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Transcript 180A — Believers and the Final Tribulation
HC: Good evening. Welcome to Open Forum.
CALLER: Good evening. A week ago one of the pastors said that God would never let believers go through the Tribulation. Then a little further along in his conversation he said that we must always take everything literally in the Bible that is meant literally, and not spiritualize that which we cannot. In the light of that statement, how in the world can we understand a Scripture such as John 16:33, which says, "In this world you shall have tribulation."
Now there are many Scriptures in the New Testament that speak about tribulation, such as Matthew 13, Matthew 24, Mark 13, Acts 14, Romans 2, Romans 5, Romans 8, Romans 12, II Corinthians, and on and on. And I'd like to ask you to comment on this question and on the Scriptures that I've offered, and I'll take my answer on the air.
HC: Thank you for calling. Good night.
First of all, let me comment briefly on this observation of taking the Bible literally. Now I've heard this kind of a comment many many times, that we are to understand the Bible literally. If we mean by that that when the Bible speaks historically, we are to understand it historically, I'll accept that. But if we mean something else by that, then I have a big question mark in my mind. And I'm thinking of this.
There are those who read the Bible, and they say, "Well, the verse says "so-and-so", and we are to just take it because the verse says it. What else is new? What else do we have to talk about? But the biblical rule is that we have to understand Scripture by Scripture. And I can't underscore this enough. We've got to become more and more in the habit of letting the Bible explain itself.
For example, in Revelation 19 it talks about Christ coming on a white horse, with a sword protruding from His mouth, when He comes in judgment. Now there are those who say that we take that literally. What they mean by that is that we just read it, and it says that He's coming on a white horse with a sword protruding from His mouth, and that's what we are to expect to see.
Well, that isn't the way we are to read the Bible. We are to examine the context, and we are to look at the phrases and the words that are used, to see how they're used elsewhere in the Bible. Now we know, for example, that the sword is the Word of God. And this is a picture of Christ coming with the Word of God. We know that there are not horses in Heaven. There just are not horses in Heaven. But the horse is used prominently in the Bible in battle. Again and again, when we read the Old Testament, we read about all the horses that Solomon owned, or that the enemy owned. And it's a white horse. White is constantly used in the Bible to signify purity. And so we find that Christ is coming as King of kings and Lord of lords, to bring judgment upon the nations. And the Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God, which will judge the nations. They will be measured by the standard of God's Word.
Again, if we read Revelation 13:1, where it says, "I saw a beast coming out of the sea, with seven heads and ten horns," now if we're going to understand that just as it stands, without examining that statement in the light of everything else in the Bible, we've got to conclude that God is saying that there's going to come a time when out of the ocean there's going to come this strange beast, with seven heads and ten horns. And you try to draw a picture of that seven heads and ten horns. That doesn't make any sense, does it? We sense that already. But when we look at the rest of the Word of God, we find that it indicates the sea frequently is used as a figure of hell. Frequently it's used as a figure of the place where Satan's abode is.
We find, for example, in Jonah 3, where Jonah is thrown into the sea, and out of the belly of hell he cries, out of the heart of the seas. The seas are frequently a figure of hell. A beast is used in the Bible, particularly in the Book of Daniel, to signify political rule, or certain rule of men on this earth. And so this beast ultimately, when we continue to search out the Scriptures, we will find is a representation of the Kingdom of Satan, as it rules throughout time. And the ten horns represent the rule of Satan in the end time, just before Christ's return.
Now we know that there are many passages that stand as they are, to be understood literally. When God says that Moses went up into Mount Sinai, there's nothing in the Bible at all that says the he didn't go into Mount Sinai. There's nothing to suggest that that's anything but a historical statement, that he went up into Mount Sinai. When God created the heavens and the earth in six days, there's nothing in the Bible that suggests anything different than that. And so we know that these are straight historical statements of fact.
But any passage has got to be examined in the light of the rest of the Bible. Otherwise we're going to end up with wrong doctrine. Now as I've said many times on this program, the Bible is written to foster unbelief, to foster wrong doctrine. Jesus spoke in parables, so that "seeing they would not see, and hearing they would not hear." In other words, He clouded the truth. He covered the truth. And the only way that we can go to the Bible is to go by faith that it is the Word of God, and it is its own interpreter. It is not subject to private interpretation. And then we will actually find what is truth.
When I say that it fosters unbelief, I could prove from the Bible very quickly that we are saved by our works. And I could marshal a dozen verses to prove this, that we are saved by our works. Now you immediately say, "Now wait a minute. That isn't the Gospel. We're saved by grace." Well, how do you know we're saved by grace? I can show you a lot of verses that say we're saved by works.
Well, the only way we can synthesize all this and tie all these verses together is to look at everything that speaks of salvation. And then we'll find that these passages that speak about our works, and how they figure in our salvation, are really speaking of the fact that the works are the evidence of our salvation. And so on and so on.
We've got to read the Bible in the light of the Bible. Now when the Bible talks about tribulation or affliction, we have to read it very very carefully. We can't put words into the mouth of the Bible, so to speak. I think, for example, of an illustration of this. Have you ever heard Revelation 3 referred to as a proof text that we would not go through the Tribulation? This is Revelation 3:10: "Because you have kept My word of patient endurance, I will keep you from the hour of trial which is coming on the whole world, to try those who dwell upon the earth."
Now I've heard this verse offered many times as a proof text that we will not go through the Tribulation. Now when I read this, I don't find the word tribulation here at all. The word tribulation, as we find it in Matthew 24:21, "And then there will be great tribulation, such as this world has never known," is the Greek word philipsis. And it is found more than a dozen times in the New Testament.
Ordinarily it's translated tribulation or afflication. But here is not found the word philipsis. The word trial is the Greek word parasmus, and it is never translated tribulation or affliction or trouble in the Bible. It is simply saying here, "I will keep you from the time when God is going to bring the world to trial."
Now if you have been accused of a crime, you have to go to trial. You stand before the judge. But the born again believers do not go to trial, because we have passed from death into life. Or again, frequently I Thessalonians 5:9 is used as a proof text that we will not go into tribulation. There it says that God has not destined us for wrath but for salvation. But the word philipsis is not found there at all.
The word wrath, if we check that out in the Bible, is the Greek word orgae, and we find it used, for example, in Revelation 6:16. In the context here God is talking about the collapse of the universe. He's talking about the dread and terror of the unsaved, as they call to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who is seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb." That's the same word wrath that is used in I Thessalonians 5:9: "For the great day of their wrath has come. And who can stand before it?" Now this is talking about Judgment Day, and we do not come into judgment.
Now on the other hand, when we read the Bible carefully on this subject of tribulation, as has already been offered by our caller, the Bible does teach that in the world you will have tribulation, philipsis. In fact, if you read the Bible, you'll find (and you can count this), if you research this with a concordance, the word tribulation or affliction or trouble or persecution used over three hundred times in the New Testament. And in more than ninety-five percent of the instances where it is used, it is used in connection with the body of believers, or those who have been born again.
And so this is the normal posture of the believer, to endure tribulation, and why shouldn't he? He's an alien, he's a stranger in a sin-cursed world. The majority of the people of the world are antagonistic toward God, and so this is bound to be a climate, an environment of trial and tribulation and affliction for the believer.
Now the Bible teaches that as we approach the end, wickedness will multiply, as we read in Matthew 24. And so if wickedness multiplies, then we would expect that tribulation would multiply, because as wickedness multiplies it means that the lot of the believer is more and more difficult. And so we're not surprised to read in Matthew 24:21, "And then there will be great tribulation, such as this world has never known and never shall know. But then, notice: "But for the sake of the elect, those days will be shortened."
Now when we search the Bible for all the information we can about the elect, or about this concept of the elect living here while this increase of tribulation develops, we find that there are more than twenty-four places in the Bible where the word elect or chosen is used, or ordinarily it refers to born again believers. We are chosen, we are elect of God, from before the foundations of the earth, we read in Ephesians 1:4.
We are a royal priesthood, an elect race, we read in I Peter 2:9. "For the sake of the elect," that is, for the sake of the born again believers, "those days will be shortened." And then we come to Matthew 24:29-31, and we discover that immediately after the tribulation of those days will appear the Sign of the Son of Man, "and then all the tribes of the earth will see Him coming in power and great glory." And the very first thing that He will do, "He will send out His angels with the sound of the trumpet, to gather His elect." That's the Rapture.
If we'll only let the Bible be the authority, and if we'll only patiently compare Scripture with Scripture, then we'll begin to see that all of these things fit in together. Yes indeed, the believers will go through the final tribulation. They've been going through tribulation all through the history of mankind. Even today there are those who are rotting away in concentration camps. Is that tribulation? Even today there are those who are being beaten because they are serving the Lord Jesus Christ. Is that tribulation? Even today there are believers who are weeping because unsaved loved ones refuse to come to the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. Is that tribulation?
You see, that is normative for the believer. But praise the Lord, praise the Lord. We know that the day is coming when we will live eternally with the Lord Jesus Christ.