Ques. After the Lord removes the Church what will become of those who now refuse the truth? Will the Holy Spirit have to do with the earth after the Church is gone?
Ans. When the Lord has taken away His Church, those who have refused the truth will be given up to strong delusion, and there is no hope held out for their conversion (2 Thess. 2:10-1210And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. 11And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: 12That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. (2 Thessalonians 2:10‑12)). The Holy Spirit is not then dwelling in the Church on earth, as He is no longer here. But the Holy Spirit will act on earth, as He did before He came to glorify Christ, and to form the Church. An elect number of Israel will be sealed, and a vast multitude of the Gentiles saved (Rev. 7).
The Holy Spirit will no longer act, as now, in hindering lawlessness. It is terrible to think what will be the state of this world when all restraint on man's lawless nature is removed for a short time, and Satan, the dragon, takes the place of God, and leads his dupe, the man of sin, to do the same visibly. Strange to say, the word by which Satan is leading men on towards this awful slavery is called liberty. But we wait for the Son of God from heaven.
Ques. How can one know that he is really saved instead of having a mere head knowledge of the truths of salvation?
Ans. When the jailer inquired, "What must I do to be saved," the apostle at once gave him a Person to believe on-"Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." The soul thus, by faith, has to do with an ever-living Person, a Man in the glory of God, who is the Savior of sinners. It is not knowing doctrines merely, but, by the truth of God and the Spirit of God, brought to the Lord Jesus Christ; and thus approaching God through His blood, the soul knows, on the authority of the Word of God, that he has remission of sins, everlasting life, and is a child of God; so that the heart cries out in thanksgiving and praise to God.
Ques. Ought not believers to be greatly interested in gospel preaching, and to be present at such meetings? Some say they must be gathering spiritual food for themselves.
Ans. It is a sure sign of spiritual decline when believers fail or cease to have interest in gospel preaching. O, how sad to remain away, or murmur and complain, instead of coming, and helping with earnest prayer and expecting faith! It is a poor excuse to say they ought to be building themselves up, etc. Are Christians to be so selfish that they cannot spare two hours out of the week to seek the eternal salvation of others?
Come together for earnest prayer before the preaching of the gospel, then go out for a half hour and seek to bring souls to hear the gospel; and, "laying aside all malice, and all guile, and hypocrisies and envies, and all evil-speaking," look to the Lord to bless the word, whoever may be the speaker, whether that word may be to the unconverted, or the whole counsel of God to the whole flock.