“God judgeth the righteous, And God is angry with the wicked every day. If he turns not, he will whet his sword; He hath bent his bow and made it ready. He hath also prepared for him the instruments of death; He ordaineth his arrows against the persecutors”. (Psalm 7:11-13)
Jonathan Edwards’ powerful sermon titled “ Sinners in the hand of an Angry God” remains one of the most profound sermons ever written about God’s wrath upon unbelievers after their death. (Revelation 21:8).
The message in Edwards’ sermon is that God is long-suffering having given unbelievers a long rope, to retrace their steps and turn to Jesus, the author of our salvation, and not perish in an unimaginable torment of hell after death.
“And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment”. (Hebrews 9:27).
Every sleeping and waking hour of the sinner is all about God’s loving grace which has kept Satan and his host of devils from cutting off his life suddenly and to be met with the burning inferno of hell.
Every living sinner without Christ is therefore a testament to the long-suffering grace of God, and a symbol of a miracle preventing God’s consuming wrath, and this grace has an expiration date. There is no repentance after death.
The fact that sinners continue to enjoy all their heart’s desire without being accountable to God also represent the urgency for repentance before calamity strikes.
In 2 Peter 3:9, we read that “ The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. Instead he is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance”.
Why is God angry with sin? For God must judge all unrighteousness. Though we love to see God only as a loving father who can’t hurt a fly, the Bible also makes it expressly clear that the Lord is a consuming fire and will not spare unbelievers at the expiration of grace.
Isaiah 66:16 testifies to this fact saying: “For the Lord will execute judgment by fire. And by His sword on all flesh, And those slain by the Lord will be many”.
This is not the type of newsmen love to hear but the fact remains that God must judge sin and he is angry with the wicked everyday.
God’s message of mercy to the unbeliever and the sinner hasn’t changed – Jesus’ death and resurrection offer hope to the sinner, and the gospel of repentance is the power of God to save from God’s wrath.
Every waking hour and every single day of the sinner’s life ticks away with God’s offer of mercy and righteousness to be received by faith, and not by works of deeds because those who have their righteousness from God (and not by self-effort) will not perish but have everlasting life.
Why is this so? Because our best effort at living right is as a filthy rag before God. Only God’s provision for sin can assuage His wrath and Jesus’ death satisfies God’s anger and all we have to do to escape God’s wrath is simply to accept this offer and forsake sin.
Isaiah notes this well: “All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags; we all shrivel up like a leaf, and like the wind, our sins sweep us away”. (Isaiah 64:6).
Man needs a holy savior in Jesus Christ to satisfy the wrath of God on sin and to redeem all who believe in Jesus from eternal damnation in hell.
To the one yet to embrace Jesus for salvation or who is yet to relinquish sin as a companion, you must know that your day of divine favor is here if only you will surrender and confess Jesus as your Lord and Savior.
The scripture says, “ In the time of favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.” Behold, now is the time of favor; now is the day of salvation! (2 Cor. 6:2).
Reading
Acts Chapter 3
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