Since the start of the New Year, we have been contemplating eternity and what it will mean for believers in Christ. We have discussed Christ's rewards for godly character, faithfulness, and service. In the coming days, we will explore the resurrection body that believers will receive upon Christ's return. The Lord knows those who are His (2 Timothy 2:19), and at His return, He will send forth His angels to gather those who have accepted His pardon for sin and the gift of salvation:
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 (Matthew 24:31).
At the arrival of Christ, believers will be raptured or gathered with Him in the clouds. Here's what the Apostle Paul said about that grand event:
13Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. 14For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. 15According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16For 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. 17After 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 (1 Thessalonians 4:13-17, Emphasis added).
The words above are from the classic passage about the rapture of the Church. In our series on the End Times and our study called The Rapture of the Saints, we learned that the word "rapture" is not found in the Bible. The English word “rapture" comes from the Latin word "rapere," which translates the Greek word "harpazo," meaning "snatched up." In some English translations of the Bible, the original Greek word is translated as "caught up" (v. 17). A loud shout from the Lord Jesus will precede this event, along with a trumpet call. Those who have died or slept in Christ will be brought with Jesus at His coming (v. 14) and instantly changed and reunited with their bodies. Although they have been in heaven with Christ, He will bring them with Him.
Those believers who are still alive on Earth at that time will witness this event before they are gathered with all believers from around the world. It will be a time of homecoming when the Lord Jesus rewards everyone who belongs to Christ. What an incredible day that will be! When that Day comes, all who have repented and walked with Christ but have departed from this life will receive new bodies. Those on Earth will also be transformed instantly (1 Corinthians 15:51-54). Paul states that our new bodies will be like Christ's glorious body (Philippians 3:20). The radiance of Christ shining through us will be powerful and beautiful, demonstrating God's transformative power. The Lord said, “The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father" (Matthew 13:43).
We will reflect on the new body we will receive in the coming days. I hope to see you in the clouds when that Day arrives (v. 17). Keith Thomas.
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Taken from the series Insights into Eternity. Click on study 3 or the link: The Resurrection Body.. Here are our teaching videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@keiththomas7/videos
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