This study is written to reconsider important Bible truth regarding the offer to ‘rapture’ Israel’s “little flock” based upon Paul’s 1Thes. 4:15-18 and 1Cor 15. We will answer the question; Will the Christians of today’s Churches of Christendom Soon Be Raptured Up into Heaven; In the Clouds, Meeting Jesus “in the air”?​​

Jesus’s words of His 2^nd coming were addressed to the Nation Israel only (Matt. 15:24). Paul later ministered to the Acts Period “the Jew first” saints of Israel’s Christ-believing “little flock.” Jesus’ words and Paul’s teaching were both centered on​​ the ‘New Covenant’ Kingdom Hope of the Nation ISRAEL. Paul then expected the imminent return of Jesus Christ and the establishment of His Millennial “Kingdom Come ON EARTH,” perhaps in his LIFETIME.​​ BUT the fact is that this Kingdom offer hung on​​ whether the Nation Israel​​ would Come To Faith In Jesus Christ, Repenting, and​​ Taking John’s Water Baptism. (cf. Acts 2:36-39).

Note the importance of the ‘New Covenant’ for Israel [the Hebrews] in Heb. 8-9.

Heb. 9:15-16 “And for this cause he [Jesus] is the Mediator of the New Testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, They Which Are Called Might Receive The Promise of Eternal Inheritance [of the Kingdom]. For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator”

This ‘New Covenant’ was introduced to Israel by Jesus during ‘the Last Supper,’ the evening before His death (read Luke 22:19-20). The promise of the New Covenant, as prophesied in Jer. 31:31-34, was preached by the 12 Apostles and Paul throughout the 35-year Acts period until Acts 28:28. They preached Jesus’ “Gospel of the Kingdom” to come On Earth with Christ’s earthly Millennial Kingdom (Dan. 2:44), not related to heaven.

During the Acts period God had a dialogue with His people Israel, extending the Kingdom offer that they should repent, receive Jesus as their Messiah and be baptized. The Jews were then still the people of God on earth, so what was happening is that God would have them to CONFIRM THEIR STANDING WITH HIM since He had sent them His Messiah Son, Jesus. Whereas circumcision had been the mark of a Jew, now John’s water baptism DIFFERENTIATED the genuine ‘little flock’ (Luke 12:32) believers out from … unbelieving Israel.

The Acts period began with Jesus instructed His disciples to preach the​​ restored “Kingdom”​​ (Acts 1:3), which was to be the Millennial Kingdom on earth. Even as late as Acts 28:31, with Israel fallen, Paul STILL tried to convince ‘all men’ of Jesus as their Messiah. So, the entire Acts history is about the promised Earthly Kingdom, which would have been established … as soon as the Nation Israel Repented and was Water Baptized.​​ 

Paul preached the Kingdom “hope of Israel” up to Acts 28:20, which at that time still included the ‘rapture.’Top of Form

1 Thes. 4:13-18 KJV ¹³ But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. ¹⁴ For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. ¹⁵For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep.  16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:  ¹⁷ Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. ¹⁸Wherefore comfort one another with these words

​​Note above how Paul used words​​ inclusive of himself; we, you, the dead in Christ, them,​ and, each other. Paul’s were words spoken​​ exclusively to the Christ-believers of “Nation of Israel.”​​ So, plainly this is not written to ‘All the Christians, mostly Gentiles, in the entire world today.’ Paul in Galatians calls his Jewish believers of that day, along with a small number of Gentile proselytes, “the Israel of God” (cf. Gal. 6:16).

But AFTER Israel’s “FALL” from relationship with God as ‘His chosen Nation,’ in Acts 28:28. Paul, in his Post-Acts ministry, wrote his ‘prison epistles’ of Eph. and Col. revealing and establishing the NEW Dispensation of “the Church, which is His body,” the Spiritual “Body of Christ.” With Israel’s Acts 28 “fall” there was no longer​​ any preaching to offer Israel the long-promised “Kingdom come on earth.” The promised “Kingdom” was delayed to a​​ future time, so the apostles simply stopped preaching it. Instead, Paul preached and taught his New, International, Free Grace Gospel,​​ a gospel for ALL people of ALL races on earth (Col. 3:11), in place of the now delayed previous ‘National’ message​​ of the Kingdom ‘Hope of Israel.’

During the “Great Tribulation” to still come upon Israel in the end times, the Kingdom-Gospel will be preached again to Israel (Matt. 24:14). This will be the message of the 144 000 Tribal Israelites preach to Israel while the Tribulation rages.​​ Compared with the times of the apostles preaching ‘the Kingdom’ to Israel under God’s grace, the Kingdom-Gospel preached in the Tribulation is while under a time of judgement. If they refuse to believe during the Tribulation, Paul says they will face “everlasting destruction” (2Thes. 1:9).

From the time of when Paul had confronted Israel in Acts 28:28 (in 62AD),​​ when Israel’s fall was declared, … God Turned To The GENTILES. Israel was no longer the ‘Chosen Nation’ of God. The Nation Israel had fallen … to now be seen of God as just one among all the other lost nations! (cf. Eph. 2:14-15). Today’s Grace Gospel is to ‘ALL Men’ (Eph. 3:9), not ‘the Jew first, then Gentile’ (cf. Rom. 1:16).

We can conclude that the only doctrine of a sort of Coming Resurrection with the raising of dead believers, applies to today’s “church, which is His body” under different terms than Israel was offered the Rapture. We are under the International, Free Grace Gospel given through Paul’s Post-Acts ministry. We look for our ‘ultimate salvation’ unto our “appearing with Christ in [heaven’s] glory” (cf. Col. 3:4) “Far Above ALL HEAVEN” (Grk,​​ epouraniois) not the coming Earthly Millennial Kingdom that will recover and bless Israel.

Note that the doctrine of the rapture for the Israel’s Kingdom believers was​​ ONLY To Those Who BELIEVED DURING THE ACTS PERIOD. Israel’s hope was lost when Israel fell, by rejecting Christ as we learn from the words of ACTS 28:26-28. Paul had become the messenger of the judgement, and “the [temporary] casting away” of Israel (read Rom. 1:10-12, 15, 25). Paul’s judicial declaration of Act 28:26-28 quoted Isaiah 6:9-10, siting Israel’s deafness, blindness, and their lack of repentance in unbelief. The Jewish age of ‘promise’ was immediately over as the light dawned on today’s new Gentile “Dispensation of the grace of God” (Eph. 3:1-2).

Is There a Correct Understanding of​​ The Rapture Doctrine? Yes, sort of!

For about 200 years among Christendom, there has been​​ a misunderstanding of what Paul meant would happen regarding ‘the catching away’ or ‘rapture’ of 1Thes. 4:16-17. The​​ misunderstanding​​ is that… they believed that, Pre-Trib, Jesus will come down to the clouds, rapture the believers up into the High Heaven! This is a major misunderstanding.​​ The actual 2^nd Coming intervention by God is to save ‘believing Israel’ with the resurrection of the dead and living in Rapture of them together to ‘safe shelter’ until the Tribulation passes. This Will Only Occur Part and Parcel With His 2^nd Coming to EARTH AT THE END OF THE TRIBULATION PERIOD.

Paul says​​ nothing at all of any ‘flight’ of believers into the high heaven above, to escape the Tribulation. It can’t be found in the New Testament at all. Some believers expect to then be​​ brought down to earth​​ with Christ in their resurrection bodies. They mistakenly expected the PRE-TRIB 2^nd Coming BEFORE His ‘2^nd Coming’ that actually will occur at The End of The Tribulation. The prophet says His next coming is as follows; “He, at​​ that day​​ should set foot upon the Mount Olives which then will split into a valley ​​…”​ (cf. Zech. 14:4-5).

The fact is that the Offer of the 1Thes. 4 Rapture unto the Kingdom on earth for Israel had a ‘SELL-BY-DATE’ which EXPIRED with Acts 28:28. This ‘offer’ has long since passed. Paul at that time, had NOT YET seen “The Revelation of the Mystery (i.e., secret),” which is “the hope of Heaven” for the International Gentile “Body of Christ.” So, Paul during Acts taught Israel’s Kingdom believer’s salvation in Christ and the Rapture during Acts, likely expecting the 2^nd Coming of Jesus in their Own Life-Time, bringing the Kingdom on earth.​​ 

But there never ever was a “hope of abiding in heaven” for Israel. The earthly Kingdom offer for Israel had an EXPIRATION DATE Within The Acts Period. The Acts period ended with Israel’s total “fall” being sealed in Acts 28:26-28, not rapture to heaven as commonly taught today! After Acts Paul’s ‘rapture-doctrine​​’ no longer had relevance​​ for Israel or anyone. Though God still offered the Kingdom after the Cross of Christ, the Nation Israel was​​ cut-off​​ due to persistent unbelief. Today, none of the end-time teaching of the 35-year Acts period have any continuance or fulfillment. The Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple in 70AD, Judaism could no longer be practiced; ‘God… and the Lamb are the New Jerusalem’s Temple.’ (cf. Rev 21:22).

None of Paul’s end-times Acts doctrine has relevance today … except one unfulfilled prophesy; that the “Wicked One,” the Anti-Christ would come, seduce and destroy Israel (See​​ 2 Thes. 2:6-9).​​ Jesus’ Kingdom-Gospel will again be preached to Israel while under judgement in the Tribulation. To date Anti-Christ has not yet shown up in Israel, though his evil spirit is working always. When Paul wrote this, he may have​​ had​​ the idea that Anti-Christ would appear in​​ his life-time, not far into the future, almost 2,000 years later as of today.

​​We know that Anti-Christ did not come in the apostles​​ time on earth, however the​​ prophesied “falling away” did occur when ‘Israel’s fell.’ Today a secular Israel remains as a platform or podium for the Antichrist who will try to stand forth as Israel’s Messiah, even to ‘stand in the third temple’ during the Tribulation.

As we read Rev. 20:4 we understand​​ that during the Tribulation period there will have been a whole new group of God’s preachers on earth. This verse reveals dead martyrs being raised from the dead to reign with Christ in the Millennium. They were killed because they refused to follow Anti-Christ, nor take his mark.

“And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” (Rev. 20:4 KJV)

This Tribulation period ‘congregation’ of resurrected saints and martyrs certainly doesn’t fit Paul’s rapture-doctrine (1Thes. 1:1, 5:28) As we see it consists of a​​ totally different cast of people. There is no mention of a raptured church. It is the totally different dispensation of the “Great Tribulation” in Israel, where “the Law of Moses” is back, demanding believers during the Tribulation to obey “the Law.” The Law maker, Moses, is present together with the prophet Elijah. These are the ‘Two Witnesses’ of Rev. 11 as the leaders for the Jewish believers along with their proselytes of that time, at least for the first 1,260 days (3-½ years, cf. Rev. 11:3). But, the 42 months mentioned in verse 2 point to the final half of the Tribulation when Antichrist starts to attack the Jews.

In Rev. 7 we find the more detailed description​​ of this entirely new special group of Tribulation believers. It is the 144, 000 elect tribal ‘evangelists;’ 12,000 out of ​​each of Israel’s Twelve Tribes. Moses and Elijah, being prophets of God select the 144,000 out of the Israel’s population. It begins with Moses and Elijah descending to earth from heaven (Rev. 11:3-6). They are of the “1^st resurrection” of Rev 20:6. They have​​ divine wisdom from God, and name these 12,000 from each Tribe by ‘the Names of The Tribes,’ which are, “tribe of Judah, tribe of Reuben, tribe of Gad tribe of Asher, tribe of Naphtali,​​ tribe of Manasseh, tribe of Simeon, tribe of Levi, tribe of Issachar, tribe of Zebulun, tribe of Joseph, tribe of Benjamin.” (Rev. 7:4-8).

None of this refers to Paul’s Acts period New Covenant doctrine, especially not the Rapture of 1 Thes. 4. Yes, Paul taught ‘Grace’ in connection to the message of the New Covenant, but the preaching of this Tribulation Covenant to Israel is NOT be under Grace, but rather concerns judgement. The Rev. 20:4 ‘saints’ killed by Anti-Christ, will be resurrected first (v6) to rule with Christ in His earthly Kingdom.

Therefore, I find it obvious that Rev. 20:4​​ rules out​​ 1Thes. 4.​​ Note Rev.​​ 20:4​​B says there will be a Resurrection Of The Martyred Saints Of the Great Tribulation, but nothing of a supposed Rapture for saints to ‘escape suffering.’ Only the ‘Two Witnesses’ (cf. Rev. 11:11-12), being killed and lying in the street for 3-1/2 days, are resurrected and taken into heaven during the Tribulation.

Just reading of these 144 000 ‘servants of God’ sets them​​ entirely and decisively apart​​ from the Jewish Messianic believers of Paul’s Acts period day​​. The 144,000 are under a totally​​ different commission​​ than that of the 12 apostles. Rev.​​ 7:3-4 tells us that these 144 000 Israelites were ‘sealed (marked) on their forehead.’ It may be understood also, that the 144 000​​ are elected from the population for their Special Ministry To Preach and Witness To the Truth of Christ "Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads" (Rev. 7:3)

What exactly is that ‘seal’? EW Bullinger re Rev. 14:1 tells us they had been sealed on their foreheads with the NAME of the Lamb (Jesus) and His Father’s NAME (Jehovah). If we were allowed to stand right before one of those 144 000, and reading what was inscribed on their foreheads, we would read,​​ “JESUS JEHOVAH.” Also, these 144 000 are all virgins in celibacy; none had ever been with any woman, and they had​​ ‘not said any lies​​ upon their lips, for they are blameless before the throne of God.’ They followed the Lamb wherever it goes. (cf. Rev. 14: 2-5).​​ 

You can’t find anything like this in Acts or the Acts period epistles. This is literally a​​ whole new troop of anointed evangelists – following the Lamb wherever He goes. No one could be member of this group of 144, 000 Tribal Israelites unless you actually are from the line of Abraham. So, these aren’t todays Baptist or Pentecostals. They must be a genuine Israelite, and found in existence as the Great Tribulation begins. They must have a lifestyle of one hundred percent celibacy, and one must be a believer who never ever spoke a lie. They will wear a written notice on the forehead, reading ‘JESUS JEHOVAH.’ Try to fit these details into the 1Thes. 4 and 1Cor. 15 doctrines. You can’t!

Being an entirely new dispensation, it’s​​ obvious​​ that these in no way are obliged to keep the same doctrine as that which Paul taught the Thessalonians. The 144,000 never will have any rapture – BUT they get a resurrection so they can be rulers on thrones assisting their King Jesus at Zion,​​ in​​ the new fourth, Millennial, temple of Ezek. 47.​ ​

So, there will be​​ no general Rapture of believers during or after the Acts-period. We find only one​​ special Resurrection that is mentioned only in Rev. 11 regarding the ‘Two Witnesses’ taken up to heaven.

Speaking of​​ thrones and rulership with Christ, we note where Jesus told His disciples; “And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.” Matt. 19:28 KJV

But this was spoken by Jesus and​​ promised to them ‘only IF’ Jesus Had Come From Heaven In Their Life-Time. Because of Israel’s disobedience and unbelief, Jesus Could Not Come from heaven at that time. Israel was destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. ​​ His Second Coming to earth was postponed into the future.

It appears that Moses and Elijah come from heaven at the beginning of the Great Tribulation to direct and prophesy judgement on Israel to purge and chastise them to believe on Jesus as the Messiah (Mal. 4:5-6). Yes, Jesus promised that His Disciples​​ would sit on​​ thrones but that promise came with the Kingdom ‘Sell-by-Date’ which was Acts 28:28 (62 AD) with the total “fall of Israel.”

Shortly after Paul’s release from custody, he wrote his epistles to the Ephesians and the Colossians. Both epistles explain Paul’s “Revelation of The Mystery [secret]” and the International, Free Grace Gospel that we still enjoy today. Paul, having seen the “better hope” of Heaven, stopped preaching the EARTHLY ‘Kingdom hope of Israel’!​​ While Peter and the eleven Will Not sit on thrones in the Millennium, but those “beheaded” saints of Rev. 20:4 Will. The Twelve will “reign with Christ” in the Eternal Kingdom on the New Earth.

Before Christ’s 2^nd coming we of “His body” will already have silently resurrect to ‘appear with Him in [heaven’s] glory” (cf. Col 3:4). Know this, all the saints who​​ have lived and died believing Paul’s new​​ Free International Grace Gospel “Revelation of the Mystery” are saved unto the “far above” ‘heaven’ (Eph. 1:19-21, Grk,​​ epouraniois), not Israel’s earthly Kingdom.

Those of us who may be alive in the day God concludes today’s Gentile “Dispensation of the grace of God” (Eph. 3:1-2) will be​​ Secretly Transferred Supernaturally​​ Into HEAVEN By His Immense Power (cf. Eph. 4:30), never seeing death!​​ This must not be confused with the Rapture-idea of Paul in 1Thes. 4 that lead to the earthly kingdom. We will swiftly and quietly be taken into the super-heavenlies above ‘all heavens.’

Nothing Written In REVELATION has anything to do with today’s “Church,” the Spiritual “Body of Christ.” Revelation is all about Israel’s “thy kingdom come On earth.” Today’s ‘One New Creation Body’ detailed mainly in Ephesians and Colossians, where Paul reveals “the revelation of Mystery” of the dispensation of the Spiritual “Body of Christ” under the International, Free Grace Gospel of Eph. 2:8-9.

So, we are not expecting the rapture Paul taught in 1Thes. 4,​​ rather, we of the Post-Acts, Spiritual, “body of Christ”​​ will simultaneously “appear with Him in [heaven’s] glory” “when He appears” (Col.3:4). The Post-Acts Gospel believers who died before this “day of redemption” shall likewise be resurrected UP to heaven.

Eph. 4:30 AMP “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by Whom you were sealed for​​ the​​ day of redemption.” Eph. 1:13-14 AMP “In Him you also who have heard the Word of Truth, the glad tidings of your salvation, and have believed in and adhered to and relied on Him,​​ were stamped with the seal of the long-promised Holy Spirit.​​ - That is the guarantee of our inheritance, in anticipation of its​​ Full Redemption​​ and our Acquiring Possession of It – to the praise of His Glory.”

• Portions adapted from Jan Lilleby. See also: https://artlicursi.com/articles/better-hope-belongs-only-body-christ