Many Christians are reluctant to discuss the wrath of God these days. It is considered to be the wrong way to approach the world. It will only generate dismissal, and rejection, so why not try to find more agreeable and more reasonable ways to present the Christian religion? We are supposed to be winsome, and attract people by our personal virtues, by kindness, sympathy, and understanding, so that they will listen to us. And, we have arguments, counter-arguments, reasons, evidence, and examples . . .
Admittedly, it does no good to threaten people with the wrath of a God in whom they do not believe. Neither does it help to bang on the pulpit, so to speak, or wave one’s Bible and shout angrily (which few Christians do, though I have seen it). We need to speak to the times, and the times are not receptive to our message. Most people do not want to hear that God might be displeased with the current state of affairs, and even might himself have something to do with our manifest decline – yet, we should not so far accommodate them as to never speak about God’s anger and his judgments at all. We should not marginalize ourselves due to a fear of being marginalized.
It is a basic Christian teaching that God is not only a God of love, but also a God of justice and judgment – and without sin, and God’s anger at sin, the crucifixion of Christ makes no sense at all. This is why Christ himself, and the apostles, as well as the Old Testament prophets, spoke not only of God’s mercy of forgiveness, but also of his justice and, yes, his anger and his judgments.
Jesus’ first message when he began to preach included repentance from sin (as far as we know from Matthew 4:17 and Mark 1:15). Without God’s anger and justice, mercy and love become only misty abstractions that make us feel good without addressing our real needs (just as anger and justice without mercy and love are also inadequate).
So, I am going to present some thoughts on the subject of God’s anger. These are addressed primarily to those who believe in the Bible, and who are capable of judging what I say by the rule of Scripture. But, who knows? Perhaps someone who does not believe in any of these things might come across this, and look at it for amusement, or for the challenge of looking for flaws in logic, or maybe just out of curiosity.
Should there be any such, my only suggestion to them is to say that it is not irrational to believe in God, and neither is it irrational to believe that he is concerned with the actions and the characters of the people who he has created. Neither is it irrational to believe that our souls will live after the deaths of our bodies, and we will be held accountable for everything we have said, thought and done in this life, or that God is active in the affairs of this world.
Following is a brief summary of the main points of this article, which will also be the subheadings.
1. The wrath of God is not a common subject these days.
2. Sermons (often just lectures) on the subject of God’s anger can be biblical but still very far from the reality and substance of it.
3. Indictments for sin must be real and specific to be effectual. Safe and vague generalities accomplish nothing.
4. We need something more than theology and abstract bible quotations in this matter.
5. There is proud and sinful complacency in the Bible-believing churches.
6. There are light pastors and pleasant preachers who do not address our real problems.
7. Is God displeased with the United States of America?
1. The wrath of God is not a common subject these days.
We do not hear very much about the wrath of God these days. Now that America is increasingly disturbed by economic and political troubles, some pastors may be saying that “America has been given over to judgment,” or “Satan has been given more room to operate,” but the idea of God’s biblical wrath being operative in our own time is not a popular one among many Christians. Moreover, such vague and general statements about the subject as those just mentioned are safely abstract, and often given without any real application.
2. Sermons (often just lectures) on the subject of God’s anger can be biblical, but still very far from the reality and substance of it.
It is possible to give a biblically sound sermon—or perhaps I should say lecture—on the wrath of God without troubling anyone. First, after a suitable introduction (maybe even one with a little humor), one needs to cite various Bible verses showing that God’s anger exists; that it is not cruel and arbitrary, but just; and that it is not inconsistent with other biblical teachings. After all, we read in Scripture that “God is love” (I John 4:8), but also that “Our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29). And, of course, true goodness must include opposition to evil. Some biblical examples of God’s anger need to be presented as well.
Having done that, it is next necessary to show how Christ experienced the wrath of God for us so that we can be forgiven and thus escape condemnation on judgment day; assure the congregation that they are forgiven and going to heaven, or at least leave them with that assumption; and then the great majority of the listeners, or maybe all of them, will leave the service no different than they were before the sermon was preached.
3. Indictments for sin must be real and specific to be effectual. Safe and vague generalities accomplish nothing.
On one occasion, when Christ taught in the synagogue in Nazareth, the people became so angry that they wanted to kill him, or at least do him serious physical injury by casting him down a steep hill (Luke 4:16-30). What sparked their anger? Christ did not rail against them, threaten them with the wrath of God, or point out specific iniquities. All he did was suggest that their Bible study, their worship services, and their membership in the family of Abraham had not brought them into a right relationship with God and were, in fact, all of no benefit.
If God ignored the widows and the lepers in Israel, and instead showed his loving kindness to Gentiles in Sidon and Syria, what did that mean if not that the presumed spiritual superiority of the hearers was a delusion? And what was especially infuriating is that what Jesus said was the truth, proven from Scripture, and they knew it was the truth. These were people who had the outward appearance of godliness, who were God’s visible people, yet had not inwardly profited thereby.
If Luther had posted 95 theses merely giving a sound, biblical exposition about God’s anger, or other points of doctrine, it would not have sparked a Reformation. There would have been no great uproar. It was pointing out serious and well-known problems in the church that had such an impact. Jesus did not try to frighten the Pharisees with lengthy descriptions of wrath—he warned them of damnation, but also told them what they were doing wrong. Without the latter, the former would have meant little. So, what if a preacher presents a biblically sound message on the wrath of God, but fails to address serious contemporary spiritual inadequacies? Haven’t we all heard or read many Bible verses many times over the years? What makes them come alive? What gives them spiritual efficacy?
4. We need something more than theology and abstract bible quotations in this matter.
What if today’s churches are in need of something more than sound, biblical expositions on the subject of God’s anger? What if something more pointed is needed? The following words of Isaiah could apply to more of our churches than we might think: “Hear the word of the Lord, ye rulers of Sodom; give ear unto the law of our God, ye people of Gomorrah” (1:10). To what extent is God tired of our worship services (vv. 11-12)? How many of our ecclesiastical assemblies and solemn meetings are iniquity that God is weary of (vv. 13-14)? These are not dusty irrelevancies from an out-of-date Old Testament. They were recorded for our edification: “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope” (Romans 15:4). And if the just-mentioned questions sound neither comforting nor hopeful, the recognition and the turning away from sin are necessary preconditions of spiritual comfort and hope.
Isaiah also says “And when ye spread forth your hands, I will hide my eyes from you: yea, when ye make many prayers, I will not hear: your hands are full of blood” (1:15). We could say, “Surely our hands are not full of blood!” But in the sixteenth chapter of Ezekiel, we see “blood” as a general metaphor for sin: “And when I passed by thee, and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee when thou wast in thy blood, Live; yea, I said unto thee when thou was in thy blood, Live” (vv. 6, 9). There is more sin in our churches today and in our lives than we realize—and we remember that Achan’s sin was concealed and hidden. It was buried beneath the ground of his tent. He did not flaunt it; it was not evident, and yet it brought defeat to the Israelites nevertheless. There are spiritual dimensions to these questions, things that go very far beyond outward appearance.
5. There is proud and sinful complacency in the Bible-believing churches.
Some of our sins are of a very subtle kind and are much less obvious than robbing banks, committing adultery, or spreading malicious gossip. For example, when tempting Christ, Satan tried to persuade him to leap off of the pinnacle of the temple, reminding Jesus of God’s promise to save him. Satan appealed to Scripture and tried to exploit Jesus’s faith in God. Jesus responded to Satan by telling him “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God” (Matthew 4:7). We should not tempt God; we should not do rash or foolish things and count on God to bail us out, because He might not do it.
This is one of Satan’s most effective temptations, which is why the father of lies and the master deceiver used it against the Lord Jesus Christ himself—and have not many of us fallen into this trap? Are we not being rash and foolish when we ignore many clear biblical exhortations and warnings, because we are confident that God will save us in the end?
We read about the appearing of the Lord Jesus in 1 John, where he says “when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.” He then goes on to say, “every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure” (3:2-3). This says that those who are not purifying themselves in anticipation of Christ’s coming do not really have the hope of meeting Christ and are not serious about their profession. Does a bride go to her wedding with food stains or disorder in her raiment? And how many of us are doing little or nothing by way of purification in anticipation of a future meeting with Christ?
Paul says in Romans 8:13, “If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.” Why do I have to mortify the flesh so that I might live? Aren’t I guaranteed of a place in heaven no matter what I do? The answer is found in Revelation, where it speaks of the death of faith:
I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead.
Be watchful, and strengthen the things which remain, that are ready to die: for I have not found thy works perfect before God.
Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. (Revelation 3:1-3)
This issue is also addressed by Christ, when he tells of the seed, which is “the word of the kingdom.” Some of it is sown, takes root, begins to grow, has the appearance of life, and is green and fresh, with promise of more to come, but is scorched and withered away by persecution, or becomes unfruitful by reason of “the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches” (Matthew 13:18-23). In this context, we need to remember that “every tree which bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire” (Matthew 3:10).
We read in 2 Peter that once we have saving faith, we are not supposed to walk through life in a simple-minded spiritual daze of pride and complacency. On the contrary, we are to add to that faith virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, godliness, brotherly kindness, and charity. Moreover, these things should abound in us: “But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins” (v.9). Do we want to be Christians who are blind and have forgotten their former forgiveness?
There are some in the church who are not concerned about these things—and have they not fallen into a temptation of Satan, to commit the rash and foolish act of ignoring scriptural warnings and injunctions, because they are counting on God to bail them out at the end no matter what? This is not the mind of Christ, neither is it the love of Christ. In 2 Peter we also read: “Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall” (1:10). And if we do not do these things? Or if we are pleased with ourselves, because we have made some feeble and minimal efforts in this area? “Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall” (I Corinthians 10:12).
Scripture says, “Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him” (2 Corinthians 5:9-10). There are those in the churches who are not concerned about this. Is this because the holiness of God, in contrast to their shortcomings and to the power of sin that works in them, is not a reality to them? And are those who are so little concerned about these things now going to be able to stand later, when “many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many” (Matthew 24:11)? Let us put down deep roots of faith and obedience now, with God’s help, so that we do not need to run around looking for God in a day when he may not be found.
6. There are light pastors and pleasant preachers who do not address our real problems.
To how many pastors do these words of Jeremiah apply?
Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the Lord.
They say still unto them that despise me, The Lord hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. (Jeremiah 23:16-17)
“The new wine shall fail in her,” it says in Joel 9:1. This prophecy could be applied to the new wine of various humanistic and psychological attempts to make Evangelical Christianity more appealing and more successful. Joel’s prophecy occurs in the context of severe denunciations of Israel. Joel also says (confining ourselves to chapter 9) that the people of Israel have gone whoring from God; that “The days of visitation are come, the days of recompence are come” (v. 7); that God will visit them for their sins; that their glory will disappear; that God hates their wickedness and will cast them away.
What if this describes America? This is a question we need to seriously consider. True, America is not Israel, but God’s providence is not confined to that one nation. His hand is over all the nations, as we read in Isaiah: “This is the purpose that is purposed upon the whole earth: and this is the hand that is stretched out upon all the nations.”
And what if God’s judgments come upon our nation prior to the end times? Many Christians have suffered in the past, and suffered greatly – but the end is not yet. That means some people who are confidently expecting to be raptured as our problems increase may become discouraged and disappointed if the rapture does not come when they would like, because they expect it according to their schedule and not God’s. They may even become like those plants in Christ’s Parable of the Sower that withered in the scorching heat of the sun, because they had no roots. Without disputing the undoubted biblical truth of the rapture, when the saints who are alive are caught up to meet Christ in the air when he returns to reign undisputed over the world, we should not automatically assume that it will apply to us. We should also be mindful of the words of Zephaniah, who said, “seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of the Lord’s anger” (2:3). I believe this refers to God’s assistance in, rather than our removal from, times of trouble.
7. Is God displeased with the United States of America?
And what about our nation? Is God displeased with America? Why should he be? For what reasons – and if he is, what forms might his displeasure take? Is it possible for us to be reconciled to him as a nation, or is our case as a people beyond remedy? May it be said of us, that “This is a nation that obeyeth not the voice of the Lord their God, nor receiveth correction: truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth” (Jeremiah 7:28)? These things need at some point to be discussed – if, that is, they are real. To Bible-believing Christians they are real, but are they real enough? All those who read the Bible as the Word of God know something about God’s wrath poured out upon the earth in the end times. We have read about the day of judgment when Christ separates the righteous from the wicked, the sheep from the goats – but what about in the present time? What about our own day? Is God’s anger something we need to be concerned about before the last days, before the end of the world?
In considering these matters, it does not help to talk about what a godly country America used to be. Pictures of the deist George Washington on his knees in prayer are not relevant. What did he think of Jesus Christ? Did Franklin, Jefferson, Adams, Madison or Monroe have any regard for the death and resurrection of Christ? And if they did, what does that have to do with us today? Would those men recognize America today if they could see it? Does anyone want to claim that America today is a city on a hill, a beacon of righteousness shedding forth its radiant beams of truth, democracy and right living upon the world? New York, L.A., Chicago, Baltimore, San Francisco and New Orleans – are those these alabaster cities gleaming, undimmed by human tears?
The United States of America are not doing too well these days, but what exactly is the problem? The Old Testament prophets were outspoken against the injustices of biblical Israel. If someone today were to be imbued with a spirit of prophecy like theirs – that is, one directly from the Lord God himself – what would he find to say about our nation? Would he be concerned about the orphans, but not about the unborn? About those oppressed by their employers, but not about those whose jobs had been sold overseas? About people who turned from the living God to worship Baal, but not about people who turn from the living God to follow Marx, Freud, Darwin, and glittering deceptions of earthly Utopias built by human efforts alone? Who turn from God to follow nothing but their own pleasures and appetites? Who are devoting their lives to building a just society without God, and relying on policies of hatred, violence, murder, looting and propagandistic lies to achieve their goals?
Thoughtfully and well written and best of all - biblical.
Regarding the rapture, In my small circle there is disagreement as to when it will take place. Pre, mid and post-trib as well as pre wrath.
We believe there is room for disagreement as this is not an essential issue in our opinion.
Some have gone so far as to conflate salvation with a proper understanding of the timing of the rapture to suggest all folks like myself who are pretribulationists will not in the end be saved when we suffer through the coming difficulties and end up forsaking our faith (Withered seeds).