Christians have often heard of God’s love and always want God to love them. Many are happy to preach that God loves everyone misrepresenting what John wrote regarding God is love.

1 John 4:16-17 And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. Love has been perfected among us in this: that we may have boldness in the day of judgment; because as He is, so are we in this world.

John actually wrote about God’s love is for His children who keep His commandments (1 John 2:4-5) by loving one another (1 John 4:8). Because of God’s love for all who keep His word, they have the boldness in the day of judgement.

John 3:36 “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

All who believe on what Jesus Christ taught and obey them have everlasting life but those who don’t, the wrath of God abides on him. Many Christians rarely discuss about the wrath of God. In this post, we will explore some of the fierce anger and wrath of God on those who are disobedient and on the wicked.

Die in a very great plague

Num 11:33 But while the meat was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, the wrath of the LORD was aroused against the people, and the LORD struck the people with a very great plague.

During the exodus, the wrath of God caused a great plague among the children of Israel. Are we craving for things we used to enjoy before coming to Him and reject the good things He had done to us? As we see above, the Lord will surely give what we desired for, but will also strike us with a plague. The plague can be in any form like cancer or any other disease.

Self-cannibalise and become fuel for fire

Isa 9:19-20 Through the wrath of the LORD of hosts The land is burned up, And the people shall be as fuel for the fire; No man shall spare his brother. And he shall snatch on the right hand And be hungry; He shall devour on the left hand And not be satisfied; Every man shall eat the flesh of his own arm.

God is speaking against the prideful Samaria where everyone is a hypocrite and an evildoer. The LORD is warning that His wrath is severe that the people will be made fuel for fire and they will be self-cannibalising themselves. How can the prideful hypocrites and evildoers escape the wrath of God? (Mal 3:6)

Children dashed, wives ravished, houses plundered

Isa 13:13-16 Therefore I will shake the heavens, And the earth will move out of her place, In the wrath of the LORD of hosts And in the day of His fierce anger. It shall be as the hunted gazelle, And as a sheep that no man takes up; Every man will turn to his own people, And everyone will flee to his own land. Everyone who is found will be thrust through, And everyone who is captured will fall by the sword. Their children also will be dashed to pieces before their eyes; Their houses will be plundered And their wives ravished.

God is showing His wrath upon Babylon. He makes everyone who is captured to fall by sword. He makes their children to be dashed to pieces before their eyes. He makes their houses plundered and their wives ravished. Are you still deceived by false preachers who portray God as always loving and never show His wrath?

Leave in the midst of a furnace

Ezek 22:18-22 Son of man, the house of Israel has become dross to Me; they are all bronze, tin, iron, and lead, in the midst of a furnace; they have become dross from silver. Therefore thus says the Lord GOD: ‘Because you have all become dross, therefore behold, I will gather you into the midst of Jerusalem. As men gather silver, bronze, iron, lead, and tin into the midst of a furnace, to blow fire on it, to melt it; so I will gather you in My anger and in My fury, and I will leave you there and melt you. Yes, I will gather you and blow on you with the fire of My wrath, and you shall be melted in its midst. As silver is melted in the midst of a furnace, so shall you be melted in its midst; then you shall know that I, the LORD, have poured out My fury on you.’ ”

Look at the event at 70 AD. The LORD gathered Israel for Passover and then made the Romans surround them. The siege of Jerusalem in 70 AD is well documented, resulting in devastation of nearly every Jew and complete destruction of the Temple because of God’s wrath.

Deliver to brutal men who are skilful to destroy

Ezek 21:31-32 I will pour out My indignation on you; I will blow against you with the fire of My wrath, And deliver you into the hands of brutal men who are skillful to destroy. You shall be fuel for the fire; Your blood shall be in the midst of the land. You shall not be remembered, For I the LORD have spoken.’ ”

Just as God’s wrath destroyed His own tabernacle on earth for Israel’s sins, God’s wrath will deliver us into the hands of brutal men who are “skilful to destroy”. His wrath will even make us a fuel for fire. How much careful should we live to obey Him and avoid God’s wrath upon us?

What must we do?

2Kgs 22:13 “Go, inquire of the LORD for me, for the people and for all Judah, concerning the words of this book that has been found; for great is the wrath of the LORD that is aroused against us, because our fathers have not obeyed the words of this book, to do according to all that is written concerning us.”

Heb 10:28-29 Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace?

Obedience. It is disobedience that causes wrath of the LORD. Therefore, it is extremely important to obey God. If disobedience to Moses’ law causes great wrath of the LORD, how much more will He be angry of we disobey Christ, who is God Himself in flesh?

2 Chr 32:25-26 But Hezekiah did not repay according to the favor shown him, for his heart was lifted up; therefore wrath was looming over him and over Judah and Jerusalem. Then Hezekiah humbled himself for the pride of his heart, he and the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the wrath of the LORD did not come upon them in the days of Hezekiah.

Humbleness. The only way to delay the coming of God’s wrath because of pride or disobedience to God is by being humble before Him.

Matt 3:7-8 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to his baptism, he said to them, “Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance

Bear fruits worthy of repentance. The only way to flee from the wrath of God is not to just repent but to actually bear fruits that are worthy of repentance. It is means, not to just say “I repent”, but to actually live a holy and righteous life worthy of that repentance.

Conclusion

Rev 6:15a-16 Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”

Who is able to stand before the wrath of the Lamb? Wrath of God will kill you in a very great plague, will make you self-cannibalise, will make you a fuel for fire, will make your children dashed, wives ravished, houses plundered, will leave in the midst of a furnace, will deliver to brutal men who are skilful to destroy and many more. Are you still deceived that God has no wrath on the wicked and disobedient? It is our disobedience that will cause the wrath of God. Being humble before God delays the judgement for disobedience. If we don’t bear fruits of repentance, we cannot flee from the wrath of God.