God’s judgement
Posted by abmo on July 15, 2008
I surf the internet a lot and a lot of christian websites and blogs talks about God’s judgement. Some christians cannot wait for God’s judgement to come. Eagerly they wait for God to rain fire down upon their enemies. They wring their hands in anticipation of the terrible things that must come. They pronounce judgement on anybody who does not agree with them. To them, God’s judgement is the worse thing that can happen to a person.
I disagree.
I think the worst thing that can happen to a person is God’s love. God’s love is much more terrible than His judgement. God’s love takes us to places we would rather not go. God’s love leaves us vulnerable to be mocked. To be ridiculed. God’s love opens us up to see the enemy as God sees them. God’s love makes it possible to love our enemy. His love is more than feeling. His love is more than thinking. His love walks the extra mile. Gives more than what is asked. His love pierces our deepest secrets. His love exposes our fears. His love can be excruciating. His love takes away the one we love the most (me). His love is severely out of focus, because He will go after the one and leave the ninety-nine behind. His love is unbearable when we begin to see others through His eyes. It’s terrible to come to Him and know that there is nothing that I can do to deserve this love. It’s dreadful to come to Him and trust His love for me. His love is not fair or perhaps I should say His love is “wrong.”(He should love the good people more, right?) His love not reasonable and for that matter beyond reason. His love is too simple to understand.(Children can, but adults struggle.) His love can ruin us in an instant. His love can wreck us for life. His love sees the beautiful in the repulsive. The handsome in the ugly. His love can leave us weak when we had the notion that we should have been strong. His love disarms our adequacy. His love neutralize our competency. His love is a mystery for the know-it-all’s. His love is known by the weak and the castaways. We are never in charge of His love. It’s too bright. It’s too furious. It’s too forceful. It’s to compassionate. Too kindhearted. Too intense to comprehend.
I’m amazed when people come to me and say that the God I talk about is too soft because I talk too much about His love. And I’m thinking “What are you talking about?” God is love and He is not tame. Not at all.
There is a journey for christians. It’s a journey with God. It’s a journey into His love and where that Love will lead us. This Love is the most wonderful terrible passion that could happen to us. Are we ready for something much, much, much worse that His judgement? I hope so.
Perhaps I should end with these words. Be afraid, be very afraid, because the love of the Lamb will take us into Him and shatter all the notions we have on how things should be 
Katherine Gunn said
Hmm… around 4 years ago, while praying for a little girl that was in the hospital, I had a vision of Jesus. He was in the hospital and I was with Him. Hmm… there are not words that can adequately describe how He looked – dressed in white so bright it glowed – with gold around the edges. But the power that flowed from Him – it was overwhelming. That power was His love. Love is not tame and weak. It is powerful enough to annihilate – to devastate – to gently rebuild. Nothing can stand against it…
He beckoned and I followed Him down the hall to the little girl’s room where she lay asleep under the drugs. He woke her and she sat up and He held her gently – she laughed – He whispered in her ear. Later, when talking to her mother, she said at the time I was praying, the little girl sat up, even though she was asleep under morphine, and laughed. Then laid back down and slept. She is a beautiful little girl even now. Someday, I hope to ask her what He said to her…
Even now, I cannot find words to convey the raw power and force of His love. It draws and how can you resist?
abmo said
Hi Katherine,
I to would like to know what He said to her. The thing that baffles me is that His love shines into all the dark places of our lives and still He loves us with every fiber of His being. We are not a passing thought in His mind. He loves us with all His might. Sometime the thought of it is too much for me.
You’re right. His love is raw power and force. As the “borg” said. “Resistance is futile.”
Perhaps we will surrender to it, but most of the time we are inclined to trust our own feeble way of love. Problem is, His love will always look weak. And we have a problem with that.
Tracy Simmons said
Fantastic, Abmo! I’m heading to my blog right now to put a link to this post. Yes, yes, yes is all I can say!
Mark R said
They preach “the Gospel of Avoiding Hell” what needs to be proclaimmed is “The Gospel of the Kingdom of God” – oh, and by the way it is here now – great post my friend!!!
Aida said
This is the first time I’ve checked out your blog. I followed the link Tracy posted on hers.
What a beautiful picture you’ve painted of Father’s love. So wonderful yet not at all tame. I want to experience more of this amazing love in my life. Thank you for sharing this.
Christo said
Great post bro, the unbearable love of God.
Steve Bradley said
Great post — found your site through Tracy’s also..
Reminds of one of my favorite songs — googled the lyrics, and posted them below…
The Love of God, by Rich Mullins
There’s a wideness in God’s mercy
I cannot find in my own
And He keeps His fire burning
To melt this heart of stone
Keeps me aching with a yearning
Keeps me glad to have been caught
In the reckless raging fury
That they call the love of God
Now I’ve seen no band of angels
But I’ve heard the soldiers’ songs
Love hangs over them like a banner
Love within them leads them on
To the battle on the journey
And it’s never gonna stop
Ever widening their mercies
And the fury of His love
Joy and sorrow are this ocean
And in their every ebb and flow
Now the Lord a door has opened
That all Hell could never close
Here I’m tested and made worthy
Tossed about but lifted up
In the reckless raging fury
That they call the love of God
Tyler Dawn said
Wow, I have been before the judgment throne and all I can remember, apart from my own secret thoughts, motivations and words (those were what judged me), was the steadfastness of both the glory of the father before me and the faithfullness of Jesus beside me, as all of my sins stood in judgment of me. People do not have a proper grasp of the judgment, they think it is something which it is not because they do not know the nature of Him. They silently stood with me, just loving me and keeping me from dying (I wanted to, so great was the truth I was exposed to). I wonder what it would be like to be Hitler and go through what I went through. What I experienced was bad enough, but it was a cleansing, a purging of the evil in my heart, not hellfire and brimstone. I am changed, not perfect, but changed. And they did not judge me, it was just that the evil in my heart could not stay hidden in the presence of such great love and truth. Hope that made sense. Now all those judgment verses in the bible actually make sense, I just can’t explain them to anyone lol.
abmo said
Hi Tracy, thank you for the compliment. The post was “in” me for years, but yesterday it jumped out
Thanks for the link as well.
Hi Mark R, you called me “friend”. For me, it’s a holy word and one I treasure with my whole being. Thanks my friend.
Hi Aida, glad you came by. Were you a teacher? I work in an education library
I’m glad you are on this journey with us.
Hi Christo, I’m glad you’re blogging again. If it wasn’t for you, I am not sure I would be here.
Hi Steve Bradley, thanks for the lyrics from Rich Mullins. He is one of my faith heroes. Through him, I saw a Jesus I never even knew existed. I love these words Tossed about but lifted up In the reckless raging fury That they call the love of God Thanks
Hi Tyler Dawn, thanks for stopping by. Perhaps you can shine some light of my understanding of God’s judgement. First, God’s judgement is within His love. It is not seperate from His love. Secondly. God’s judgement takes us to Him and His open arms. His judgement does not cast us away. Does that sound OK with you?
Tyler Dawn said
Hmmm.. okay, it is so hard to put into words. It wasn’t so much “judgment” per se. More like, I was there and when you are there no lies are able to shield your mind from the truth anymore. It wasn’t like He was trying to judge me, more like being with Him just made it impossible to lie to myself anymore about my true feelings, my motivations, my hate, my lies, etc… you know, like when you say something awful to someone because it secretly feels good and then you immediately justify it — “they had it coming” so you can still feel like a good person and go forward and after a while you begin to believe that they really were at fault? Well, that got stripped away, by the light of love, truth whatever, it just can’t exist when you are standing there. The scriptures say we willl be judged for every careless word, but it never said who would do the judging, but the closest thing I can say is that the words judge themselves, and it hurts, bad. There is nowhere to hide and you have no ability to defend yourself. How do you defend against the truth? So the bit about God being the Judge and Jesus being the defense attorney is totally bogus. They were there in solidarity WITH me while I endured it and never said one word — like it was something I had to go through, which probably took all of 30 seconds maybe, but I will never know. They never judged me, not once. So I guess what you are saying is true. It’s just so hard to explain. So the judgement comes from within.
There may very well be other types of judgment, but that was what I went through. That one was pretty darned thorough, if you ask me. However, there were no open arms, wish there had been, but that would have been a distraction, but I know what you were talking about.
Katherine Gunn said
It only looks weak second hand. There was nothing weak about the LOVE that flowed from Him. Weak? It was the strongest force I have ever felt!
Interesting Stuff « Missio Dei said
[...] of the best posts on God’s judgment I have read. Awesome stuff. [...]
Lennart said
YES, YES, YES, God’s anger was completely satified when Jesus died. He cannot punnish us twice. It would be UNJUST for Him to do that and He cannot be an unjust God. Oh if only we could fully understand the love that our Heavenly Papa has for us.
Sue said
Great post, Abmo. And great comments, too.
Sarone said
Hi, Nes
The closest I get to this is the knowledge that sin cannot exist in His light, that the cloak of fleshiness (sinful nature) will eventually be discarded. It is this part of myself that I see as my enemy re. the spiritual walk and which I think of when I read David’s Psalms calling on God to free him from his enemies.
And to Katherine, (if I may, Nes): YES!!!! That’s my Jesus. My exact thoughts were: ‘So there You are, Jesus.’ And my heart rose up in joy, I tell you.
Katherine Gunn said
Sarone~
Thanks for sharing that. It is making me smile – and probably will make me smile every time I think of it.
Amy said
Abmo,
This is excellent. I found your Blog from a link from Tracy Simmon’s Blog. Glad I did. Looks like I have my work cut out for me (b/c I want to!!) in reading more of your writings.
~Amy
http://www.myspace.com/amyinsurprise
abmo said
Hi Amy, thanks and stop by any time.
Amy said
Abmo,
I decided to finally create my own Blog. Pppllleeeaaassseee, I hope you will come visit “me,” add me to your Feeds, read my entries, and leave comments. I’d love that!!
http://amyiswalkinginthespirit.blogspot.com/
Thanks!
~Amy