Latest Bible Prophecy Question
Tribulation Period: Is It A Second Chance To Get Saved/Receive The Gospel?
Similar question: Will Tribulation Believers Have To Maintain Their Own Salvation?
Question
Can a person get saved during the tribulation if they have already
received a clear presentation of the
Gospel before the rapture of the church? Many Bible prophecy teachers and
scholars believe a person that has heard the Gospel before the rapture, and
rejected it, will not receive another chance after the rapture. This
belief is based on II Thessalonians 2:10-12, that they will receive the strong
delusion of the Antichrist, believe his lie, and take his mark. What do
you believe regarding this passage?
Answer
Many in the world of Bible prophecy believe if a person rejects the Gospel before the
rapture, following the rapture, he/she will be
unable to receive Christ during the tribulation period. By all indications,
according to the scriptures, God will send a strong delusion that they will
believe a lie, take the mark, and be damned (II Thessalonians 2:3-12), because
they loved unrighteousness more than the truth.
Question# 874: Question Regarding The Holy Spirit Indwelling During The Tribulation Period; Will Tribulation Believers Have To Maintain Their Own Salvation?
Certainly, just because we believe our loved one's will have a chance to repent after the tribulation period begins doesn't mean God will afford them that opportunity. You see, it is God who draws us to Him and not the other way around. You can't just come to the Lord because you want to on your time schedule. He has to draw you and when He does you have the choice to accept or reject His Son as Lord and Savior at that time. Maybe He'll try again at a later date or maybe you've hardened your heart for the last time. That's why it is so important not to quench the Holy Spirit while He is near because there will come a time in every person's life when no man can be saved. I believe that day gets closer every time you harden your heart toward the call of God to come to repentance. That's why statistics have shown that the older a person gets the least likelihood they will get saved.
It should also be stated that we should not discount the power of prayer for those who need Jesus as Savior. If you are diligently witnessing and praying for a friend, neighbor or loved one to be saved don't stop now. If you have lost hope that they will come to the Lord before the rapture takes place take heart and embrace this passage:
He that goeth forth and weepeth, bearing precious seed, shall doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his sheaves with him (Psalm 126:6).
If you have planted the seed of the Gospel in this person's heart, the Bible says it will not come back void. Does that mean there is still hope they could get saved even after the rapture? That's hard to say definitively, but I would rest upon the promises of God. That's why I wrote Rapture Happened, Left Behind, What's Next!. This is the world's only tribulation period survival guide designed around the events of the tribulation period. It was created before the rapture so that those who know the Lord can get it into the hands of their unsaved loved one's who may go through the tribulation period. I strongly encourage you to click on the above link to get a copy for your lost loved one. This book may be the resource that ultimately brings them to the Lord.
Now getting back to the question at hand. Personally, I believe it's probably more about how hard a persons heart is toward receiving the Gospel (going into the tribulation period) than the number of chances they have received. It's possible all who enter the tribulation period will have an equal opportunity to come to the Lord. However, not everyone's heart will be open to hearing the Gospel. Romans, chapter one states, if a person is not careful, a progression could develop in one's life that could lead to an individual rejecting the truth of God even after knowing it to be the truth. In essence, after knowing the truth and the judgment of God, an individual could decide not to retain this knowledge of God but instead believe a lie (Romans 1:21-32). A similar account is also documented in several passages toward the end of the book of Revelation when God pours out His wrath upon mankind:
And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory. And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds (Revelation 16:8-11).
These people knew the truth of God, knew who had power over the plagues they were experiencing, and still refused to repent. It is my belief they had reached the same point of no return as described in the first chapter of the book of Romans. They had no desire to come to God, even knowing the truth, but in fact blasphemed Him instead.
Over the 42 years of my ministry I have been at the deathbed of hundreds of men and women. I presented the Gospel to them, begged them to get saved, and I can only recall one person ever accepting the Lord at death's door. We're talking about people whom the doctor many times declared would not make it through the night, where I was frantically called by relatives to preach and persuade one last time. And to my amazement, even on their deathbed, literally all I have encountered rejected the Lord believing they would some how make it through the night and walk out of that hospital. Some did, but for the vast majority that didn't, they rejected God even with their last breath and split hell wide open. Can you reject the Gospel one too many times? I'm afraid you can, and yes, you will believe a lie even on your deathbed.
Being of sound mind and body is not enough to receive Jesus as Savior. Growing up in a Bible believing church is not enough to keep you from believing a lie. Even hearing the Gospel on your deathbed is not enough to persuade most to come to the saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ. For when Jesus stops knocking at your hearts door, no amount of preaching or past Bible studies will snap you back to reality.
Certainly, this is only a theory based on what many believe is correct Bible interpretation, but why would anyone take such a chance? Don't wait until it's too late to allow Jesus to come into your heart. Our Lord said in Revelation 3:20, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me." How many more times will Jesus knock at your door before it's too late?
Are you ready to meet the Lord? If not, your time is running out!
Written April 7, 1999
Original author Pastor Haskel Malone
Calvary Prophecy Report
http://www.calvaryprophecy.com
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