Please understand that this is ‘my take’ only.  I understand that what I am about to present goes against the understanding of most believers.  I am not dogmatic and am merely presenting what I believe that the Lord has shown me about the subject.  If it is truth...the Holy Spirit will give witness to you about it.  He always gives witness to His truth.  If not, you will know that it is not truth and you should disregard it.

 

            You are correct.  All believers will be raptured.

 

            The problem: there is more than one rapture.

 

            This is typified in the parable of ‘the ten virgins’.  In the parable, the Bridegroom is coming back for His bride as portrayed by the five wise virgins.  These are those elect  first fruits who have made their garments clean and are counted worthy to escape the coming tribulation.  They are the ‘over comers’ spoken of in Revelation chapters 2 & 3.  This rapture takes place at the beginning of the tribulation period and represents the first-fruit barley harvest given as a ‘wave offering’ to God.  The following questions come to mind:

 

            What did these first-fruit types overcome?  They overcame the world, the flesh and the devil.

 

            How did they do this?

 

            “For we are His workmanship created in Christ for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).

 

            But, what are these good works?

 

            These are good works designed by God to lead a believer to an overcoming life thereby empowering him to remain steadfast in his pursuit of victory over sin.  These good works are revealed to us by the Holy Spirit and manifest in our lives by way of our obedience.  This speaks loudly to the danger of quenching the Spirit of God.  With God’s grace, and an obedient heart to live out these good works, we gain victory over sin by overcoming the world, the flesh and the devil.  Obedience produces the overcoming life and gives one the power ‘to walk on paths of righteousness’.

 

            What is required?

 

            Complete surrender of one’s life to the will and purposes of God.  This includes putting away the sinful life (see James 1: 21-22) that will facilitate the process of ‘dying to self’.  This allows ‘the new man’, led by the Spirit of God to come forth and take control of one’s life.  God has shown me that this is a process (that begins after one is born-again) and works in this way:

 

 

           “When one is born-again it is the spirit that is recreated unto God.  Man’s new, re-born spirit,  under the direction of the Holy Spirit, brings the soul into agreement.  This is the process of soul salvation.  Once the two (the soul & spirit) are in agreement the body can be brought under subjection and the ‘old man’ can die.  One, at this point, is transformed and can be led by My Spirit.  Both the body and the soul stand in agreement with the born-again spirit.  The inner and outer man must become one.”

 

            “I urge you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.  And do not be conformed to (the corrupt ways) of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Romans 12: 1 &2).

 

            The first-fruits, those taken in the barley harvest will return in glorified bodies to help prepare and lead to safety the “foolish virgins” who were unprepared and left behind, by helping them get ready for the ‘main harvest’ – the wheat harvest rapture – later in the tribulation period.  All who belong to Christ (dead or alive) at that time will be resurrected (or raptured) with the hope of attending the wedding supper of the Lamb.  Keep in mind that the wedding supper takes place after the wedding.  So shall they ever be with the Lord.

 

            Alas, the foolish virgins (those left behind) will be shut out of the wedding (see Matthew 25: 1-13).

 

            It appears to me that those who believe in a pre-tribulation rapture and those who believe in a later rapture...could both be correct!

 

            Clearly, there is much more but I have tried to make this as brief as I could and still get the pertinent points across to the reader.  Again, this is just my take on the subject.       

 

            It is just ‘one post’ of many on the ‘Five Doves’ about the subject.  May you be bless and one of the ‘over comers’.