Ezekiel 18:31

Ezekiel 18:31

Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, people of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign Lord. Repent and live!

In the text above, we see that God takes no pleasure in sending someone to hell. God does not take pleasure in a good old “told you so” when a sinner’s life has ended and they are standing before him without Christ at their side. I believe that if we could see God’s face when a sinner stands before him, a sinner absent of any repentance or faith in his Son, that face would be filled with sorrow. Not because he is doing something wrong by denying the faithless person, but rather because one of his creations never got it right…because one of his creations denied the call to repentance and refused to see Christ as the Savior. I recall several years back when a very well-known terrorist was finally captured and killed by US soldiers. When the news broke, camera crews captured scenes of people celebrating in the streets…faces painted with joy and relief…shouting and carrying on for the “victory” that had been won. Yes, from a worldly perspective, it was a great victory as a potent source of evil was no more. But from God’s perspective, I couldn’t help but picture God in a more somber mood. This terrorist followed a false religion and therefore, according to God’s Word, would not find a place in heaven. But this terrorist, while ripe with evil, was still a creation of God. He was a man that failed to repent…a man that failed to seek God’s Word and failed to seek Jesus as the Savior. I don’t think God celebrated the death of this man the way this world celebrated it. I think God would have celebrated had this man come to repentance while he was still living. I think God would have rejoiced had this man, while he was still living, denied his false religion, quit his recklessly evil ways, and put his faith in Jesus. God is a just God, and he handles things in a just manner. It’s simple…no repentance, no faith in Jesus, no changing of ways and living for the Lord…then there is no opportunity to live. (And by “live”, we are talking about eternal life). It brings joy to God when his creations turn to his Word, repent of their mistakes, and follow his Son. And perhaps that is why Jesus has yet to return…perhaps God is giving his people more time to get it right. May we make it our goal each day to share the Gospel with the world…with our words and our actions…so all turn to him and not one has to stand before the Father apart from Christ. To God be all glory!