Walk In Hope
By The Rev Ron Purkey
Guest Columnist
Read: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18
“…the dead in Christ shall rise first.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16)
The Apostle Paul assures us that at the time of “the rapture” the dead who have truly trusted Christ will be raised first, and that all true believers will be gathered together to meet Christ in the air. The return of Christ to the earth (the Second Coming) will occur some seven years after the rapture.
Christians are expected to mourn when loved ones die, but they are not to grieve as do the people of the world who have no hope. Certainly Christ expects us to shed tears and feel loneliness (see John 11:33-36) as we go through the sorrow; but in the midst of our sorrow, there must be the testimony of the living hope we have in Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:3). Notice the comforts the believer has in the time of sorrow:
First, there is the comfort that death for the believer is only “sleeping in Jesus.” Verse 14, in the Greek, is literally “put to sleep through Jesus.” Regardless of how a believer dies, Jesus Christ is there with the believer. Of course, the soul goes to be with Christ (Philippians 1:20-24; 2 Corinthians 5:6-8); it is the body that sleeps, not the soul. The word “cemetery” means “a sleeping place;” it is the place where the bodies sleep, awaiting the resurrection.
Second, There is the comfort of heavenly reunion. The hardest thing about death is separation from our loved ones; but when Christ comes, we will be “together with the Lord” forever. The living saints will not precede those who have died; all will be caught up together to meet Christ.
Third, There is the comfort of eternal blessing. We shall be “forever with the Lord.” We shall obtain new bodies (1 John 3:1-3; Philippians 3:20-21). Paul says that the body we place in the cemetery is like a seed awaiting the harvest (1 Corinthians. 15:35-58). Of course, the body turns to dust, and that dust becomes a part of the earth (Genesis 3:19).
The Bible no where teaches that God raises and unites every particle of the believer’s body. What it does teach is that the resurrection body has identity with the body that was buried. Just as the seed that is planted (and that dies) in the ground has identity and continuity with the seed it produces, so the resurrection body will have identity and continuity with the body that was buried. Resurrection is not reconstruction.
The words “caught up” (verse 17) are full of meaning. They mean: (1) to catch away speedily, for there will be no warning (1 Thessalonians 5:1-10); (2) to seize by force, for Satan will seek to hinder our rapture to heaven; (3) to claim for one’s self, just as the bridegroom claims the bride; (4) to move to a new place; and (5) to rescue from danger, for the church will not go through the Tribulation (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9).
Read Ron Purkey’s Bible study outlines free at rcpbibleoutlines.com. Purkey has been an ordained Baptist minister for 50 years.