End of Days Pt. 10 What s Going On? March 30, The Rapture. 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

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1 End of Days Pt. 10 What s Going On? March 30, 2014 Jesus is coming again The Rapture 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 Rapture to be caught up to be carried away Next great event Two Truths 1. He is going to raise up the bodies of Christians who have died vs. 13 a. cemetery means resting place - a place where bodies rest Illustration Great great Uncle in Pulaski, TN 2 Corinthians 5.So we are always confident, knowing that while we are at home in the body we are absent from the Lord. 7 For we walk by faith, not by sight. 8 We are confident, yes, well pleased rather to be absent from the body and to be present with the Lord. - death is a separation of the soul from the body - our bodies are mortal - the real you lives on the inside of our body and that is called our soul - The Bible doesn t teach soul sleep but is does teach body sleep - 1. Genesis 2: And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being - 2. When Someone dies physically.eccl. 12: Then the dust will return to the earth as it was, And the spirit will return to God who gave it I Cor 15: But someone will say, How are the dead raised up? - 39 All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one kind of flesh [c] of men, another flesh of animals, another of fish, and another of birds. 40 There are also celestial bodies and terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. 41 There is one glory of the sun, another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for one star differs from another star in glory. 42 So also is the resurrection of the dead. The body is sown in corruption, it is raised in incorruption. 43 It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. 44 It is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.

2 2. He s going to rescue the Christians living on Earth at that time Vs a. Everybody look up here at me for just a minute.blink your Eyes watch me See how fast that is.i blinked 4 times.we could have had 4 Raptures b. I Corinthians 15.In the twinkling of an eye c. He is rescuing Christians What s he rescuing them from??? - rescuing Christians from the 7 yr. Tribulation that will be occurring on Earth - Great Tribulation d. Think about this for a moment I know you ve seen movies you ve read Left Behind Think about this how it s going to be 1. A Christian will be talking on phone to non-christian.non-christian will ask question and all of sudden there will be no answer on the other end of line. 2. Christians & Non-christians will be in the school room together, and in a twinkling of an eye, in a split second Christians will be taken out of that schoolroom 3. Christians and Non-christians will be flying in an airplane, and all of a sudden..christians will disappear out of that plane. a. If you re not saved I hope for your sake that the pilot on that flight is not saved either, because if the pilot is saved that means your flight is now unmanned.and things won t end well without a pilot. But you begin to think about that at that moment, Christians will be removed from the earth. 4. Think about the Rapture as it precedes the Great Tribulation a. During those 7 yrs of tribulation a lot of people will be saved jews & gentiles both b. But right immediately after the rapture there will not be a single Christian left here on earth. 5. Now try to imagine What s it going to be like? When all Christians are caught up? a. The Closest thing I can Imagine.It doesn t begin to compare Hurricane Katrina Video.Hurricane Katrina - People lost homes - People were separated from their families - People were walking like nomads on interstates - People were living in the SuperDome - They rioted the SuperDome - Looting going on out in the streets - Hospitals were chaos with not enough workers for people

3 b. As awful as that was can you imagine what that would have 3 been like had there not been any Christians? - Think of all the churches across the nations that fed these poor people that lost everything - That have clothed them, that have given them money, that have opened up there churches & homes for many of them - Yet when the rapture of the church comes all the Christians will be gone. - It s going to be terrible..but Jesus is coming and we ll be outta here What Else is He going to do? 1. He s going to Re-unite Christians with their Loved Ones.Vs 17 a. One of the greatest things about the Rapture is He is going to re-unite us with those who have gone on before us - Wives re-united with husbands.husbands with wives - Children are going to be re-united with parents..parents w/ children - Brothers re-united with Sisters sisters w/brothers - It s going to be a wonderful Reunion in Heaven - At the rapture of the church Jesus is going to put all the Christians back together b. Now you think about this Down on Earth here we live - Many times we lose loved ones to physical sickness then death - What do we do in times like this? we ll go to gravesides, open our Bibles, try to comfort in times of grief with the Word of God we sings hymns & songs talking salvation, heaven and about the victory we ll have over death we have placed our faith in the promises of God we ve lived our life this way c. The scripture teaches that there is coming a day when the trumpet is going to sound - and there will be a loud shout in Heaven - when that takes place in that precise moment - we will exchange our faith for sight - the scripture says Now we walk by faith and not by sight - but when that trumpet sounds we will then and forever more walk by sight and not by faith d. Now we - Worship Jesus - Trust in Jesus - Pray to Jesus - Count on Jesus - But there is coming a day when we ll gather round and we ll see Jesus, and we ll be reunited with those who have gone on before us

4 So what I am saying is very simply this 4 What Does the Rapture Mean? 1 st It means that Jesus is coming Back.that Jesus is going to return 1. Well some people say people have been saying that for a long time - Even the Apostle Paul talked about Jesus coming back in his lifetime 2. You say Paul lived his life thinking Jesus was going to come back in his lifetime and he missed it and he did 3. Many others have lived their lifetime expecting Jesus to come back and they missed it and they have 4. Just because the Second Coming of Jesus seems to have been delayed - Don t you think for one moment that it s been canceled - He has a return flight He s coming back and everything that must be done has been done and He could come at any moment! 2 nd You & I better be Ready 1. We better not have our head in the sand seeing all these prophecy s being fulfilled before our eyes and fail to be ready for the return of Jesus 2. Jesus said (Luke 21:28) when you see all these things happening you better lift up your eyes because your redemption draweth nigh If you believe that Jesus could come at any moment would you say I believe THAT! The Question s not if He s Coming we know He is The Question is not When He s Coming we cannot pinpoint that BUT the Question is ARE YOU READY FOR JESUS TO COME? Are you ready.are you Ready Are you ready I know there are some naysayers here in this room even today! I don t know about you but I think the odds are pretty good look around you Open your eyes.pay attention things are in place NOW for Jesus to come back He s Coming Back

5 I Like What Paul Said..Vs. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words 5 1. Let me ask you this. Are you comforted by these words or convicted? Does that bring you peace or anxiety? 2. You see it is my job according to the book of Hebrews that one day we ll have to give an account to God for the souls of those that He allowed to sit under our teaching.hebrews 13:17 How Can We Be Prepared? 1. You must be Trusting in Jesus a. What are you depending on to get you into Heaven? b. If you are trusting in anything other than the Lord Jesus Christ you re not ready for the rapture 1. We ve all messed up SIN 2. Illustration.go out in parking lot and throw stones to hit New Haven High School - You might throw your stone better than I do - But we both will still MISS the MARK - Same in Life.you might live your life better than I do mine - BUT we ll both miss the mark in God s Eyes.SIN 3. DO You Want to Die to Pay for Your Sins? NO 4. Good News you don t have to die because Jesus Died in your place 5. You must Be Born Again Be Saved 6. When you Trust in Jesus.you place your faith where God placed your sins on the Lord Jesus Christ 2. Living for Jesus Hebrews 13:18.in all things live honorably 1 John 2. 6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked. abide in Jesus when he appears Turn to 1 John 2:28 I don t want to be ashamed when Jesus comes