What is the rapture? My definition: The time when Jesus comes to take the body of believers, both dead and alive, home to heaven transforming our bodies to be eternal and incorruptible in the process.
There are four main scripture passages that provide a solid foundation for the belief in the rapture of the church before the beginning of the tribulation. In this next series of posts I am going to make use of my verse-by-verse studies of these sections of scripture. Using the plain sense of scripture, I honestly don’t see how anyone can make any other conclusion than that true believers will be rescued from the wrath to come during the “tribulation” and prior to the revelation of the Antichrist, the man of sin, who initiates the beginning of that 7-year period by confirming a peace covenant with Israel for that specified period of time.
The first passage we will check out is found in Paul’s letter to the Corinthians. It is in this letter that Paul reveals the mystery of the rapture. The context of this revelation is instruction regarding resurrection from the dead.
1Corinthians 15:51 Behold, I shew 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. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.
At this point Paul gets everyone’s undivided attention; he tells them that he is going to reveal to them a secret, something that God has not revealed to anyone before. The Greek for "sleep" states, “to slumber, to decease, be dead.” It’s obvious that in the context of this passage the reference is to physical death. Paul is telling this body of believers that not everyone is going to die. Also in context, Paul is sharing this revelation with people who have trusted Christ as Savior. The exciting new truth—“we shall be changed...to put on incorruption and… immortality.”
One of the first things I notice is that Paul seemed to think that he could be part of that group—“we shall not all sleep.”
The next truth revealed is that whether dead or alive, the believer will be changed, made different. The question begs, “What kind of change?” Our mortal, corruptible bodies will be made immortal (eternal) and incorruptible (not subject to decay or depravation).
There are so many other questions that this truth poses, such as how and when? Paul gives a general answer to both in verse 52.
• In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye – an instant, less than a second
• At the last trump – I did quite a bit of study on this in conjunction with my topical study of the rapture. Suffice it to say that many scholars have given varying explanations regarding this trumpet. I want to share with you a few paragraphs from that study as quoted from Renald Showers that make good sense to me.
1Corinthians 14 talks about the trumpet from a military perspective, so it would appear that thought would be continued in chapter 15. In Bible times, “when they went to war, they had a “last trump” that would be blown that would tell the fighting men, ‘Your time of fighting is over. It is time for you to go home and rest.’ A ‘last trump’ ended their time in the warfare.”
There were also two trumpets related to guard duty. “They had a first trump that signaled when a man was to start his watch…then they had a ‘last trump’ which signaled that his time on guard duty was over and it was time for him to go home.” The comparison to the Christian is obvious.
“The fact that Paul, when he mentions the last trump, doesn’t explain to the Corinthians what he meant by that indicates that they understood what he meant by ‘the last trump.’ They were very familiar…with that terminology of ‘the last trump’ signals used for Roman soldiers, whether their fighting is done or their tour of duty on the watch is over for that day.” [End quote]
This passage only focuses on the truth that the time is coming when every true believer will receive a new body that will no longer be subject to the sin nature and will never again be subject to death. That transformation will take place for most will take place after they have died physically, but some will experience that transformation without experiencing physical death.
In the next post we will look at Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians and learn more regarding this time.
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