Based on Matthew 23:34 – 24:2 (New King James Version)
“Therefore, indeed, I send you prophets, wise men, and scribes: some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will scourge in your synagogues and persecute from city to city, that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah, son of Berechiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. Assuredly, I say to you, all these things will come upon this generation. ‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! See! Your house is left to you desolate; for I say to you, you shall see Me no more till you say, ‘Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!’ ’ Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. And Jesus said to them, ‘Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.’”
There are many who think that because God is loving and very merciful that they will never have to answer for their sins. There are others who think that because they choose not to want to believe in God, that this means that God does not exist, and that is why they will not have to be held accountable. And there is another group of people who think that everything is already predetermined in each person and that everything will happen as it is set, no matter what they do, so they also think that they will not be judged because, “How will God judge if He was the one who predestined everything?” And also, there is a group of people who think that, if you present the Word of God to a person, even if that person is rebellious, they will eventually convert because the Word will somehow change their mind, sooner or later, and support this thought on the following passage: “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” Isaiah 55:10. But, the issue is that nothing of what has been mentioned is true, as we can see in His Word.
First of all, God is loving and very merciful, but, however, that does not mean that He will never do justice. We cannot err. God is loving, gracious, and merciful, but He is also just and even a consuming fire. Written this: “For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries. Anyone who has rejected Moses’ law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know Him who said, ‘Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,’ says the Lord. And again, ‘The Lord will judge His people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Hebrews 10:26-31. God is good and loving, but He will also punish mockery and rejection, undoubtedly. So, there is a moment where we will all give an account.
Now, with reference to those who “choose” not to want to believe in God, it is totally illogical to think that the will of man makes it possible to change certain unchangeable realities in the universe. To begin with, we are totally weak, limited, and finite beings. We are like nothing before nature, and if that is so (because it is), what are we before the eternal and almighty God who simply spoke things into existence? So, can our humble and insignificant opinion affect Someone like the God of the universe? Impossible. Everything created proclaims the existence of God because He was the One who made them. His creation speaks of His greatness and His infinity. And His Word says this: “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse.” Romans 1:20. So, it is impossible not to be able to believe in God, that He is who He is. But if a person “chooses” not to want to believe, then that is another story, and it will not have a happy ending. They will be judged for your unbelief.
Now, with the matter of predestination being a reality, I must say that there is such a thing, but with very specific beings in history. But the vast majority of us have free will, and that is undeniable if we look at the Word. If there were such a thing as universal predestination, the main ones who would be predestined would be the people of Israel and not us Gentiles, who are all strangers to the promises given to Israel. And especially if there were such a predestination, God would have done it for the salvation of all of Israel. But we see in the Word that not all of Israel came to see good. In fact, on the contrary, few were saved. This is what the Word says: “I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing; therefore choose life, that both you and your descendants may live.” Deuteronomy 30:19. So, if God tells Israel to “choose life,” how can we think that we are all predestined, and that there is no free will? Impossible. We all have free will, so if we do what we do with our lives, it is only by our choice and not because God predisposed it that way. Therefore, we will give an account before God for what we did in this life.
The point is that the Word of God is fulfilled in our lives according to how we respond to the Lord. God calls and speaks to every person from birth, and every day, until we stop breathing our last breath. There are countless times and ways that God calls each human being. But this is what the Word says: “For many are called, but few are chosen.” Matthew 22:1-14. This is not about God choosing who will be saved, but rather, it is about those who choose to respond to His call. Therefore, this is what the Word says: “Moreover, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware that all our fathers were under the cloud, all passed through the sea, all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them, and that Rock was Christ. But with most of them God was not well pleased, for their bodies were scattered in the wilderness. Now these things became our examples, to the intent that we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. And do not become idolaters as were some of them. As it is written, ‘The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.’ Nor let us commit sexual immorality, as some of them did, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell; nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed by serpents; nor complain, as some of them also complained, and were destroyed by the destroyer. Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.” 1 Corinthians 10:1-11. And, what happened with what we saw at the beginning? History teaches us that what the Lord prophesied about the destruction of the temple occurred exactly in the year 70 AD, when the Romans destroyed Israel. And why did it happen? Because the people of Israel did not value the Lord as such, but only a few. The Word was fulfilled for judgment and not for blessing. So, will you choose to reject the Lord or will you treat the Lord right? Lord bless! John. God bless Israel!