1Th_4:17 Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
this verse says plainly "to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. " as the verse states shouldn't we always be in the air with the Lord?
What would lead you to believe, if we are caught up together, to meet the Lord in the air, that we will always be in the air?
Jesus is descending from Heaven to earth, to take His place as King over the whole earth in Jerusalem.
- His feet will stand on the mount of Olives. Zechariah 14:1-4
Behold, the day of the Lord is coming,
And your spoil will be divided in your midst.
For I will gather all the nations to battle against Jerusalem;
The city shall be taken,
The houses rifled,
And the women ravished.
Half of the city shall go into captivity,
But the remnant of the people shall not be cut off from the city.
Then the Lord will go forth
And fight against those nations,
As He fights in the day of battle.
And in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives,
Which faces Jerusalem on the east. Zechariah 14:1-4
- He will reign and rule from Jerusalem as King:
16 And it shall come to pass
that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. 17 And it shall be
that whichever of the families of the earth
do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, on them there will be no rain. Zechariah 14:16-17
- He will sit on His Throne to judge the nations, when He comes:
“When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides
his sheep from the goats. Matthew 25:31-32
The Point: When Jesus descends from heaven to earth, to Jerusalem, the city of the great King, He will gather all His people together, both those who are in heaven and those who are alive and remain on earth, in the air, on His way down, to takes His place on His throne in Jerusalem, to reign and rule as King over the earth, from the city of the great King.
Hear the instructions of the angel who was with the Apostles, when Jesus ascended to heaven from Jerusalem:
4 And being assembled together with
them, He commanded them
not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father,“which,”
He said, “you have heard from Me; 5 for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” 6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked Him, saying, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 And He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has put in His own authority. 8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
9
Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. 10 And while they looked steadfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel, 11 who also said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing up into heaven?
This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven.” Acts 1:4-11
JLB