“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints.” Psalm 116:15
We know from the book of Revelation there will come a time, when many of the tribulation believers will lose their lives for the sake of the gospel; for their faith in Jesus Christ. The 116th Psalm seems to give us a window in to this awesome time; a window into the heart of God and a window in to the hearts of those who put their trust in him.
The 116th Psalm opens with these words:
“I love the Lord for he heard my voice, he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live.” Psalm 116:1-2
The question is often asked, “will people be saved during the tribulation?” and the answer is “yes” – for it is for this very purpose that God has called out and anointed the 144,000, as well as the two witnesses. While many will harden their hearts and refuse to repent during this time, there will be many others, who will cry out to God for mercy and whose voices will be heard and whose cry will be answered. It may seem during this period of upheaval that God has forsaken his creation, but, the opposite is true, for the ear of God is always tuned toward the voice of the repentant sinner.
“The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was overcome by trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord: ‘O Lord, save me!'” Psalm 116:3-4
By the year 2016, the beast and the implementation of his mark will be in full swing. Those who receive the mark will have hardened their hearts (as Pharoah did) to the point of no return. But others, who have heard the message of the gospel and responded will see their faith rewarded with salvation – not to be confused with deliverance from their earthly woes, but, for salvation; and of that number, a great many will be called upon to give up their lives to receive a martyrs crown.
“The Lord is gracious and righteous, our God is full of compassion. The Lord protects the simplehearted, when I was in great need he saved me.” Psalm 116:5-6
It’s a child like faith that brings us to salvation. The haughty, the arrogant, the proud would rather cry out for the mountains to fall on them than for God to save them. But, to those who come to him in child like faith, who call on him in their time of need, God promises to reward with one of the sweetest promises in scripture; the promise of entering his rest.
“Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you.” Psalm 116: 7
Compare to Revelation 14:13, Psalm 116:8 and Revelation 17:7 –
“Then I heard a voice from heaven say, ‘Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them.” Revelation 14:13
“For you, O Lord have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling.” Psalm 116:8
“And God shall wipe away every tear from their eyes” Revelation 17:7
The tribulation saints, though missing out on the rapture will have the special distinction of joining those in heaven who have given their lives for the sake of the gospel. I have a feeling those folks will have a song or two that the rest of us just won’t know; all we’ll be able to do is just stand by and listen; and, what a beautiful song it will be!
“Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his saints!”
Jesus gave his life for us. He paid for us with his own blood! He took the third cup of Passover, the cup of Redemption and drank from it!
When Jesus sat at the Passover table that night, he lifted the cup and said,
“This is the blood of the covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” Matthew 26:28.
And, as they sat at the table they sang from the Egyptian Hallel,
“I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.” Psalm 116:13.
Literally, I will lift up the cup of Yeshua and call on the name of the Lord”
The year 2016, when we look back might well be called the year of the martyrs. How precious the days ahead and how great the grace of God. Thank you God for a view to the future that gives us hope and grace for the coming days.
“Pray for the peace of Jerusalem, they shall prosper who love thee” Psalm 122:6 Watching and waiting with YOU for the soon return of Jesus! Cindy
Heaven Bound 
Cindy, I have been visiting your site for over a year now, & I have been blessed by your posts in every way. The Holy Spirit is so present & reassuring in your posts. Thank you for your sincere walk with Him.
I look forward to meeting you at the feet of Jesus….Soon!
Beverly/Beecnu/Memphis,Tn.
[Hi Beverly, Thanks so much for writing and for your very sweet words. I reallly appreciate them. It always blesses me to meet new friends and I’m so glad you took the time to stop by. Until we see each other face to face, grace and blessings! Cindy]
By: Beverly Stegall on June 24, 2011
at 3:33 pm
Cindy,
I agree with what Beverly said. Thank you for sharing these precious nuggets through your posts. Your genuine sincerity and fellowship through your replies to comments has not gone unnoticed. May the Lord continue to lead and guide you each and every day.
In case you or anyone else is interested, here is a link to a document I put together in April for family and friends regarding these same Psalms and the soon return of Jesus.
http://www.filejumbo.com/Download/339B7990E8A40673
I’m also including a link to my testimony in regards to the Lord bringing me out of dangerous spiritual deception that had moved into the church my family had been a part of for five generations. If even one person is spared from this dangerous deceptive path, it will be worth all the tears and pain I have gone through.
http://www.filejumbo.com/Download/3CB99A46523753D7
God bless you!
[Thank you Coreen, your words of encouragement mean alot and I am happy to post your links, thank you for taking the time to share them with us, I look forward to reading them! May God richly bless you! C]
By: Coreen on June 25, 2011
at 12:11 am
I believe you are correct with this study. I tremble in fear for my adult son who has turned far from the Lord. My days are filled with dread at his fate!! I am so weary from all this. I want so badly for the Lord to get us outta’ here but so fearful for loved ones left behind!! God bless your ministry, Cindy by the Sea, and please pray for my son!! Diane
[Hi Diane, Thanks so much for writing and thanks for sharing with me about your son, I will pray for him as will many of the others who read this blog as well. I have unsaved family members as well and I have been praying for them desperately, especially my brother who is lost in mormonism. I was heartened though by my last study with the realization that many will be saved during the tribulation. Maybe in God’s grace and goodness our unsaved family and friends will be among that number. Please write again and let me know God is answering our prayers in regard to your son. Grace and blessings! Cindy]
By: Diane Belew on June 25, 2011
at 2:44 pm
Diane,
I will pray for your son. I understand your anguish as my husband is not saved, as well as other family members. I am greatly looking forward to Jesus’ soon return, yet at the same time I am so grieved for those who are not ready to meet Him. I’ve asked the Lord to please do whatever it takes to reach them before it’s too late and I am trusting in His goodness and faithfulness to me in this matter.
God Bless you.
[Praying with you too Coreen! It’s a hard thing sometimes to stand by and watch the choices people make, but, its not the end of the story – as long as we have breath to pray and our loved ones have breath to breathe, there is time for things to turn around. Keep me posted sister, you’re in my prayers! Cindy]
By: Coreen on June 25, 2011
at 7:30 pm
My sisters in Christ: I too will partner with you all in prayer, as it seems that we all have the same heartfelt pleas with our Father over loved ones. My husband is not saved either, and I worry about my son. So we will become prayer warriors together! I have come to understand through posts like these that our extreme joy in His coming is also overshadowed by the fears of so many lost…I too agree with Cindy as there is absolute hope for them during the tribulation. I know this much….when the rapture happens, anybody who knows me will definately KNOW it was the rapture that took me & not some ET’s!! Beverly/Memphis,TN
[Thank you Beverly for writing, you made me laugh with your ET reference, but, in actuality, its true – the world would never admit that old Mr. Camping (and others like him) might have been right about the rapture, even though they got the date wrong. “Beam me up Scotty” is not in my vocabulary, when, I leave this planet, I’m going to heaven – and, so are you! Praying with you and for you, please keep us posted! Much grace and blessings! C]
By: Beverly Stegall on June 27, 2011
at 3:46 am
Hi Sisters in Christ,
Please remember the power of a praying mother or spouse is very powerful, hence that attack on Christian families, so never be dispondent. The Lord will answer your prayers:-)! I watched as my brother come to Christ after nearly 47 years of rebelion. All you need to do is plant the seed and let God do the rest in His time.
Cindy, thank you for your posts:-)! I really enjoy them and take much from them. Keep up these joyful messages.
Your in Christ
jeri.
[Thanks, Jeri for writing and sharing the wonderful news about your brother. What a great answer to prayer and an encouragement to the rest of us to never give up! I’m so glad you took the time to write! Blessings! C]
By: Jeremy on June 27, 2011
at 11:48 am
Thanks to all of you for your words of encouragement and prayers. Cindy, I’ve been visiting your blog for well over a year but have only commented once in the past. I now realize that I’ve been missing out on sweet fellowship! God bless each one of you.
[Thank you Coreen! What a sweet thing to say! It is wonderful hearing from each one of you and I have a feeling that there are many, who may not write, but, none the less are joining with us in prayer. Thank you to each one of you. Grace and blessings! C]
By: Coreen on June 27, 2011
at 11:41 pm
Cindy, one more thing…
You, along with other bloggers, have been a great inspiration to me and I just want to let you know I have now joined ranks in an effort to reach out and encourage others while it is still day.
Feel free to stop by anytime.
http://thedayapproaching.wordpress.com/
God Bless!
[Congratulations Coreen! Welcome to the blogging world! I promise you, you will be blessed!!! I read your blog and I thought it was wonderful; you write very well and I am looking foward already to your next post. I have added it to my blogroll and I hope all of my readers will stop by to visit. Grace and blessings! Cindy]
By: Coreen on June 28, 2011
at 3:39 pm
Thank you Cindy. After losing all my friends from my former church, many whom I’d known and loved all my life, God has now healed my hurts from this and is giving me many new friends. I am overwhelmed at His faithfulness and goodness to me!
[Your welcome! And, yes,God is very good, he has poured out his love and faithfulness to me beyond measure – and making friends like you and all the others who read and share on my blog are part of that blessing!]
By: Coreen on June 30, 2011
at 2:50 am
Cindy,
I’ve been reading your posts for quite awhile now, and have loved every one of them. I also have studied the Psalms and truly believe that 111-117 depicts the 7 yr. tribulation. I have something to add and hope that one day you can do a little research to see if it means anything. It’s about the 7 churches in Revelation. I think they fit in order with the Psalms 111-117. Psalms 111-Church of Ephesus, Psalms 114- Church of Thayatira ( It mentions Jezebel, great tribulation, and put upon you no other burden ), Psalms 117-Church of Laodiceans ( after the whole 7 yrs. of tribulation, they were still luke-warm. ) Oh please do a post on these, I haven’t read anywhere about the Psalms and the 7 churches together. I feel the Holy Spirit was leading me to this study, I’ve never commented before, but this time was different.
God Bless
[Hi Kimberly, I’m so glad you took the time to write! I know its traditionally thought that the seven churches correspond with seven stages of church history but, as you pointed out, it may go deeper than that. I think it would be an excellent study and I will give some thought to it. Does anyone know if a study has been done on this? If so, we would love to hear about it. Thanks again for writing, Grace and blessings to you and your family! Cindy]
By: kimberly on June 30, 2011
at 1:46 am
Maybe we can all partner together to pray for revival….
http://theincrediblegift.blogspot.com/2011/06/revive-us-oh-lord.html
Blessings to you all,
Kim
[Great idea Kim! I think you have already started by the beautiful prayer on your web site. I’ve added you to my blog roll list and I encourage every one to visit your site, (not sure how I missed doing so earlier) but, we would love to join you in prayer for revival Kim, just lead the way! Grace and blessings! C]
By: Kim on June 30, 2011
at 2:58 am