And What Of The Left Behind?
FINAL COUNTDOWN: 3 DAYS TO GO September 11, 2015
And what of the Left Behind?
And this is one subject matter on which to tread gently for the amount of concern, and sorrow of the heart, the burden that one carries for his family and his friends that are not believers. The bible clearly says that the day of the Lord, which is wrath is for unbelievers, "for the day is near, even the day of the Lord is near, a cloudy day; it shall be the time of the heathen". (Ezekiel 30:3). Therefore there is certainty that the ones who are left behind are all unbelievers, ones who have not appeal to Jesus Christ as being their Saviour. Many will be saved during the period called the tribulation, for they will come to Christ, not as a church revival, but as a great harvest.
And we know what the day of the Lord is from Acts 1:6, 7 and from Daniel 2:21, for it is the time when the God of gods, the LORD, changes kingdoms and kings, and in particular what is coming is the removal of the world system of the god of this world Satan by means of destruction and replacement by the millennial kingdom of Jesus Christ. We are told in the bible that the times and the seasons in the end times are equal to the day of the Lord (1 Thessalonians 5:1, 2), a day that is for the children of darkness and not of the light, and will not overtake or catch up with the Church, as the very same chapter says. Why not? Because she would have been taken out to the Father's house (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18), in the very same day, as Scripture teaches in Luke 17:29. And any unbeliever, as well as any of the wicked or even the fool, can come to salvation during that time, with the only exception being those categorized as the earth dwellers in revelation.
Regardless of how much it is a burden to believers regarding their friends and families and others, the words of Jesus Christ ring clear in Matthew 12:30, "He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad". There is no fence to ride, there is no place to hide from these words, for you all, whether you know it or accept it or not, have also received the light of Jesus Christ when you came into the world (John 1:9), and have knowledge of him. If your choice up to then has been not to receive the Son of God in Jesus Christ as your redeemer from your sins, you are presently condemned or under condemnation (John 3:18) and the wrath of God abides/hovers over you (John 3:36). This however is a remediable situation that by your very free will can correct and be changed from condemnation immediately to salvation.
The best example of this salvation is that of the thief on the cross who asked to be remembered when the Lord would come to paradise. And God says repeatedly that he is not a respecter of persons, that is, he does not play favorites and is willing to save whosoever is willing to come to him for such redemption. Just do not be one who once considered Jesus Christ as the Son of God, even when you had not trusted/depended/obeyed in his uniqueness and exclusivity to be the only truth, way and life to God (John 14:6), and now considers that there are other christs or messiahs that take people to the mountain top via other routes or religions. 2 Thessalonians 2:1-11 clearly tell us that if a person decides to abandon/apostatize/forsake the truth, and Jesus Christ is the truth, but goes to believe a lie (a false deity, a vanity/a god), this man will be give great delusion and be at full risk of crossing over to the side of being totally deceived and unable to come to the Saviour in the Son of God.
Let us face it, the left behind are guilty as charge and the tribulation would be the great test of whether they will still stick to their incredulity of give themselves the chance for eternal life. Do not forget that God is under no obligation to those who reject Him to provide them with any of the benefits of his creation. For example, do you like to drink water, or see light, of be secured, or eat food, or be free from slavery to sin, and injustice, and to hear music and have the company of others? If you do, God does not have to provide for the rejecters any benefits of his creation, so rejecters ought to be prepared for the conditions in outer darkness.
To those who constantly wish to blame the Church for unbelievers just remember that a horse can be taken to water but not be made to drink and in the same fashion a man can be given the gospel once and again and still chose to live life as he chooses for men love their sin (John 3:19). But the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23a) and that means eternal separation from God!
What has become obvious in the study of Scripture in the subject of future things or prophecy is that the powers of the demonic will be unleashed on humanity, by giving them freedom to roam as the Holy Spirit steps aside and removes his ministry of restraining/subduing/hindering the occult forces of the demons. Antichrist himself, the Assyrian in Scripture and Nimrod of Genesis, is the king of the demons of the underworld, the Abaddon or angel of the bottomless pit of Revelation 9:11. That is a great coincidence, that the powers to be brought in on 2001 the dustification of the Twin Towers on the same day as it is written of as to the identity of the Antichrist. Did you ever consider that God at Noah's Flood, killed all the bodies of the Nephilim/Rephaim (the giants with corrupted genetics from the sons of God having children bored to them by the daughters of men of Genesis 6) had their spirits survive (the demons) but He allows many to roam free? Have we not been taught that during his earthly ministry and while delivering the subjected from demons, that these latter asked him 'are you come to destroy us before the time '(Mark 1:24; Luke 4:34)? All things were created by Jesus Christ and are under him, including all principalities/powers/rulers of the darkness/ spiritual wickedness in high place, for Jesus Christ has all the preeminence (Colossians 1:15-18; Ephesians 1:20). These demons are but a tool in God's hands (mediatorial agency) and though wicked, they will do God's bidding. And this we see in the prophetic pronouncements in Revelation, where we see that God will have Antichirst and his demons be the object/rod of his wrath on unbelievers. To kill them off you may ask? Not at all, but to bring the unbelievers to him for salvation! The harvest in the end times will be very substantial and the Lord Jesus Christ will make use of the demonic to chase people to himself, making it very true the saying in 2 Peter 3:9 that he is "not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance".
Did you consider the entry I wrote yesterday with respect to the inner man, our eternal bodies being as those of the holy angels? If you did not do that take a moment and do so. But my argument here is, why wait to get chased by demons and be tormented and tortured to death when it is easier and simpler to come to the Lord now? Is your sinful life that good that it is worth risking losing the gift of salvation with eternal life? But if you are one with family likely to be of the heathen and they will not heed your pleas, put them in the hollow of the hand of the Lord and leave them there, letting God do the work while you pray for their salvation and God will relieve you of most of the weight of this burden from your shoulders. Remember that he created them for himself and loves them more than you will ever do. May this be a blessing to you and give you hope!