That’s not my God – Paul Washer

Deceiving and being deceived by ignoring God’s divine wrath

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works. (2Tim 3:16)

By “all Scripture” the Apostle Paul meant the Old Testament as well as the New. God is the source of the Bible; this book is all about Him – His character, His attributes, His work, His sovereignty.
God knows that in the New Testament He is depicted as a loving Father who desires that no human should perish but should be saved from eternal condemnation unto eternal life, and be reconciled to Him. This is the aspect of God and His Gospel that Christians focus on all the time. When it comes to preaching, evangelizing, teaching, sharing, believing it all revolves around this unfathomable love of God. And it is because of this love that we have the liberty to experience His grace and mercy.

However, God also knows that in the OT He is depicted as a tyrant; unmerciful, unpleasant, unloving, hating, impatient, jealous, short-tempered, unjust towards the ungodly and the disobedient. Why did the authors in the OT portray such a loving and compassionate Creator in such horrid manner? The answer is this: all Scripture is given by the inspiration of God! They were led by the Spirit of the Lord to write all that they wrote about Him.

What people miss out on is that God’s wrath is holy! For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness… (Rom 1:18). What Christians don’t understand is that God’s wrath is revealed against ungodliness and unrighteousness of men. They do not discern that the wickedness of people is the cause of God’s judgment upon them. The Lord, who knows the hearts and thoughts of all, knows that He is looked down upon as evil; yet He will not compromise His “self-image” to make Himself look “nice”, loving everyone just as they are. No! He wants people to know that He alone is God and that there is no other; and His holy way cannot be compromised to make a good name for Himself among mere humans and gain their favor. Why should the Creator care what the rebellious creation (such as Richard Dawkins) think of Him? Humans are like grass, like the flowers of the field; today they bloom, tomorrow they are no more (Psalm 103:15).

The Gospel message is incomplete when the impending judgment of God towards the ungodly and the unrighteous is ignored. And this incomplete Gospel is being believed in and preached today. No one wants to warn people about the fury of God on the ungodly because that would make Him sound mean and nasty and might turn off any “potential” believers. Is it any of our business when we make Jesus look mild and loving, begging people to accept His love? Shouldn’t we be begging people through our lifestyle and words to repent of their sinfulness because we have been given the knowledge of the wrath of God through the Bible? Why proclaim half the Gospel, which is half truth? And not just the unbelievers but also Christians focus on the humanistic love of God, that He loves them just as they are; that He is no longer the terrifying God of the OT after demonstrating His love through Christ.

God is from everlasting to everlasting: He does not morph Himself according to the times, ideologies and concepts of people. The terrifying God of 3000 BC years is the same in this 21^st Century, and He is not ashamed when His true followers depict Him the way He has depicted Himself in the OT as well as the New. His wrath demonstrated some millennia ago will again be demonstrated with the return of His Son, only this time it will be far more intense!