The end-time phenomenon called the "pre-tribulation rapture" of the church has captured the thoughts of many. This concept has become a basis for multimillion-dollar enterprises, producing books, Christian television shows, and movies. It is a theory that I had believed for most of my life. My friend Ann shared with me how she and her husband no longer believed a "pre-trib" rapture theory and offered me a book to read. I skimmed through the book, but because I was convinced I knew the truth, I went to the bible with the intent to prove to our friends that what I believed was correct. I researched the topic in depth, examining every aspect of the Second Coming. The more I learned the more convinced I became that I could no longer embrace my former belief. I was overwhelmed with a sense of grief--the hope to which I had clung for so many years was gone. But my grief was short lived as I realized that this is GOD's words, and His ways are higher than man's ways!

The truth I learned from the study of the Lord's Second Coming is monumentally important. We cannot take lightly the timing of Christ's return--it is closely linked to the entire message of this book. It is not enough to say that as long as we are ready, it is irrelevant whether Jesus returns "pre-trib," "mid-trib," or "post-trib." We must understand precisely what Jesus' Coming will mean to the true believers, as well as to the pseudo-believers and the unbelievers. In this chapter, we will discover that Jesus returns at the end of the Great Tribulation, and the reason He does.

If we think the pre-tribulation rapture theory is merely a difference in beliefs among Christians, we are sadly mistaken. Do we not realize how vastly widespread the enemy's deception is? Satan's desire is to see everyone spend eternity without Christ, and those looking to escape the enemy's clutches will be most vulnerable to his deception. The idea that they will not suffer any tribulation will have made them blind to the full implication of all that is transpiring. Sadly, millions have bought into the erroneous belief of a pre-tribulation rapture, and the majority will be further deceived with the increasing deception as Christ's Coming nears. Even in these deceptive days, many have responded to the Holy Spirit's call to open their eyes to the truth and become a part of the remnant prepared as a Bride to meet Jesus.

In the earlier part of First Corinthians 15, Paul expounded on the natural and the spiritual, death and resurrection, and the hope of the believer in Christ. In the fiftieth verse we are told "that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does corruption [decay]¹ inherit incorruption [immortality]"². (NKJV). Then Paul speaks of "a mystery": He says that all will not die, but will be changed in "the twinkling of an eye" when the last trumpet sounds.³ The bodies of those who died in Christ will rise from their graves and receive a new, immortal body. Those still alive will receive immortal bodies to replace the mortal [flesh] bodies of this life. Verse fifty-two is emphasized as "proof" that the church will be raptured before the tribulation begins. But Paul told the Thessalonians that those who are "alive, and are left [Greek: survive]"⁴ will be caught up to meet Jesus as He returns at His Second Coming.⁵