There are many Scriptures that give Christians hope in these Last Days. Here are a few of them.

There are two major events that will occur in the End Times. First, the Lord Jesus will return to call us Home with Him. This is generally referred to as the “rapture.” Jesus will not set foot on earth at this time. We will meet Him in the air.

“Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. – 1 Corinthians 15:51-53

“For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. 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 (harpazo) together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words. – 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18

The second event is the actual Return of the Lord when He sets foot on earth. The “rapture” and “return” are two separate events. Please see What is the Rapture? for more information on this subject.

“Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when He fought in the day of battle. And His feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east. – Zechariah 14:3-4

Here it is as described in the Revelation:

“Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife (the Church) hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints – Revelation 19:7-8

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. . . . And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. . . . And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

– Revelation 19:11-16

“Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation (Greek “trial”), which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth. – Revelation 3:10

The Church will not be here on the earth.

“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 show thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the spirit: and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. – Revelation 4:1-2

Ekklesia (Greek - "gathering, assembly" - translated as "church") appears in the Revelation sixteen times in chapters one through three. After John is taken up to Heaven at the beginning of chapter four, showing the taking up of the Church, the Greek word ekklesia does not appear again until the epilogue in the very last chapter. The Church will not be here for the events described in the Revelation.

“But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. For yourselves know perfectly that the Day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. . . . But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night, nor of darkness. . . . For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ. – 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9

“And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come. – 1 Thessalonians 1:10

The Prophet Isaiah in the Old Testament told us about this future event. He begins with the Ressurection and then tells of the Protection.

“Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust. . . . Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity. – Isaiah 26:19-21

“The righteous perish (Hebrew abad – “are gone”), and no man lays it to heart: and merciful men are taken away (Hebrew acaph – “gathered up, harvested”), none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come. – Isaiah 57:1

Restated:

“The righteous are gone, and no man lays it to heart: and merciful men are gathered up, none considering that the righteous is gathered up from the evil to come. – Isaiah 57:1

What a prophecy of the “rapture,” or the “snatching up!”

The Church will have authority and responsibilities in the coming Kingdom.

“Dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law (the courts) before the unjust, and not before the saints? Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? and if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels? how much more things that pertain to this life? – 1 Corinthians 6:1-3

Praise the Lord for the HOPE that we have because of the Lord Jesus!