Do We Fight Against the Coming Evil During the Great Tribulation?
Most Christians today have a quickening in their spirit; they know that their Savior will soon be coming back. Although many Christians have fallen for the pre-tribulation doctrine and feel they won’t be around for the tribulation (Click here for a complete study of the Rapture timing), we’ll look at what will happen when you are still here when the Great Tribulation starts. We’ll explore what we as Christians will do when persecution does come our way. To fight or not to fight, to defend ourselves and our family or to not defend, these are the questions we hope to answer, so let’s get started.
It’s sometime soon, in the very near future and something has just happened that has changed the world as we know it. Terrorists have just set off a series of nuclear bombs throughout American cities. Millions are dead, the economy has crashed, most people are out of work and Martial Law has been declared throughout America. We now live in a police state with the freedoms we once enjoyed all but gone. Every one must carry their biometric ID card in order to travel abroad or even from state to state. Most of our military troops are overseas and more are on their way to the Middle East. Because of the connection of the nuclear attacks linked to Iran and Syria; war is about to break out. Because of this, most of the military troops patrolling the streets keeping order are not American but are United Nations peace keeping troops. In the name of peace and in an effort to eliminate fighting, religious freedoms are now gone. Any “radical” religion is not allowed; from the devout Muslims to Bible believing Christians, they are all to “dangerous” and are considered “religious radicals” and will not be tolerated. America along with the rest of the world has agreed that in order to keep peace and to avoid all out nuclear world war III, that every country would adopt the UN initiative for a common world religion. With this world wide religion it’s alright to speak about God, as it is a generic God everyone now worships. You may not speak the name of any specific God such as Allah, Mohammad or Jesus Christ. Things such as the Koran or the Bible are now outlawed and if caught with one, you will be sent to one of the many detention camps that have been set up throughout the US. The government has for years been collecting information of who the “dangerous people” may be. Those would be people like gun owners, Evangelical Christians who believe the Bible and in Christ’s second coming, along with others who may resist the authorities. In other words, if you’re reading this article, you would already be on their list of “dangerous people”.
The last seven years before Jesus returns will be some of the most difficult times Christians will ever face. With this as our setting for the study, we’ll explore a few different situations we may face and find out if what we would do would line up with what the Scriptures say we should do. "Why do you call me 'Lord, Lord,' and not do what I tell you” (Luke 6:46)? Keep in mind that it’s not what we “think” or “feel” we should do in these hard situations to come, it’s what Jesus our Lord commands us to do when that persecution comes.
The first thing we must fully understand is that God is completely in control of everything; that it’s not just the big bad devil who’s running loose foiling God’s plans. God is sovereign and in control of everything even the Tribulation to come. With just a short investigation through the Bible you’ll quickly see that indeed our God and Father is in complete control of everything. All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, "What have you done" (Daniel 4:35)? God does what He wants when He wants according to His will! There is nothing that man or the devil can do that is not according to God’s will.
(Lamentations 3:37,38) Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not? Out of the mouth of the Most High cometh there not evil and good? We must understand that in the Great Tribulation which is about to occur, is coming from God and not from the devil. It is true that the devil is the one who will be persecuting the saints, but the Tribulation that is soon coming, is coming from the Father for His church. (Rev 13:7) It was granted to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them. And authority was given him over every tribe, tongue, and nation. Satan is granted permission and authority to overcome the saints; this persecution is to clean and purify the believers. Satan is given authority in order to test the saints just as one sifts the wheat from the chaff. (Luke 3:17) His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff He will burn with unquenchable fire”. Yes, Satan will be coming against the believers but he is just carrying out what God has ordained in him to do, in order to cleanse the church and to make her that spotless and blemish less bride. Satan is God’s tool to come against His children and to test them to see who are really going to follow and obey His Word. Just like the Lord tested Moses and His children coming out of Egypt when they went into the wilderness, God will be testing us in the tribulation wilderness. Just as many failed the test and died in the wilderness before entering the Promised Land, many today will also fail the test because they loved not the Word unto death, while the true saints will overcome because they did not love their life more than the Word. (Rev 12:11) And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb, and because of the word of their testimony; and they loved not their life even unto death.
If we can fully understand that this testing is coming from God in order to refine us, it’ll be much easier and a lot more comforting as we enter into this time of trouble. Just knowing that there is nothing from the devil that can come upon us in which God has not already “signed off” and planned for us, should be comforting to us. (John 3:27) A man can receive nothing, except it have been given him from heaven. We must fully understand that our Heavenly Father is in complete control and there’s nothing you can receive, both good and bad, that isn’t given to us from God. Please understand that the devil is God’s tool used to test and sharpen each of us who call ourselves a Christian. When God is done with our testing He simply sends one angel to take care of him. (Rev 20:1) Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, having the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. (2) He laid hold of the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years; (3) and he cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal on him, so that he should deceive the nations no more till the thousand years were finished. It only one angel to lock up the devil! That’s why we need to recognize that the Lord is using these trials to teach and purify us; God is using these trials so that we can become more and more like Jesus. We must understand “that to them that love God all things work together for good” (Romans 8:28). If you love God, “ALL things work together for good”. What does ALL leave out? All means ALL; everything that happens to you both good and bad will work together for good! The sooner we recognize that all which happens in our lives is a test and an opportunity to grow in our faith, the sooner we’ll pass our tests.
So let’s look at a few scenarios as to what we’d do in some hard situations in the times to come. We’ll see what you would do… in comparison to what Jesus commands us to do. It’s important to look at this now, before it occurs so that you may pass your test when it arrives. After all, your eternal salvation could depend on what you choose to do.
With food and money very hard to come by after the most recent nuclear terrorist attacks, crime is rampant and food is scarce. One night you hear something in your house and find an intruder stealing your food and valuables. You rush in to scare him away but when he sees you, because he’s so desperate for food, he turns on you with a knife. What would you do? Pull out your pistol and shoot the intruder? Jump on him and wrestle him to the floor? What does our Bible say we should do? (Luke 6:27) “But I say to you who hear: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, (28) bless those who curse you, and pray for those who spitefully use you. (29) To him who strikes you on the one cheek, offer the other also. And from him who takes away your cloak, do not withhold your tunic either. (30) Give to everyone who asks of you. And from him who takes away your goods do not ask them back. Does Jesus really mean this; to literally not resist one who is doing evil against you? Does Jesus literally mean turn the other cheek and do nothing, and just let him steal your goods? Yes, after all wasn’t Jesus our example? (1Peter 2:22) He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. (23) When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. Jesus entrusted himself to the Father and knew that He could not receive anything unless it came from God. Jesus submitted Himself to the Father’s will and did not resist the evil being perpetrated against Him.
So looking at the situation of the intruder breaking into your house, stealing your food and attacking you and your family; what would you do? Fight and possibly kill your attacker sending him to hell, or do you trust the Lord and pray, entrusting yourself to God? Only if you understand that your heavenly Father has ordained this to happen in your life can you truly put your trust in Him, knowing that He will take care of you, knowing that nothing can happen to you and your family that’s not in His will. “A man can receive nothing, except it have been given him from heaven”. When you understand this is a test from your Father, it will be much easier to obey the Word of God in this situation instead of your flesh. Your flesh wants to fight back and protect what’s yours. Yet the Word of God is completely opposite of what our human nature is. (Romans 12:20) "If your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head." (21) Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good. In this test of yours, as hard as it is with your flesh wanting to protect your possessions and your family, the correct thing to do according to the Word of God would be to let the intruder take your possessions and not fight, entrusting your valuables, your life and the lives of your family into God’s hands. (Psalm34:17) When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. (18) The LORD is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit. (19) Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD delivers him out of them all. The question is, do you really have enough faith in your heavenly Father to entrust Him with your life; do you love Him enough to obey His Word and simply trust that He will deliver you out of all your afflictions? (Psalm 56:3) When I am afraid, I put my trust in you. (4) In God (I will praise his word), In God have I put my trust, I will not be afraid; What can flesh do unto me? If you’re trusting in your guns or in your strength to protect yourself, then you’re going against the Word of God and you’re really not trusting in the Lord, and with you not trusting comes a curse. (Jer 17:5) Thus says the LORD: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength” … (7) “Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, And whose hope is the LORD”. If your hope is in your gun you are cursed, if your hope is in your God you are blessed.
Here’s the next scenario we’ll look at. We’ve entered into the middle of the tribulation and America is no longer America but part of the North American Union of Mexico, USA and Canada which is now called the North American Union and it’s part of the new United Nations one world Government where Jesus Christ and the Bible have been outlawed. Christians who do not compromise their beliefs are now being rounded up and thrown into prisons and detention camps. Many of the Christians have been fleeing while others are fighting back in self defense. Because of this, government soldiers are ordered to shoot anybody who resists. (Matt 24:9) “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake. This has caused all out chaos and violence to erupt with almost every household stocking up with weapons, each fearing a knock on their door and ready to defend themselves at any cost. Suddenly you have a knock on your door; sure enough it’s the UN troops coming to take you and your family to a detention camp. What do you do, sit back and just let them take you and your family away or do you use your guns to fight and escape captivity? (Revelation 13:10) If any man is for captivity, into captivity he goeth: if any man shall kill with the sword, with the sword must he be killed. Here is the patience and the faith of the saints. Read this scripture carefully because the Lord is saying if He has destined you for captivity, then you will be going into captivity. If you try to protect yourself or your family by taking up your gun, defending yourself or killing your enemy, then you WILL BE KILLED!
Let me ask you; (even if you’re a “born again” Christian) will you go to heaven if the last thing you do on this earth is to kill your enemy in order to protect your family? (Matthew 6:14) For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. (15) But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Scripture says if you do not forgive another, you will not have your sins forgiven by the Father. Have you really forgiven your enemy when you hurt, injure or kill them? If killing your enemy is the last thing you do on earth before they kill you, have you really forgiven them? No, you haven’t forgiven them and you will not be forgiven of your sins. This outcome will cause you to spend eternity in hell. It’s a hard pill to swallow, but God’s Word cannot be broken. If Jesus says if you don’t forgive you won’t be forgiven, then it’s clear that you are on very dangerous ground by hurting or killing your enemy as you breathe your last breath.
These are the examples we have in Scripture of what we’re supposed to do in this situation. (Acts 7:59) And as they were stoning Stephen, he called out, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit." (60) And falling to his knees he cried out with a loud voice, "Lord, do not hold this sin against them." And when he had said this, he fell asleep. You’ll notice Stephen didn’t take a sword or a rock out in order to save his life; he didn’t try to fight or resist the evil men coming against him. Do you remember the last words Jesus said when He was on the cross? This is our example and this is what our Savior did when evil men came against Him. (Luke 23:34) And Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do". Yes, Jesus was our example and this is His command. (Luke 6:27) "But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, (28) bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. So when you get that knock on the door, what will you do according to the Word of God?
Really when you think about it, what’s the worst thing that could happen to you by loving your enemy and not fighting or killing them? I suppose it would be that they would kill you… and immediately you’d be with Jesus in heaven but is that really such a bad thing? (2 Cor 5:6) We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord… (8) Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. Would it be so bad to be at home with Jesus? Is there anything wrong with losing your earthly life to gain your eternal life? (Mark 8:35) For whosoever would save his life shall lose it; and whosoever shall lose his life for my sake and the gospel's shall save it. God’s Word cannot be broken and if you kill to save your life you will lose your eternal life; “if any man shall kill with the sword, with the sword must he be killed”.
Let’s take this situation one step further and say that four soldiers barge into your house and before you can react, they slam your face down on the kitchen table and tell you that you’re going to pay for believing in Jesus and they are going to kill you, your wife and your children unless you renounce your faith in Jesus Christ. You stand strong and refuse to deny your Savior, which in turn infuriates these soldiers even more. Instead of immediately killing your family, they strip off their clothes and threaten to rape your wife while forcing you to watch. They tell you that when they’re finished with her, next will be your children if you don’t completely renounce your belief in Jesus. Just then you remember that you had hid multiple guns throughout the house just the week previous and one was now strapped underneath the table in which you were now pressed against, and it was well within your reach. You now have seconds to react before they violate your wife; they cannot see your hand pull the gun from under the table, you have a clear shot at three of the soldiers.
What is the correct course of action to take? I’m not sure if we could have a tougher situation for a father to be in. What would you do? According to the movies and according to our carnal flesh we would blast away and protect our loved ones in the name of “self defense”. The problem is, nowhere in our New Covenant do we see “self defense” an excuse to do evil. We are no longer part of this world and are to obey the Lord’s example instead of the world’s example. (Matthew 26:50) Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took Him. (51) And suddenly, one of those who were with Jesus stretched out his hand and drew his sword, struck the servant of the high priest, and cut off his ear. (52) But Jesus said to him, “Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword. (53) Or do you think that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He will provide Me with more than twelve legions of angels? Is your wife or children more important than Jesus? He told the disciples not to fight for Him and there’s never been anybody more important than Jesus, so why is your wife, son or daughter more important than Jesus? He plainly said not to take up the sword or they would die by the sword. Jesus knew His life was in His Fathers hands and that God could send twelve legions of angels if He prayed. If you truly, truly trusted in the Lord, wouldn’t God spare you and your family if you just prayed and trusted Him completely; wouldn’t His Word be true? (Psalm 91:9) If you make the Most High your dwelling— even the LORD, who is my refuge- (10) then no harm will befall you, no disaster will come near your tent. (11) For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways (12) they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. (13) You will tread upon the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. (14) "Because he loves me," says the LORD, "I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. (15) He will call upon me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. Notice verse 14 in which the Lord says “Because he loves me I will rescue him”. What does it mean to love the Lord according to the Bible? (John 14:23) If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. So what the Lord is saying in Psalm 91:14 is that if you keep His word He will rescue you. Now if you take matters into your own hands in the name of “self defense”, are you really obeying what Jesus says? (Romans 20:14,17) Bless them that persecute you; bless, and curse not… Render to no man evil for evil. Not only are you disobeying the Word of God but you’re committing murder and that is a sin that will send you to eternal punishment. Is the punishment of losing your soul worth you taking matters into your own hands? You’re forgetting that God is in control and you’re relying on your strength instead of God’s? Thus says the LORD: “Cursed is the man who trusts in man And makes flesh his strength” (Jer 1:5). You may say, “But God would understand because I was just defending my wife, my son and daughter”. God does understand, after all He lost His son and had to watch Him go through the excruciating pain of the cross.
Do you love your son or daughter more than you love Jesus? (Matthew 10:13) He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. You may say, “of course I love the Lord more”, yet if you disobey the Lord’s Word in order to defend your family, you are proving by your actions that you love your family more than you love the Lord, and that is not acceptable to God. Nowhere in the New Testament can we find grounds for self defense either for you or your family. (Romans 12:19) Avenge not yourselves, beloved, but give place unto the wrath for it is written, Vengeance belongeth unto me; I will recompense, (Repay) saith the Lord. We are to allow the wrath coming from man and the Lord will repay what they are doing to you, but He will do it in His timing and not yours.
(Zechariah 13:7) "Awake, O sword, against my shepherd, against the man who stands next to me," declares the LORD of hosts. "Strike the shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered; I will turn my hand against the little ones. This was a prophecy about Jesus and it is God Himself who turned the sword against Jesus and the little ones, His disciples. Is God unjust because He had evil men crucify Jesus? Was God unjust because He turned the hearts of men to hate His followers? All twelve disciples were persecuted and put to death at the hands of evil men except John, who was boiled in oil; they couldn’t kill him so he died in prison. Some were stoned to death, others beaten, crucified, beheaded, hanged and tore into pieces. None of them picked up the sword to fight back; it was an honor to die for Jesus. John the Baptist had his head delivered on a platter, yet Jesus didn’t fight for him. Remember that “a man can receive nothing, except it have been given him from heaven”. It was God’s will for all these good men to die for the cause of Christ; it was God who ordained the way they died. This begs the question, is it unjust for God to bring this upon your family for the cause of Christ? (1 Peter 2:19) For this is commendable, if because of conscience toward God one endures grief, suffering wrongfully. (20) For what credit is it if, when you are beaten for your faults, you take it patiently? But when you do good and suffer, if you take it patiently, this is commendable before God. (21) For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps.
Truly we do not understand God’s ways but what each and every Christian must prepare for is to endure all things while trusting in the Lord completely. (1 Peter 4:12) Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. (13) But rejoice insofar as you share Christ's sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. Our lives do not consist of this life and we must understand that this life is just a test for our real life which is yet to come in eternity. Our job as believers is to obey the Word of God the best we know how, and as long as we’re doing this, we are pleasing to the Lord. If we’re obeying our flesh and attempting to fight against the evil that the Lord is sending to test us, then God promises that we will die, if not physically then spiritually. Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord (Hebrews 12:14). Only with peace with all men and holiness will you see the Lord!
I hope this short study has helped you to understand that we are not to fight, no matter the circumstances, no matter how your flesh justifies the reason. God is in charge and he is testing you to see if you love His Word. So prepare in your heart ahead of time so you can make the right decision when it comes.
God Bless,
Mark a servant in the Lord, www.heavenshelpers.org
