Mims Chapel Church 

Week 3, March 16

LESSON 3

We Believe in the Blessed Hope,
Which Is the Rapture of the Church
of God at the Return of Jesus Christ.

Lesson Text:

Titus 2:11-13, 1 Thessalonians 4:16-18


Memory Verse

"For the grace of God that bringeth salvation bath appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world; looking for that blessed hope and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ "
Titus 2:11-13

Key Terms
Expectation • A strong belief that something will happen or be the case in the future.
Eternal Life • Life without beginning or end; living forever; a quality of life that continues after death and is independent of time.
 

Suggested Emphasis

Blessed Hope

We first will look at the term blessed hope. "Blessed" comes from the Greek word eulogetos and it is applied only to God. Therefore, in both this scripture and our affirmation of faith, the word specifically refers to the coming of Christ for His church. Then the other word "blessed" is makarios but it refers to man and his char­acter as described in the Beatitudes in Matthew 5. "Hope" is translated from the Greek word elpis and, in the New Testa­ment, means "favorable and confident expectation" (Strongs Concordance). For example, in 1 Thessalonians 5:8, "the hope of salvation" refers to the rapture of be­lievers. Romans 5:2 says, "By whom [Jesus] also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in the Hope of the Glory of God." Galatians 5:5 says, "For we through the Spirit wait for the Hope of righteousness by faith." Ephesians 1:18 says, "The eyes of your under­standing being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his [God's] calling, and what the riches of the glory of his in­heritance in the saints." Hope in its broad­est sense (to include eternal life) is there­fore an essential factor in salvation and foundational to the belief system of salva­tion. "If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable" (1 Corinthians 15:19). Hebrews 7:19, refer­ring to the new Priesthood in Jesus, says, "For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God." Ro­mans 15:13 says, "Now the God of Hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" (See also: 1 John 3:3, F.E. Butler, Bible Study, 2005).

Emphasis 1:

The Rapture of the Church of God

"Rapture" is a term in the Christian church that describes the time that Jesus Himself will make a personal appearance to get His church. "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. Therefore comfort one another with these words" (1 Thessalonians 4:16­18). The phrase "caught up" is translated from the Greek word harpazo, and it means "to snatch up" and "to grasp hast­ily" (Strongs Concordance). This is the word used in Acts 8:29 when the Spirit of the Lord suddenly carried Phillip away. The verb also implies being carried away by force, which is the actual dictionary definition. A synonym is abduction.

Emphasis 2:

Which is in Christ

The very foundation of our faith is in Christ, in His death and Resurrection. "How if Christ be preached that He rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen? And if Christ be not risen, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain" (1 Corinthians 15:12-14). When we believe in the blessed hope, the Rapture of the Church of God which is in Christ, we reaffirm our total faith in His omnipotence. That is power over death, disappearance, and decay. The condition of the body in death and after death does not affect the Rapture of the saints. Every saint will have their own body (1 Corinthi­ans 15:38), and every saint will have an incorruptible body that will look like their fleshly body. This is told to us in 1 Corin­thians 15:51-54, which say:

Behold, I shew you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed 52 In a moment, in the twin­kling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. 53 For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immor­tality. 54 So when this corruptible shall have put on incorruption, and this mortal shall have put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the say­ing that is written, Death is swallowed up in victory.

Philippians 3:20-21 tells us, "For our con­versation is in heaven, from whence also we look for the savior, the Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glo­rious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things unto himself."

Emphasis 3:

At His Return

The greatest significance for every saint is Jesus's return in the middle of the air and the saint's participation in the first resur­rection or the Rapture. When we reaffirm His return, we are specifically referring to His return for the blood-washed, saved, and sanctified believers. While we the saints are in heaven, the Tribulation will go on for seven years, ending with Armaged­don, at which time the Tribulation saints will be taken to heaven. Christ's return, referring to His second advent to the earth, will be when Christ and the hosts defeat Satan at Armageddon. The first heaven and earth will be destroyed with fire, and a new heaven and Earth will be created by Christ, where the Lord will reign in Je­rusalem. Remember, it would be inappro­priate to call the Rapture, the Second Advent, because the saints will meet Christ in the air (F.E. Butler, Bible Study, 2005).

Missions Application Questions

How does the saint remain hopeful re­garding both natural life and eternal life?
What does "which is in Christ" mean, and how would you describe it to a missionary class abroad?

World Missions Prayer Points

Let us pray that the saints always remember what the blessed hope means and not just something to recite when we gather together.
Pray for doors to continue to open, so that mission workers can continue to share the Gospel and the meaning of eternal life.

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