For many Christians, the rapture has become the centerpiece of end-times discussion. Charts are studied, dates are debated, and signs are endlessly scrutinized. But reducing the return of Christ to a single moment of escape distorts the purpose of biblical prophecy. Scripture does not present the rapture as a loophole out of responsibility but as a call to readiness, holiness, and urgency. When the focus narrows to an event, the preparation God intends is often lost.
That warning is at the heart of a recent Charisma Media interview with John Bevere, a bestselling author and longtime ministry leader.
Bevere, known for teaching on holiness, obedience, and spiritual maturity, said he spent decades avoiding eschatology altogether. That changed after what he describes as a clear prompting from the Holy Spirit around 2021. “I went 40 years and didn’t talk about eschatology,” Bevere said. “I realized I’ve never preached a full message until this year on eschatology.”
Bevere said his reluctance stemmed from how end-times teaching is often handled. “When I first looked at eschatology, I got turned off to it because people argued that I’m pre-trib, post-trib, mid-trib,” he said. “You’re just like, I don’t want anything to do with this.” But as he studied Scripture more closely, he said, ignoring the subject was no longer an option. “It’s the second most talked about subject in the New Testament other than salvation,” Bevere said. “One out of every 30 verses in the New Testament talks about the second coming of Jesus.”
Rather than creating passivity, Bevere said proper teaching on the return of Christ is meant to create urgency. He compared it to a football team late in a game. “They’re down 14 points with six minutes left. There’s no huddles. There’s an urgency,” he said. “If eschatology is presented in the correct way, it creates an urgency because Jesus said, ‘Do business till I come.’”
That urgency, Bevere said, is intentional. Scripture repeatedly emphasizes the nearness of Christ’s return to keep believers spiritually alert. “Could it be that in the wisdom of God, He kept an urgency on every single generation of His imminent return for our protection?” he said. Bevere warned that when believers assume Christ is delayed, compromise follows. “The servant who says, ‘My master delays his coming,’ is the one who begins to be more worldly and starts partying,” he said.
Bevere said expectation of Christ’s return produces holiness, not fear. “The Bible says that everyone who has this hope, this eager expectation of His imminent return, purifies himself even as He is pure,” he said. He added that previous generations did not have what modern believers have. “Now, of course, in all the other generations you didn’t have Israel,” Bevere said. “That’s the big super sign of the second coming. We really are in the generation.”
He also challenged the idea that the rapture should be viewed primarily as an event. “When you dwindle it down to just an event, a rapture, you miss the big picture,” Bevere said. “The big picture is this is a lovesick groom coming back for his bride.” He pointed to ancient Jewish wedding customs to explain Jesus’ language about preparing a place and returning. “All these disciples, they know exactly what Jesus is talking about,” he said.
That imagery, Bevere explained, carries responsibility. Believers are not casually waiting; they are already betrothed. “We’re married to Him now,” he said. “That’s why if we sleep with the world, we’re called adulterers.” He emphasized a passage often overlooked in Revelation. “The bride has made herself ready,” Bevere said. “It doesn’t say God made her ready.”
Preparation, he said, is where many believers fall short. “When it comes to eschatology, we spend the majority of the time talking about the five- or 10-minute aspect, or we don’t talk about it at all,” Bevere said. “But we don’t major on the preparing.” Scripture, he added, makes clear there will be accountability. Quoting 1 John, Bevere said, “There’s going to be two responses by believers when Jesus returns. One is confidence, one is being ashamed.”
Bevere strongly rejected date-setting, calling it unbiblical and misguided. “I could tell you the day He’s probably not coming,” he said. “Because I don’t believe any of us will know the day He comes.” He compared it again to the Jewish wedding tradition. “The groom didn’t even know when he was coming. It wasn’t until the father said, ‘Go get her,’ that he was to go.”
Leaving the audience with encouragement and wisdom, Bevere tied readiness to forgiveness and freedom from offense. “Some of you, you’re just oppressed. You’re tormented. You don’t know why,” he said. “It’s because you’re harboring an offense.” He reminded listeners that forgiveness is not optional. “The way you forgive is the way you’re going to be forgiven,” Bevere said. “That very same love that forgave you from the cross is the very same love you have in your heart.”
The rapture, Bevere made clear, is not meant to distract believers from faithfulness or fuel endless speculation. It is meant to sharpen focus, deepen holiness, and stir action. Christ’s return is not an escape plan but a reunion. Until then, the call is not to watch the clock, but to prepare the bride.
James Lasher, a seasoned writer and editor at Charisma Media, combines faith and storytelling with a background in journalism from Otterbein University and ministry experience in Guatemala and the LA Dream Center. A Marine Corps and Air Force veteran, he is the author of The Revelation of Jesus: A Common Man’s Commentary and a contributor to Charisma magazine.
