Over the past 2 weeks, we have been learning about Jesus coming back. We have walked through the signs in the world and looked up to see the signs in the heavens. Today we're going to keep going because Jesus himself made a promise. In Revelation chapter 22, Jesus said,

"Behold, I am coming soon" (Revelation 22:7).

In other words, the last words of Scripture are not a warning or a threat but a promise from Jesus, spoken over those who believe, that he is coming back for us.

Just take a moment to consider what a blessing that is. God gave us an amazing gift when he gave us prophecy, because he didn’t have to tell us anything about the future. He could have left us in the dark, going through life one day at a time with no idea what was coming. But he didn’t do that; instead, he pulled back the curtain and let us in on his plan. And because of that, we can think about the future; we can get excited as we look forward to what is coming.

That is so helpful because when you have something good to look forward to, it can carry you through hard times. When you know something good is waiting on the other side, you can endure far more than you thought possible. For example, a mother in labor pushes through the pain because she knows a baby is coming. A student studies late into the night, knowing that graduation is coming. And so, hope changes how we persevere through the hard seasons of life.

Maybe that is why the Lord tells us so much about his return; he’s not just satisfying our curiosity but giving us the strength to keep going. He wants his church to live with our heads up, with expectation, our hearts steady, and our eyes on the horizon, knowing that he is coming soon. And that is exciting because the Bible says that when Jesus comes back, every one of us who knows him will be caught up in that moment. That is the exact word Paul uses:

“Caught up” (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

I imagine most of you have seen videos of astronauts pushing themselves up out of their seats and jettisoning across the spacecraft. In fact, it takes them a while to get used to it because gravity doesn’t take hold of them and pull them back down. They just keep going up. They don’t even have to jump. They just let go and start floating.

That is the closest illustration I could think of for what will happen the moment Jesus returns. The Bible says we will be “caught up,” and that word does not describe a slow drift upward. It means to be caught up suddenly, snatched and lifted in one quick, forceful motion, the way someone might grab your hand and pull you out of danger before you even have time to think. One moment you’re on the ground, and the next you are caught up, rising to meet the Lord in the air.

I don’t know about any of you, but I think that will be the best moment ever, when the supernatural becomes natural. But between now and then, we are going to walk through many difficult days. In fact, Jesus is very direct about this when he told his disciples,

"In this world you will have trouble" (John 16:33).

In other words, because we live in a fallen world, sinfulness surrounds us, wickedness will continue to grow, and the love of many will grow cold, but Jesus tells us,

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God" (John 14:1).

And so, having this moment to look forward to gives us something to press into, something to hold onto, and something to dream about, so that we are able to stand firm.

So, this week, in part three of our "Return of the King" series, I want to walk you through the full map or timeline of end-time events. From the moment Jesus catches us up into the clouds to the moment God makes everything new, the Bible lays out 6 major events. So let’s walk through them quickly.

First is the rapture of the church, the believers, and that’s exactly what we’re going to talk about today. This is the moment every believer has been waiting for, when Jesus himself comes for his church, not to step on the earth yet, but to call us up to meet him in the air. This is not a myth, a movie, or a metaphor; it is a promise, and today we're going to dig into exactly what Scripture says about the rapture.

Second is the tribulation, a seven-year period of unprecedented distress on the earth, divided into two 3½-year periods, with the second half known as the great tribulation. This is God pouring out judgment on an unbelieving world that has rejected him; it is the last chance to repent and a time unlike anything the earth has ever seen. We are going to walk through those 7 years of judgment in detail next week.

Third is the second coming, that great and glorious moment when Jesus physically returns to the earth, not in humility this time, but in power and majesty. He will defeat the Antichrist and his armies at the battle of Armageddon, and with that victory, the tribulation will come to an end.

Fourth is the millennium, 1000 years of Christ reigning on this very earth, with his Church reigning right alongside him. During this period, Satan will be bound, war will cease, and creation itself will be at peace under the perfect rule of the King of kings. This is the world as it was always meant to be, and we finally get to see it.

Fifth is the final judgment. After the thousand years, Satan will be released one last time, only to be crushed in final and permanent defeat and cast into the lake of fire forever. Then every soul who has rejected Jesus Christ, refusing to believe and trust him with their sins, will stand before the great white throne, where they will receive what they wanted. They will be judged according to their own goodness, and because their names are not written in the Lamb’s book of life, they will face eternal separation from God.

Lastly, number 6, God makes all things new. The old order of sin, sorrow, and death will pass away forever, and a new heaven and a new earth will take its place, more beautiful than anything we have ever known. And there, in that new creation, God himself will dwell with his people face-to-face forever.

That is the panoramic view of the end times, but today I want to camp out on the first event, the rapture, because it is the one you and I need to understand most. It is the next thing on God’s calendar, and it could happen at any moment. Then I’ll show you where the other 5 fit so you can see the whole picture before we dig into the tribulation next weekend.

There are 3 main passages in the New Testament that describe the rapture. The first is 1 Thessalonians chapter 4.

"Brothers, we do not want you to be ignorant about those who fall asleep, or to grieve like the rest of men, who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord's own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep" (1 Thessalonians 4:13-15).

In other words, God wants you to know about his return. He doesn’t want you left in the dark, without a clue or without knowledge. And so, the first thing we learn in verse 16 is this:

"The Lord himself will come down from heaven" (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

Now, 40 days after his resurrection, Jesus ascended; he went up to heaven. But one day soon, he’s coming back down, and when he comes, the Bible says,

"With a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God" (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

The archangel, possibly Michael, the warrior angel, will call out, and every believer who has died will hear the call. At that sound, the Bible says,

"The dead in Christ will rise first" (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

They will rise the same way that Jesus rose on that first Easter morning, with bodies that look familiar, but are actually brand-new. If you remember, Jesus' own disciples didn’t recognize him in the garden or on the road to Emmaus, but later they did.

Then, the instant after all those believers who have passed on before us receive their new bodies, the Bible says,

“We who are still alive and are left will be caught up" (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

We will join them, rising together, not with a cape or a superhero suit but in our new supernatural bodies, overcoming this world and the forces of gravity as Jesus did 2000 years ago. The Bible tells us in Acts chapter one what that looked like.

"Jesus was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight" (Acts 1:9).

In the same way, in less than a second, the Bible says,

"We will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air" (1 Thessalonians 4:17).

You may remember how the people came to meet Jesus on Palm Sunday. That was because, back in those days, when a leader won a great victory, he would stop outside the city gates, and the people would come out to meet him and walk back in with him, honoring him as their king. That is the picture illustrated here: we go out to meet Jesus and come back with him.

The second passage describing this moment appears in 1 Corinthians 15, where Paul tells us what will happen to our actual bodies. He says it twice just to make sure that we get it.

"Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed." (1 Corinthians 15:51-52).

In an instant, quicker than the blink of an eye. Think about how fast that really is. Light is the fastest thing in the universe, and it barely has time to cross the inch of space between the front and back of your eye before you are even finished blinking. That is the kind of speed that Paul is talking about. Faster than light. Faster than thought.

In one moment, we will be as we are now, and in the next, we will be completely changed. One moment we are struggling through life, and the next we are standing face-to-face with the one who conquered the grave. One moment sorrow has its grip on us, and the next every tear is wiped away. That is the speed and wonder of what is about to happen; our bodies will be changed, and it will happen faster than you can blink.

"When the perishable has been clothed with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality, then the saying that is written will come true: 'Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?' The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:54-57).

The third passage describing this moment appears in Revelation chapter 4, where the apostle John has just finished writing down Jesus' message to the 7 real, physical churches identified by location. At the start of chapter 4, he hears the same voice, a voice like a trumpet, calling him up.

"Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.' At once I was in the Spirit, and there before me was a throne in heaven with someone sitting on it" (Revelation 4:1-2).

In other words, in this vision, John was caught up and experienced the same invitation and the same trumpet sound that we already discovered in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4.

Now, I want you to notice what happens next. We don’t have time to read it, but from this point through chapter 18, through every seal, trumpet, and bowl of judgment poured out on the earth, the church is never mentioned again on earth. Then, suddenly in chapter 19, the church reappears, dressed in fine linen, coming with Jesus at the second coming.

It is for that reason I believe John’s call into heaven is a picture of the rapture itself, a confirmation that God’s people will be caught up to safety before the judgments of the tribulation begin. And so, every believer who has died will be raised at the rapture. And if you are still alive when it happens, this will be a great reunion in the clouds, meeting those who have already gone home to be with Jesus.

I am going to say that again because the big question everyone wants answered is when the rapture will take place. Here at our church, we believe in the pre-tribulation rapture. I know that many of you have heard of it because of the Left Behind books and movies, but whatever you personally believe about the timing of the rapture, it is not something that should divide us, and it certainly is not something that keeps anyone out of heaven.

However, what I believe and what the Assemblies of God teaches is that Jesus comes in the clouds before the tribulation begins. He snatches us up to safety, bringing his church home to spare us from the wrath that is coming on the unbelieving world. And so, as believers, we will not go through the great tribulation, just as Jesus promised the church in Revelation chapter 3.

"Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth" (Revelation 3:10).

Now, let me show you where the rapture fits on the bigger timeline and where we are headed for the rest of the series.

After the church is caught up, the 7-year period of tribulation begins on earth. This is that which the prophet Daniel described way back in 600 BC, that same period of time of which Jesus said, “after the distress of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken” (Matthew 24:29).

During the second half of the tribulation, what’s called the great tribulation, is when the Antichrist desecrates the temple and turns the full weight of his rule against the world. And we're going to walk through that whole timeline together next weekend, and so you won’t want to miss that.

At the climax of the great tribulation comes a third event, one people often skip past, which is the Second Coming of Jesus Christ. This is not the rapture, because the rapture is Jesus coming for his church in the clouds. The Second Coming is Jesus coming victoriously with his church, all the way down to the earth, to physically stand on it and take his throne. John saw it in a vision, and this is what he said:

"I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns... He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses.... On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS" (Revelation 19:11-14, 16).

There is a song we sing about angel armies, and they are right there with him. This is the moment the armies of the Antichrist are defeated at the Battle of Armageddon, and Jesus sets his feet on the earth as its rightful King. Every promise about Jesus ruling from Jerusalem finds its fulfillment right here at this moment in time.

That victory at the second coming of Jesus opens the door to the fourth event, the millennium, Jesus’ thousand-year reign of peace on earth. Revelation chapter 20 describes believers reigning with him during this time. We will cover the millennium in detail over the next 2 weeks.

But after those thousand years, Satan is released from captivity for a short time; he gathers the unbelieving nations for one last rebellion, and is then immediately and decisively cast into the lake of fire. That leads us to the fifth event, the Great White Throne of Judgment, where the unsaved, unbelieving dead of every age are resurrected to be judged and separated from God forever (Revelation 20:15).

And then, finally, the sixth event. The one this whole story has been preparing for and moving toward. The new heaven and new earth.

The apostle John tells us:

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away" (Revelation 21:1).

This is the promise underlying every other promise. Not just surviving the tribulation or reigning with Jesus in the millennium, but the promise of a brand-new creation where the dwelling of God is with men; he comes to live with us forever. The apostle tells us in his vision:

"He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away" (Revelation 21:3-4).

In other words, no more funerals, no more cancer, no more grief, no more war, just a loving and gracious God with his people forever.

That is where this whole series is headed, and that is why the rapture of the church matters so much, because it is the doorway into everything else God has promised us. And so, as we come to a close today, I want you to notice how the passages we read about the rapture end. First Thessalonians chapter 4 ends with this:

"Therefore encourage each other with these words" (1 Thessalonians 4:18).

You see, Jesus is coming back, and that should encourage all of us. It is the moment we finally get to see our Savior face-to-face. For that reason, First Corinthians chapter 15 ends this way:

"Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord's work, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain" (1 Corinthians 15:58).

In other words, keep serving him, because he will reward you when he comes.

He is coming soon, coming back to claim us, to change us, and bring us all the way home, through the rapture, through the Second Coming, into the millennium, past the judgment, and into the new heaven and new earth where nothing sad will ever be experienced again. Nothing and nobody can stop that because nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:39).

That is the promise of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is coming back soon, and his return will be glorious. Every promise he has ever made you is just as true now as it will be the moment you finally see him face-to-face.

Graphics, notes, and commentary from LifeChurch, Ministry Pass, PC Study Bible, Preaching Library, and Sermon Central. Scripture from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.