Believers are caught up to meet Christ in the air and go to heaven for the bema judgment and the wedding of the Lamb while the tribulation rages on earth.
Les teaches that immediately after the rapture believers enter heaven with Christ, receive new bodies, and step out of time into eternity. In heaven the first events are the bema, or judgment seat of Christ, followed by the marriage of the Lamb. After these events, believers are ready to return with Christ to the earth at His Second Coming.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 — This passage describes the order of the rapture: the dead in Christ rise first, then living believers are caught up together with them to meet the Lord in the air.
The Bible describes the rapture in 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17. When the Lord descends from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and the trump of God, the dead in Christ rise first. Then living believers are caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and from that moment they are ever with the Lord. Scripture does not spell out every activity that follows in heaven in this passage, but it clearly places believers with the Lord in the air immediately after the resurrection of the dead in Christ.
Les says that many believers do not have a good handle on what is ahead except going to heaven, but the Bible has told us what to look for. He teaches that after the rapture believers meet Christ in the air and go back into heaven with Him while the seven-year tribulation is raging here on the earth. As soon as believers are raptured, they receive new bodies and step out of time into eternity. Les then describes the heavenly order: believers appear before the judgment seat of Christ, which he calls the bema, and then the marriage of the Lamb takes place. After these events, believers are ready to come back with Christ seven years later at His Second Coming, when His feet stand on the Mount of Olives.
While the tribulation is raging on earth, Les explains that believers are occupied in heaven with activities God has revealed in Scripture. The first event he identifies is coming before the bema, or judgment seat of Christ. Afterward comes the wedding, or the marriage of the Lamb.
Les teaches that the dead in Christ rise first. When the Lord descends from heaven, He brings the souls of those who have died, and they are reunited with their resurrected bodies in the air. Then believers who are alive and remain are caught up together with them to meet the Lord. This matches the biblical statement that the dead in Christ rise first.
Les connects the heavenly events to the Second Coming. After the judgment seat of Christ and the marriage of the Lamb, believers are ready to come back with Him seven years later as time reckons it at His Second Coming. At that time, according to Zechariah, His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives.
Les teaches that tribulation saints are not members of the Body of Christ and are not included in the rapture. They will believe and be martyred during the seven years of tribulation, and he places them in resurrection with Old Testament believers rather than with the church.
Heavenly Activities After the Rapture
Les sets up the topic by saying believers should understand what happens in heaven immediately after the rapture while the tribulation rages below, and that God wants believers to know what is ahead.
Meeting Christ in the Air and Entering Eternity
Les explains that at the rapture believers meet Christ in the air and go with Him into heaven, receive new bodies, and step out of time into eternity while the seven-year tribulation unfolds on earth.
Dead in Christ Raised First
Les describes the order at the rapture: when Christ leaves heaven He brings the souls of departed saints and they meet their resurrected bodies in the air with Christ.
The Final Seven Years and the Second Coming
Les contrasts the rapture with the Second Coming, showing that believers are caught up first, then the final seven-year tribulation takes place, and afterward Christ stands on the Mount of Olives.
The Bema Seat and the Marriage of the Lamb
Les specifically teaches that after being caught up, believers go back into heaven with Christ to appear before the judgment seat of Christ, then attend the marriage of the Lamb, and are ready to return with Him at His Second Coming.
Tribulation Martyrs Are Not the Body of Christ
Les teaches that after the rapture the church is in the Lord's presence in a resurrected state, while tribulation martyrs are not members of the Body of Christ and are grouped with Old Testament believers.
The Rapture as a Sudden Mystery
Les stresses the suddenness of the rapture: Christ leaves glory, the trumpet sounds, and dead believers of the church age are raised from wherever they are and caught up to meet the Lord in the air.
Dead in Christ Rise First and Are Reunited
Les shows from Scripture that the dead in Christ rise first, and their souls, brought by God from His presence, are reunited with their resurrected bodies in the atmosphere.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17: 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 together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
This is the key passage Les uses to explain what happens to believers at the rapture and where they meet Christ.
Zechariah 14:4: And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.
Les points to this verse for the Second Coming moment when Christ returns to the earth after the heavenly events.
According to Les, no. Believers are raptured before the tribulation; they meet Christ in the air and go into heaven while the seven years of tribulation rage on the earth.
Les teaches that after being caught up to meet Christ, believers go back into heaven to appear before the judgment seat of Christ, which he calls the bema. This is one of the first activities believers experience after the rapture.
Les teaches that the wedding takes place in heaven after the bema judgment. After the marriage of the Lamb, believers are ready to return with Christ at His Second Coming seven years later.
When Christ descends, He brings the souls of departed believers from His presence, and they are reunited with their resurrected bodies in the air.
Watch the Teaching: What Happens After the Rapture? Romans 7 & Heaven Explained