The Goodness and Severity of God
Years ago, our family of eight became homeless. It was a stressful time that morphed into a time of amazing grace. A delightful couple we barely knew, gave us the use of their mountain cottage. We had not often had family vacations because of the pecuniary challenges of being a small church pastor. But God, in one of our greatest times of need, blessed us with His goodness.
The apostle Paul wrote to the church at Rome and explained some of the key doctrines of the Christian faith. He wrote about man and sin, about the chosen people of God, justification, baptism, sanctification, and how Jews and Gentiles are saved by grace. As he closed out the doctrinal portion of his letter to the Romans, he explained this relationship between ethnic Israel, the Gentiles, and Yahweh.
One of the great problems in the early church was the inclusion of the Gentiles. The early church was Jewish, but the church soon realized God was saving people outside of ethnic Israel (Acts 10, 15, 16). This was good, but it also became apparent that God was not saving all of the Jewish people (Rom 9:6), who often proved to be some of the most hostile enemies of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Antinomy is the idea that two apparent contradictions can and do function together simultaneously. Can one be homeless and at the same time enjoy God’s gracious provision? Can you be a Gentile and be saved by the God of the Jews? Can you be a Jew and be excluded from Israel? The way to resolve antinomy is to accept it.
Paul anticipated the reaction of his readers at Rome. So in verse 22 of chapter 11 of Romans he expresses his acceptance of the antinomy of two of God’s attributes: goodness and severity. Paul wrote, “Behold then the kindness and severity of God; to those who fell, severity, but to you, God’s kindness; otherwise you also will be cut off.” How can God be good and wrathful at the same time? The answer is that His attributes are full and autonomous. They do not overtake one another, but simply exist side by side. God is always good. God is always severe against ungodliness and unrighteousness. The key word when accepting both attributes presented here is “and.” God is good and severe.
The Bible is rich with illustration regarding Paul’s double attribute expression. While God was evicting Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden (severe), He clothed them with animal skins (Corinthian leather?). When God was ready to pour out his global wrath in the days of Noah (severe), He had Noah build the perfect vessel of salvation (good). When God was ready to pour out His wrath on the homosexual twin cities (severe), He sent angels to direct Lot’s family to safety (good). When God delivered Israel through the Red Sea (good), He drowned the Egyptian army (severe).
Many Old Testament saints were given a difficult course of discipline (severe), and received grace for their pilgrimage (good). Moses was troubled by the people of Israel (severe), but it made him the humblest of men (good). The wanderer, Jonah, was saved by a big fish (good/severe) so he could find the path back to ordained ministry at Nineveh. Elijah was despised and deprived by the elders of Israel (severe), but there were compassionate ravens to bring him food in the wilderness (good). David was anointed and empowered to rule over Israel (good), but God dealt with his sins (severe).
Many of the New Testament saints also reveal this antinomy of God’s attributes. James was given leadership over the church at Jerusalem, and he was killed. Stephen was a gifted orator, and he was killed. Paul is the icon of suffering and glory, following the footsteps of Jesus Christ, who endured the full wrath of God on the Cross, which saved His people from their sins.
When I left the world of Wall Street for the ministry of the Gospel, I knew there would be bad days. No one could have prepared me for the bad days that became bad months, let alone the bad years. The severity of God brings discipline to the saint and judgment to sinners. The wrath of God is directed against all evil, but when the saint is tainted by evil, God’s mercy and grace enter to protect the saint while she is disciplined in love (Heb 12). God did not spare His own Son from the righteous wrath to punish sins, and He will not spare His discipline for saints in sin. This should produce a great fear of God for both sinner and saint. Wise saints heed the discipline of the Lord, but sinners are often hardened in their hearts like Pharaoh.
The severity of God is designed to humble people and cause them to draw near to God in repentance. When God’s severity drives people away from Him, it intensifies their hate toward God, who is perceived as being too severe. The saint is like a sheep under the firm rod of the Good Shepherd. Sheep cannot run. Sheep cannot hide. A disciplined sheep will cower at the feet of the One she loves. Discipline is necessary for sheep to remain safe in the world. The undisciplined child will run into the busy street. The undisciplined child of God will run into sin.
God is good. His lovingkindness endures forever. He never changes. He is love, and His intentions are always to make all things work together for good for those who love Him and who are called according to His purposes (Rom 8:28). Even His severity is good for His people. Exile in Babylon (severe) brought to remembrance the Garden of Eden (good), being located in the same region. Israel prospered in Egypt, and then was enslaved. Canaan was a blessing and then a curse. God ever-worked his discipline in Israel while leading them to the pure and enduring Promised Land.
God has a course for all of His children, but ironically, this is what makes Christianity unattractive to people. Pagans observe Christians, who are often suffering under the discipline of their Heavenly Father. There is nothing in this that creates a natural allure. Meanwhile, the heathen are commonly left to their own ways in this world. They prosper in wickedness and pride.
God deals with the wicked when they fully accumulate their mountain of sins. Judgment is their final encounter with God before eternal separation. Meanwhile, the child of God, like Jacob, limps toward the celestial city. He has thorns in his side, like Paul. He suffers for his association with Jesus. The road to glory is marked with much suffering. It takes faith to press on past each mile mark on the upward trek to glory.
How then should we live in light of the goodness and severity of God? Remember the promises of God…all of them. We often consider the promises of blessing, but less so the promises of cursing. Do this and live! Do that and die! Surely, goodness and blessing are twinned. God’s severity, linked to His just judgment of sin, should drive the saint to obedience for blessing. The just shall live by faith, for it is impossible to please God without faith, and our ambition is to please Him. We long to enter the joy of the Lord; therefore, we should live and labor to experience His goodness. Disobedience will never garner goodness from God, except by inviting His severity, which keeps us on the straight and narrow path. Fear God and keep His commandments sums up the Spirit-filled Christian life.
Sinners must be warned that refusal to respond correctly to the severity of God will inhibit one’s experience of God’s goodness. It is true that God extends common grace to all people. The sun rises on the righteous and the unrighteous, and so falls the rain in like manner; but for wanton neglect, the blessings of special grace are forsaken. God’s severity in your sinful life is designed to drive you to the foot of the Cross of Calvary, where the perfect sinless man was judged for sin.
Is that just? God took our sins and put them on Jesus, and then God poured out His wrath upon Jesus to punish our sins. Jesus is our scapegoat. He bore our sins in His body on the crucifixion tree. God’s severity toward you was propitiated, or re-directed toward Jesus. Does this not humble you? Will you refuse to repent, knowing what Jesus Christ has done on your behalf, in your place? Goodness and mercy will not follow you unless you understand what God has done for you. God dealt severely with Jesus so He could deal goodness to you. Jesus suffered for the joy of knowing your sins would be forgiven by His work as the sacrificial Lamb of God. His blood was shed for you. His death has brought life to you. Here is the severity and goodness of God.
The people must have marveled at what Paul was teaching them in Romans 11. The Jews thought they had right standing with Yahweh simply because they were Jews. Paul warned them this was not true. Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as right standing with God. Paul told the Jews they must believe in Jesus Christ, not their blood line or religion or so-called, “good works.” He pointed them to the Gentiles, who were manifesting a saving faith in Jesus Messiah. God, in His goodness, was grafting them into the True Vine, Jesus Christ (Jn 15). The life of God was beginning to flow through them in the Spirit. At the same time, God was severing ethnic Jews from True Israel. Paul implored his readers to consider both realities and to respond appropriately.
As we continue on our journey of faith, Paul warns us not to boast in anything except the Lord Jesus Christ, who has accomplished what we could never do. It is a humble sojourn back to glory. Meditating on the goodness of God the Father’s decree for our salvation will help. Focusing, like Paul, on Christ and Him crucified will help. Relying fully on God the Holy Spirit to accomplish everything for us, doing God’s will and good pleasure in us will help.
If per chance, we become arrogant or proud, Paul assures us of the severity of God. Thus, we have a humble stewardship, to persuade all men everywhere to join us in repentance, away from lives of sin and toward faith in the one and only Savior of sinners, Jesus Christ. The Gospel warns us of the severity of God. The Gospel delights us with the good news of our good God. For us to proclaim Him, to all Creation, we must remain balanced in our message.
The lopsided, “God is love, only” message will only confuse the lax sinner when the severity of God appears to him in judgment. The same is true for the false, prosperity health and wealth message which denies the severity of God. Preaching the Law, without the Gospel, will also lead men to the severity of God without knowing the goodness of God.
It is imperative to preach about sin (Romans 1), and that God shows no partiality (Romans 2), for all are under sin (Romans 3). But there is a way of salvation by grace through faith (Rom 4–5) that sets the sinner straight on the road to glory (Romans 6–8), and it comes through the preaching of the Word, in the power of the Holy Spirit (Rom 9–11) for both Jew and Gentile, so that we might live to God (Rom 12–16). Goodness. Severity. Antinomy…live with it.
David E. Norczyk
Hillsboro, Oregon
December 5, 2020
