The Last Roundup

Countless works have been written on the book of Revelation, and those written by people who see the Rapture as preceding the official launch of the seven-year Tribulation also see multitudes of people coming to faith in Christ during that seven-year period. These people are not part of the Church, and are often referred to as Tribulation saints.

Two of the clearest references to these people in John's vision in the book of Revelation would be (a) the martyred believers who start showing up in heaven during the fifth seal judgment (Rev. 6:9–11), and (b) those who are saved as a result of the evangelistic efforts of the 144,000 Jewish apostle Pauls that God unleashes on the post-Rapture world between the sixth and seventh seal judgments (Rev. 7:9–12).

Some commentators, however, see people continuing to be saved up until the bloody end of the Tribulation—all through the trumpet and bowl judgments and all the way up to the grand finale at Armageddon. These commentators have God continuing to pour out His mercy on people and draw them into the kingdom up until the final days of the Tribulation, since He is not willing that any should perish, but that all would come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4). In other words, they see no end to God's efforts to bring men to repentance, and they have a comparatively rosy view of God's grace and mercy in drawing people to Him all throughout the Tribulation.

I've been spending time recently in the book of Revelation, however, and I have come to see things differently...and the way I have come to see things is not quite so rosy.

I believe there is a point during the Tribulation when God's mercy is effectively stymied in regard to unbelievers, and no more are saved.

Now, don't misunderstand me. Yes, legions of people who are saved during the Tribulation (including the Jewish remnant) will survive until the end and be ushered alive into the Millennial Kingdom. But I am convinced that there is in fact a point in time during the Tribulation after which no more people will come to faith in Christ. Prior to that point of no return, however, there will be a final phase in the harvest of souls who will populate the kingdom.

It's the last roundup.

In this article, I want to lay out from Scripture why I am convinced of this, as well as touch on a few related items along the way.

Who is able to stand?

First, let's get up to speed on what is transpiring during the early part of the Tribulation, up through the first six seals judgments.

In Revelation 6, we see the Lamb (Jesus) ready to open the seals on the scroll that He has just taken from the Father's hand, and He begins to open the seals one by one. In so doing, He begins to unleash divine judgment on a world that has rejected divine grace and mercy.

The Tribulation begins, and the first six seal judgments proceed as follows:

1. The first seal—the rider on a white horse.

This is the man who will be revealed as the Antichrist going out "conquering and to conquer." This is his rise to world power.

2. The second seal—the rider on a red horse.

In the process, wars will break out.

3. The third seal—the rider on a black horse.

There will be great famine and deprivation.

4. The fourth seal—the rider on a pale horse.

There will be huge numbers of deaths from all of the above, plus pestilences and wild beasts.

5. The fifth seal—the martyrdom of multitudes of believers.

Legions of believers will be martyred. This is the "first wave," as it were, of people who get saved during the Tribulation. And as we shall see, the fruit of the 144,000 come a bit later, and represent the second such wave.

Guess they were right: This first wave of believers will get rolling within minutes of the Rapture, and will continue to grow throughout the early part of the Tribulation.

No? Consider: There are literally millions of people, mostly in America, who have attended church for years, heard the gospel many times, and even sat under competent end-times teaching. And yet they remain unsaved.

They never let it in—it's been a lifestyle, an intellectual exercise. They understand the gospel, and they know about the Rapture, the Tribulation, the Second Coming, and so forth. But they have never responded to the Holy Spirit's wooing, and remain spiritually unregenerate.

When the Rapture occurs, they will be shocked to their core. In a flash, they will know the others were right, they will know they missed it, and they will know exactly what to do—and I have no doubt there will be huge numbers of sobbing conversions starting within minutes of the Rapture.

6. The sixth seal—a great earthquake and cosmological disturbances.

A great earthquake rocks the world, the sun is darkened, the moon turns to blood, and the stars of the heavens fall to earth. Note that this is the first judgment that is not the direct result of the actions of men: The Antichrist is a man who rises to power, men routinely start wars, wars routinely give rise to famines, these routinely cause widespread disease and death, and it's certainly men who are executing believers. Men men men men men.

But the sixth seal is different. Now it's the earth and the heavens (and the Creator thereof) that are involved. This is something utterly beyond man's control, and as a result God now has man's undivided attention:

Notice that following the sixth seal—the world's first taste of good old-fashioned wrath o' God stuff, John gives us a brief commentary concerning the reaction of the people of the world:

"Yikes! Let's get outta here! The wrath of a sovereign God is falling on us, and who on earth can survive this?! Oh, woe is us!"

Note that man acknowledges that it is indeed the wrath of a sovereign God they are experiencing ("him who sits on the throne"). Now, many good commentators use the above passage to argue that it is God's wrath that man has been experiencing all along in order to dismantle the arguments of pre-wrath advocates, who try to make this out to be the wrath of man, the wrath of Satan, the wrath of the Antichrist, the wrath of the Bogeyman, or whatever, with the wrath of God coming late in the Tribulation. This provides them ammunition with which to slay the hated pre-trib Rapture, and manufacture support for the pre-wrath Rapture.

Well, I have some bad news for those pre-wrath individuals: It is the Lamb who opens every single seal, which contain every single judgment that falls during the entire Tribulation—and the Lamb is the Son of God. The Greek grammar of the phrase "the great day of his wrath has come" in verse 17 above clearly supports the fact that the wrath has already started before the sixth seal, and the only logical conclusion we are left with is that God's wrath begins with the very first seal. It's all God's wrath from start to finish, even though He uses other agencies to carry out parts of it. That's God's MO—if you doubt what I say, just read the Old Testament some time.

But there is something important in the above passage that I want you to notice that most commentators slide right by.

Yes, they acknowledge that God's wrath is falling, but note the tone of their acknowledgement. This is a subtlety that the Holy Spirit drew my attention to recently, and I don't want you to miss this.

The tone smacks of contrition, not contempt;
remorse, not rebellion; humility, not impenitence.

Men are filled with fear, and run for their lives. They openly acknowledge they are being judged by a sovereign God and that no one can withstand the wrath and judgment of this omnipotent Creator.

And hearts in such a condition are fertile ground for the gospel.

Please don't miss this. We all know that salvation is a wonderful gift from God, but don't overlook one thing. Before any person can be prepared to truly believe the gospel and be born again, they must tacitly acknowledge, at the very least, three fundamental truths:

a. God exists.
b. Their sin has separated them from God.
c. God's judgment awaits those who reject His grace and mercy.

Now, (a) is pretty much a given. People who staunchly refuse to so much as acknowledge God's existence as Creator fall into the Romans 1:18–32 category of being given over to a reprobate mind. And (b) and (c) are basically part of the Holy Spirit's job during the Church Age (which ends at the Rapture, but still...all of the people in question will have grown up in it): to convict the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment:

Anyone who fails to grasp any one of these three items is not in a position to fully grasp the essence of the gospel message—that Christ died to take the penalty for our sin that has separated us from God, and that we can be forgiven and eternally reconciled to Him through belief in faith in Christ's work of atonement, and as a result escape His judgment for our sin.

My point is that the people hiding in caves in Revelation 6:15–17 appear to come pretty close to meeting these fundamental criteria, and exposure to a little bit of good, solid preaching would fill in whatever gaps remain.

After the initial wave of people come to faith in Christ during the opening seal judgments, many of whom are martyred during the fifth seal, there is another wave of people who get saved later during the Tribulation, and it comes as a result of what occurs after the sixth seal judgment. And it should surprise no one that this second wave will almost certainly include many of these same individuals hiding in caves.

Scripture makes it clear their hearts are in the right place.

Say hello to the 144,000

Speaking of good, solid preaching...people in the post-Rapture world are going to get an earful from 144,000 apostle Pauls that God will seal and unleash in what will be the most aggressive evangelistic drive the world has ever seen. These converted Jewish men will take the message of the gospel to every corner of the globe, and the results of their efforts will similarly be the greatest harvest of souls the world has ever seen.

These 144,000 Jewish men will be given divine protection to complete their mission, and we are introduced to them right after the sixth seal judgment:

So chapter 6 ends with the sixth seal judgment that has men hiding in caves because they know the wrath of the Lamb has come, and chapter 7 starts with God sealing 12,000 Jewish men from each of the 12 tribes of Israel to take the gospel to the world. And immediately after that, we see the results:

Impeccable timing: As soon as God softens the world up with its first real taste of His wrath in the sixth seal, He immediately launches the greatest wave of evangelism the world has ever seen.

One key point to notice is that there is an obvious pause prior to the opening of the seventh and final seal, which contains all the remaining judgments—all the trumpets and all the bowls.

Now, I hesitate to guess how long the first six seal judgments could take, but I don't see any reason why they couldn't be opened over the course of a couple of years, maybe even as little as a year (possibly even less). Although their effects will arguably be felt for the rest of the Tribulation, since most of them are sequentially linked (conquering > war > famine > pestilence and death), I don't see why they couldn't be officially "opened" in a fairly short span of time. And since I believe the seventh seal isn't opened until around the midpoint of the Tribulation, it seems we have a clear gap of what could conceivably be a couple of years between the sixth and seventh seals that I believe God has ordained for the purpose of bringing in that one last big influx of souls into the kingdom thanks to the efforts of the 144,000. In other words, between the sixth and seventh seals...

It's time for the last roundup.

Silence is golden?

As the title of the article would suggest, one of the main points I want to discuss has to do with the fact that I believe this huge wave of people getting saved as a result of the evangelistic outreach of the 144,000 between the sixth and seventh seals comprises the last people who get saved during the Tribulation. And one clue that leads me to believe this lies in the words of the opening verse of chapter 8:

The seventh seal is opened, there is silence in heaven for half an hour, and then the trumpet judgments get underway.

I have heard all manner of interpretations for this peculiar 30 minutes of silence in heaven, with the majority of them centered around the idea that everyone in heaven is waiting in a breathless hush to witness the awesome trumpet and bowl judgments that God is about to unleash on those who dwell upon the earth.

And hey, that could well be true—I'm not saying such interpretations are wrong. The idea does makes sense.

Now, I tend to be a bit gun-shy whenever I put forth an idea that I have never heard anyone else teach before; but this little gem the Holy Spirit pointed out to me is undeniable, and it is simply this:

Heaven is not silent when sinners repent.

On the contrary. Jesus tells us as much in the Parable of the Lost Coin:

Some English translations say "rejoicing." There is rejoicing in the presence of angels when one person trusts Christ for their salvation.

Hey, Joe got saved! WOO HOO! Notice that it doesn't expressly say the angels themselves are rejoicing (although they may be)—it says there is rejoicing in the presence of angels. That tells me there are others rejoicing while the angels are present. Well, who do you think those "others" might be? Easy: friends and relatives of that person, who are thrilled out of their socks that good ol' Joe finally got saved and has escaped an eternity of suffering and torment in a place meant for Satan and his angels, and will now join them in heaven some fine day for an eternity of joy-filled bliss. Now that's worth celebrating, and I believe it is the angels who have come to share with them this joyous news update.

Now, I am hard-pressed to think of a situation where rejoicing is silent. It's a little bit tough for me to imagine the women in the above parable coming over to their friend's house and hearing their friend whisper:

"Psssst...girls, look!! I found my silver coin!! Shhhhh...hold it down!!"

Yeah, right. So, the point is that if there is silence in heaven for any period of time, that means there is no rejoicing in the presence of any angels over any sinners repenting. Zip. Zero. Nada.

So whatever other theories anyone has about this half an hour of silence, if nothing else I can state with scriptural certainty that it is a brief period of time during which nary a single person repents of their sin and is saved.

This silence is definitely not golden.

Now, heaven doesn't stay silent for long. Note that the term "half an hour" may not be literal—it may just be intended to simply convey a relatively brief span of time, and then the noise and activity pick up again. But does that mean more people are saved after this brief period of silence that occurs at the opening of the seventh seal judgment?

Let's ask the angel.

The eternal gospel

First, a quick overview of events that will take us up to the seventh trumpet.

After the last roundup thanks to the efforts of the 144,000, the seventh seal is opened in Revelation 8:1 and the half an hour of silence transpires. Now it's time for the trumpet judgments.

Just as the first four seal judgments could be thought of as a package deal in the sense that they are sequential man-made disasters, the first four trumpet judgments (Rev. 8:6–13) similarly form a package deal in the sense that they are all apparently the result of a single terrifying cosmic event—and that terrifying cosmic event has "asteroid strike" written all over it. It's extraordinarily hard to view it any other way. And who knows...maybe that's why everyone in heaven is in a breathless hush—they see this asteroid hurtling towards Earth.

The earth-dwellers: While preparing to write this article I noticed a detail that struck me as significant, and it lends some support to my premise that no more people are saved after the opening of the seventh seal.

The phrase "those who dwell upon the earth" is sprinkled liberally throughout the book of Revelation, and it is invariably used to refer to those who suffer God's wrath and judgment—it never refers believers.

This phrase is used the first time in chapter 3, in a verse that contains a promise to believers that strongly supports the pre-trib Rapture:

But here it is being used in a forward-looking sense, talking about what is going to happen during Daniel's 70th Week in the future.

After that, the phrase is not used again until chapter 8, after the first four trumpet judgments have fallen:

So, as the Tribulation begins in chapter 6, the people of the world are never referred to as "those who dwell upon the earth" until after the seventh seal is opened and the trumpet judgments get underway.

And why is that significant? I believe it suggests that from the time the Tribulation begins until the opening of the seventh seal, the population of the world still includes millions of people who are going to respond to the gospel message and come to faith in Christ. But after the opening of the seventh seal, the trumpet judgments find no more such people. After the seventh seal is opened, no one repents. Now unbelievers are "those who dwell upon the earth," and they all suffer God's wrath and judgment.

At the fifth trumpet (Rev. 9:1–12), hordes of demonic "locusts" are released to torment men for five months—all except those with God's seal on their foreheads, that is. That would be the 144,000, who are still around for the first six trumpet judgments and are still protected by God.

The sixth trumpet (Rev. 9:13–19) sees four powerful demons released from the Euphrates river, and they lead an army of 200 million demonic creatures that slay one-third of mankind.

You're in the army now: Some commentators think this is a literal army of 200 million human soldiers, and invariably point to China as being the only country capable of fielding such a force. A majority of commentators, however, believe they are demonic beings, and I for one agree. Talk about dogface soldiers...read the description of these creatures in Revelation 9:13–19 and tell me this is a human army—of any nation.

Incidentally, recall how John includes a brief commentary on the response of men following the sixth seal judgment, and that response is characterized by contrition. As a result, I have little doubt that many of those people who are hiding in caves after the sixth seal are among those who get saved as a result of the preaching of the 144,000 that are sent out shortly after that.

But John also includes a brief commentary on the response of men following the sixth trumpet judgment, and the difference is stark, to say the least:

No repentance. No contrition. No remorse.
Nothing but the hatred of God and the love of sin.

Not one of these people is inclined to repent, and it is clear that not one of them will be saved.

After the sixth trumpet, there is a bit of an interlude and several things are described in the text of Revelation, including seven thunders that say things that John is instructed not to write down, an angel with a small scroll that John is instructed to eat, and the two witnesses who are killed and resurrected. At the end of chapter 11, the seventh trumpet is sounded.

After the seventh trumpet is sounded (which introduces the bowl judgments that don't actually appear until chapter 15), John digresses a bit and fills us in on a few items. In chapter 12, he describes his two great visions of the woman about to give birth and the dragon ready to pounce, and of the male child who is caught up to heaven. He also describes war in heaven and Satan being cast down to the earth, and the Jewish remnant escaping into the wilderness where they are protected from the forces of the Antichrist.

In chapter 13, we are introduced to the two beasts—the Antichrist and the False Prophet. We see the image of the beast being placed in the holy place in the temple at the abomination of desolation, as well as the institution of the mark of the beast.

Then in chapter 14, we see the 144,000 in heaven because they have been martyred. Their efforts led to the second big wave of people getting saved between the sixth and seventh seals, and they have apparently survived through the first six trumpet judgments.

Paul the prototype: I believe the 144,000 will be martyred, and they will be martyred by being beheaded. One reason I believe so is because that's exactly what happened to the apostle Paul, who was a foreshadowing of the 144,000. I have written about this before, but I believe Paul is the prototype for the 144,000 Jewish men who are sealed and sent out to evangelize the world, and I believe they will meet the same fate as their first-century predecessor, who was beheaded by the Romans.

I might also add that I believe when the 144,000 are sealed by God and sent out, they are sent first and foremost to the house of Israel. I believe they are the vehicle God uses to bring the Jewish remnant to faith in addition to multitudes from among the Gentile nations, and one reason I say that is, again, because of our prototype Paul.

Note that Paul was God's "chosen vessel" to take the gospel to both the Jews and the Gentiles (Acts 9:15). When Paul was dramatically converted on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1–9), he was blind for the next three days. After recuperating from his vision, the very first thing he did was march right into the nearest synagogue and start boldly proclaiming Christ and Him crucified to the Jews, who promptly tried to kill him (Acts 9:20–25).

In like manner, I believe the 144,000 will go to the Jews first, focus on bringing in the Jewish remant, and then branch out to the Gentile nations. But I still believe that all those who are saved during the Tribulation, be they Jew or Gentile, will be saved before the seventh seal is opened.

Now, precisely how all these "interlude" items John mentions fit into the overall scheme of the Tribulation is not made 100 percent clear, and is open to speculation. God hasn't revealed to us how all the pieces fit together with a high degree of precision, and I won't get into that because it isn't critical to the current discussion.

Continuing in chapter 14, we have a sequence of three angels who fly through the sky: one who preaches the "eternal gospel" to those who dwell upon the earth, one who announces that Babylon has fallen, and one who announces that anyone who takes the mark of the beast is doomed. As we get to the end of chapter 14, the grape harvest is ready to begin and in chapter 15 the bowl judgments are unleashed in the grand finale.

If they haven't, they will: Notice that the third angel announces that whoever takes the mark of the beast will suffer God's wrath:

Some believe this indicates that there are still unsaved people on earth who will repent, refuse to take the mark, and be saved—but I disagree. I don't think this passage necessarily needs to be interpreted that way. Now, at this point there may be some people who have not yet taken the mark, but there is no mention of any of them repenting and being saved. I believe if there are any unbelievers who have not taken the mark at this point, they soon will—if they don't perish before they get a chance to do so, that is. I tend to think the angel is merely informing those who dwell upon the earth the real deal concerning the mark, but their hardened hearts won't listen.

Now that we have a brief outline of events, I want to take a closer look at the first angel that comes flying through the sky and what he has to say in chapter 14.

My contention is that no more people are saved after the opening of the seventh seal judgment, which follows the last roundup by the 144,000. As I have already discussed, one reason I believe so is related to the quizzical 30 minutes of silence in heaven that occurs at the opening of the seventh seal, following the last roundup. But there's more.

For one thing, note that following the description of the harvest of souls who are brought into the kingdom as a result of the preaching of the 144,000 in Revelation 7:9–12 prior to the opening of the seventh seal, there is no mention in Scripture of any more people being saved—martyred or otherwise—during the Tribulation.

After the seventh seal is opened, nothing is said about anyone getting saved for the remainder of the Tribulation. Not sure about you, but I find that striking as well as telling.

That's what it's all about: Think about it. Bringing men to repentance and salvation is the entire point—it is the very heart and soul of God's plan for mankind, and it is heralded and celebrated all throughout Scripture. It's certainly not something that would ever be ignored, taken for granted, or omitted as an insignificant detail anywhere in God's Word.

Wait, what's that I hear? Ah yes, the voice of a critic:

"Hold it right there, Bible Dude. If you're right about this 'last roundup' deal, then why are those 144,000 Jewish dudes still on earth after their big roundup thing between the sixth and seventh seals is over and done with? Now you're saying they're all still around for the first six trumpet judgments, and that means they're still out there preaching and gettin' folks saved, ain't they? So much for your little theory, huh?"

My, how scripturally astute of you. But just because the 144,000 are still on earth doesn't mean anyone is responding to their message and coming to faith in Christ. Many people forget that there are two sides to the gospel coin. The message of the gospel not only serves as Good News for the hearers who let it penetrate their hearts, but it serves as Bad News for those who don't. The gospel message—the message of God's grace and mercy for sinful man—also serves as a witness against those who reject that grace and mercy:

For example, Noah preached righteousness for many years, and Scripture contains no record of a single person repenting. His preaching fell on deaf ears and served as a witness against the people of his day—and they all perished. The 144,000 may well continue to preach all the way through the first six trumpet judgments, and not another single person repents after the seventh seal is opened (actually, it's theoretically possible some or all of the 144,000 are martyred a bit earlier, but the fact that they are in heaven isn't mentioned until after the sixth trumpet). Everyone who is going to be saved already is, and all the remaining unsaved have so hardened their hearts that they will never respond to the Holy Spirit. It's game over.

The bottom line is that if there were more people repenting and getting saved following the last roundup by the 144,000, Scripture would certainly mention them. But God's Word is silent on the issue—and it is a profoundly important issue that God's Word is never silent about.

But back to the first angel—let's take a look at he has to say:

This angel is flying around the world, preaching the "everlasting gospel" to those who dwell on the earth. But notice the message this first angel is preaching, at least as the Holy Spirit has John summarize it:

Fear God. Glorify God. Worship God.
He is the Creator and He is about to judge you.

Ooo-kay. Uh, forgive me for saying so, but this doesn't quite come across as a "come to Jesus" moment, you know what I'm saying? Sorry, but I'm just not hearing anyone singing "Just As I Am" in the background here.

"Well, yeah...but it says the angel is preaching the 'everlasting gospel,' so it must be an appeal to trust Christ for one's salvation, right? I mean, that's what preaching the gospel is all about, isn't it?"

I'm sure a lot of people would like to think so. But this sent me to my favorite Bible website to have a fresh look at the definition of the Greek word euaggelion (lit. "good news"), which is the word translated as "gospel" all throughout the New Testament.

Now, before I say anything else, let me emphasize one thing:

There is only one gospel.

But there are different aspects of it that can be emphasized. The word euaggelion can be said to refer to:

In other words, the gospel or "good news" concerns the coming kingdom that God is preparing to establish on earth, and that will be ruled by His Son the Messiah. This is the aspect that is typically emphasized when the word euaggelion is used in the Gospels, since the integral roles played by the Crucifixion and Resurrection were yet future at the time. That's why you so often see it referred to as "the gospel of the kingdom" in the Gospels.

Of course, after Christ's earthly ministry, this "good news" came to include the aspect of Christ's finished work of atonement for the forgiveness of sin, and man's need to believe in faith in that work of atonement in order to be forgiven of sin, eternally reconciled to God, and to ultimately participate in the kingdom God will establish.

I think that's what's happening here. In this case, the first angel is proclaiming the "eternal gospel" ("eternal" because it has never changed and never will) and emphasizing the fact that God is about to establish His kingdom. However, that requires judgment to be carried out first—and that's about to happen. So instead of a familiar New Testament salvation appeal, this angel is essentially telling those who dwell upon the earth the "good news" that God is about to release the judgment that must precede the establishment of His kingdom. Well, maybe not "good news" for them.

The angel tells people to fear, glorify, and worship God as the Creator, and the suggestion is that they are about to be judged because they have staunchly refused to do so. So when the final round of God's judgment falls in the form of the bowl judgments, those who dwell upon the earth will know exactly why they are being judged and they will be without excuse.

Bottom line: There's no altar call here.

And there is zero indication that a single person responds to the angel's message and repents. Not one.

Many people interpret the word "gospel" here as if it were the usual New Testament appeal for belief in faith in Christ's work of atonement for the forgiveness of sin, and that surely there are people on earth responding to that appeal and getting saved.

But for the reasons I have discussed, I just don't see that happening.

Get in the barn

For real cowboys, there are two annual roundups: one in the spring and one in the fall. The "last roundup" would be in the fall, when ranch hands gather up hundreds or even thousands of head of cattle scattered across many square miles of land into one large herd so they can be driven from their summer pastures to their winter home, where they can chill out in barns or in pens (in the spring, it's the reverse). It can take up to a week to gather all the individual animals together, plus there is always a lot of other work that needs to be done—marking calves, branding cattle, mending fences, you name it.

I'm sure many ranch hands or anyone who has a few cows on their farm wishes they could just holler "Get in the barn," and watch as the cattle obediently gather themselves together and lumber into shelter. But it's not that easy—it takes a whole lotta work and a whole lotta "yippie-ki-yay."

Now, I'm not quite sure how "yippie-ki-yay" translates into Hebrew, but the 144,000 Jewish evangelists are the ranch hands that bring together this last roundup of people into the kingdom.

But you don't want to be part of that herd, oh no.

Just like cattle, many of these people will be slaughtered, but certainly not for prime rib. They will be slaughtered for the word of their testimony. They will be slaughtered for maintaining a faithful witness of Christ and Him crucified for the remission of sin.

But people who are saved today, who believe in Christ's work of atonement today, who trust Christ for their salvation today won't be part of either of these two roundups we've discussed, either the first that begins immediately after the Rapture or the last that comes via the 144,000.

We're already in the barn, home and dry, contentedly feeding on the hay of the Word. And we are all set to be rounded up by the Master Rancher for the final cattle drive to our eternal pasture in heaven. And as we wait, we point the way and call out to others:

"Get in the barn!"

But I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to Jesus descending from heaven with a shout of "Yippie-ki-yay!"

Greg Lauer — JUL '21

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