“For we will destroy this place, because the cry of them is waxen great before the face of the Lord; and the Lord hath sent us to destroy it.” Genesis 19:13
In the book of Revelation, during the period described as the Tribulation, and more specifically, the Great Tribulation, John reveals to us that it is a time of great wrath. The Spirit of God has been withdrawn from the earth, not by His presence, but by His restraining power. Satan has relatively free reign to kill and destroy as he wills. Many perish at this time because of the vileness and ruthlessness of the enemy, but God will avenge them. We see in chapter 6, where there is “…under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held.” (6:9) Scripture tells us that, “…they cried with a loud voice, saying, ‘How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost Thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?” (v.10) What we want to see here is the “cry” of these righteous souls who had been killed for their uprightness and testimony. When we look at Sodom and Gomorrah in Abraham’s day, we see but one family that is saved from destruction. The Lord Jesus had come with two of His angels to visit Abraham, who lived in the plains, not in these wicked cities of that day. The Lord told Abraham that He was going to detroy Sodom and Gomorrah. He had chosen specifically this time, “…Because the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their sin is very grievous.” (Gen. 18:20) That cry was certainly that of the righteous saints, those of true faith, who had been martyred, or destroyed. However, in His mercy, the Lord listened to the intercession of Abraham. Lot, and part of his family were saved by the angels, who took them by the hand and brought them out before fire engulfed the entirety of the cities. The important point here is that of “fullness,” not of goodness or righteousnes, but of iniquity and sin. There was “no Bible in Sodom.” Lot was the last testimony of faith, of light, in Sodom. There came a moment when even he would not be accepted and tolerated by the people. Their rejection would become complete. They would have nothing to do with the knowledge of God. It would be at this point, as in the days of Noah, when “…the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.,” that judgement would be come. There would be no remedy for the destruction of mankind, since there would be the full rejection of Christ, of God.
We return to our question, or rather the question posed by the disciples to Christ: “What shall be the sign of Thy coming, and of the end of the world?” (Matt. 24:3) The first thing that the Lord calls the disciples to grasp is that before His coming there will be great deception, and this because there has not been the reception of the truth. It shall be a time of great upheaval, of nations, kingdoms, and peoples. It will be a time of great suffering, famines, diseases, and earthquakes. With regard to the evidence, and the nearness of His coming, it will be a time of great rejection of the people of God by all nations. This is the testimony of the refusal of light and truth. However, it will also be a time when the Gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the wolrd for a witness unto all nations, “…and then shall the end come.”
In Paul’s letters he writes often of the Lord’s day, or His coming. He writes also of the imminent return of the Lord to call HIs church to be forever with Him. His call to every believer today is to be ready and watchful, working while it is day.
Dear Father, Enable us to live in the light of Christ’s coming. In Jesus’ name, Amen.