Scripture documents that there will be two different reactions of the people in this world to the Second Coming of Christ.
One reaction is described in Revelation 6:12-17 and records the reaction of the unsaved at His appearing:
“I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.
“And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains, and said to the mountains and the 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?’”
There is a second and totally opposite reaction recorded in Luke 21:25-28. It is those who have been faithful to Christ despite the persecution of Antichrist:
“And there will be signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars; and on the earth distress of nations, with perplexity, the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
“Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. Now when these things begin to happen, LOOK UP AND LIFT UP YOUR HEADS, because your redemption draws near.”
One reacts by running and hiding at the Second Coming of Christ. The other is bidden to “look up” into His face.
After the resurrection of Jesus, the only people privileged enough to gaze upon Christ’s resurrected form were His closest disciples. These were the ones who had left all to follow Him. They had been through the best and the very worst of times with Him. They had seen Him suffer an ignominious crucifixion and death. They had lost heart, feared for their lives, and scattered to hide from the authorities.
Their relationship with Him had cost them dearly. Yet, they were richly rewarded when they were able to gaze upon Him, in His resurrected form.
At Christ’s Second Coming, the ones who will be able to lift up their heads and look upon Him will be those who have walked with Him, at great cost. The purpose of the great tribulation of the Antichrist— or any tribulation for that matter— is to prepare us for His return. As I Peter 1:6-7 puts it:
“In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the REVELATION (revealing) OF JESUS CHRIST.”
James tells us that the trials we undergo as Christians tests our faith, which in turn, produces a faith that endures:
“My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience (endurance)…Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him,” (James 1:2,12).
In Revelation 3:10, Jesus addresses the faithful ones who have endured:
“Because you have kept My command to persevere, I also will keep you from the hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world, to test those who dwell on the earth.”
What is this “hour of trial” which is to come upon the whole world? We already read about it.
The most fearful and trying period EVER to come upon this world will be when sinners are “in the hands of an angry God”— when God returns to bring His judgment upon earth! Scripture calls this the “Great and Terrible Day of the Lord.” It will be great for those who can lift up their heads and look upon His face. It will be terrible for those who spurned His grace and mercy. They will be wishing to be buried alive under rocks and mountains, rather than facing Divine wrath!
Paul the apostle gives us two SIGNPOSTS that this Day is approaching:
“Let no one deceive you by any means; for that Day will not come unless the falling away comes first, and the man of sin is revealed, the son of perdition, who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God or that is worshiped, so that he sits as God in the temple of God, showing himself that he is God,” (2 Thessalonians 2:3-4).
According to Paul, two things must take place before the Great and Terrible Day of the Lord can happen: a falling away and the revelation of the Antichrist sitting as God in the temple of God. The “falling away” or “apostasia” is a departure from one’s original position (of faith). This signifies the willingness of some to accept Antichrist as the “savior” of the world. They idolize a man as God.
Because of these two signs that must take place BEFORE the Great and Terrible Day of the Lord can occur, the believer in Christ will NOT be taken by surprise! Though no one knows the day or the hour of Christ’s return, believers will NOT be caught unaware, “like a thief in the night.” Paul the apostle taught in I Thessalonians 5:1-10:
“But concerning the times and the seasons, brethren, you have no need that I should write to you. For you yourselves know perfectly that the Day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night.
“For when they say, ‘Peace and safety!’ then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape.
“BUT YOU, BRETHREN, are not in darkness, so that this Day should overtake you as a thief. You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness…
…“For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
How is it that believers are not in darkness, not caught unaware at Christ’s coming, which launches the Day of the Lord’s wrath? “Your Word is a lamp to my feet, and a light to my path,” (Psalm 119:105). We have been given “a more sure word of prophecy” (2 Peter 1:19) that will give us light, even while the world enters the darkest hour of all history.
There is a reason that the book of Revelation— the prophetic book of end times— repeatedly promises a blessing to believers who read, hear, and keep the things written in it. Prophecy will help you endure through until His return.
God did not go to such detailing of a book just for our intellectual enlightenment. God did not go to such great length, with such great warning to a Church who some feel will not even be present during the great tribulation of end times. God gave it, because it would be necessary for the very survival of His church.
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