The Judgment of Preferring Sin

Article Written by Pastor Phil Bray

    Apocalyptic images, visions of world wide cataclysmic upheaval, is the typical thought that comes to mind when we think of the judgment of God. We imagine mountains exploding into towering plumes of molten brimstone, raining down mercilessly on the inhabitants of earth. We imagine towering walls of water smashing to splinters coastal cities as record breaking tsunami’s crush all life before them. We imagine the sun turning to darkness and stars, meteors, raining fiery death and destruction from on high. We imagine people screaming, fleeing in mindless panic, only to run into another inescapable wave of judgment. 

    What we often do not imagine is laughter or the smug self-satisfied smile of those who get what they want most. Yet, this is what Jesus says God’s wrath is. “And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their deeds were evil.” (John 3:19). God’s judgment, according to Jesus, is that the Light of glory and beauty, the Light of goodness and love, the Light of gladness and peace has come into the world but instead of falling on our knees in awestruck wonder and delight, we scream at the light as if it actually bad. We are revolted by the light. We prefer, we want, we desire, we love the darkness instead. Light has come. Light, to lead us out of the cave of darkness and despair, has arrived and we flee from the light into deeper darkness, preferring the immediate gratification of our sin corrupted desires to the soul satisfying goodness of God’s presence in Jesus Christ. 

    The Scripture is clear “that whoever believes may in Him have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:15-16). Whoever believes! There is no limit placed on this promise! If you believe, you will not perish! In fact God promises again, “For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes in Him will not be disappointed.’ For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call upon Him; for ‘Whoever will call upon the Name of the Lord will be saved.’” (Rom 10:11-13). If you want the Lord, He stands ready to embrace you. 

    Nothing outside of you is coercing you. Your will is “free” in that sense. Yet, remarkably, “there is none who seeks for God; all have turned aside, together they have become useless; there is none who does good, there is not even one.” (Rom 3:11b-12a). With our “free will” we freely and without coercion choose to ignore God, refusing to “honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.” (Rom 1:21b-23). Light has come into the world, God has made Himself known through the spectacular and revelatory creation which He has made. He has made Himself known through the inner working of the human conscience, the sense of right and wrong innate in each of us. Furthermore God has taken on human nature and dwelt among us as Jesus Christ, the Word of God enfleshed! God has revealed Himself finally and completely in the person and work of Jesus Christ, verifying His authenticity and reality by raising Him from the dead in an act of historic and scientific fact! Light has come! 

    Yet, men prefer the darkness of their own selfish desires. They prefer their suffering and sorrow inducing way to the Way of Christ, the way of rest, peace, and gladness. They delight themselves in their hollow self-destructive desires rather than in overflowing joy that is relationship with God. They are not being forced to reject God. They are rejecting God of their own volitional act. And the judgment of God, how does God respond to this blasphemous evil? “Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored among them.” (Rom 1:24). Light has come into the world and men preferred the darkness, they chose the darkness over the light - that is the judgment. God gives them what they want and what they want results in separation from Him who is the source of pleasure and peace and joy. They believe the path to gladness is in self-gratification and prefer their broken twisted way, clouded in darkness and pain to the clear light of unending day! 

    Do you find that you keep getting whatever you want, that you keep taking whatever you want and rather than it producing the lasting gladness you are hoping for it actually brings more pain, brokenness, and death? Yet, like a dog returning to its own vomit, you keep returning again and again to lick up more misery for yourself. Why? Could it be that you “did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. And for this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.” (2 Thess 2:11b-12)? 
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    Are you living in the wrath of God right now? Are you experiencing the judgment of God right now because you have continued to reject His light, His truth? Are you now stubbornly and uncomprehendingly continuing to sin, refusing to repent? Do you actually prefer your way to the Way of Christ? Oh, how this should terrify us! Do not be those who prefer the darkness to the light! Come to Jesus and be saved!