Friday, April 18, 2025
For all the excellent work President Donald Trump and his administration is doing to reverse wrongs, fiscal fraud, waste and abuse and many national and global issues he’s correcting, we can’t forget that there are still forces of wickedness far more powerful than Trump working to overthrow America and every nation on earth. God’s word tells us that in this age those wicked forces will win the day, but we who know and believe God’s truths in Christ patiently look for the Day when God destroys the wicked and gathers “His elect” in the resurrection rapture “at the resurrection” (John 5:28–29), “at the last day” (John 6:40, 44, and 11:24), “Immediately after the tribulation” (Matt. 24:29–31), patiently “looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). And who are those counted as “His elect”?
There are two immutable reasons for our “blessed hope”. 1) The death, and 2) the resurrection of Jesus Christ! He suffered the death we all deserve, but defeated death on our behalf that we who have true faith in our risen Lord Jesus would be raised to eternal life “at the resurrection” should we die before the Lord’s return “at the last day”. This is why we celebrate Easter as it reminds us true believers that we have eternal life with God, for Jesus said “In My Father’s house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:2–3). And I thank God that America has President Trump who truly celebrates Easter for its reality! Pray that President Trump’s faith is matured and strengthened.
This is also why we’re given the Communion Table of the Lord instituted by Jesus at the Last Supper saying, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me. In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes’” (1 Cor. 11:24–26). Easter Sunday, have Communion in your home with your family. But be careful, for “whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this reason many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep. [have died] For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened by the Lord, that we may not be condemned with the world” (1 Cor. 11:27–32).
Again, and very importantly who are “His elect”? Here’s the passage in context: “Immediately after the tribulation of those days [meaning the seven-year tribulation] the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (Matt. 24:29–31). [My emphasis] Throughout the NT God’s Spirit speaks of “the elect”, and the context is most often to believers of God in Christ. Do your own research and you will find that to be true. Therefore, when Christ says that “His angels” gather together “His elect”, not before, and not in the middle of, but “immediately after the tribulation”, to whom and of whom is He speaking? It doesn’t require an academic degree in Greek to discern that Christ is speaking of “His elect” as those who by grace through faith are true born again believers of God in Christ. “His elect” are gathered in the resurrection rapture, not before the tribulation, nor at mid-trib but “immediately after the tribulation”. This isn’t hard folks. Thus, we all go through the tribulation!
But sadly, nearly all church leaders of these toxic and deceptive end-times tell believers they can disregard the words of Jesus at Matt. 24:29–31, and believe their pie-in-the-sky fantasy of Christ gathering “His elect” BEFORE the tribulation! If one has a discerning heart and ears to hear, you can hear the Serpent’s hiss in the entirety of the dispensational pre-trib rapture narrative saying, “Has God indeed said” (Gen. 3:1)? There’s a reason for leaders’ unbelief that’s so prevalent in the church. Satan knows that the inclination of the human heart is to believe the easiest way, the non-difficult way, and the way of least resistance. But Christ taught the exact opposite. “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matt. 7:13–14). [My emphasis] Indeed, the unbelief of church leaders is devastating as they’ve convinced the masses to believe them instead of Jesus Christ!
This has everything to do with Easter. God’s word tells us “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master” (Matt. 10:24). And, said Jesus “If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20). And “If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you” (John 15:18). We true believers are on the same “narrow and difficult” road Christ Jesus walked. What makes us think we will escape the tribulation when Jesus suffered tribulation to the death? What makes anyone in this end-time deceptively liberal and progressive church era think that we’re above suffering the tribulation or the sufferings of 1rst Century apostles who all lost their lives for Christ’s sake? Who do these end-time proud Christians think they are? Are they above the Master? Are they allowed to argue against His word? No! But the foolish think they’re entitled to have an easy, tribulation-free journey to the Paradise of God in Christ. But the truth is, they’ve utterly deceive themselves and don’t know it. Their unbelief is their own snare.
No, we look to the sufferings of Christ and all those faithful believers who have gone before us and count ourselves worthy of suffering the ungodly world’s rejection. The Spirit said “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Rom. 5:3–5). In these truths we have great reason to celebrate Easter, because as we see the sufferings of Christ we also see His glorious resurrection which will also be the glorious resurrection of “His elect”, “immediately after the tribulation”, “at the last day”, for Christ “must remain in heaven until the time comes for God to restore everything, as he promised long ago through his holy prophets” (Acts 3:21 NIV), then “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” (1 Thess. 4:16). Let us rejoice together daily in the spirit of Easter and holy resurrection remembrance.
My new book “ON EAGLES’ WINGS” explains in detail how to know Christ and find God’s Bozrah sheepfold of safety and place of provision for the last 1,260 days of the great tribulation.
Marlin J. Yoder
