7/09/2022 Wednesday
BIBLE BASICS
Future: Judgment Seat of Christ (part 2) Review
List three types of rewards Christ will give.
Honour (Commendation), Position, (Administration), Crowns (Coronation)
Name two types of crowns Christians can receive.
Incorruptible, Righteousness, Rejoicing, Life, Glory
Three types of loss of reward are
Regret, Rebuke, and Retribution (loss).
Future: The Tribulation
What does the Bible say about the coming Tribulation?
The Tribulation Defined
▰ The Tribulation is a future time of distress or great trouble described in the Bible that will last seven years. It will take place between the Rapture and
the Revelation of Christ.
▰ During the Tribulation, many who have never heard the gospel, particularly Jews, will be saved. Persecution against believerswill be terrible and
many will die for their faith.
▰ God will pour out many terrible judgments on the world. The Tribulation will end when the Lord returns in judgment and then sets up His 1,000-year
kingdom.
The Tribulation Defined
▰ Here is a definition from GotQuestions.org. “The tribulation is a future seven-year period of time when God will finish His discipline of Israel and
finalise His judgment of the unbelieving world. The church, made up of all who have trusted in the person and work of the Lord Jesus to save them
from being punished for sin, will not be present during the tribulation.
▰ “The church will be removed from the earth in an event known as the rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18;1 Corinthians 15:51-53).
▰ “The church is saved from the wrath to come (1 Thessalonians 5:9).
The Tribulation Defined
▰ “Throughout Scripture, the tribulation is referred to by other names such as the …
▻ Day of the Lord (Isaiah 2:12; 13:6-9; Joel 1:15; 2:1-31; 3:14; 1 Thessalonians 5:2); …
▻ The great tribulation, which refers to the more intense second half of the seven-year period (Matthew 24:21);
▻ Time or day of trouble (Daniel 12:1; Zephaniah 1:15);
▻ Time of Jacob’s trouble (Jeremiah 30:7).” (Got Questions.org)
The Tribulation Defined
▰ “In no other period of time in the past or future history of the world will there be so much suffering and universal destruction as in the last half of the
seven years, called the Great Tribulation. This period of time will unleash more torture and misery than occurred during the Second World War that
ended with an atomic holocaust. Most of the final book of the New Testament is devoted to a recounting of the events of those years. Portions of
Daniel, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel also speak to the events.” (Elmer Towns, What the Faith is All About, The Tribulation, theWord edition)
The Tribulation Described
▰ At the Rapture, Christ will take all the Christians from this world. The Holy Spirit, who is the restrainer of evil, will leave the world at that time as well
(2Thessalonians 2:7-8).
▰ Shortly thereafter, the Anti-Christ (a powerful leader) will step up to rule the world. He will make peace with Israel, but the peace will not last.
The Tribulation Described
▰ As we saw in the chart above, three sets of judgments will plague the world during the seven-year tribulation (seals, trumpets and vials or bowls).
▰ Bible teachers differ as to how many of the seal judgments will be opened during the first half of the tribulation. Some think only the first will open.
To me that makes the most sense. Others think the first five seals will open in the first half.
The Tribulation Described
▰ John Walvoord states, “There is a remarkable similarity between the progress of chapter 6 as a whole and the description given by our Lord of the
end of the age in Matthew 24:4-31. In both passages the order is
▻ (1) war (Matt. 24:6-7; Rev. 6:3-4),
▻ (2) famine (Matt. 24:7; Rev. 6:5-6),
▻ (3) death (Matt. 24:7-9; Rev. 6:7-8),
▻ (4) martyrdom (Matt. 24:9-10, 16-22; Rev. 6:9-11),
The Tribulation Described
▻ (5) the sun darkened, the moon darkened, and the stars falling (Matt. 24:29; Rev. 6:12-14),
▻ (6) a time of divine judgment (Matt. 24:32-25:26; Rev. 6:15-17).
▰ The general features of Matthew 24 are obviously quite parallel to the events of the book of Revelation beginning in chapter 6.” Walvoord, John, The Revelation of Jesus
Christ, p. 123, theWord edition
The Tribulation Described
▰ Thomas Ice states, “I believe that Mat 24:4-41 refers to the seven-year period (Dan 9:24-27) that many commonly call the tribulation. The tribulation
is divided in half by the abomination of desolation, mentioned by Jesus in Mat 24:15. Thus, Mat 24:4-14 refer to the first half of the tribulation and
are parallel to the first five seal judgments found in Revelation 6.” Ice, Thomas, An Interpretation of Matthew 24-25, Part IV, theWord edition
▻ I cannot see how the first five seals can be considered peaceful. Time will tell!
The Tribulation Described
▰ The Tribulation will end with a great battle when the Lord will return to earth (Rev 19).
Future: The Tribulation Review
Let’s Get Practical
▰ What impact should the knowledge of the coming Tribulation have on us today?