"Thou, even thou, art to be feared: and who may stand in thy sight when once thou art angry?" — Psalm 76:7
In the summer of 1741 Jonathan Edwards preached a severe sermon entitled "Sinners in the hands of an Angry God." That sermon was a powerful influence in a spiritual quickening, a revival if you please, which has come to be known as "The Great Awakening." The message and its concepts has been the subject of much controversy, but its principles were true to scripture. Men do not like to think of an "angry God," but one cannot dismiss that aspect of God's nature without undermining His holiness, the real nature of sin, and the integrity of scripture itself.
If we could have it our way, we would like a god who can be managed, and who is "meek and mild." The Bible does not give us that luxury. We can, for now, redefine God as we like, but that will not change Who and what He really is, nor how He will conduct Himself. God, as He has revealed Himself in His word, is a God to be feared.
Fear, of course, and especially as the concept is used in scripture, has two principle aspects. There is the idea of terror or apprehension; fear as we ordinarily think of it; from that perspective we should be "afraid" of God. The other aspect of fear is that of reverence or respect; to stand in awe of God, Who is holy and almighty. The heart that properly fears the Lord undoubtedly combines both of these aspects. We are, indeed, to stand in awe of Him, and to be afraid to anger Him, as our text suggests.
We read elsewhere, "God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day [Psalm 7:11]." The apostle Paul indicts the unrighteous in Romans 3:10-17, and concludes by saying, "There is no fear of God before their eyes [Rom. 3:18]." It is perhaps more than a coincidence that in recent times it was not uncommon to see tee shirts carrying the banner, "no fear." But that kind of fearlessness displays ignorance and rebellion against God and is the ultimate folly. To arouse Him to anger is to bring spiritual and eternal destruction.
Summing up the wrath of an angry God at the end of the age,the apostle John declares, "And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire [Rev. 20:11-15]."
On the other hand, the exercise of a healthy fear of God has a positive and eternal result. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments [Ps. 111:10]." And again, "The fear of the LORD tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil [Prov. 19:23]." And, "By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life [Prov. 22:4]."
Fear and reverence will combine in the heart of the convicted sinner to lead Him to Christ and find that this awesome God is not only a God of anger and wrath, but a God of love Who is willing and able to forgive sins and to give us life; life eternal and "riches supernal," for all eternity.
Jonathan Edwards in concluding his sermon cried, "O sinner! Consider the fearful danger you are in…Therefore, let every one that is out of Christ, now awake and fly from the wrath to come." That counsel is as relevant today as it was more than 200 (or 2000!) years ago. Let us not make God angry, but make Him glad by repenting of our sins and finding refuge and renewal in and through His Son, Jesus Christ!
For His glory and our good,
"Pastor" Frasier
If we could have it our way, we would like a god who can be managed, and who is "meek and mild." The Bible does not give us that luxury. We can, for now, redefine God as we like, but that will not change Who and what He really is, nor how He will conduct Himself. God, as He has revealed Himself in His word, is a God to be feared.
Fear, of course, and especially as the concept is used in scripture, has two principle aspects. There is the idea of terror or apprehension; fear as we ordinarily think of it; from that perspective we should be "afraid" of God. The other aspect of fear is that of reverence or respect; to stand in awe of God, Who is holy and almighty. The heart that properly fears the Lord undoubtedly combines both of these aspects. We are, indeed, to stand in awe of Him, and to be afraid to anger Him, as our text suggests.
We read elsewhere, "God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day [Psalm 7:11]." The apostle Paul indicts the unrighteous in Romans 3:10-17, and concludes by saying, "There is no fear of God before their eyes [Rom. 3:18]." It is perhaps more than a coincidence that in recent times it was not uncommon to see tee shirts carrying the banner, "no fear." But that kind of fearlessness displays ignorance and rebellion against God and is the ultimate folly. To arouse Him to anger is to bring spiritual and eternal destruction.
Summing up the wrath of an angry God at the end of the age,the apostle John declares, "And I saw a great white throne, and him that sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them. And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works. And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire [Rev. 20:11-15]."
On the other hand, the exercise of a healthy fear of God has a positive and eternal result. "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: a good understanding have all they that do his commandments [Ps. 111:10]." And again, "The fear of the LORD tendeth to life: and he that hath it shall abide satisfied; he shall not be visited with evil [Prov. 19:23]." And, "By humility and the fear of the LORD are riches, and honour, and life [Prov. 22:4]."
Fear and reverence will combine in the heart of the convicted sinner to lead Him to Christ and find that this awesome God is not only a God of anger and wrath, but a God of love Who is willing and able to forgive sins and to give us life; life eternal and "riches supernal," for all eternity.
Jonathan Edwards in concluding his sermon cried, "O sinner! Consider the fearful danger you are in…Therefore, let every one that is out of Christ, now awake and fly from the wrath to come." That counsel is as relevant today as it was more than 200 (or 2000!) years ago. Let us not make God angry, but make Him glad by repenting of our sins and finding refuge and renewal in and through His Son, Jesus Christ!
For His glory and our good,
"Pastor" Frasier
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