Foundations of Faith
THE END TIMES (V)
The Coming of the Son of Man. As mentioned in Jun02, the seven-year tribulation period will end with the coming of the Son of man to execute judgment upon the earth:“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and He who sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war…. And His name is called the Word of God…. And out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should smite the nations; and He shall rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And He has on his vesture and on His thigh a name written, King of kings, and Lord of lords…. And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet [or Antichrist] … [and] both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone” (Rev. 19:11-21).
It is well to be aware of this side of the “meek and lowly” Lord Jesus. Today, thankful to say, He “is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9). We hear people today saying, “I believe in the God of the New Testament” or “I believe in a loving, tolerant Jesus.” He wasn’t always tolerant when He was here on earth (Matt. 21:12,13; 23:13-36), and He is not going to be tolerant when He comes back in judgment upon those who rejected Him and His free offer of salvation.
1. Satan will be bound and shut up in “the bottomless pit” for 1,000 years (Rev. 20:1-3).
2. “The LORD shall be King over all the earth” (Zech. 14:9; also Jer. 33:15; Dan. 7:13-14; 2 Tim. 4:1; Rev. 11:15).
3. The raptured and resurrected saints (including those martyred during the tribulation) will reign with Christ (Rev. 5:10; Luke 19:12-19). (See Assignment 10)
4. All 12 tribes of the nation of Israel will be joined together in their land, God will write His law upon their hearts, and they will become the center of blessing for all the nations of the earth (Isa. 2:1-3; 11:10-13; 60:3,10-22; Jer. 23:3-8; 31:31-34; 33:7-9; Rom. 11:25-27).
5. It will be a time of righteousness. “They shall not build, and another inhabit…. They shall not labor in vain, nor bring forth for trouble” (Isa. 65:22,23).
6. It will be a time of unparalleled peace:“Out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the Word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And He shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people:and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither, shall they learn war any more” (Isa. 2:4).
7. This peace will extend to the animal kingdom:Wolves, lambs, leopards, kids, lions, calves, bears, snakes, and little children will all live peaceably with one another (Isa. 13:6-9; 65:25).
Running the Race
WHAT ALTERNATIVE DO I HAVE?
We are often faced with dilemmas and decisions in life. It may seem like the only “safe” way is to go along with the crowd, even though we know that the crowd is not following God’s Word and way.
In Noah’s day, “God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of … of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen. 6:5). Noah and his family could easily have adopted the attitude, “Everyone else is doing it; I might as well do it too.” But because they were willing to stand alone in faithfulness to the LORD, they were saved through the flood while “everyone else” perished (1 Pet. 3:20).
Caleb and Joshua stood apart from all other children of Israel, and they alone, of all who were at least 20 years old, survived the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness to enter into the promised land (Num. 14:29,30; Josh. 14:6-13).
In the times of ancient Babylon, the only way to survive-so it seemed-was to obey king Nebuchadnezzar’s orders to bow down to the image of gold that he had made. After all, the alternative was not very pleasant: being “cast into the midst of a burning fiery furnace” (Dan. 3:1,6). But three young men challenged “the only safe way.” And guess what? You already know the rest of the story: Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego survived the fiery furnace with no hurt and with not even the smell of smoke on them (3:25-27). On the other hand, the men who threw the three young men into the furnace were killed from the intensity of the heat (3:22).
During the coming tribulation period those who are saved will face a similar dilemma. The second beast [Antichrist] will cause “that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed. And he causes all … to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads; and no man may buy or sell, except he who had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name [666]” (Rev. 13:15-18). Some may be able to avoid a confrontation with the image of the beast, and thus escape with their lives. But what about buying groceries and gasoline, paying the mortgage, and receiving social security and pay checks? To conduct the most ordinary matters of business one will be required to choose between allegiance to God and allegiance to the beast.
The Book of Revelation provides much encouragement to the saved persons who will be challenged with such decisions. Here is a promise to those who remain faithful to the Lord, even unto death: “I saw the souls of those who were beheaded for the witness of Jesus … and who had not worshipped the beast … neither had received his mark upon their foreheads or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years” (Rev. 20;4; also 15:2). For the rest, “there fell a … grievous sore upon the men who had the mark of the beast” (Rev. 16:2). “The smoke of their torment ascends up forever and ever; and they have no rest day nor night who worship the beast” (Rev. 14:9-11).
Young men and women, you may be faced with similar choices and decisions in your lifetime. Don’t take the easy route. Don’t do what everyone else is doing. Don’t make the choice that appears to be “safe.” The only really safe way is obedience to God’s Word and total allegiance to the Lord.
Assignment 10: Write out a verse in 1 Corinthians 6, one in 2 Timothy 2, and one in Revelation 20 that support the point just made.