Over the past few weeks, I’ve gone through some of the biblical and historical foundations of the rapture (see parts one, two, three, and four). It’s a conversation that sparks intense responses. A few of my oldest friends insist that this doctrine is fundamental. While I respect their convictions, I have a different outlook.
I can’t place too much weight on such a new doctrine. The idea of the rapture didn’t emerge until the early 19th century, and it’s noticeably absent from all the historic creeds and statements of faith. If it's truly an essential doctrine, one must ask: where was it over the centuries?
While I don’t find the rapture teaching particularly convincing, it’s important to examine it more closely—particularly the key passages cited in its support. Regardless of where one stands on an issue, the Bible must always have the final word.
So far, in this teaching series, I’ve examined Matthew 24:40–41, John 14:2–3, and Revelation 4:1. Now, I want to turn my attention to 1 Corinthians 15:51–57.
Before we unpack this passage, I need to take you back to my childhood in rural Arkansas. I can still vividly recall a fiery Pentecostal evangelist, a man whose passion seemed to ignite the very air in the room. With electrifying zeal, he would pace the platform, with his dog eared KJV Bible. I still remember him referencing this passage:
"Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, 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" (1 Corinthians 15:51-52 KJV).
He screamed: “This is it! The rapture of the church—clear as day! It’s right here in black and white!” His voice boomed, his sweeping gestures commanding attention, as if he were determined to shake the heavens and earth until every soul understood him.
His confidence was unshakable. Yet even as a young listener, I couldn’t help but sense something wasn’t quite right. Was he truly drawing out the meaning of the text—or imposing his own ideas onto it?
Let’s take a closer look together and see what this passage truly says—and doesn’t say—about the rapture:
Let me tell you a secret. Not all of us will die, but all of us will be changed— in a moment, faster than an eye can blink, at the sound of the last trumpet. Indeed, that trumpet will sound, and then the dead will be raised never to decay, and we will be changed. For what is decaying must be clothed with what cannot decay, and what is dying must be clothed with what cannot die. Now, when what is decaying is clothed with what cannot decay, and what is dying is clothed with what cannot die, then the written word will be fulfilled: ‘Death has been swallowed up by victory! ‘Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’ Now death’s stinger is sin, and sin’s power is the Law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus the Messiah! (1 Corinthians 15:51-57 NLT).
At first glance, this passage might appear to support the doctrine of the rapture, particularly with its vivid imagery: “We will all be changed, in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.” The language evokes a sudden, supernatural transformation, seemingly aligned with ideas of believers being “caught up” to heaven. But is this really what Paul is describing?
When we look carefully, certain key elements are notably absent. We don’t see any mentions of believers removed from the earth, a seven-year tribulation, an antichrist, the rebuilding of the temple, or God dealing separately with Israel—core ideas within modern rapture ideologies.
To claim that 1 Corinthians 15 teaches a pre-tribulation rapture is to impose a foreign framework on Paul’s words. It is not an interpretation that arises naturally from the text; it is something inferred.
Resurrection, Not Rapture
Understand, that 1 Corinthians 15 is about the resurrection, not the rapture. The chapter begins with an emphasis on Christ being raised from the dead as the cornerstone of the Christian faith. Paul clarifies that Jesus’ resurrection guarantees the future resurrection of believers:
“For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive. But each in turn: Christ, the firstfruits; then, when he comes, those who belong to him. Then the end will come, when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father after he has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power” (1 Corinthians 15:22–24).
Paul presents a clear sequence of events: first, Christ’s resurrection, and then the resurrection of believers at the Lord’s second coming. The consummation of all things transpires as Jesus delivers the messianic kingdom to the Father. Notably, there is no mention of a secret rapture or a distinct millennial kingdom. Instead, Paul describes a singular, decisive appearing of Jesus that coincides with the resurrection of believers and the final judgment.
This scripture drives home what has been affirmed in the Nicene Creed for centuries: “He shall come again, with glory, to judge both the quick and the dead; whose kingdom shall have no end.” In other words, there are no multiple appearings. The notion of multiple “comings”—one for the saints and another with the saints—is absent here. The second coming is a singular, climactic event.
The Problem with Gaps and Intervals
Modern futurist interpretations often introduce a rapture followed by a thousand-year millennial reign, separate from the resurrection and final judgment. However, this passage gives no indication of such intervals or gaps.
Take a close look at 1 Corinthians 15. You’ll notice it gives no hint of multiple events on the timeline separated by a 100 years or more. To introduce a rapture, a millennium, and a general resurrection requires inserting some sort of pause or gaps—something that one doesn't naturally find in the text.
A Foundational Christian Doctrine
It’s time to reclaim the resurrection as a central Christian doctrine. Believers cannot allow newer, secondary teachings to overshadow this vital truth.
Unlike the rapture, this is a foundational Christian doctrine acknowledged by all the historic creeds and faith statements. The church has consistently proclaimed the hope of the resurrection: “We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come.”
Paul’s message in 1 Corinthians 15 isn’t about a secret evacuation of believers; it is highlighting the ultimate victory over death embodied men and women will experience. When Christ returns, the perishable will put on the imperishable, and death itself will be defeated. This is the Christian hope—resurrection, not rapture.
In my next post, I’ll look at what many consider the clearest example of rapture theology—1 Thessalonians 4:13-17. Does this passage really mean what people think it means? There’s still so much to explore. I invite you to keep looking at these scriptures with me as we walk this path of discovery together.
This post is part five in a series.
I wrote a book about the Book of Revelation. Check it out here.
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