Olivier Melnick: The Rapture of the Church - Part 1 (with Dr. Andy Woods)

Kick off a 4-part series as Olivier Melnick and Dr. Andy Woods lay a clear, biblical foundation for the Rapture of the Church. This Q&A tackles common questions and misconceptions with Scripture-first answers.

In this episode:
• Where is “Rapture” in the Bible? (harpazō → Latin rapturo; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18)
• Rapture vs. Second Coming: meeting Christ in the air vs. Messiah’s return to earth (Zech. 14; Rev. 19)
• Partial Rapture theory: what it claims—and why salvation by grace through faith refutes it (1 Cor. 3; 2 Cor. 5:10)

Key Scriptures: 1 Thess 4:13–18 • 1 Cor 15:51–53 • John 14:1–3 • Zech 14 • Rev 19

The Rapture of the Church - Part 1

Guest: Dr. Andy Woods

Olivier Melnick:
Hello everybody! Today I have a very, very special program. I have a dear friend who has been a mentor and a friend for a few years now. Dr. Andy Woods is with us, and he’s going to be speaking on the topic of the Rapture of the Church.

Some of you might wonder why we’re talking about the Rapture. The reason is that it’s very close to my heart—this is how I found my Messiah. I’m praying that as we answer some questions, this will minister to you and be a blessing. I know it will be a blessing to me, because every time I listen to Dr. Andy Woods’s teaching, it’s very clear and I always learn something. Andy, welcome to the show.

Dr. Andy Woods:
Olivier, it’s good to be here with you. Thanks for having me.

Olivier:
Thank you. I don’t know if you knew this, but 37 years ago I was reading a little book that led many people to faith—The Late Great Planet Earth by Hal Lindsey. I was in France, commuting to work on the subway, and I missed my stop several times because I was so engrossed in the book. When I got to the section on the Rapture, I got scared. I thought, “People can’t possibly believe such an event would take place.” It sounded childish to me at first.

I asked the young woman who would soon become my wife (of 37 years now), and she said, “Olivier, this is exactly what’s going to happen. I don’t have all the details, but believers will be taken away, and those who don’t believe will be left behind.” This was years before the Left Behind series was written. It scared me into thinking, “I don’t want to be separated from God, and I don’t want to be separated from this young woman.” She led me to my Messiah that night in mid-July 1985—because of the Rapture.

I often pray, “Lord, please let me experience the Rapture since that’s how I came to You—but if I don’t, I don’t.” Still, the Rapture holds a special place in my heart.

You’ve taught on this quite a bit. Do you have books on the Rapture, or do you address it within other books you’ve written?

Andy:
First, I did know a little about your background because David Hocking and your wife told me they had prayed for you by name. I didn’t know the details about how the Rapture was integral to your coming to faith.

As for books, I haven’t written a full book directly on the Rapture—though I want to. The closest thing is a booklet (which may come up today) arguing that “the departure comes first” refers to the Rapture. I’m also doing a series at my church—almost lesson 50 now—on the Rapture. So, yes, it’s important to me.

Olivier:
If people want to go in-depth before we get into the questions, where should they go?

Andy:
The easiest way is my YouTube channel—just type “Andy Woods” into the search bar and look for the Rapture playlist. You can also visit our church website, Sugar Land Bible Church: www.slbc.org, or andywoodsministries.org.

Olivier:
For the three or four people who don’t know you—where is your church?

Andy:
We’re in Sugar Land, Texas, southwest of Houston. We’re not officially in Houston, but I say Houston because most people haven’t heard of Sugar Land.

Olivier:
About that booklet—you impressed me. In our circles, if you write something doctrinal and it persuades Dr. Arnold Fruchtenbaum to change his position, that’s success! Arnold is a mentor of mine, so that really stood out.

All right, let’s start with basics. Where is the word “Rapture” in the Bible? I need to find things in the Bible—so where is it?

Andy:
You won’t find the word “Rapture” in the Bible—any more than you’ll find the word “Trinity.” But the doctrine is biblical even if the label isn’t there.

In 1 Thessalonians 4:17, you see the Greek word harpazō, which means to seize, snatch, or catch up by force. It’s where we get the English word harpoon—you thrust and pull toward yourself. When Jerome translated the Greek into Latin (the Vulgate, 4th century), he used the word rapturo (from which we get Rapture). So the path is Greek (harpazō) → Latin (rapturo) → English (Rapture). The concept is there in Scripture, even if the English term isn’t in our translations.

Olivier:
Right. Skeptics often say, “The word isn’t in the Bible,” but as you said, the concept clearly is—just like the Trinity.

Is there a Rapture concept in the Old Testament, or only in the New?

Andy:
The Rapture of the Church concerns the Church, and the Church in the Old Testament was a mystery. That said, there are individual raptures in the Old Testament—Enoch was taken to heaven before his lifespan ended, and Elijah was taken up as well. But the Church’s Rapture is a New Testament doctrine.

You first see it hinted at in the Upper Room discourse—John 14:1–3—and then Paul unpacks it in the epistles. The Second Advent (Second Coming), however, is a two-testament doctrine—Old and New.

Olivier:
That’s my next question. People often confuse the Rapture and the Second Coming. Can you clarify?

Andy:
Sure. The Second Advent—Jesus physically returning to set up His kingdom—is found throughout the Old and New Testaments (e.g., Job 19:25–26: “I know that my Redeemer lives, and at the last He will take His stand on the earth.” Job is the oldest biblical book we have.)

Here are some key differences:

• Rapture: Christ comes in the air (1 Thess. 4:16–17).
  Second Coming: Christ comes to the earth (Zech. 14).
• Rapture: He comes for His saints (1 Thess. 4:15–17).
  Second Coming: He comes with His saints (Rev. 19:14).
• Rapture: A blessing for the Church (1 Thess. 4:18).
  Second Coming: A judgment on the nations (Rev. 19:15).
• Rapture: Directly affects believers (1 Thess. 4:16).
  Second Coming: Affects believers and unbelievers on earth (Rev. 19:15).
• Rapture: Not seen by the whole world in the same way; it’s announced by an archangel (1 Thess. 4:16).
  Second Coming: Visible to the whole world (Rev. 1:7) and involves myriads of angels (Jude 14).
• Rapture: A resurrection for Church-age believers (1 Cor. 15:51–53).
  Second Coming: No Church-age resurrection event is tied to that moment.
• Rapture: A rescue for the Church (1 Thess. 1:10).
  Second Coming: A rescue for Israel at the end of the Tribulation (Matt. 23:37–39).

There are many more distinctions—some charts list 50–100—but that’s my short list.

Olivier:
That gives us plenty of Scripture to see the difference. This also makes me think: when we’re raptured, will all believers be taken? You mentioned the Church—so what about Abraham, Isaac, Jacob? Are Old Testament saints raptured with us?

Andy:
I don’t believe so. They’re not part of the Church. The Church began in Acts 2. The program for Old Testament saints (Abraham, Daniel, etc.) has their resurrection at the beginning of the Millennial Kingdom (see Daniel 12:2; Revelation 20:4–5). Anyone who has trusted in the Messiah between Acts 2 and the Rapture is part of the Church, and we receive our resurrection bodies at the Rapture.

Olivier:
Makes sense. Here’s a question I don’t like being asked—so I’ll ask you: What would be your top three New Testament passages to validate the Rapture?

Andy:

1. John 14:1–3 — Jesus in the Upper Room. After Israel’s leadership rejected the kingdom (cf. John 12), Jesus begins revealing Church-age truth (John 13–17), including how the Church ends—the Rapture. (“I go to prepare a place for you… I will come again and receive you to Myself…”)
2. 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18 — Paul says, “This we say to you by the word of the Lord” (v. 15), building on what Jesus revealed in John 14.
3. 1 Corinthians 15:50–58 — The resurrection chapter. The Corinthians were denying resurrection; Paul explains when believers will be changed: “We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye…”

Olivier:
I agree—those make the doctrine very clear.

I know not all people will be in the Rapture—it’s only believers. But there’s a view that some Christians won’t be taken—the partial Rapture theory. Can you explain?

Andy:
Partial Rapturism says Christians who aren’t living sanctified lives—those who’ve drifted into carnality—won’t be raptured. Paul acknowledges the possibility of carnality (1 Cor. 3:1–3, 15), but he never teaches partial participation in the Rapture.

In 1 Corinthians 15:51, he says, “We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed.” Note he’s writing to the Corinthians, arguably the most carnal church of the first century: divisions (1–4), incest (5), lawsuits and prostitution (6), marriage chaos (7), liberty abuses (8–10), spiritual gifts disorder (12–14), resurrection denial (15). Yet Paul still calls them brethren and warns of loss of reward—not loss of salvation.

Participation in the Rapture is part of God’s grace package to all believers from the moment of salvation. It’s not a carrot-and-stick for control, and it’s not a Protestant purgatory. Sadly, some recycle this view, but it’s been refuted biblically for a long time.

Olivier:
Well friends, that’s all we have time for in this first episode with Dr. Andy Woods on the Rapture of the Church. Stay tuned for the next episode.

Thank you, and Shalom.