The Way of Escape

A Spiritual Handbook and How-to Guide for the Last Days

Sample Chapter - The Mercy of God

David McGee

Master’s Touch Publishing

The Mercy of God

OK, here is what could be an uncomfortable part

During the Great Tribulation, there will be many martyrs, who will either be in heaven or come to heaven during the tribulation. We know in Revelation 7, there will be Jewish people believing in Yeshua Mashiach with salvations and martyrs. Most, if not all of these people were not saved before the rapture. They have gotten saved during the Tribulation. These are ‘Tribulation Saints’, people who are killed during the Tribulation for becoming Christians during the Tribulation. What a high price to pay. What if someone knew the truths of Christianity and wasn’t walking them out? Because they were not living for the Lord, they went into the Great Tribulation? I don't mean the inward struggle all of us go thru, I mean someone that is not in fellowship, not giving, not serving, not loving people and hardly loving God, and since they are doing nothing in obedience. Do they just get a free pass because of grace? People who don't spend time with God's people, and don't spend time with God, if they go to heaven in that state would go through quite the culture shock. For people who

spend time with other believers
spend time with God
worship God

you will get to do that all day, every day. You will get to do that and your knees won't get tired and your voice won't get weak. I look forward to getting to know everybody here at the church. Now think of someone who

does not spend time with other believers
does not spend time with God and
does not worship God

They are going from being unspiritual to spending all day with people singing to God, all day, every day, for eternity? They would go through a system shock. They would not enjoy it. I am not sure someone that

doesn’t ever spend time with God
doesn’t ever spend time in God's Word
doesn’t ever spend time with other believers
doesn’t ever worship God

just jumps into heaven. I know that the real believer is eternally secure. With serving the Lord and giving to the Lord comes the fruit of the Lord. In other words, as we do things for God, like giving and serving, we are showing our faith. When we see our own faith, in action, it confirms we are a believer. When someone doesn’t do those things, like fellowship with other believers, serving, giving, reading, when you don't see those things, often you begin to doubt your salvation. Because you don't see it.

Life Lesson:
Eternal Security - The people that are worried about it, shouldn't be, the ones that should be worried about it aren't.

People who don't walk with God and say, yeah bro, I prayed that prayer years ago, I'm good, I am worried about those people spiritually. They should be worried for themselves. Then someone who loves God, is active in fellowship, they love, they serve, they give, and they are worried about being secure? They should feel secure. The carnal man with no fruit should be worried. That’s why I say the people that are worried about it, shouldn't be, the ones that should be worried about it aren't. What I am getting ready to say please consider and pray about. I am not saying the Bible definitely says this. It does answer many questions in scriptures. It solves other problems as well.

Why are we told repeatedly the over comer gets saved?
Why are we told repeatedly the over comer gets rewarded?

While I am very comfortable and feel safe, in telling born again Christians who are serving God and giving to God and in fellowship in a church, people that are loving God and loving people, that they will be safe during the Great Tribulation. I am not nearly as sure for those who are backslidden. Many of the rewards are described as being for the overcomer, he who endures, etc. I am not talking about perfect people, there are none, but people that are trying. That their spiritual life is meaningful to them.

I don’t feel safe telling backslidden Christians that they will be fine during the Tribulation.

There is a line between people that are going to heaven and people that are not going to heaven. There is also a line between those who will be raptured and those who will not. I don't know where that line will be. I can tell you that I don't want to be anywhere near it. I am not sure when backslidden Christians or where backslidden Christians, who don’t listen to anything God says, don’t give, don’t fellowship with Christians, if they are raptured or even if they go to heaven. I was taught at a young age to follow the Lord. I believe once you are really saved you cannot fall away. If you understand the real love and grace of God. I believe if you are really saved, then God will always protect you, and it is really hard to walk away. That said there are some scriptures that point out that someone can lose forgiveness. Many people have spent many pages and even many books on the topic and this book is not about that. Think of this though, if that carnal believer who doesn’t spend time with God, other believers or in God's Word, went into the Great Tribulation, had his flesh burnt off by some of the trials but rededicated himself or herself to the Lord, started living for the Lord, reading the Word and joined the underground church, that person would be saved and you would be seeing their fruit. They would go to heaven. Wouldn’t it be just like the mercy of God that would not just reject the backslider but God would send them into the Great Tribulation, to see them come back to the Lord, saved, if even by trial by fire?

There is a line between people that are going to heaven and people that are not going to heaven. The Believer will go to heaven. The Unbeliever will go to hell, eternally separated from God. There is also a line between those who will be raptured and those who will not. I don't know where that line will be. I can tell you, I don't want to be anywhere near that line. I also don't want you to be anywhere near that line.

I am not dogmatic about the above teaching. It does fit. It also answers the probing question of the overcoming scriptures. The reward for Overcoming cannot be salvation. Then salvation would be by works and we know that it is not. So salvation is not the reward for the Overcoming person. The Pre-tribulation Rapture may be the reward for the overcomer, since every letter to every church has that reward in it for the overcomer. I do believe that escape from the Tribulation may be for the overcomer saint alone. That is yet another reason to be serving the Lord so when He comes, He finds you serving. Unless you plan on backsliding, you shouldn’t be worried about this. If you plan on backsliding and you don't want to go through the Tribulation, you should be very concerned.

The innocent blood calls to God for revenge.

Repeatedly in scripture, it speaks of the 'innocent blood' or blood spilled from people who are saved (martyrs) or the lives of young babies, who are innocent until the age of accountability. That is the age or the time where they can accept or reject Jesus. Until they can accept or reject Jesus, we believe they are innocent upon the mercies of God. Spilling innocent blood? It says that God hates these things and that they are even an abomination.

Proverbs 6:16-19
16 These six things the Lord hates,
Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
17 A proud look, A lying tongue,
Hands that shed innocent blood,
18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil, 19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.
NKJV

Revelation 6:10
10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"
NKJV

Notice above the blood was spilled by 'those who dwell on the earth', a phrase we see over and over again. That speaks of the people who will be on earth during the Tribulation, those who have rejected Jesus. The other people group, those who dwell in heaven, are the believers.

Revelation 20:4-5
4 And I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was committed to them. Then I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their witness to Jesus and for the word of God, who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received his mark on their foreheads or on their hands. And they lived and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
NKJV

We used to wonder how Christians would be beheaded. Would the government return to the guillotine? We all got our chilling answer recently, when we saw Muslims beheading Christians in the Middle East.

Isaiah 26:21
21 For behold, the Lord comes out of His place
To punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity;
The earth will also disclose her blood,
And will no more cover her slain.
NKJV

1 Corinthians 15:51-52
51 Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed — 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
NKJV

1 Thessalonians 4:16-17
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. 17 Then we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord.
NKJV

1 Thessalonians 4:13-14
13 But I do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning those who have fallen asleep, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope. 14 For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who sleep in Jesus.
NKJV

Life Lesson
Even in the midst of trials and persecution, we can walk with the joy of the Lord, lest you sorrow as others who have no hope.

Hope - the Biblical definition of hope is different than the world's definition of hope. The world says 'I hope it works out' and they then hope it happens. They are not believing and faith usually plays no part. If faith does play a part, the faith is in the wrong thing. For believers, 'hope' is an assurance, knowing it will work out, as opposed to hoping it will work out.

Should we put hope in the government?

Should we put hope in man's ability to not make war?

The leader of North Korea, recently had one of his aids disagree with something he thought. He had him executed before a firing squad. Then one of his aides fell asleep in a meeting. The leader shot him from close range… with… an… anti… aircraft… gun. I don't think he is a normal, well adjusted, happy camper. He has his finger on many, many nuclear missile buttons. When the US and South Korea, our ally, start doing military joint exercises, the North Koreans object strongly. They said if you continue with the joint exercises, 'the US mainland won't be safe'. If we continue to do joint exercises with S Korea, "our military has grown stronger and we will attack the mainland". They are speaking of the United States of America.

When we study the Bible, God reveals all kinds of information to us. God removes our ignorance through revealing the Bible to us. With receiving the Bible, we receive knowledge, we receive hope and we receive forgiveness.

We then begin to give away Bibles.

We then begin to give away knowledge.

We then begin to give away forgiveness.

We then begin to give away hope.

Life Lesson
The Bible gives us hope and knowledge. If we have no Bible, we have no knowledge, we have no hope. If we have no hope, life becomes a daunting task.

Isaiah 26:19
Your dead shall live;
Together with my dead body they shall arise.
Awake and sing, you who dwell in dust;
For your dew is like the dew of herbs,
And the earth shall cast out the dead.
NKJV

Isaiah 26:20
Come, my people, enter your chambers,
And shut your doors behind you;
Hide yourself, as it were, for a little moment,
Until the indignation is past.
NKJV

Romans 8:21-22
21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now.
NKJV

While the modern-day disaster movies are just that, movies that imagination created, it came from somewhere. The ability to see that and sense sometimes that this may be what it is like, could be prophetic in nature. Of course again, we are out of here because of the rapture.

Jesus Laments over Jerusalem

Luke 13:34-35
34 O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!
NKJV

In Jerusalem, at the time of Jesus, many accepted the Lord and many rejected the Lord. The ones who listened to Jesus in Matthew 24, escaped before the siege of Jerusalem. The ones who didn’t listen, did not escape the siege. I wonder if Jesus laments over the US?

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