The Gospel can never be preached without consequence of ultimatum! And the presentation of the Wrath of God is not optional but mandatory, not suggested but required. But know this that the Wrath of God is never intended to scare sinners into salvation (for fear is never a proper motive for salvation), but is always there to condemn those who will never come unto salvation.
For God has so prepared His message for both groups of hearers, seeing that the preaching is done before a mix of those that are to come and those who are to turn away. And it would appear that the Gospel preached in its entirety must have both ingredients within to be the one and only true Gospel.
Therefore it makes no difference whatsoever how well one presented the truth of God's Mercy, for if he did not present alongside of it God's Wrath, the Gospel complete was not preached.
What are the effects of only preaching a message where the Mercy of God is lone presented? The effects are tremendous, in that what we fail to see is something revealing about the Wrath of God. For where God's Mercy is presented as the only part of salvation, it is here where we will find both believer and unbeliever alike coming forth to receive what only the one could ever receive. And it's the Wrath of God that reveals in truth the true believer. Because it's something that's tied to the unbeliever that this Wrath of God brings out from within.
The unbeliever finds the Wrath of God so obnoxious, this because of the intrinsic qualities of not only his fallen but hardened nature, that where he can receive (misnomer) the Gospel of God's Mercy, it's this Gospel of Wrath that assures his never approaching the true Gospel there unto. And let it be so, this to God's Glory, that those who reject, reject God not for His failure of Mercy, but their objection to His wrath. And God's Wrath won't fail to miss any, for they'll be screaming the loudest in contempt of such.
The believer, on the other hand, does not fear the Wrath of God to be saved but because he is saved. And it's here alone that Mercy finds its place. For it's here where the believer sees not what could have happened to him but what for sure should have happened; but God's Mercy found a way!
THE SEVERITY OF GOD
In great fear and trembling I write this poem,
with pen in hand myself I now find
That I must etch the words given unto me,
these thoughts made so clear to my opened mind
The Severity of God now revealed,
and I see a side of my God that I do surely fear
But it only makes His Mercy more precious,
and makes me more grateful that to Him I am so dear
But how can one know truly of God's Mercy,
if not for His Severity contrasting there in the background
And it makes me shout so loud because of God's Clemency,
while in the shadow of His Severity I make not a sound
For who am I to be forgiven,
and that upon me You should shower your glorious Grace
While others You look away from,
and from them You hide your Merciful Face
But those who truly know of God's Mercy,
know for sure on Christ for them God's Severity did fall
And to those who think God pours out His love without His Justice,
prove that they really don't know the Mercy of God at all
So there is no greater Mercy than my God's,
and no greater Severity than His be
So then I rejoice that in Christ I am viewed,
and God forbid that He would ever look alone on me
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- ROBERT FRISTIK, Kerchlow Chronicles
posted with permission