Today, I want to start out by reading for you the most famous rapture passage in the
entire Bible, 1 Thessalonians chapter 4.
The Bible reads, beginning in verse 13,
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep,
that you sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep
in Jesus will God bring with them.
For 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.
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.
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.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words.
Now the part that I want to focus on is that last verse, verse 18, that says wherefore
comfort one another with these words.
Now I've heard a lot of pre-trib people say, well, if you believe that Christians
are going to go through the tribulation, this is not a very comforting passage.
That's not comforting to go through the tribulation.
But you have to get the context here of what the comfort is.
The first verse that I just read for you, verse 13, said,
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep,
that you sorrow not, even as others which have no hope.
The Bible here is talking about those who are asleep in Jesus.
Those loved ones, those Christians that have already gone to be with the Lord.
He's saying, I don't want you to sorrow for them like those who have no hope, because
if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus
will God bring with him.
And he brings up the dead in Christ or the asleep in Jesus in every single verse
here from verse 13 to verse 18.
That's why he says, wherefore comfort one another with these words.
That's why this is a popular passage at funerals.
Because people often bring this up at a funeral that we will see our loved one again
if they're a believer and if we're saved, we're going to be reunited with them.
And this is not mentioning the tribulation whatsoever.
There's no mention here of, well, let's comfort you and tell you you're not going
to go through the tribulation.
You know, the comfort is that you're not going to suffer.
That's not what it's saying at all.
The comfort is that you're going to see your loved ones again.