And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are Thy judgments. Revelation 16:7
A man who worked at the store and who was very popular with most of his fellow employees was suddenly fired by the company. Many rumours began circulating that the company had unfairly dismissed him without any evidence of wrong-doing. Employees became very upset, and their anger against the company began to affect their job performance. So company officials called a meeting in an attempt to quell the unrest. During that meeting, they presented pictures that proved that the dismissed man had on three separate occasions stolen money from customers, and that criminal charges were being pursued. When the truth was presented, the other workers realized that the company was entirely right to fire the man. Our text reminds us that God is also entirely right to judge and punish wicked sinners.
We hear much criticism of God these days, people blaming Him for all of the bad things that happen, whether it be natural disasters, horrible crimes, or cruel injustices. They insist that God, if He is a loving God, should stop all these things from happening. But they fail to realize that all these things happen because of sin, and are not caused by God. Our first parents were warned that sin would have deadly consequences, and they learned to their sorrow that those consequences were deep and dire. Today, God’s principles have not changed. Mankind is reaping what it has sowed, just as God said. The proclamation in our text is made in the midst of the outpouring of divine wrath on this earth during the great tribulation. As the angels pour out their vials of pain and death, we have the declaration that these judgments of God are true and righteous. Recipients of this wrath are those who have rejected God, who have worshipped the beast, who have immersed themselves in the depths of wickedness. Yes, God is true and righteous to punish them. But remember, He would have been just as true and righteous to punish us for our sins.
The grace of God stands between us and divine wrath. That grace is extended to undeserving sinners. It is based, not on God abandoning His principles that sin must be judged, but on the glorious reality that God has provided One to bear that judgment for us. Our salvation from judgment does not compromise God’s truth nor His righteousness.
For those who reject the Gospel, God is just in His punishment of them because Christ died for their sins and they have rejected the Saviour. For those of us who are saved, God is just in His forgiveness of us because Christ died for our sins and we have accepted the Saviour. -Jim MacIntosh