Though I lay so much stress on the omnipotence of divine love, I do not forget that divine wrath must be reckoned with as well. "God is angry with sinners every day." "Tribulation, and anguish upon every soul of man that doeth evil." "Our God is consuming fire." But the essential thing is love. "God is love." It is a constituent of His character. That could not be said of wrath. It is but the dark shadow of love. In a state of innocence it could not exist. When sin is done away, wrath will be seen no more.
If we only go back far enough in our thought we will certainly come to a time when divine wrath could not exist. Go back to the time before the angels sinned. Go back to the time before there was sin of any kind in all God's universe. But mark, no matter how far that takes you back—there was an eternity of sinlessness before it. Yes; an eternity of sinlessness. There was no wrath then. It could not exist. Therefore we could not say that it was a constituent of the divine character. No; but it was a potentiality of the divine character. It could have no existence until sin appeared. But love is from everlasting. It is by far the mightier attribute. It is of the very essence of God. United with infinite wisdom and power, we would expect it to have the final victory.
STERN FOR THE MOMENT.
Even when there is divine wrath, there is infinite love blended and mingled with it. We shall see this as in a picture if we look at that scene in the life of Christ when He healed a certain man in the Synagogue. It was the Sabbath day. Knowing the hardness and hypocrisy of those present, He flung out this challenge—"Is it right to do good on the Sabbath day?" They could make no answer without committing themselves. Then we read that Christ "looked round about them with indignation." Ah, but listen. It is added immediately that he "was grieved for the hardness of their hearts." His face that was stern for the moment was strangely softened. O yes; love was ever behind His wrath. His indignation was never far removed from tears. And so God can be angry with sinners, at the same time that He loves them with an everlasting love.
We see the same union of pity with indignation in that scene where Christ wept over the sinful city. He had to weep tears of pity over the nation's coming doom; yes, but He could pronounce that doom; and in His wonderful providence He could even arrange for effecting it. So I do not overlook the fact that we have manifestations of divine wrath, as well as divine love; yes, fiery indignation as well as tender compassion. But let us not forget that love is the positive, essential, eternal attribute; and it would be strange indeed if it is not finally victorious.
You may bring this idea of the union of love and indignation close home to yourself. We will suppose that you are a father, and that a son of yours has turned out to be a prodigal. He has gone away from home, bent on a course of crime. Will you not have alternations of love and indignation? Yes, you will sigh and pine for his return; and you will have righteous anger at times over his evil course. And if the son repents, and one day comes home again, will you not receive him with joy? O yes, you will run to meet him, like the father in the Gospel story.
And do you think that your love is more enduring than God's? Are not we all His children, though we have strayed away from Him? Does He not look and long for our return? O yes; and He will accomplish it. The difference is, that He has all power, and He has ways and means of attaining His ends. Let us be assured that "His counsel will stand, and He will do all His pleasure."
In this connection there is a very important consideration. It is this—that no design of God can ultimately fail. We read that He "willeth not the death of a sinner." We read that He "desires all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth." Have we ever stopped to think how unlikely it is that the Infinite One has any desire which He cannot accomplish? If any of His creatures are consigned to eternal torment, and if He wishes, as He says He does, to save them from that fate, does He not desire what He cannot accomplish? Remember that he has all moral as well as all physical power; remember that his love will impel Him to use His power; remember that in His infinite wisdom He knows how; and it will be seen that He has no design which He cannot effect. Just ponder this idea for a while before you go farther.
I was revolving this thought in my mind when I chanced to meet with, a very terse expression of it. I have already quoted an eminent divine who said: "God infallibly accomplishes everything at which He aims." The theologian did not think that his dictum would be given such a wide application. But it commends itself to our judgment nevertheless, be the application what it may. The same thought was differently expressed recently, from a scientific point of view. Sir Oliver Lodge said in a recent lecture: "The Creator of the Universe is not going to be frustrated by the insignificant efforts of His own creatures."