The rapture theory is the belief that when the Lord comes He will come suddenly and secretly in the air and He will resurrect the righteous dead from their graves and along with the living saints they will be caught up somewhere in the air for some seven years. The people left on the earth will not know where all these have gone. They will not be able to account for their totally unexpected disappearance. They will not have an adequate answer for the open graves once occupied but no longer inhabited by bodies once placed there. While the righteous saints are with the Lord somewhere in the air there will be a time of tribulation on earth never experienced previously. Does the Bible teach there will be a Rapture? Is there a Biblical basis for all this popular propaganda? Absolutely not! The word rapture is not even in the Bible. This false theory contradicts plain Bible teaching.
The primary passage used to support the idea of a “rapture” is found in a statement Paul made to the Thessalonians: “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. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. 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.” (1Thes 4:13-18 KJV)
This passage was not given to deal with the return of Christ. Its purpose was twofold: (1) To reassure the Christians that their deceased loved ones would be able to share in the Lord’s return, and (2) to inform Christians that those who are still living when Christ returns will have no precedence or advantage over those who have already died. This dual function of the text constitutes a very different emphasis from that imposed upon the text by premillennial people.
There are several things one should observe from this text:
The theory asserts that Christ will come secretly and the saints, the living and the dead, will be quietly and mysteriously taken away. Notice, however, that the Biblical text states very clearly, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God.” Paul states that the Lord is going to descend with a shout and with the voice of the archangel and with the trump of God. Does that sound as if Christ is going to come secretly, quietly and mysteriously? The very passage Premillennial people use to teach the rapture denies their theory.
The theory also has Jesus coming FOR the saints at the beginning of the Rapture. Then it has Jesus coming WITH the saints at the end of the Rapture. These are two comings of the Lord within a seven year period. But to fit the Premillennial persuasion, of which it is an integral part, Jesus will not raise the wicked dead until at the end of His thousand year reign from David’s throne in literal Jerusalem. But read carefully the statement by Jude: “Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints, To execute judgment upon all, and to convince all that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him” (Jude 1:14-15 KJV). Thus called for is another coming of the Lord in judgment upon the wicked. This fanciful theory calls for entirely too many comings of our Lord and too many final judgments. The Bible speaks of one final judgment “Therefore having overlooked the times of ignorance, God is now declaring to men that all everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising Him from the dead” (Acts 17:30-31 NAS cf. also 2 Thess. 1:6-10). Jesus said very clearly there shall be one resurrection both of the just and the unjust and NOT two resurrections separated by 1007 years. “Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming, in which all who are in the tombs shall hear His voice, and shall come forth; those who did the good {deeds} to a resurrection of life, those who committed the evil {deeds} to a resurrection of judgment” (John 5:28-29 NAS).
The third thing to notice from the text (I Thess. 4:13-18) is the fact that Paul stated, “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.” The premillennial theory has the Lord taking the saints somewhere for seven heavenly years before bringing them back to earth for one thousand (1000) years. But that is not what the Biblical passage says. It says, “so shall we ever be with the Lord.” According to the Premillennial theory it should say, “so shall we be for seven years with the Lord.” Again the theory is false.
The fourth thing we are told by Premillennial people is that the Lord will come for His saints (the rapture) and then He will come with His saints (a second coming). The first time the Lord will come He will not be seen or manifested to the eyes of the world, but He will be seen the second time. First, you must realize that no such distinction is made in the New Testament. John states, “Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. Even so. Amen” (Rev. 1:7 NAS). There will be nothing secret about this matter because every eye will see the Lord when He comes with the clouds.
The rapture theory is completely false. If this teaching is true as Premillennial people state then surely it would be clearly advocated and demonstrated in the Scriptures instead of contradicting so many passages. We encourage you to study carefully the Bible and reject any thing man teaches that contradicts God’s Word. As Paul said, “….yea, let God be true, but every man a liar” (Rom 3:4 KJV).