A Nuanced Look at How Our Lives Are Made New
And how maybe “the wrath of God” isn’t like what we think it is
The first chapter of Romans provides an interesting study of God’s wrath. Yes, it’s one of many depictions of God’s wrath in the Bible, but it’s a good one.
Here’s Romans 1:18…
God’s wrath is being revealed from heaven against all the ungodly behavior and the injustice of human beings who silence the truth with injustice.
When I think of God’s wrath, I automatically think about a lightning bolt. A cosmic zap that strikes the transgressive human right between the eyes. ZAP!
Dusted.
But in this text, Paul goes on to describe God’s wrath as God handing humans over to themselves. So, instead of God saying, “I’m gonna send you to hell,” God is effectively saying, “Fine, you go ahead and control yourselves. Do what you want. Idiots.”
Let’s look at Romans 1:21–25…
Although they knew God, they didn’t honor God as God or thank God. Instead, their reasoning became pointless, and their foolish hearts were darkened. While they were claiming to be wise, they made fools of themselves. They exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images that look like mortal humans: birds, animals, and reptiles. So…
