..................................................................................................................................................................
The Tribulation and End Times
The Final Holocaust is so
terrifying, so deadly, so inescapable that God personally steps in to stop it
lest not one human be left alive!
Crosswalk.com
In
Luke 21 Jesus preaches a sermon about the End of the World.
The
end of the world is easier to comprehend when we can compare it to the world
around us.
That
is what Jesus does. He points to things they knew and said amplify that,
multiply that-exponentially, then you will understand what is coming.
Basically,
Jesus describes a Global Final Holocaust-not merely of Jews and Christians - but
of humans!
Within
that message is what amounts to a survival guide to believers who have to exist
during the Final Holocaust.
Will
Christians Experience the Great Tribulation?
Although
the believers He is addressing are Tribulation saints, Jewish believers, and
those saved through the ministry of the 144,000 Jewish evangelists and the Two
Witnesses - the lessons have deep implications for us living in the days just
prior to those events.
For
us today, Christ's words are a call for us to be ready for the onset of the
worst time in history.
It
will begin after the Church is raptured, but the climate of the Tribulation is
already here.
Are
you prepared to survive the storms before the final storm?
Several
years ago, across the world, dignitaries marked the 60th Anniversary of the
liberation of the grisly death camp complex called Auschwitz.
Hitler's
Holocaust, horrible as it was murdering over six million Jews alone — pales
when compared to the Final Holocaust. Briefly, here are the facts:
About
1.5 million people died at Auschwitz, of whom about 1.2 million were Jewish.
That
means that 1/5th of the six million Jews exterminated by Hitler died in this
complex.
Other
groups of people who died included Polish political prisoners, Soviet prisoners
of war, Gypsies, people with disabilities and prisoners of conscience or
religious faith.
The
complex contained three camps and at least 36 sub-camps which were built
outside the town of Oswiecim, on an isolated 40 sq km site, between 1940 and
1942.
There
is an incredible comparison that can be drawn from Auschwitz and the Great
Tribulation.
• Most scholars see the first half of the seven-year
final period of the earth's history to be relatively normal. It is the second
half that seems to have the incredible destruction, demon armies and death. So
in Bible terms, the Great Tribulation lasts 3 ½ years or 42 months.
• Auschwitz opened its doors to death by gas chamber
on September 3rd 1941. The advance of the Soviet Army closed down the camp on
January 27th 1945. The death camp of the Holocaust was operating for 3 ½ years
or 42 months.
• So the death camp at Auschwitz and the Great
Tribulation last almost exactly the same length of time. That is where the
comparison stops. The Final Holocaust is so terrifying, so deadly, so
inescapable that God personally steps in to stop it lest not one human be left
alive!
Events
of the Tribulation
In
the Great Tribulation 2 ½ million die every day for 42 months. In Auschwitz
less than a thousand died each day.
That
means 2500x as many people die every day. Or to put it in Auschwitz terms — the
number of people that died every day at Auschwitz will die every 30 seconds in
the Great Tribulation!
Or
in other terms living on earth will be like living in an Auschwitz death camp —
and in death toll there will be the equivalent of an Auschwitz Holocaust twice
a day for 42 months!
A
brief look through the pages of Revelation chapters six, eight, nine, and
sixteen -- describe the living hell you can avoid if you are saved this
morning.
Here
are only a few of the dreadful disasters that take place during the
Tribulation:
One
out of every two people will die during the Tribulation (see Revelation 6:8 and onward), some through the ravages of war, others by
starvation, and amazingly many others by the 'beasts of the earth'.
So,
whether by death that comes instantly and thus less dreaded or a slow and
painful death that is lingering and agonizing - 50 percent of all people will
die.
The
world's population was 6,415,574,176 yesterday, so that means at least
3,207,500,000 will die.
That
amounts to just about eleven times the current population of the United States -
can you imagine that?
And
remember that the population of the world is doubling every 39.5 years. So,
every day the number of people who will die becomes larger and larger.
One
third of all vegetation will be burned up. All grass, every tree, everything
green will be destroyed (see Revelation
8:7).
The
sun and the moon will be darkened as nature goes into revolt (see Revelation 8:12).
The
gates of hell will open and hordes of locusts, the size of horses, will come
upon the earth.
Those
locusts will be allowed to sting men like scorpions and the pain will last for
five months. The Bible says men will beg God to let them die but they will not
die (see Revelation 9:3-6).
There
will be worldwide famine unlike anything the world has ever seen (see Revelation 18:8).
There
will be a world war so bloody that the blood of those killed in battle will
flow for two hundred miles up to the bridle of a horse in the valley of
Jezreel. This will be the Battle of Armageddon (see Revelation 14:20).
All
told, during the Great Tribulation, as many as half of all the people on the
earth will be killed.
Now
do you see why God refers to the Rapture as a 'blessed hope'? Because the
Tribulation to come is so horrible!
But
that means we are gone and will escape everything, right?
Yes,
exactly, we will miss every part of the TRIBULATION, but we will probably go
through some of the worst days we have ever seen before it starts.
And
that is what Jesus is pointing out to us in Luke 21 where we open in God's Word
today.
In
Luke 21 we see the end of everyone's life as it was. Time stops. Life ends.
Nothing is the same again.
Christ's Coming simply reveals what people have been
all the time. Paul tells us later that "each man's work will become
manifest, for the Day will disclose it" (1 Corinthians 3:13).
Remember what we have already learned from 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."
The
dangers Jesus warned of are what His church has faced from the beginning.
There
have always been deceiving teachers, persecution, and disasters. But what He
says is that each of these areas will increase and intensify as Christ's Coming
draws near.
There
will be religious deception (Luke 21:8).
"Be not deceived!" is Christ's admonition to us, and we must take it to
heart.
And He said: "Take heed that you not be
deceived. For many will come in My name, saying, 'I am He,' and, 'The time has
drawn near.' Therefore do not go after them.”
Use
these Scriptures to gain wisdom and understanding of the End Times and to
witness to those around you!
How
great a message we have for those who can escape the Great Tribulation!
This article is part of our
larger End Times Resource Library. Learn more about the rapture, the anti-Christ,
bible prophecy and the tribulation with articles that explain Biblical truths.
You do not need to fear or worry about the future.
Crosswalk.com aims to offer the most compelling biblically-based
content to Christians on their walk with Jesus. Crosswalk.com is your online destination for
all areas of Christian Living – faith, family, fun, and
community. Each category is further divided into areas important to you and
your Christian faith including Bible
study, daily devotions, marriage, parenting, movie
reviews, music, news, and more.
No comments:
Post a Comment