God Incomprehensible
My mind has deemed to know
The shadow cast by Thy great light
Upon this earth below

Lord give me eyes to see Thine heart
And heart to see Thine eyes
That in my dying breath I’ll not
Be taken by surprise

            Are you still trying to be the master of your own fate, or have you been conquered by Christ and trusted him as the Captain of your soul?

            A woman saw a father shopping with a fussy two-year-old in his grocery cart. “Be patient, Billy,” he whispered. “You can handle this, Billy. It’s okay, Billy.” The woman said to him, “I don’t mean to interrupt your shopping, but I just had to tell you how wonderfully loving and patient you are with little Billy.” The man replied, “Actually, my son’s name is Patrick. My name is Billy.”

            Patience is the capacity to accept suffering for a long period of time without getting angry or upset; an old-fashioned term for patience is long-suffering. Most of us admire long-suffering when we see it in other people and we wish that we had more of it in ourselves. It is easy to agree with the old proverb: “Patience is a virtue,” but the problem is that true patience is difficult to develop; it is hard to maintain our composure when things don’t go our way.

            Down through the ages many prominent people have reflected on the topic of patience. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle said, “Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.” The Puritan poet John Milton moralized, “I will not deny but that the best apology against false accusers is silence and sufferance, and honest deeds set against dishonest words.” The great Russian author Leo Tolstoy, in his epic novel War and Peace, states, “The strongest of all warriors are these two — Time and Patience.” The always quotable former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher quipped, “I’m extraordinarily patient provided I get my own way in the end.” And for those of you who are not impressed by poets or politicians, hard-rocker Axl Rose opines “Said, woman, take it slow and things will be just fine—All we need is just a little patience. Yeah!!!”

            The great nineteenth century New England preacher Phillips Brooks was noted for his poise and quiet manner. At times, however, even he suffered moments of frustration and irritability. One day a friend saw him feverishly pacing the floor like a caged lion. “What’s the trouble, Mr. Brooks?” he asked.  “The trouble is that I’m in a hurry, but God isn’t!”

            Haven’t we all felt the same way many times? Indeed, patience is a difficult virtue for human beings to attain, but it is one of God’s inherent attributes. We always seem to be in a rush, but God is always patient. Although, like Brooks, we can sometimes be perturbed by God’s patience, we should be deeply grateful for this aspect of God’s character. When we think about our sins and all of the times we have disobeyed, disrespected, and disregarded him in our lives, we should be thankful that he still puts up with us!

            Throughout the Bible the Scriptures testify to the fact that God is patient and long-suffering with his people. Today I would like to showcase a few of these passages for you—that you might gain a deeper appreciation of who God is and what he has done for you!

The Biblical Testimony of God’s Patience

            The first passage I would like to share with you is Exodus 34:5-7, where God declares his attribute of patience to Moses while he renewed his covenant on Mt. Sinai:

Then the LORD came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the LORD. And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.”

This passage contains one of the greatest statements of God’s character in the whole canon of Scripture. God uses it here for the first time and then it is repeated eight more times throughout the Bible. Along with God’s attributes of love, compassion, grace, faithfulness, and forgiveness, we find the words “slow to anger” which is a reference to God’s patience or long-suffering. Even after God delivered the Israelites from slavery in Egypt, they constantly grumbled and complained against him, but he remained remarkably patient with them.

            Have you ever tried being patient with someone who constantly grumbles and complains? Has your long-suffering ever been tested by someone who is ungrateful for what you have done for them? That is exactly what God did with the Israelites and that is what he does for us too. How often does the Lord put up with our whining, bickering, and fussing? Too many times to count! Thank God for his patience with his people!

            The second passage I would like to discuss is Nehemiah 9:28-31. In this section, the Jews just returned to Jerusalem after 70 years of exile in Babylon. Nehemiah led the people to rebuild the walls around the city and became their governor. After the work was completed, a group of Levites led the people in a corporate prayer of confession, recalling God’s patience and mercy. Here is part of the prayer:

But as soon as they were at rest, they again did what was evil in your sight. Then you abandoned them to the hand of their enemies so that they ruled over them. And when they cried out to you again, you heard from heaven, and in your compassion you delivered them time after time. You warned them to return to your law, but they became arrogant and disobeyed your commands. They sinned against your ordinances, by which a man will live if he obeys them. Stubbornly they turned their backs on you, became stiff-necked and refused to listen. For many years you were patient with them. By your Spirit you admonished them through your prophets. Yet they paid no attention, so you handed them over to the neighboring peoples. But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.

This prayer recounts God’s patience with his people before the Babylonian exile. Time after time, the Jews became arrogant, stubborn, stiff-necked, self-sufficient, and disobedient to God’s commands, but God was patient with them for many years. He gave them so many chances to repent from their sin and return to him. He sent them prophets to warn them about what would happen if they did not return to the Lord. After all of this, he would have been justified to either destroy his people or to abandon them forever, but his patience is seen even in his discipline.

            For those of you who are parents, this prayer ought to resonate with you. The Jews were just like children who have streaks of independence, arrogance, obstinacy, and sheer disobedience. As parents, do you ever find yourself repeating the same old commands over and over again?—“Pick up your clothes! Put things back where they belong! Finish your homework! Clean up your mess!” It is difficult to be patient with our kids when they continue to do the same old naughty things over and over again, but we do not destroy or abandon those we love!

            Likewise, God tells us the same things over and over again, and yet we continue in our disobedience. Thankfully, he does not destroy or abandon those he loves. Like the Jews, sometimes he disciplines us, but even in his discipline, he proves his patience.

            The third passage I want to promote is Jeremiah 15:15 where the weeping prophet pleads with God on the basis of his long-suffering to deliver him from his fellow countrymen who were persecuting him because he was preaching an unpopular message about ensuing judgment on the nation. He speaks to God and says, “You understand, O LORD; remember me and care for me. Avenge me on my persecutors. You are long-suffering—do not take me away; think of how I suffer reproach for your sake.”

            Jeremiah remembers and reflects on the Lord’s long-suffering to help him with his own long-suffering. Similarly, when we remember and reflect on God’s patience, it helps us to be patient with people, even when they pester or persecute us.

            The fourth and final passage I would like to show you is 2 Peter 3:8-9:

But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day. The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.

In this passage, Peter is reminding Christians that many people will scoff at Christ’s promise to return to the earth and bring judgment in the future. People will laugh because life continues as it always has and his promise has not yet been fulfilled. But Peter tells them that God’s timeframe is very different from the human timeframe. Since God is eternal and not bound by time, a day is the same as a thousand years to him.

            So, the fact that Christ has not returned yet should not make us think that he is slow in keeping his promise. Rather, we should be thankful that he is patient with us. The longer he delays his return, the more time we have to repent from our sins and gain eternal life. But we also need to remember that God’s patience does not last forever and he will return and execute judgment on all who have not put their trust in him.

            Have you repented from your sins and put your faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ? Do you have family members, friends, and loved ones who are resisting repentance and refusing to take Jesus seriously? God is so patient with us, but let us act before his patience runs out!

            Allow me to conclude with a parable: According to a traditional Hebrew story, Abraham was sitting outside his tent one evening when he saw an old man, weary from age and journey, coming toward him. Abraham rushed out, greeted him, and then invited him into his tent. There he washed the old man’s feet and gave him food and drink.

The old man immediately began eating without saying any prayer or blessing. So Abraham asked him, “Don’t you worship God?” The old traveler replied, “I worship fire only and reverence no other god.” When he heard this, Abraham became incensed, grabbed the old man by the shoulders, and threw him out his tent into the cold night air.

When the old man had departed, God called to his friend Abraham and asked where the stranger was. Abraham replied, “I forced him out because he did not worship you.” God answered, “I have suffered him these eighty years although he dishonors me. Could you not endure him one night?”

                This little parable teaches us the dual lessons that we should be deeply grateful for God’s patience with us and that we should be patient with others. Let us model our own character and behavior after God’s attribute of long-suffering! And finally, I want to thank you all for your patience while I preached this sermon today!

                When evangelist Billy Graham was driving through a small southern town, he was stopped by a policeman and charged with speeding. Graham admitted his guilt, but was told by the officer that he would have to appear in court.

            The judge asked, “Guilty, or not guilty?” When Graham pleaded guilty, the judge replied, “That’ll be ten dollars — a dollar for every mile you went over the limit.”

            Suddenly the judge recognized the famous minister. “You have violated the law,” he said. “The fine must be paid—but I am going to pay it for you.” He took a ten dollar bill from his own wallet, attached it to the ticket, and then took Graham out and bought him a steak dinner! Later, Billy Graham reflected on the incident and said, “That is how God treats repentant sinners!”

            This anecdote perfectly illustrates the biblical concept of grace. Most theologians define God’s attribute of grace as his unmerited favor or goodness granted to the ill-deserving. This means that God freely bestows his benefits and blessings on human beings who have neither earned them nor deserve them.

            The greatest manifestation of God’s grace is in salvation. As we have learned in our last two reflections, God is holy and wrathful, which means that that he must punish sin to stay true to his divine character. If he did not punish sin, he would not be just, and therefore he could not be God. Furthermore, the Bible asserts that all human beings are sinful and are deserving of eternal punishment (Rom. 3:23; 6:23). But God freely grants his grace to whomever he desires. He is not required or mandated to express grace, but he does it from the goodness and love in his heart.

            Today I would like to share with you some memoirs of unmerited favor to help us reflect on the doctrine of God’s grace. I hope that these stories will give you a better understanding and deeper appreciation for God’s grace in your own life!

The Grace of LaGuardia’s New York

            A story is told about Fiorello LaGuardia, who, when he was mayor of New York City during the worst days of the Great Depression and all of WWII, was called ‘the Little Flower’ by adoring New Yorkers because he was only five foot four and always wore a carnation in his lapel. He was a colorful character who used to ride the New York City fire trucks, take entire orphanages to baseball games, and whenever the New York newspapers were on strike, he would go on the radio and read the Sunday comics to the kids.   

            One bitterly cold night in January of 1935, the mayor turned up at a night court that served the poorest ward of the city. LaGuardia dismissed the judge for the evening and took over the bench himself. Within a few minutes, a tattered old woman was brought before him, charged with stealing a loaf of bread. She told LaGuardia that her daughter’s husband had deserted her, her daughter was sick, and her two grandchildren were starving.

            But the shopkeeper, from whom the bread was stolen, refused to drop the charges. “It’s a real bad neighborhood, your Honor.” the man told the mayor. “She’s got to be punished to teach other people around here a lesson.” LaGuardia sighed. He turned to the woman and said “I’ve got to punish you. The law makes no exceptions—ten dollars or ten days in jail.” But as he pronounced sentence, the mayor reached into his pocket and extracted a bill saying: “Here is the ten dollar fine which I now remit; and furthermore I am going to fine everyone in this courtroom fifty cents for living in a town where a person has to steal bread so that her grandchildren can eat. Mr. Baliff, collect the fines and give them to the defendant.”

            So the following day the New York City newspapers reported that $47.50 was turned over to a bewildered old lady who had stolen a loaf of bread to feed her starving grandchildren, fifty cents of that amount being contributed by the red-faced grocery store owner, while some seventy petty criminals, people with traffic violations, and New York City policemen, each of whom had just paid fifty cents for the privilege of doing so, gave the mayor a standing ovation.

            Mayor LaGuardia was a just judge but he was also compassionate and gracious. This is exactly what Exodus 34:6-9 declares about God:

And he passed in front of Moses, proclaiming, “The LORD, the LORD, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands, and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children and their children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generation.” Moses bowed to the ground at once and worshiped. “O Lord, if I have found favor in your eyes, he said, “then let the Lord go with us. Although this is a stiff-necked people, forgive our wickedness and our sin, and take us as your inheritance.”

            It is true, the law makes no exceptions; the Lord has to punish the guilty to maintain his justice, but he is compassionate and gracious. He extends his love and forgiveness to rebellious, wicked, and sinful people like us. Like the ancient Israelites, we are a stiff-necked people: selfish, stubborn, and quick to complain when things don’t go our way. But may we find forgiveness through the grace and compassion in the eyes of the Lord, just as the thieving grandmother did in the mayor’s!

The Grace of a Brazilian Mom

            Longing to leave her poor Brazilian neighborhood, Christina wanted to see the world. Discontent with a home having only a pallet on the floor, a washbasin, and a wood-burning stove, she dreamed of a better life in the city. One morning she slipped away, breaking her mother’s heart.

            Knowing what life on the streets would be like for her young, attractive daughter, Maria hurriedly packed to go find her. On her way to the bus stop she entered a drugstore to get one last thing. Pictures. She sat in the photograph booth, closed the curtain, and spent all she could on pictures of herself. With her purse full of small black-and-white photos, she boarded the next bus to Rio de Janiero. Maria knew Christina had no way of earning money. She also knew that her daughter was too stubborn to give up. When pride meets hunger, a human will do things that were before unthinkable. Knowing this, Maria began her search. Bars, hotels, nightclubs, any place with the reputation for street walkers or prostitutes. She went to them all. And at each place she left her picture–taped on a bathroom mirror, tacked to a hotel bulletin board, fastened to a corner phone booth. And on the back of each photo she wrote a note. It wasn’t too long before both the money and the pictures ran out, and Maria had to go home. The weary mother wept as the bus began its long journey back to her small village. 

            It was a few weeks later that young Christina descended the hotel stairs. Her young face was tired. Her brown eyes no longer danced with youth but spoke of pain and fear. Her laughter disappeared. Her dreams had become a nightmare. A thousand times over she had longed to trade these countless beds for her secure pallet back home. Yet the little village was, in too many ways, too far away. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, her eyes noticed a familiar face. She looked again, and there on the lobby mirror was a small picture of her mother. Christina’s eyes filled with tears and her throat tightened as she walked across the room and removed the small photo. Written on the back was this compelling invitation. “Whatever you have done, whatever you have become, I still love you. Please come home.” She did.

            This story reminds me of the words about God’s grace found in Titus 3:1-7:

Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men. At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.

            Like Christina, haven’t we all at one time been foolish, disobedient, and deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures? To some extent, haven’t we all lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another? We are all guilty of sin and none of us deserve salvation!

            But thanks be to God for his kindness and love that he showed us by the giving of his Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Jesus suffered and died on the cross to save us from the penalty for our sin and rebellion. Through faith in Christ, our souls are saved from eternal damnation in hell, not because of any righteous things we have done, but because of his mercy. The blood of Jesus Christ washes our sinful souls and the Holy Spirit causes us to be born again and renews our lives. We are justified by his grace and therefore have the hope of eternal life. God’s grace is unmerited favor; instead of getting what we deserve, we get what we don’t deserve!

            If you have been running away from God—if you have made a mess of your life—if you are guilty and feel like you are beyond all hope—come home to Jesus! Can you picture Jesus hanging on the cross? The caption says, “Whatever you have done, whatever you have become, I still love you!” Won’t you give your life to him today?

           Now that we have a better understanding and deeper appreciation of God’s grace in our own lives, let me conclude with one last memoir.

            Years ago, a Christian father coached a baseball team of eight-year-olds. He had a few excellent players, and some who just couldn’t get the hang of the game. His team didn’t win once all season. But in the last inning of the last game, his team was only down by a run. There was one boy who had never been able to hit the ball—or catch it. With two outs, it was his turn to bat. He surprised the world and got a single!

            The next batter was the team slugger. Finally, the coach’s players might win a game. The slugger connected, and as the boy who hit the single ran to second, he saw the ball coming toward him. Not so certain of baseball’s rules, he caught it. Final out! The team lost! Quickly, the coach told his team to cheer. The boy beamed. It never occurred to him that he lost the game. All he knew was he had hit the ball and caught it—both for the first time. His parents later thanked the coach. Their child had never even gotten in a game before that season.

            The players never told the boy exactly what happened. They didn’t want to ruin it for him. And till this day, the whole team is proud of what they did that afternoon.

            Like this coach, once you have experienced God’s grace in your own life, you can extend grace to others. When you recognize that God has shown you unmerited favor and has paid the penalty for your sins, it enables you to forgive others for the pain that they have caused you and to live a life of freedom, humility, mercy, and grace. Isn’t that the kind of life you want?

            On July 8^th, 1741, Jonathan Edwards, the pastor of the Congregational Church of Northampton, Massachusetts, preached the most famous sermon in American history. As a guest preacher at a church in Enfield, Connecticut, he delivered Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God, the sermon that sparked the massive movement of religious conversions throughout America which is known as the First Great Awakening. God used this single sermon to alter the landscape of American religious history. Even today, two-hundred and sixty years later, the sermon is included in almost every anthology of American literature and is still widely read and studied by students all over the world.   

            Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God was a passionate and powerful plea for sinful human beings to take seriously the doctrine of the wrath of God. Consider this excerpt from Edwards’ sermon:  

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…

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.

            The graphic depictions of the horrors of a literal eternal hell were meant to force sinners to reckon with the reality of the judgment of God. When the sermon was originally delivered, Edwards was interrupted many times by people moaning and shouting, “What must I do to be saved?” Edwards ended the sermon with one final appeal, “Therefore let everyone that is out of Christ, now awake and fly from the wrath to come.” The message had such a profound affect that many people repented from their sins and turned to faith in Christ!

            I have often wondered how Americans would respond to Edward’s sermon today! Unfortunately, instead of sinners crying out for mercy in the hands of an angry God, I picture God being squeezed out of the hands of angry sinners. In other words, many people today simply get mad when they hear a sermon about God’s wrath. Instead of shouting out, “What must I do to be saved?” they sit in their seat and silently seethe.

            I have been a preacher long enough to know that people adore inspirational sermons about God’s love, kindness, forgiveness, and faithfulness. People cozy up to therapeutic self-help messages which outline five-step plans to “become a better you.” People like to hear homilies that leave them feeling happy! On the other hand, people usually abhor sermons about sin, judgment, and hell. They cringe at messages that convict the heart or demand repentance and change.   

            How about you? How does your soul respond when you hear Edward’s words? How does the doctrine of the wrath of God make you feel? The Bible explicitly mentions the wrath of God almost 200 times. Today, I would like to share three passages that illustrate the various ways sinners respond to the wrath of God.

1.) Sinners Ignore the Wrath of God

            One way that sinners approach the wrath of God is to simply ignore it and pretend like it does not exist. As Jesus was teaching his disciples about the final judgment, he alluded to two times in biblical history when sinners ignored the wrath of God. Listen to what he says in Luke 17:22-35:

Then he said to his disciples, “The time is coming when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. Men will tell you, ‘There he is!’ or ‘Here he is!’ Do not go running off after them. For the Son of Man in his day will be like the lightning, which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. But first he must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation.

Just as it was in the days of Noah, so also will it be in the days of the Son of Man. People were eating, drinking, marrying and being given in marriage up to the day Noah entered the ark. Then the flood came and destroyed them all.”

“It was the same in the days of Lot. People were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building. But the day Lot left Sodom, fire and sulfur rained down from heaven and destroyed them all. It will be just like this on the day the Son of Man is revealed. On that day no one who is on the roof of his house, with his goods inside, should go down to get them. Likewise, no one in the field should go back for anything. Remember Lot’s wife! Whoever tries to keep his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life will preserve it. I tell you, on that night two people will be in one bed; one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding grain together; one will be taken and the other left.”

            The Book of Genesis gives the detailed accounts of God’s wrath being poured out on the whole world during the days of Noah and later upon the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. One judgment was carried out with water and the other by fire, but they both came as a result of relentless displays of human depravity. In both cases, the people were given opportunity to repent and their wickedness, but they chose to ignore God and continue in their way of life.

            In this passage Jesus uses the ordinary activities of life “eating, drinking, marrying, buying, selling, planting, and building” to show that they continued to ignore the impending wrath of God right up until the time of judgment. Regrettably, they did not pay any attention to God or his wrath against sin and they paid the price for it.

            How about you? What is your posture to God’s wrath? Do you brush it off or set it aside? Do you ignore it as the people did in the days of Noah and Sodom? The reason Jesus told this to his disciples is because another day of God’s wrath is coming. Let us not make the same mistake others have made!

2.) Sinners Rebel Against the Wrath of God

            In addition to ignoring God’s wrath, some sinners actively rebel against it. They are annoyed by at the concept of a God who would actually hold people accountable for their actions; they can become judgmental about God’s judgment and hostile toward the very idea of hell. Some people just seem to try to provoke God’s anger by sinking into even greater sin and rebellion. This is exactly what the Apostle Paul describes in Romans 1:18-32:

The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities– his eternal power and divine nature– have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator– who is forever praised. Amen.

Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they are senseless, faithless, heartless, ruthless. Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

            Here, Paul makes it clear that God’s wrath is constantly being revealed against people who twist and suppress his truth by their wickedness. Although God makes his truth known to them, they reject it and their hearts become darkened. They engage in all sorts of immoral and sinful behavior and place their stamp of approval on it. By doing this, they are rejecting the wrath of God.

            Is this not exactly what we see unfolding before our very eyes today? We live in a society that has largely turned its back on God’s truth. It has openly approved of behaviors that God has called them sinful. Disobeying parents is tolerated today. Did you read about the resent court case in New Jersey where a high school girl sued her parents for making her follow the rules at home? Likewise, gossip, slander, bragging, pre-marital sex, extra-marital sex, and homosexuality are considered acceptable even though God has clearly stated that they are wrong. When we say something is OK when God says it is wrong, we rebel against the wrath of God.  

3.) Sinners Humble Themselves before the Wrath of God

            The bad news is that many people either ignore or rebel against the wrath of God, but the good news is that some sinners humble themselves before the wrath of God. Consider Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church:

As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions– it is by grace you have been saved. (Ephesians 2:1-5)

            In this passage, Paul tells the Ephesians that they were spiritually dead in their trespasses and sins and therefore were by their very nature objects of God’s wrath. But thankfully, these sinners humbled themselves before God and received his grace by putting their faith in him. The grace and forgiveness of Jesus saved their souls from God’s wrath.

In Jonathan Edward’s day, people realized that they were sinners in the hands of an angry God, how about you?

            Psalm 24:3-4—Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to an idol or swear by what is false.

                       When I was a sophomore in high school, my journalism class took a trip to Columbia University in New York City to attend a three-day journalism convention and to do some sight-seeing in the Big Apple. Back in those days I wasn’t very studious and I wasn’t particularly interested in the academic portion of the trip, apart from trying to meet some college girls. (But what my sophomoric mind failed to realize was that our trip coincided with spring break and there wasn’t a single college girl left on the campus.) Well, at least I got to see the Statue of Liberty.

            During that trip we spent a whole afternoon meandering through the Museum of Modern Art. Now maybe some of you understand or even like modern art, but I was personally baffled by the outrageous exhibits that they classified as art. But there was one piece of real art in that museum that I wanted to see: Vincent Van Gogh’s painting The Starry Night. Other than The Mona Lisa, it was the only painting in the world that I would have recognized. My art teacher had taught a unit on Van Gogh and I genuinely liked the deep blue colors in painting and was fascinated by an artist who would cut off his ear and mail it to a brothel.

            When I finally found the infamous painting, I was astounded by how exposed and unprotected it was. It was simply hanging on the wall at eye level with only a narrow rope forming a flimsy perimeter around the precious piece and a little sign hanging on it that bore the words “Do Not Touch.” As I stood alone gazing into The Starry Night, I was overcome by a malevolent desire to break the rules and touch it. I wondered what would happen if I did. The possibility of sounding an alarm or getting apprehended by the NYPD only added to the excitement. After contemplating this for a while, I looked around to make sure no one was watching and I gently leaned over the rope and pressed my pointer finger into the lower right-hand corner of the masterpiece.

            I didn’t hear any alarms or footsteps coming at me, but as I walked away I could feel my stomach sinking into the pit of guilt. Just like Adam and Even in the Garden of Eden, I had touched something that was never meant to be touched. My selfish act marred something that was pure and beautiful. Even though I didn’t get caught, I immediately regretted what I had done. I didn’t have clean hands and I definitely didn’t have a pure heart; I was unholy!

            Maybe you have never illegally touched a famous painting before, but I am quite sure that all of you have acted in an unholy manner at some point in your life. Perhaps you made a selfish choice that marred something or someone who was pure and beautiful. Maybe you engaged in some immoral behavior or committed some malicious act.

            I have never met anyone who doesn’t have any regrets. We have all had enough impure thoughts, spoken enough wicked words, and done enough depraved deeds that we can confess the words of the late British author E.M. Forster, who said, “I’m a holy man minus the holiness.” The Psalmist asks the question, “Who may ascend the hill of the LORD? Who may stand in his holy place?” The answer is “he who has clean hands and a pure heart.” The problem is that none of us has clean hands or a pure heart. Therefore, we cannot stand in his holy place!

God’s Holiness

            The definition of holiness is to be separated from all sin and evil. True holiness means to be absolutely morally perfect. When we see God’s attribute of holiness, we realize just how unholy we are. That is exactly what happened to the prophet Isaiah. In Isaiah 6:1-7, he explains his divine vision:

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a throne, high and exalted, and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphs, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook and the temple was filled with smoke. “Woe to me!” I cried. “I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.” Then one of the seraphs flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”

The Bible is filled with passages that assert and describe the holiness of God, but this one is paramount. It is one of only two places in the Bible that uses the tri-repeated formula “holy, holy, holy” (the other one is found in Revelation 4) to intensify God’s attribute of holiness.

            What an incredible vision! Isaiah saw God seated on the throne in heaven. He saw six-winged seraphs (angels) hovering above him echoing antiphonic affirmations of God’s holiness and glory. The power of their collective voices shook the doorposts and thresholds of the temple. Even this small glimpse of God’s holiness was enough to cause Isaiah to recognize his own sinfulness. He openly confesses, “Woe to me! I am ruined! I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips…”

            Matthew Henry, the notable 17^th century biblical commentator once said, “No attribute of God is more dreadful to sinners than His holiness.” It is true, when we consider God’s holiness, his moral purity and perfection; every ounce of our self-righteousness is stripped away. When you look into a dirty mirror you can’t see the dirt on your face, but when you look into a clean mirror, you see your face for how it really is. Likewise, when we look at God’s holiness, we see just how impure and imperfect we really are. Have you looked into the mirror of God’s holiness lately? He is “holy, holy, holy”; we are “sinful, sinful, sinful!” Guilty human beings cannot be in the presence of a holy God. Like Isaiah, we stand guilty before God’s holiness and are in great need of atonement.

Jesus Fulfills our Lack of Holiness

            Thankfully, there is one human being who did live a holy life and who was worthy to grant us atonement. Jesus Christ, God’s one and only Son, was the only human being to ever live a truly holy life. He experienced all of the same temptations and pressures to sin that we do, but he maintained his moral perfection. Hebrews 4:14-15 says:

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.

            Furthermore, Jesus sacrificed his perfect life on the cross to pay the penalty for our moral imperfections. When he shed his blood and died, he gave his holiness to the unholy so that God would remember our sins no more. Reflect on Hebrews 10:10-22:

And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says: “This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.” Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.”And where these have been forgiven, there is no longer any sacrifice for sin. Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.

            Do you see what this text is saying? It is impossible for us to be holy by trying to be holy! The only way we can become holy is by receiving Christ’s holiness that he offers to us through his death on the cross. When Jesus becomes our priest and mediator, we become positionally perfect in God’s sight and we begin the process of becoming practically holy in our lives. This is the greatest news in the world! Jesus fulfills our lack of holiness!

            When God looks at you, what does he see? Does he see someone who is pointlessly striving for personal holiness or someone who has been made holy by Christ’s incredible sacrifice?

God’s Holiness is a Model for Our Holiness

            Now after a person has received Christ’s positional holiness through genuine faith, the proper way to express gratitude is by using God’s holiness as model for our holiness. Notice what it says in 1 Peter 1:13-16:

Therefore, prepare your minds for action; be self-controlled; set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed. As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

            Because of the grace and holiness that we have received through Jesus Christ, we should prepare our minds for action, be self-controlled, set our minds on Jesus’ return, avoid evil desires, and work to be holy in all we do! We should use God’s holiness as a model for our own lives!

            Well, as I conclude, let me return to the Psalmist’s question: Who may ascend the hill of the Lord? Who may stand in his holy place? He (or she) who has clean hands and a pure heart! I hope that today you have learned that none of us has clean hands or a pure heart, but when we place our trust in Jesus Christ, he gives us his clean hands and pure heart. And we show him our gratitude by modeling our lives after God’s holiness, even though we know that we will never attain it in this life. But let us do our best to be holy because he is holy!