Many Christians see the rapture and the Second Coming as two stages of Christ’s return: first He comes for His Church, then He comes with His Church.
When the New Testament describes Jesus’ return, some passages emphasize believers being gathered up to Him, and others emphasize Him coming down to the earth in power and judgment.
“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.”
1 Thessalonians 4:17“And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses.”
Revelation 19:14“In that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives, which is in front of Jerusalem on the east;”
Zechariah 14:4Direction. At the rapture, believers rise to meet the Lord in the air. At the Second Coming, the Lord comes down to the Mount of Olives.
Who sees it. The rapture happens “in the twinkling of an eye.” At the Second Coming, “every eye will see Him” (Revelation 1:7) and “all the tribes of the earth will mourn” (Matthew 24:30).
Purpose. The rapture gathers and changes believers. The Second Coming judges the nations and begins Christ’s reign.
Signs. The rapture is presented as able to happen at any time. The Second Coming follows the signs Jesus describes in Matthew 24.
“And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.”
Matthew 24:30Pre-tribulation Christians see two stages separated by the seven-year tribulation. Post-tribulation Christians see one event, with believers rising to meet the Lord and then returning with Him at once. Both agree on this promise:
“This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.”
Acts 1:11Scripture quotations from the New American Standard Bible® (NASB), © The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. lockman.org
Christians differ. Pre-tribulation believers see two stages: Christ comes for His Church at the rapture, then returns with His Church at the Second Coming seven years later. Post-tribulation believers see them as one event.
At the rapture, believers are caught up to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17). At the Second Coming, Christ descends to the earth with His armies to judge and reign (Zechariah 14:4; Revelation 19:11-16).
The rapture is described as happening in the twinkling of an eye. The Second Coming is described as visible to all: every eye will see Him (Revelation 1:7).
No one knows the day or the hour (Matthew 24:36). The question is not when. It is whether you know Him. If you are not sure where you stand with God, start at salvation101.com.
What if it happened tonight? The Bride Is Taken, a Christian end-times thriller by Paul T. Barham, imagines the first days after the rapture. Read about the novel.