Daily Devotional, Year 2 – FEBRUARY 16 . . . . Christians in the Hands of an Angry God!
By admin On January 19th, 2021.
Click credit links below each pic, for licensing names/details/tags/etc.. Most pics cropped/reduced in size
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Daily Devotional, Year 2 – FEBRUARY 16
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Christians in the Hands of an Angry God!
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Jonathon Edwards is credited as being one of the more notable human instruments which God used in the “1st Great Awakening” Christian revival movemen
t of the early 1700’s, in England and the American colonies.
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But Edwards was also known for his authorship of the most powerful and most popular sermon ever preached, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God”.
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Yes, that sermon had a profound effect on many or even most of its hearers, and became the spark that ignited the Great Awakening in England and the United States during the 1700’s!
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Jonathan Edwards – Wikipedia – Public Domain
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YOUTUBE SERMON by EDWARDS
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Now, one can go to YouTube and hear a very well-done and dramatic reading of that sermon (click here to listen.)
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And with one or two hearings, it is easy to understand why that sermon had such a dramatic effect upon its hearers!
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After all, it gives a chilling dose of reality regarding the consequences of turning away from the grace of God’s Salvation.
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Yes, this passionate plea by Edwards, highlights the fiery results which he said will assuredly await all those who choose “Eternal Torment”, rather than repentance!
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Jonathon Edwards – Sinner in the Hands Monument – Wikipedia – Share-Alike License
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THE CEASELESS AGES!
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In this sermon, Edwards emphasizes just how long eternity is!
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And he presses upon the point, that being tormented in a fiery netherworld for all eternity, is an intolerable situation which never ends, and continues through the ceaseless ages!
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And so, for about an hour, this sermon repeatedly drives this point home to the listeners!
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And thus, after an hour of hearing the description of how long eternity is, it is small wonder that this most infamous recital about the fires of Hell had such a profound effect upon the people who heard it!
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Hell – Dante’s Inferno – G. Dore – Wikipedia – Public Domain
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WHY ALL THE APATHY?
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But here’s the great question to be answered in today’s devotional: “If Christians really do believe in this church-doctrine, why then, are most Christians so complacent and apathetic toward Salvation?”
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Isn’t this odd? After all, if such an unspeakable divine sentence awaits all those who slight God’s pleas of mercy, you would think that the entire Christian community would be out there knocking on the doors of each and every neighbor and family member, warning them to flee from the wrath to come!
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You would think that in light of this horrible doctrine, that every subscribing Christian would be spending every spare moment, tearfully pleading for God’s mercy!
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Brooklyn Museum – The Bad Rich Man in Hell – James Tissot – Wikipedia – US Public Domain
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GOD HAS A WONDERFUL PLAN
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Considering how long eternity will be, you would think that preachers would be pounding their fists on their pulpits, pleading for their parishioners to fall to their knees in repentance!
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You would think that pastors would be tearfully crying out for the Salvation of souls, constantly reminding them of the terrors of a fiery, eternal torture-chamber!
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But most are not!
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It doesn’t seem like they really believe the church-doctrine of “Eternal Torment”, does it? Because if they did, then their response to this doctrine would be much different wouldn’t it?
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Sunday preaching – Wikipedia – US Public Domain
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NICE SOFT SERMONS!
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But instead, most preachers are giving nice, soft & sweet sermons, about “God’s wonderful plan for your life”!
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And after church, we Christians are content to waste countless hours watching the big game, and then we pursue our careers the rest of the week with the same aggression that we instead should have pursued the evangelism of the world!
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It just doesn’t make sense, does it?
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Audience hands – Wikimedia – Public Domain
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PEACE & SAFETY GOSPELS
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Do Christians not really believe in “Eternal Torment”?
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Do Christians think that God is merely winking His eye concerning the fires of Hell, which (they teach) will continually torment all those who reject Jesus?
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Well, judging from the way that most Christians live, it sure seems that few Christians really believe that all rejecters of God’s grace will suffer for millions of millions of ions of time with excruciating pain for every tiny moment of all time and eternity!!!
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ABOVE PICTURE: Unfunny Judgment Day Cartoon – a party tonight – signsofheaven.org
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SHRIEKS OF TERROR, PAIN & MISERY!
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If a Christian can imagine hearing their horrifying screams for just one little drop of God’s mercy: and these shrieks are coming from their very own lost loved ones!
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Well, you would think that would be enough to get Christians so fearful and alarmed, that they would begin evangelizing the world with great fervor!
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And yet, it seems that the only ones who are seen knocking on doors, are those “cults”!
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Where are Christians?
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Hell’s Torment and Tormentor – Wikipedia – Public Domain (2)
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IN CENTURIES PAST
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Yes, you would think that those shrieks of terror from our deceased lov
ed-ones would be enough to get us to begin evangelizing the lost souls in the world, beginning with our very own soul!
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Well, isn’t that what our predecessors did? Didn’t Christians in earlier centuries train up their children in God’s Word, memorizing large portions, to take that Good News of Salvation to anyone who would listen?
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And, in spite of the ongoing threat of civil penalties for preaching that Gospel, it was still the primary objective of persecuted Christians during the Dark Ages in Europe, to carry on a clandestine evangelistic crusade through the countryside!
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And all this, while at the same time, providing for their family’s temporal, earthly needs!
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Burning at the Stake – Wikipedia – Public Domain
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THE BOOK OF ACTS
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Is this not what the early Church did? Is this not also what we read about in the Book of Acts?
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And can we not imagine that even many early disciples deferred their rightful privilege of marriage and raising a family, just so they could imitate Paul, the Apostle?
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That’s right, Paul lived single, without wife and children, merely for the sake of preaching the Gospel, unhindered by extra temporal responsibilities?
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Paul Shipwrecked – Acts 27:41-44 – www.lavistachurchofchrist.org – Public Domain
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WHY NO FEAR?
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Now this devotional was not intended to debate the question of “Eternal Torment”.
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But instead, this devotional merely questions just why the vast majority of Christians are resting so safe and securely in our TV room, knowing that nearly 200,000 lost souls are slipping down into the grave on a daily basis?
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Listen… “If thou forbear to deliver them that are drawn unto death, and those that are ready to be slain; If you say, Behold, we knew it not; does not He that ponders the heart consider it? and He that keeps thy soul, does not he know it? and shall not He render to every man according to his works?” Proverbs 24:11, 12
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If this passage doesn’t strike fear into your’s and my heart, then we are spiritually dead indeed, already!
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Yes, in light of Proverbs 24:11, 12, at the very least, we should be pleading daily for all those who are in need of God’s great mercy and grace, while there is still time left!
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Calvary Cemetery Queens – Wikipedia – Public Domain
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NOW IS THE ACCEPTABLE TIME!
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And so, if we begin right this very moment, to fall to our spiritual knees, begging for His mercy and grace; if we begin right now, to pray for strength to crack open our Bibles, to get to know more and more about the matchless character of God…
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…if we beg God to open our eyes, that we might look at life through the loving eyes of Jesus…
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…if we begin to study that we might show forth Christ’s holiness to all the world around us…
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…if we begin right now to cease all nagging and scolding of our family members, and instead, showing them our silent testimony of love, tenderness, and patience, making life thoroughly enjoyable for them…
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…then dear friend…
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…then dear Soul…then, we just might possibly obtain that personal Christian victory…
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…a victory more wonderful and glorious than any previous generation ever realized!
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USMC – Prayer before Bible study – Wikimedia – public domain
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TODAY’S PRAYER…
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“Dear Lord, Give me a zeal for purifying my heart in Thy Word, and prayerfully ordering my life aright, so that all the world can truly see Jesus in me, wherever I happen to be…
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FURTHER READING…
You may read this part 1 of a very lengthy series…Today’s Devotional – May 12th . . . . Come Out of Her, My People! Part 1
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THE END
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TODAY’S FEATURED HEAVENLY SIGN
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“It (God’s Covenant) shall be established…
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for ever as the Moon…
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and as a faithful witness in heaven. Selah.”
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Psalm 89:37.
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GOSPEL INSCRIBED ON THE MOON
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The Bible states… “It (God’s Covenant) shall be established for ever as the Moon, and as a 
faithful witness in heaven (sky). Selah.” Psalm 89:37
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God’s Covenant (The Gospel) has been inscribed in the sky. In the night sky, predominantly. It has been established “as the Moon, and as a faithful witness…”.
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That there would be “signs in the Sun… moon, and…stars” (Luke 21:25) just before the end, was a promise made by God.
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But we didn’t know exactly what those signs would be (although many thought they knew).
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Nor did we realize that these signs would be pointing us to present Bible truths!
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Harvest moon – cropped photo – Wikipedia & roadcrusher – share-alike license
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“THE SCORNER (THE PHARISEE)”
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Please tilt your head to the left. Do you see a man with a very long pointed nose. 
(Obviously, the sketch to the right is just an exaggeration in order to help you find the face in the photo to the left.)
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Do you see an angry look? His right eye-brow is raised as if he is judging.
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