What Is God's Ultimate Solution for Rebellion?

In the final days of this earth, more than a thousand years from now, God will put down the last and final act of rebellion with judgment (Rev. 20:9).  “Fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them,” is what the Bible says. Beloved, this is a powerfully serious scene unfolding in the text of Scripture. If we are not careful we will read right over it failing to allow it to impact each of us as deeply as it should. Rebellion is intensely rooted in our human nature and whether in active of passive forms it remains an egregious choice to ignore God and His perfect moral standard of righteousness (Exodus 20:3-17; Luke 18:29; Romans 13:9). Rebellion includes any act of open violence or resistance to established and legitimate governments, laws, requirements, and expectations. Ultimately, it is a refusal to comply with The Most High God’s expressed will in the Bible, or a rejection of His authority. As it has been well articulated by many, the higher the Authority, the greater the offense, and the more comprehensive the punishment! Though the God of the Bible is loving, merciful, and gracious, He is equally righteous, holy and just! For those who would say God is too loving to judge or send sinners to Hell, I encourage them to read this passage slowly and thoughtfully. Consider carefully the lesson that John the Revelator left us to ponder,

And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 9, And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. (Rev. 20:7-9)

The physical lives of these rebels with be suddenly brought to an end by divine judgment from Heaven. God will fight this last and decisive battle to defend His people, that the victory may be complete, and the glory will point to Himself. Yes, God is glorified whenever His righteous, holy, and just character is vindicated. He is honored when pure justice is served. The protection of His people reveals His love and the judgment of His enemies reflects His justice. In this short passage, as with many others, we see a sweeping display of the splendid character of Almighty God--gracious and yet holy: merciful and still perfectly just. What a royal panorama of divine attributes it declares without any contradictions! 

    1.  God Will Deal with this Revolt Very Quickly, Decisively, and Efficiently! 

The result for this specific act of rebellion is immediate and unmitigated judgment. “Fire” will come down from heaven and literally devour them. Though this is not eternal judgment, it certainly expresses the just nature of God. The scene is nothing less than absolutely astounding, but it is never-the-less true! Often He is extremely patient and He refrains Himself enduring with human rebellion for years. There will come a point when patience is no long an option for an extremely patient God. Just as this passage portrays, a day of reckoning will come.

    2.  In Contrast with Ezekiel 38, There Is No Mention of Earthquake, Hail, or Other Disasters.

The only similarity is that in both cases there is fire from heaven. This is a frequent method of divine judgment on the earth in the Word of God (Gen. 19:24; Ex. 9:23-24; Lev. 9:24; 10:2; Num. 11:1; 16:35; 26:10; 1 Kings 18:38; 2 Kings 1:10, 12, 14; 1 Chron. 21:26). Fire is often employed to express judgment and this event is no different. 

    3.  Rebellion Will Ultimately Lead to Judgment; This is a Lesson of the Word of God.

Jude 1:5-8, I will therefore put you in remembrance, though ye once knew this, how that the Lord, having saved the people out of the land of Egypt, afterward destroyed them that believed not. 6,  And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. 7, Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire. 8, Likewise also these filthy dreamers defile the flesh, despise dominion, and speak evil of dignities.

        A.  The Little Letter of Jude Gives Us Three Flagrant Examples of Rebellion:

             (1) The nation of Israel—although God delivered them from Egypt and it harsh bondage, they still refused to trust Him to enter the Promised Land according to God's command and the original timetable (Numbers 14:26-39). That first generation was sentence to wander and died in the wilderness!

             (2) The fallen angels—although God created them good, pure, holy, and to live in His Presence and service, some were led astray by Satan and cooperated with him in his rebellion against God (2 Peter 2:4). While some are relatively free, others are held bound in prison awaiting a certain day of decisive judgment and final condemnation. Without exception, all of these demon rebels will be severely judged!

             (3) The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah—though God would have spared these cities if only ten righteous inhabitants abode in them, finally He could not. Sin was running lose like wildfire in the high winds of a prairie, passions remained unchecked, sodomy was an accepted practice, injustice was rampant, and the peoples had no regard for the Most High God. Finally The True and Living God literally wiped them off the face of the earth (Genesis 19:1-29). (The Handbook of Bible Applications)

        B.  If the chosen people, angels, and sinful cities were punished, how much more will the rebels of our present day be judged? Does this not apply to rebel nations, cities, and individuals today? With such solid precedence in the Bible, how can any rebel hope to escape? Though these judgments ended the lives of these people, there remains an eternal judgment in the Lake of Fire (Rev. 20:10-15). The only HOPE today is through faith in Jesus Christ, the Savior. We all have sinned, and we do not in any way measure up to God perfect standard of righteousness (Romans 2:9, 10; 3:23, 6:23; 5:8, 12; 10:8-14, 17). In short, we all are rebels. The Lord Jesus Christ took all of our rebellion, iniquity, and sin upon Himself, and God punished Him as the Sin-Bearer. Look carefully at what God says through the Apostle Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:19-21,

To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. 20, Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. 21, For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

You see, Jesus Christ became the very object of God’s wrath…the focal point of His unmitigated judgment upon rebellious sin. Jesus suffered for our rebellion and God the Father judged Him for our sins. This payment for sins is applied to our sins personally when we turn to God through faith in Christ Jesus. We may run to God for mercy through Jesus Christ because He is the living Savior! That is correct. He died for our sins, was buried, and He rose again the third day exactly as the Scriptures predicted. This solidly demonstrates that He is God, sin was actually atoned for, The Father is satisfied with this sin payment, and the Lord Jesus is the only Savior. God will forgive and accept us once we acknowledge our sin from a heart of repentance, and turn to God through placing our faith in Jesus Christ. I urge every reader to turn to God for the forgiveness of sins; trust Jesus Christ before it is eternally too late. If you require further instruction about these matters, the following posts will greatly assist you.  http://maxevangel.blogspot.com/2014/03/what-must-i-do-to-be-saved.html

http://maxevangel.blogspot.com/2014/04/the-philippian-jailers-salvation-ii.html

http://maxevangel.blogspot.com/2014/04/born-of-spirit-experiencing-new-birth.html

Be assured God will eventually deal with all rebellion. When nations, cities, and individuals have fully and finally rejected God’s mercy, grace, and provision in Jesus Christ, there is no other alternative. His judgment will one day extend to the entire world! There is no where to run or hide in such a scenario...no where at all. Judgment in the eternal form will be the way He handles final rebellion. If a person refuses God's salvation and will, He will respect their choice for all eternity. They will persist forever--throughout a ceaseless eternity--without His love and Presence. There is no remedy at that point, and no other possible recourse; it will be too late. Again I urge you to place your faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of the Living God today.