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"I'LL GET SAVED IN THE TRIBULATION" "But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved." (Mat. 24:13) "For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be." (Mat. 24:21) As the dim lights of Laodicea continually flicker out, we, as Bible believers, find ourselves increasingly exposed to the sick, twisted logic and behavior of a depraved generation that is preparing to take the mark of the beast and worship the devil. I've never quite understood why some people have such a hard time just turning from sin and OBEYING GOD, but they certainly do. So, in order to justify their continual disobedience, they have all sorts of strange excuses. Some excuses are spoken, while others just simmer on the back burner of their minds, waiting to be used when most convenient. One such excuse is the refusal to receive Christ today with the belief that they will get saved in the coming tribulation period. The logic is that they'll probably get saved later in life, but if the rapture robs them of that opportunity, then they will know how much time they have left, so they'll get saved before that time expires. In other words, they plan to enjoy the pleasures of sin for as long as possible and then settle accounts with God just before time runs out. Trust me, those people are out there, and some of them might even be reading this message. If so, let me give you a few things to consider before you continue to play this gambling game with God. As our text says, the tribulation is a time when people must "endure unto the end," and that endurance involves a great deal more than you might be thinking . . . I. GOD'S DERISION To deride means to mock and laugh at someone. Folks think that God would never do that, but look at Psalms 2:4: "He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision." There it is! People have no idea who they're dealing with. They've been hearing about this fluffy, lovable, put-up-with-everything-never-judge-anyone god for so long that they have no idea who God really is. They honestly think that they can neglect him and reject him endlessly with his grace being unconditionally offered right on down to the last second. That's not true anywhere in the Bible, much less in the Great Tribulation! Look at Proverbs 1:24-31: "Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you. Then shall they call upon me, but I will not answer; they shall seek me early, but they shall not find me: For that they hated knowledge, and did not choose the fear of the LORD: They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices." That's the God that people will be dealing with in the Great Tribulation. People won't be dealing with a gracious God anymore. It's a whole new ball game where God starts laughing and mocking at those who rejected him in years past. I don't even like that, but that's what the Book says. People have no idea what's coming their way. If you plan to to endure the great tribulation, that'll be your first challenge right there. You'll have to endure God's Derision. II. GOD'S DELUSION II Thessalonians 2:11-12 says, "And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness." That delusion, or deception, is specifically for those who had the chance to receive Christ today and chose to reject him instead. Verse ten says, "because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved." That's why God sends the strong delusion, to insure that Christ rejecters do NOT turn to him at the last minute! God will not be mocked! A man must reap what he sows (Gal. 6:7-8). God's justice demands it. A man who plans to get saved in the Great Tribulation must find a way to endure God's Delusion. "Enduring unto the end" is a bit more involved than you might think. III. GOD'S DISPLEASURE Psalms 2:5 says, "Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure." Today is the day of grace, but that grace has an expiration date for those who abuse and reject it. In the Great Tribulation, God will be invested in pouring out his displeasure on a sinful, Christ-rejecting world. Now, get this. The word "grace" is found over 90 times in Paul's church age epistles, yet only two times in the book of Revelation. It is found in Revelation 1:4 and in Revelation 22:21, the first and last chapters only. The word grace does not appear a single time in chapters 6 through 19, the tribulation chapters. Yet, the word "wrath" appears in those chapters THIRTEEN times. Friend, the Great Tribulation is a special time of God's accumulated wrath on this earth. Jesus said it will be the worst thing the world has ever seen (Mat. 24:21). Only a fool would choose to be a part of it. IV. GOD'S DRAGON As if God's Derision, God's Delusion and God's Displeasure are not enough, one must now figure out how he's going to endure God's Dragon. Look at Revelation 12:9, which is right in the middle of the tribulation: "And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him." Alright, please understand what just happened. The devil is presently "the prince of the power of the air" (Eph. 2:2) and "spiritual wickedness in high places" (Eph. 6:12), but in the tribulation God wants him cast down. He could cast him anywhere in the universe, but he chooses to cast him straight down to planet Earth! Later, God chains the devil IN the center of the earth (Rev. 20:1-3), and he finally casts him into the eternal lake of fire (Rev. 20:10), but in the Great Tribulation, God wants the devil ON EARTH to help fulfil the plan of God. Please understand that Satan is not an equal force to God. The antichrist gets his power from Satan (Rev. 13:4), and Satan gets his power from God (Luke 4:6). So, Satan is basically God's attack dog, or attack dragon, who is somewhat restrained for some 6,000 years, but then is given more liberty than ever in the Great Tribulation. He's "off the leash," so to speak. If you doubt that, please notice Revelation 12:12: "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time." God knew that the dragon would have great wrath, so he reserved him for the Great Tribulation, the time of WRATH. Grace is over, wrath has begun, and the devil is the chosen one to do the dirty work. Trust me, you don't want to be there. I realize that some are saved in the tribulation, but those aren't people who had countless opportunities in the day of grace. As already seen from II Thessalonians 2, people who knowingly reject Christ today will be DAMNED in the Great Tribulation, not saved. If you aren't born again, RIGHT NOW is your chance to get it settled, and you might not get another one. Don't be a fool. Don't even THINK of enduring the Great Tribulation. Stop gambling with God! Cash-in on his grace while it's still being offered, because time is running out.