The Wrath of the Lamb
And [they] said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? Rev. 6:16, 17.
Who has ever heard of a wrathful lamb? The two words don't even seem to go together. But then neither do the descriptions in Revelation of Jesus as both the Lamb of God and the Lion of the tribe of Judah. Perhaps we need to take a second look to see what John is reporting.
Most people see "wrath" as a nasty word. And many theologians have worked hard to remove all divine wrath from their teachings. But what is unpopular with them is quite popular with God. The number of Bible references to God's wrath exceeds 580. Writers have utilized barrels of ink to explain away God's wrath, but in the final analysis the Lamb of God and the Lion of the tribe of Judah will act to end the problem of sin.
But let's not go astray here. God's wrath is not an emotional anger comparable to human rage. To the contrary, it is a function of His love. God hates the sin that continues to destroy the lives and happiness of His created beings. He is weary of dead babies, cancer, and blindness; rape, murder, and theft; holocausts, Rwandas, and Iraqs.
In His timing God will respond to the souls under the altar whom John pictures as crying out, "O Sovereign Lord...how long" before You put an end to the mess we call world history (Rev. 6:10, NLT)? As W. L. Walker declares, "God's wrath only goes forth because God is love, and because sin is that which injures His children and is opposed to the purpose of His love." And Alan Richardson points out that "only a certain kind of degenerate Protestant theology has attempted to contrast the wrath of God with the mercy of Christ."
God, as the Bible portrays Him, cannot and will not forever stand idly by while His creation suffers. His reaction is judgment on that sin that is destroying His people. We should see that judgment as the real meaning of biblical wrath. God condemns sin in judgment and will eventually eradicate it completely. The first step takes place at Jesus' second advent. The second will occur at the end of the millennium according to Revelation 20:11-15.
The plain fact is that if we have only the Lamb of God who died for us, we have only half a gospel. The Lamb has been slaughtered, yet God's children continue to suffer. The climatic phase of the Lamb's work is His function as the Lion of the tribe of Judah at the end of time.
And [they] said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? Rev. 6:16, 17.
Who has ever heard of a wrathful lamb? The two words don't even seem to go together. But then neither do the descriptions in Revelation of Jesus as both the Lamb of God and the Lion of the tribe of Judah. Perhaps we need to take a second look to see what John is reporting.
Most people see "wrath" as a nasty word. And many theologians have worked hard to remove all divine wrath from their teachings. But what is unpopular with them is quite popular with God. The number of Bible references to God's wrath exceeds 580. Writers have utilized barrels of ink to explain away God's wrath, but in the final analysis the Lamb of God and the Lion of the tribe of Judah will act to end the problem of sin.
But let's not go astray here. God's wrath is not an emotional anger comparable to human rage. To the contrary, it is a function of His love. God hates the sin that continues to destroy the lives and happiness of His created beings. He is weary of dead babies, cancer, and blindness; rape, murder, and theft; holocausts, Rwandas, and Iraqs.
In His timing God will respond to the souls under the altar whom John pictures as crying out, "O Sovereign Lord...how long" before You put an end to the mess we call world history (Rev. 6:10, NLT)? As W. L. Walker declares, "God's wrath only goes forth because God is love, and because sin is that which injures His children and is opposed to the purpose of His love." And Alan Richardson points out that "only a certain kind of degenerate Protestant theology has attempted to contrast the wrath of God with the mercy of Christ."
God, as the Bible portrays Him, cannot and will not forever stand idly by while His creation suffers. His reaction is judgment on that sin that is destroying His people. We should see that judgment as the real meaning of biblical wrath. God condemns sin in judgment and will eventually eradicate it completely. The first step takes place at Jesus' second advent. The second will occur at the end of the millennium according to Revelation 20:11-15.
The plain fact is that if we have only the Lamb of God who died for us, we have only half a gospel. The Lamb has been slaughtered, yet God's children continue to suffer. The climatic phase of the Lamb's work is His function as the Lion of the tribe of Judah at the end of time.
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