Here is what is going to happen to the majority of the people on this planet soon, some will be raptured, (1 Thess. 4:17) many will die, perhaps upwards to six billion or more, and the rest will suffer horribly in one form or another. For the first three and a half years of the tribulation period, at least on the surface, things won’t be so bad, people forget quickly. There will of course be their “memorial days,” when they will bring to mind the horrors and terrors of the past but will of course end their speeches most eloquently with the promises of the future, the hopes of all mankind, all pulling together as one, for the good of all humanity, except for a few.
Those few will turn to the Holy Word of God and begin not just reading, but studying intently, beginning at chapter four in the Book of Revelation. They will know struggles, pain, ostracization from the rest of humanity, for they will serve the “old God,” the One who “brought, even if He does exist, all these problems upon us.” Now, what I would ask you to contemplate today is this, are you as ostracized as they will be? “Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man’s sake.” (Luke 6:22)
Do men hate you, are you set apart from the world of man, do you profess His name at every opportunity, do you rebuke and reprove those who claim Christ as Lord, but live a life of sin, are you warning all who will listen? Or are you more concerned with the “news of the day,” with whether your job will be there tomorrow or not, the bills you owe, the debt you have placed yourself in. Are you knowledgeable about what is about to occur, and if so, what are you doing about it?
As my mother grew older, when her vehicle would start to make a noise that it should not be making, she would simply turn the radio up, until the problem absolutely had to be addressed. I believe that many who claim Christ as Lord do the same thing, they divert their attention away from the approaching peril, they seek refuge in the known, and they deceive themselves by believing that it is yet “far away.” “For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.” (1 Thess. 5:2)
I have always found certain Scripture verses interesting, those that speak of percentages, in a way. Ten virgins, (Matt. 25:1-13) half not prepared, ten lepers, (Luke 17:11-17) only one came back to give thanks, twelve disciples, one a traitor, (Luke 6:16) those who have decided to not stand today will not stand tomorrow, save perhaps for a very few. There were five virgins who were pretending to be part of the welcomed, there were nine lepers who could care less who healed them, as long as they were healed, that was all that mattered. The only reason that a large part of the crowds that followed Christ were following Him was so that they would get fed that day. (John 6:26) And there are many, in fact many more, that are doing all these things and more today.
They want the crown of glory, but run from the crown of shame, they want to be part of the kingdom to come, but have no desire to live in it here, they do not want to be ostracized here and now, but are fine with being, at least in their minds, set apart here, as long as they can still live in the world at the same time, as long as they continue to be fed. “But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way.” (Matt. 13:25)
Can you tell the difference, do you even try, do you stand for Christ no matter what your loved ones and friends say, are you moving away from those that you should not be associated with, (2 Cor. 6:14) or is your lamp empty and you don’t even realize it. “If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26) That is clear and leaves no options. Only one of ten lepers came back, that’s ten percent.
This is pure conjecture on my part, but how many of those remaining nine do you suppose were in the crowd the day that the Lord said, “You people are only following me because you want some food,” and how many turned away, again. “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment:” (Heb. 9:27) Everyone in hell believes these words completely, and every one of them wants that second chance that is never going to arrive.