TribulationTimeline

Key Points

In the End Times, there will be a separation of true believers from carnally-minded churchgoers.

In the End Times, self-deceived 'Christians' will seek out self-deceived teachers as well as wolves in sheep's clothing.

The Word

"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;" 2 Thess 2:3
"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;" 1 Tim 4:1
"23 But this people hath a revolting and a rebellious heart; they are revolted and gone. 24 Neither say they in their heart, Let us now fear the Lord our God," Jer 5:23-24
"Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God." Heb 3:12

Description

THE "FALLING AWAY"

A person that "falls away" has basically departed from sound Biblical doctrines that he has knowledge of and/or once subscribed to but now no longer.

"Falling away" does not just suddenly happen overnight. There will be noticeable signs on a significant scale and as we draw closer to Christ's Second Coming, there will be a massive and devastating "falling away".

The Parable of the Sower is an example of what can trigger a falling away of some churchgoers who cannot accept the Truth of God's Word.

"20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the Word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the Word, by and by he is offended." Matt 13:20-21

"Falling away" is a prophetic signpost of the End Times when the many who profess Christ will defy Biblical doctrine (2 Tim 4:3-4) and follow damnable heresies (1 Tim 4:1-2). They interpret the Bible and perceive Jesus in the way they want to. For example, they will preach an all-embracing universalist Jesus who will eventually save all humankind because "God is love" (1 John 4:16, John 3:17). This defies the Gospel of Salvation whereby "for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" Acts 4:12 and that is the Name Jesus.

"3 But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. 4 For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted - you may well put up with it!" 2 Cor 11:3-4
"8 But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. 9 As we said before, so say I now again, if any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed." Gal 1:8-9

WHAT WILL THE EARLY PRE-TRIBULATION "FALLING AWAY" LOOK LIKE?

What did Paul mean when he prophesied that a signpost of the End Times would see a departure from the faith marked by deception and of those who will be "giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;" 1 Tim 4:1?

The falling away is not a new occurence. It has been taking place for millennia from the time of John some 2,000 years ago.

"They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us." 1 John 2:19

At some point in time and in a particular generation, this would become more pervasive and conspicuous than in previous generations, just as there has been earthquakes for millennia but the End Times is marked by greater frequency of earthquakes that occurs in divers places.

When the indicative signs of "falling away" becomes obvious, what will it look like? Would we recognize the signs? Or will it creep up on us unawares? The Bible indicates that when it happens, it would be obvious. But perhaps it will be most apparent to believers who abide in Christ and whose eyes He opens to discern the times.

THE AGE OF DECONSTRUCTION AND RELATIVISM

The age of widespread 'deconstruction' is upon us. Deconstruction in and of itself is not new. For a long time, many who were raised in Bible-following households, began to question the tenets of the faith they were raised in and began the process of deconstruction. Some followers came to an even greater conviction in their faith while some have gone the other extreme to completely renounce Christianity for another faith or go the way of atheism, hence the proliferation of the 'Nones'. The US is widely perceived to be a 'Christian nation' but today, approximately 1 out 3 Americans reject any form of religion, let alone the Bible and Christ as the one true God.

Deconstruction, relativism, the 'emergent church', 'progressive Christianity', the 'hyper grace gospel' and 'prosperity gospel' are all conspiring to redefine the Word of God in favor of a God of their own image and construction. Those who engage in other forms of 'Christianity' may be doing so for many reasons. It ranges from those with 'weak' Christian foundation (Matt 13:18-22) to those who are wolves in sheep's clothing and the tares that the enemy has planted in the church (Matt 13:24-30).

We will not examine the various said circumstances at work. What we will do is to share what is publicly published of well known personalities from Christian circles plus some facts and figures.

These are US reports and one may challenge that this should not be the single brush that paints the whole Christian world. Pay attention to the US because it is a modern day signpost for the End Times?

The only nation today with some semblance of Judeo Christian values. Although Europe was the seat of Christianity as it spread from the early church, and hence has had longer historical exposure to the faith, the European continent is today largely secular with Christianity as a state tradition where a form of 'cultural Christianity' is practiced.
The US is a primary exporter of sermons, books, worship music, apparel and has for some time held the title of 'Christian nation' until President Obama declared otherwise. It is very likely that the book on your shelf and the e-book in your mobile is from an American Christian author.
The Bible Society estimates that 2.5 billion Bibles were printed between 1815 and 1975. More recent updated estimates put the number at over 5,000,000,000 and they are mostly released by primarily US publishers.
The largest number of missionaries going to the unreached world are from the US.
The US is the only country that religiously conducts the most research and tracking of the religious landscape. When your pastor quotes a statistic, it is likely from Barna, Pew or one of the many online sites, primarily American.

It is therefore reasonable to say that the US is a gigantic signpost that God uses to show us the state and trajectory of Christianity in a secular world.

EXAMPLES OF FALLING AWAY

The findings and reports shown here are a sampling of Christian news that can all be easily Googled. You can decide as to whether this prophetic signpost is already evident to signal the times.

"Almost 70% of Born-Again Christians Say Jesus Christ is not the Only Way to God, Study Shows" Source: Christian Headlines 22 Oct 2021 | Probe Ministries survey
Of those who identify as born-again Christians, 62% say the Holy Spirit is not a real, living being. Source: Gospel Coalition 18 Sep 2021
61% of professing Christians hold to at least one of the following New Age beliefs - spiritual energy, psychics, reincarnation, astrology. Source: Pew 1 Oct 2018
Of 61% of American millennials who profess to be Christian only 2% of them hold a Biblical worldview according to Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University. Source: Christian Post 24 Sep 2020
"ELCA presiding bishop praises SCOTUS decision on LGBTQIA+ rights" and more such online articles at the official site of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Source: elca.org
Influential voices in the Christian emergent church circuit such as Ps Brian McLaren reject "the core evangelical belief that only Christians are going to heaven and everyone else will be cast into the Lake of Fire. That may have rung true for his grandparents' generation, he says, but not now." Source: npr Mar 2010
"Christians Must 'Unhitch' Old Testament From Their Faith" says Andy Stanley Senior Pastor of North Point Community Church. Source: Christian Post 9 May 2018
Retired Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa, a Nobel peace laureate said in 2013 that would rather go to hell than worship a "homophobic God". Source: BBC 26 Jul 2013
In the last 24 months, well-known Christian personalities have renounced Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Perhaps the ease of social media to announce something has made it easier for us to know who did what and when.
- Hillsong songwriter Marty Sampson Aug 2019
- Joshua Harris, author of "I Kissed Dating Goodbye," and former pastor of a Maryland mega-church Jul 2019
- Dr Paul Maxwell formerly a writer for John Piper's Desiring God Apr 2021
- "Abraham Piper son of John Piper soaring to fame for bashing Christianity" Source: Christianity Daily Apr 2021

ARE WE DECEIVING OURSELVES BY SUGGESTING THAT THIS SIGNPOST IS STILL FAR OFF?

"Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;" 2 Thess 2:3

Whatever your observation or opinion, we hope that at the very least, you would seek the Lord regarding 2 Thess 2:3 and pray He opens your eyes to discern events taking place all over the world. For starters, for those of you are interested, they are easily accessible with the search engines and many of the reliable Christian news sites are a good place to start.

Version 23.1.1

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Tribulation Timeline

About Tribulation Timeline

Sno	Verses	Remarks
1	"1 Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto Him, ... 3 Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; 4 Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God." 2 Thess 2:1,3-4	Two key prophetic signposts that must take place before the Rapture (if you are a Pre-trib Rapture advocate) or Christ's Second Coming (if you are a Post-trib Rapture advocate). The one referred to in this Topic is of a "falling away" that will first take place BEFORE the Antichrist is revealed. The Greek word for "falling away" is "Apostasia" from which Apostasy comes from. There are a number of definitions for Apostasy such as Renunciation, Desertion, Defection, Abandonment, Disavowing, Disaffiliation, Rejection, Departure, Divergence, Deviation or Forsaking. Biblical Apostasy by its harshest definition points to a follower of Christ who turns his back on Him and on Christianity, walking away from the Lord he once professed to worship and from the faith he once followed. To renounce or disavow Christ is the clearest and absolute manifestation of Apostasy. If we take the "falling away" to be a defining moment in the history of Christianity, there will come a time when millions of people who profess Christ will leave for another religion or no religion at all and become atheists or agnostics. In that sense, Biblical Apostasy is different from backsliding or lukewarmness. Apostasy can also manifest as a divergence, deviation or forsaking of Bible Truth by people who continue to profess Christ. This is where Christians go astray and subscribe to distorted, compromised or liberal interpretations of the Bible.
2	"1 Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; 2 Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;" 1 Tim 4:1-2 "3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; 4 And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables." 2 Tim 4:3-4	Another Last Days signpost is the departure of people who profess Christ but at a knowledge-level. Just as student can study Christianity in an institution of higher learning, they understand the concept of salvation but there is no true repentance in their heart and true confession of Jesus as their one and only Savior, Such can follow the faith just as Jesus had many followers, but they can be easily misled by leaders who distort and corrupt doctrines from the Bible and they don't even realize that they are being lied to. Born again Christians have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and will not fall into the trap set up by false teachers and doctrines of demons. True Christians will be quick to depart from false churches the moment they discern the lies weaved into teachings masquerading as God's Word.
3	"20 Our fathers worshipped in this mountain; and ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. 21 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, believe Me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. 22 Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews. 23 But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship Him. 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth." John 4:21-24	Jesus was speaking to the Samaritan woman about a time that had arrived when the worship of God was not to be a matter of ritual or religiosity. God welcomes the humble heart who would cry out to Him from anywhere and not necessarily be from a particular place such as a church. God is not to be confined to a 'religious place' of worship. However, genuine worship and fellowship of Christian communities that gather in homes and churches for example, are still the way that God has ordained. Furthermore, the Bible provides the complete truth that believers need to know of and in the same way that the Spirit of God leads us into all truth (John 16:13), God wants us to follow only the truth that is found in Scripture which is the inerrant Word of God.
4	"39 And this is the Father's will which hath sent Me, that of all which He hath given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. 40 And this is the will of Him that sent Me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on Him, may have everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day." John 6:39-40 "As Thou hast given Him power over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Him." John 17:2	What we have in John 6:39 is the Father's assignment to Jesus to keep God's sheep and to shepherd us safely into the Kingdom. This is something that the Lord will definitely and absolutely, with 100% certainty, successfully accomplish. This means that unless a person totally renounces Christ as his Lord and Savior, there is no reason to think that a true believer in Jesus can ever lose his salvation. This brings us to the question, could it be that those who fall away were not born again in the first place?
5	"18 Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us." 1 John 2:18-19	John describes pseudo-Christians that will increasingly show themselves with the approach of the Last Days. There are antichrists who are currently intermingling with believers and passing themselves off as authentic believers in the church of Christ, just as there are presently tares planted amongst the wheat. When the Last Days arrive, the impostors will somehow surface and reveal their true identity and cross the red line to oppose true believers, "whereby we know that it is the last time".
6	"Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God." Heb 3:12	This group is similar and yet different from the group spoken of in 1 Tim 4:1-2. In Ps 81:11 God warns the "brethen" that they be careful not to get into an evil heart of unbelief and as a result depart from Him. This group can include lukewarm Christians and social justice Christians. There are churches that are heavily invested in societal issues such as poverty, racial tensions, women's rights, gender inequality and of late, climate change. They have positioned these issues as their life mission in place of the Great Commission. They possess a knowledge-level understanding of the Word and they lack discernment and genuine faith in the Word. They have little interest in what the Word actually teaches and are unlike the Jews in Berea "in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so." (Acts 17:10-12).
7	"15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." 1 John 2:15-16 "Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God." James 4:4 "17 This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, 18 Having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: 19 Who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness. 20 But ye have not so learned Christ;" Eph 4:17-20 "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." Matt 6:21	It cannot get any clearer and be any more direct than that. God has drawn a clear red line and we will need to examine where our true love stands. There is a group of professing Christians who find it diffcult to give up the worldliness in them. They conform their understanding of Christianity according to the world's values, standards and methods. Laodicean Christians come to mind. They keep Jesus outside and want to do church without the Holy Spirit. They do not desire God's sanctifying transformational work in their lives to be more like Christ and to have the mind of Christ. As a result, they are susceptible to falling away.
8	"20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it; 21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended." Matt 13:20-21	What do we have here? There is a segment of professing Christians who upon hearing the word will actually happily receive it. The good news is that they do not reject the Word but they do not internalize the understanding of the truth found in the Word. The Word remains as a knowledge and when the truth is challenged and they feel pressurized, they buckle and take offense with the truth found in the Word. When there is the threat of tribulation or persecution, they quickly dissociate themselves and run to a safe space in order to preserve their relationships and friendships with the very people who speak against the truth. On the other hand, Jesus says such self preservation can bear serious eternal consequences. "he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." (Matt 24:13). Conversely, he that shall not endure unto the end, the same shall be in danger. Likewise, "For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for My sake shall find it." (Matt 16:25). In Rev 3:5 we have a sure word, "He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before My Father, and before his angels."
		Version 23.1.1

The Day of the Lord

Church Age

Gospel Part II

Rapture

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Gospel Part I

New Earth

The Tribulation

Introduction

Millennial Kingdom

SP8. The Falling Away

Key Points

The Word

Description

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