Wrath: Does God Punish People?
Part One:
Does God punish us or does the law of sin and death (Romans 8:2) punish us as a consequence of the separation from God? In other words, did God warn Adam and Eve not to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil because, if they did, he would punish them? Or was it out of love that He told them not to eat of it because stepping outside of His will for them would separate them from Life? Since God is constrained to the limitations of His characteristics/ attributes, such as not being able to tell lies (Hebrews 6:18), He cannot be unjust (Hebrews 6:10), He cannot be impatient, unkind, envious, boastful, proud, rude, self-seeking, easily provoked, distrusting, or unable to persevere (1 Corinthians 13:4-7), then wouldn't He know that since ALL of His characteristics/attributes lead to Life eternal that anything outside of this would lead to death? God is not the God of the dead, but of the living (Matthew 22:32). I do not expect everyone to agree or believe the exact same way that I do. I know that we all have the liberty and freedom to believe different things as we see fit, judged by the evidence presented as the reason we believe them. This however is what I currently believe from the evidence that I have studied in the Scriptures.
I believe that God does not directly "punish" people for their sins. Rather, there are consequences from sin. Sin is what ultimately destroys us because it is sin that leads to death. Sin cannot be inside of man within the presence of the Almighty without faith and the sanctification by the Holy Spirit. To begin to answer this question we need to first figure out why things are the way they are in the first place. After this perspective is understood, the latter will be much easier to grasp.
What happened?
All things were originally created flawless. "And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good..." (Genesis 1:31) This means that there was no sin, no death, no pain and suffering, etc.. The Lord's creation (the heavens and the earth) were created with perfect love. This means that since God is love, (1 John 4:8) man, woman and angels alike were created within the attributes of His love. What are the attributes of love? I would not suggest looking this word up in the dictionary to get your answer but rather let the bible define it for you.
(1 Corinthians 13:4-8): "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails."
There are other characteristics of God. Another especially important one is this:
(2 Corinthians 3:17): "Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom."
God created men, women and angels alike giving them freedom of individual will. This means that love is not forceful but rather gives the opportunity and liberty for all, to either love Him in return, or to reject Him. Where there is no freedom there is no love, because freedom is a attribute of love. If you were to program a robot to love you, would this really be a sincere and loving relationship? If you used a mind control device on someone to love you, wouldn't this be self serving of you? God did not create mankind for the reason that we would worship him, rather He created mankind to share in the pleasures that His giving and "other centeredness" brings. And since His greatest will is to dedicate Himself and give infinitely to mankind without expecting anything in return, when some of us realize this, we fall to our knees awestruck and willingly give ourselves back to Him in return. We give ourselves to Him completely out of sincere love and not out of duty, obligation or discipline. If you were/are married and you were to tell your spouse, or if your spouse were to tell you, "I'm only with you out of duty, obligation, and discipline." Wouldn't this be heart breaking? Yet every single day our loving God hears this reason of dedication to Him out of "obligation" and "discipline" from Christians all across the world.
Another proof of the Lord's wonderful characteristics are in (Genesis 1:26) God made the entire earth for the sole purpose of giving it away to His beloved man and woman. These two experienced a life that we cannot even fathom. They walked with God in His glory and had dominion over nature itself. It was not God's will that these two betrayed Him. The world was given to them, and they in turn handed over the earth to the serpent.... for a piece of fruit. Satan's will, turned away from God, just as Adam and Eve's will did, and just as every person that rejects Him to this day. Although their separation from God was influenced, these two had the conscience to "will" (just as we do). These two could have heeded God's warning of the consequences of sin, (which was the separation from Him), or instead, defy His will (for them to remain in paradise), and sin. Thereby causing the natural effect of consequences that would result from the separation. Sin (evil), and God cannot merge together, just as pure cannot mix with contamination. The separation from God resulted in the separation from His wonderful attributes. These attributes include: life, "other centeredness", contentment, etc... So then the separation from life is obviously death, the separation from natural "other-centeredness" is natural selfishness, the separation of pleasure is pain, the separation from contentment is longing, the separation from freedom is bondage.... Therefore all mankind is born into bondage to the one who was handed over the earth, Satan.
"Satan, who is the god of this world, has blinded the minds of those who don't believe. They are unable to see the glorious light of the Good News. They don't understand this message about the glory of Christ, who is the exact likeness of God." (2 Corinthians 4:4)
If the world seems to be chaotic, if it seems to be cruel, full of pain and destruction its because it is. And now you know the reason why. You also now understand the reason Christ came in the flesh. He came to put to an end the separation between Him and His beloved men and women. To GIVE once more, something to us more precious than the earth itself, His life and grace.
So Then What Is God's Wrath?
We can answer this one of two ways. First, we can assume that it means what our English dictionaries define it as or we can let the bible define it for us:
"For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things. Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due. And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting" (Romans 1:18-28)
Here is another example:
"Ahaz was twenty years old when he became king, and he was ruling in Jerusalem for sixteen years; he did not do what was right in the eyes of the Lord, like David his father: But he went in the ways of the kings of Israel and made images of metal for the Baals. More than this, he had offerings burned in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and made his children go through fire, (sacrificed his children by burning them alive) copying the disgusting ways of the nations whom the Lord had sent out of the land before the children of Israel. And he made offerings and had perfumes burned in the high places and on the hills and under every green tree."
"So the Lord his God gave him up into the hands of the king of Aram; and they overcame him, and took away a great number of his people as prisoners to Damascus. Then he was given into the hands of the king of Israel, who sent great destruction on him. (2 Chronicles 28:1-5)
And yet another example:
"When Israel was a child, I loved him, and out of Egypt I called my son. The more they were called, the more they went away; they kept sacrificing to the Baals and burning offerings to idols. Yet it was I who taught Ephraim to walk; I took them up by their arms, but they did not know that I healed them.I led them with cords of kindness, with the bands of love, and I became to them as one who eases the yoke on their jaws, and I bent down to them and fed them. They shall not return to the land of Egypt, but Assyria shall be their king, because they have refused to return to me."
"How can I give you up, O Ephraim?
How can I hand you over, O Israel?
How can I make you like Admah?
How can I treat you like Zeboiim?
My heart recoils within me" (Hosea 11:1-5, 8)
At the Last Supper Jesus spoke to His disciples....
"And Jesus said to them, "You will all fall away, because it is written, 'I WILL STRIKE DOWN THE SHEPHERD, AND THE SHEEP SHALL BE SCATTERED." (Mark 14:27)
Jesus was quoting this Scripture:
"Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, And against the man, My Associate," Declares the LORD of hosts. "Strike the Shepherd that the sheep may be scattered" (Zechariah 13:7)
Doesn't this imply that God the Father literally took a sword to Jesus and finished Him off? Did God execute his own Son? No. It was the Pharisees that had Jesus put to death and it was the Romans who executed Him. But this does show us that God the Father revealed His wrath upon His beloved Son Jesus. And just how did he do this?
(2 Corinthians 5:21) "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God."
(Romans 8:32) "He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?
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Okay Then What Is God's Punishment?
It is plainly shown (above) that God's wrath is simply that he "gives us up.". However, I won't stop here. The words "punish", "vindicate", "retribution", etc.. come from the Greek words kolasis, timoria, ekdikeo, ekdikesis, and ekdikos.
(Kolasis) is corrective (chastisement)
(Timoria) is the satisfaction of the inflictor (which is sin and death)
(Ekdikeo) {ek = out from + dike = justice} is literally that which proceeds from justice. (indirectly or directly)
(Ekdikesis) {occurrence of a just judgment } vindication, retribution, punishment.
(Ekdikos) {vindicator, retributer, punisher} (indirectly or directly) [FONT="]
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We can break these words down to their root to find deeper meaning....
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[/FONT](Ek) a primary preposition denoting origin (the point from where action or motion proceeds){ ie: out of, from, or away from} (directly or remotely)
(Dike) The root noun "dike" describes the tenet or standard of a righteous behavior within society and if that standard is violated, judgment would be expected. It is literally that which proceeds from justice. [FONT="]
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In Greek mythology Dike was the goddess of righteous judgment. [Justice] She is usually illustrated in ancient drawings
