“For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command,…and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 NIV).

The Greek word used to describe this event translates into the Latin word rapere, from which comes the English word rapture. It describes a moment in which living believers will be instantly changed into their resurrection bodies and lifted into heaven to meet Jesus. The bodies of dead believers will be resurrected and reunited with their spirits. Both groups will be “caught up” to meet Christ in the air and will be taken into Paradise.

A generation of Christians will skip the cemetery. Just one moment here, and the next moment there.

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