God of wrath, God of love?

"The Old Testament God is a God of wrath. He annihilates entire cities of people. How can you believe in a God like that?"

Ever been asked that question, or asked it yourself? I'm sure we all have.

The Bible is not an easy book to grasp. In the time of history that it spans, there are many events which seem difficult or troubling to the modern mind.

Joshua 11-12 is perhaps one example. Here the Israelite army, led by Joshua, respond to an attack of several cities by completely slaughtering everyone. God hands them over to Israel (6), and everyone back home in the city is put to the sword (11).

'They totally destroyed them, not sparing anything that breathed.' (11)

The author of Joshua makes it clear that Israel acted in obedience to God's command, and God Himself 'hardened ther hearts to wage war against Israel, so that He might destroy them totally, exterminating them without mercy, as the Lord had commanded Moses.' (20)

So what are we to make of this?

1. God's mercy is always offered to those who repent... but ONLY to those who repent.
Reading the book of Jonah, we have a situation where an entire city stands under God's judgement, and will be destroyed unless they repent. The Ninevites DO repent, and the city is spared.
This is what these cities in Joshua's time should have done. They had heard about God's miraculous dealings with the people of Israel, rescuing them from Egypt, and they chose to fight against God instead of repenting and worshipping Him (like Rahab). Because of this choice, they are destroyed.

2. God has the right to judge us.
He is the Creator of the universe, the sovereign omniscient Lord of power, and He is utterly and entirely pure. All humans are accountable to Him because of these things. And we all naturally turn away from God and go our own way (Romans 3). This is enough to deserve judgement, even without all the terrible things we think, say and do.

3. The reality of hell.
These episodes of destruction in the Old Testament reflect the eternal destiny of those who reject God: hell. If it's shocking and unpleasant to read about people being killed in war, then we're meant to see how much worse hell is. These accounts are there to shake us out of spiritual apathy and show us how much we need to repent.

4. Only through God's grace can any one be saved.
As the book of Romans in the New Testament seeks to argue, no one deserves God's mercy. It is a gift of His grace. If 10 criminals are released from prison unexpectedly, the public don't say 'Why wasn't every criminal released?' Instead they say, 'Why were 10 criminals released?' It's similar to salvation. Instead of asking why God saves some and not others, we should be asking why He saves ANYONE.

5. Only through Jesus can we be saved.
To say that the Old Testament is about wrath and the New Testament about love is simplistic and naive. The New Testament contains the biggest and most terrifying act of judgement God has ever done: the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. On that cross, God's wrath was poured out on His only Son, so that sin could be decisively dealt with and repentant sinners could be saved.
'Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.' 1 Tim 1:15

6. The whole Bible is linked together by God making promises and fulfilling them.
In Genesis we see God making promises to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and the nation of Israel: to bless them, gie them land and bless all the earth through them. In one sense these promises are being fulfilled in Joshua, as the people claim the promised land. This is a positive thing because it shows the just kingdom of God rightfully replacing the unjust kingdoms of this world, who have usurped His rule over the earth (New Bible Commentary).
But in another sense, it is not until the New Testament that these promises are fully realised in Christ, as Jesus makes it possible for God's people to live under His rule and obey Him, through the forgiveness of the cross and the power of the Holy Spirit.

The lesson of Joshua 11-2 is that God's people need to trust in Him and obey His instructions. The same is true for us today.

Psalm 51: What to do when you mess up

Lessons from David: Psalm 51
David wrote this psalm after a series of disastrous events in which he demonstrated a spectacular lack of godly leadership and went from one sin (adultery) to another (murder). He had dishonoured God. And his attitude in this psalm is one we can copy when we too dishonour our Lord:
-Ask for mercy (1)- not because you deserve it, but because God is loving and compassionate.
-Acknowledge your sins (3)- particularly that they are against God (4)- and God's right to judge you.
-Ask for cleansing (7)- only God can make you 'whiter than snow'.
-Ask for joy and gladness (8)- which stems from an assurance of salvation (12).
-Ask for God to give you a pure heart (10)- only through His enabling can you be pure, along with His Holy Spirit's help (11).
-Share God's desire for purity with others and encourage them too to receie forgiveness (13).
-Praise God (14-15).
-Understand that instead of rituals or outward gesutres ('I'll go to churh more' etc), God wants a 'broken and contrite heart' (v17).
-Praise God that through the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, we can come to Him for cleansing with confidence.

Psalm 68: God of power, God of the poor

Lessons from David- Psalm 68

We've all seen people on the street, pictures of starving children in Africa, and we've all felt a certain level of helplessness. Tim Chester, author of 'Good News to the Poor', defines modern poverty as not simply about material wealth (or lack of it), but exclusion from society. To be poor is to be helpless, disadvantaged, lacking in education or other means with which to provide for yourself and integrate into society. When we look at the world we see big problems with poverty of various kinds, and it's hard to know, as a Christian, what difference we can make.

Well a good start is here in this Psalm- God. David's Psalm rejoices in God's magnificence- His triumph over enemies (1-2) and His amazing wonders, displaying His power over creation (7-10). He has tens of thousands of chariots (17) and is worthy of praise from princes (27). He rides the ancient skies above, and thunders with a mighty voice (33). All the kingdoms of the earth should praise Him (32).

Great, but how is that relevant to the homeless guy in the bus shelter? Well, the Psalm gives an unexpected twist. God cares for the very opposite of His power- for the social outcasts and rejects. He is
'A father to the fatherless, a defender of widows... (He) sets the lonely in families, He leads forth the prisoners with singing' (5-6).

He provides for the poor (10). He daily bears our burdens and saves us from death (19-20). David knew all about this, being a poor shepherd boy, chosen by God to be the next King of Israel, and having to depend on God to provide food and shelter for him as he ran away from Saul's jealousy.

This is the nature of God's character: He is kind, loving, merciful, caring, not proud or distant from our lives. He can provide for our every need. It is never God's pride that separates us from Him, but our own. We need to open our eyes to see our complete poverty before Him. What can we offer Him? Nothing but broken hearts. And that's exactly what He wants from us.

We need to check ourselves- if we are materially wealthy, has that become a barrier for our dependence on God?

And we also need to realise that if God cares so much for the poor, then so should we! Even if we just go and have a cup of tea with a lonely neighbour, we can play a vital role in our communities to comfort the poor, and in doing so show God's care and love for the marginalised.

Jesus the Hero -1 Peter 2

Who is your hero? And why?

It's an interesting question. Ask a child, and they'll probably think of at least three examples (okay so some of their examples will probably be comic book characters). Ask an adult, and you're more likely to run into problems. You see, as we grow up, people let us down. We learn not to idolise others, because we realise (the hard way) that they are human and make mistakes. Sure, there are some fantastic inspirational people out there, but in the grind of daily life at the office, there are slim pickings for heroic models.

That's why it's so awesome reading the Bible and getting to know Jesus better. The more you read about Him, the more you have to respect, love... and worship Him. Not even His enemies could accuse Him of sin (see John 8). And the Bible is pretty blunt about people who sin, telling us all about David's mistakes with Bathsheba for just one example.

Jesus stood out as being different, and this chapter in 1 Peter really highlights these differences, and show us why Jesus is a true hero.

He is infinitely worthy, and yet suffered rejection.

Have you seen Batman: The Dark Knight? Batman takes the blame for some crimes he did not commit, in order to preserve the people's hope in their hero (who is not Batman). He is turned into an enemy of the people, when really he is donning his suit, jumping off buildings and facing angry rotweilers to save those people of Gotham.

Now Jesus is INFINITELY GREATER than Batman. He's divine, and He never makes mistakes. But I'm drawing a parallel to emphasise the situation. We've all heard the story before: Jesus comes and is crucified. The impact gets lost. This passage reminds us that Jesus is PRECIOUS! He is 'chosen by God and precious to Him' (4); He is the 'chosen and precious cornerstone' (6). And this precious One suffered for US to be saved:
'He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might de to sins and live for righteousness; by His wounds you have been healed.' (24)

Jesus is the most precious thing to cling to in this life. He is the means by which we are God's people, because He is the means by which we receive mercy (10). By Christ, we can leave darkness and enter light (9).

If we're ever going to value Jesus for His true, heroic worth, we need to focus on Him: His life, death, resurrection and all they achieve for us. Jesus is to be our great example to whom we can turn and imitate in all situations (21).

One final comment on the Batman analogy: the real tragedy of the film is that there are no heroes. The one the people honour (I'm trying not to spoil the story) turns into an anti-hero, Batman struggles with his human limitations, and the closest thing that comes to hope is the fact that the population make some surprisingly noble decisions. But look at verse 6: 'the one who trusts in Him will never be put to shame'. Isn't it awesome, that Jesus will never let you down? He will never break a promise, and He has promised to give eternal life to all who come to Him. He is our true hero.