Nov 23, 2022
You can disagree with my understanding of Scriptures or my personal belief system. That is fine with me. But I believe that we will be here during the Great Tribulation if we are graced by God to live up to that point. I believe God will give us the grace to live through it with faith and make Him proud of us in our strength to draw faith from Him and in Him.
Show Notes: There is a two-fold purpose to the Great Tribulation. The first is the perfecting of the saints. It will be a time and an opportunity like no other to grow in the things of God and appropriate from Him to become His true sons, standing in faith in His presence, being His witnesses in the earth. Secondly, it is a decision time for the wicked. It is a time when they will be hearing the gospel of the Kingdom, and they can believe and be saved, or they will continue doing wickedly. And if they continue in their wickedness, it then becomes the justification for God's final judgments.
The reality of tribulation is that when times get tough, people begin crying out to God for salvation. Therefore, we are not to be fearful. We are to be filled with faith and speaking His Word. We are to be reaching into more and more of God as His believers. When God begins to move, He moves on His people to hide themselves in Him and come into a closer relationship with Him. This has happened down through history to the Church. When people found themselves in times of tribulation, they sought God. In the Great Tribulation, believe me, we will have the greatest prayer meetings we have ever seen.
Wickedness will continue to grow because those who are committed to wickedness will become more wicked. But we as believers will find this a time of purifying, purging, and refining of our faith until we are shining brightly like the expanse of heaven. This will be a great age in which the Church steps up to the plate and proves themselves doers of the Word rather than hearers who delude themselves with doctrines. Let this testing we are entering into have its perfect result in us to bring us forth complete, lacking in nothing. That is what the days of tribulation are about for believers.
Key Verses:
- Matthew 24:6. “See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place.”
- John 17:15. “I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.”
- Matthew 24:29-30. “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky.”
- Romans 8:17. “If indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.”
- Matthew 24:14. “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world.”
- Genesis 15:16. “In the fourth generation they will return here, for the iniquity of the Amorite is not yet complete.”
- Isaiah 26:20-21. “Hide for a little while until indignation runs its course.”
- Matthew 6:6-10. “Go into your inner room … for your Father knows what you need before you ask Him.”
- Jeremiah 29:13. “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”
- Daniel 12:1-4. “Everyone who is found written in the book, will be rescued.”
- Daniel 12:10. “Many will be purged, purified and refined.”
- 2 Corinthians 10:4. “The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.”
- Matthew 10:28-34. “The very hairs of your head are all numbered.”
- Matthew 28:20. “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
- Ephesians 6:11. “Put on the full armor of God.”
- James 1:12-22. “Once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life.”
- James 1:2-4. “Let endurance have its perfect result.”
- 1 Peter 1:3-11. “The proof of your faith, being more precious than”
- 1 Peter 1:18-19. “You were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold.”
Quotes:
- “The intensity of what humanity goes through is to drive you into God. It's not to drive you away from God.”
- “When we're in these days of testing, God knows what we need. Is it food? Is it shelter? Is it covering? Is it protection? He knows what we need before we ask Him.”
- “God is not trying to hurt us. This is not a time of our discipline and God taking us into judgment. This is a time of perfection and a time of blessing.”
Takeaways:
- We are seeing the preparation of God's people for being transformed into His image and ruling and reigning with Christ in His Kingdom. It will be a testing of our faith, and a testing of the wicked to see if they are committed to their wickedness, or if they will repent and open their hearts to the Lord’s salvation, which He is holding out to them in total grace that absolutely will be available during this time.
- All the things that have transpired through the bloodshed and wickedness of men will come out during this time. It is a time for the debts to be paid. The wicked will have an opportunity, but they will have to repent. And if they do not, they are proving their commitment to wickedness and they are going to find a great deal of recompence transpiring.
- For those who know the Lord, this will not be a day when you are cowering in fear or desperate and barely making it. This is the time when you will shine brightly like the expanse of heaven as those who lead many to righteousness.