This is part four in a series of articles examining pretribulationist arguments concerning the church in the book of Revelation as put forth by Dr. Robert Gromacki.

"Whoever has Ears to Hear..."

Dr. Gromacki observes the following:

All seven letters to the churches end with this admonition by Christ: ‘He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.’ (NKJv) Each individual person in each individual local church was to hear and apply the truth that Christ gave to all of the local churches. For example, a believer in the church at Ephesus could profit spiritually from what the Savior said to the churches at Pergamos or at Philadelphia.

Gromacki goes on to point out an apparent inconsistency in the use of this terminology after the rise of the Antichrist:

[In Revelation 13:8] John recorded this truth about him: ‘All who dwell on the earth will worship him, whose names have not been written in the Book of Life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world’... At this point, John records the warning: ‘if anyone has an ear, let him hear’ (13:9). Period! There is no mention of “saying to the churches,” a phrase which is repeated seven times in the seven letters. If the previously mentioned churches (Rev. 1-3) could possibly be in the seven-year period to face the wrath of the beast, then why wasn’t the admonition addressed to them? The obvious answer is that they won’t be on earth at that time. There is mention of “saints” in the context (13:7,10). These saints, however, are those who get saved during the seven years after the true church has been taken into heaven.

As you can see, Gromacki insists that the saints who are referenced in Revelation 13 are not of the church but belong to a separate class of individuals who will become believers during the Great Tribulation. He states this as if it were an indisputable fact, but in reality it’s an assumption. Gromacki considers a pre-tribulation rapture of the church to be a fact; therefore, he must account for the presence of saints on the earth following the rapture. The only way to do so is to invent a new category of believers: hence, “tribulation saints.” As I’ve already pointed out, however, the term “saints” is applied to believers of the church throughout the New Testament and is carried over, without qualification, into the book of Revelation. Why should we assume that it must mean something entirely different in Revelation than it means everywhere else it’s used in the New Testament? Gromacki isn’t proving anything here; he’s simply restating his assumptions.

Remember what we have already seen in regard to how the structure of the book of Revelation changes between chapters 3 and 22. The churches are directly addressed as local congregations in chapters 2 and 3, whereas “the saints” (the holy, consecrated ones) are mentioned afterward because believers will not overcome the Antichrist as local congregations but as individuals, and it is clear that not all of those in the seven churches were holy, consecrated, and ready to be overcomers. Indeed, it is unlikely that church congregations will even be able to assemble once persecution begins in earnest and some believers turn on others, as Jesus warned us they will (Matthew 24:9-11).

Now let’s go back and look at Revelation 13:9 in context:

“It was also given to him [the Beast] to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him. All who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain. If anyone has an ear, let him hear. If anyone is destined for captivity, to captivity he goes; if anyone kills with the sword, with the sword he must be killed. Here is the perseverance and the faith of the saints.” – Revelation 13:7, 9-10

I think it likely that this admonition may not apply solely to the saints—those who already know the Lord; it may also be an admonition to those who are coming to faith at the time, letting them know that they will be expected to stand firm against the Beast in Christ’s service. This idea is supported by the angelic messages we see in the very next chapter.

“And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, ‘Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.” – Revelation 14:6-7

A second angel follows, proclaiming the fall of “Babylon the great,” and then a third angel comes bearing this message:

“Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day or night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.’ Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.” – Revelation 14:9-12

Note how John tells us that the first angel is preaching the gospel message to all of mankind with a loud voice. Two more angels then follow, also making proclamations—the third with a loud voice, just like the first. The audience does not appear to change between these angelic proclamations. Note also how the proclamation of the third angel is so similar in its content to what we see in Revelation 13, including how it ends in such a similar manner:

“Here is the perseverance and the faith of the saints.” – Revelation 13:10

“Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.” – Revelation 14:12

Both passages are painting the same picture: The Beast will be given power to make war on God’s people and will kill many of them. He will rule over all who accept his mark and worship his image, and anyone inclined to do so is warned that they will suffer the wrath of God in its full fury. The saints, on the other hand, must keep their faith in Christ and obey the commandments of God even to the point of death. These are general proclamations to all of mankind, but only those “with ears to hear” will receive them.

As you think on this, reflect on how Christ taught the multitudes during his ministry. While he taught all who came to him, he knew that not all would keep and apply his teachings, which is why he continually said, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Those who truly “hear” are those who take heed to what Christ has to say and continually put it into practice. These individuals constitute the “good soil” described in the Parable of the Sower:

“But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.” – Luke 8:15

In Revelation, as in the gospels, the warnings and admonitions are a type of seed being sown with the good soil in mind, as it is only the good soil that will benefit the kingdom, bearing fruit “with perseverance.”

The warning concerning perseverance is also consistent with Christ’s admonition that anyone who wants to come to him must “count the cost” of discipleship:

Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. For which one of you, when he wants to build a tower, does not first sit down and calculate the cost to see if he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who observe it begin to ridicule him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, when he sets out to meet another king in battle, will not first sit down and consider whether he is strong enough with ten thousand men to encounter the one coming against him with twenty thousand? – Luke 14:27-31

As a dispensational pretribulationist, Dr. Gromacki believes that the church will already be complete by the time the Great Tribulation begins, but posttribulationists believe that the church will continue to be built right up until the second coming and that all saints are part of the same bride of the Lamb. The term “church” is translated from the Greek word ekklesia, meaning “a called-out assembly.” Here, in Revelation chapters 13 and 14,[1] we see that the “calling out” continues, and on the same basis as it has since Christ first began building his church: with an appeal to those “who have ears to hear” to heed his word and continue in it to the end, even upon pain of death. In Revelation chapter 6, we see a great multitude that is said to have come out of the Great Tribulation and is described in terms that are very much in line with the promises made to the churches in chapters 2 and 3.

Only by reading doctrinal assumptions into scripture can one justify separating these so-called “tribulation saints” from the called-out assembly of Jesus Christ.

* All scriptures are taken from the NASB.

[1] Also see Revelation 18:4 – “I heard another voice from heaven, saying, ‘Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues.’”

Robert Hawes is the author of "In Search of God: A Look at Life's Most Essential Question," as well as many articles on various subjects ranging from politics to theology and Christian apologetics. His blog is: http://takeupyourcross73.blogspot.com.