DAILY READING
REFLECTION
God's Wrath and God's Provision
by Pr. Dave Mann
Is God wrathful or is God loving? The answer is, "Yes!" Many people find it difficult to understand how God can be angry and punish people. Others find it hard to realize that God is loving, given that there is so much evil in the world.
When we listen carefully to the message of the Bible, we perceive that God is both. He is a holy God whose character requires punishment for rebellion and sin. However, he is also a God who desires to save his people. He provides a way out, a way to be saved from the righteous punishment that we deserve.
In the land of Egypt, God's hand was determined to exact the penalty for sin, but he also provided a way that people could be saved. The Israelites were spared from certain death not because they deserved it, not because they were more righteous than the Egyptians, but because they trusted in the means of salvation that God provided -- the blood of the lamb which marked their doorways.
This account of the Passover is one of the many examples in the Old Testament where God foreshadows his plan to provide a substitute for the sentence of death for sin, which was first announced in the garden (Genesis 2:16-17 and 3:15). In Genesis 22, the Lord tells Abraham to sacrifice Isaac on Mount Moriah, but in the end, the ram caught in the thicket is substituted for Isaac. The entire Levitical sacrificial system shows us that God is preparing his people to trust in the sacrifice of Another One to take our place.
We do not deserve the Lord’s forgiveness for our sins, but we can trust in his provision as the way out, leading to eternal life. The message of the Bible is that God so loved the world that although he is pure and the demands of his holiness must be satisfied, he has provided a means of salvation. His love is so strong that he is willing to be the substitute for us. Will we trust in his plan? Will we accept to be marked by his blood so that his righteous demands of the law be fulfilled and that, in the end, his love will win? Jesus’ blood is the way, the truth, and the life.
PRAYER
Holy and Loving Lord, I accept that you are who you are and that your righteousness must be fulfilled. Thank you that your love has provided a way for our salvation. You paid the price yourself. I will be forever grateful, in Jesus’ name, Amen.
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