Rapture of the Living Believer

The rapture of the living believers, you and me!?

"Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed " 1 Cor:15:51.

Mystery not mysterious
A mystery in Scripture is something that has been a secret or not known before but is revealed now.

We shall not all sleep
What an awesome announcement. Some of us, hopefully you and I will be in this group, will never die. Enoch and Elijah went to heaven without dying. All of the believers who are alive at the rapture, when Jesus comes, will go to heaven alive, without dying. I truly expect the Lord Jesus to come while I am alive. 1 Jn. 3:2 is my life verse.

Our body shall be changed
" For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; who will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself" Phil 3:21.

Flesh and blood
"Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable" 1 Cor 15:50. "The life of the flesh is in the blood" Lev. 17:11. Flesh and blood is perishable and not suited for heaven and eternity. It is a "terrestrial body" and we need a "celestial body" for heaven Vs. 40-44. "A spirit hath not flesh and bones, as ye see me have" said Jesus vs. 39. He had no blood, He shed it at Calvary to cleanse us from our sins. We wont have any blood in eternity for we will have a new, "celestial body."

No more tears
"My bifocals fit me dandy, my false teeth fit me fine. My hearing aids come in handy, but I sure do miss my mind." Most of us senior can relate to that poem and long for that new body. Praise God, there will be no more sickness, no more sorrows. No more tears no more torments. No more sadness, no more madness. "What a day that will be, when my Jesus I do see" and be "like Him, for we shall see Him as He is" 1 John 3:2.

No more death
"For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality" Vs. 53. I have been to Egypt and seen the mummies, thousands of years old and to Rome and seen in the catacombs the dust of bodies buried there. Thank God the believers body will be fashioned like to His glorious body with all the ramifications of His body.

No more sin
"We will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is" 1 John 3:2. Dr. Walvoord points out "We are going to be like Him, that is, that we will be without sin and will be able to stand comfortably in the presence of the holy God because Christ, when He appears, will appear to us and we will see His glory" Titus 2:13. This old sin nature is tied to this natural body and we will have the new spiritual body. There will be no more urges to sin. We can all shout about that.

O dear people, we need to bask in the glow and glory of the future. This "blessed hope" Titus 2:13, this "comforting hope" 1 Thes. 3:18, "this transforming hope" 1 Cor 15:51 will carry you through to victory no matter what ever befalls you. "But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ " 1 Cor.15:57. "Think on these things" Phil 4:8.

Prayer: Father, bless the dear one reading this right now who is discouraged, diseased or downhearted and lift their eyes and hearts to see their glorious future in Christ. In Jesus name.

And I love you, all because the Lord Jesus suffered and died for our sins, paid our debt in full and rose again so we can be forgiven and go to heaven, sumner. Do you believe in that alone for your salvation? Believe and pray to receive Him as your Savior right now. "He that has the Son, has life"

Physical death

You may never have to die physically

"Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed" 1 Cor. 15:51 Death is sleep to the believer.

No one, "can't wait to die." "The last enemy that will be abolished is death" Vs 26. Some of us will never die. God tells us "We will not all sleep." Sleep here is referring to death as in Vs 6, "some are fallen asleep" and in verse 17, 18 which says, "and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished" and 1 Cor. 11:30 "and many sleep."

This is not soul sleep
The soul is very much alive when the body dies as in Luke 16 when the rich man lifted up his eyes in hell and saw Lazarus safe in Abraham's bosom and spoke to him. "To be absent from the body and to be at home with the Lord." 2 Cor. 5:8. For the unbeliever it is to be absent from the Lord.

Paul did not want to die and neither do I Read 2 Cor. 5:1-8 carefully. Paul talked about our earthly body being dissolved, dying. "For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven, inasmuch as we, having put it on, will not be found naked. For indeed while we are in this tent, we groan, being burdened, because we do not want to be unclothed but to be clothed, so that what is mortal will be swallowed up by life" Vs. 2-4. As the song says, "Oh joy oh delight, should we go without dying." What a blessed hope we have. Titus 2:13.

A preview of the rapture
Enoch was a preview of one being taken home without dying. "By faith Enoch was taken up so that he would not see death; AND HE WAS NOT FOUND BECAUSE GOD TOOK HIM UP; for he obtained the witness that before his being taken up he was pleasing to God" Heb 11:5. Oh that we had that same testimony.

Oh, dear people, prophecy gives us great hope and peace when we have "understanding of the times" and what is going to happen when our Savior comes to take us home. We should long for His coming and pray, "Even so, come Lord Jesus" Rev. 22:20.

Prayer:  Father, bless Your people who are going through hard times and may they comfort one another with this blessed truth of the coming of the Lord Jesus. In His name I pray.

And I love you, all because the Lord Jesus suffered and died for our sins, paid our debt in full and rose again so we can be forgiven and go to heaven, sumner. Do you believe in that alone for your salvation? Believe and pray to receive Him as your Savior right now. "He that has the Son, has life"

Scoffers

"This is now, beloved, the second letter I am writing to you in which I am stirring up your sincere mind by way of reminder, that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior spoken by your apostles. Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, and saying, "Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation." For when they maintain this, it escapes their notice that... But do not let this one fact escape your notice, beloved, that with the Lord one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years like one day. The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance" 2 Peter 3:15, 8, 9.

 

Why has Jesus delayed His coming? No. 1 God is eternal Deut. 33:27" and so a thousand years" are but a snap of the finger to God. Why has He delayed his coming? So you and I could be saved! Awesome, isn't it? And so others "should come to repentance" vs. 9 and we could have a part and win others also to Christ that are alive now.

 

No. 2

"Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness" 2 Peter 3:11. This old world and all that is in it, all our possessions, shall be burned up (vs. 10) and "only what is done for Christ shall last." You and I MUST pursue "holiness and godliness."

 

No. 3

"Looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God" 2 Peter 3:12. "The day of the Lord" begins immediately after the rapture when we are caught up to meet the Lord in the air and the tribulation begins. We should be constantly looking for that day for we will then "purify ourselves as He is pure" 1 John 3:2. And so we won't be "ashamed before Him at His coming" 1 John 2:28 or that "the son of man" not be "ashamed of us when he cometh in the glory of His Father with the holy angels" Mark 8:38. Doesn''t that make sense?

 

O dear people, we are not going to be slapping each other on the back as we go up in the rapture and looking down our noses at those left behind. Too many will "be ashamed before Him at His coming" 1 John 2:28.. Some will shortly thereafter see all their "works burned, saved yet so as by fire" 1 Cor. 3:15:16. "Lay up treasures in heaven" Matt. 6:20. More on this later.

 

Prayer:  Father, help us "to understand the times" and "So teach us to number our days, That we may present to You a heart of wisdom" Ps. 90:12.

 

"Making the most of your time, because the days are evil" Eph. 5:16. "He who is wise wins souls" Pro. 11:30. He who walks with wise men will be wise" Prov 13:20.

 

Dr. Charles C. Ryrie, ThD and PhD, has written over twenty books. One of the best called, "Basic Theology," dealing with all the basic doctrines of the Bible. It has been translated into a number of languages including Chinese and Russian.

 

He has several on prophecy. His master piece is the "Ryrie Study Bible." The notes, outlines and explanations of verses are extremely enlightening and helpful. Everyone who has heard him teach or read his books remark how clear and understandable he makes deep theological subjects to sound. You will love his article.