The Rapture Isn't A Secret (Part 1) | Revelation 3:10, 4:1 | Matthew Maher | Landmark Church

Revelation

Matthew Maher

January 18, 2026

•

56:49

In this message from our study through Revelation, we pause between chapters 3 and 4 to address one of the most debated doctrines in the New Testament: the rapture. Is it a modern invention, escapism, or a biblical promise spoken by Jesus Himself? Starting with Revelation 3:10 (“I will keep you from the hour of trial…”) and Revelation 4:1 (“Come up here…”), we trace the storyline of Scripture to show why the rapture is not a secret idea, but a consistent biblical expectation. We examine the promise of being kept from the coming “hour,” the structure of Revelation, Old Testament foreshadows (Enoch and Noah), Jesus’ own teaching (John 14; Luke 21; Luke 17), and Paul’s clear explanation of the catching away (1 Thessalonians 4; 1 Corinthians 15). This teaching is not meant to divide the Church, but to comfort, purify, and awaken the Church as we await our Groom—Jesus Christ. Key Scriptures: Revelation 3:10; Revelation 4:1; Genesis 5–7; John 14:1–3; Acts 1:9–11; Luke 21:36; Luke 17:26–30; 1 Thessalonians 4:13–18; 1 Corinthians 15:51–52; 1 Thessalonians 1:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:9 If you have questions about Matthew 24, the elect, or the last trumpet, stay tuned—those are exactly what we address next. Thank you for watching a Landmark video. Please subscribe and tap or click the bell icon to turn notifications on so you're alerted when we go live or upload a new video. Sermon Notes: https://notes.subsplash.com/fill-in/view?page=H1vKWtUHbx Visit our website to stay up-to-date on everything we do: http://thelandmark.church/ Follow us on social media to stay engaged: Instagram: @thelandmark.church Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thelandmark.church X: @thelandmark_ TikTok: @thelandmark.church Listen to our sermons: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3oMO0TF2OWF0JSzU8nOZ2m?si=ac45dc5fc2464d3b Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/landmark-sermons/id1724233354 Watch live here on Youtube. Gathering times: Sunday at 9:00am & 11:00am Wednesday at 6:30pm Landmark Church 300 E. 8th Street Ocean City, NJ 08226

Revelation 3:10 promises to keep the Church “from the hour of trial.”What does the phrase “from the hour” imply about time and scope, and why does that matter for understanding the rapture?
In Revelation 4:1, John is called upward (“Come up here”) immediately after the Church section (Revelation 2–3). What is the significance of this transition in the structure of Revelation?
Jesus promised, “I will come again and receive you to Myself”(John 14:1–3). How is this promise distinct from passages that describe Christ returning to the earth to judge and reign?
Paul describes believers being “caught up” to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thessalonians 4:17) and being changed “in a moment” (1 Corinthians 15:51–52). What do these details tell us about the nature of the rapture compared to other end-time events?
Paul ends his clearest rapture passage by saying, “Therefore comfort one another with these words” (1 Thessalonians 4:18). How does the rapture function as comfort for the Church, and why would that comfort be diminished if believers were destined to enter the Day of the Lord?
Scripture teaches that the Church is not appointed to wrath (1 Thessalonians 1:10; 5:9), while the Day of the Lord is described as sudden judgment on the world. How does distinguishing between the rapture and the Second Coming help preserve both God’s mercy toward the Church and His justice toward the world?
The New Testament presents the rapture as an imminent hope rather than a sign-driven event. If the Church were meant to endure the Day of the Lord, how would that change the meaning of watchfulness, readiness, and hope?

Matthew Maher

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Revelation

Matthew Maher

Sermon Notes

Revelation 3:10

Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.

The Church of the Lord will not enter the Day of the Lord.

Revelation 4:1

After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice which I heard was like a trumpet speaking with me, saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.”

When the door opens in heaven, the Church is no longer the focus on earth.

Genesis 5:24

And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.

John 14:1-3

Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.

Acts 1:9

Now when He had spoken these things, while they watched, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.

The Head went up first, commencing the Church Age. The Body will follow at last, concluding the Church Age.

Luke 21:36

Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.

Luke 17:26, 28

“As it was in the days of Noah… likewise in the days of Lot…”

In Scripture, divine removal precedes divine wrath.

1 Thessalonians 4:17-18

Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words.

1 Corinthians 15:51-52

Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

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The Rapture Isn't A Secret (Part 1) | Revelation 3:10, 4:1 | Matthew Maher | Landmark Church

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