It distresses me to preach messages that expose sin within the society in which we live. I could wish that I were permitted to speak only pleasant things, to declare a message that was always positive, to affirm our culture as righteous. However, I am compelled to give an answer to the One Who appointed me to this sacred office, and therefore I can speak only what He has commanded me to say, and He has appointed me to warn of the consequences that follow defying His holiness.
It is terrifying for us to read the warning that was drafted by writers of Holy Writ for those who had professed faith in the Son of God. The Lord God warned His people, “If we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has trampled underfoot the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, ‘Vengeance is mine; I will repay.’ And again, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” [HEBREWS 10:26-31]. [1]
It is those final stern warnings that should give each follower of Christ pause: “Vengeance is mine; I will repay,” which is immediately joined to the reminder that warns, “The Lord will judge his people.” Sobering as those statements may be, it is that final summation which I find positively chilling. The divine writer adds the sobering warning, “It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Indeed, even to contemplate God’s wrath poured out on those who once walked with Him is a fearful thing. And that is what had befallen the people of God, eliciting the plaintive lament written by God’s Weeping Prophet.
GOD’S MERCY [vv. 31-36] —
“The Lord will not
cast off forever,
but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion
according to the abundance of his steadfast love;
for he does not afflict from his heart
or grieve the children of men.”
[LAMENTATIONS 3:31-33]
Even when judging the wicked, the Lord does not cease being merciful. And this truth becomes especially evident when He disciplines those who belong to Him. You, when you are disciplined, because you are born from above, can know that you are not cast aside—if you were not His child, the Lord would never discipline you.
Let me begin the message by speaking to the people of our nation. Don’t imagine that because you are Canadian you are accepted by the Lord God of Heaven and earth. Though God has blessed Canada, you need to understand that He can withdraw those blessings just as He first delivered the blessings we enjoy. The danger of receiving the blessings of the Lord is that we tend to assume that they are deserved. However, we forget there is a dark side to God’s love, for to turn from obedience to Him is to invite His wrath. Receiving His mercy does not imply that God is in our debt.
You may recall how the Lord promised Israel, “If you faithfully obey the voice of the LORD your God, being careful to do all his commandments that I command you today, the LORD your God will set you high above all the nations of the earth. And all these blessings shall come upon you and overtake you, if you obey the voice of the LORD your God” [DEUTERONOMY 28:1-2]. The passage continues by speaking of the breadth of blessing promised when the nation obeyed the LORD.
Set against this promise was the dark side of the LORD when the nation chose to treat God with disdain, exalting their own opinions as though they were greater than God. The LORD warned, “But if you will not obey the voice of the LORD your God or be careful to do all his commandments and his statutes that I command you today, then all these curses shall come upon you and overtake you. Cursed shall you be in the city, and cursed shall you be in the field. Cursed shall be your basket and your kneading bowl. Cursed shall be the fruit of your womb and the fruit of your ground, the increase of your herds and the young of your flock. Cursed shall you be when you come in, and cursed shall you be when you go out.
“The LORD will send on you curses, confusion, and frustration in all that you undertake to do, until you are destroyed and perish quickly on account of the evil of your deeds, because you have forsaken me” [DEUTERONOMY 28:15-20].
The LORD then spends considerable time detailing the cost to the nation should He withdraw His blessing. As He moves toward a dramatic conclusion, God again warns, “If you are not careful to do all the words of this law that are written in this book, that you may fear this glorious and awesome name, the LORD your God, then the LORD will bring on you and your offspring extraordinary afflictions, afflictions severe and lasting, and sicknesses grievous and lasting. And he will bring upon you again all the diseases of Egypt, of which you were afraid, and they shall cling to you. Every sickness also and every affliction that is not recorded in the book of this law, the LORD will bring upon you, until you are destroyed. Whereas you were as numerous as the stars of heaven, you shall be left few in number, because you did not obey the voice of the LORD your God. And as the LORD took delight in doing you good and multiplying you, so the LORD will take delight in bringing ruin upon you and destroying you. And you shall be plucked off the land that you are entering to take possession of it” [DEUTERONOMY 28:58-63].
If God held His ancient people to such a high, godly standard, why would anyone imagine that He will act differently with us? Canada has been richly blessed, and it is not because we are better than other peoples or because we are more deserving than others. God owes us nothing, but we are in His debt because of the goodness with which He has blessed us. When we walked humbly before the Lord, He blessed us with wise leaders who sought to do what was good and noble, and the nation prospered. As we have turned increasingly to pursue what we imagine we want, rather than doing what we know to be right, we have been given leaders that are not as good, not as noble.
To be sure, God does hold individuals, as is also true for nations, to a high standard of integrity, of righteousness, of honesty. And no nation has ever batted a thousand! However, what is sometimes forgotten is that God is merciful when a people humble themselves despite deserving His wrath. Let me give an example of God’s mercy that is worth remembering. It is found in the account of provided by the Prophet Jonah.
You will no doubt recall how the LORD appointed Jonah to go to Nineveh where he was to tell the Ninevites that judgement was about to fall on the nation. Jonah, of course, was less than enthusiastic about obeying his appointment if it meant giving Nineveh advanced warning. God was forced to arrange for alternative transportation since His prophet attempted to avoid giving the Ninevites warning. Jonah, having personally experienced the high cost of disobedience to the LORD’s command, was at last convinced to do what God commanded.
We read, “Then the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, ‘Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and call out against it the message that I tell you.’ So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, three days’ journey in breadth. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called out, ‘Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown’” [JONAH 3:1-4]!
You will recall the remainder of the biblical account that informs us, “And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them” [JONAH 3:5]. And that isn’t the end of the account. The verses that follow tell how this spontaneous movement of repentance reached even the king. “The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, ‘By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish’” [JONAH 3:6-9].
Their repentance was genuine, and God witnessed what they did and turned from the disaster He was about to bring against the city. Therefore, the divine text reads, “When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil way, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it” [JONAH 3:10].
The heart of the book is found in the dialogue between Jonah and the LORD. Jonah was irritated… No! Jonah was so angry he wanted to die. And the root of his anger lay in his knowledge of God! The reluctant prophet reveals his rage when he prays, “O LORD, is not this what I said when I was yet in my country? That is why I made haste to flee to Tarshish; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster” [JONAH 4:2].
Jonah knew God was gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster. In short, Jonah knew God and he wanted God to be vigorous in bringing judgement down on the Ninevites. But God’s character, His grace and His mercy led Him to relent when He saw the repentance displayed by the people of Nineveh. If God says He will judge the wicked, He will do what He says! But people can stay the judgement of God by turning from their wickedness to embrace Him.
This is the message that the writer in our text is saying in the thirty-first through the thirty-third verses. To be sure, God will at last come to a day when He says there is no more mercy to be shown. Yet, even in the midst of grief, He shows compassion. And at whatever point one turns to Him in faith, He will cease the harsh judgements. Do not, however, imagine that you can play games with God. Do not imagine that you can waltz right up to the point of judgement and quickly avert what is coming. The reason you cannot do that is several-fold.
In the first place, you do not know when God’s judgement will be delivered. Because you do not possess this knowledge, you are gambling with a marked deck and the tables are weighed against you. Another reason you must not imagine that you can change what is coming is that your character is increasingly set as you harden your heart and pursue your own desires. Do you remember the refrain we witness being repeated as the Apostle writes of the descent of society leading to judgement? In ROMANS 1:24, 26, 28 we witness the terrifying refrain, “God gave them up…” With individuals—as holds true for cultures, societies, and nations—God at last delivers them over to their own desires. And what is especially terrifying is that there appears to be no turning back the judgement once an individual, or a culture, or a society, or a nation has been delivered over to their own desire. If you hold the opinion that you can change the outcome at the last minute, you have failed to factor in this very real condition that the heart leads us astray and into disaster.
Among the Psalms is one that reminds us that demanding what we want while ignoring the will of God leads to disaster. In the 78th PSALM, we read how Israel, trekking through the desert became dissatisfied with the provisions God sent. They demanded meat, and God sent quail into the camp. However, read the Psalmist’s take on this.
“They ate and were well filled,
for he gave them what they craved.
But before they had satisfied their craving,
while the food was still in their mouths,
the anger of God rose against them,
and he killed the strongest of them
and laid low the young men of Israel.”
[PSALM 78:29-31]
Talk about a last meal! The people got what they wanted; they were filled, but at what cost! This event is also the basis for instruction provided in another Psalm.
“[Israel] soon forgot his works;
they did not wait for his counsel.
But they had a wanton craving in the wilderness,
and put God to the test in the desert;
he gave them what they asked,
but sent a wasting disease among them.”
[PSALM 106:13-15]
God is not to be trifled with!
A third reason, closely related to other reasons already mentioned, speaks of why you must not dare attempt to see how close to the deadline you can come, and that is no one can predict where that dreadful point lies when the Spirit of God will no longer plead with you to turn. Jesus spoke of an awful situation when there is no more forgiveness. The Master warned, “I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come” [MATTHEW 12:31-32].
There is a terrifying warning that is provided in the Letter to Hebrew Christians when the writer cautions, “If we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries” [HEBREWS 10:26-27].
Here is what we can say now: God is merciful. The Lord will receive you now if you are but willing to humble yourself and turn to Him. Do you not hear the Master calling, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” [MATTHEW 11:28-29]. Who knows but whether the Living God will turn from His wrath and spare you, or whether even the Lord will turn from His anger and spare the nation the judgement it heaps up against herself. Our God pleads, just as written in 2 CORINTHIANS 6:2, “[God] says,
‘In a favorable time I listened to you,
and in a day of salvation I have helped you.’
Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” Amen.
GOD’S SOVEREIGNTY EXTENDS OVER THE NATIONS [vv. 37-39] — It is so easy to state the doctrine of God’s sovereignty, and so very difficult to live that same doctrine. Despite any misgiving we may have about God’s authority, He remains in control. As we watch an American president flounder in what appears to be a vain attempt to rally his party to support him, and as we witness our own government struggle to stifle growing controversies about foreign influence, it would be easy to conclude that the inmates truly are running the asylum.
However, faith leads us to the knowledge that God is on the throne. With the Psalmist, we testify,
“God reigns over the nations;
God sits on his holy throne.”
[PSALM 47:8]
And again, we have this confidence that encourages us as followers of the Master,
“The LORD reigns, let the earth rejoice;
let the many coastlands be glad!”
[PSALM 97:1]
I had an interesting conversation with a woman this past week. What she had to say was even revealing. The lady was bemoaning the changes she was observing throughout society. She spoke of the transformation of the nation during the years of her life and spoke specifically about the changes seen throughout our community. Ours is a northern community, and we have had problems resulting from drug abuse throughout the eighties and the nineties, but she opined that with decriminalisation promoted by our current provincial government the problem has become unmanageable. There has been tremendous change in the social structure of our community during her lifetime, and the changes witnessed recently are far more detrimental than anything she has witnessed in her lifetime in this community.
Upon questioning what might be the genesis for her concern this lady observed, she answered that the moral and spiritual heritage of the nation was in tatters. Canada brought in vast numbers of people who do not share, much less recognise, our spiritual foundations. The growing immigrant populations were raised without the benefit of a Christian background, and they have no understanding, and scant respect, for Canadian ideals. The moral and ethical climate is palpably changed and no longer reflects the Canada we knew even forty years ago. These societal transformations are no longer a problem that is confined to the major cities, but these changes constitute a problem that has permeated the whole of Canadian society.
My interlocutor continued by noting that she was not a Christian, but she recognised that she had benefitted from the Christian moorings that had secured and stabilised our dominion. Her contention was that those moorings have been jettisoned and our elites are forcing us to accept a new ethical/moral condition they have decided shall be imposed on us. And this new condition is foreign to our history and it is opposed to what we were as a nation. In her estimate, we are being changed, and the change is not producing a better society.
I did respond to the complaint, a complaint that speaks to my own heart. Canada, and the United States for that matter, share a Christian heritage. I’m not arguing that Canada is a Christian nation, nor would I even contend that most Canadians ever were practising Christians—we were nominal Christians, but we expected that people shared an understanding of the religious underpinnings that defined who we are as a nation. Canadians accepted certain truths as essential in defining who we are as a nation, and those truths were grounded in the Christian heritage that undergirded the nation as we knew it. Respect for cultural institutions was foundational. A general respect for the sacred was part of our heritage. Flowing from this was an understanding that all citizens alike had rights that were given by God, and with these rights we had certain responsibilities imposed upon us.
We were courteous and respectful of individuals because whether we were followers of Christ or not, we believed that people reflected the image of God. We respected property rights, because we understood that the acquisition of goods came through the labours of our hands. We believed that those who perform criminal acts should be held accountable for their misdeeds. Children were to be trained to respect adults and to honour their parents. Children were to be protected from harm, but we understood that they needed to learn that there are consequences for their actions. We understood that children are not little adults, and that they lacked the ability to make some life-changing decisions. It was a different world from what now exists.
Things have changed. We moved from our moorings to embrace a future that was prophesied millennia past. You will recall that the Apostle warned the young theologue Timothy, “Understand this, that in the last days there will come times of difficulty. For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, having the appearance of godliness, but denying its power” [2 TIMOTHY 3:1-5a]. And he instructed Timothy, and all who would read what was written, “Avoid such people” [2 TIMOTHY 3:5b].
He is not telling us to simply allow such people to slip away into damnation, he is warning us not to embrace their lifestyle, not to accept the wickedness that marks their days as normative. We must still stand for righteousness, declaring the message of life even in the face of what seems to be futility. Paul makes this evident when he writes elsewhere, “I wrote to you in my letter not to associate with sexually immoral people—not at all meaning the sexually immoral of this world, or the greedy and swindlers, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside the church whom you are to judge? God judges those outside. ‘Purge the evil person from among you’” [1 CORINTHIANS 5:9-13].
The standard is set in these verses. We don’t judge those of this world, though they whinge and complain that we Christians are judging them. We aren’t judging them! We are warned against doing such a thing! We know what is coming for them, and we pity them. This is, of course, what Peter wrote when he instructed all who follow the Christ, “Since therefore Christ suffered in the flesh, arm yourselves with the same way of thinking, for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin, so as to live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God. For the time that is past suffices for doing what the Gentiles want to do, living in sensuality, passions, drunkenness, orgies, drinking parties, and lawless idolatry. With respect to this they are surprised when you do not join them in the same flood of debauchery, and they malign you; but they will give account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead” [1 PETER 4:1-5]. We can obey the apostolic injunctions by holding to the knowledge that the God we serve is sovereign. We are not in the business of judging the world; we are responsible, however, to warn those in the world of the consequences of sin.
GOD’S JUDGEMENT [vv. 40-54] — Make no mistake! Judgement will come upon the wicked. Though for the moment it may seem that the hand of God is stayed, His justice shall not always wait. And how much greater is the judgement meted out on those nations that have enjoyed God’s rich blessings. I tremble in fear for the nations of the west when I read,
“The wicked are turned back and sent to Sheol;
this is the destiny of all the nations that ignore God.”
[PSALM 9:17 NET 2nd]
Canada cannot be said to be righteous. When we kill our unborn, demanding that mothers have the right to do so, and we refuse to say such slaughter of the innocent is wrong, can we be said to be righteous? When we promote immorality, demanding that everyone approve of what is done, are we so foolish that as to defend these acts as good? When we indoctrinate our children to hate their own land, to despise their heritage, how can we imagine we are righteous? What is left for God except to declare we are wicked and surrender us over to our own desires.
One Psalm cautions against concluding that God is uninvolved in administering justice. The Psalmist describes his despair before stating what He knows of God.
“Why do you stand far away, LORD?
Why do you hide in times of distress?
The wicked one arrogantly pursues the afflicted,
who are trapped in the schemes he devises.
For the wicked one boasts about his own desire;
he blesses the greedy
and despises the LORD.
With haughty arrogance, the wicked thinks,
‘God will not seek justice.’
He always presumes ‘There is no God.’
Their ways always seem prosperous.
“Your judgments are on high,
far away from them.
“They scoff at all their enemies.
They say to themselves,
‘We will not be moved throughout all time,
and we will not experience adversity.’
Their mouth is full of curses, lies, and oppression,
their tongues spread trouble and iniquity.
They wait in ambush in the villages,
they kill the innocent in secret.
Their eyes secretly watch the helpless,
lying in wait like a lion in his den.
They lie in wait to catch the afflicted.
They catch the afflicted when they pull him into their net.
“The victim is crushed,
and he sinks down;
the helpless fall by their might.
The wicked say to themselves,
‘God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face,
he will never see it.’”
[PSALM 10:1-11 ISV]
The point of this is to remind us that God cannot forever put off judging wickedness. He is holy, and His holiness demands that He judge that which is evil. For the individual, either God accepts the judgement which Jesus received in His own body, or He judges us because we refused to accept the judgement that Jesus received. Do you recall the manner in which Isaiah prophesied of the judgement Jesus received in Himself?
“Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
smitten by God, and afflicted.
But he was pierced for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
and with his wounds we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.”
[ISAIAH 53:4-6]
The revelation presented through Isaiah anticipates the Apostle’s statement that is written in his Second Letter to the Corinthians, as he testifies, “For our sake [God] made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God” [2 CORINTHIANS 5:21]. Either the Christ has already taken your punishment or you are facing that punishment. Either the Saviour has received in His own body the judgement that each one deserves, or that judgement still rests on you.
This is precisely what is detailed when we read in the Gospel of John, “Whoever believes in [the Son of God] is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God” [JOHN 3:18].
What has this to do with the judgement of nations? It is just this: the character of nations reflects the character of those living within that nation. And the conduct of the nation is a revelation of the general conduct of the people of that nation. In short, what the populace permits reveals the tenor of the culture. If that culture is debased and evil, it is because the people have silently acquiesced to what prevails within the culture, or even that the people eagerly embrace what is taking place within that culture. For this reason, God holds the entire nation to account as reflecting the character of the people. No one must imagine that the Lord passes over the sinful character of the nation.
This is the thrust of Paul’s warning in the Ephesian Encyclical as he is warning us who follow the Christ of the consequences of refusal to resist evil. Paul writes, “Sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God” [EPHESIANS 5:3-5].
The Apostle then becomes positively pointed as he addresses how this impacts the conduct of any who profess to follow the Master. He writes, “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
‘Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.’
Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is” [EPHESIANS 5:6-17].
Judgement is coming for each person who hears my voice this day. If you are in Christ, He has already take your punishment so that you are forever delivered from that awful time when the lost must stand in the Great Assize before the Great White Throne. But, oh, for the lost, there still waits that formal sentencing when all that are lost must stand before the Son of God Whom they have rejected.
That awful day is described in this words as John writes, “I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. From his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Then another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, according to what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead who were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead who were in them, and they were judged, each one of them, according to what they had done. Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire. And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire” [REVELATION 20:11-15].
Years ago my daddy would often sing with me sitting on his knee, and he frequently sang a song Roy Acuff had recorded, “The Great Judgment Morning.” I was but a lad of four or five, and I would sit on his lap as he sang. As each verse was sung, I would grow more pensive, more deeply stirred until my dad would sing that final chorus.
and oh what weeping and wailing,
as the lost were told of their fate,
they cried for the rocks and the mountains,
they prayed, but their prayers were too late. [2]
As my daddy sang, I would think of those who were to be judged, and my little heart would break and I would cry. I still weep for the judgement that must come.
GOD’S MERCY WHEN THE PENITENT PLEADS FROM THE PIT [vv. 55-66] — Do we need to be reminded that God is merciful when we turn from pursuing our own demented and foolish ends to seek Him so that we may do His will? If we are His people, then we understand that whatever trials we may be passing through are to be seen as discipline. And His discipline is intended to restore us to fellowship when we turn from our own maddened pursuit to again walk with Him. If we are unsaved, then we need to understand that we are even now under judgement, and the judgement we are experiencing are the consequences of our own sinful choices when the hard times come.
Even when one calls from the pit when we are disciplined, God is prepared to show mercy. Does God hear the sinner when that sinner calls out for mercy? If the sinner turns from attempting to cling to her own righteousness to receive the reign of the Risen Son of God, then it does seem that God is prepared to receive that sinner. You may recall how two men were crucified with Jesus. Luke describes some of the last conversations these two condemned men had with Jesus.
“One of the criminals who were hanged railed at him, saying, ‘Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us!’ But the other rebuked him, saying, ‘Do you not fear God, since you are under the same sentence of condemnation? And we indeed justly, for we are receiving the due reward of our deeds; but this man has done nothing wrong.’ And he said, ‘Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.’ And he said to him, ‘Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise’” [LUKE 23:39-43].
The first asked for deliverance, but his sole concern was being rescued from the consequences of his own wickedness. There is no indication that Jesus responded to this man. The second criminal sought to be remembered after this life was finished; he looked to Jesus to be received into the eternal Kingdom of Heaven. And hearing this man’s plea, Jesus solemnly promised, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” The difference in the request of these two criminals was that the first sought freedom from the consequences of his own sinful choices; the second sought to be accepted in the Beloved Son of God.
The second sinner was received on the basis of looking to the Christ for deliverance. He was the only individual who was delivered at death in the record provided by the New Testament. There is only one to caution us not to presume against God and His mercy. He was an exception. Nevertheless, there is one individual who is said to have been received as he was dying so that we will have hope. Our Saviour is prepared to receive the penitent sinner at any point, provided that person has not so hardened his heart that he excludes dependence on the Christ to set Him free from condemnation. Do not presume against the grace of God.
But what of nations? What of cultures and societies? Can a nation that is facing divine judgement turn away that judgement, judgement that they have brought upon themselves? When God has determined that He will judge a nation, can the judgement be reversed, or even delayed? We note the record that Israel was restored on multiple occasions, but we dare not imagine that we can use Israel as an example for hope that God will turn from judgement of our own nation. Israel was an exception in that the nation was chosen by the Lord God to be His people. We are not in that situation, and we dare not presume against the grace of God.
A more realistic model for us would be Nineveh. Nineveh was condemned, threatened with divine judgement, and they dared believe that God is merciful when people turn from their wickedness to plead for mercy. I’ve alluded to the record of how the city turned from their own wickedness to seek God’s mercy. Listen again as I read JONAH 3:5-9. “The people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.
“The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, ‘By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.’” And history records that the empire was spared being overthrown for decades. God was merciful to that generation, sparing them the judgement they deserved.
What would it take for God to spare us as a nation? I don’t know that I will witness the Prime Minister openly confessing his sin, and fasting in hope of averting judgement. I doubt that I will ever see the Premiere of one of our provinces fasting and praying, confessing the sin of the province. I’m not even certain that my faith is sufficiently strong to believe that vast numbers of my fellow citizens will fast and pray, confessing the sin of the nation. However, I am bold enough to believe that members of this congregation will give themselves to times of prayer and even fasting, asking that the Lord spare our nation. And should we do this, who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish. I know this—God is full of grace, and He is always prepared to show mercy to the one who comes to Him with a humble heart. Let us determine that we will come before Him even now. Amen.
[1] Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2016. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
[2] Bertram H. Shadduck, “The Great Judgment Morning,” 1894
