The subject of the wrath of God has been one keenly contested in recent platforms. This is so especially when the subject of the cross and the destruction of Jerusalem in 70ad comes into focus.
The wrath of God was connected to the Old Covenant system, which existed and continued until its final destruction in 70AD (Hebrew 8:13).
Paul said in Romans 4:15 "Because the law works wrath: for where no law is, there is no transgression." Until the law was given on Mount Sinai, the Jews did not experience the wrath of God. Each time they complained and grumbled, they saw the goodness of God manifest in provision and protection but after the law was given. They witnessed manifestations of the curses as contained in the Mosaic covenant.
We need to see that God judged that Old covenant system after he had introduced a new covenant that did not contain His wrath. This new covenant had settled the transgression of man when forgiveness was offered on the cross.
So the question that has been there in many people's mind is if the wrath of God came after the law was given, how do you explain what happened at Sodom and Gomorrah.
Many voices have sounded that homosexuality is the reason God would judge America and that if he did not then he would have to apologize to Sodom and Gomorrah. With the recent decision by the Supreme Court in the US to legalize gay marriage, many are already proclaiming a Sodom-like wrath of God coming.
I don't think
that their homosexuality alone was the cause of their predicament. The
scriptures in Chapter 18 that there was an outcry against the city. It reminds one
of the cry of the blood of Abel against his killer.
“Then the LORD said,
“The outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah is so great and their sin so
grievous 21 that I will go down and see if what they have done is as bad as
the outcry that has reached me. If not, I will know.” – Genesis 18:20-21
This outcry
doesn’t seem to have come from Abraham because God had to inform him of the
outcry and coming destruction. Neither was it from Lot or his family as he saw
fit to be in the city gates doing business with the people in the city – Gen
19:1. It is also possible that Lot could have been established as an elder of
the city as that is where they tended to do the business of overseeing the
people. I believe that it could have come from the victims of the ruthlessness,
inhospitality and perverseness of those in the city? The angels that came
visiting proved the outcry right.
You also have to consider that the destruction was not because the Angels were sought out by the men. God had already told Abraham in Chapter 18 of the coming destruction. The Angels only went to provide evidence that was acclaimed of the city was true.
Now Genesis 14 describes that Sodom and other cities had
just engaged in brutal warfare, savagely pillaging surrounding cities and
shedding innocent blood. It makes sense to me that the surviving victims of
such heinous violence cried out against Sodom for their war-mongering,
violence, and lust for conquest. In turn, Sodom was also invaded and pillaged,
caught up in the cycle of warfare and violence. It was a society that ran
itself into self-destruction due to perverse and violent structure that was in place back then.
Abels blood cried for justice, the voices in Sodom cried for justice but the blood of Jesus speaks better things. It declares "Avenged!, Released!, Forgiven!
It was more
like God was responding to the call of justice. God did not judge according to
the law as they existed before it was given on mount Sinai. We find the real REASON for Sodom's destruction in Ezekiel 16:49-50.
"Look, this was the iniquity of your sister Sodom: She and her daughter
had pride, fullness of food, and abundance of idleness; neither did she
strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. And they were haughty and committed
abominations before Me; therefore I took them away as I saw fit," (NKJ).
Isaiah
1:9-11, Jeremiah 23 and 49, Lamentations, and Matt. 10:14-15 collectively lists
the sins of Sodom as the following: perversion of justice, cruelty and neglect
of the poor, oppressed, orphaned and widowed, shedding innocent blood, inhospitality,
greed, pride, falsely prophesying, lying in God's name, abusing power,
neglecting God's flock, leaving the hungry unfed, causing others to err, making
up visions, and cannibalism.
It is also
interesting to note that the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah was likened to Old
national Israel. That is why Israel was referred to her in the book of
Revelation. There was also outcries against the Israel as she had murdered the
prophets and in their time the Apostles of the Lord.
“9 Now when
the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who
had been violently killed because of the word of God and because of the
testimony they had given. 10 They cried out
with a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Master, holy and true, before you judge
those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?” (Revelation 6:9-10)
Jesus said
in Matthew 23
32 Fill up then the measure of your ancestors! 33 You snakes,
you offspring of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? 34 “For this reason I am sending you prophets and
wise men and experts in the law, some of whom you will kill and crucify, and
some you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town, 35 so that on you will come all the righteous
blood shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah
son of Barachiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36 I tell you the truth, this generation will be
held responsible for all these things!
- Revelation
11:8 (NKJV)
8 And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which
spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified
When the
Apostles asked about the pending destruction of the temple, Jesus uses the
example of Lot's escape from fire in Luke 17:29-32:
28 Likewise as it was also in the days of Lot: They ate, they drank, they
bought, they sold, they planted, and they built; 29 but on the day that Lot
went out of Sodom it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them
all.
Lot was given a chance to escape, but the rest remained. The Jews had a chance
to escape the coming wrath that was landing on disappearing covenant. John the
Baptist and even Peter pleaded with their kindred to repent of their wickedness
in order to receive “times of refreshing” and escape this pending catastrophe. But
they refused to their own deaths in 70AD. The entire city of Jerusalem was
destroyed by fire in 70AD like Sodom and Gomorrah.
We are now under the New covenant, there's no more wrath in the future. The justification for His wrath has been done away with. The only blood that cries now is the blood of Jesus on Mount Zion, whom we are. The finished work of Jesus has put God in a good mood forever even towards sinners. He is not holding out any man. He is gracious and that is the message we have been called to share.
