So if the Church is in Heaven at the time that Christ returns to earth to set up His millennial kingdom, how did the Church come to be in Heaven?
Can’t mean what it can’t mean, can it. Therefore, there’s a problem with understanding the Scripture.
Obviously, The Lord Jesus is not going to look like a sheep at the feast of the Lamb, and the Church will not fit in a white dress. Some things are symbolic and some things are not.
Therefore, search the Scripture and look for the answer there.
Symbols in the Bible always stand for something. God doesn't put symbols in the Bible just for kicks and giggles. The symbols always stand for something. For example, when Jesus says in Revelation 1:12 that:
Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands
And in Revelation 1:16
In His right hand He held seven stars
He explains what the symbols stand for in Revelation 1:20:
As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
So when Christ told the apostle John to write that He will make His literal second coming to earth bringing with Him His bride, and that statement is symbolic, where in Scripture can we find what the symbols mean? Scripture interprets itself and we already see where Jesus interpreted the symbols of the seven lampstands and the seven stars - where is the interpretation of the symbol of Christ returning to earth with His Bride?
I'm really going to need to see where in the text Jesus indicates to us that we are to take that statement as anything other than literal.