Be Alert! Scripture Teaches a Pretribulational Rapture (Matthew 24:32-42).Wednesday December 17, 2025
Intro:
The main portion of our lesson today is the Scriptural revelation of the pretribulational Rapture of the church.
In Mat 24, prior to revealing specifics, our Lord revealed general trends of the age between His advents (vv. 4-14). Then in vs. 15, He got specific by referencing Daniel.
Dan 9:27 “And he will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will put a stop to sacrifice and grain offering; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate,...”
Dan 12:11 “From the time that the regular sacrifice is abolished and the abomination of desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days.”
This is a significant sign before Messiah comes.
He is quite emphatic about our not knowing.
Mat 24:36-37 “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.”
Mat 24:42 “Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming.”
Mat 24:44 “For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will.”
Mat 24:50 “the master of that slave will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour which he does not know,”
Mat 25:13 “Be on the alert then, for you do not know the day nor the hour.”
Believers living in the Tribulation period will know approximately when the Lord is coming, but still not know the day or hour.
“The day of the second coming is not revealed, although the approximate time will be known by those living during the tribulation period.” – Walvoord.
Is the Lord’s return imminent in our age?
If not, Paul and John were confused and confused others.
Tit 2:11-14 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all men, 12 instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age, 13 looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Christ Jesus, 14 who gave Himself for us to redeem us from every lawless deed, and to purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.
1Co 1:7-8 awaiting eagerly the revelation of our Lord Jesus Christ, 8 who will also confirm you to the end, blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
1Jo 3:2 We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.
It was revealed to them that the Lord was coming for the church before the day of wrath, before the Tribulation.
Christ’s first revelation of the Rapture was in the Upper Room Discourse.
Joh 14:1-4 Do not let your heart be troubled; believe in God, believe also in Me. 2 "In My Father's house are many dwelling places; if it were not so, I would have told you; for I go to prepare a place for you. 3 "If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself, that where I am, there you may be also. 4 "And you know the way where I am going."
“Where I am” is heaven. The thought of Him coming for them and receiving them to Himself in heaven was completely outside their understanding (of any Jew in fact).
This Rapture (caught up together) is not developed here. It would be in Paul’s first epistle.
“In contrast to the brief introduction of the Rapture in John 14:2-3, 1 Thessalonians … contributes more to the doctrine of the Rapture than any other book of the New Testament.” [Walvoord, The Rapture Question, 197]
The word Rapture:
Rapture comes from the word for “caught up” in 1Th 4:17 (harpazo) which in Latin became raptura.
Rapture in 1 Thessalonians:
The Rapture is mentioned in one way or another in every chapter of this book (1Th 1:10; 1Th 2:19; 1Th 3:13; 1Th 4:13-18; 1Th 5:1-11, 1Th:23).
1Th 1:9-10 For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, 10 and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.
The hope of the returning Son is an event preceding “the wrath to come.”
1Th 2:19-20 For who is our hope or joy or crown of exultation? Is it not even you, in the presence of our Lord Jesus at His coming? 20 For you are our glory and joy.
Here again, the Rapture is presented as an event that could occur at any time and one that will bring great joy to Paul. No preceding events are mentioned.
1Th 3:11-13 Now may our God and Father Himself and Jesus our Lord direct our way to you; 12 and may the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all people, just as we also do for you; 13 so that He may establish your hearts without blame in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all His saints.
Though no detail is given here concerning location (earth, sky, heaven); in the presence of the Father at the coming of the Lord Jesus is a Rapture (without preceding event) and us in heaven with the Father. Glorious!
1Th 5:23-24 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 Faithful is He who calls you, and He also will bring it to pass.
Once again, no preceding events are mentioned (imminent). There is every indication that the Lord is coming soon; in their lifetime.
Two passages that contain the greatest detail.
1Th 4:13-18 But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus. 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. 16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord. 18 Therefore comfort one another with these words.
We can infer from vs. 13 that they began to try to piece together the timing of when the dead are resurrected and when the living are Raptured.
Paul’s comfort to them begins in vs. 14 in that the Lord is going to bring with Him those who were asleep (died; not soul sleep) in Christ.
He will descend with a shout (loud command) and the voice of Michael the archangel (a shout of triumph perhaps; Michael has been in battle for a long time).
Joh 5:25 “Truly, truly, I say to you, an hour is coming and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.”
The final step is the trumpet of God which results in the dead rising. There are many trumpets mentioned in Scripture and those should not be confused with this one.
The dead and the living meet the Lord in the clouds of the air and so shall always be with the Lord.
These words are to be used by them to comfort one another (vs. 18).
Chapter 5 indicates a change of subject, but not necessarily an entirely new subject.
1Th 5:1-11 Now [de] as to the times and the epochs, brethren, you have no need of anything to be written to you. 2 For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night. 3 While they are saying, "Peace and safety!" then destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains upon a woman with child, and they will not escape. 4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief; 5 for you are all sons of light and sons of day. We are not of night nor of darkness; 6 so then let us not sleep as others do, but let us be alert and sober. 7 For those who sleep do their sleeping at night, and those who get drunk get drunk at night. 8 But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation. 9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep, we will live together with Him. 11 Therefore encourage one another and build up one another, just as you also are doing.
The day of the Lord is the day of wrath, the terrible judgment that will come upon the world - the Tribulation.
And, Paul’s teaching on the Rapture in chapter 4 comes before his teaching on the Tribulation in chapter 5.
Conclusion:
1Th convincingly reveals an imminent pretribulational Rapture.
Until then, He told us to be alert, ready, and faithfully serving Him.
Serve Him expecting Him to come to you any day now.
Be ready by your obedience, remind yourself, “I want to be found by Him faithful.”
Invest His gifts to you in this world, in other people. |