Two men will be in the field;
one will be taken and the other left.
Two women will be grinding with a hand mill;
one will be taken and the other left.
Matthew 24:40-41 (NIV)
THE RAPTURE OF THE CHURCH
Will there be a "rapture", or a catching away, of the Church?
Yes! I believe there will be a "rapture" of the Church.
Is the word "rapture" anywhere in the Bible?
No! At least not that I could find.
What does the word rapture mean?
The word rapture, according to "The New Webster Encyclopedic Dictionary Of The English Language", published by AVENEL BOOKS New York 1984, is defined as follows:
rapture, rap'cher, n. [From L. rapere, ratum, to seize and carry away; whence also rapine, etc. RAPID.] a seizing by violence; a transport of delight; ecstasy; extreme joy or pleasure; enthusiasm.
What are people referring to when they talk about the "Rapture of the Church"?
We know from scripture there will be a Great Tribulation period.
We believe the true Church, those who belong to Christ, 1) will be caught up, 2) in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, and 3) will escape some, if not all, of the Great Tribulation period.
We believe we will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air and we will be with the Lord forever. This belief is a source of hope, and therefore, will be a rapturous event, that is, "rapid" glorious "transport of delight" giving us "extreme joy".
1) we will be caught up; 2) in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye
According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage each other with these words. 1 Thess. 4:15-18 (NIV)
Concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered to him, we ask you, brothers, not to become easily unsettled or alarmed by some prophecy, report or letter supposed to have come from us, saying that the day of the Lord has already come. Don't let anyone deceive you in any way, for that day will not come until the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the man doomed to destruction.
2 Thess. 2:1-3 (NIV)But your dead will live; their bodies will rise. You who dwell in the dust, wake up and shout for joy. Your dew is like the dew of the morning; the earth will give birth to her dead. Isa. 26:19 (NIV)
"At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other. Matt. 24:30-31 (NIV)
Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left. Matt 24:40-41 (NIV)
I declare to you, brothers, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed— in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed. For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality. When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: "Death has been swallowed up in victory."
1 Cor 15:50-54 (NIV)
3) we will escape some, if not all, of the Great Tribulation period.
Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth. I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown. Rev 3:10-11 (NIV)
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. John 14:1-3 (NIV)
Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the doors behind you; hide yourselves for a little while until his wrath has passed by. Isa 26:20 (NIV)
For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1Thess 5:9 (NIV)
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on him." John 3:36 (NIV)
Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! Rom 5:9 (NIV)
When will this "rapture" happen?
No one knows when the rapture will happen. We do not know whether it will be pre-Trib (before The Great Tribulation), or mid-Trib (during The Great Tribulation) or Post-Trib (after The Great Tribulation).
Now, brothers, about times and dates we do not need to write to you, for you know very well that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, "Peace and safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. 1 Thess. 5:1-3 (NIV)
"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. Matt 24:36-39 (NIV)
"Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come. But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into. So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him. Matt 24:42-44 (NIV)
"At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them. The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps. The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep. "At midnight the cry rang out: 'Here's the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!' "Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, 'Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.' "'No,' they replied, 'there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.' "But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut. "Later the others also came. 'Sir! Sir!' they said. 'Open the door for us!' "But he replied, 'I tell you the truth, I don't know you.' "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour. Matt 25:1-13 (NIV)
The Father loves the Son
and has placed everything in his hands.
Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life,
but whoever rejects the Son will not see life,
for God's wrath remains on him."
John 3:35-36 (NIV)
"For God so loved the world
that he gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him
shall not perish but have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son
into the world to condemn the world,
but to save the world through him.
Whoever believes in him is not condemned,
but whoever does not believe
stands condemned already
because he has not believed in
the name of God's one and only Son.
John 3:16-18 (NIV)
Do you believe in Jesus?
We would love to hear from you! 
