The Old Testament prophets were continually warning the people of Israel about the impending judgements of the Lord if they did not forsake their sins and obey His commandments. Each and every time the Lord executed His judgements as He said He would, with plagues, floods, captivity, the sword, etc. And many of these people lost their lives and ultimately perished in hell. Most of the prophets were hated and were murdered, not to mention Christ Himself, as well as all of His disciples, save for one who was exiled on the island of Patmos. It was because they confronted the church and people with their sin and the consequences of hell and God's wrath for disobeying His law and ordinances. You would be hard pressed to find a church today that would openly speak and warn people about hell and sin to their self-loving church attendees.
Most of the world and those of you reading this article do not see yourself spending eternity in hell, yet scripture is clear that most of humanity will perish in hell (Matthew 7:13-14). Have you ever been to a funeral where the deceased is spoken of as being in hell? Of course not. The deceased is always spoken of as being in heaven or in a "better place". Why is that? No one truly fears the wrath and terror of the Lord even though scripture says "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Psalm 111:10) (Proverbs 9:10). Or as King Solomon said at the end of his life, "The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person." (Ecclesiastes 12:13)
Once again, "knowing the terror of the Lord we persuade men... "(2 Corinthians 5:11). Yet, through the sin of omission the church and its hirelings are silent to these truths; they would rather worship the god of their imagination rather than the true God. Most churches find themselves in Matthew 7:15 pushing an "all are welcomed gospel" when scripture clearly teaches just the opposite. If you attend a church similar to this you would be far better off staying at home or taking a walk through the woods meditating on God's creation.
Most in the church will acknowledge they have a reverential fear of the Lord and they need not be concerned about His wrath because they are saved already; but God's word says just the opposite. Hebrews 12:28-29, "Let us have grace, by which we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear, for our God is a consuming fire." The next logical question to ask those who think only the reverential fear of the God applies to them would be to ask them on what basis do you think you are saved that God's wrath doesn't apply to you?
Most would hang their salvation on John 3:16 by "believing" the facts of Jesus' death and resurrection and admitting they are a sinner. They conjure up some type of faith to fulfill an emotional need they had at the time of their supposed conversion, which someone convinced them that they should do in order to be saved. If you truly have God's grace you will worship with reverence and a healthy fear of His wrath (consequence of hell for sinning is a great deterrent). If you are not worshiping God with both a reverential fear and Godly fear, then you are of your father, the devil, and will perish in hell. Remember we are to "fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 11:28).
The most loving thing anyone can do is warn others of the impending danger ahead. Just the opposite is also true, the most unloving and irresponsible thing anyone can do is to remain silent to the obvious danger ahead. This is the same as a parent warning their child of possible dangers. Our entire societal infrastructure revolves around product liability and safety, government warnings about every possible danger imaginable to man and our infatuation with severe weather warnings, all of these warnings are temporary in nature.
But yet the church is utterly void regarding the numerous biblical warnings given by a loving God! Even the beasts of the field have more sense to flee from oncoming danger than the pretend christian does. If your church is not speaking to these clear biblical warnings then church leadership ought to leave their position and find another career. Church leaders need to stop peddling a false hope that God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life if you just "believe."
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