A couple days ago I noted that I don’t see a “rapture” in 1 Thessalonians 4.13-18 and I was asked about John 14.2-3. Let me state from the beginning that while I find unity in Scripture I find diversity as well. It wouldn’t bother me if Paul presented one eschatological vision and the Fourth Gospel provided another angle. That being said, even if John differs from Paul here, I don’t see a “rapture”.
When Jesus says that he “in my Father’s house/household/dwelling place” (ἐν τῇ οἰκίᾳ τοῦ πατρός μου) there are many “dwelling places” (μοναὶ πολλαί εἰσιν) this says nothing of being abducted into heaven at some event called “the rapture”. It merely states that in the abode of the Father there are openings for many people.
In the context of the Gospel itself we must remember Jesus is resurrected. Jesus doesn’t “go to heaven” and the story ends. He dies and then resurrects. The physicality of resurrection shouldn’t be ignored as a framework for Jesus’ words.
Does that mean he is not speaking of going into the heavenly realm and taking his disciples with him? Not necessarily, but we should be careful to avoid picturing this as we are apt to do. Often we think of the eschatological heaven and earth as very distinct. Heaven is where we will be at the end. Earth has some temporal purpose. Yet in the Johannine Tradition the Book of Revelation depicts the marriage of heaven and earth, not the departure of earth for heaven. This doesn’t mean that John 14 is framed by the Book of Revelation, but the similarities in thought should cause us to pause. If the Book of Revelation was not written by the person(s) as the Fourth Gospel then it surely resides within the same tradition.
In the rest of John 14 the passage is about Jesus being in the Father, the Father being in Jesus, the Spirt coming and introducing the disciples into this family. Jesus will not leave the disciples orphaned (v. 18). The Spirit guarantees that the disciples will be brought into the family of God.
Does this occur at the end of the world? Does this occur in the heavenly realm separate from earth? No. If the immediate context matters, and I think it does, we should think of Jesus as saying “I go to the abode of my Father and I will bring you there as well by the Holy Spirit.” In other words, the disciples won’t leave earth, but they will be in the heavenlies, in the family of the Father, because of Christ through the Spirit.
Thoughts?
January 7, 2012 at 11:10 am
I believe we should factor in the bride/bridegroom analogy that is here.
Jesus is the bridegroom who is going to His Father’s house to make a place ready for the bride. When He has done so, He will return and take her to His Father’s house.
That being so, we know that we will enter into the fulness of His love, joy, and blessings there. Perhaps some of John 17 (especially :24) is applicable to this as well.
As far as location…ultimately we will be where He is, wherever that may be. That is what Paul said in 1Thess.4:13-18, too.
January 7, 2012 at 12:13 pm
I think of Jesus’s Father’s house as the temple. (See John 2) The new temple will be his body, and in his temple or body there are many abodes. As we abide in him (the message of chapter 15) we are abiding or dwelling with God himself. Jesus prepares this place for us to dwell by him going away through his death and resurrection. Or at least that seems like a plausible interpretion.
January 7, 2012 at 12:19 pm
I don’t have anything mind-blowing to say about John here and am awaiting more responses, but I’m just confused on this statement, “Often we think of the eschatological heaven and earth as very distinct. Heaven is where we will be at the end. Earth has some temporal purpose.”
I accept there can be diversity in Scripture as you say, but where does Scripture talk about heaven being where we’ll be at in the end and earth being temporary? Isn’t the biblical narrative as a whole about God restoring his creation and uniting the dimensions (for lack of a better word) of heaven and earth, akin to Revelation 21-22, like Isaiah’s new heavens and new earth? Paul doesn’t once in his missionary sermons, for example, mention avoiding hell and going to heaven, instead he talks about resurrection and coming vindication, etc.
Now, I’m speaking as a Lutheran who confesses nearly every Sunday that I believe in the “resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come” and not “going to heaven,” so maybe that’s why I’m confused.
January 7, 2012 at 12:33 pm
I think it is of note that the only other time the phrase “my Father’s house” appears in John it is in reference to the Jerusalem temple. (2:16) Perhaps noteworthy too is the reference to the sending of the holy spirit in this context. With the later section of John 14 talking about the joining of believers into God’s ‘family,’ and God’s ‘family’ essentially being a temple, (Eph 2) it sure does sound like temple imagery.
January 7, 2012 at 12:42 pm
Jesus’ resurrection doesn’t make sense to me if we were meant to simply disappear from the earth. Why would he need to have his body rise from the dead if it’s earthly and is therefore going to be left behind? If we’re meant to leave this world behind, shouldn’t we leave behind our bodies also since they come from the earth?
In my mind, rapture theology has a tendency to create non-biblical myths about what will happen in the future. I could be wrong, but the evidence in the New Testament (the major theme of a resurrection – not just in the NT, but in the OT as well) suggests something much more than vacating the earth. Everything we do here matters; rapture theology enables the mentality that it doesn’t since “we’re leaving here anyway.”
Thanks for the post, Brian!
January 7, 2012 at 12:50 pm
@J: True, the bridegroom motif does fit well and where Jesus reigns is “home”.
@Erik: That is a helpful observation as well.
@Sara: I don’t have any contention with how you framed it.
@Ivan: That builds on Erik’s observation quite well.
@Jeremy: Agreed, unless as I said in the last post someone means by “rapture” merely the greeting of the Lord in the air. I am fine with that because it isn’t escapism.
January 9, 2012 at 7:21 am
‘Rapture’ doesn’t seem to appear in the ESV (or the UKJV, or the NET), but assuming it’s true, wouldn’t Jesus have prayed thus:
“Our father, who art in heaven
hallowed be thine name,
thine kingdom removed ..
…”
Jesus said “My Kingdom is not OF (ἐκ) this world”, but the use of the word ek (G1537) meaning ‘from’, is not the same as saying “My Kingdom is not PART of this world”. Clearly [Luke 1:28-33] makes it clear Christ’s Kingdom, as the final cause of the Davidic covenant IS part of this world ([2 Sam 7] summarized in [1 Chron 17:11-14] and [2 Chron 6:16]). Christ’s Kingdom was IN the world but NOT OF it!
Recently, your serious of posts have seemed exposed trends within Christianity to misunderstand the eschatological vision of the kingdom of God. An alternative view was offered that suggested the bible’s eschatological view of the kingdom, though misunderstood, is consistent across all of the bibles text on the matter and written clearly. Interpreted, this vision sees the kingdom literally established historically, albeit unrecognised. Established by Christ for the sake of also destroying the Babylonian heritage of kingdom’s historically. Afterwards to grow to fill the entire earth [Dan 2:35,45] (as a Christ worshipping superpower eventually to have global dominion)
In [Amos 4:12-13], God suggests He will form this mountain or Kingdom from the residue of Israel overthrown; the clay remoulded as per [Jer 18:4,6][Isa 29:16][Isa 45:9][Isa 64:8] explaining [Dan 2:41-43,45]. While [Joel 3:17] specifically shows this ‘mountain’ to be named “Zion” and he ties it to the messiah:
“You shall know that I am the LORD your God, who dwells in Zion, my holy mountain. And Jerusalem shall be holy, and strangers shall never again pass through it.
Moreover, of this mountain God has twice testified the following (citing Isaiah, repeated in Micah) establishing it as true [Gen 41:32] :
“It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and it shall be lifted up above the hills; and peoples shall flow to it, and many nations shall come, and say: “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD,
to the house of the God of Jacob, that he may teach us his ways and that we may walk in his paths.” [Isa 2:2-3] AND [Mic 4:1-2]
This Kingdom represented by a mountain above is also represented as a tree [Mark 4:31-32]. Where Isaiah and Micah say clearly “.. many nations shall come and say ..”, Jesus said in parable ” … so that the birds of the air can make nests …” so Jesus was saying the exactly same thing exactly, tough in parable.
If this vision of the ‘Mountain’ as a tree is a true representation, than the tree having ‘great branches’ makes it obviously true His fathers house also has many rooms, μονή (monē G3438) (House of David, House of Israel, House of Judah becoming the multitude of nations IAW [Gen 17:4-5][Gen 48:19] and awaited as ‘time’ or ‘multitude’ of the nations [Luke 21:24][Rom 11:25]).
Therefore, there isn’t necessarily incoherence between the Johannine and Pauline tradition.
January 9, 2012 at 7:37 am
@Andrew: I agree. I don’t think there is a contradiction between the eschatologies of Paul and John. I wanted to be clear that I am not trying to override John’s unique voice in order to intentionally reconcile him with Paul though. I want to make sure John’s voice has it’s place.
January 9, 2012 at 8:05 am
@Brian – that is indeed the marvel of the inspiration of scripture; that the Word is not devoid of all traces of its secondary author.
That the primary author allowed His work to reflect something of the character of its secondary author is indeed curious. That that Word reflects the character of both God and man is something that will never cease to amaze me.
January 14, 2012 at 9:08 am
ThIs is exactly on the same lines as I have been thinking about scriptures and Yhe Good News. The good news that Jesus declared and taught was that Heaven had come to Earth. God is among us now. Permanently. Forever. The Incarnation of God in the person of Jesus and the Indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the Now, on earth, is the Gospel. The Good News. We don’t have to wait to go to heaven and be with God. God came to us and how you do wonderfully put it, “in other words, the disciples won’t leave earth, but they will be in the heavenlies, in the family of the Father, because of. Christ through the Holy Spirit.” realizing that God is here, now, and it isn’t an ‘after-you-die’ event has changed everything for me. Thank you for your post. And thank God for the Incarnation. I’m renewed again by the immensity of the Love that created us, sustains us, and has redeemed us.