The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse are a Prelude to the coming Persecution
In Revelation, the first fours seals unleash the four horsemen of the apocalypse on to the world scene. These horsemen cause unprecedented trouble for the world. Taken together, they will kill a fourth of the earth with sword, famine, death, and the beasts of the earth. Jesus has given believers this information in advance to prepare them to survive these coming troubles. Jesus tells his disciples not to be terrified by these things and to see that they are not troubled by them. Scripture says that people like Noah, Daniel, or Job would survive such catastrophes though they would be powerless to save others from them. The Four Horsemen of the apocalypse are only the beginning of sorrows and the end is still yet to come. The strain that these seals place on the world will spark a new wave of persecution for the church; a wave of persecution with unprecedented scale.
Anticipate God using you as a witness through Persecution.
At this time, Jesus warned how believers will need to watch out for themselves. Christians will be hated by all for Jesus’s sake. They will deliver you up to tribulation. They will lay their hands upon you, persecute you, and deliver you up to the synagogues and prisons. They will deliver you up to councils. You will be brought before rulers and kings for Christ’s sake, for a testimony to them. You will be beaten and many will be killed. At the fifth seal, many Christians will be slain for the Word of God and the testimony they maintain. When they arrest you and deliver you up, do not worry beforehand, or premeditate what you will speak. But whatever is given you in that hour, speak that; for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit. The Spirit will give you a mouth and wisdom which all your adversaries will not be able to contradict or resist. Do not be terrified by your adversaries which will be to them a proof of perdition, but to you of salvation, and that from God. All this will turn out to be an occasion for testimony. The gospel must first be preached to all the nations and then the end will come. God wants all men to be saved and will give them the opportunity to hear the life-saving gospel. Christians will be poured out as an offering so that others may hear and this is likely why they are seen as under the altar in Heaven. Christ said you would have tribulation in this world, but rest easy your God has overcome the world.
Anticipate many to Fall away and your own Faithfulness to be tested.
Because of these things, there will also be a massive falling away. It will no longer be politically correct to be Christian. Those who are not rooted in Christ in their heart will stumble and quickly fall away in the face of persecution. Many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another. Now Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. A man’s enemies will be those of his own household. Because lawlessness will abound the love of many will grow cold. Mentally prepare for such an occasion. All of this is to simply prove the metal you are made of. Will you be willing to follow God not only in the good times but also in the bad? Your choice will reveal your true heart. Do not think that God means to bring peace on earth, but rather a sword. God will separate the sheep from the goats. He often uses the occasion of persecution to do it. Anyone who loves his family more than God is not worthy of him. Anyone who does not take up his cross and follow him, is not worthy of him. Those who pass the test will be given a white robe and a crown of life. They have proven their righteousness by their faithfulness to God and their testimony even in the hard times.
Mass Persecution will precede the Rapture and Day of the Lord.
The day of the Lord will not come until this falling away occurs first. It is important to remember that many saints will be killed by the fifth seal of Revelation. They implore God for justice and to avenge their blood. God tells them that many more saints remain yet in the world and to wait for them to join them in death. This should tell the reader that the elect not only go through and experience the tribulation but that many remain by the time of the fifth seal has been opened. For then there will be great tribulation such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days will be shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect’s sake those days will be shortened. Many cite the multitude in Revelation 7 as a proof that God has raptured his followers out of this tribulation. We are actually told that those in white robes came out of the tribulation in Revelation 6 by being martyred. Know that for many believers death will be their escape from the tribulation and not the rapture. This will not stop religious people that do not know Scripture for themselves to look for deliverance in all the wrong places. There are many sheep who more likely to follow the crowds than their God. Many false Christs and false prophets will rise to deceive people; see that you are not deceived by them. Do not go out to the desert or the inner rooms if they call for you. All of these are traps. The vultures will only gather to pick off the people that have no spiritual life in them. No one will miss the real coming of the Messiah when He comes. For as lightening comes from the east and to the west, so will the coming of the son of man be.
Persecution is a consequence of society’s own making.
It has been said that the only thing needed for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing. Collectively as a society, we have allowed evil to flourish like a weed and it will eventually choke out every fruit bearing plant in the garden. Many of the opposition have cried for tolerance and we have blindly given in to them thinking we should live and let live. The Biblical mandate has always been to stamp out sin through capital punishment and the like. Many in Christendom have thought such Biblical themes to be too severe and we have failed to follow through with them. These Ideas have consequences. Our own tolerance for many of these practices have only condoned their behavior and permitted it to spread. Many sinful practices have now taken firm root in our society. As proponents for sin gain a critical mass of people behind them, their cry for peaceful coexistence will eventually turn to intolerance toward Christians. In time, these ideas will be our own undoing. We will reap what we have sown and it will be a painful lesson indeed. The lesson learned from this will not be forgotten in the age to come.
Do not be troubled by what you are about to suffer
In the end times, a voice from Heaven will cry out: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. Yes, says the Spirit ‘that they may rest from their labor, and their works will follow them. The righteous perish, and no man takes it to heart; merciful men are taken away from evil. He shall enter in peace; they shall rest in their beds, each one walking in his uprightness. He who believes in Christ, though He may die, yet shall He live. Whoever believes in him shall never die. Those who lose their life for Christ’s sake will find they preserve it. Not a hair of their head shall be lost. By their patience, they will possess their souls. The saints will be called on to patiently endure these times. He who endures to the end will be saved. The question is, do we really take Christ as his word? Do we believe what Jesus says? Our current suffering will not compare with the glory that follows. With blessing comes persecution. Believers are told in Scripture to rejoice when they see such persecution. Not for the persecution itself, but for realizing the blessings you enjoy that drive them to persecute you. Do not let a little trouble from the opposition shake you and let you lose your crown. Overcome your fear and you will experience a high like you have never experienced before. People who face their fear and let it die often feel more exhilarated and alive than ever before. God said they would receive the crown of life when they endure to the end.
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