Greatness in Tribulation - Part 1
Jesus came and brought light to the darkness. The world gropes in darkness for truth, because they really don't like the light of Jesus. Many are offended by the truth:
John 1:4-5 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
John 3:18-21 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.
When it is all said and done...and Revelation is the story of the "done"...ONLY truth will remain. Most Christians are not prepared for the practical nature of this idea. This is gloriously true, but it should be sobering for worldly Christians. Once I started processing what is happening and about to happen, I suddenly got WAY more interested in PRACTICALLY agreeing with Truth. TRUTH IS EVERY INSTRUCTION OF THE LIGHT....who is a person...Jesus. Jesus told us how to practically survive the great tribulation...because the great tribulation is the "fire" that tests all truth.
This isn't theological, this is practical. How you understand this teaching of Jesus is going to have a huge impact on how ready you are to endure the tribulation.
Many believers have very intense ideas about how they plan to endure a time of trouble, if necessary. Even if you don't believe trouble is coming, I can guarantee that everyone who has taken the time to read this far has actually spent more than a few minutes imagining how they will "ride out" some sort of social collapse.
The Bible is clear that social breakdown is coming to geographic locations. This is one of the main tools God has always used to correct people who refuse to submit to truth. Truth MUST WIN...if you agree with light and not darkness, then you must know that truth must remain...and everything that opposes truth must be destroyed. This is at the very heart of truth itself. The world is feverishly working to ignore and confuse truth. Many don't understand what the truth really is.
A great parable for this idea is the movie the Matrix. There is a scene where the hero, Neo, is confronted with the possibility of seeing, for the first time, the truth of His condition. He is offered a pill. If He takes it, there is no going back. The truth is gloriously...true...BUT, if you live in a "reality" constructed apart from the truth, separating from that false-reality can be stark, and even offensive. The Bible says that Jesus is going to bring a great division when He begins letting the fire of "that day" start illuminating truth. This division is going to be very offensive to those who haven't already taken a BIG DOSE of truth in advance. Most people have no idea that there is medicine available to them right now that is the antidote to the great tribulation. This is Good News....but only if you actually do it, and teach it!
This is the truth: God created all things. He is the only life source for all of creation. Life apart from Him is not possible. He owns all the resources. The people are like clay and He is the potter. He has only done good things for ALL people, yet many accuse Him of evil. Mankind, in their heart want control of life, but God made man to be sons and daughters under His leadership as Father. The constraints that He has introduced to the world are for our good, but we have tried to throw off His leadership at the prompting of the enemy, calling God's ways evil. We have done this in our relationship with God, our relationships with others, and with the resources of the earth that belong to God. This has resulted in much pain and evil, yet as a race, we refuse to repent and turn to Him in agreement with Him. This truth is all that will remain.
This is Jesus' plan: in three stages (seals, trumpets, and bowls), He is going to let mankind experience the truth...the true consequences...of their rebellion to truth. He has picked three stages based on the Leviticus 26 covenant agreement between God and man. He has chosen three because there are three ways mankind rebels against God.
1. In the flesh. desiring life that is "good" without God, despite the truth that God is author...the creator...of every good thing. There is no good possible apart from God. Non-believers don't agree with this. But also, most "Christians" don't practically believe this. They theoretically believe this, but in practice, they mostly live life in their own strength and leadership, and let God get a spiritual acknowledgment on Sundays. This sentiment of the heart first appeared in Babel when mankind desired to "make a name for themselves."
2. In worship (the expression of desire) of darkness. Idolatry, following after the lies of satan and His demons (who are truly the god of the godless man in number 1,) is the primary source of spiritual rebellion. Non-believers, along with many believers, desire what satan offers them: fullness of heart...satisfaction...apart from fascination with the most glorious one in all of creation. We were designed to worship...desire satisfaction from...the only one who is truly able to satisfy an eternal heart. God is TRULY the only infinite source of satisfaction. You were made to live forever and the TRUTH is, only God can satisfy the longings of your heart.
And 3. In outright blasphemy of God. Calling the light darkness and the darkness light. The accusation of man against God is that "he hasn't given me what I want." The truth is, God gives EVERYONE what they desire in the end. There is only one desire that brings life...all others bring death. Desiring agreement with God is the key that unlocks the fullness of life...all other desires are keys that unlock death, which is simply eternal separation from the only source of life:
Matthew 6:31-33 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
So, in three stages, God is going to let truth happen.
Stage 1 - the seals
First, in the seals, God is going to let the consequences of man's desire to be His own God "happen". There is a very popular man coming to the global stage. He is going to be for "peace and prosperity...hope and change." He is going to promise to redistribute the resources of the earth fairly. He is going to enforce peace in Israel, and promise peace to the rest of the world. He is going to have a global financial solution to a near-collapse of the world economy. Many are going to put their trust in this man. For 3.5 years, it is going to look very much like this guy has it figured out. The world...everyone except Christians truly loyal to the TRUTH...will say this man brought "peace and safety"...and then the whole plan will begin to unravel.
I Thessalonians 5:3 For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.
The truth is, the antichrist social-engineering plan is impossible...and the truth is going to win one last catastrophic time. God, in his mercy, has let the earth taste this in small bits in the past: Nazi Germany, Stalin's Russia, Mao's China...North Korea...every time it ends the same way: thousands and millions die, famine, disease, and a small group of elite "leaders" take all the resources while the masses starve. This is what the seals are describing...mankind getting what mankind can offer. The antichrist is going to force people to agree with this plan, because it will be terrifying after the truth of it starts coming to light. This is what happened in Nazi Germany and communist Russia...it is happening right now in Cuba and North Korea and to some extent China.
Antichrist enforces the plan with a currency that requires a mark. To take the mark is to worship the man-based plan and is to reject Jesus. You cannot take the mark and be saved. This forces a great dilemma on all believers. This is why Jesus said that you must prepare!
The antidote for stage 1:
The way you prepare for the seals is by breaking all of your "heart ties" with the world and its economic system. Jesus described how to do this in the Sermon on the Mount. You give away your money secretly and extravagantly to break your heart tie to money. If someone is in need, you empty your wallett for them...you write a huge check to help them. You give enough to actually tempt your heart to worry, then you say "I am going to give despite the potential consequences." When you do this, time after time, your heart starts to soar in freedom from worry about lack. This takes time!! You need to start now if you want to be free when the antichrist demands submission. But it isn't just about money...You give away your time to break your heart tie with selfish ambition. You generously pray and help others. You resist offense even when legitimately wronged. These all keep your trust squarely on God...then no storm can move you...no manipulation of the enemy can push you into bowing before "Nebuchadnezzar's" statue. This is what has always been required of God's people: to exercise faith in the face of potential dire consequences to let God be their strength, and in the rescue straight from heaven, demonstrating that God is good and in control of everything.
John 1:4-5 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.
John 3:18-21 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.
When it is all said and done...and Revelation is the story of the "done"...ONLY truth will remain. Most Christians are not prepared for the practical nature of this idea. This is gloriously true, but it should be sobering for worldly Christians. Once I started processing what is happening and about to happen, I suddenly got WAY more interested in PRACTICALLY agreeing with Truth. TRUTH IS EVERY INSTRUCTION OF THE LIGHT....who is a person...Jesus. Jesus told us how to practically survive the great tribulation...because the great tribulation is the "fire" that tests all truth.
This isn't theological, this is practical. How you understand this teaching of Jesus is going to have a huge impact on how ready you are to endure the tribulation.
Many believers have very intense ideas about how they plan to endure a time of trouble, if necessary. Even if you don't believe trouble is coming, I can guarantee that everyone who has taken the time to read this far has actually spent more than a few minutes imagining how they will "ride out" some sort of social collapse.
The Bible is clear that social breakdown is coming to geographic locations. This is one of the main tools God has always used to correct people who refuse to submit to truth. Truth MUST WIN...if you agree with light and not darkness, then you must know that truth must remain...and everything that opposes truth must be destroyed. This is at the very heart of truth itself. The world is feverishly working to ignore and confuse truth. Many don't understand what the truth really is.
A great parable for this idea is the movie the Matrix. There is a scene where the hero, Neo, is confronted with the possibility of seeing, for the first time, the truth of His condition. He is offered a pill. If He takes it, there is no going back. The truth is gloriously...true...BUT, if you live in a "reality" constructed apart from the truth, separating from that false-reality can be stark, and even offensive. The Bible says that Jesus is going to bring a great division when He begins letting the fire of "that day" start illuminating truth. This division is going to be very offensive to those who haven't already taken a BIG DOSE of truth in advance. Most people have no idea that there is medicine available to them right now that is the antidote to the great tribulation. This is Good News....but only if you actually do it, and teach it!
This is the truth: God created all things. He is the only life source for all of creation. Life apart from Him is not possible. He owns all the resources. The people are like clay and He is the potter. He has only done good things for ALL people, yet many accuse Him of evil. Mankind, in their heart want control of life, but God made man to be sons and daughters under His leadership as Father. The constraints that He has introduced to the world are for our good, but we have tried to throw off His leadership at the prompting of the enemy, calling God's ways evil. We have done this in our relationship with God, our relationships with others, and with the resources of the earth that belong to God. This has resulted in much pain and evil, yet as a race, we refuse to repent and turn to Him in agreement with Him. This truth is all that will remain.
This is Jesus' plan: in three stages (seals, trumpets, and bowls), He is going to let mankind experience the truth...the true consequences...of their rebellion to truth. He has picked three stages based on the Leviticus 26 covenant agreement between God and man. He has chosen three because there are three ways mankind rebels against God.
1. In the flesh. desiring life that is "good" without God, despite the truth that God is author...the creator...of every good thing. There is no good possible apart from God. Non-believers don't agree with this. But also, most "Christians" don't practically believe this. They theoretically believe this, but in practice, they mostly live life in their own strength and leadership, and let God get a spiritual acknowledgment on Sundays. This sentiment of the heart first appeared in Babel when mankind desired to "make a name for themselves."
2. In worship (the expression of desire) of darkness. Idolatry, following after the lies of satan and His demons (who are truly the god of the godless man in number 1,) is the primary source of spiritual rebellion. Non-believers, along with many believers, desire what satan offers them: fullness of heart...satisfaction...apart from fascination with the most glorious one in all of creation. We were designed to worship...desire satisfaction from...the only one who is truly able to satisfy an eternal heart. God is TRULY the only infinite source of satisfaction. You were made to live forever and the TRUTH is, only God can satisfy the longings of your heart.
And 3. In outright blasphemy of God. Calling the light darkness and the darkness light. The accusation of man against God is that "he hasn't given me what I want." The truth is, God gives EVERYONE what they desire in the end. There is only one desire that brings life...all others bring death. Desiring agreement with God is the key that unlocks the fullness of life...all other desires are keys that unlock death, which is simply eternal separation from the only source of life:
Matthew 6:31-33 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
So, in three stages, God is going to let truth happen.
Stage 1 - the seals
First, in the seals, God is going to let the consequences of man's desire to be His own God "happen". There is a very popular man coming to the global stage. He is going to be for "peace and prosperity...hope and change." He is going to promise to redistribute the resources of the earth fairly. He is going to enforce peace in Israel, and promise peace to the rest of the world. He is going to have a global financial solution to a near-collapse of the world economy. Many are going to put their trust in this man. For 3.5 years, it is going to look very much like this guy has it figured out. The world...everyone except Christians truly loyal to the TRUTH...will say this man brought "peace and safety"...and then the whole plan will begin to unravel.
I Thessalonians 5:3 For when they say, “Peace and safety!” then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.
The truth is, the antichrist social-engineering plan is impossible...and the truth is going to win one last catastrophic time. God, in his mercy, has let the earth taste this in small bits in the past: Nazi Germany, Stalin's Russia, Mao's China...North Korea...every time it ends the same way: thousands and millions die, famine, disease, and a small group of elite "leaders" take all the resources while the masses starve. This is what the seals are describing...mankind getting what mankind can offer. The antichrist is going to force people to agree with this plan, because it will be terrifying after the truth of it starts coming to light. This is what happened in Nazi Germany and communist Russia...it is happening right now in Cuba and North Korea and to some extent China.
Antichrist enforces the plan with a currency that requires a mark. To take the mark is to worship the man-based plan and is to reject Jesus. You cannot take the mark and be saved. This forces a great dilemma on all believers. This is why Jesus said that you must prepare!
The antidote for stage 1:
The way you prepare for the seals is by breaking all of your "heart ties" with the world and its economic system. Jesus described how to do this in the Sermon on the Mount. You give away your money secretly and extravagantly to break your heart tie to money. If someone is in need, you empty your wallett for them...you write a huge check to help them. You give enough to actually tempt your heart to worry, then you say "I am going to give despite the potential consequences." When you do this, time after time, your heart starts to soar in freedom from worry about lack. This takes time!! You need to start now if you want to be free when the antichrist demands submission. But it isn't just about money...You give away your time to break your heart tie with selfish ambition. You generously pray and help others. You resist offense even when legitimately wronged. These all keep your trust squarely on God...then no storm can move you...no manipulation of the enemy can push you into bowing before "Nebuchadnezzar's" statue. This is what has always been required of God's people: to exercise faith in the face of potential dire consequences to let God be their strength, and in the rescue straight from heaven, demonstrating that God is good and in control of everything.
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