Don't Sweat Over the Rapture

There are so many dates, so many interpretations. What does the text actually say? You don't really need to dig for it. 1 Thessalonians 4, Matthew 24, and Revelation 3:10 all hint at a rapture. BUT - interpretations abound and I think timing is always open to debate (my last podcast is an example).  Even Paul has to write another letter to the Thessalonians because there was so much confusion and false teaching about the Rapture ( 2 Thessalonians 3).  I LOVE revelation and Bible study on the subject. Revelation was the first book I ever studied deeply in the Bible.  But I think this: there is a danger in the hope of a date set in your heart for a pre-tribulation rapture (or even mid-tribulation). If that date comes and goes, what will you do? Many people - depending on their fortitude - will give up.  Here's where all this discussion starts: 1 Thessalonians 4: 16-17 - Read it on its face. 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 [raptured] together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.  ... When I read the straight text, this seems to be an event that happens when Christ returns (Paul supports this in 2 TH 2)... not before. However, this scripture seems to specifically address the return of Christ. It is not a scripture debunking the pre-trib rapture theory if one reads the entire context carefully.  So, like most, I love the discussion. I present all the perspectives, but I rest in the idea that I will reign with Christ. How I get there is less important... as long as I am steadfast in my faith and ready always.  This podcast may be a sobering reminder to open your Bible more and depend less on the hype and more on the message.