Answer: Perhaps no erroneous doctrine has been more detrimental to the souls of God’s children, than that those who compose the church of God will have to pass through “the great tribulation.” Such a statement subverts God’s revelation of the church as the body and bride of Christ, reduces the heavenly people to Jewish associations, and robs them of the watching and waiting attitude for Christ to come at any time. Such, more or less, merge into a political view of the Lord’s coming by looking for events instead of Himself; in short, for antichrist instead of Christ. Thus, the affections, conscience, and hope of the soul become seriously damaged by it.
Nothing can be clearer in the Lord’s farewell address to His disciples before going to the Father, than that He left them by giving them the blessed expectation of soon seeing Him again. Between the coming of the Holy Spirit, and His return from heaven, He did not put a series of events to be fulfilled; so that we are told that the early Christians waited for God’s Son from heaven.
The part of Scripture that has been perverted to give a color to the doctrine is Matthew 24. But a brief glance at it will suffice to show that the “coming” referred to by the disciples in their questions to the Lord, was not His coming for us; but His coming to Jerusalem when we come with Him, and every eye shall see Him coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory (See Matt. 23:39; 24:339For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. (Matthew 23:39)
3And as he sat upon the mount of Olives, the disciples came unto him privately, saying, Tell us, when shall these things be? and what shall be the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world? (Matthew 24:3)). That those there mentioned who will go through the tribulation are “his elect,” is true enough, and a term applied by Isaiah to the blest remnant of the Jews: but the reference to “the sabbath day,” “Judea,” “fleeing to the mountains,” “flesh” saved, “the abomination spoken of by Daniel the prophet,” the “great tribulation such as was not... no, nor ever shall be,” also spoken of by the same prophet, its being preceded by the preaching of “the gospel of the kingdom of God,” not of the grace of God as now preached, and other points, clearly mark it out as the time of “Jacob’s trouble,” he will have to pass through and be brought out of; and “the hour of temptation,” coming upon all the world, from which the Lord promises to save us.
It is interesting to observe that when our Lord referred to His rejection by the Jews – Judah and Benjamin – He said, “I am come in My Father’s name and ye receive Me not; if another shall come in his own name (the antichrist) him ye will receive.” John 5:4343I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. (John 5:43).
This we know from other scriptures is how the unparalleled tribulation will be brought about, and in retributive justice, the very tribes which rejected the Messiah will go through it. The ten tribes will not be gathered together till after this, when the Lord actually comes out of heaven (Matt. 24:3131And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. (Matthew 24:31)).
Answer: If faith is real, God can see the desire in the believer’s heart to do His will. This comes from the new life he has in Christ, and produces good works.
In Ephesians 2:8, 98For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9Not of works, lest any man should boast. (Ephesians 2:8‑9), we see that the sinner who truly comes to the Lord to find a Saviour, gets the faith from God, and his works come from God, also. Notice that Paul stops the sinner from working for his salvation (Rom. 4:55But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. (Romans 4:5)). James starts the believer to work, because he is saved. Both are right. Good works accompany salvation (Heb. 6:9, 109But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak. 10For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labor of love, which ye have showed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister. (Hebrews 6:9‑10)), they are the fruit of it.