Welcome to Defenders, the teaching class of Dr. William Lane Craig. For more information and resources

from Dr. Craig, go to reasonable faith.org. Today we want to continue our discussion of the so-called

rapture view, according to which prior to Christ's decisive second coming to establish his physical,

visible kingdom in this world, there will be a sort of preliminary coming of Christ to snatch

out of the world the elect and take them to be with him. Now, we've been talking about Paul's discussion of the coming of the son of man in his Thessalonian correspondence. And notice that the coming of the Lord described by Paul in 1 Thessalonians chapter 4,

verses 15 to 17, is the time at which the resurrection of the dead occurs.

1st Thessalonians chapter 4, verses 16 to 17A says,

For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command,

with the archangels call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God,

and the dead in Christ will rise first.

Then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them.

So this event is the time of the resurrection of the dead.

It is the eschatological end-time resurrection towards which we look.

This is not a secret snatching of the elect out of the world. Rather, this is the time of the

final resurrection of the dead. Compare this to what Jesus says in John

chapter 5 verses 25 to 29. Jesus says, truly, truly I say to you, the hour is coming and now is

when the dead will hear the voice of the son of God

and those who hear will live. For as the father has life in himself, so he has granted the son also

to have life in himself and has given him the authority to execute judgment

because he is the son of man. Do not marvel at this, for the hour is coming when all who are in the

tombs will hear his voice and come forth,

those who have done good to the resurrection of life and those who have done evil to the resurrection

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