There is a debate among Christians about the timing of rapture in proximity to a period in time called Great Tribulation, which brings unnecessary confusion among new believers and division among mature believers.
As we see growing intensity of the signs our desire to search the scriptures and to know what we should expect is also increasing, and it is a good thing. I am not a Bible scholar but I did spent last 8 years of my Christian life studying it, depending on The Holy Spirit to lead me into all I need to know in order to be ready.
In this article, I would like to share some of the results and invite you all to spend time in your own study. Jesus and His disciples after Him preached mainly to common people using illustrations and words, which everyone could understand. That is why I believe, we do not need to be theologians in order to understand their teaching recorded later as New Testament. Apostle Peter said that if we are truly believers, then we have the anointing and we do not need anybody to teach us.
It does not mean we do not need pastors, teachers and spiritual leaders. They are the gift of God to the body of Christ, especially to new believers, but eventually each one of us needs to become mature and able to “rightly divide the word of Truth”. At that stage, The Holy Spirit Himself will be our Teacher and we will not need anybody to teach us, however, we will be encouraged by what others have learned.
What I have gathered from the scriptures is that Great Tribulation is not the wrath of God upon those who rejected Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Jesus mentions the Great Tribulation two times. First time in the gospel of Mathew chapter 24 in the context of an attack against Israel “For then there will be great tribulation, such as has not been since the beginning of the world, no, nor ever shall be. And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened”.
It means that if God were not to stop it, humankind would not survive, but from these verses, it is evident there will be God's chosen people living on earth during that time.
Notice that Jesus did not say it would be God's judgment.
Second time it is mentioned in Revelation chapter seven, when great multitude, which no one can number from all nations, is described. It is said of them that they “come out of the great tribulation” and that they had to suffer hunger, thirst and the heat of sun, so they are standing before the throne of God to serving Him day and night in His temple.
Nothing is said of great tribulation being God's judgment. On the contrary Paul the apostle was teaching regarding believers in Jesus during the end times, that “ … God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him”.(1 Th 5:9)
The rapture is for the purpose of delivering God's people from His wrath, which will be poured out upon those who trampled upon the blood of His own Son who provided them salvation and who chose to live in sin instead of living for Him.
This is the reason Jesus compared the end times to the times of Noah and Lot who both were delivered from God's judgment. Apart from this, there is not much in the scriptures regarding the exact timing of this event, except that it will be sudden and that all believers should be always ready.
In the light of this I think it is more important for us to “watch and pray” so that we will all be ready for the day The Lord will take us out of the great tribulation than to argue about the exact timing of it. It is also important that we brace ourselves for enduring tough times ahead of us rather than expecting an easy ride, for it will be anything but easy.
May the Lord give us strength in any time of need, even so, Come Lord Jesus!
