PWMI

A GOOD while ago I was standing on a small hill near Calais harbour, gazing with eager expectancy out over the English Channel. A heavy fog obscured the distant part of the sea. It was a specially happy occasion for me because soon, indeed at any moment, a ship with my daughter on board would suddenly burst through the bank of mist, and she who was coming from the north and I who had come from the south would meet each other and so continue to be together. But a far greater thrill awaits the believer at that marvellous day of the Rapture, when from the earth below all the Lord's own (composing the church), whether alive or dead, will rise up in glorified bodies to meet our Lord from heaven above, in the air. Then after a short time, the Lord will lead us triumphantly back to earth. Thus His coming will be in two stages, firstly into the air, and then down to earth.
(Christ's descent from heaven into the air for His church).
At the Last Supper, Jesus reminded His disciples that He was going away. Poor Peter was utterly distraught at the prospect of losing his Lord. Then Jesus, at this crucial moment revealed to them for the first time the heart-warming news that He would come back again to take them to be with Himself (Jn.  13:33, 36, 37; 14:1-3). Thus shone out that bright light of the great anticipation of the church - the returning of our Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 1:7; Phil. 3:20, 21; 1 Thess. 1:10; 1 Tim. 6:14; Heb. 9:28). So we revel in the entrancing prospect of the glorious appearing of God's Son from heaven.


(The taking up of the church to meet our Lord in the air).
Coinciding with our Lord's arrival, in the air, all believers will be caught up into His presence; yes, all, whether we are alive at the time of this joyful event or whether the body has "fallen asleep" and been buried. Therefore, the saints (believers) living when the church IS raptured will never die. But, living or dead, our bodies will be wonderfully changed into ones that are glorious, incorruptible and immortal. So what shall we be like? We shall be something surpassing the imagination, because when we look upon the beauty of our Saviour the "impossible" will happen and we shall be transfigured into His likeness. What a tremendous stimulus this should give us to be imitators of Him in our daily lives, preparing ourselves for our entrance into the presence of that pure and Holy One!
The Rapture will take place in a fraction of a second. As our Lord descends into the air, there will be a commanding shout, the voice of an archangel and a trumpet of God, summoning first the dead in Christ to arise and, immediately after, those of us who are still on the earth. We shall all be caught up in clouds to a grand assembly with our Lord. It will mean victory over death, and the devil defied as we fearlessly gather in the realms of the prince of the power of the air. No wonder Paul tells us to comfort and exhort one another with this transcending news. Our eyes will be riveted upon that blest Man of Calvary Who has redeemed us with His blood (1 Cor. 15:51-53; 1 Thess. 4:13-18; 5:10; Rom. 8:23; 1 Jn. 3:2, 3).

What will the resurrection body be like? If a seed be sown, it does not come up precisely the same. From some seeds that are planted, e.g. bulbs, flowers of astounding beauty appear, according to the purpose and pleasure of the Divine Gardener. This contrast will be true of our body. A physical body is buried, but at the Rapture it will be transmuted into a spiritual body, so that our very ordinary body will be made similar even to Christ's present glorious body (1 Cor. 15:37, 38, 44; Phil. 3:21).

But with such a change, shall we know each other then? Assuredly, yes. Both Paul and John looked forward to seeing and recognizing their fellow-believers in the parousia in the air (2 Cor. 1:14; Phil. 2:15, 16; 1 Thess. 2:19; 1 Jn. 2:28). Moses, Elijah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, all the prophets and Lazarus are identifiable beyond the grave (Lk. 9:33; 13:28; 16:24).


This Greek word is translated in the Authorized Version as "coming", except twice as "presence". In the New Testament it usually means "arrival and presence". Some verses give prominence to the period of time concept, and others to the arrival aspect.


(This is the time when Christ will be present with His church in the air).
This is referred to in the Scriptures as "the day of Christ ... Jesus Christ ... etc." but not "the day of the Lord" (Phil. 1:6, 10; 2:16; 1 Cor. 5:5 R.V.; 2 Cor. 1:14; 1 Thess. 2:19; 3:13; 5:23). During this period, two unique events will occur, viz. the judgment seat of Christ and the marriage supper of the Lamb. It will be co-extensive with the time of the tribulation on earth, to be mentioned later.


On this occasion, all of us who are believers will appear before Christ on His assessment seat in order that the true spiritual value of everything that we have done, worthy or worthless, may be determined. Our eternal salvation is not in question, but we have to render account of our stewardship. On this basis, we shall receive our rewards.

In establishing a local church of Christians, Paul acted "like a master mason in a medieval cathedral who developed his plans as he proceeded, and sometimes as his material dictated" (Prof. E. M. Blaiklock). In 1 Cor. 3:10-15, Paul states that he laid a firm foundation for the local church, Jesus Christ. Others would build upon it, referring to the doctrine they would teach. This will incur a grave responsibility, because at the judgment seat of Christ their work will be tested by fire. That which answered spiritually to gold, silver and valuable stones (e.g. marble) in the building will successfully survive the fire, but that which related to wood (however ornate), hay and stubble will be consumed. Consequently, in the latter case, a labourer may suffer complete loss of reward, yet he himself will be saved. This principle of assessment is expanded to the manifestation of the secret things of the heart and likewise to their outworkings in deeds (2 Cor. 5:10; Rom. 14:10-12; 1 Cor. 1:8; 4:4, 5; Col. 3:25; Eph. 6:8; Rev. 22:12).


This great union of outstanding jubilation will take place at the end of the Parousia in the Air, and will be between our Lord and the Church. There will be wedding guests, composed of the vast multitude of the redeemed ones not included in the church period. The bride will be attired appropriately in fine linen, bright and pure, which is fabricated of the righteous acts (R.V.) of the saints, actuated by our Lord. Doubtless, the Judgment Seat will have played a part in this (Rev. 19:7-9; Phil. 1:11; 1 Cor. 1:30). Applying this in the individual sense, the ever-practical Bishop Taylor-Smith wrote, "What we weave in this life we shall wear in the Millennium." Christ's marvellous plan to 'present the bride (the church) to Himself as a glorious creation, not having spot (disease) or wrinkle (sign of advancing age and impending decay), but holy and perfect (Eph. 5:27).


(This is a time of intense suffering on earth, co-incident with the parousia in the air).
Man is seeking to solve his economic problems in industry by amalgamations etc., even internationally. Similarly, m an effort to answer political questions, we have the European Community. It is suggested that this Community may need a Supremo with almost dictatorial power in due course. In the Bible, the veil is lifted somewhat to give us a glimpse of such a man over a federation of nations. He is called the Man of Sin, the Son of Perdition and the Beast. He will be the Supremo over ten "kings" and kingdoms (Rev. 17:11-13; 13:1-7; Dan. 7:23, 24). At first he will support the woman in purple and scarlet, representing the religious world, but later he will destroy her (Rev. 17). In his pride he will demand that divine honours be paid to him and to his image in the temple of God and throughout the world (2 Thess. 2:4; Rev. 13:8, 15). His collaborator will be the False Prophet ("another beast"; possibly a Jew). Trading will be restricted to those bearing the identification signs of the Supremo, the Beast (Rev. 13:11-17).
His attitude to the Jews will be to make a covenant with them for a seven (week, A.V.; i.e. seven years), which will cover the Tribulation period, but halfway through this time he will break the covenant and turn against the Jews with bitter persecution, blaspheming God. This indeed will be the "time of Jacob's sorrow" (Dan. 9:27; 7:25; Jer. 30:7).
This story unfolds but a small part of the appalling conditions that will prevail after the departure of the church and the Holy Spirit (2 Thess. 2:7). Thank God, we shall be mercifully raptured before these things happen.


(This consists of Christ's descent from the air to earth).
When affairs on earth have reached their greatest and most desperate crisis, politically, religiously and economically, it is then "immediately after the tribulation" that Christ will return to earth. There is no doubt about the time factor. "Then shall appear the sign of the Son of Man in heaven", the prospect of which filled the members of the Sanhedrin with such fear that they struck our Lord in the face and maltreated Him when He told them that they would see "the Son of Man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven" (Mat. 24:29, 30; 26:64).

On this vital day, the Beast and the kings of many nations will be gathered together to fight against Jerusalem and against the Lord at the battle of Armageddon. Two thirds of the Jews in Israel will have been slaughtered and intense affliction endured by the rest. In Jerusalem, one half of the people will have been led away captive, and the city and the women despoiled. The stricken Jews in their agony will cry unto God, and He will hear. Then at this critical juncture, "then shall the Lord go forth 'to fight against the nations as when He fought in the day of battle," to their utter destruction, slain by the sword which will proceed out of the mouth of Him (Christ) Who will be sitting on the white horse (Zech. 13:8-14:4; 12:1-9; Rev. 16:14,16; 17:14; 19:11-19).

He will return in the resurrection body in which He ascended, and every eye will see Him, and He will be accompanied by myriads of saints and angels. We shall be there, bearing a likeness to Him (received at the Rapture), and He will be glorified and admired in us. What a prospect! (Acts 1:11; Rev. 1:7; Jude 14, 15; 2 Thess. 1:7, 10; Dan. 7:13, 14, 18; Rom. 8:19).

His advent will be with judgment on both Jews and Gentiles. The unrighteous will be condemned to the fire, as will also the Beast and the False Prophet. The righteous will enter the joys and the privileges of the Millennium, during which thousand years the devil will be bound in the bottomless pit (Rev.  19:19-20:3; Ezek. 20:34-38; Mat. 13:47-50; 25:1-46).


Quite definitely, we cannot tell the day or the hour of His advent, so let us beware of time-fixers (Mk. 13:32-35; Acts 1:7). Nevertheless, we have seen that it will be after the Tribulation. Further, shortly before His crucifixion, Jesus told His disciples to watch for two signs among others, which could indicate when His coming was not far off.

1. When we see the fig tree, representing Israel, coming to life after the long winter, then He (R.V.) will be at the very doors, ready to return (Mat. 24: 32, 33). This happened when the State of Israel was dramatically declared in 1948.

2. Jesus said that the Jews would be defeated and dispersed among the nations, but when Jerusalem was recaptured by the Israelis, then He would soon come in power and great glory. We all know that this ancient city was recaptured in 1967 (Lk. 21: 24, 27).

So His advent cannot be far away, and since this is preceded by the Rapture, how soon will the latter be when we shall be caught up to meet and greet our marvellous Saviour in the air? Perhaps today?

It may be as well to add a very brief summary of some further events. The Millennium will last for a thousand years, and will be characterized by Christ as King ruling in Jerusalem, a remarkable outpouring of the Holy Spirit, worldwide peace, etc. (Rev. 20:1-6; Lk. 1:31-33; Zech. 14:9; Ps. 2:6; Joel 12:28, 29; Is. 2:4; 9:6, 7). It will end with the release of Satan from the pit and a rebellion of the nations under his leadership. These will be destroyed by fire, and the devil will join the Beast and the False Prophet in the lake of fire. There will be a resurrection of those whose names are not in the Lamb's book of life for condemnation at the Great White Throne, and their doom will be in the eternal fire (Rev. 20:7-15). Then, after all enemies have been suppressed, the Lord will deliver up the kingdom to the Father (1 Cor. 15:24-28). This present universe will be consumed with appalling heat (atomic?) and a new heaven and a new earth will be ushered in together with the dawn of eternity (2 Pet. 3:12, 13; Rev. 21:1-22:5).

Challenge. The Lord may come into the air to take the believers away at any moment. Are YOU ready? If not, kindly prayerfully study Rom. 3:23; 6:23; Jn. 3:16; 5:24; 6:47.

First published (1972) by Prophetic Witness Publishing House
Copyright  Dr. M. E. J. Packer