GOD
So far we have looked at ourselves and what the Bible has to say about our spiritual and moral condition. We have seen that the Bible says we are all sinners, and therefore seperated from God, and who are unable to save themselves. Now we will have a look at what the Bible tells us about the Lord, so that we can better appreciate how serious our sinful condition is.
God …
God Is Merciful – He doesn’t want to condemn us
Most of us know that God is a God of love. And some hope that His love for us will cause Him to be lenient with us, and not condemn us at the great white throne judgement (Rev. 20:11-15). It is true that God is a God of love. Below we are told that He is love. There is love in the universe because God is love. We are able to love because we are made in His image (Genesis 1:26). We are like Him having the capability of loving others, and valuing being loved.
1 John 4:8 “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.”
Because He is love, He does not want to condemn anyone. The following verse reveals that the Lord does not want anyone to ‘perish’. A word used to describe the person who dies a sinner. They will not enjoy Heaven or His presence, but will be separated from Him forever in hell.
2 Peter 3:9 "The Lord is …, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.”
He also tells us that He is JUST…
God Is Just – Therefore He MUST punish sin
Habakkuk 1:13 “Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity:”
The sense of Habakkuk 1:13 is that the Lord cannot ‘look on iniquity (sin)’ and not do anything about it.
The next Scripture tells us of the common fate of all sinners.
Ezekiel 18:4 “Behold, all souls are mine; as the soul of the father, so also the soul of the son is mine: the soul that sinneth, it shall die.”
The Lord is very clear in Ezek. 18:4. Souls belong to Him and the soul that is tainted with sin ‘will die!’ Referring to both physical death, as well as the second death described in Rev. 20:11-15, where those dying in their sin are forever condemned to the lake of fire. Not only to suffer physical torment, but also spiritual torment, being forever separated from the Lord.
There are no grey areas with the Lord. If you are tainted with sin you will suffer spiritual death – no exceptions!
Do you see that the Lord is not only love, but that He is just. He must do that which is right according to Who and What He is. God, Who is just cannot overlook man’s sin.
If you agree move on to the next section ‘Christ’. If you don’t agree and would like more discussion on the point, click on the following email link to write to us.