jack0076970
I think even more pervasive and Laodicean is the notion that God will only destroy the obviously evil - just open up/turn on your favourite news channel and you can easily find half a dozen people that on face value probably deserve to burn (the uncompassionate human view).
The issue of God's all-encompassing forgiveness becomes even more apparent when pressed to consider the lives of people they know that are by default good-natured & decent people. I lost both my dad's parents in the last 6 years, my grandfather back in 2008 and my grandmother a couple of weeks ago now. On the surface, my grandmother was a good Catholic. She went to church every Sunday for as long as she was physically able, always had a kind word for "the old boy upstairs". My grandfather was Dutch Reform and apart from the obligatory weddings and funeral etc never had any time for church apart from driving grandma there. He had no time for God but was a good man & I loved him. There's nothing I'd like more than to see them both there but at the end of the day God will judge in truth and righteousness.
It really is a hard sell but that is what is in the Bible and it's what we are called to preach. As has been said, a message without any warning, without any possibility of judgment or even a watered down view of it really makes the gospel irrelevant.
It is true, we as people tend to think that when we do something contrary to what the Bible explicitly calls a sin or have an attitude that is sinful, that we somehow have a free-pass to do that, or that God will have the same attitude and thoughts surrounding it that we do. That He passes over what we ourselves just considers shortcomings or that we are justified in doing it since everyone else are also engaged in. A very dangerous attitude to have. We are called to live not as we were before we through grace came to believe, but there must also be change in our life and our attitude towards sin, not just large sins like murder, but what is considered by some to be small sins like for example gossiping, or not honoring your parents. We should attempt to know what God's attitude is not just to know it, but to apply it. We were not set free from sin, so that we can continue in it.
John 14:21
Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them."
I very much agree with you that it is what the Bible says, and what we are called to preach. Without judgement there would be no need to fear God. There would be no need to make good fruit and no need to turn to Jesus, no need to turn away from what He considers to be evil.
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