"The Seven Year Tribulation Period" - (End Times Prophecy)

"For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be."  -  Matthew 24:21

There is so much to write about the 7 year tribulation period and so many Scriptures to include that I almost don't know where to begin.  Maybe a good beginning is to say that if you are a true believer, you will not be here during the tribulation period;  you would have already been "caught up" in the Rapture of the Church - Jesus' "Bride" -  to be in heaven with the Lord while God unleashes His wrath on the wicked, ungodly world during this time of trouble, destruction, death, and judgment of the tribulation when God punishes the wicked and defiant people left on earth at that time.

Some time after the Rapture - we don't know exactly how long -  the tribulation will begin when Israel and the antichrist sign a peace treaty, a covenant =  Daniel 9:27.    But 3 1/2 years after signing this treaty, the antichrist will break it when he enters the temple and desecrates it and causes the sacrifices to cease and disrupts the Jews system of worship.   "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:)" - Jesus speaking at Matthew 24:15.  This marks the 3 1/2 years of what is to follow:  the "Great Tribulation" of the last 3 1/2 years of that period, which will be the worst ever for  the horrific destruction and afflictions that will be unprecedented in all of human history.  This 3 1/2 year period (or 1,260 days) is spoken of in many Scriptures :  Revelation 12:6, 14; Daniel 12:5-7; Revelation 11:2-3 and others.    

During this last half of the tribulation, the persecution and wrath and judgments will be extremely severe on the Jewish people.   The great tribulation is meant to bring the Jewish people, Israel, to their knees in repentance and for them to acknowledge Jesus as the Messiah.   And in the end of the tribulation, when Jesus appears in all His glory as the Messiah, all Israel will be rescued by Him.  

Below are two videos (not mine) that go into greater detail about what happens after the Rapture:

And salvation in the tribulation:

I highly recommend that you watch these 2 videos; they are chock full of interesting and life-saving information.   

As to the fact that many will be saved during the tribulation period, here is Scriptural proof at Revelation 7:9,14 =   "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...........And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of the great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb."  So, as you can see, many will become Christians during the tribulation period.

Don't be misled and think you do not need to get saved before the Rapture and before the tribulation;  the antichrist will want you to take the mark of the beast (more about that in another post) in order to buy, sell, eat and simply to live and exist.   Men with families may go ahead and think they need to take care of their wives and children and take the Mark in order to do so, only to be eternally damned for pledging allegiance to the antichrist instead of to God Almighty. So a person may cave in and take the mark of the beast out of weakness and self survival. To defy the antichrist and the one world government means certain death, either from starvation and famine or by being killed, probably being beheaded as in Revelation 20:4  =  "And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded  for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years."    This is very plain, and when you consider what is even now going on in the present world with all the beheadings of believers, this Scripture really hits home.   As for the mark of the beast, again,  that can be a topic for another blog post, but many scholars believe it will be either a tattoo or more likely an RFID chip implanted in the forehead or the right hand.   That technology is already here and is being used to enter locked office doors, to pay for purchases, etc., and the powers that be want everyone micro chipped by 2017.   Like I say, a subject that needs more attention in another blog post.   

For true believers and for those who endure until the end,  a wonderful future awaits us in heaven with the Lord.

"And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God.  And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."  - Revelation 21: 3-4

Inspirational Weekend - "One Day at a Time"

"The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe." -            ,,,,,,,,,,Proverbs 29:25

Sometimes the study of Eschatology (study of end times) can bring fear even to Christians if they are not grounded in the saving Scriptures of the Bible.   Some believe Christians will go through the horrific 7 year tribulation period, and that erroneous belief would cause fear to anyone if they are aware of the judgments -- God's wrath - that will be poured out during that time.   I will talk about the tribulation period soon in another post.

This time I am concentrating on taking one day at a time, as the old hymn goes:

"One day at a time sweet Jesus

That's all I'm asking of you

Just give me the strength

To do every day what I have to do

Yesterday's gone sweet Jesus

And tomorrow may never be mine

Lord, help me today, show me the way

One day at a time."

There is more to the hymn, but the above words pretty much sums it up.   In other words, just follow Jesus one day at a time; one hour at a time; one step at a time.   

"Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.  Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."  -  Matthew 6:34

"Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you.  Not as the world gives do I give to you.  Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."  -  John 14:27

If you are a true believer, you need not be afraid of  many things that vex the world today.  Just put all of your trust and hope in the Lord; He will take care of you and rescue you from the wrath to come. 

There is something peaceful about watching a turtle resting on a log or a rock.    We need to be like that turtle and hold fast to our Rock, Jesus.   He will not let us drown in the murky, dark  waters of sin or this wicked, turbulent world of evil.    If we keep our focus on and cling to Jesus, worry and fear will not overcome us.

"No one can pray and worry at the same time."  -  Max Lucado

"Worry does not empty tomorrow of its sorrow.  It empties today of its strength."  -

Corrie Ten Boom

Worry is a sin, because we are doubting God when we worry and are not showing faith in Him.  If we have a close, intimate, love relationship with God through Jesus Christ, we will not be overcome with fear and anxiety.   Christianity is all about a relationship with Jesus more than it is a religion.   If you truly love God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength and all of your mind -- and are a true follower of Jesus - you will have peace that passeth all understanding.   (Matthew 22:37-40;   Matthew 10:38;  Philippians 4:7)

Part of the secret to peace and taking one day at a time is to learn to wait upon the Lord.

Psalm 27:14 says, "Wait on the LORD:  be of good courage, and He shall strengthen thine heart:  Wait, I say, on the LORD."     I wrote a post about that  here , which explains why waiting on the Lord can be a good thing.  

Have a happy weekend !     Below is a beautiful video (not mine) with gorgeous scenery for you to enjoy over the weekend.

Go ahead and smile:

Internet photo

What fun captions could be made for this amusing photograph !   Like maybe a mother saying to her adolescent, "I said don't talk back!"

Enjoy your weekend and be thankful always !

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"Casting all your care upon Him, for He careth for you."  -  1 Peter 5:7

Inspirational Weekend - "What In The World Is Happening? (As In The Days Of Noah)"

"This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come."  -  2 Timothy 3:1

There is such power in the ocean waves; there is more power in God's Holy Word to change hearts and also the power to predict the future.   We are living in the last days.   Just read the news and look around you at all the violence and immorality and lawlessness....better yet, just read the Bible and it describes the times we are living in exactly.  I do not want this post to be all doom and gloom, but the world needs to be aware that God's wrath will soon be poured out upon it for all of its evil and its rejecting Jesus as Savior.   Bad news for unbelievers, good news for true believers.   Followers of Jesus will be caught up to heaven to be with the Lord before God's day of wrath and destruction on the earth.  

"But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but My Father only.  But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.  For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be."   -   Jesus speaking at Matthew 24:36-39. 

There was much corruption in Noah's day.  The fallen angels had come to earth and married the women there and produced giants as offspring (Genesis 6). These fallen angels also tampered with the DNA so that all mankind was not as God intended; that is, except for Noah and his family, their bloodline was still pure so that the Messiah would one day come from them.    The devil was trying to defeat God's purpose to have a pure bloodline for the coming Messiah.   (Genesis 3:15 --Satan's seed and the woman's seed.)

This may sound far-fetched to many, but it is the only explanation that makes clear why God had to destroy that evil society and even the majority of the animals.   Below are two videos that go into more detail on this and the days of Noah.

Today scientists are experimenting with the same type of procedures that were prevalent in Noah's day.  They are into trans-humanism, mixing animal and human DNA, chips to implant in soldiers to make them superheroes with extreme endurance...even to control them like robots.  I could go on and on, but perhaps you would like to view the videos above and do some research on your own.  In a nutshell, they are also trying to achieve immortality through science and become godlike.    

There are many signs that we are living in the last days found in Matthew 24, Mark 13, and Luke 21 and other places in the Bible.   Again, all you have to do is to look at what is currently happening in the world.   Here I am focusing primarily on how things today are similar to the days of Noah.  

"So likewise ye, when ye see these things come to pass, know ye that the kingdom of God is nigh at hand.  Verily I say unto you, this generation shall not pass away, till all be fulfilled."  -  Jesus speaking at Luke 21:31-32.

For those who scoff at this and say there have always been wars and bad times and evil, then there is a Scripture written about them at 2 Peter 3:3-4 :  "Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, and saying, Where is the promise of His coming?  for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation."

In the Bible, we are not told the day and the hour when Jesus will return to take the Church, all true believers, up to heaven in the Rapture,  but we are given signs to know when His return is near.   Unbelievers don't see it, but believers can discern the times and know that it is very near now.   Look at what is going on in the Middle East.  Previously  I made a post here concerning what is presently going on in Syria, how Russia is mentioned in Ezekiel 38, and how Damascus will be totally destroyed soon according to Isaiah 17:1.    So there are many other current events that point to the fact that we are now living in the last days.   There are, in other words, many prophecies in the Bible that are coming to pass at an accelerated pace all at once now; a convergence.   

Remember, God does not unleash his wrath without first giving a warning.   He warned for 120 years through Noah as he built the ark.    Lot and his family were warned and helped before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrha.    There are many more examples of this in Scripture.  Romans 5:9 says, "Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him."

All of the above information is good news to Christians, for soon they will be with the Lord in heaven.   It is time for unbelievers to repent and turn to Jesus as their Savior and by faith begin to live a godly life.   The time on earth after the Rapture of the Church will be a time of much destruction and death known as the 7 year Tribulation.  It will be too late then as most people in that time will not be inclined to accept Jesus, though some will.  The Tribulation will have to be a subject for another post in the future.    

"For I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day."  -  2 Timothy 1:12