18/03/2025
Since I began this series on Free Will, the response has been overwhelming. Many have reacted with anger, saying, “Don’t make God a dictator!” “Calvinism makes God a monster!” or “Your God is unloving and cruel!” But these objections only reveal how far the modern church has strayed from biblical teaching. People have been conditioned to hear only about God’s love while rejecting His justice and sovereignty. The idea that God has absolute authority over salvation is foreign to many because they have never been taught the full counsel of God. But if we claim to love truth, we must be willing to embrace all of who God is—not just the parts that make us feel comfortable.
Before we begin, let me make something clear—this is not about judging anyone. This is written out of love and care, because truth matters. If we claim to follow Christ, we must embrace the fullness of who He is, not just the parts that are easy to accept.
The Full Counsel of God
The modern church has spent so much time preaching only half of God’s character that when the other half is revealed, people cry out, “This is not the God of the Bible!” They are offended when they hear of God’s justice, wrath, and sovereignty over salvation. Why? Because they have been raised on milk when they should have been eating solid food (Hebrews 5:12-14). They have embraced a sentimental god, not the holy God of Scripture.
Paul declared to the Ephesian elders, “I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). But today’s churches have shrunk back. They proclaim God’s love while burying His justice, holiness, and sovereignty. They teach a god who waits on man’s decisions, rather than the God who reigns over all.
Yet the Bible does not present a one-dimensional God. The same Scriptures that say “God is love” (1 John 4:8) also say “Our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29). The same Christ who says “Come to me” (Matthew 11:28) also says “Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire” (Matthew 25:41). The full counsel of God is not just love—it is love, justice, wrath, mercy, sovereignty, and righteousness. When we strip away His justice and holiness, we create an idol in our minds, a false god who is more like us than the God of the Bible.
Is God a Dictator or a Sovereign King?
Many say, “Your God is a dictator!” But that accusation comes from a misunderstanding of who God is. A dictator is a sinful man who oppresses people. God is not a dictator—He is the sovereign King over all creation. Psalm 115:3 says, “Our God is in the heavens; He does all that He pleases.” If God is truly sovereign, then He is not at the mercy of man’s will. If He must wait for permission, He is no longer God.
In Exodus 33:19, God declares, “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” Paul echoes this in Romans 9:18, saying, “So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.” This is the God of the Bible—sovereign in mercy and sovereign in judgment. This is not tyranny. This is divine kingship.
The God of Love and the God of Wrath
One of the most common objections is, “Calvinism makes God a monster! My God is loving.” But let us ask: What is love without holiness? What is mercy without justice? If God is only love, then why does the Bible speak of His wrath more than His love? If God does not judge sin, then what was the cross for?
The same God who “so loved the world that He gave His only Son” (John 3:16) also “will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty” (Revelation 19:15). The same Jesus who said, “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34) will one day say, “Bind him hand and foot and cast him into the outer darkness” (Matthew 22:13).
Psalm 7:11 declares, “God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day.” Nahum 1:2-3 says, “The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on His adversaries and keeps wrath for His enemies.” Romans 1:18 states, “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men.”
If we reject God’s justice, we reject the true God. His wrath is not contrary to His love; it is the necessary response of His holiness to sin. Without it, there is no salvation, no gospel, and no hope.
The Justice and Wrath of God Magnify His Love
Many struggle with the idea of God’s justice and wrath, thinking that they contradict His love. But in reality, they magnify it. A shallow view of God’s wrath leads to a shallow view of His love. If there is no wrath against sin, then what did Christ endure on the cross?
At Calvary, we see both God’s love and His justice fully displayed. “God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). But how did Christ show that love? By bearing the wrath of God in our place (Isaiah 53:10). If God was only love and never wrathful against sin, then the cross would be meaningless.
The Problem: A Church That Preaches Milk
The real issue is not that the Bible is unclear. The problem is that churches have stopped preaching the full counsel of God. They have raised generations on only God’s love while neglecting His holiness, sovereignty, and justice. This is why people react with outrage when they hear the truth—they have been fed spiritual milk instead of meat (1 Corinthians 3:2).
Hebrews 5:12-14 warns of this very thing: “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food.” This passage is an indictment of spiritual immaturity. It describes those who should be mature in their faith but remain infants, unable to handle deeper truths. This is why the modern church is weak, filled with people who crave an emotional experience but reject doctrinal depth. This is why many cannot handle the idea of God's justice, because they have been conditioned to hear only what pleases them. But we should not be like them.
The God of the Bible, Not the God of Emotions
The God of the Bible is not a weak, pleading deity who waits for permission. He is the sovereign Lord who declares, “I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, declaring the end from the beginning” (Isaiah 46:9-10). The question is not whether we like this truth. The question is whether we will submit to it.
If we reject the full counsel of God, we are left with an idol—a god shaped by emotions, not by Scripture. But if we embrace all of who God is—His love, justice, holiness, and sovereignty—we will worship Him in truth. The choice is clear: will we follow the God of the Bible or the god of our imagination?
Let him who has ears to hear, hear.
Jeremiah Knight
The Reformation Resurgence
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