Flee from ‘the Wrath [of God] to Come’ the Only Way God Accepts

Summary:  The love of God and the wrath of God are in perfect balance in Scripture. The problem each one of us faces is that we humans, 100% of us, are born in sin (Psalm 51:5). Our sinfulness separated us from God (Isaiah 5:2). And unless we are somehow reconciled to good standing with God, when we die we will experience the eternal wrath of the holy God upon unforgiven sinners. One of the fundamental doctrines of Scripture is that of “eternal judgment” (Hebrews 6:1-3).

Thankfully, there is one—and only one—solution to deliver us from God’s wrath and into eternal life, indescribable blessing, and unending fellowship with God Almighty. The choice is yours, either to suffer God’s wrath against unrepented sin or to “flee from the wrath to come” the loving and gracious way that God has provided. Come see.

Luke 3:7, ESV  He said therefore to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come?”

1 Thessalonians 1:10, NASB  …and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, that is, Jesus who rescues us from the wrath to come.

The bold prophet John the Baptist and the great apostle Paul both spoke of the wrath to come. It is something to “flee” and to be “rescued” and escape from that wrath!

Hell and hell’s fire are very real. Jesus spoke very clearly of hell as a dreadful place of condemnation and never-ending punishment, to be avoided at all costs:

• Matthew 23:33  “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?”

• Matthew 5:22  [Jesus spoke of those] “…in danger of the fire of hell” and of “go[ing] into hell” and of being “thrown into hell” (vss. 29-30).

• In Matthew 18:8-9, when Jesus spoke of being thrown into the fire of hell, He said that it is eternal fire, a fire that never goes out (Mark 9:43).

In Luke 16:19-31 Jesus told of a greedy rich man who died and was buried (22). “In hell, where he was in torment” (23), the condemned man cried out, “I am in agony in this fire” (24). God’s divine wrath against unrepentant sinners in hell is ongoing and fiery, in a place of nonstop torment and agony. Those who choose to live their lives against the Lord Jesus Christ and His teachings, rather than for Him, will one day hear these fearful words from His mouth: “Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matthew 25:41). It is fire, it is eternal, and those who reject Jesus as Lord and Savior will end up there, as the verses just below clearly show.

Romans 2:5  But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.

2 Thessalonians 1:7-10, KJV  And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ… [10] when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe.

God is a holy God. Again and again in Scripture He says that — for example: “You must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, ‘You must be holy because I am holy’.” (1 Peter 1:15-16, NLT)  Sin is not a trivial thing with God. In fact, He Himself says that “your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you” (Isaiah 59:2).

In this separated condition, all unrepentant sinners are destined upon death for the wrath of God in hell. And as the Scripture above says, the God-rejecters and Christ-rejecters who happen to be alive at Jesus’ Second Coming will experience the Lord’s “flaming fire vengeance” against all who choose not to know God and not to obey the wonderful saving gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. These things are not negotiable! “People are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment” (Hebrews 9:27). Those who have come to God in repentance for sin and faith in Jesus Christ the Savior will upon death enter joyous eternal life in the Lord’s presence (Psalm 16:11). Those who in life chose to reject Jesus as Savior will spend eternity in fiery torment for having rejected God and His supreme loving sacrifice of sending His Son Jesus to earth to die for our sins in order to bring us back to God.

Does “the wrath to come” frighten you? If you’ve come to God the Father through Jesus the Son and are now walking with Him and not against Him, you have no need to fear God’s wrath. You are forgiven, you have been born again into eternal life, and you are now a son or daughter of God Almighty (2 Corinthians 6:18).

If you have not received Jesus as Lord and Savior, you face a catastrophic eternity of torment under the deserved wrath of God for having rejected Him and His Son Jesus, whom He sent to redeem you from sin and restore you to fellowship with God. Why wait another minute? Please read the encouraging, life-changing verses below. I appeal to you by the love of God, if you’re not yet saved, come to Jesus today! You'll be eternally glad that you did.

John 3:16, 36  For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life… [36] Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.

1 Thessalonians 5:9, NASB  For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.

The choice is crystal clear: (1) believe in Jesus as Lord and Savior, come to God through Him in repentance and faith, and you will be saved unto joy-filled eternal life with God. Or (2) “reject the Son [and you] will not see life, for God’s wrath remains” on you. Be sure of this: it is not God’s desire that you experience His wrath — “God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.” God’s Word says that. But be sure also of this: if you reject God’s provision for your salvation — that is, his Son Jesus, whom He sent to die for the forgiveness of your sins — you will at your death enter into God’s eternal, irreversible, fiery wrath for having spurned and despised His gracious offer of salvation. In the person of His crucified and resurrected Son Jesus, He paid a huge price for you! Don’t allow the Lord’s love and grace to you personally to go unaccepted.

Acts 20:21  I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.

God's solution is simple: it’s the Lord Jesus Christ! The great apostle Paul preached everywhere this liberating message of repentance and faith unto eternal life. And it’s all—and only!—through Jesus Christ. The apostle Peter also preached this saving message: “…by the name of Jesus Christ … Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved” (Acts 4:10,12, KJV).

The New Testament writers clearly speak of God’s grace-filled offer of eternal salvation and eternal life. As the apostle Paul said, it boils down to (1) turning to God in repentance for sin and (2) having sincere faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the crucified and resurrected Savior. I appeal to you by God’s grace: come to Jesus and enter into life!

If you would like to read some faith-inspiring Bible verses about getting saved, I’ve listed some of those at How to be Saved and Go to Heaven. On that page you’ll see a link to evangelist’s Billy Graham’s help in praying a prayer of salvation. You can also go directly to that link here. If God is speaking to your heart, don’t let this “day of salvation” pass you by.

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