I have been thinking a lot about Matthew 24:24 ” For false messiahs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.” Who are the “elect” and if it is us as followers of Christ does he mean that we will not be here for the deception by saying “if possible”.
In Matt. 24:24 Jesus was describing events of the Great Tribulation. We know this because He spoke of it’s beginning a few verses earlier in Matt. 24:15-21. Since Matt. 24-25 was written primarily to Israel, it’s likely the elect He referred to are Jewish believers who come to faith after the rapture of the Church.
In 2 Thes. 2:9 Paul said the anti-Christ will perform miracles, signs and wonders that will deceive those who are perishing, meaning unbelievers. Jesus was saying these miracles will be so convincing that if it was possible, even believers would be deceived. But they’ll will be given the discernment to realize his miracles are counterfeit, so they won’t be deceived.