Escape Before Judgment Falls

When the Israelites came to the Jordan River and prepared to cross, there was a delay of several days while the spies checked out Jericho. As we saw last time, Rahab, a woman of faith was there and needed to be rescued. This reminds me of the way God has demonstrated His mercy so many times in Scripture.

Take the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah for example. God came to Abraham and told him about His plans to destroy the cities. Abraham negotiated with God as long as He could but it became obvious that the destruction would take place. Before God destroyed the cities, He sent His angels to the cities to rescue Lot. Lot is described by Peter as being righteous.

It’s the same thing that happened to Enoch. He was taken by God before the flood came to destroy every living thing on the earth.

I believe the same thing will be true when the earth is to be judged during the Great Tribulation. Christ is going to come to take to Himself all of His children who are on the earth just before this period of terrible judgment comes upon the nations of the world. Some people refer to this ‘taking away’ as the rapture of the Church.

Paul tells us in Romans 11 that blindness has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles comes in. There is a process going on right now where God is calling out a people for His Name. There will come a time when that process will end and God’s approach to world events will change.

Peter writes in his second epistle that people keep going on thinking that the judgment of God is not going to come upon the earth. Everything continues as it always has. (2 Peter 3) Peter explains the reason why nothing seems to be happening. God is long suffering, not desiring that any should perish. He is waiting until He has completed bringing in all of those who have been His before the foundation of the world. These are the ones who Jesus said the father gave to Him and of whom He would lose none. (John 6:39)

Paul tells us in I Thessalonians 5, “Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night.” He goes on to speak of sudden destruction like labor pains coming on a pregnant woman. He then he contrasts people who will face this sudden catastrophe to his Christian brothers who are children of the light. And then we find this written in verse 9, “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

God always watches out for those who are His, even when it comes to God’s judgment on mankind. Christians are not immune from the ordinary trials and tribulations of this life. Disasters, diseases and other catastrophes come upon saved and unsaved alike. But when God in His wrath judges the people of earth in that Great Tribulation, Christians will be rescued before the judgment commences just like the examples we have examined in this study.