During the tribulation period, Israel will again be a focal point of God’s activity. Many Jews will be saved as a result of God’s dealings with them. This is part of God fulfilling His covenant promises to the Jewish people. God’s covenant promises to the Jewish people include salvation, restoration to their land, and the Lord Jesus Christ as their ruler. God grafted in the Gentiles when the Jewish people rejected the Messiah and the gospel message. God’s purpose in grafting in Gentiles includes making Jews jealous as He brings them to the point where they accept the Lord Jesus Christ as the Messiah. God has chosen a remnant among the physical descendants of Jacob. Spiritual blindness (for the most part) rests upon the Jews today because of their persistent disobedience and unbelief. God will remove the blindness from the Jew’s hearts and many will be saved during the tribulation period. At least 12,000 from each tribe of Israel will be saved. God is worthy of praise for the sovereign way He has worked among the Jews and Gentiles. Every person will, by one means or another, come to acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord. Some may voluntarily do so now by coming to Jesus in faith and receiving salvation. Some will be saved during the tribulation period. Others will have to later acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, but they will only receive condemnation, not salvation.
One of the greatest evangelism explosions the world has ever seen will take place during the tribulation period, as God continues to have His witnesses on earth even during those dark days. A great evangelistic outreach will be led by 144,000 saved Jews (12,000 from each tribe of Israel, according to Revelation 7:4-8). The 144,000 Jews are described as being redeemed and following the Lamb. The 144,000 Jews are able to learn a song that others on earth are unable to learn. The 144,000 are sealed in their foreheads to indicate God’s ownership. The message preached by the 144,000 witnesses will be the gospel of the kingdom, involving the same gospel message that is preached today, and additional emphasis on Jesus’ soon return to establish His earthly kingdom and the need to prepare for that event. People will have the opportunity to be saved during the tribulation period. People will be saved during the tribulation period (and only way) people are saved today—by God’s grace, through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The New Covenant will still be in effect at this time, since it is an everlasting covenant and promises salvation through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, based on His atoning work on the cross. A huge (innumerable!) group of people from every social, ethnic, and linguistic group will be saved during the tribulation period, largely through the commitment and effectiveness of the 144,000 Jewish witnesses.
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