It's Coming

“For the day of vengeance [is] in mine heart, and the year of my redeemed is come.” (Isa 63:4 AV)

Earthlings, beware!  God is a God of vengeance and He will protect those whom He has redeemed.  This promise is the Israel.  But the same can be said of all who are the redeemed.  To Israel, this is a temporal promise.  Jesus will return and He will take vengeance on all who make war with Israel.  There is no avoiding it.  Those who war against God’s people will have God to deal with.  You can bet on that one.  The N.T. saint has some promises as well.  Our promises are not physical as much as they are spiritual.  The saints are not guaranteed a physical kingdom, protection from physical enemies, or the LORD to reign by His physical presence.  Our promises derive from the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.  He comforts and empowers us.  It is His presence ushers us into a spiritual kingdom that cannot be taken away.  Yet, there is one promise that is a physical one.  That is the rapture of the N.T. church.  This promise is predicated on Noah’s flood.  God removed the righteous from the wicked before He judged the wicked.  It was this principle that Abraham used to plead for Lot.  Shall not the judge of the Earth do right?  Will He judge the righteous with the wicked?  It could be said the promise above can be applied to the church when the trumpet sounds and we are carried away.

The older I get, the more I tend to think this is close at hand.  I cannot imagine the world getting any eviler than it is.  However, every generation has said the same thing.  As we get older, and heaven seems all that much closer, His eminent return seems like it might be in our lifetime.  In reality, the older we get, the less this is important to us.  We have lived the vast majority of our lives and whether by disease, tragedy, or the rapture, our departure is at hand.  What we can take away from the passage above is God’s absolute determination to bring judgment on all those who hate Him.  He will bring the worst seven years this world has ever known because of how they have treated the redeemed.  Vengeance, although not allowed for men, is a holy attribute of God.  It is right to seek and exercise justice.  That is one thing.  But justice is not vengeance.  Law governs justice.  Perfect righteousness governs vengeance.  This is why God must respond.  He is the Almighty Creator.  His creation has rebelled against Him.  They want nothing of Him.  They refuse to submit to His holy and perfect will.  What is worse, they take their rebellion out on the people of God.  It is not enough they go their own way.  They must inflict pain on those who have faith in God.

When I read the verse above, and many more like it, I don’t wish God’s judgment on anyone.  Truly.  I wish every soul would repent from their sin and put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ for eternal life.  I wish every human soul would seek forgiveness from our Holy Creator.  If we would seek and pursue forgiveness from Him, we would all get along.  Forgiveness has a way of spreading.  What a tragedy it will be when the vast majority of souls suffer eternal hellfire because they would not seek God nor have anything to do with Him.  This is what gets me out twice a week speaking to people about the LORD!  It is almost too hard to bear.  On the other hand, there is God’s justice.  I desire God’s mercy on all.  But if they refuse that mercy, God has no choice.  He must exercise vengeance.  The verse above is a two-edged sword.  We are so comforted in knowing the redeemed of the LORD hold a special place in His heart.  We are comforted in knowing that no temptation will take us that is not common to man, but God will provide a way out while also being with us in the midst.  We are at peace knowing God has our back.  At the same time, we know God must judge those who hate Him and His people.  There are two emotions at play here.  The joy of knowing God will always be there for His redeemed.  The joy that God will be God and show forth His glory and holiness.  Yet there is sorrow for those who will suffer unimaginable pain and torment for all of eternity because they were too proud to turn to God.  As John said, even so, LORD, come quickly.