When Millions Disappear from the Earth

Chataignier

02/22/09

AUTHOR: DR. JERRY VINES

"When Millions Disappear From The Earth.

I. The Promise Of A Re-Entry

II. The Promise Of A Resurrection

III. The Promise Of A Rapture

IV. The Promise Of A Reunion

SERMON TEXT: 1 CORINTHIANS 15:51-53

51. Behold, I show you a mystery;

We shall not all sleep,

but we shall all be changed,

52. In a moment,

in the twinkling of an eye,

at the last trump:

for the trumpet shall sound,

and the dead shall be raised incorruptible,

and we shall be changed.

The Bible actually teaches

that there is going to come a time

when every born-again believer who is alive

is going to be caught up

to meet the Lord in the air

without dying.

And the Bible teaches that

every born-again believer who has died

and is buried will be resurrected,

we'll be caught up together with them

to meet the Lord in the air.

In 1 Corinthians 1:7,

it is referred to as

the coming of our Lord Jesus,

In Titus 2:13,

as that glorious appearing,

or,

the blessed hope.

In this verse 52

as the change,

we shall all be changed.

Or in John chapter 14

as the receiving

because Jesus said

In other words, if I go,

Jesus said, I will come again

and receive you unto myself.

But the most familiar statement in the Bible

about the Rapture of the church,

the coming of the Lord,

is in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4:17

where the Bible says

we who are alive and remain

shall be caught up together in the clouds

to meet the Lord in the air.

Now that particular word

"caught up together"

is a word from which

we get the word "rapture."

In the Latin Vulgate edition of the Bible

that word is translated "rapeo"

from which we get the English word "rapture."

And the word there really means

a catching away.

It has the idea of a sudden snatching away.

As if you rescued someone

at the last moment

from a severe emergency.

A catching away

and a gathering unto one's self.

The idea of ecstasy is found in the word;

So on the basis of

that particular passage of scripture

we refer to that event

when believers will be caught up

to meet the Lord

as the Rapture of the church.

There are several illustrations in the Bible

which teach this particular truth.

The Bible says that Enoch walked with God and Enoch was not

because God took him.

Well, one of these days,

what God did for one man, Enoch,

He's going to do for millions of people.

There's another illustration

in the Old Testament,

it is the prophet Elijah.

And you remember the Bible says

Elijah was carried up to heaven

in a chariot of fire,

a whirlwind came and a chariot of fire

and Elijah, without dying,

was carried into God's presence.

The Lord Jesus is also an illustration

of the Rapture of the church.

When Jesus came into the world,

lived a perfect life,

died on the cross of Calvary,

was buried,

three days later

He was raised from the dead,

Then the Bible says

that Jesus ascended up

to the right hand of the Father.

As those disciples looked

with absolute amazement

the Lord Jesus Christ was taken up

right in their midst.

Now the Bible says that

Jesus is the first fruits

And that what Christ experienced

believers are also going to experience.

You see, when you come to the Lord Jesus

you are identified with Jesus.

Christ was crucified,

we were crucified with Christ;

Christ was buried,

We were buried with Him;

Christ was raised,

we have been raised with Him;

So one of these days

The believer is going to have

a triumphal entry into heaven

just exactly as our Lord Jesus did.

You see, folks,

if you're born again tonight

you're in that number.

Now the most clear passage

in all of the Bible

about this event known as the Rapture

is found in 1 Thessalonians. 4:16-17

the Lord Jesus is presented

as He comes for His own

in the event we know as the Rapture.

There are four promises given to us

about this event

when millions will disappear from the earth.

We have, FIRST OF ALL,

the promise of a re-entry.

Look at verse 16:

For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout.

You see, the Lord himself shall descend.

Not an angel,

not a substitute,

not some other heavenly being,

but the Son of God himself,

the Lord himself.

You see, folks, He's coming for His own,

So the Lord himself

shall descend from heaven.

Notice that there are certain sounds attached to thereturned of Jesus.

First there is going to be a shout,

The Lord will descend with a shout

and the shout will summon

thesaints to glory.

Second: there'sgoing to be

the voice of the archangel,

That voice of thearchangel

will summon the angels to war.

Third there is going to be

thetrumpet of God.

Now the trump of God

hasparticular application to Israel,

it will be an application to remind Israel

thatGod is going to

begin to deal with them again.

You see, when millions disappear

fromthis earth,

life is going to continue on this earth,

but it will mean that God

is cutting off diplomatic relations

with the earth.

He's calling the nationals tohome,

and the battle will begin on this earth, great tribulation will occur.

Sothe voice of the archangel

summons the angels to battle.

And then it says, with the trump of God.

So you see,

when the trump of Godsounds

it will signal that God will begin dealing again with the nation ofIsrael.

But that trump will also

have special relevance

for the people of God

because, you remember,

back in 1 Corinthians 15:52 it says,

in a moment,

in thetwinkling of an eye,

at the last trump,

the trumpet shall sound

and the deadshall be raised incorruptible and we shall be changed.

I'm not so much looking for signs

as I am listening for sounds.

Oneof these days,we're going to hear

the voice of the Lord,

one of thesedays we're going to hear

the voice of the archangel,

one of these days we'regoing to hear

the trumpet of God,

and God's people are going to be caught awaytogether with the Lord.

But then there's a second promise

in verse 16,

there is secondly going to be

a resurrection.

The last part of verse 16:

and the dead in Christ shall risefirst.

Now who is going to be raised?

The dead in Christ.

Keep your place here

and let's journey back to the book of John the5th chapter.

29. And they shall come forth;

they that have done good,

unto theresurrection of life;

and

they that have done evil,

unto theresurrection of damnation.

Two resurrections indicated here:

a resurrection of life

and

a resurrection ofdamnation.

13Job 19:25-26

Back in the Old Testament, you may recall, Job said, I know that my Redeemer

lives and that He shall stand in the latter day upon the earth.

And then Job

said, Yet after worms destroy this body yet in my flesh shall I see God.

Job hada hope

that there would be a resurrection.

It has been the hope of believers

through the ages.

The apostle Paul discusses

the resurrection of the believer

and here'sthe way he puts it.

In Philippians chapter 3, verse 11, it says...

11. If by any means I might attain

unto the resurrection of the dead.

Now the particular word

translated "resurrection"

has a prepositionattached

to the beginning of the word

which means"out."

So the word really is an out resurrection and when it says "of the dead"

it's plural there and so it really means the dead ones.

So putting it that way,

what you have is,

If by any means I might attain

unto the out-resurrection from

among the dead ones.

You see, folks,

there are going to be two resurrections.

There's going to be a resurrection

of those who are dead in Christ

and thenthere's going to be

a resurrection of the unsaved.

It will be after a thousandyears,

after the millennium

that the resurrection of the damned

willoccur.

One of these days

when Jesus comes again,

one of these days

when Jesuscomes in the air

and the shout is heard,

those who are dead in Christ

are goingto be raised from the dead.

The first time Jesus Shouts

is over in the book of John.

And Jesus went to the tomb of Lazarus

and scripture says Jesus wept.

Do you know why Jesus wept?

It's because, folks,

when you weep Jesus weeps.

It means when you've got a hurt

Jesus has got a hurt.

It means that we have a Savior

who is able to sympathize with us

in our sorrow.

And then Jesus, with a loud voice,

said, Lazarus, come forth.

IfJesus hadn't called him by the first name every dead man in that graveyard

Wouldhave got up.

Lazarus, come forth.

That's the first time He shouts in the Bible

and when He did a man was resurrected.

The second time He shouts in the Bible

is over in the book of Matthew

while on the cross

the Bible says

Jesus Christ shouted with a loud voice, and whenHe did, the Bible says

that the tombs of the saints were opened up and there was another resurrection

The first time Heshouted

a man came out of the grave,

The second time He shouted

many came out ofthe grave.

But, one of these days

He's going to shout a thirdtime

And when He does

millions are going to come out of the grave.

Howwould you like to have

a brand new body?

Now it's exciting

to get a new suit forthe body

but how would you like to

get a new body for the suit?

Wouldn't that begood?

One of these days

when Jesus Christ comes

there's going to be an awful commotion out there in that cemetery.

Folks, Iwant you to know

there's going to be dirt flying everywhere,

there's going to betombstones opening up.

And every born-again believer

who has been buried

is going to be raised.

The dead in Christ shall be raisedfirst.

They're coming from everywhere,

they're coming out of theseas and oceans, they're coming out of the jungles.

There's going to be a re-entry,

the Lord himself shall descend;

there'sgoing to be a resurrection,

the dead in Christ shall be raised first.

And thenthere is going to be a Rapture. Verse 17: Then we which are alive and remainshall be caught up together with them in the clouds.

Do you know what thatstatement means?

That statement means

that there will be millions of believers

who will go toheaven without dying.

Itsays we which are alive and remain,

shall be caught up together

with the them inthe clouds

to meet the Lord in the air.

A Rapture.

There's going to be a reunion:

and so shall we ever be with the Lord.

Well, what should we do

until Jesus comes?

Well the Bible says in Hebrews10:25,

Not forsaking the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some

is, but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day

approaching.

You ought to be working in your church, serving in your church,

worshipping in your church,

like you've never done before.