The
world today lives in fear of the apocalypse. These fears appear to be justified
as we survey the world scene. An already soured global market has been
shaken by the tidal wave of the Asian stock market collapse, even as the Russian economy totters near collapse following default on its huge domestic debts
and
devaluation of its currency. In the United States, too, economic forecasters
warn Wall Street of an imminent stock market crash leading to a greater
depression
than any previously experienced. Such foreboding facts led UN Ambassador Jean
Kirkpatrick to recently state: "Nobody in the world we know is
able
to solve and sustain the international economy."' In the Middle East,
cries for jihad ("Holy War") are being raised again as Saddam
Hussein, now elevated
by
the Suni Muslim to the religious rank of calif, and the Palestinians in
declaration of their independent state, prepare for a final conflict-all on
the
stage of a new nuclear Middle East where terrorists control weapons of mass
destruction and whose own disputes threaten to ignite a global conflagration.
Adding
to these turbulent times is the fearful factor that as the world enters the
threshold of the new millennium it must prepare itself for the as yet
unknown
catastrophic consequences of the Y2K computer crisis.
Despite
this world being filled with apocalyptic fears, the worst has not yet been
witnessed. That will come when hell literally breaks forth on earth,
and
the people of earth experience life in the Age of Apocalypse.
Tribulation
or Tribulations?
How
will we know when the Age of Apocalypse has arrived? After all, people feared
that the end of the earth had come many times in the past, but those crises
came
and went without apocalyptic fulfillment. But Jesus taught, based on the Old
Testament predictions, that "there will be a great tribulation, such
as
has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever
shall" (Matthew 24:21). This statement indicates that all of the world's
greatest
disasters
are nothing by comparison with the great tribulation that will one day engulf
our globe. The event is to be unparalleled, both in extent (universal)
and
experience (extraordinary). This understanding also eliminates the temptation
of those undergoing tribulations to consider themselves already in the
tribulation.
Jesus said to His disciples: "In the world you have tribulation..."
(John 16:33). His statement concerned the present and continued condition
of
life (note the present active tense) for believers in this world system. In
fact, "tribulations" are not viewed in Scripture as an option for the
Christian
life,
but as the expected outcome: "And indeed, all who desire to live godly in
Christ Jesus will be persecuted" (2 Timothy 3:12). Throughout the
subsequent
two
millennia these words have found fulfillment as Christians have endured
unbelievable hardships, persecution, pogroms, torture, indignities and myriad
forms
of martyrdom. Examples of such tribulations in past ages have been passed on in
part through the well-known Foxe's Book of Martyrs. Yet the passage
of
time with its supposed civilizing of society and technological advances has not
lessened the atrocities against the faithful. It has been stated by
missiologists
that the last century on earth has witnessed more martyrdom and persecution of
Christians than in all the centuries since the time of Christ
combined.
Evidence supporting this claim has been documented in James and Marti Hefley's
modern account of martyrdom in their book By Their Blood: Christian
Martyrs
of the 20th Century. Ongoing global attacks of Christians are also reported by
such organizations as "Voice of the Martyrs."
However,
those who rightly divide the Word discern that the present experience of
tribulation in the world is to be distinguished from the future experience
by
the world of the great tribulation. One major distinction is that during this
age those who suffer tribulation do so in the absence of God's wrath.
Today
there is no direct display of divine justice on the earth in recompense for the
injustices inflicted on the just. By contrast, those who suffer tribulation
in
the future age of the tribulation will do so in an environment that witnesses
God's judgment poured out on earth in unprecedented measure, culminating
with
the return of the Judge Himself to the earth (see Revelation 19:11). In fact,
it is the tribulations of those at present as well as their brethren
in
the great tribulation that will call forth God's wrath, as the prophetic
Scriptures indicate. In 2 Thessalonians 1:5-8 we read concerning those
persecuted
in
the Church Age: "This is a plain indication of God's righteous judgment so
that you may be considered worthy of the kingdom of God, for which indeed
you
are suffering. For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction
those who afflict you, and to give relief to you who are afflicted and
to
us as well when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty
angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not ...
obey
the gospel of our Lord Jesus."
In
like manner, concerning those who are in the company of the saints during the
tribulation, we read in Revelation: "How long, 0 Lord, holy and true, wilt
Thou
refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?
... Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God; because
His
judgments are true and righteous; for He has judged the great harlot who was
corrupting the earth with her immorality, and He has avenged the blood
of
His bond-servants on her" (Revelation 6:10; 19:1,2; see also 14:12; 11:18;
16:5,6). Another distinction between the tribulations of today and the great
tribulation
of tomorrow is the description concerning believers during these periods of
trouble. Believers in "tribulations," especially those affecting
the
whole of the Christian community (such as the first-century persecutions) were
described as better for the experience: "And after you have suffered
for
a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in
Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you" (1
Peter
5:10). Believers were, therefore, to seek to avoid such trials, but welcome
them as opportunities to grow in grace: "Consider it all joy, my brethren,
when
you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces
endurance" (James 1:2,3; compare with 1 Peter 4:13,14). By contrast,
those
believers in the tribulation are described as being able to endure only because
their experience will be reduced: "Unless those days had been cut
short,
no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days shall
be out short" (Matthew 24:22). They are not counseled to abide in
their
sufferings, but commanded to flee for their safety (Matthew 24:16-20;
Revelation 12:6). This last point reveals that there is a distinct disadvantage
to
being a believer in the tribulation as opposed to any other crisis period in
history. Since post-tribulationists contend that the church must go through
the
tribulation and that believers will be preserved from the divine wrath
unleashed during that period, we need to briefly consider these claims.
It
is clear that those who inhabit the Age of Apocalypse will be divided, as now,
into two distinct camps comprised of unbelievers and believers. Both camps
appear
to have members who are Jewish' and Gentile, although a larger company of Jews
are believers (see Revelation 7:1-8; 11:1; 12:13-17; Matthew 24:30
with
Zechariah 12:10-14; compare with Romans 11:26). This leaves Gentiles ("the
nations") as the largest representation of unbelievers (Revelation 11:2,9;
12:5-
14:8; 16:19; 18:3,23; 19:15; compare with Matthew 25:32). This first division
of unregenerate mankind is most often referred to in the book of Revelation
as
"those who dwell on the earth" or "the earth-dwellers"
(Revelation 3:10; 6:10; 8:13; 11:10; 13:8,12,14; 17:2,8). This term describes
their origin (natural
birth)
and character as "earthly" as opposed to believers whose origin (new
birth) and character is "heavenly." They belong to the earth and
because the
earth
is to be destroyed in judgment, they are destined to be destroyed with it (2
Peter 3:7; Jude 10; Revelation 11:18). Another term used for them is
"whose
name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the
world" (Revelation 17:8), which emphasizes their unrepentant and reprobate
nature.
The
second division of believing mankind is most often referred to as "the
saints" (Revelation 11:18; 13:7,10; 14:12; 16:6; 17:6; 19:8),
"bond-servants"
(Revelation
7:3; 11:18; 19:2,5; 22:3), "redeemed" (Revelation 5:9 Kiv; 14:3,4
KJV), and "brethren" (Revelation 6: 11; 12: 10; 19: 10), and are
described
with
respect to their triumphant faith as over comers (see Revelation 12:11; 21:7).
The one term that does not appear for these believers after Revelation
chapter
3 (until Revelation 22:16) is "church." This is strange since many of
the other terms for believers such as "bond-servants" (Revelation
2:20) and
over
comers
(Revelation 2 726; 3:5,12,2 1) do reappear.' But if, as dispensational
futurists contend, the church is shown to be in heaven (i.e., raptured)
in
Revelation 4:4-11 (as God reveals to John "what must take place after the
completion of God's dealing with the churches in Revelation 2-3), then the
church
is the company of believers in heaven throughout the tribulation who are joined
by the martyred tribulation saints. This identification removes
the
church from the tribulation, as many texts indicate (1 Thessalonians 1:10;
5:1-9; 2 Thessalonians 2:2,3; 2 Peter 2:9; Revelation 3:9,10), along with
the
understanding that a believing company (who apparently came to faith after the
rapture and through the later witness of the 144,000 and the two witnesses)
will
go through the tribulation.
Nevertheless,
those post-tribulationists who argue that the church will go through the
tribulation often state that this is necessary in order to purify
it
from its carnal ways. However, such a view does injustice to those Christian
martyrs who have been through their own tribulations as part of the church.
To
be sure, the church in countries like the United States, where being a
Christian is at present a protected and even preferred lifestyle, may appear
to
be less committed than the church struggling to survive under atheistic
communism or Muslim terrorism. Nevertheless, God has told believers that the
former,
rather than the latter, is to be sought in Christian petition on behalf of
"kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil
and
quiet life in all godliness and dignity" (1 Timothy 2:2). If the church
were in the tribulation, believers, in order to obey, would be required to
intercede
for Satan, the Antichrist and the false prophet as the principal agents of
Christian persecution during that time (Revelation 12:12,13,17; 13:7-10;
15-17).
But this would constitute a contradiction in conduct. According to Scripture,
believers are ordered to resist and overcome them (James 4:7,- 1
Peter
5:9, 1 John 2:14; 4:1-4; Revelation 11:5,6; 12:17; 13:7,10; 14:12). The only
recorded prayers of the tribulation saints in regard to these evil entities
are
for their soon destruction (Revelation 6:10; 8:2,5-1 11:18; 15:2-4; 19:1-6;
compare with 16:5-7).
Although
God's wrath comes with the purpose of judgment on unbelievers, the consequences
of such worldwide wrath must affect everyone who lives on the earth.
If
God presently judges our American nation because of its leaders' sins and our
society's sins of apostasy, pornography, abortion, infanticide, homosexuality
and
so forth, will not every Christian living in the country also suffer simply
because they are citizens? Has this not been the case for Christians living
in
nations such as Germany and Great Britain, once the center for the Reformation
and Christian missions, but now filled with anti-Semitism and sorcery?
Protection
during the tribulation is selectively afforded "the 144,000" virgin
Jewish saints, the divinely appointed "two witnesses" and part of the
believing
Jewish
remnant ("the woman who gave birth to the male [child]," i.e., the
Jewish people). These are sealed and protected (Revelation 7:3,4; 9:4; 11:4-6;
12:6,14-16)
in order to perform their unique witnesses. Nevertheless, even the 144,000 and the
two witnesses are permitted to be killed once their missions
are
complete (Revelation 11:7; 14:1), and the rest of the Jewish believers are left
open to Satan's attack (Revelation 12:17). All other believers during
this
period are apparently able to be killed in earthquakes (Revelation 11:13) or
savaged by the Antichrist (Revelation 13:7-10). It is for this reason
that
the plagues are sent to avenge the blood of the saints (Revelation 16:6; 18:20;
19:2).
Jewish
believers during this time will particularly suffer as Zechariah 13:8 notes:
"'And it will come about in all the land [of Israel],' declares the
LORD,
'that two parts in it will be out off and perish."
Just
as the Nazi Holocaust did not discriminate between believing and unbelieving
Jews, neither will this future holocaust of the tribulation. We are not
given
a clear picture of what happens to Gentile believers, but they too are part of
those martyred, appearing in, heaven as a great company from "every
tribe
and tongue and people and nation" (Revelation 5:9; see also 7:9).
Furthermore, the plagues that come with the sixth trumpet kill a third of all
mankind.
Since
no special protection is said to be given to the general population of
tribulation saints, it must be assumed that many are also killed by these
plagues.
The difference, of course, is that the plagues are designed to punish
unbelievers and bring their repentance or cause their deaths and seal their
doom
(Revelation 6:15-17; 9:20,21; 11:13; 16:8,9,21), whereas for believers they
serve to deliver them beyond the reach of Antichrist and his oppressions
and
increase their rewards in heaven. This is especially stated in Revelation
14:13: "'Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on! "Yes,'
says
the
Spirit, 'that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with
them"' (compare Revelation 7:14-17; 11: 18; 12:11).
Yet
another eschatological option is offered by preterists who attempt to fit the
details of the book of Revelation into the past historical event of the
city
of Jerusalem's destruction by the Romans in A.D. 70. They have to radically
minimize the wrath of God, both in its extent and severity, in order to
limit
it geographically to Jerusalem and agree with the recorded siege and captivity
of its Jewish citizenry.' They also have to contend with the fact
that
Zechariah, Daniel, Jesus in the Olivet Discourse and the book of Revelation'
all depict an opposite scenario: Gentiles as the object of wrath and
Jews
as the object of salvation.
The
book of Revelation clearly reveals that in the tribulation judgments the
"wrath of God is finished" (Revelation 15:1). The culmination of
divine judgment
comes
with the final seven plagues that resemble the plagues against the Egyptians at
the exodus (Exodus 7-10). Just as those judgments were sent to deliver
Israel
and punish its oppressors, so these will complete God's promise to "judge
the world in righteousness" (Acts 17:31; compare with 2 Thessalonians
1:6-10).
Since the plagues of the seventh bowl judgment are the "last" and end
the wrath of God, they can only end with the final judgment of the wicked
in
the lake of fire (Revelation 20:12-15). This cannot be construed in any
eschatological scheme to be fulfilled in the past nor reduced to a remnant.
As
Robert Thomas correctly observes, "No amount of rationalization-such as
some theonomists practice to soften the tone of ultimacy, absoluteness, and
universality
in finding a fulfillment of these plagues in the A.D. 70 events surrounding the
destruction of Jerusalem-can mitigate the force of this language
regarding
the finality of these plagues."
The
apocalyptic wrath of preterism can only account for one judgment against a
small portion of the Jewish population (most of whom were living comfortably
outside
the land of Israel at the time), while leaving the un-judged world free from a
divine wrath exhausted 2,000 years ago. Yet even the prophet Daniel
saw
that the magnitude of this "time of distress" was so pervasive and
final that it had to be followed by the resurrection of the righteous and
wicked
(see
Daniel 12:1,2; Revelation 20:4-6; 20:5). Therefore, in order to appreciate the
unparalleled nature of the tribulation, let us survey what Scripture
reveals
life will be like for those who will inhabit this most terrible time in all of history.
The
beginning of wrath ("the day of the Lord") is seen with the first
seal judgment with a rider on a white horse going out "conquering and to
conquer"
(Revelation
6:2). Pre-wrath tribulationalists hold that wrath is reserved for the last
quarter of the tribulation and is not present here. However, this
depends
on what one sees as indicative of the wrath of God. The- first use of the term
wrath appears in Revelation 6:16,17 at the time of the sixth seal
judgment,
where the text reads: "the great day of their wrath has come However, the
Greek verb elthen ("has come") used in verse 17 is aorist indicative,
which
looks back on wrath that has previously arrived. This wrath could be that
portrayed in the sixth seal's terrestrial and celestial disturbances in
the
form of earthquake, atmospheric pollution and meteor/asteroid assault
(Revelation 6:12-14). It could also just as easily encompass the previous five
seals
in which world conquest is initiated and global warfare ensues (Revelation
6:2-4), followed by worldwide famine with one-fourth of the earth's population
destroyed
(Revelation 6:5-8). According to Romans 1:18, "the wrath of God is
revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men"
and
has
been evidenced in cultures where idolatry and homosexuality have been tolerated
(the continued cancerous presence of these lifestyles being part of
the
judgment itself). The end result of this corrupted society is that it is
"worthy of death" (Romans 1:32).
If
the figure on the white horse in the first seat of Revelation 6:2 is the
Antichrist, then his assault on the world to bring it under his corrupt control
is
the culmination of a sinful society ripened for wrath. Since 2 Thessalonians
2:3-12 connects the rise of Antichrist with worldwide lawlessness and deception
(verses
4,8,10-12), the usurpation of deity as the climax of idolatry (verse 4) and the
activity of Satan (verse 9), it should not be difficult to see
Antichrist's
foray for world conquest as the commencement of divine wrath on a mankind
worthy of death. This is especially the case with the extensive
and
extraordinary manner of deaths that result from military slaughter, starvation,
viral epidemics and wild animal attacks (Revelation 6:4-8).
Among
the casualties of the violent opening months of the tribulation are believers
who were killed because of their faith. They cry out for greater wrath
to
be sent to judge and avenge their deaths (Revelation 6:9-10). From the
beginning of the tribulation (with the rise of Antichrist seen in the signing
of
a covenant with the Israelis [Daniel 9:271), God's wrath is progressively and
increasingly unleashed on earth. With the conclusion of the sixth seal,
the
world's unbelieving population from the poorest to the richest, convinced that
what they are experiencing is God's judgment, will believe that the
Apocalyptic
Age has come and the end of the world is at hand (Revelation 6:15-17). But the
worst is yet to come.
As
we move into the seventh seal and the trumpet judgments, we find that one-third
of the world's vegetation is burned (Revelation 8:7), one-third of the
earth's
oceans and fresh water sources are polluted, one-third of all ships are
destroyed (Revelation 8:8-11), one-third of the luminaries are affected
so
that the world experiences unprecedented darkness (Revelation 8:12), a
horrendous and unbelievably painful demonic attack occurs for five months
(Revelation
9:1-12),
one-third of the earth's population is killed (Revelation 9:15-18) and an
earthquake accompanied by a huge hailstorm ravages the planet (Revelation
11:
19). Adding to these disasters are seventh seal bowl judgments that plague
mankind with loathsome and malignant sores (Revelation 16:2), completely
destroy
all life in the seas and the waters of the lakes, rivers and springs
(Revelation 16:3,4), burn people severely with increased radiation from the
sun
(Revelation 16:8,9), cover the earth with deep darkness (Revelation 16:10) and
allow demonic spirits to gather the nations of the world for war to
imitate
the battles of Armageddon (Revelation 16:12-16). These battles include an
initial attack and final siege against Jerusalem (Zechariah 12:3-14:3),
widespread
destruction through an earthquake and 100-pound hailstones and the climax the
burning of the world's commercial center, Babylon (Revelation 16:18-21;
18:2-19).
To
this catalog of catastrophes we must add the horrors of life lived under the
government of a demonic, power-mad ruler with a god complex (Revelation
13:1-10).
The Antichrist will enslave the nations of the world (Daniel 11:36-40), invade
the land of Israel, desecrate the Jewish temple, persecute the
Jewish
people (Daniel 11:41-45; Matthew 24:15,16; Mark 13:14,15; 2 Thessalonians 2:4;
Revelation 11:2) and make war on all the saints (Revelation 13:7).
Ile
is joined by his deputy of deception, the false prophet, who will work
deceitful miracles and require humanity to have complete allegiance to the
Antichrist-or
face
death (see Revelation 13:11-15). However, to take the mark of identification
with the Antichrist will be tantamount to renouncing God, thus dooming
oneself
forever (see Revelation 13:16-18). Overshadowing all of these figures is the
evil one. Satan, cast down to the earth during the tribulation, will
come
with wrath against the world, knowing that his time is short (Revelation
12:12). This indicates that those who live in the tribulation will have
spiritual
encounters
with demons as well as dramatic demonstrations of God's wrath.
No
one in that day will be able to deny the existence of God or the supernatural,
but neither will most people be able to avoid the deceptive signs and
wonders
that will lead them to embrace the Antichrist and their damnation (2
Thessalonians 2:9-12). Today the presence of the Holy Spirit through the church
permits
a restraint of such evil, including the advent of Antichrist and the deception
of the devil (2 Thessalonians 2:6,7). Once the church is raptured,
however,
the Holy Spirit's influence will be ended, and evil from hell will literally
break loose. Though at first the lack of such restraint may seem
like
a new peace for the world, it will be a pseudo-peace that will fast foment the
formation of the world around one wicked will. Today, the worst war,
the
most terrible tyrant, the most dreadful disasters, the most pernicious
pestilences are nothing by comparison with what awaits in the Age of
Apocalypse.
Since
the Lord first revealed through His prophets and apostles the coming conditions
of the Age of Apocalypse, people have thought through the last two
millennia
that various local and global crises might be the apocalyptic age. As early as
the first century epistle to the Thessalonians we read that the
widespread
persecutions and problems they faced influenced many of them to panic and even
alter their lifestyle in fear that the end was at hand (see 1
Thessalonians
1:6,7; 3:3-5; 2 Thessalonians 1:4,5; 2:2; 3:6-12). This has followed suit in
every similar situation whether influenced by famines, plagues,
world
wars, atomic bombs, petroleum shortages, environmental and population crises or
the Y2K problem. However difficult these days have been or will be,
they
are but the experience of life in a fallen world that will pale in the
onslaught of the Age of Apocalypse. Nevertheless, the cataclysmic catastrophes
of
the tribulation are not "extinction level events." The world and all
those who inhabit it during this time will suffer greatly, but God still has a
plan
for the planet (the millennial kingdom). Earth's eventual destruction will be
followed by a new heaven and a new earth (2 Peter 3:10-13; Revelation
21:1;
compare with Isaiah 65:17; 66:22).
During
the present age of the church, believers should expect tribulations in this
world and face them with faith instead of fear "for it is time for
judgment
to
begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be
the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?" (1 Peter 4:17).
For
such people, "the present heavens and earth by His word are being reserved
for fire, kept for the day of judgment and destruction of ungodly men" (2
Peter
3:7).
When
the tribulation commences with the signing of a covenant between the prince
that shall come (Antichrist) and the "many" (the nation of Israel),
as
noted
in Daniel 9:27, the world will enter a time of unparalleled deception followed
by unprecedented destruction (see 2 Thessalonians 2:10-12). Like those
in
the days when Noah was building the ark, most of the world's population will
not understand the severity of their condition until the flood of God's
judgment
has come and swept them all away (Matthew 24:37-39).
The
people who today accept Jesus Christ as God's ark of safety and trust in His
death for their sins on the cross as God's promise of escape from wrath
will
be removed from earth before the Age of the Apocalypse begins (1 Thessalonians
1:10; 4:13-5:11; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5; Revelation 3:9,10). Their lives
until
that time may be full of tribulations, but they will be supported by a
confidence in the Lord's strength and salvation for every trial. And believers'
lives
after that time will consist of unending joy and pleasure in the Lord's
presence (Psalm 16:11; Revelation 21:4; 22:3-5).
But
for those reading these words who have never believed the warning of the
apocalypse nor fled to Christ for refuge, your lives will be lived (for however
long
you can endure) in the darkest days of the tribulation.
Some
people may feel that tribulation warnings are scare tactics used to frighten
people to faith, but each person must first come to understand the wrath
of
God that he deserves before he can accept the love of God, which he does not
deserve. The Scriptures reveal that God Himself became a man (Jesus Christ)
and
He was made subject to His own wrath so that He "might deliver those who
through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives" (Hebrews
2:15).
Therefore,
in order to warn us of our imminent end and give us an opportunity to escape
the wrath to come, God has made the message clear: "Inasmuch as
it
is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Christ also,
having been offered once to bear the sins of many, shall appear a second
time
for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him"
(Hebrews 9:27,28). According to this promise, Christ came once to die for
sinners
and will return to judge them. Those who fear this judgment and flee to Him in
faith will find the rest of that promise: that their horror of His
coming
will have been replaced by a hope in His coming.
So,
my friend, what will your life be like in the Age of Apocalypse? These days
have now been described for you; will you not seek God's salvation while
the
door of His ark remains open? Now is the time to escape the tribulation that is
coming. Christ is coming... are you going with Him?