God's judgement

How can we know that God hates evil? How can we know what hell is like? How can we believe that justice is done in this universe?

• Romans 1:18-32: It is seen in our experience - just look around, and you can see hell.
• Romans 3:1-20: It is declared verbally in the Bible which repeatedly shows that we are in the wrong and the consequences of that.
• Romans 3:21-31: It is executed to the full on Jesus Christ

It is important to see that each is clearer than the one proceeding it.

There is a crescendo as the ugly theme becomes louder and louder, so that it is tempting to cover your ears.

Irreligious folks block their ears early in the crescendo when they suppress the knowledge of God in their experience.

Religious folks hear what their experience says, but when things become sharper and more personal when God addresses them in the Bible they put a different kind of ear-plug in. They say the Bible isn't really addressed to them because it was for a different era, or that it was for the younger son living immorally far from home.

But Christians listen to the full crescendo despite the unpleasantness. This is not because they rejoice in the oppressive noise but because they want to have their ears utterly unblocked for the crash at the end which ends that discordant note and marks the beginning of a new and beautiful melody.