I have been asked to write a post on tribulation and the end of this system of things. I'll do my best to share what I have learned from Bible Study and from my Bible teachers. There are so many different thoughts and beliefs concerning this "end", that it can get very confusing and even crazy-ridiculous at times. This may get a little deep, but I hope not too confusing. It will be somewhat of a general overview as well, as I won't be posting all of the scriptures that pertain to "the end" here, but I encourage you to do a cross-reference review to get started in your study, and meditate on the scriptures you read .
There are varying thoughts on what the end of this system entails. Some people think that we have some sort of control over the end. Some people think that we will be swept away before destruction. Some people think that a natural disaster is going to take us all out. But if there is an "end" to this system, and this "end" has been prophesied to us, then it should be deemed quite reasonable that we should go to the source of Truth, and see what it the Bible really tells us.
We have all heard the words "Tribulation" and "Armageddon". Let's take a look at what each word means in the context of "the end".
1. Tribulation. The Greek word thli'psis basically means: distress, suffering due to circumstances under pressure, afflictions. The Bible gives several situations that are referred to as "tribulations" such as: poverty, childbirth, persecution, famine, and punishments. However, when thinking about the "end of this world", most of us are thinking "the Great Tribulation", a term that we have gotten accustomed to hearing /using, sometimes bringing along with it feelings of uncertainty or fear.
Jesus really did mention a "great tribulation" while speaking to his disciples about the future, and it is then mentioned again in the book of Revelation:
2. Armageddon. It may interest you to know that the word "Armageddon" is mentioned only one time in the scriptures. Armageddon means: "Mountain of Megiddo". However this "place" is not literal. It is a situation in which the earthly political leaders are gathered in opposition to Jehovah and his kingdom; and that which the Bible associates with the universal “war of the great day of God the Almighty".
Let's look at a general overview of the sequence of events:
First of all, immediately before the great tribulation, there will be some type of declaration of "peace & security".
It is not clear from those scriptures whether this will be a single event or a series of events, or even what exactly the details may be, but one thing is clear- God's word tells us that by being awake to spiritual things, we will be able to discern and understand when this is happening, and why. (1 Thess. 5:4,5)
At 1Thess. 5:3 you read that immediately after they are saying peace and security, there will be "sudden destruction". What is the "sudden destruction" that the scripture refers to?
There will be a proclamation brought forth from the world leaders that calls for the end of religion. When this happens, it is our indication that the great tribulation has already begun. This is the first act of "sudden destruction" that they speak about and the impact of the destruction of religion will be intense, as even the kings of the earth will mourn her. (Rev. 18:9-19)
Of course, the religion that they are able to destroy is all false religion. The Bible speaks of the empire of false religion as a harlot, a prostitute, and is given the title "Babylon the Great". So, when you see this title in Revelation, you will know what it represents. By the way, false religion is any religion that teaches us to worship God in a way that is against his Word. That is why it is imperative that we are worshiping in truth.
The words "completely burn her with fire" means that false religion (the great harlot) will be completely destroyed, and gone forever...
You may be surprised to know that this is the one time that Jehovah our God steps in and influences our earthly ruling kings. He is the one who actually puts this "one thought" into the hearts of the world's leaders...to allow the "Wild Beast" to end religion. This one thought 'gets the ball rolling', you could say. Though the world leaders believe this is a grand idea for the nations, Jehovah is in actuality using their 'stubborn hearts' to help "clean house". It's that time.
Perhaps you have heard me mention in the past about the heavens being cleansed. This happened when Satan and his demons were cast out of heaven and down to the earth (Rev. 12:7-9). Wickedness was, at that time, removed from the heavens, and now it's time to remove it from the earth.
The first step in doing this is to remove one of the greatest adversities to Jehovah's sovereignty and true worship...which is false worship. The world leaders will declare that all religion is to be done away with, because there is no discernment among them between any truth or false. All aspects of any religion needs to end as far as they are concerned.
[Note: Please read Rev. 17:12-17 in full.]
Because "religion" is destroyed, all religious worship is expected to be done away with. However, true worship can never be extinguished, to the dismay of the political leaders. True worshipers will never turn their backs on the One True God, and therefore there will be great anger among the worldly nations. You can imagine how much anger will be built up and inspired when you consider who ultimately will be the most angry with true worship still in existence! In addition to the "Great Adversary", the political leaders will be angered, and also the people of the nations who side with the world governments. The world's political leaders will be "gathered together" and "attack" God's people. This will be a worldwide occurrence, as God's people are from all nations. Those loyal to Jehovah will have a very, very difficult time, because they will not relinquish their allegiance to him in favor of the world's requirements.
After the destruction of Babylon the Great, many people will seek refuge in other earthly organizations. God's people will seek refuge from Jehovah and will have the opportunity to prove their love for him and love for their brothers through their continued obedience. Because of this, God's people will stand out as different, but despite the truth concerning Jehovah, the world will continue to curse his name and use it as an excuse to attack and persecute his people (Rev. 16:21). However, this is the "war of the great day of God the Almighty", the war which will end all wars, and only those who call on the name of Jehovah will be saved, as there is no earthly organization that can save the ones who are in opposition to him. This war will be led by our King, Christ Jesus, along with his heavenly army, bringing vengeance upon those who bring tribulation upon God's faithful ones (2 Thess. 6-10). Jehovah has always acted with justice and love for his people in the past, and we can be 100% sure that he will keep his promise, and do so again in the future.
In his word, Jehovah compares the actions of those hurting his people to "touching his eyeball" (Zech. 2:8). We know how that feels to have our eyeball touched. It's painful, and we react swiftly to remove the source of irritation. This is how it is with Jehovah. In response to the nations acting wickedly against his loyal ones, all wickedness is swiftly removed from the earth. This is foremost focusing on the political governments, however, anyone not siding with the one true God at this point will have made their stand against him and will be removed.
That was an overview of the events. Now, let's review in one paragraph: They will be saying "Peace and security!" The world leaders announce an end to all religion. This marks the beginning of the "Great Tribulation". Satan then attacks God's people (using the political system as his pawn); which leads up to "the war of God Almighty"; This final event, will be led by our ruling king, Christ Jesus and his heavenly army, who will wage war upon the earthly political system, in order to show justice towards the loyal ones, and to remove all wickedness from the earth once and for all.
[Please read Rev. 16:14 in your own Bible, and then look up all cross-references related to the words "God Almighty" at the end of it. You will see after reviewing all of these scripture references, that this "war" refers to God's act of justice for his people.]
What next?
The leading influences which Satan uses to blind and mislead the world, and which stand in the way of true worship upon the earth, will now have been removed: the empire of false religion, and the corrupted earthly political system. Satan and his demons will have been removed and locked away for 1000 years. All wickedness will have been removed from the earth, including the people who will have chosen to take a stand against the true God, Jehovah. This includes ones who choose to retain allegiance with the worldly nations, instead of relinquishing that allegiance in favor of Jehovah's kingdom.
Keep in mind, this decision between righteous and wicked is reserved only for the Father and his Son. There will make no mistakes. Their justice will be perfect.
It will now be the time for God's Kingdom (the one Jesus told us to pray for at Matthew 6:10), to reign forth over the earth, with Jesus as our rightful and perfect king. The earth will be restored to the paradise that God first intended it to be, and on which righteous ones will live forever.
One thing Jehovah does is he always lovingly forewarns his people of future events when it comes to our integrity towards him and our everlasting life. He tells us what is going to happen so that we are prepared and we know what we need to do. We already know who the winners are, and we know who the losers are. We need to ask ourselves: Which side are we on? It is good for each one of us to take some time and review where our allegiance lies, and where we want it to be. Do we need to makes changes? Are we loyal to a kingdom that is going to be destroyed, or are we loyal to the kingdom that will rule forever?
It is also important that we take an honest look at our spiritual worship, our own religion, and see that it is based on truth and not false or pagan worship. God is calling out to ones who are still in the grips of false religion, "Get out of her, my people!" Babylon the Great will be destroyed very (very!) soon. It is an important thing to consider, as he is definitely urging ones to get out of her.
Realize that even though this will be "the end" of the temporary system of things that we live in now, it is the "beginning" of the "real life", the beautiful new era, in which righteousness will dwell forever. It will be the way Jehovah had originally intended it to be before the fall. It will be perfect. This is very Good News!
Please make sure that your leaders are leading you away from pagan/false worship, and not towards it. Please make sure they are leading you in Jesus's footsteps and teaching you to keep "separate from the world". Please make sure they emphasize Jesus's words in discerning who his true followers are: "By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love among yourselves." Please make sure they emphasize the truth about who the One True God is, and teach his name, as Jesus said, "I have made your name known, and will continue to make it known."; that they teach the truth about his Son, our King and Savior, Christ Jesus; and the truth about the kingdom he commanded us to preach about.
If they are not, then it is time to leave and find a place to worship that leads with truth. If they are not teaching what the Bible says is true, and are not giving proper direction concerning your future, then they do not have God's holy spirit with them, and they will not lead you down the narrow path to everlasting life. They will lead you the way of the nations and tell you it's okay. Check and re-check. The Bible is available to all of us, not just the ones standing in the pulpit, so keep making sure of all things.
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