Jude 1:5

Jude 1:5: “I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not.”

Many people today believe that God would never judge anyone. They don’t believe in hell, or eternal damnation, or judgment for sin. God loves everyone, they say, and therefore everyone will go to Heaven. No one will be eternally lost, because “God just isn’t like that”.

Yet, Jude reminds us that God does indeed judge the nations (something that ought to make us tremble). God did terrible things to Egypt because they would not let His people go. Then, when the Israelites rebelled against God and refused to enter Canaan, the Lord judged them and all those that disobeyed Him died in the wilderness. In other words, He killed them all.

There is very little fear of God in our culture. People mock the idea of a “God of vengeance” and ridicule the teachings and commands of God without a second thought. They mock God, refuse to obey Him, and then think that somehow there won’t be any consequences. People have forgotten that they are utterly powerless against the infinite might of God, and are completely at His mercy at all times. He has made it very clear what He will do to those who reject His authority and refuse to serve Him. Those who mock God need to think long and hard about what will happen when they are forced to stand before Him and face all of His infinite power. If you have rejected God and refused His mercy then you will face the infinite wrath of an infinitely angry being who has infinite power, and you will face it for all of eternity. Are you really foolish enough to believe that you can win that encounter? Is it not far better to cry out for forgiveness and mercy now, while there is still time? Who can win a fight against God?

God has not changed between the Old Testament and New Testament; God never changes. The Jesus who died on the cross to offer Himself as payment for our sins is the very same Jesus who will one day return to destroy all those who have rejected His mercy. Repent and submit to Jesus now, while there is still a chance. One day time will run out, and then it will be far too late.