1- The Beginning of Birth Pains - Matthew 24:4-8
This is the period leading up to the Tribulation. It is characterized by such "Signs of the Times" as false Christs, wars, earthquakes, and famines. (compare Matthew 16:1-5)
2- The Time of Tribulation - Matthew 24:9-14
During this time there will be an increase in persecution, apostasy, lawlessness and false prophets.
3- The "Great Tribulation" - Matthew 24:15-28 (See v. 21- "great distress")
In the middle of a seven-year treaty Antichrist will desecrate the Holy Place in the newly rebuilt Temple (Daniel 9:27 - the "Abomination of Desolation"). This will be the worst of all times. The concluding event of this period of time will be the "coming of The Son of Man" (compare Revelation 19:11-21 - Christ's coming in glory as King of Kings, including the Battle of Armageddon).
4- After The Tribulation - Matthew 24:29-31
As Christ's coming in glory concludes the former period of time, it initiates this last one. After He returns, He sends out angels to gather the elect from the four corners of the Earth.
Now the question must be asked: "Where is the Rapture in our Lord's outline?" If it is here at all, it would have to be in the very last segment, after He has returned as King of Kings, when He sends out angels to gather the elect. This, however, does not fit the Biblical description of the Rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 - "caught up…in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air."). Instead, this is a reference to the in-gathering of believers who have survived the Tribulation period, and who will then be allowed to populate the Millennial Kingdom in which Jesus will reign as King of Kings (Revelation 20:4-6). This is exactly parallel to Jesus' Kingdom Parable of the Wheat and the Weeds, where the weeds are FIRST gathered and burned (Battle of Armageddon and destruction of the wicked), then the wheat is gathered into the barn. (Matthew 13:24-30).
So we return to our question, "Where is the Rapture?" We certainly believe in the Rapture, but it is notably absent from Jesus' teaching about the future. Even the later references to one being taken and another left (Matthew 24:37-42), do not refer to the Rapture. Those who are TAKEN are compared to those destroyed by the flood in Noah's days when the waters "took them all away" (v. 39). The ones who are left must be the believers, who will then be gathered by the angels to begin the human population of the Millennium. Even the Parable of the Virgins (Matthew 25:1-13) and the other parables of that chapter which teach people to be ready for the Lord's return apply to Christ's glorious return – not to the Rapture.
Therefore, we must conclude that Jesus did not foretell the Rapture. And there is a very good reason for this. It would have confused his listeners, because He had not yet explained another very important thing: the nature of the Church. True, He had announced that He would build it (Matthew 16:18 - church = "assembly"), but the Disciples did not have a clue about what it would really be. Nor is there any Old Testament prophecy about the establishment of the Church.
Here are several important facts about the Church, as it is related to prophecy:
This perfectly fits the imagery of Ezekiel 36 and 37, where Israel comes back to life, and especially the last part of this drama, when, after Israel has been regathered like bones, and rebuilt like a complete body, it finally is given the breath of spiritual life (Ezekiel 37:8-10). Israel has been rebuilt in our generation, and the time will yet come when they will become spiritually alive again!
The important teaching about Daniel's 70th "week" also fits this scenario. In Daniel 9:24-27 seventy "weeks" were prophesied for Israel's future until everlasting righteousness would be brought in. The first 69 "weeks" would last from the decree to rebuild Jerusalem until Messiah would be "cut off." It is well known in prophecy circles that Sir Robert Anderson, who was head of Scotland Yard, wrote the book "The Coming Prince," in which he demonstrated that from the decree by Artexerxes Longimanus to rebuild Jerusalem until the day that Jesus offered Himself as King (Palm Sunday), and was rejected by the majority of the Jews, was exactly 483 (69 times 7) lunar years of 360 days each! That leaves one seven-year period of Israel's history yet to be fulfilled. That seven year span corresponds exactly to the Tribulation period. From that point of view, we would expect the Tribulation to center in Israel and around Jerusalem, exactly as described by the Book of Revelation.
First Thessalonians 5:1-3 follows the classic Rapture passage immediately, and indicates that it will come "like a thief in the night.," and "suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman." Isn't that interesting? As we pointed out earlier, Jesus didn't mention the Rapture, but He did refer to the time before the Tribulation as the "beginning of birth pains."
However, the Bible repeatedly promises and demonstrates that believers are not subjected to God's wrath (Luke 21:36; 1 Thessalonians 5:9; Revelation 3:10). 2 Peter 2:5-9 specifically uses the cases of Noah and Lot to demonstrate that "the Lord knows how to rescue godly men from trials and to hold the unrighteous for the day of judgment, while continuing their punishment."
There has been some question recently about whether or not the Tribulation period can be characterized as God's wrath. Since Revelation 5 makes it very clear that Jesus, the Lamb, opens the seals which unleash all of the horrors of these seven years, one would have to deny God's sovereignty in order to claim that the Tribulation is not the result of His wrath. Some claim that it is primarily a time of Satan's wrath, up to the end when God's wrath is finally poured out. However, the Scriptures don't use the word "wrath" as a description of Satan's activity during this period, but they do mention that he is "filled with fury" in Revelation 12:12. Even in that place his fury will be the result of God's judgment which will already have been poured out on him.
Everything considered, a proper understanding of the Biblical distinction between Israel and the Church leads to a fresh appreciation of the Pre-Trib view of the Rapture. Jesus did not explain it in His broad outline of the future because it would have been confusing at that time since the Rapture is part of the Church's history, and He had not yet given details about the Church itself. Later revelation about the nature and purpose of the Church also included the wonderful promise of the Rapture.