They will suffer the punishment of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might. 2 Thessalonians 1:9
What does it mean to be shut out from God’s presence and His power? It means to be without hope and without love forever. This is almost impossible for us to imagine. James Denny says, “Obey the gospel and you enter into light in which there is no darkness. Disobey the gospel and you enter into darkness in which there is no light… A night in which no morning ever dawns.”
The Bible tells us that God is just. It also tells us that He will punish through eternal destruction. Then it goes on to say that those who are so punished will be shut out from the presence of the Lord—forever, and that all this will take place when our Lord Jesus Christ is revealed.
You may feel that the judgment of God is particularly hard for you to face. It is one of the hardest truths in all of the Bible. No one who dares to speak about these things or who is willing to listen to these things feels that they are within their comfort zone.
But the hardest truths can produce the most tender hearts. If you are willing to place yourself under this hardest of truths, and if you grasp this most difficult of doctrines, God will use it to soften your heart today.
Are you willing to place yourself under this hard truth today, so that God can use it soften your heart?
