Sweet Salvation {part I}
"'For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,' declares the LORD GOD. 'Therefore, repent and live!'" // Ezekiel 18:32
Too often, we only focus on half of God's characteristics - His judgement, His wrath, His hatred of sin. It's easy to forget that God is whole; He is all things to all men. He is complete. He is sovereign. He is the 'Great I am.' Whatever we need, He is. He is love. He is good. He is more than our tiny human minds could ever comprehend.
Yes, He is the ultimate Judge, but He judges with all fairness and compassion.
Yes, He exhibits wrath when necessary, but He is all-knowing and loving at the same time.
Yes, He hates sin, but His hatred of sin stems from His love for His children - He can't stand being separated from us, therefore He hates what keeps us apart.
He is not one or the other. He is all things at all times. When God, in His infinite wisdom, chooses to reveal the qualities that we as humans would deem harsh or mean, He never stops being the compassionate, kind, loving, sweet God.
Everything God does is to bring His children back to Himself.
He is a sweet, sweet God.
Take a second to re-read this...
"'For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,' declares the LORD GOD. 'Therefore, repent and live!'"
God is so saddened when His children choose to live a life that ultimately leads to death. Of course we will all die - our earthly lives will all end in death. But our souls live on for eternity in one of two places. God's hope is for everyone to spend eternity with Him, in a paradise where there is nothing but joy, as opposed to the alternative - eternal separation from God in a place where there is nothing but sorrow. {see Revelation 21:3-8}
There are countless times throughout Scripture where God reveals His sweet compassion for us. He does it each day with the rising and setting of the sun, the cry of a newborn babe, the embrace of ones whose relationship has been reconciled after years of fighting.
God can and will do whatever it takes to make sure all people are given the opportunity to receive and accept His love and forgiveness and salvation. He made a way for the creation to be reconciled with the Creator; all we have to do is 'repent and live!'