Vengeance

John 3:16-21

It is no longer in vogue to talk about God as a God of wrath, but the same Bible that tells us of God’s love for who so ever will, also states in the verses that follow John 3:16, these truths; “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.  And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.  (John 3:18-20)  To reject the offer in John 3:16 is a choice or as Jesus said two roads, one that is wide and leads to hell and the other is narrow and leads to life.  Hebrews 10:30-31, gives this warning; “For we know him who said, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay.”  And again, “The Lord will judge his people.”  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. (Hebrews 10:30)

As stated above, it is not in vogue to talk about a God of wrath, we want a God who is going to grade on a curve, not one that judges on pass if you accept the offer of His Son or fail if you choose not to.  It has taken awhile but I’ve come to this conclusion, many want a god they can understand, and they find him in many places, even in many churches that use the name of Christian.  I am not the only one who has thought such thoughts; “You can safely assume that you've created God in your own image when it turns out that God hates all the same people you do.” --Anne Lamott But is it kind to not share the truth if you know it to be true, is it not kind and merciful to tell fellow travelers that the bridge is out before they reach the point of no return, I think so.  If you are one who is looking for a god you can understand, how big a god is that god?

God is a loving Father to me, and I hope He is also to you, but if He is not, you must ask some questions: Why, is it because you want to make the rules about how you will live life?  If that is why you will not accept life on God’s terms, you have some big surprises in front of you, He is the Creator, and He makes the rules.  Now God often gets bad press, have you noticed that He is not well thought of in our government, in our educational system, in our press, and especially in the Hollywood crowd?  But that does not change this truth, “God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

So the question is the same for all, “the whoever,” bows a knee before God and receives this free gift with all it’s promises of life in the full, now through Jesus living His life in you, and at that moment you become an eternal being, or choose to follow the gods of deception and fall into the hands of an angry God; it is your choice.   But you must understand that the message is clear, Jesus did not come “into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice