The Rapture: Do we really leave the earth for heaven, or what?

In my last post, we looked at Matthew 24:40-41 which is often used to support the rapture but as we saw, those who will be caught up in the air are the evil, wicked ones, not the righteous believers. Now, what about 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 which is often cited as Paul's description of the rapture. This passage has more to do with the message of hope for believers who have died, that they too will be resurrected from the dead.
1 Thessalonians 4:14-17 (ESV) 
¹⁴ For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
¹⁵ For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep.
¹⁶ For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.
¹⁷ Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord.

Notice that Paul does not mention believers leaving, but rather says we are caught up together to meet the Lord in the air. The word meeting here is apantesis which means going out to meet a newly arriving dignitary. This passage's emphasis is on Jesus' triumphant return, not our departure from the earth. Paul seems to be invoking Jesus' triumphal entry into Jerusalem when the crowds went outside the city to welcome Him.

1 Thessalonians 4 deals with the coming of a king and in the Roman Empire there was a way a King was to be welcomed. According to scholars like N.T. Wright, if Caesar decided to visit a Roman city, He would take his imperial ship to the nearest bay and ride from the boat on his chariot surrounded by the Roman legions. He would journey to about a mile outside of the city and then he would command his chief soldier to shout the command to his trumpeteers to alert blow their trumpets to alert the city of the King’s presence. All of the city’s residents would then file out to meet the king and then escort him back into the city.

Now go back and read 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. If you were a Roman resident of the city of Thessalonica, how would you understand this text? Would you see it as a secret rapture of believers into heaven, or as the 2nd coming of Jesus and meeting him in the air as he descends to the reign on earth?

If there is a rapture of the saints, this is it, and it occurs in conjunction with the 2nd coming of Jesus.

Finally, here is my barometer for the "time and nearness' of His coming. It's found in John 17:21-23 (NLT) 
²¹ I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.
²² “I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one.
²³ I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me. 

I believe that the rapture of the saints, meeting the Lord in the air at his 2nd Coming, will take place when there is a oneness and unity among believers. Unless you are living in a cave on a deserted island, I doubt that you see much unity among believers today--and guess what? Neither does the world. Can you honestly say that you see believers loving one another in the community where you live, or in our nation as a whole? The unbelieving world has an excuse for not believing in Yeshua. They can stand before God and rightfully say "When did we ever see your disciples loving one another?" Now I believe that even though unbelievers are already condemned because of their sin and unbelief, God wants to be glorified by having his people loving each other so that unbelievers are without any excuse whatsoever.

So how will this ever come about? This is what the tribulation is all about. The Bible says that God is going to present to Himself a glorious church without spot, wrinkle or blemish. How does He do this? I believe that this is what transpires during the tribulation when we as saints are purified through the refining fire of suffering so that we are truly loving one another in such a way that the world sees Jesus. 

Right now, we can argue doctrine while we are separated by the walls of denominationalism and preferences because we have not yet been tested and tried as by fire. Most of us have not truly suffered for His name's sake. Not yet anyway.

Maybe this is why Christians in China pray for us because we have too much time on our hands and we spend much of our time majoring on the minors. We are not as committed or sold out to Jesus as we might think.  But with suffering such as the church in China has experienced, all this will change. This suffering, this tribulation will refine the Church so that only those who know and love Jesus will remain. 

What will remain will be the true worshipers who will worship in spirit and in truth. Right now, the church is full of "wood, hay and stubble" along with unrefined gold and silver. But there is coming a day when we bring glory to the Lord as a bride without spot or blemish. We will be loving one another and when that begins to happen, look up, for the 2nd coming of our Lord and Blessed Savior is at hand.