Daniel 9:4 & Nehemiah 1:5

1. Intro.
1. unbelievers often see God as a big bully
2. unbelievers often call Bible Christianity the "slaughter house religion"
1. they hate God because He demanded the complete destruction of whole cities because of their sin
2. they hate God because He warns of eternal Hell for those that reject Christ and do not repent of sin
3. they hate God for sending Jesus to die on the cross as a substitute for sinners
3. unbelievers hate the Bible doctrines of sin, punishment and the atoning death of Christ
4. the unbelievers see God as hateful because He punishes sin and requires the atoning death of Christ
5. the unbeliever could love God
1. they could love a God that pats sin on the back, but they hate a God that punishes sin
2. they could love a God who will call mankind good, moral, and evolving toward God
3. they hate a God that brands all men as fallen, sinful, and headed for eternal destruction if they do not repent
6. to the unbeliever, the sin avenging God is a big bully
7. as a Christian, we dare not shrink from the fact that our God is a "terrible" and "dreadful" God
2. the God of the Bible is a terrible and dreadful God
1. much preaching today is unbalanced
1. many emphasize the love of God and salvation by grace
2. many neglect to mention the wrath of God on sin, the need of repentance, and God’s demand for reformation
3. it is good to preach that God is love, provided we also preach that "our God is a consuming fire" - Hebrews 12:28-29
4. to preach Heaven without Hell is a misrepresentation of God
5. the God of the Bible is a God of vengeance, as well as a God of mercy
2. the wrath of God is often spoken of in the Bible - Isaiah 63:6
1. our God is a God of righteousness & holiness, of judgment & vengeance; He is a jealous God
2. we are plainly warned that "it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God" - Heb. 10:31
3. we misrepresent God if we only speak of Him as a God of love and mercy
1. preaching of salvation without preaching on sin is a perversion of God’s truth
2. faith without repentance, mercy without wrath, heaven without hell are all misrepresentations of God
4. God is terrible and dreadful
1. a God of fury against sin, and of vengeance
2. a God to be feared
3. a God before whom sinners should tremble
5. speaking of God as terrible, dreadful and as a consuming fire will shock and offend many
1. the creed of many: "emphasize the positive and eliminate the negative"
2. this is humanism, and it is a subtle rebellion against Bible Christianity
6. the fact of the matter is, we should fear a terrible and dreadful God
1. fear of the Lord is held throughout the Bible as one of the greatest virtues
2. it is the foundation of Christian character and sainthood
1. "fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" - Proverbs 1:7
2. fear of the Lord prolongs life - Proverbs 10:27
3. fear of the Lord is the way of true success - Proverbs 15:16
4. to fear God is the mean duty of man - Eccl. 12:13
5. not to fear God is sin - Romans3:18
3. the right kind of fear is noble, and a holy God should inspire fear in the heart of every reasonable person
3. God’s dealings with mankind show that He is a dreadful God
1. in the beginning man lived in a paradise of beauty with no disease, sickness, pain, distress and no want
1. there was no beast of prey
2. there was no thorns or thistles
3. God walked in the garden and had perfect fellowship with man
2. all changed when sin entered this world
1. this world is under a curse, and it groans because God has turned an angry face toward His creation
2. God is the one responsible for all the plagues, tears, bloodshed, pain, old age, and death
3. all this fury is the result of sin
4. God is the one who set up the holy plan that sin must be punished
5. God is the one who sees to it that a sinner gets his just reward
3. all the bloodshed, tears, pain, and death in this world proves that there is a terrible and dreadful God
1. we dare not think that there are any forces at work in this universe that God does not control
2. we dare not think that there are any events or processes that God does not control
3. God’s wrath is poured out on sin
4. the dreadful and terrible God requires the death penalty
1. many people protest the death penalty, but none of these represent the feelings of God or the teaching of the Bible
1. God Himself set up the death penalty as punishment for certain crimes - Gen. 9:5-6
2. God put the death penalty in His Law - Exodus 21:12-17
3. God hates sin, and requires that it be punished
2. think of all the heartache that has ever been, because someone died for their sins
3. think of the God that requires that men be sent out to meet Him unprepared
4. think of the God that requires a life to be cut short, even though most are certain to go straight to hell
5. how hot is God’s wrath against sin and the impenitent sinner
5. God’s hell is terrible
1. God is often slandered and hated for the doctrine of Hell
2. hell is an absolute essential of the historic Christian position
1. it is the most awful fact in the universe of God
2. Christianity stand or falls on the Bible fact of hell
1. if there is no hell, there is no heaven
2. if hell is not true, then the Bible is not true
3. if there is no hell, then the atonement is a farce
3. Christianity that leaves out hell, cannot claim to be Bible Christianity
3. hell is a very terrible and dreadful place
4. if God is not a big bully like many unbelievers say, then He must hate sin with a holy hatred
5. how dreadful the anger, how fearful the fury of the God who prepared Hell to go on forever
6. God’s wrath is equalled by His mercy - Daniel 9:4 & Nehemiah 1:5
1. those fiery eyes of God are also weeping eyes
1. God is broken hearted over sinners
2. God has crucified Himself upon the cross for sinners
2. the cross is a picture of a brokenhearted God buying back a wicked race of hellish sinners, who ought to be tormented
3. at the cross we see God so moved by holy compassion for the ungodly sinner, that He paid the torment of the damned Himself
4. God’s fierce anger is holy anger, but in back of the anger is a broken heart
5. as a child of God, we should have a holy and godly fear; but always remember that he is a God of mercy
6. there is only one way to avoid the wrath of God: repent of sin and turn to Christ for mercy
7. God’s precious promise - John 5:24