Until the End of Age

https://odb.org/MY/2022/06/07/jesus-is-here

Matthew 28:20 contains a significant promise from Jesus that He will be with us till the end of age. He will actually be with us for all eternity but when He said until the end of age, He meant being with us here on earth. This promise is significant because if the end of age ushers in and the great tribulation as revealed in Revelation occurs during our life time, we have the assurance and promise that Jesus will nevertheless be with us during those 7 years before He returns. Of course this presupposes that we will not be raptured first and will face the great tribulation as believers prior to the 2nd coming of Christ. In Christian eschatology (end times teaching) speak, this is called the post tribulation end times theory. In other words, it is believed that as believers we will only be raptured to be with Christ after going through the great tribulation of presumably 7 years where we will only be able to buy and sell with the mark of the beast and if we bow down to the anti-Christ. Our faith will really be tested and Christians preparing for this occurrence in this lifetime are looking at various means to Iive “off the grid” so that we could carry on living without compromising our faith and identity as a child of God.

The great tribulation is indeed a scary thought and it is scary as we are afraid that after coming so far in the faith, we may be tempted to compromise in order to live a “normal life”. It is not a question of taking a vaccine or using e-payment platforms but taking the mark of the beast is a wilful act of worshipping the anti-Christ. It is wilful and not accidental. If we were to comply, we will do it in defiance to Christ and would have clearly abandoned our faith. So will we risk losing our eternal inheritance in God so we could live like we used to for those expected 7 years of tribulation?

Matthew 28:20 however gives us the assurance that Christ will be with us till the very end, until the end of age. If we stand with Him and refuse to bow down to the anti-Christ, He will be with us, to support and help us through it all. Not a question of putting us to the test and seeing whether we are genuinely for Him or not. Not to see whether we deserve a place in eternity as our salvation is a gift from God, by grace through the blood of Christ and not by our works. That is why proponents who believe in the post tribulation rapture theory also believe that believers when facing the great tribulation will be blessed and empowered by a greater outpouring of the power of the Holy Spirit in our lives that we will see miracles and signs and wonders. In other words, as much as we need to learn and prepare to cope with living without the mark of the beast, we will have Jesus by our side fighting the battle with us. We will somehow be able to live even without the means to buy and sell as the miraculous power of God will be with us and we will live here on earth in His presence while waiting for Christ to return. Jesus promised that He will be with us till the end of age and that may ultimately be what matters most for us to be able to live through the great tribulation if it occurs in our lifetime!