An Observation

Revelation14:17-20

I mentioned that I have been doing quite a bit of reading lately.  In that reading, I have read a lot of extended quotes from preachers from the 18th and 19th centuries.  This got me thinking and so I wanted to revisit a message we read an excerpt from when I was in high school.  That message was “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” by Jonathan Edwards.  

I remember in high school not liking this message because of its emphasis on the wrath of God.  I guess in a sense I held a grudge against the message from that point on.  However, reading it again tonight, I realized there was a lot to gather from it.  I also observed that it was a salvation message, but it is very different from the messages we hear today.  

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And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.

Revelation 14:17-20

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I included this scripture, not for the purpose of teaching on it, but rather as an example of many scriptures in the Bible that speak of the wrath of God and judgment.  Unlearned people often assert that the Old Testament is all about judgment and wrath, but the New Testament is about love and mercy.  I used this verse because it is a New Testament text.  

I titled this “An Observation” because that is truly all this is.  We tend to avoid telling people that they are under the wrath of God, except as a passing comment.  A big difference in messages I hear, compared to that of Edwards’ message, is that we present Hell as a future threat and Edwards preached it as an imminent threat.  He also focused on an attribute of God that we tend to avoid; the wrath and judgment of God.

I do not say any of this as a critique of either modern preaching, or of the Puritans’ preaching.  As I said, it is simply an observation.  For me however, it does remind me that there is much more to the Bible than what I tend to focus on.  I want to be able to say as Paul told the Ephesians in Acts 20:27, “For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God”.  I want to preach God in His entirety.  

I judged Edwards’ message as harsh, hateful, and even heretical when I was in high school.  After going back and reading it all these years later, I can see why people responded to it for salvation.  This message was preached during the First Great Awakening.  It warned people of their condition before a holy God in their unconverted state.  It also presented Jesus as a willing Savior.  I learned that I shouldn’t judge a message simply because the style is different.  I need to compare the message to the Word of God and see if it is faithful to what the scripture says.  

Father, help me to be discerning when I hear or read messages, but not unfairly judgmental.  Even when something is presented in a way that is unfamiliar, help me to be open to learn from those who came before me.  If there is error, reveal that as well.