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God’s Wrath
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We are all familiar with anger. It is an emotional reaction we get when we are hurt or something we didn’t expect surprises us. We are cautioned to manage our anger (Eph 4:26) and not let the power of the emotion cause us to sin. The bible tells us that God has emotional responses as well (Num 22:22, Jud 2:12, 1 Kings 3:10). Ancient people often had an exaggerated sense of the anger of the “gods” when they attributed famines, floods, earthquakes, and other disasters to what they thought were capricious and even petty acts of their “gods”. The God of the bible may feel anger, but his actions are deliberative. He did exterminate the population of earth except for eight people not for the anger and disappointment he felt, but rather to “reset” the trajectory of humans so that he might be able to find some that were salvageable. We were created for God’s pleasure (Rev 4:11). However, our free will is often used to destroy ourselves with selfish indulgences. God personifies selflessness and love (light). He seeks those of his creation that will set aside selfishness (darkness) and seek to walk in light. God chose Israel to be a nation that would represent him on earth. He was often angry at their almost continual rebellion against him. However, his anger was deliberative and corrective. He had the nation taken captive for seventy years in Babylon which finally stopped their idolatry. In the book of Hebrews God is described as chastening those he loves. In conjunction with the references to “refining” in the Old Testament, a picture emerges of God working with the nation of Israel to bring them to fulfill their purpose. Those in the body of Christ do not seem to be “chastened” as our maturity or lack seems to lie in our own hands. There will come a point when the age of the gentiles ends (Rom 11:25, Luke 21:24). God allows an accumulation of sin debt (Gen 15:16). There will be an end to the present age of grace (Zep 1:18). At that time the accumulated wrath of God will be poured out on the earth as described in the book of Revelation. The purpose of this wrath is to cleanse the earth of the evil that has been allowed to run rampant. Wrath seems more applicable to nations. As individuals, those whose sins are not covered by the blood of Christ will be judged according to their works. The torment of the rich man described in Luke 16 seems to be before any judgment. It may be that those who held the truth in unrighteousness experience this in order to bring them to the humility to recognize truth. It does not seem to be “wrath”, rather a process of cleansing. We tend to project our own anger and resentments on God. This distortion can make us think that God is as petty and malicious as we are. In reality God is as right and entitled to feel betrayed by his rebellious creation as a parent would be of a rebellious child. However, the anger of God never exceeds what is just. Also, the mercy of God can extend to us saving grace through Jesus even in our present rebellious state. The extension of grace will not be forever. Satan will be allow to try to control the whole world. This will fail as the wrath of God is poured out on the earth. Over half of the world population will be killed. At the end those who sided with Satan (took his mark) will be cast into a lake of fire (Matt 25:41). And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: - Revelation 6:16
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