The God that holds you over the pit of hell, much as one holds a spider, or some loathsome insect over the fire, abhors you, and is dreadfully provoked: his wrath towards you burns like fire; he looks upon you as worthy of nothing else, but to be cast into the fire; he is of purer eyes than to bear to have you in his sight; you are ten thousand times more abominable in his eyes, than the most hateful venomous serpent is in ours. You have offended him infinitely more than ever a stubborn rebel did his prince; and yet it is nothing but his hand that holds you from falling into the fire every moment. It is to be ascribed to nothing else, that you did not go to hell the last night; that you was suffered to awake again in this world, after you closed your eyes to sleep. And there is no other reason to be given, why you have not dropped into hell since you arose in the morning, but that God’s hand has held you up. There is no other reason to be given why you have not gone to hell, since you have sat here in the house of God, provoking his pure eyes by your sinful wicked manner of attending his solemn worship. Yea, there is nothing else that is to be given as a reason why you do not this very moment drop down into hell.
O sinner! Consider the fearful danger you are in: it is a great furnace of wrath, a wide and bottomless pit, full of the fire of wrath, that you are held over in the hand of that God, whose wrath is provoked and incensed as much against you, as against many of the damned in hell. You hang by a slender thread, with the flames of divine wrath flashing about it, and ready every moment to singe it, and burn it asunder; and you have no interest in any Mediator, and nothing to lay hold of to save yourself, nothing to keep off the flames of wrath, nothing of your own, nothing that you ever have done, nothing that you can do, to induce God to spare you one moment.
Jonathan Edwards, the New England puritan preacher, delivered these fiery words to a crowd in Enfield, Connecticut on July 8, 1741. “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” is perhaps the most famous sermon ever preached on American soil. It vividly describes the horrors of hell and pleads with sinners to repent from their sins and put their faith in Jesus Christ before it is too late.
Can you imagine Edward’s audacity to preach something like this? How dare him fill people’s imaginations with such negative thoughts about sin and hell? Didn’t he know that it is judgmental to point out people’s sin or call them to repent? Wasn’t he affraid that such graphic metaphors would offend people and isolate them from the church? Apparently, Jonathan Edwards wasn’t familiar with the power of positive thinking or the writings of Joel Osteen! Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God—aren’t you glad that we don’t hear sermons like this in America today? Where would Edwards get an idea like this?
He had just finished teaching his disciples about his second coming (Luke 12:35-48), and now he turns to the crowd and warns them about the fiery blaze of judgment they will face if they don’t become true followers of Christ before it is too late.
We are all standing in the crowd this morning. Can you hear Jesus’ words? May we all consider Jesus’ warning before it is tool late!
Before the Fire Falls (49-53)
In verses 49-53, Jesus gets right to the point by clearing up a common misconception about the purpose of his coming. He says plainly, “I have come to bring fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already kindled.” This is a reference to Christ’s judgment at his second coming. He wished that it was already time for judgment, but he first had to undergo his own baptism of fire by suffering a horrendous death on a wooden cross. Only after his crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension would he be poised to unleash the final judgment at his second coming.
Likewise, he did not come to bring peace, but division. Jesus’ claims of divinity and the call that he places on individual lives demands undivided loyalty. Sometimes a commitment to follow Jesus will spark division even within the family unit. He lists the potential for rifted relationships between parents and children and even in-laws. A true commitment to Jesus Christ may cost someone their family relationships.
At this point, you are probably thinking, “Whoa, wait a minute! I thought Jesus’ mission was to bring peace to earth. What about the Christmas angel who said, ‘peace on earth and goodwill to men?’ What about his title ‘Prince of Peace?’ How does this all fit together? Well, Jesus did come to bring peace, but only after the judgment. The peace of Christ will not be perpetual until the end of the age, when Jesus comes again to consummate his kingdom. When we put our faith in Christ, we do gain a sense of inner peace as the Holy Spirit indwells us, but we will not experience perfect peace until Jesus takes us to our eternal home.
This ancient crowd was suffering from the modern “Negative-Thoughts Syndrome.” Do you know what that is? It describes the masses of people in our world today who say things like, “I don’t want to think any negative thoughts! I just want to think positively!” According to Jesus, this is complete foolishness; it’s utter stupidity. If we never think about our sinful souls or the reality of Jesus’ judgment at his second coming, we are like a blind man walking into a pit of fire!
Would you be willing to follow Jesus if it cost you your relationship with your spouse? Are you willing to give your heart to Jesus even if it destroyed your relationship with your parents or children? Are you willing to be faithful to Jesus even if it rifts your relationships with your extended family and friends? The cost of following Jesus is high, but escaping the blaze of fury at end is worth it!
A Sign of the Times (54-57)
Jesus accused the people in the crowd of being hypocrites because they could forecast the weather in the natural world but they could not interpret the sings of the times in the spiritual world. As the crowd watched Jesus go about his teaching and healing ministry, they should have seen what was happening. They should have recognized Jesus’ divine authority and the fact that he was the one who fulfilled all of the messianic prophecies of the Old Testament. They should have known that Jesus was the one who could deliver them from the coming blaze of fury, but they did not understand who Jesus was or what he had come to do.
Unfortunately, many people today still don’t understand who Jesus is or what he came to do. Some people prefer political Jesus—a Jesus who solely exists to support their own political ideology. Other people prefer the fuzzy wuzzy Santa Claus Jesus—who always gives you what you want and is always there when you need him but never puts any demands on your life. Still others like the hippy dippy Jesus—who makes peace signs, marches in protest parades, and passes the peace pipe around the campfire. And don’t forget about the moral majority Jesus—who came to correct everyone’s immoral behavior and rescue American culture certain destruction.
No! Jesus is not our political puppet, cosmic Santa Claus, or our moral watchdog! Jesus did not come to make America great again. He didn’t even come to make America whole again! He is the divine Judge and Savior of the world. He came to die on the cross and free us from the penalty and power of sin and offer us an opportunity for eternal life! And one day he will come again to cast the fire of judgment on everyone who resists his free gift of salvation!
Settling Accounts (58-59)
After Jesus cleared up the misconceptions of who he was and what he came to do, he pressed the crowd to make a decision. He had come to cast fire on the earth—the fire of judgment. He had a baptism to endure—the baptism of the cross. His work as Savior and Judge would cause a division that would go right down the center of the human race. This was the decision that confronted the crowd, that confronts everyone. But they wouldn’t have forever to make the decision. (Ryken 698)
To accelerate a decision, Jesus used the example of a common legal dispute, where apparently the subject is in debt to another. The magistrate is like a sheriff in charge of a debtor’s prison. As you head to the judge, it is better to settle and be reconciled than to let judgment occur. The court may find you guilty, and you will be locked up in prison until the debt is paid, which would most likely be forever since there was little means of income in ancient prisons. (Bock 365)
Do you see the meaning of the illustration? Jesus is urging us to settle our accounts with God quickly, or else the prospect of judgment remains. Unless we are reconciled to our debtor before we stand before the judge, we will face the ultimate punishment of eternity in hell. We all have a debt of sin before God that must paid. Either Jesus does this for us by his sacrifice on the cross, or we will pay every last cent before God, which we can never do!
Have you settled your account with God by committing your life to Jesus Christ? Have you been reconciled to your divine adversary? Have you made a decision to follow Jesus and allowed him to pay all of your debts? You never know what is going to happen tomorrow—so do it today before it is too late!
Earlier I asked how Jonathan Edwards could preach a sermon like “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God?” But the real question is, “How couldn’t he?” Jesus certainly did! Sermons like this don’t tend to appease the masses, increase our self-esteem, or grow large churches today, but they need to be preached because they are faithful to Jesus’ message and mission. They may not make us feel good about ourselves as we leave church this morning, but they sure do make us consider the condition of our souls. And this is exactly what Jesus wanted! He wanted to show us how to avoid the a blaze of fury!