When people think about God, some think of Him as a God of mercy, “God, who is rich in mercy,” Ephesians 2:4. Others view Him as a God of vengeance, Someone to be feared. “For our God is a consuming fire.” Hebrews 12:29. Although He is both, a God of mercy and a God of vengeance, He is not Someone to be feared. Our view of God is dependent on our lifestyle and our perceptions. If our lives are not in accordance with the will of God, we view Him as a God of vengeance. If we desire to follow the Lord and surrender to Him, to us He is the gentle Shepherd.
MERCY
God truly is a God of mercy. We are poor sinners, deserving nothing but death, eternal death. The sinful lifestyle that we have lived deserves no better and yet He came to live and die for us. Today He is interceding in heaven for us. “Who is a God like unto Thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He retaineth not His anger for ever, because He delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, He will have compassion upon us; He will subdue our iniquities; and Thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.” Micah 7:18–19
“In those days, and in that time, saith the LORD, the iniquity of Israel shall be sought for, and there shall be none; and the sins of Judah, and they shall not be found: for I will pardon them whom I reserve.” Jeremiah 50:20
“I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Jeremiah 31:34. “I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely: for Mine anger is turned away from him.” Hosea 14:4. “But God, who is rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith He loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;).” Ephesians 2:4–5
“O give thanks unto the God of gods: for His mercy endureth for ever.” Psalm 136:2. “Far more than we do, we need to speak of the precious chapters in our experience. We should speak of the mercy and loving-kindness of God, of the matchless depths of the Saviour’s love. Our words should be words of praise and thanksgiving. If the mind and heart are full of the love of God, this will be revealed in the conversation. It will not be a difficult matter to impart that which enters into our spiritual life. Great thoughts, noble aspirations, clear perceptions of truth, unselfish purposes, yearnings for piety and holiness, will bear fruit in words that reveal the character of the heart treasure. When Christ is thus revealed in our speech, it will have power in winning souls to Him.” –Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 338
How does God show His mercy to His children? God does not willingly afflict the righteous. In fact, I am sure He prefers not to; however, sometimes that is what it takes for us to listen to His voice and return to Him.
“As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten.” Revelation 3:19. Why does He do this? “Be zealous therefore, and repent.” Often this is the only way to stop a person in their tracks and bring them to the point of decision, whether to repent or continue on in the downward pathway. “See now that I, even I, am He, and there is no god with Me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal.” Deuteronomy 32:39. He promises to heal the afflicted.
“Happy is the man whom God correcteth: therefore despise not thou the chastening of the Almighty.” Job 5:17. “For whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth.”Hebrews 12:6
And again, why? “Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.” Hebrews 12:11
“The path in which He invites us to walk would never have cost us a pang had we always walked in it. It is when we stray from the path of duty that the way becomes difficult and thorny. The sacrifices which we must make in following Christ are only so many steps to return to the path of light, of peace and happiness. Doubts and fears grow by indulgence, and the more they are indulged, the harder are they to overcome. It is safe to let go every earthly support and take the hand of Him who lifted up and saved the sinking disciple on the stormy sea.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 4, p. 558
VENGEANCE
Sadly, some are so stubbornly going in the wrong direction that no matter how much affliction is brought, they still refuse to follow the Lord. “Howsoever I punished them: but they rose early, and corrupted all their doings.” Zephaniah 3:7
Zephaniah gives us a view of God regarding those that refuse to accept the reproof from the Lord. “Therefore wait ye upon Me, saith the LORD, until the day that I rise up to the prey: for My determination is to gather the nations, that I may assemble the kingdoms, to pour upon them Mine indignation, even all My fierce anger: for all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of My jealousy.” Zephaniah 3:8
In the days of Christ, the Pharisees taught that God is an angry God. Vengeful. They focused on the verses that described God’s vengeance on the unrighteous. They instilled fear into the hearts of the people, which led them to comply, as much as possible, with the seemingly endless list of useless traditions imposed upon them by the Pharisees in the name of God. They extracted unreasonably large sums of money from the poor people, telling them this was necessary in order to appease an angry God.
Some Christian religions continue to do the same today. They preach an eternally burning hell fire, instilling fear into the minds of many people, collecting large sums of money.
The reality is that the “anger” of God comes only upon the defiant ones; those that refuse to repent. It is not a sin for God to be jealous, as mentioned in Zephaniah 3:8. Let us use example of marriage, remembering that the relationship of the church to Christ is compared to marriage. If a husband should see another man flirting with his wife, he is right to be jealous, for only he has the right to flirt with his wife. This type of jealousy is not sinful. Rather, it is entirely appropriate. Being jealous for something that God says belongs to you is appropriate. Jealousy is a sin when it is a desire for something that does not belong to you. Worship, praise, honour, and adoration belong to God alone, for only He is truly worthy of it. Therefore, God is rightly jealous when worship, praise, honor, or adoration, is given to idols.
We are told to, “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry:” or then we will face the wrath of God. “For which things’ sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience.” Colossians 3:5–6
“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness.” Romans 1:18. In the end His wrath will be poured out upon the unrighteous “without mixture.” Revelation 14:10. This a side of God that no one wants to see; and, in the end, those that do face this will be calling the rocks and mountains to fall on them to hide them from God (Revelation 6:16).
Yet in all of this, God is truly a God of mercy and His vengeance is His strange act. “For the LORD shall rise up as in mount Perazim, He shall be wroth as in the valley of Gibeon, that He may do his work, His strange work; and bring to pass His act, His strange act.” Isaiah 28:21. There is no ever-burning hell. The wicked will be completely consumed.
FEED MY SHEEP
The shepherds of the flock of God are under special attack by the evil one. “Smite the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.” Zechariah 13:7. They have a grave responsibility to be faithful to their trust. They may live a seemingly righteous life themselves; but if they are not leading their flock according to God’s will, or they are neglectful of the flock given to their trust, they will face the wrath of God.
“Thus saith the LORD my God; Feed the flock.” Zechariah 11:4. To feed is to be proactive. It is to give nourishment so that growth can happen.
After the resurrection, Jesus had a private discussion with Peter. During this discussion, “Jesus saith unto him, Feed My sheep.” John 21:17. Peter took this counsel to heart and did his best to be a faithful shepherd and encouraged others to do the same. “Feed the flock of God which is among you, taking the oversight thereof.” 1 Peter 5:2
Unfortunately, many religious leaders do not follow this counsel. They preach, but neglect the nurturing part to lead for growth of their members. To feed the sheep is to lead them beside the still waters and to make them lie down in green pastures (Psalm 23). It is a very peaceful and serene setting—one where the shepherd is leading the sheep, and teaching them. Jesus led by example. He was often seen preaching and teaching; sometimes to a large audience and sometimes to one person.
There are false shepherds who neglect their sheep. “Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock.” Zechariah 11:17 (emphasis mine). The punishment here uttered against the shepherd was simply because they “leaveth” the flock. They neglected the flock, left them open to prey from the “wolves.”
“Woe be unto the pastors that destroy and scatter the sheep of my pasture! saith the LORD. Therefore thus saith the LORD God of Israel against the pastors that feed My people; Ye have scattered My flock, and driven them away, and have not visited them: behold, I will visit upon you the evil of your doings, saith the LORD.” Jeremiah 23:1–2 (emphasis mine). Here we see false shepherds; leaders in God’s church, doing what? Scattering the flock and not visiting them. A curse is placed upon them. Is it not a shepherd’s duty to gather the flock and not scatter? To visit them and not neglect them?
God holds accountable the false leaders who have been unjust in the manner dealt with the flock. In fact, God will punish them. Regardless how seemingly faithful they may appear, their duty to the flock is what God looks at. “There is a voice of the howling of the shepherds; for their glory is spoiled.” Zechariah 11:3. “Woe be to the shepherds of Israel that do feed themselves! should not the shepherds feed the flocks?” Ezekiel 34:2. Yes, they feed themselves. They become “hermits” and keep their religion to themselves. They are like the Pharisees who preached their traditions, while they themselves violated the clear law of God in some areas.
Thankfully, the Lord has promised to oversee the flock when “Their own shepherds pity them not.” “Woe to the idol shepherd that leaveth the flock.” Zechariah 11:5, 17
“I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.” Ezekiel 34:16. “In that day shall the LORD defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among them at that day shall be as David.” Zechariah 12:8
The false shepherds will definitely be punished. “Three shepherds also I cut off in one month; and My soul loathed them.” Zechariah 11:8. “The sword shall be upon his arm, and upon his right eye: his arm shall be clean dried up, and his right eye shall be utterly darkened.” Zechariah 11:17. “Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against the shepherds; and I will require My flock at their hand, and cause them to cease from feeding the flock.” Ezekiel 34:10
God will take control when the shepherds are unjust. We cannot leave the church of God if we see an unjust shepherd. God will take care of matters—where is our faith and trust? In God or in the shepherd? “We have been inclined to think that where there are no faithful ministers there can be no true Christians, but this is not the case. God has promised that where the shepherds are not true He will take charge of the flock Himself. God has never made the flock wholly dependent upon human instrumentalities.” –Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5, p. 80. If the shepherds do not feed the flock, God does not leave them destitute. He says He will feed them.
God speaks mercy to the flock, but vengeance to the false shepherds. The flock that have been deceived are being called by the true Shepherd.
“And I will feed the flock of slaughter, even you, O poor of the flock.” Zechariah 11:7. “I will feed My flock, and I will cause them to lie down, saith the Lord GOD. I will seek that which was lost, and bring again that which was driven away, and will bind up that which was broken, and will strengthen that which was sick: but I will destroy the fat and the strong; I will feed them with judgment.” Ezekiel 34:15–16. “And I will gather the remnant of My flock.” Jeremiah 23:3
God will eventually remove the false shepherds, “And I will set up shepherds over them which shall feed them.” Jeremiah 23:4
“Upon those who have taken upon them the work of shepherds of the flock, will be visited the heaviest judgments, because they have presented to the people fables instead of truth. Children will rise up and curse their parents. Church members, who have seen the light and been convicted, but who have trusted the salvation of their souls to the minister, will learn in the day of God that no other soul can pay the ransom for their transgression. A terrible cry will be raised, ‘I am lost, eternally lost.’ Men will feel as though they could rend in pieces the ministers who have preached falsehoods and condemned the truth. The pure truth for this time requires a reformation in the life, but they separate themselves from the love of the truth, and of them it can be said, ‘O Israel, thou hast destroyed thyself.’”–Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, vol. 4, p. 1157
Who are the shepherds? By definition a shepherd is one who guides sheep, or a member of the clergy; however, it can also mean, “a person who protects, guides, or watches over a person or group of people.” This can be anyone who gives Bible Studies, or leads a church group of some sort, a parent, a teacher. It includes anyone who is obliged to share their knowledge of the gospel. Paul said, “I am debtor both to the Greeks, and to the Barbarians; both to the wise, and to the unwise.” Romans 1:14. We are in the same position. We are debtors to the wise, and unwise—anyone who does not know the truth.
Shepherds are not only the leaders, ministers and Bible workers. There are many undershepherds and each individual member is called to this position to teach the truth to others (and that includes you). If they are not true to their calling, the curse of God will be placed upon them.
We can take heart from the promise, “For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth.” Amos 9:9. No one will be lost through the lack of an unfaithful shepherd, or then God would not be fair.
If we are not saved, can we blame God? It will be a sad day for those who utter these words: “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.” Jeremiah 8:20. No, we cannot blame our parents, friends, church leaders, or unconverted members in the church who provided a poor example. The fault is our own; the decisions we make. Everyone has been given the capability of making their own decisions.
“Serve the LORD your God, that the fierceness of His wrath may turn away from you.” 2 Chronicles 30:8
“The Christian is subject to sickness, disappointment, poverty, reproach, and distress. Yet amid all this he loves God, he chooses to do His will, and prizes nothing so highly as His approbation. In the conflicting trials and changing scenes of this life, he knows that there is One who knows it all, One who will bend His ear low to the cry of the sorrowful and distressed, One who can sympathize with every sorrow and soothe the keen anguish of every heart.” –Our High Calling, p. 9
While there is still time, the Lord is calling. “Come, and let us return unto the LORD: for He hath torn, and He will heal us; He hath smitten, and He will bind us up.” Hosea 6:1
“The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. He will not always chide: neither will He keep His anger for ever.” Psalm 103:8–9
My prayer is that each one of us will be found a faithful shepherd or undershepherd so we can experience God’s mercy and not His wrath. Amen.
Wendy Eaton