“At that time Michael shall stand up, The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people; And there shall be a time of trouble, Such as never was since there was a nation, Even to that time. And at that time your people shall be delivered, Everyone who is found written in the book.
Daniel 12:1
The Doctrine of Fear?
A well-meaning friend with concern about end-times said,
” I hope I am not alive when Jesus returns because I don’t think I could endure the time of trouble.”
A different statement from another friend:
“I don’t worry about the time of trouble because God will rapture the church before it all starts.”
Regardless of what one believes about tribulation, “pre-tribulation” or “post-tribulation,” there is a danger in both of the two responses above.
For the easy-way-out person, i.e., “I don’t have to worry about the time of trouble,” spiritual preparation to trust God to the uttermost becomes a low priority. The health and wealth “gospel” and mindset leave a person with the possibility of great disappointment and exposure should their thinking be incorrect.
The believer who worries that they want to escape trials and trouble through death is equally in danger. They don’t have faith in God to strengthen and protect them even when times are rough before the great time of trouble.
There is a third response. It is a response of faith that can conquer any situation.
“I can do all things through Christ Jesus who strengthens me,”
Paul
Pilippians 4:14
Can this mindset be true even during a time of trouble such as never was since there was a nation? Trust in God to the uttermost has been demonstrated throughout the Church’s history. Persecution of believers who have this level of faith reflects God’s power, truth, and grace even while being burned at the stake.
Endurance and Salvation
The endurance of believers is the theme of encouragement for us in the last days. They are found all through the Bible and the history of Jesus’ church. It is a biblical certainty prophesied by Jesus and recorded for us in Matthew, John, and Mark.
“…If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you…
Jesus
John 15:20
And you will be hated by all for My name’s sake. But he who endures to the end will be saved.
Jesus
Matthew 10:22
When Jesus spoke about the last generation on planet earth, He said,
And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. but he who endures to the end shall be saved. Matthew 24:12
Jesus
At the end of time, the strong in Christ endure the pressure of the beast’s power (political and religious entity). They are faithful and obedient to the commands of God. As a result, they are recognized specifically as those…
…who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name,
John
Revelation 15:2
There is no doubt that the believers, i.e., His Church, go through this terrible time of trouble to glorify God and reward those who endure to the end. They are singled out as victorious over anything the Beast Satan (dragon) can throw at them.
And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
John
Revelation 12:17
God’s Purpose
What is the purpose of all persecution and suffering? Paul said it this way:
For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God.
Paul
Romans 8:1
Suffering has a purpose: God’s glory revealed in us!
Enduring times of trouble is an opportunity to demonstrate the level of faith and strength God gives you in mini-trials throughout your Jesus’ journey. The daily exercises in faith build the bone and muscle of the believer’s confidence!
The ancient prophet, Jeremiah, asks this relevant and revealing question:
“If you have run with the footmen, and they have wearied you, Then how can you contend with horses?
Jeremiah
Jeremiah 12:5
In modern terms, If we can’t trust God in the small challenges of life, how will we have confidence in Him in the large things? Paul, that great man of God, encourages us to be conquerors and tells us nothing can separate us from God. Is this fact of Jesus true for you today? Do you believe He is with you through good times and bad times?
Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Paul
Romans 8: 37-39
God’s continual presence, love, and victory is are demonstrated in the conquering power God gives us!
Protection During The Time of Trouble
When modern Bible fiction writers and their followers talk about the time of trouble, they emphasize the terrible conditions during the great tribulation predicted by Daniel and Jesus. They paint a dark, bleak picture of the beast’s actions in Revelation 13 and the Anti-Christ, followed by God’s judgments of the seven last plagues of Revelation 16. And, I might say, “rightly so.” These judgments are not warnings; they are actions of a Holy God, who has determined enough is enough!
These judgments fall on the people of the earth who have rejected God. At the same time, His people are protected from the effects of the judgments falling on planet earth. There is precise precedence for this type of situation.
A foreshadowing of God’s protection during the plagues is presented in the story of the deliverance of Israel from Egypt.
Just as God protected His people in the days before they were delivered from the might of Egypt, God will protect His people in the last days of rescue from a fallen world.
As you read the story of Israel’s preparation for deliverance, notice the plagues fell on the Pharaoh and Egypt while God’s people were still in Egypt! When the last plague of the death angel who slew the firstborn. God asked the Israelites to put their protection in the blood of the lamb by putting the lamb’s blood on the doorposts. The angel of death “passed over” the home that had followed God’s commands. That event is celebrated to this day through the ceremony of The Passover. So it will be in the last days, God will pass over those who are hidden in Christ and depend upon His blood for their salvation! David must have been reflecting on the power of God’s protection when he wrote:
Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge,
David
Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
No evil shall befall you,
Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
Psalm 91: 9-10
There were ten plagues in Egypt; there will be seven in the time of trouble. Just as God protected His people in Egypt, God will protect His people in the final days of the planet in rebellion against God.
The view of faith to endure via God’s grace and strength is more Biblical than the easy way out. The person who fears such times may lack the faith that is available every day until the proclamation of God seals the fate of those who have faith in Christ and are alive just before He comes.
He who is unjust, let him be unjust still; he who is filthy, let him be filthy still; he who is righteous, let him [e]be righteous still; he who is holy, let him be holy still.”
“And behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work.
Revelation 22: 11-12
“…when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?”
Jesus
Luke 18:8
Jesus asked this rhetorical question directed at the disciples, with the Pharisees nearby, demonstrating the importance of faith before He returns.
Trust (faith) in Jesus propels the believer through the toughest of times, even the great tribulation.
As mentioned at the start, some pastors ignore the topic of the coming great tribulation, saying things like, “I won’t be here anyway.” The proverbial head in the sand would apply here. To give an easy way out of the turmoil upon the earth in the final days eliminates the story of victory, the rejoicing of overcoming, and the glorification of God through us! The demonstration to the universe of believers staying faithful to God even amid extreme difficulty is lost if their faith is not seen! It is a smooth doctrine of peace and safety for an escape.
“At That Time”
In the final chapter of Daniel, the angel describes a point where Michael “stands up.” This motion is a powerful allusion to strength, decision, and finality. In modern terminology, Jesus has had enough. The wicked and their leaders have crossed a line. Their continuous battles and wars have gone too far (See Daniel 11 for context).
In Daniel 12: 1, the “time” is described in this order:
1.) Jesus, who watches over His people, stands up.
2.) A time of trouble begins after Jesus stands up
3.) At that time (time of trouble), the people are delivered whose name is written in the book of life. This is not a deliverance FROM the time of trouble but THROUGH the time of trouble. This is not wordplay but the context of precedence. Think of all the characters in the Bible and Church History. They did not escape persecution; they endured it. Examples: the disciples, the early Christians, those in the dark ages against the powerful Roman church, and even those in modern-day Islamic-controlled countries.
After Jesus stands up, He returns to take up His people to where He is now (John 14: 1-3). Those who remain alive after the terrible catastrophes on the earth AND those who sleep in the dust! Those who never see death are few and far between, but they have endured through the power of their faithful God and Jesus Christ. These faithful few will witness the most spectacular event of all times…” never since there was a nation.” Here is a description from three inspired writers of the Bible:
“And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake…”
Daniel
Daniel 12:2
And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, That in my flesh I shall see God, Job 19:26
Job
The context of the above verses gives hope to believers that the dead will come to live again.
Christian brothers, we want you to know for sure about those who have died. You have no reason to have sorrow as those who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and then came to life again. Because we believe this, we know that God will bring to life again all those who belong to Jesus.
Paul
1 Thessalonians 4: 13-14
Book of Life-And Believers at the End
All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.
Revelation 13:8
John
The context of Revelation 13:8 is the two beasts that enforce economic sanctions on earth’s people (verses 1 and 11-17). Those not in the book of life will worship him (the sea beast). Conversely, those written in the book of life don’t worship the beast and his image. This last group is the believers. They are on earth to glorify God and demonstrate His power.
Since the anti-Christ and the beast are part of the time of trouble, it confirms God’s people are still on earth and standing faithfully for the Lord by obeying His command to have no other gods before them, not to bow down and worship graven images. This same scenario is found in Daniel 3. The golden image and the command to bow down and worship it under the duress of the death decrees. But God’s people stand firm.
Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
John
Revelation 14:12
Notice that this small group has patience, and they are identified as loyal to God’s commandments and have faith like Jesus!
Is this deliverance before or during the time of trouble? Delivered from what? How is the deliverance accomplished? The next verse in Daniel 12 adds context to the deliverance.
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,
Daniel
Some to everlasting life…
Daniel 12: 2
At this time, those living in peace and safety in our society are a sensitive narcissistic generation who could care less about God. They are caught unaware when the Lord “stands up.”
They have become like the people of Noah,’ and Lot’s generations. They are described as going about their normal routines of life just before destruction. Jesus described it this way,
And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they bought, they sold, they planted, they built; but on the day that Lot went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. Even so will it be in the day when the Son of Man is revealed.
Jesus
Luke 17: 26-30
These unbelievers wrapped up in everyday life apart from God are contrasted with those who stay faithful to God. Their eyes are looking upward. They are protected and saved. The others are looking to nature to save them:
Two Different Responses:
Those who have made God their refuge…their hiding place, stand in the open as Jesus returns and proclaims,
“Behold, this is our God; We have waited for Him, and He will save us. This is the Lord; We have waited for Him; We will be glad and rejoice in His salvation.”
Isaiah
Isaiah 25:9
Those who have failed at faith or ignored it, will say,
and said to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
Revelation 6:16-17
The answer to the question in Revelation is this:.
Those who are able to stand are the believers who have put their complete trust in Jesus and His word daily. This choice has resulted in faith that is able to endure the most difficult time of planet earth.
My friend, Jesus wants to save you to the uttermost. Take time just now to examine yourself and commit your whole life and situations to total trust in Jesus every step of the way. You will develope strength for whatever is thrown your way. Would you do it just now?
Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not know yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you are disqualified.”
Paul
2 Corinthians 13:5