THE BIG ONE

Are you confused about the Book of Revelation? Many prophetic teachers have weird ideas about the end times. Some of the religiously devout believe that we (Christians) are going through the great tribulation (7 year period of God's wrath). They believe that God is not only going to be wrathful with sinners but also provide no escape for His elect.

Many who teach wrath for the Church of God act smug as if faith in God is not enough to save us from end-time mayhem. "We must prepare," they say, "God is not going to spare us when the world falls apart."

End time prophecy is really not that hard to understand unless you are trying to prove something that is not in the Bible. Then it becomes a helter-skelter theology.

As Christians we need to clarify our terminology. When most Christians think of tribulation they think it means the seven year period at the end of times. It doesn't. It means "The coming worldwide earthquake."

"The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining..." Joel 2:10

"And they shall go into the holes of the rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of the Lord, and for the glory of his majesty, when he ariseth to shake terribly the earth." Isaiah 2:19

"Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the Lord of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger." Isaiah 13:13

"So that the fishes of the sea, and the fowls of the heaven, and the beasts of the field, and all creeping things that creep upon the earth, and all the men that are upon the face of the earth, shall shake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground." Ezekiel 38:20

"The heavens and the earth shall shake..." Joel 3:16

"For thus saith the Lord of hosts; Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land..."Haggai 2:6

"And I will shake all nations, and the desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of hosts." Haggai 2:7

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory." Matthew 24: 29-30

"And the stars of heaven shall fall, and the powers that are in heaven shall be shaken." Mark 13:25

"Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken." Luke 21:26

"Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven." Hebrews 12:26

"And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 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 6:12-17

You see, tribulation is not a period of time but is a single event. The event is a worldwide earthquake that is so great that it shakes the heavens and the earth. The earthquake marks the beginning period of time known as, "THE WRATH OF GOD."

A global earthquake of catastrophic proportions will end this world as we know it. Today many organizations are monitoring earthquakes. They are looking for them globally but not looking for a worldwide earthquake happening all at once.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/earthquakes/map/

The world is never prepared for an earthquake. In April 2015 Nepal was struck by a devastating 7.9 magnitude earthquake. It killed more than 8,800 people and injured more than 23,000.

Damage and loss of life sustained during an earthquake results from falling structures and flying glass and objects. Rigid structures built on loose soil are the most vulnerable. In some areas an earthquake can trigger mudslides which can bury houses and structures below. An underwater earthquake can cause a tsunami, a series of damaging waves that ripple outward from the earthquake epicenter and inundate coastal cities.

In 2011 Japan had a devastating Tsunami and Earthquake. The earthquake magnitude was 9.0. The undersea earthquake led to a massive tsunami that killed over 18,900 people.

When the global earthquake does strike the devastation will be so great that many will hide themselves in caves hoping to die. God's wrath has come and no one will find refuge in any standing building or structure. Not only will every building fall down but also all the walls will fall down. Those who do survive and had planned for disaster will lose hope when all their survival food and gear are lost under a ton of devastation.

WHERE ARE THE SAINTS?

During the earthquake will Christians be buried along with the haters of God? Will little Sunday school children be found dead, buried with Jesus pictured coloring books still in their little hands? In the hospitals will new born babies be among the dead, having died in the arms of their crushed mothers? Will preachers be found under the rubble of their collapsed Churches, buried to death beneath their beloved edifices?

The Big One or world-wide earthquake will be a time of horror for those who die in the shaking and a nightmare for those who survive through it. Does having faith in Jesus Christ save us from having to go through the Big One? Keep reading the Bible. The answer is in there. It is in the Book of Revelation Chapter 7.

CHAPTER 7

And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree.

2 And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea,

3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads.

4 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.

5 Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand.

6 Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nephthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand.

7 Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand.

8 Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand.

9 After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne, and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;

10 And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.

11 And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God,

12 Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen.

13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they?

14 And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

The saints of God will come out of great tribulation.

The Christians prior to the earthquake didn't go through the great tribulation; they came out of it. Matthew 24 speaks of this time of great trouble:

"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 24:22

We now know that tribulation is not a period of time but a single event. In Revelation 6 it tells of a great earthquake followed by the sun becoming black as sackcloth of hair, the moon becoming as blood and stars falling from heaven. The same thing is mentioned in Matthew 24, 

"Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken…"

Will the elect go through the earthquake? I am afraid some will. Those who have not trusted in Christ in the days of grace will have to trust Him in the days of wrath. In grace those who believed on Christ will be saved by grace but in the time of wrath many of the elect will have to prove their allegiance to Christ by not taking the "mark of the beast." In those days, it won't matter that you said a sinner's prayer; you will have to prove your love and allegiance to God by not taking the mark of the beast.

This is different, you might say. The truth always is. So are you saying the rapture will take place during the earthquake? The greek word "out of" is ek (Strong's 1537). It means: from out, out from among, from, suggesting from the interior outwards. It means the saints of God are given an exit. God has given His Church an exit strategy when times get too rough.

The word (From) in Greek is “out of” (Greek word, ek)

Revelation 3:10

"Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee (from, Greek, ek- out of) The (hour, Greek, hora- season) of (temptation, Greek, peirasmos- adversity or tribulation) which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell upon the earth."

In 1 Thessalonians 4:17 it talks about the saints being taken or raptured, 

"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." 

Have you ever heard of the song, "I'll fly away?" The word for caught up is harpazó (Strong's 726). It means to seize, catch up, and snatch away. We won't fly away, we will be taken away. God will literally seize us by force, suddenly and decisively.

Don't get me wrong saints are going through tribulation

Jesus said, "In the world ye shall have tribulation…" John 16:33. And we find elsewhere in Scripture, 

"We must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God…"Acts 14:22.

"Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer…" Romans 12:12. 

"Who comforteth us in all our tribulation…" 2 Corinthians 1:4. 

These are just a few Scriptures. There are many more.

Even though we are going through tribulation in this world we will not go through the great tribulation of the world-wide earthquake mentioned in Revelation 6. The multitudes that escape are so many that they continually come before the throne of God after being snatched away out of the great earthquake.

"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, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb" Revelation 7:14.