Let’s start from the Parable of Ten Virgins in Matthew 25:1-13. In this parable, Jesus clearly warns His Church that believers that fail to PREPARE DILIGENTLY for His second coming, will find themselves knocking A CLOSED DOOR when He returns. They will knock desperately and frantically. But on that day, mercy will be silent. And heaven will remain unmoved by the desperate cries behind the door.
“And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: AND THE DOOR WAS SHUT. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.” (Matthew 25:10-12). This is the tragedy of the foolish virgins. The tragedy of missing the rapture of God’s genuine children.
This rapture will occur before God unleashes His final judgment on the world in what is commonly known as the period of TRIBULATION. During this period, the Antichrist, acting directly under the auspices of Satan, will head the government of the world.
If we juxtapose this tribulation period with the Parable of Ten Virgins, we can deduce that many believers will be trapped under the evil reign of the Antichrist. As the DOOR WAS SHUT in verse 10, believers that did not go in with the Bridegroom would be confronted with a brand new world. A world where they would be pressurised day and night to take the mark of the beast (666) that will consign people to hell forever (Revelation 14:9-11). Tracked and hounded from location to location, the believers will be captured by the Antichrist, they will be imprisoned, tormented, tortured, and even killed.
The hellish fate that awaits believers that will be on earth during the period of the Antichrist is contained in several prophecies in both the Old and New Testaments.
“And IT WAS GIVEN UNTO HIM (the Antichrist) to make war with the saints, and TO OVERCOME THEM: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.” (Revelation 13:7)
“I beheld, and the same horn MADE WAR WITH THE SAINTS, AND PREVAILED AGAINST THEM… And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and THEY SHALL BE GIVEN INTO HIS HAND until a time and times and the dividing of time.” (Daniel 7:21,25)
Other passages like Daniel 8:24, Revelation 13:15, Daniel 11:33,35, also speak about the same theme. Please note the highlighted words in the passages in both the Old and New Testaments. The believers WERE GIVEN INTO HIS HAND. And he PREVAILED AGAINST THEM. This is a mandate that prayers will NOT overcome. It will be a torment and affliction with no deliverance in view. Believers will indeed become like pawns in the vengeful hands of the Antichrist.
This will not be the first time that God would use a wicked super-power to discipline His children. There is a precedent in the Old Testament. God’s chosen people, the nation of Israel, were persistent in turning a deaf ear to His call for repentance. And so God gave them over into the hand of Nebuchadrezzar, king of Babylon. Please listen as God speaks in Jeremiah 5:15-17:
"Behold, I am bringing against you a nation from afar, O house of Israel, declares the Lord. It is an enduring nation; it is an ancient nation, a nation whose language you do not know, nor can you understand what they say. Their quiver is like an open tomb; they are all mighty warriors. They shall eat up your harvest and your food; they shall eat up your sons and your daughters; they shall eat up your flocks and your herds; they shall eat up your vines and your fig trees; your fortified cities in which you trust they shall beat down with the sword.”
It is in exactly the same way that God repeatedly warned the Israelites, that He is today WARNING THE CHURCH. Calling us to repentance. Calling us to amend our ways. But like the children of Israel did, the Church is today also turning a deaf ear to God’s entreaties and warnings. Apostle Paul warned the Church to avoid the errors of the Israelites, so that we would not be punished in the same way as they were (please read 1 Corinthians 10:1-12 in conjunction with Romans 11:19-21). If the lessons of the past are not learnt by the Church, the punishment of the past will, sadly, re-emerge to mar the future.
Interestingly, a careful study of Jeremiah 5 reveals several ways that the church of today is just like the Israelites of those days. Here are just three examples, please study the entire chapter for a full picture:
(1) BOTH THE LEADERS AND THE LED HAVE GONE ASTRAY TODAY: "Then I said, ‘These are only the poor; they have no sense; for they do not know the way of the Lord, the justice of their God. I will go to the great and will speak to them, for they know the way of the Lord, the justice of their God.’ But they all alike had broken the yoke; they had burst the bonds.” (Jeremiah 5:4-5)
(2) THE CHURCH IS ENTRAPPING PEOPLE, EXPLOITING THEM, AND BECOMING RICH WHILE THE POOR CONTINUE TO SUFFER IN OUR MIDST: "For wicked men are found among my people; they lurk like fowlers lying in wait. They set a trap; they catch men. Like a cage full of birds, their houses are full of deceit; therefore they have become great and rich; they have grown fat and sleek. They know no bounds in deeds of evil; they judge not with justice the cause of the fatherless, to make it prosper, and they do not defend the rights of the needy.” (Jeremiah 5:26-28)
(3) PEOPLE ARE CONTENTED WITH DECEIT IN THE HOUSE OF GOD: "Shall I not punish them for these things? declares the Lord, and shall I not avenge myself on a nation such as this?” An appalling and horrible thing has happened in the land: the prophets prophesy falsely, and the priests rule at their direction; MY PEOPLE LOVE TO HAVE IT SO, but what will you do when the end comes?" (Jeremiah 5:29-31)
It is uncanny how the last point aligns with our days when people are developing itching ears, and are accumulating teachers that will tell them WHAT THEY WANT TO HEAR (2 Timothy 4:3-4). Indeed, believers do not want to ENDURE SOUND DOCTRINES in these days.
Brothers and sisters, judgment is on its way! And that is why the Lord is now CALLING OUT His own children from the organised system of religion called church. Believers that are today refusing the SANCTIFYING FIRE of the Holy Spirit, will be forced to embrace the SCORCHING FIRE of the Antichrist so that they can be ‘refined, purified, and made white’ (Daniel 11:32-35).
In God’s providence, SOME of the tribulation saints will still make it Home (Revelation 7:13-14). They will be revived to genuine faith through the fiery horror of the Antichrist. But look at all they would miss! They will miss the opportunity to ‘meet the Lord in the air’ (1 Thessalonians 4:17) when He descends in the glory of His Father’s angels. They will miss out on all the initial interaction that will occur between Jesus and all His saints that were ready and raptured at His appearing. It is certain that many of us cannot even bear to think of missing a minute of this joy!
So, the choices are entirely clear. It is either the sanctifying fire of the Holy Spirit now, or the scorching fire of the Antichrist later. Revival now, or revival under the Antichrist. To lose our lives today for Christ’s sake, or lose it to the Antichrist later. To enter the door with the wise virgins, or meander in agony with the foolish virgins when the door is shut. There is a time for everything – and this is the time for full repentance. The time to prepare for the return of our Lord and Saviour. Please don’t allow the lukewarm church to take the Kingdom of God from you.
Here are the words that Jesus used to end the Parable of Ten Virgins: “WATCH THEREFORE, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.”
Please do not ignore the warning of the Master, He is coming back soon to take us Home.
Thanks for reading, God bless.
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