even a modicum of faith in the Bible need to know about the rapture of the church. We all need to understand that it could happen much, much sooner than we might imagine. Christ’s coming is twofold.
- First, He will come for the church. This is really the core of the Rapture doctrine. “For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.” I Thessalonians 4:16-17). Phase one of Christ’s coming will occur above the earth.
- Phase two will happen when He comes back to earth with His church. “The LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with Him” Zechariah 14:5. This will begin the thousand-year peaceful reign of Christ on the earth (Revelation 20:6). These are the two elements of the coming of Christ. They are coordinate actions, each one complementing the other.
The rapture of the church holds great significance for believers. Paul referred to it as “Our blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). Jesus set it forth as a great incentive for Christian living. “But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch therefore and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.” Luke 21:34-36.
The Rapture will signal a marvelous change in the material makeup of the bodies of the saints. Our bodies will undergo a transformation from mortal flesh to a new, glorified substance designed to inhabit heaven throughout eternity. (I Corinthians 15:51-52). The properties of this new body will apparently be like that of the resurrected body of Christ. He appeared and vanished at will and defied even the force of gravity. Such a change will enable the saints to be “gathered” to Christ.
The transportation of our bodies will follow their transformation. In I Thessalonians 4:16-17, the phrase “in the air” signifies an actual journey from this earth to heaven. However it may occur, we shall appear with Christ in glory. (Colossians 3:4). The Scriptures always refer to heaven as a place above, up, or beyond. In Revelation 21:2, John saw the New Jerusalem as a place separate from the earth, coming down out of heaven. When will this happen? All we know is His coming is imminent. Look for it today!