WILL PEOPLE HAVE A SECOND CHANCE TO BE SAVED AFTER THE CHURCH IS CAUGHT UP?© By Pastor Greg Hooker There are some Bible students who believe there is no possible chance of being saved after the rapture of the New Testament Church. They believe all hope is lost if a person is left behind after the Lord Jesus comes back in the air to receive His Bride unto himself. However, there are no Scriptures when taken in context that support that view or even hint at it. To the contrary; according to Revelation 7:4 there will be many who receive Christ as their Savior and escape eternal damnation: “And I heard the number of them which were sealed [during the Great Tribulation]: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel [being of Jewish descent]” (Revelation 7:4). “And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation [saved by faith in the Gospel], and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes” (Revelation 7:13-17). So we see a great multitude that will emerge from the Great Tribulation period as conquers and victors through the blood of Christ. This great group of people is not to be confused with the Church, or body and Bride of Christ. According to Thessalonians 4:16-17 and Revelation 3:10, the Church will be removed prior to the Judgment of God upon the earth during the seven-year tribulation: “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 [taking from this world, or raptured] together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air [notice “in the air”, not upon the earth, as in the second coming of Christ as record in Matthew 25:31-46 and Revelation 19:11-21]: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” “Revelation 3:10 - Because thou [the Church] hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation [referring to the Great Tribulation], which shall come upon all the world, to try them [those who reject Christ after the Rapture] that dwell upon the earth.” So if no one can be saved during the tribulation period as some would suggest, then why the sealing of the 144,000 to preach the Gospel? Again, in Revelation 20:4 we see this great company of believers who receive the Gospel preached by these 144,000 standing before God: “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus [during the Great Tribulation], and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.” There are no passages in the Bible that indicate there will be no one saved during this terrible time of God’s Judgment upon the inhabitants of the earth. During that time, many children will be born and they, just like everyone else, will be given the choice of accepting or rejecting Christ. In fact, there are many Scriptures that teach people will be saved. God is a God of second chances. He is not willing that anyone should perish, but that ALL should come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). That leads us to the question, ‘will a person have a chance to receive the Gospel and be saved during the Great Tribulation if they had rejected Christ before the tribulation started?’ According to 2 Thessalonian’s 2:8-12, God is going to send a “strong delusion” to those who have refused the truth to be saved: “And then [after the Church has been called out] shall that Wicked [Antichrist] be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming [the second coming of Christ when He actually sets His feet back upon the earth to establish His earthly reign]: Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” From the above text we learn that Satan will work mighty miracles, signs and wonders to get many to “believe a lie” and be damned and not receive the truth. Satan will be able to cause many miracles to take place. He will call down fire from heaven and like a great magician, work mighty wonders before the people; resulting in many believing him to be God, the real and true Christ. It also states that God Himself will send a “strong delusion” to confirm them in their unbelief because they “received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved.” That “delusion” might possibly be that God will give them over to a “reprobate” mind – a mind that is void of all reason and is incapable of believing and receiving the Truth of the Gospel message. A person who has countlessly rejected Christ is in danger of being given over to this reprobate condition, even today. The Bible plainly tells us that God’s Spirit – the agent who presents the Gospel message and urges us to accept Christ – will not always “strive”, or struggle with man. Keep in mind, the Spirit of God will not be manifested during the Great Tribulation like He was during the church age. Although He will work during that time, His main presence will be removed with the rapture of the Church. Listen to Romans 1:28: “And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge [continuous rejection], God gave them over to a reprobate mind [a mind void of any desire for the Truth], to do those things which are not convenient.” My friends, there is no doubt that those who reject the Truth during the Great Tribulation (Revelation 20:11) will be damned and lost forever, just as those who reject the Gospel today. Those that choose to worship the beast, his image and receive his mark will stand before The Great White Throne Judgment only to hear the words, “depart from me, I never knew you”. In striking contrast, believers and members of the Church shall stand before the Judgment Seat of Christ (Greek ‘the Bema’ – Revelation 22:12) – a time in which we will not be judged for our sins (remember, our sins were judged and paid for by Christ at Calvary and are not in question), but we will be rewarded for our faithfulness to Christ during our life-time. Aren’t you glad you are born again and delivered from the wrath to come and from standing before the Great White Throne in which there is no hope! Glory! The Great White Throne Judgment will be orchestrated by God the Father Himself. He will open the book of life to point out to those being judged that their names are nowhere to be found. This is a group of people who rejected God’s Son, thus condemning themselves to eternal destruction in the Lake of Fire and Brimstone. God did not condemn them, rather they condemned themselves – it was their choice not to accept God’s Gift of salvation through His Son. They went about their lives living the way they pleased – enjoying the pleasures of sin for a season. How sad and how final is this judgment! However, does that mean those who have heard the Gospel before the Rapture cannot accept the Truth and be saved if they are left behind to endure the tribulation. Not necessarily, because anyone who has the desire and ability to turn to God through faith in Christ will be indeed washed in the blood and saved from eternal destruction. Be that as it may, the lie that Satan will perpetrate and the strong delusion that God Himself will send, will make it very difficult to believe the true Gospel that will save their souls. However, the option is there – either receive the truth recorded in God’s Word and through the preaching of the 144,000, or receive the false truth preached by the Antichrist. The choice remains – just like the choice is here today – so choice wisely, my friends. We definitely know from Revelation 6:9-11 there will be many martyred (killed for their faith) during the tribulation because they refused to believe the lie of Satan and worship him: “And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain [martyred] for the word of God, and for the testimony [refused the lie – embraced the truth] which they held: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season [until the end of the tribulation period], until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.” These who gave their lives through martyrdom, who endured to the bitter end because they refused the lie of the Antichrist and received the Gospel preached by the 144,000 will be saved. During this awful time there will be countless souls who are killed due to their stand against the Antichrist. They will be on the run – hiding in caves, living in underground bunkers, camping in remote areas – anywhere they can to avoid being tortured and beheaded by Satan and his army. The man of sin will not tolerate those who reject him and his false gospel, thus hunting them down like rabid animals and having them put to the most horrible deaths imaginable. All of these people, remember, were alive ‘before’ the Rapture of the Church. Therefore, there must unquestionably be opportunities afforded to people to come to Christ via faith after the Church is caught up to meet the Lord in the air, but they will pay for it with their lives. In conclusion let me emphasize a real danger: Don’t wait until the Church is removed and the Great Tribulation begins to accept Christ as your Savior. My friend, God is not mocked! The lie of Satan will be so strong that it will be near impossible to believe the Truth; not to mention the “strong delusion” that God Himself will initiate. The Bible plainly states “now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation”. Receive Jesus Christ NOW and escape the Great Tribulation, the Time of Jacobs Trouble that is soon to begin upon this earth. If you believe that Jesus died, was buried and arose from the grace to grant salvation through His shed blood for your sins; you can be saved right now, where you are, and not have to worry about the awful judgment that is coming. If you truly believe this, would you say a simple prayer like the following? Remember now, just saying these words will not save you; you much believe in Christ with all your heart. Here is a sample prayer to help you know what to pray: ‘Dear God, I know that I am a sinner and there is nothing I can do to take away my sins. I believe Jesus Christ died on the cross and paid for all my sins in full so I would not have to go to hell. I believe He was buried and arose from the grave to give me abundant life. I now repent and turn away from my sins and accept Jesus Christ as my Savoir and Lord. By faith I receive Gods gift of salvation through His Son, Jesus Christ. Come into my heart, Lord Jesus, forgive me of my sins and take me to Heaven someday - Amen!’ My friend, if you prayed that prayer from your heart and meant it, the Bible says you have been forgiven of your sins and have become one of Gods children. You are no longer destined for eternal hell, but for eternal Heaven. I rejoice in your decision and would love to help you begin your Christian life. Would you allow me the honor to do that? Simply contact me and let me know you prayed that prayer. I will send you a free Bible and some literature to help you get started in your New Life with Christ. Let me be the first to welcome you into the family of God. Your new Brother in Christ, Pastor Greg.
Posted on: Fri, 18 Jul 2014 16:16:45 +0000
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