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WHY REVELATION 4:1 COULD BE THE RAPTURE Revelation 4:1 could very well be the Rapture because the verse contains the elements of the rapture (a trumpet, a voice, and someone going up to heaven), the verse immediately follows the two chapters representing the church age (chapters 2 & 3), and it precedes the tribulation chapters (chapters 6 thru 19). Revelation 4:1 says, “After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must be hereafter.” Those who expect to find a clear-cut verse on the Rapture in Revelation are misunderstanding the nature of the Rapture. We were told in I Corinthians 15:51-52 that the Rapture is a “mystery.” In addition to this, the relationship that Christ has with His church is a mystery (Eph. 5:32). Just as a man doesn’t discuss the private matters of his marriage with everyone, Christ doesn’t lay the doctrine of the Rapture out in the open for all to see. Just as His parables were hid from many (Mat. 13:13), so His mystical calling away of His bride is hidden from the unbelieving world, being revealed only in TYPE in Revelation. When Jesus appeared the first time, He first appeared to BELIEVERS ONLY (Luke 2:16) before later appearing publicly. So it is in the Rapture of the church. That's why the word "churches" last appears in Revelation 3:22 and is not found again until clear over in Revelation 22:16. The words "church" and "churches" are NOT FOUND anywhere in the tribulation chapters, just as Enoch was NOT FOUND after his translation (Heb. 11:5). However, the first thing that IS found after Revelation 3:22 is John hearing a voice calling him away in Revelation 4:1. He's a splendid type of the bride of Christ soon leaving this earth. Please note . . . (1) The name John signifies “full of grace.” The church age is called the “dispensation of the grace of God” in Ephesians 3:2. (2) John is called the disciple “whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23; 20:2; 21:7; 21:20). He obviously loved all of His disciples, but this indicates a special love for John, such as Christ would also have a special love for His bride, the church (Eph. 5:25). (3) At the last supper, John sat closer to Jesus than the others. In fact, John 13:23 says that he was “leaning on Jesus' bosom.” One would not be surprised to see a bride doing the same thing, especially if he were to read Song of Solomon 8:5: “Who is this that cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved? . . . “ (4) John had more personal assurance than the other disciples. When Jesus revealed the fact that one of His disciples would betray him, most of them began asking the question, “Is it I?” (Mat. 26:22-25) John had enough personal assurance to know that it was not himself, so he asked, “Lord, who is it?” (John 13:25). This is comparable to the personal confidence and security that the church has with the permanent indwelling of the Holy Spirit, unlike any other group of saints in the Bible. (5) A strange thing is said of John in John 21:22-23: “Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?” The indication is that John would live to see the second coming. Of course, he did not live to see the literal second coming, since it has not yet occurred, but John did live to see all the visions of it given in Revelation. In fact, he specifically states that he was “in the Spirit on the Lord's day” (Rev. 1:10). John was transported in a vision some 2,000 years into the future to witness and write about the second coming of Christ. In this sense, he did tarry until Jesus came, which is exactly what the church does (Mat. 16:18; Lk. 19:13). I wouldn't split a church over the issue or even fight over it, but I believe the above points should be seriously considered by any true student of the word.