Reason Three for a Pre-Tribulational Rapture
Do you remember when the Lord was on His way to judge the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah? Abraham was concerned about his nephew, Lot, who lived there. He approached the Lord and said, “Would You also destroy the righteous with the wicked? … far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Genesis 18:23, 25). Abraham understood it would not be consistent with the character of God to judge the righteous with the wicked.
If the Church is going to experience the Tribulation and suffer the wrath of God, then we have a problem because God would then be doing something that is totally inconsistent with His character, as seen throughout biblical history. Even when God judged Israel in ancient times, we find that God had mercy on the righteous, even during the time of judgment. Jeremiah prophesied to the coming of Nebuchadnezzar, and what happened when Nebuchadnezzar came? The wicked in the nation were judged, and the righteous were given grace. Jeremiah was taken and actually watched over by Nebuchadnezzar’s men. So, we see a pattern in history where God does not judge the righteous with the wicked. Therefore, there is no reason to think that His character has changed and that He would do something now that He has never done before.
The Tribulation Is the Judgment of God Upon a Sinful World
The Tribulation is the judgment of God upon a sinful world. Some people point to the persecution of Christians as proof that we will indeed suffer through the Tribulation. They claim that if believers in times past were fed to the lions and burned at the stake, why should we expect to escape the same fate? But what they forget is that at the root of persecution is Satan himself. He is its source. But at the root of the Great Tribulation is God Himself. And since God is the source, we would expect Him to be consistent with what we have seen Him do historically.