Jeremiah 25:8-17

"Take from my hand this cup of the wine of wrath, and make all the nations to whom I send you drink it."

I was recently reminded this week as I looked at all my friends' status updates of the saying, "the wages of sin is death." This can be really hard for me to grapple with in my life, because I trust and I believe in a God who is steadfast in love and has unending mercy for the creation that God has made. I don't like to think about how our sin, our turning away from God placing our trust in whatever idols we can conjure, destroys and creates death for us in our lives. God's judgment against our sin does not pass away. Our sin condemns us and our fallible way of living. God's wrath and before it we cannot stand. But (and with God there is always a "but" when it comes to our sin), God still does not abandon us to our sin and death. God comes to us in our sin and death and still states in every possible way, "I am still your God, and you are still my people." Yes, God wrath will come. God's wrath does not pass away, because God does not want to lose us forever in our sin and death. God's wrath is a big, loud "NO!" to a way of life that does not give life but rather takes it away. I just wish that God didn't have to be a punisher and bringer of wrath. That's why I take comfort in that God also brings steadfast love and mercy.