Nine Powerful Reasons

THIS COULD CONVINCE THE GREATEST DOUBTERS! THE CLIMATE OF OUR WORLD, SPIRITUALLY, POLITICALLY, ECONOMICALLY AND ENVIRONMENTALLY ARE ALL SET IN DIRECT ORDER FOR THE GREAT TRIBULATION TO BEGIN!But that Seven year period cannot start until the Son Of God removes HIS Bride. Here are nine powerful and clear Biblical principles for a “CATCHING AWAY” to occur and then, and only then, to open the door for Satan to be cast down to the earth. Satan will be free when Christ’s Bride is removed to reveal his Antichrist. The words “CATCHING AWAY” are perfect words to translate the English word Rapture from the Greek word “HARPOSA”. The word “HARPOSA” has all of the meanings which embodies the “RAPTURE OF THE SAINTS” out of the impending darkness. It is an endearment term with all the love of Christ for His Bride.

1. It Fits Biblical Precedence Of God’s Judgment For The Wicked! David was bold in his proclamation, “I have not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread.” (Psalm 37:25) To suggest that God the Father will deny 6000 years of history and judge the church in the same horrible hour as the wicked doesn’t fit His character. The nature of the tribulation period, the final judgment of man’s wickedness, makes that suggestion even less likely. When the antediluvian world reached its zenith of debauchery and the Father was ready to pour out His wrath, Noah found grace, unmerited favor, in His eyes. Noah’s family was saved while the rest of mankind was completely obliterated. The law of first mention makes this event a powerful factor. Sodom and Gomorrah had descended into the mire of sexual perversion. There is a good possibility that a disease like AIDS was proliferating and God acted to stop the plague. The very geography of the landscape had to be cleansed by fire and destruction.

2. The Church Is To Be Judged Before The Wicked World Is Judged! Rather than positioning the church in the tribulation judgment, the Biblical warning is that judgment begins at the house of God. Privilege is always a factor in determining God’s judgment. He said . . . For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” (St. Luke 12:48b) Apostle Peter, clearly distinguishing himself as a New Testament leader, warned, “For the time has come that judgment must begin at the house of God: (Remember, it was the Jewish nation that was first to be judged in the First Testament) and if it first begin at us (the Second Testament believers) what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” (I Peter 4:17) Our judgment is of a different nature from the First Testament but clearly precedes that of both the Judgement of the Jewish and the Gentile world.

3. The Bride Of Christ Is To Be Presented Unto Himself In An Exclusive Ceremony Separate From All Other End-Time Events! Redemption is much, much more than fire insurance. The root and foundation of God’s love for the world and sending His only begotten Son is a desire to have a family. The family unit is the closest thing on earth to the heart of God, His very nature. The invitation to salvation is an invitation to a marriage feast and establishes a family relationship. Worship in its truest sense is a celebration of that family relationship with our spiritual priest; we celebrate His love until we can celebrate His presence. This marriage salvation is a betrothing experience that lives everyday in expectation of the wedding celebration. We are like a young virgin looking at His picture, as we anxiously anticipate His coming for the wedding. Jesus gave a parable that shows this awaiting virgin (St. Matthew 25:11-13). (MY DESCRIPTION! Ten virgins took their lamps and went forth to meet the bridegroom. Five had come under the intoxicating influence of worldliness and had let their lamps go out. Five had brightly glowing lights in their lamps. Those five went to the marriage and the door was shut. Remember, God also shut the door of the ark in Noah’s day.

4. His Absolute Promise To Keep His Faithful Bride From The Hour Of Tribulation! The Holy Scripture deals effectively with His assurance that this awful hour is not designed for His chosen. The prophet Isaiah described the final episodes with minute detail: “Thy dead men shall live, together with my dead body shall they arise. Awake and sing, ye that dwell in dust: for thy dew is as the dew of herbs, and the earth shall cast out the dead. Come, my people, enter thou into thy chambers, and shut thy doors about thee: hide thyself as it were for a little moment, until the indignation be overpast. For, behold, the LORD cometh out of his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity: the earth also shall disclose her blood, and shall no more cover her slain.” (Isaiah 26:19-21) In the first verse of this quote he identified the Resurrection. Next, he calls for the chosen bride to enter with Him into her chambers (an appropriate nuptial place as she prepares for her presentation to the Groom) to be securely hidden away for a short moment until the wrath or rage of God is finished. The third verse of this text pictures the going forth of God’s righteous judgment to finish sin, disclose hidden life styles, and to give an equal response from God’s holiness to man’s evil actions.

5. The Pre-Tribulation Rapture Is The Only Reasonable Explanation Of A Time When Some Are Taken And Some are Left! No sensible explanation can be given of St. Matthew 24 that excludes the warning of a sudden rapture that catches men unprepared. Jesus warned of the suddenness of that day, that only the Father knows the time and that the day was as Noah’s day, where men were eating, drinking, and giving in marriage. Then He said,“Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left.” (St. Matthew 24:40-41) He concluded the warning by saying: “Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.” (St. Matthew 24:42) To try to rearrange the Lord’s teachings and explain away this great truth borders on arrogance. When we suggest that the one being taken away is the wicked and the believer is left, then where is the wicked taken, and for what is the believer left? Any such explanation will be hard put to fit into the pattern of events. The word for “COMING” as used in this context is the Greek “PAROUSIA” not “APOLALUPSIS”. When“PAROUSIA” is used it means a coming to a specific place at a specific time for a specific meeting. It is personal. When “apokalupsis” is used as in verses 30 and 31 of this same chapter, it means the unveiling of His awesome holiness and glory. It is general rather than personal and relates to His return to fight the battle of Armageddon and to establish His kingdom.

6. Then He Warns Of A Specific Day Coming Unawares Of Which Only Those Watching Shall Escape! These verses are so crucial for establishing this great “Hope of the Church” that we must analyze them closely. “And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth? Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” (Luke 21:34-36) Christians are so casual today about what constitutes readiness for the Rapture that they make me tremble. Ask a given Sunday-morning crowd: “How many are ready to go?” And you will find it hard to see the un-lifted hands. Many have not been to church in weeks, maybe never tithe, do not read the Bible more than sporadically; and yet, they feel secure and ready. The only explanation is that we are living in the great apostasy. Please note Jesus’ warning: ” . . . take heed to yourselves.”He warned of an overcharged heart, surfeiting (reveling and rioting), drunkenness (giving opportunity to drunkenness), and the cares of this life. He said the day would come as a snare (trap) and catch men unaware. Satan is right now springing his carefully devised trap to keep the bride from her readiness for her Groom. Satan is furious with the thought of you and me in the nuptial chamber with our redeeming Prince.

7. The Law Of The Farmer Demands That The Harvest Be Gathered Before The Winter Begins! No vineyard dresser or tiller of the ground would think of laboring through the spring and summer only to leave the ripened harvest in the field as the winter arrives. A wise proverb of Solomon says,“He that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.” (Proverb 10:5) It contradicts everything my Father has provided and promised to suggest that He won’t gather His harvest of the world until the winter of divine retribution is in full swing. Isaiah is prolific in describing this harvest out of an impending winter of evil. He prophesied, “The righteous perisheth (escapes), and no man layeth it to heart: and merciful men are taken away (removed), none considering that the righteous is taken away from the evil to come.” (Isaiah 57:1) The words taken away literally mean to “collect as in harvest”. The next verse is a perfect picture of this harvest, safely cradled in her haven of rest, as evil spreads itself in defiance of the gathering storm. “He (bride) shall enter into peace: they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness.” (Isaiah 57:2) That storm of evil is clearly described in the next three verses. “But draw near hither, ye sons of the sorceress, the seed of the adulterer and the whore. Against whom do ye sport yourselves? Against whom do ye make ye a wide mouth, and draw out the tongue? Are ye not children of transgression, a seed of falsehood, enflaming yourselves with idols under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys under the clefts of the rocks?” (Isaiah 57:3-5)

8. The Holy Scripture Affirms Emphatically That The Antichrist Cannot Be Revealed Until A Restraining Force Is Removed! The church at Thessalonica received this word from Apostle Paul: “And now ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time. For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way. And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming.” (2 Thessalonians 2:6-8) The word “withholdeth” in verse six and “letteth” in verse seven are identical and means to restrain or hold back. A picture emerges of this great and overwhelming force of evil that is ever ready to spread across God’s creation but is restrained because of an even greater power. It is like a reservoir of water held in check by a dam. If the dam is suddenly removed, the waters will flood the valley with great destruction. Don’t ever forget that there is an invisible church within the bosom of the visible church that will not bow to the Antichrist. This sanctified company has no other love but the one King. Any one else cannot purchase her, because she has no price. She has found the pearl of great price and forfeited all other wealth. As long as His chosen are here, the Antichrist cannot be revealed. Even the New Agers are saying that their “Age of Aquarius” cannot be realized as long as the defective seed (Christians) are filling the world with negative thought patterns (the gospel of Jesus Christ). They have suggested in their literature that we must be removed to a non-physical plane (their words) before the New Age can arrive. That is one message they got right.

9. Finally: The Lord’s Absolute Promise To Catch Away His Chosen To Meet Him In The Air! Apostle Paul said,“For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words.” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18) What a climactic finish to an exciting search of Holy Scripture. The Lord isn’t sending Gabriel or Michael. He is coming Himself. You hear people say the word “rapture” is not in our Bible. To begin with, the Bible wasn’t written in English, so the only word from the English language in the Greek Bible is the word Hallelujah. As with many other words, the exact equivalent of Rapture is in the above two verses. The two words “caught up” are derived from a Greek word harpazo, which means “snatched up”. My Webster dictionary gives the meaning for rapture as “transported or to snatch away”. The original Greek goes much further than the simple but powerful meaning “to snatch up”. It means “to steal openly with no thought of hiding”. includes a removal by force in expectation of a hindering power. perfect words to describe the rapture of the church.

Satan is marshalling his forces in heaven (he is the prince of the power of the air) and on earth in his effort to stop the greatest exodus in human history. The exodus from Egypt was a Biblical foreshadow, but it pales in comparison, even as the animal sacrifice fails to rightly compare to Calvary. Jesus actually descends into the atmospheric heaven below the reigning powers of Lucifer. He then leads His resurrected and glorified army back through the evil dominion to the throne of God Himself. The triumph of that event leaves Satan weakened and Michael, with his armies, casting him out and down to earth. He will never leave the earth again until he is judged and cast into the bottomless pit. (Revelation 12)

Conclusion!Those who know and serve Jesus Christ as SAVIOR and LORD will be out of here before all TERROR is UNLEASED on this earth. I contend that the Rapture must transpire before the tribulation can begin. The gathering storm has shaken the faith of many. The fire of expectancy, of watching and waiting, of looking for His appearing, has gone out of many lives. Some are looking to build a kingdom here, while others are looking for great tribulations and planning how not to take the mark. I believe that the bride should look for His appearing, occupy His spiritual and invisible kingdom, and expect to be gone when the great “deceiver” is having one final fling. “Look up and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh.” (Jesus: St. Luke 21:28b)

There is no truth more fixed and dependable than God’s faithfulness. His saints, redeemed by the Blood of His Son, Jesus Christ, are His delight. We are not just His servants; we are His friends and the future Bride of his Son. We are plainly instructed by the Apostle Paul that we are joint heirs with Jesus Christ. “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified together.” (Romans 8:15-17). “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32).

Understanding His faithfulness and knowing that we are “heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ are foundational truths for the Pre-Tribulation Rapture. The wrath of God has never been directed against His chosen that find grace in His presence. Not one Scripture in the Word of God places the righteous and the unholy together under a display of the Father’s wrath. From the worship of Cain and Abel in Genesis chapter 4, God always makes a distinction between obedience and disobedience. God accepted Abel’s worship and rejected Cain’s bloodless sacrifice and the manifestation of God’s Spirit in accepting Abel’s worship left no doubt. Holy Justice can never condemn the righteous for the deeds of the wicked. This is a principle that underlies every revelation of the Holy Bible.

The Differences Between Tribulation and Wrath! … In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). It is probably unfortunate that we use the same word tribulation for the normal experiences of every Biblical saint with the period the Scripture calls the “Great Tribulation.” There is a total difference between the “much tribulation” that Luke wrote about in Acts and the “Great Tribulation” that Jesus spoke about as recorded in Matthew. Luke stated, “Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.” (Acts 14:22). Matthew recorded Jesus’ words as following, “And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! But pray ye that your flight be not in the winter, neither on the sabbath day: For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.” (Matthew 24:19-22).The difference is extremely clear.

The word tribulation embodies the idea of pressure and trouble. There are clearly many different levels of this pressure or trouble throughout the Scripture. Jesus Christ experienced incredible pressure and sorrows in His crisis of death. The tribulation of His sorrows in behalf of our redemption is the basis of why He said, … In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome (already defeated those tribulations) the world.” (John 16:33). The tribulation that the Son of God experienced for us, but that we still face by faith in Him is not the wrath of God but the wrath of the world. This pressure that Satan and the world under his control brings to bear has no kinship to the pressure of God’s wrath directed toward the wicked and Satan’s crowd.

When you simply translate the word tribulation by its distinctive meaning of pressure and trouble, it clears up the confusion that many people have assigned to this subject. As Luke wrote in Acts, we enter into the Kingdom of God by much pressure and trouble. The world is not a friend to the saints of God. “We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus’ sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh.” (II Corinthians 4:8-11).These tribulations or pressures that we bear make mature saints out of us as we trust in Him and die to our own selves. The “Great Tribulation” is a distinctive time of pressure and trouble directed towards a population that is infested with sin: that has rejected the revelations of Jesus Christ. It is also planned as tribulation or pressure against the hordes of hell or Satan and his fallen angels. While our tribulation or pressure produces redemption of the saints, this future tribulation or pressure produces the redemption of the earth and God’s cosmos. This makes it clear why the same word is used. In both cases, it is redemption that is produced by the pressure of tribulation.

God Never Inflicts His Wrath on His Saints! It is Biblically unthinkable that our God would ever allow His chosen saints to be left in the middle of His judgment of the wicked. He has never done so, nor will He ever do such an unprincipled thing. It is contrary to His nature and to His faithfulness. To leave the saints of God on this earth, while He poured out His redeeming wrath on the Christ-rejecting crowd would strike at the heart of His holiness. It will not happen because it cannot happen. Anything that is contrary to His nature must never be assigned to His actions.

The Days of Noah! The Book of Genesis is an infallible part of the Holy Bible. Every word of this Book is exact and perfectly true. It was Jesus Christ Himself that compared the days of Noah with the coming of the Son of Man. “But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only. But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark, And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken, and the other left. Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.” (Matthew 24:36-42). Reasonable scholars that do not have strange theology to defend believe that this is the exact language concerning the Rapture before the Tribulation.

The story concerning Noah is breathtaking. The Father was repenting that He had created man. “And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.” (Genesis 6:6). He then determined that He would destroy man and beast from the face of this earth and then He stated again, “… for it repenteth me that I have made them.” (Genesis 6:7). Then our faithful God looked in the direction of a godly man named Noah and stated, “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:8). What a picture of the nature of God’s holiness. He was ready to destroy His own creation, but then one man was not guilty of the filth of the rest and God devised a plan to save that one man and his family from the planned holocaust. This principle sets the tone for the entire Word of God and God’s acts of judgment. He must judge sin, but He will do it by the principles of His own nature.

Noah had to act in obedience to receive the promise of deliverance from the impending wrath. He was instructed to build an ark to the saving of His household and was given the plans for the same. This is the same principle that has never changed. Our salvation is free, but Jesus made it plain that our deliverance from impending wrath is a matter of our faithfulness. Jesus said, “But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up. Therefore be ye also ready: for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of man cometh.” (Matthew 24:43-44). He forever makes a difference between the righteous and the unrighteous.

When Noah had finished the ark, God Himself came to see the project. While He was on the inside, He called to Noah, “And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation.” (Genesis 7:1). When Noah and his family, plus all the creatures of the earth had finished entering the ark, the Scripture states, “… and the LORD shut him in.” (Genesis 7:16b). It’s beautiful to see the Lord call him from the inside, but shut the door from the outside. God cannot be limited to an ark made by man, but He certainly was responsible for the security of Noah’s family by securing the door Himself. This story is a breathtaking truth. It is a perfect picture of God’s faithfulness in the judgment of the wicked. The protection of the righteous is a personal thing with our Heavenly Father. He did not assign this project to even His most trusted angel.

The Days of Lot! Lot and his removal from Sodom and Gomorrah before its destruction is another prime picture of God’s nature in judgment. He will always and in every case judge sin, but He will never judge the righteous at the same moment or in the same manner. It is impossible for sin to ever go unpunished, but it is just as impossible for sin and righteousness to be treated the same. Sodom and Gomorrah’s population had filled the cup of sin to its max. But, our God determined that He by His nature would do right and the righteous had to be delivered. Listen to the words of Abraham when he was speaking to the Lord, “That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked: and that the righteous should be as the wicked, that be far from thee: Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:25).

The Heavenly Father sent His angels right into the throbs of filth to assure the removal of Lot and those in his family that feared God. Our God even said that if He found as few as ten righteous persons in Sodom and Gomorrah, He would not destroy the city. “… And he (God) said, I will not destroy it for ten’s sake.” (Genesis 18:32b). Settle it in your mind that this is God’s nature and not just a story of how He acted in one circumstance. He is the Lord and He doesn’t change. Lot had family that had become compromised by the evil of their surroundings. They had no fear of God and laughed Lot to scorn. “And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law.” (Genesis 19:14). We live in a similar generation where the families of many believers are careless and unconcerned. It is evident that Lot had allowed himself to give up the more separated life of a Bedouin for the comforts of Sodom and Gomorrah. The New Testament writer said that Lot’s righteous soul was “vexed by the unlawful deeds” of these sodomites. “And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly; And delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;)” (II Peter 2:6-8).

I believe he lost those family members because he chose worldly comforts over living a separated life with them in a pure environment. How many believers, themselves living holy lives, have taken their families into social settings and compromising churches only to watch their children lose the fear of God. It is sad to consider this Godly man having to leave these cities knowing that part of his family was “left behind.” In fact, Lot was so hesitant to leave that the angels had to remove him. “And Lot went out, and spake unto his sons in law, which married his daughters, and said, Up, get you out of this place; for the LORD will destroy this city. But he seemed as one that mocked unto his sons in law. And when the morning arose, then the angels hastened Lot, saying, Arise, take thy wife, and thy two daughters, which are here; lest thou be consumed in the iniquity of the city. And while he lingered, the men laid hold upon his hand, and upon the hand of his wife, and upon the hand of his two daughters; the LORD being merciful unto him: and they brought him forth, and set him without the city.” (Genesis 19:14-16).

The angels had to take Lot and his wife and two of his daughters by the hands and take them out of the city. This generation seems about as reluctant to escape this filthy world as Lot and his family were. Finally, the angel said, “Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar.” (Genesis 19:22). Do not forget those words, “…for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither.” This is the faithfulness of God. They were not saved by their goodness, but by His “grace.” It is easy to understand why Lot’s wife looked back and lost her deliverance. She was leaving daughters, son-in-laws, and probably grandchildren to be consumed in the flames of fire and brimstone. She could not refrain herself from looking back when her own flesh and blood was about to suffer hell on earth. “But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.” (Genesis 19:26). Is it possible that this scenario will be repeated when the Son of Man comes for His saints? Will there be saintly people so besieged with passions for their unsaved loved ones that they miss the Rapture? I would not suggest so, but the thought strikes terror to my heart. Remember the Scripture, “So Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many; and unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation.” (Hebrews 9:28). Regardless of what is left behind, His saints must look for Him without hesitation.

He Reserves Wrath For His Enemies! This prophetic truth spoken by a prophet named Nahum is breathtaking, “God is jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and is furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth wrath for his enemies” (Nahum 1:2). What a statement of absolute perfection concerning the nature of God in His judgments. The wrath of God cannot be mixed but is always divinely discerned in the object of its activities. God is a jealous God. He will not allow sin to go unpunished. Never! But, He reserves His wrath for His enemies. As our Heavenly Father, He will chasten us, lay His rod of correction upon us and deal correctingly, but lovingly with us. He may even direct His righteous anger at us because of disobedience, but His wrath is reserved for the wicked that refuse to obey His will. He created this universe for His glory and honor and He is jealous over it with an unfailing love. It will be subject unto Him shortly and all that opposes Him will be consumed by His wrath.

This principle lives even more beautifully in the New Covenant. Jesus filled His message with the promises that He came not to condemn but to save. Jesus said, “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.” (John 3:17-21).

His great message of deliverance forever tempers the rigid positions of His commandments. The laws of God bring conviction of sin, but the grace of God cleanses and delivers us from the powers of sin. He is the door by which we escape the coming wrath; therefore, we are no longer under the “fear of judgment.” The coming “seven years of wrath”is not a “New Covenant” message. It is an “Old Covenant”message. Jesus reinterated this fact when He prophesied of its future fulfillment. The wrath of God and the wrath of the Lamb are seen in their coming horror in Revelation chapter six. This earth cannot be a “Garden of Eden” until righteousness is established in judgment. Sin was finished on the cross, but the finality of this finish has to be manifest by an outpouring of wrath on those that refuse the pardon from sin’s prison. Sin is finished in those that are redeemed by His blood, but the enemies of God are yet to be dealt with.

Now, we see why the “wrath of God” must be poured forth, but it is unthinkable and impossible for those redeemed by His blood to be subject to this wrath. He has Himself borne our wrath on His cross at Calvary. If we were subject to that wrath, then Calvary would have been in vain. We must look at this wrath and note those that cry out because of its terror. “And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?” (Revelation 6:15-17). The saints are already around the throne as this defining moment begins.

Paul’s epistle confirms this truth, “For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that, whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with him. Wherefore comfort yourselves together, and edify one another, even as also ye do.” (II Thessalonians 5:9-11). This Scripture, when viewed in light of the above facts, almost comes off the pages of Holy Writ. The Jewish believers were students of the laws and prophets of God. They trembled under the weight of the coming judgments for sin. Their history is filled with examples of God’s wrath. The story of the Assyrians and Babylonians, who acted as God’s instruments of judgment, were all too familiar. It was “Good News” to hear that Jesus Christ had taken their wrath on the cross and that they no longer had to flee.

As a whole, the Nation of Israel refused this message and rejected the Son of God and they have lived under wrath since that day with more to come. As wounded as my heart feels for the Nation of Israel today, even as I pray for the peace of Jerusalem, that peace cannot be complete until Messiah comes and they are redeemed. We resist the truth of God’s Word when we expect them to have complete peace until they repent for helping crucify the Son of God. Thank God we are at the door of that prophetic moment. Israel, will soon be under the ultimate wrath of the Lamb and will be redeemed when they see Him coming in glory at the conclusion of the Battle of Armageddon Our present joy is to “wait for the Son from Heaven.” The apostles’ messages were constantly filled with this assurance. They knew that God’s wrath was a future fact, but they had no dread. “And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.” (I Thessalonians 1:10).

Apostle Peter spoke with enthusiasm of the same assurance. Look carefully at the hope of His words. “But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up. Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness, Looking for and hasting unto the coming of the day of God, wherein the heavens being on fire shall be dissolved, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat? Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness. Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.” (II Peter 3:10-14).

Conclusion! On and on you can search the pages of the New Covenant to find much assurance that we, as His saints, are not “appointed unto wrath.” We have been delivered from that wrath because he took our wrath for us. “Isaiah the prophet said, “It pleased the Lord to bruise Him” that we might be set free. This does not give us liberty to be lovers of this world and to live carelessly. Rather, it calls us unto holiness and soberness of mind. John the Revelator summed it up to the Church of Philadelphia. He stated by the Holy Ghost as given to Jesus by the Father, “Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth.” (Revelation 3:10). For the saints of God, who are watching the incredible events of prophetic fulfillment, the atmosphere is filled with the Blessed Hope.