THE TWO SIDES OF GOD

My flesh trembles for fear of You, And I am afraid of Your judgments. Psalm 119:120

In Scripture, we see two sides to God: One is His loving, compassionate, caring side. He is the God who created us in His own and made the supreme sacrifice to offer us eternal life through Christ.

Then there is the God of holiness, who hates sin: One who judges sin and expresses wrath at evil.

Today, many have lost the balance between these two sides to God's nature. Too often we stress

on His love and forget that He is just and righteous; He will not tolerate sin. His holy nature cannot dwell side by side with sin.

That is why He took it upon Himself to pay for our sins through the suffering and death of Christ. When we despise the grace of God, the only option left for us is to suffer for our own sins.

The Bible tells us the penalty for sin is hell. Hell isn't in style today because it represents accountability to someone in authority, and we want to avoid authority. And it represents absolute eternal judgment.

We have a difficult time believing that such a place could exist, and we don't want to really believe that everlasting punishment and torment is a reality. And when we no longer see the eternal retribution of our sins, we lose any urgency for repenting of those sins.

The truth is that hell is real. God is patient, but He is not tolerant. He is holy. His justice calls for an atonement for man's sins.

When we scorn His offer of atonement and continue to live in sin and in our own evil way, we leave God with no option but to suffer the just punishment.

Prayer: Lord, open my eyes to the reality of my sins and their consequences.

Scriptural Reading: Psalm 119:113-120