Things You Have Never Heard About The Rapture

The things I will share with you we hope these exciting things will take place during our life time, but if not during our life time, we know they will take place in the life of some Believers who will be living on the earth.

Beloved, I am talking about the RAPTURE OF THE BELIEVERS!

IS THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH SOMETHING WE CAN KNOW ABOUT?

The word of God states that it is.

Look at 1 Thess. 4:13, we read, “But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.”

Look at the word “Ignorant” this is the Greek word “agnoeo”, (pronounced as, ag-no-eh'-o) which means - not to know, through lack of information or intelligence.

God does not want us to be ignorant about the RAPTURE.

He says in 1 Thess. 4:18, “Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”

Can we find comfort in something we do not even know anything about?

We can not, that is why God’s Word says, concerning the RAPTURE, “I would not have you to be ignorant brethren…”

Anytime I preached on THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH, I always want to distinguish between the RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH and the SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. Some think they are the same, but THEY ARE NOT!

• THE RAPTURE – This is where Christ will descend to a point in the air and He will call His Children to meet Him in the air.

During the RAPTURE, He does not set foot on this earth.

• THE SECOND COMING of the Lord -- Here, the Lord will literally come back to this earth. This is why we call it the SECOND COMING of Christ.

These are two different events.

In fact, they are separated by a seven year period known as the Tribulation period.

I. WHAT IS THE RAPTURE

Let’s look at some GENERAL THINGS about the RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH.

A. WE NEED TO CONSIDER THE DEFINITION OF THE RAPTURE

Someone said, “The rapture is the state of being transported from one place to the other.”

That is a good scriptural definition.

Look at 1 Thess. 4:15-18, we read, “For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.”

This is the definition of the rapture but…

B. WE NEED TO CONSIDER WHO WILL BE TRANSPORTED FROM ONE PLACE TO ANOTHER IN THE RAPTURE

The RAPTURE will affect two groups of people:

(1) THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD IN CHRIST

When Christ raptures the church, the Bible tells us that the dead in Christ shall rise first.

Look at 1 Cor. 15:51-52, we read, “Behold, I show 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 trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.”

Notice, Paul says, “I show you a mystery”. I do not know how it is going to happen, nor does anyone else know.

Illus: Dr. Odell Belger tells how that he saw a bunch of Christian men digging a foundation for a house. He noticed one of them was leaping up and down. He asked him what was he doing? He said he was practicing for the rapture and he wanted to get off to a good start!!!

When the rapture take place the Lord will not need any help in rapturing His church.

Christ is going to rapture the church, and the Bible says that all those who have died in Christ will be taken up and given their glorified bodies.

If as a child of God this evening, you die before the Lord RAPTURES THE CHURCH, you will be a part of that group that will be RESURRECTED FROM AMONG THE DEAD.

But if you are living when Christ comes back, and you are a child of God, you will experience-

(2) THE TRANSPORTING OF THE LIVING IN CHRIST

Look at the last part of verse 52 that speaks of the living, we read, “…and we shall be changed.”

HOW WILL WE BE CHANGED?

Notice, two things:

(1) WE SHALL BE CHANGED FROM MORTAL TO IMMORTAL