Matthew 24:22  And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect’s sake those days shall be shortened.
23  Then if any man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not.
24  For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect.

Contrary to the lies of evolution, the world is only around 6,000 years old. It is not billions of years old. There is zero evidence to support the lies of evolution. Yet most people believe the lie of evolution, rather than looking at the perfect record of God’s Word.
Verse 22 is a very interesting verse. Jesus says that the days of the last 3 1/2 years will be shortened. In Revelation 8:12 we read:

Revelation 8:12  And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.

God is going to make life very difficult for the antichrist and for the world. The antichrist is going to have declared himself as god, but he will not be able to control the God of Creation. God tells us that He will affect the operation of the sun and the moon. He created them in the first place and He can alter their operation.
Thus when we go back to Matthew 24:22, God will shorten the days of the last half of the Tribulation. Those of us who are older talk of how time flies. Time will be flying in that time because the days will be shorter. It will seem like a long time for those who are fleeing. When a person is living in fear, time seems to stand still. However, Jesus stated that God will shorten that time to spare the lives of the elect.
In the context of Matthew 24, the elect refers to the nation of Israel. God could remove all the “elect” from this earth, but He is not going to do that. He could kill the antichrist immediately, but He is not going to do that. Keep in mind that God has already warned us that at the start of the Tribulation the man of sin will be brought on the scene. God is going to give the antichrist some opportunity to inflict great pain upon society.
In verse 23 we see a continued lying by people. Jesus warned that false Christ’s would arise during the last half of the Tribulation. People will be anxiously looking for some way to escape the terror of the last half of the Tribulation. There will be people who will wake up at that time and will realize that the antichrist is not that man of peace he promised to be. There will be people saved during the Tribulation and they will be looking for Jesus Christ to come and save them from the terror that the antichrist will be inflicting upon them.
In our time now, we have “elections” every so often and people hope they can change the course of a country or a province or a municipality or a school board, etc. Many people think they are actually changing the course of a country by checking a box. Few people look to God to change them and then they can actually have a right influence on others. Most of society is looking to government as their “saviour”. Christians would be wise to follow God’s command to pray for those in authority over us. God changes the heart of the king. We see that throughout the Bible.
The saved will know the true Christ. They will be saved. They will have access to the throne of grace to find help in time of need. They will have discernment and be able to pick out the lies being promoted. Jesus has already warned that deceivers will be there in the Tribulation. The antichrist will encourage deceivers to keep people from the truth.
Notice in verse 24 we see that these false prophets will be shewing signs and wonders. It is amazing to see how many people in our days have fallen for the lies of the Pentecostal/Charismatic movement. They have their signs and wonders. One of them is “tongues”. A very important principle to keep in mind when we deal with any Bible doctrine, is to look at where God first mentions something and then follow how God develops that doctrine. God spoke in Genesis 1. God communicated with Adam. Adam understood whatever that original language was.
In Genesis 10 God tells us three times that He divided the people into nations according to their tongues. Chapter 10 is a summary account that God gave further detail about in chapter 11.
Genesis 11 tells us that the entire world population was of one language up until that time. God stepped into the evil plans of man and confounded the language of man so that they could not longer communicate with one another. Tongues in the Bible is language. Yes, at times God talks of that human organ we have in our mouths.
The Charismatics suggest that “tongues” speaking is an evidence of the “baptism of the Holy Spirit”. They do not get that from the Bible, but rather from some experience they encountered in the early 1900’s. They claim to be following the New Testament pattern, but they have to skip “inconvenient” verses to make that claim. That is the same way many people look at Matthew 24&25. They come up with a theory and then claim it is based on these passages. However, they have to skip or modify certain portions to make it fit. Jesus warned us that the false prophets will shew signs and wonders. They will be able to deceive the deceivable.
Their signs and wonders will be so evil that the elect would be deceived if it were possible. God will protect His children from this deception. God gives His children discernment.
The good news that God gives us, is that He is capable of protecting His own children in the midst of trouble. Jesus gave these warnings to help the nation of Israel turn to Him. The sad fact is that Israel has rejected God’s truth over the centuries and is still in darkness today.
God did not design the Tribulation for saved people. He called it the time of Jacob’s trouble. It is the time that God will deal with the rebellion of Israel and when the remnant of Israel will be saved. The nation of Israel that is alive at the end of the Tribulation will be a saved nation. They will all recognize the Messiah and will grieve for their rebellion against Him. He will forgive them and they will enter the Millennium as a saved people who will experience His blessings in a wonderful way.
It is a foolish thing to reject God’s Word at any time and for any people. God loves man and He gives man the facts. He forewarns of trouble ahead. He knows what is coming. People are falling for the lies of the government, which has proven itself to be lying, and yet they will not pay attention to what God says. God has never been caught in a lie. He never will be.

Proverbs 29:25  The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.

Pastor Bartel