Deuteronomy 4:24 Holman
Christian Standard Bible
24 For the Lord your God is a consuming
fire, a jealous God.
There are many devout, Bible believing Christians, a number
of them my friends and relatives, who tell me that God never kills anyone. God
is too loving to kill anyone. Christ, Himself said: 16 “For God
loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who
believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. 17 For
God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but
that the world might be saved through Him.” (HCSB)
When I mention events like the Flood, the response is that
God provided a way of escape—the ark—and they chose not to avail themselves of
this. They perished of natural causes. Pharaoh’s army in the Red Sea—they could
see that this was a trap, and yet they entered it of their own volition.
Sennacherib’s army besieging Jerusalem? I forget the excuse offered here.
Hellfire in the latter days—responses vary from the non-existence of hell to
the surety that God’s love will save everyone. Ananias and Saphira—just a
cautionary tale against lying to God, or Scripture does not say that God killed
them. The shock of being discovered lying gave them each a heart attack. Korah,
Dathan and Abiram who rebelled against Moses just happened to be swallowed by
an earthquake, and their 250 supporters just happened to catch on fire.
What we all agree on is that God is extremely powerful and
loving. What makes me feel very uncomfortable is when someone says “God is a
consuming fire!” means “God is not a consuming fire.” We are treading on
extremely dangerous ground when we start dictating which parts of the Bible are
true and which are not.
Dear Lord,
Thank You for promising us wisdom and an understanding of Your Word. Help us to
live in love with all Your children.
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