Ezekiel 33:11 Tell them that as surely as I am the living LORD God, I don't like to see wicked people die. I enjoy seeing them turn from their sins and live. So if the Israelites want to live, they must stop sinning and turn back to me.
Happy Sabbath!
If you're like me, you probably felt the description of God, in the Old Testament, is an unpleasant one. He seemed like a God of anger instead of a God of love when you read the verses that talked about His wrath being poured out, or when He said He regretted making man. Maybe the story of the flood and the story of Sodom and Gomorrah made you uncomfortable with God. If you're like me, you found it hard to view the God, in the old Testament, as the same God who Jesus called His father, and who He said was a loving God.
Many children have been taught in church that if they were bad, God would punish them. It was almost as if everyone was on thin ice with God and had to watch every little move they made, or else God would quickly send down some form of punishment. The stories in the Old Testament were used to illustrate God's wrath and swiftness to punish. Unfortunately, this caused many people to grow up thinking God was unapproachable and irritable. It was hard to view Him as a loving Father. Ezekiel 33:11 gives us a different view. Here, we read of God saying He doesn't like to see the wicked die. What He does like is to see them turn from their wicked actions and turn back to God. He loves people. He created each one. It's the wicked actions He hates.
Most people have experienced the negative side of loving someone. When we love someone, we are vulnerable to be hurt by that person. The deeper the love, the stronger the hurt. The love God has for His people is a pure and holy love. Because God's love is so pure, He is deeply hurt when the people He loves turns away from Him and chooses to live a life without Him, which is also a life that leads to emptiness, sadness, and destruction. The anger and wrath we see in the Bible is a reaction to the great, deep hurt God felt as He watched His people walk away from Him and choose to live a life that would end in pain and death. All through the Bible we can see God trying different ways to draw His people back to Him. And we can also see His people ignoring God and walking away. It was in deep hurt, frustration, and longing for His children that God became sorry He created humans. (Genesis 6:6)
Sin is like a highly contagious disease. If it is not stopped, it will quickly spread and cause others to be led away from God. The only way to stop the infection is to remove the disease as much as possible. This is what God was doing when He caused the great flood and when He destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. God cannot fully remove all sin until all the final events have played out and everyone can see that Satan's way is the wrong way. Only at the end of this world will sin be completely removed. But we do see God taking steps to slow down the spread of sin. At the same time we see God quick to forgive. Jonah was sent to Nineveh to warn them that because of their wickedness, they would be overthrown. The people believed Jonah and repented. Because they repented God prevented them from the disaster.
This whole world is corrupt and suffering from the infection of sin. According to the Law, each person was suppose to die for their sins, but God did not want to see all of His creation die so He sent His one and only Son down to this dark, corrupt world. His Son, Jesus, came down to tell us about God, about His immense love for us, and then He allowed Himself to be beaten, and nailed to a cross to die. That death covered the death penalty waiting for all of us so we could be allowed to live in Heaven with God. It is the only way we could be viewed as worthy to live with God. It is not by our own actions. It is only by the actions of God's Son that we are now found acceptable to be in Heaven. Our only job is to believe Jesus is Who He said He is, and believe His death is the only way we are made acceptable enough for Heaven. If we believe that, then we know it is only by staying close to Jesus that we will stay acceptable. Only by letting Him direct our actions and by spending time each day, to allow our relationship with Jesus grow can we be close to Him and have free access to God. God is not an angry, mean God. He is a Father who loves us so much it hurts deeply. Like any good parent, He is always waiting, with His arms wide open, to draw us in and hold us close to Him. He wants to help us through our difficulties and to rejoice with us in our happiness.