For after all it is only just for God to repay with affliction those who afflict you, and to give relief to you who are afflicted and to us as well when the Lord Jesus will be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in flaming fire, dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus. These will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of His power, when He comes to be glorified in His saints on that day, and to be marveled at among all who have believed–for our testimony to you was believed.  2 Thessalonians 1:6-10 NASB

We all like to think about heaven. We like to think about this beautiful, peaceful place where the streets are made of gold and the gates are made of pearl. We like to think of never again having to suffer or mourn (Revelation 21:4). But no one likes to think of hell. We don’t like to think about a place that is always extremely hot and miserable and scary. A place where we will be tormented forever and ever.

Likewise, we all like to think about God as a loving, caring, merciful Father. We like to think about His goodness and His mercy and his kindness. That is all well and good because He is all these things and more. But we must also realize that He is a strict disciplinarian. He is loving and kind and  merciful when you repent and are truly sorry of your sins, but if you continue to sin don’t think that He will just hand over a get out of hell free card. He is also a God of discipline. He is a jealous God (Exodus 20:5). He wants to be first in our lives and in our hearts. He wants us to focus on Him and not the things of this world. The things of this world will pass away, but He is forever and ever. Where we spend eternity will be determined by the type of relationship that we have with Him. If we have no relationship at all with Him, we will spend our eternity in Hell. The worst thing about Hell is that it is eternal separation from God.

John 3:36 says if we do not obey God we will abide in His wrath. We must remember that this loving God we serve is the same God that cursed all mankind for the sin of Adam and Eve. This is the same God that destroyed the earth by flood and spared only Noah and his family. This is the same God that drowned an the entire Egyptian army for coming after the Israelites. This is the same God that destroyed the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah for their sin. This is the same God that turned Lot’s wife into a pillar of salt for her disobedience. That’s just a few of his punishments rendered, but He also sent His only Son to earth to endure the pain, suffering and death on a cross so that we might be saved. He gives us a way to escape this suffering.

If you are choosing to separate yourself from God while here on earth, then you may very well be experiencing a little Hell right here on earth. If you are putting things before God then you are worshiping idols. If you will recall this is what kept those poor Israelites in trouble. They would do well for a little while and then start worshiping idols. We worship idols when we put anything before God. When we put relationships with other people before our relationship with God, when we have all kinds of excuses for why we can’t get to church, when we have all these excuses as to why we can’t spend time each day in Bible study and prayer we are worshiping idols. Anything that gets in the way of our time with God is an idol, my friend. If you really want to bring God’s wrath down on yourself, then continue worshiping your idols. Know that God will not tolerate this and know that He will deal with you swiftly and harshly. Also know that the hell you experience here on earth is nothing to the eternal hell that you face if you don’t turn to God.

If you are feeling like you are experiencing a little hell on earth, then I want you to ask yourself this question, is there anything in my life that may not be pleasing to God? Am I doing all that He has commanded me to do. Am I refraining from doing the things that He has clearly told me not to do? Is it possible that I am experiencing the wrath of God for my disobedience?

The Bible clearly tells us that we serve a jealous God and we know that God can become angry. We saw this over and over again in the Old Testament. God’s wrath is something that we never want to contend with. When you go against God you are never going to win and when you lose the price you pay is just not worth it.

Now some of us are in a close relationship with the Lord and are going through hard times, but that’s okay because those of us in close relationship know that these problems will all work out for our good (Romans 8:28). We know that God uses trials to strengthen us (James 1:2-4). We know that He has good plans for us (Jeremiah 29:11).  We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us (Romans 8:37).  God gives us victory through our Lord, Jesus Christ (Corinthians 15:57).

If you haven’t been living a life that is pleasing to God or if you have allowed idols to prevent you from serving God as you should, turn to Him before it’s too late. We are told in Romans 1:24 that there will come a time, if we refuse to give up our sinful ways, that God will give us over to our sinful desires. Yesterday we talked about how God hardened the hearts of the Israelites and made them unable to see things for how they truly were and unable to understand how desperately they needed Him. I beg of you not to get yourself in that type of situation with your Lord and Savior. Turn to Him today. You can go from experiencing His wrath to experiencing His mercy and His lovingkindness. He leaves it all up to you. The choice is yours.

Have a great day!