Behold, I tell 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 trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed.
(1 Cor. 15:51-52 NAS)

What an extraordinary time to be alive. What a wonderful point in history in which to be a child of God. We are the generation that will not only see the end of one millennium and the beginning of the next, but we are also the generation that will usher in the last millennium. And I'm firmly convinced we are the generation of believers that will experience the Rapture of the Church. What a privileged group we are!

Unfortunately, in our generation most people simply scoff when it comes to things like the Rapture of the Church, or the literal establishment of the reign of Jesus upon this earth. Those things are unreal to them, so they stay in the comfortable realm of fantasy, and mock whatever threatens that fantasy.

Sadly, this is even true for many who claim the name of Christ. In fact, one recent survey indicated that nearly half of America's Christians say they don't believe in a literal Rapture.

Being a scoffer where these matters are concerned is dangerous ground. As this verse shows us, if you make light of the end times, if it is not real to you, the probability is you will, indeed, fulfill the lusts of your flesh. You will not reflect nor participate in God's will for you, or many of His blessings.

There is much confusion and ignorance where the subject of the Rapture is concerned. It is for all these reasons that I want to share some of the most common questions concerning this glorious event and offer you some biblical answers.

It is true that our English word Rapture (which simply means "a catching away") does not appear in most English translations of the Bible. The concept, however, is found throughout scripture.

In the Old Testament there are several Raptures instances in which one of God's people is caught away into heaven without experiencing physical death. Enoch and Elijah are examples of this phenomenon.

One of the key New Testament passages describing the Rapture of the Church is found in 1 Thessalonians:

For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, and remain until the coming of the Lord, will by no means precede those who are asleep. 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. Therefore comfort one another with these words.
(1 Thess. 4:15-18 NKJ)

The Greek word translated "caught up" in the above passage is harpazo and it literally means "to seize" or "to catch away." In other words, this verse is a direct reference to the "Rapture" of the Church. This, by no means, is the only New Testament reference to this remarkable event. The verse I cited at the beginning of the article is a classic. There are many others.

Anyone who attempts to set a date for the Rapture is asking to end up with egg on his face. However, the Word does indicate that we can (and should) be aware of the times and seasons. In 2 Thessalonians 2:1-2, it says:

Now, brethren, concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our gathering together to Him, we ask you, not to be soon shaken in mind or troubled, either by spirit or by word or by letter, as if from us, as though the day of Christ had come.
(2 Thess. 2:1-2)

Two distinct events are described here. First, with the phrase, "the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ," Paul refers to both the Second Advent (the literal, physical return of Jesus Christ to earth). With the phrase "our gathering together to Him," he speaks of the Rapture.

The young church at Thessalonica was a little concerned because they had heard, incorrectly, that the Second Advent was at hand. But Paul goes on to explain:

Let no one deceive you by any means; for that day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition.
(2 Thess. 2:3)

Now many people view, "the falling away," as a time of general apostasy, or backsliding, in the Church. I believe that is an acceptable interpretation of the English translation, but the phrase can also be translated, "until the departure comes." This preferred translation is clearly a reference to the Rapture.

"That day," meaning the Second Advent, will be proceeded, first of all, by the Rapture of the Church and then secondly "the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition." So two things happen before the Second Advent: the Church is raptured, and the man of sin, or Antichrist, is revealed.

"And now you know what is restraining, that he may be revealed in his own time." There is something withholding the revelation of Antichrist.

For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way.
(2 Thess. 2:6-7)

This indicates that sin is already at work in the earth, but the ultimate revelation of Antichrist is being withheld. Another translation says, "the hinderer of lawlessness must first be removed." This speaks of an entity in the earth today which makes it impossible for the pure evil that is Antichrist to be fully manifested. That entity is us, the Church!

Of course, there is already a spirit of Antichrist at work in the earth right now promoting the kinds of wicked behavior we see all over the world today. But it is being restrained. The Church is the force in the earth restraining the full loosing of that spirit of lawlessness in the earth.

But not every part of the Church is currently doing its part in this effort. Dead, lifeless fellowships mired in tradition and religiosity offer no resistance at all to the devil. These powerless churches are the ones without any life in the Spirit within them; they are not bastions of prayer. Why should Satan fear them? They represent little or no threat to his efforts.

It is the Spirit-filled Church endued with power from on high, as we see in the book of Acts, which is the greatest force in the earth today, keeping lawlessness from manifesting without restraint.

Until the Rapture of the Church occurs, you can forget all of this silly speculation about who Antichrist is, or if he is here already, because who he is will not be revealed until the Church is out of here.

Who will be taken in the Rapture? Will all believers go? I know I'm about to step on some toes and slay some sacred cows here, but I believe the Word of God suggests that not every person who calls himself a Christian will necessarily go up in the Rapture.

There is only one class of Christian who is going, and that is the Christian who does the Word consistently, in other words, who lives by faith and who bears the fruit of righteousness as a result.

I am not talking about a specific church or denomination. There are Christians in every denomination: Catholic, Baptist, Lutheran, Methodists, etc., who keep the Word, and do it consistently from their heart.

Those are the ones Jesus has guaranteed will miss the "hour of trial" on this earth. This is a truth we have to embrace. The Rapture is real.

If you believe that Jesus died and rose again, you have to embrace the Rapture of the Church. The Resurrection and the Rapture are inextricably linked. Just as the death and resurrection of Christ is fundamental and intrinsic to our beliefs, the Rapture is as well. It is clearly part of our biblical doctrine as Christians.

In laying out the doctrine of the Rapture, Paul added, "comfort one another with these words." It is truly comforting and exciting to realize "we shall not all sleep." And that we are the generation that is likely to experience the culminating event of the Church age.

Copyright © Mac Hammond Ministries
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