Enormous hailstones, each weighing about 100 pounds, fell from the sky on people, and they blasphemed God for the plague of hail because that plague was extremely severe.     Revelation 16:21 HCSB

Over and over in the Bible God has warned people about coming judgment. More often than not, people ignore these warnings. In Revelation we see that during the tribulation period people who have ignored these warnings will become angry with God. Brother L. C. Lord, our former pastor, did a study on Revelation and said these people were shaking their fists at God.

God sent plagues on the people of Egypt to convince Pharaoh to release the Israelites from slavery. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, however, and he repeatedly refused to let the people go. Finally, when God sent the worst plague, the death of the firstborn male, Pharaoh sent the Israelites out of Egypt. Again, however, his heart was hardened. He decided to gather his army and go after them. God parted the Red Sea and the Israelites walked through on dry ground. When Pharaoh and his army went in after them, God brought the waters back and Pharaoh and his army drowned.

Rebelling against God is never a good thing to do. There are always harsh consequences, the worst being eternity in hell.

Many of us good, church-going Christians, may read this and be glad that we don’t rebel against God, or do we?

If we have some little hidden sin that we just can’t let go of, we are rebelling against God. If we only exercise partial obedience, we are rebelling against God.

Romans 3:23 tells us we are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God. Hebrews 10:26-27 tells us if we deliberately sin after receiving knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for our sins but a terrifying expectation of judgment and the fury of a fire about to consume the adversaries.

My friend, there is coming a time when we are going to be judged for our sins. We will be judged for every thought and every word. Are you taking your thoughts captive to make them obedient (2 Corinthians 10:5)? Are you careful about what you say and mindful that we will be judged for every idle word said (Matthew 12:36).

We must always be mindful of our thoughts, our words and our actions. We must be a good example for others. We must rid our lives of any intentional sin.

If we fail to do so, we are shaking our fists at God. We see this over and over again in Revelation. God is still trying to get sinners to repent and come to Him even during the tribulation. Many, however, will become angry at God and curse Him for sending these judgments upon them. They will rebel against Him and refuse to repent. They will shake their fists at him in anger. They will actually be angry at Him for judging them for their sins.

This doesn’t make sense, but we are told in Romans 1:21, “For though they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God or show gratitude. Instead, their thinking became nonsense, and their senseless minds were darkened.

It doesn’t make sense to rebel against God. It doesn’t make sense to sin and think God will give us a pass or go along with it. God’s word calls for total obedience. It calls for total surrender. God commands us to love Him with all our heart, soul and mind. Nowhere in the Bible does it say God will accept a little bit of love or surrender or obedience.

We need to get down on our knees today and ask for God’s forgiveness for our sin. We need to ask Him to fill our hearts with His Holy Spirit to help us stand against temptation. Praise Him and glorify Him with your whole heart.

There will be a day when it’s too late to be forgiven and none of us know when that will be. Get it right today. Stop shaking your fists at God. Repent and surrender to Him.

Have a great day!