CHRISTIANS SHOULD LONG TO BE LIKE CHRIST

Many born-again believers are disappointed today because we are still in our carnal, temporal bodies.  I know I am!  I had hoped that Jesus would return for His Church at the beginning of Israel's Feast of Trumpets.  Because "trumpets" is plural, many of us think that one of the trumpets is "the trump of God" from 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, which reads:

"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."

Some Christian students of Bible Prophecy has stated that because the Feasts of Israel are for Israel only, that the Feast of Trumpets could not be connected to the "trump of God."  I would remind those who hold this view, that we are in the Church Age, a parenthetical period interrupting the fifth Dispensation, the Law, which has seven years remaining before it ends (Dan.9:27 - the seven-year Tribulation (Israel's Day of Atonement), followed by the Millennial Kingdom of Christ (Israel's Feast of Tabernacles).  In addition, I would remind them that the Church Age began on one of Israel's feasts, the Feast of Pentecost (Acts 2).  Therefore, having begun on a Jewish feast day, why could it not end on a Jewish feast day?

Others are critical of those of us who long to either be taken through death, or via the Rapture of the Church (Jn. 14:1-6, 1 Cor. 15:50-54; 1 Thes. 4:13-18; etc.).  They say they do not want the Lord to return for us because they want to experience something important to them, such as enjoying retirement, or as seeing their grandchildren grow up, but my response to that is "Wouldn't heaven be better than an earthly retirement, and your grandchildren be happier in heaven?"  Another objection is those who desire to be in heaven, are being selfish, because the world has yet to hear the Gospel.  My response to that is, most have heard, and for those who have not, there will be two witnesses (Rev. 11) spreading the Gospel, and 144,000 Messianic Jews declaring Jesus as Lord during the Tribulation (Rev. 7).  Besides, if wanting to be with the Lord now is such a bad thing, then why did the Apostle Paul desire it?  Here is what he had to say on the subject: 

2 Corinthians 5:1-8  "For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.  For in this we groan, earnestly desiring to be clothed upon with our house which is from heaven:  if so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked.  For we that are in this tabernacle do groan, being burdened: not for that we would be unclothed, but clothed upon, that mortality might be swallowed up of life.  Now He that hath wrought us for the selfsame thing is God, who also hath given unto us the earnest of the Spirit.  Therefore we are always confident, knowing that, whilst we are at home in the body, we are absent from the Lord (for we walk by faith, not by sight):  we are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord."

We shall be like Jesus:  sinless, immortal, and present with Him

(Rom. 8:28-29; 1 Cor 15:34-58; Phil 1:6; 1 Jn. 3:2; etc.)!