“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” (1 Thessalonians 4:13).
What a magnificent sight that will be. This is known as the Rapture of the Church. It is the time in the future when Christ Himself will come in the clouds and with glorious shouts and trumpet blasts will summon the Church to meet the Lord in the air. Those who have died in the church age will come with the Lord Jesus (4:14). They will be reunited with the body coming from the grave and in an instant, those believers who are alive will be caught up “together with them” to meet the Lord in the air. So shall we ever be with the Lord. I love that phrase, “together with them.” Never again to be separated from loved ones who know Jesus. Never to be sad and lonely again and never to be wishing we could be there instead of here will be grand. But the best part of all is that we will be forever with the Lord Jesus. “Ever with the Lord” means just that! GLORY!
For today: Take a moment to read 1 John 3:1-3 to see how this should affect our lives today.