User talk:SouthWriter/sandbox/An atheist's objections/@comment-1777104-20100706182229

Feg, God is indeed kind and loving. But He is so much more. He is righteous and holy (separate from sin), and He must punish sin (rebellion against his love and righteousness). God "could have" converted Sodom and Gomorrah, but he didn't, and when he did convert wicked Nineveh, the prophet Jonah was angry (sinned against) God. All sin is worthy of death, but it is God's love that delivers some from that penalty (granting some the "right" to enter Heaven). If he delivered every sinner, then his justice (righteousness) would be a sham. But He has delivered some, showing that the consequences of sin are real.

The good news is that He Himself paid the price due for the sins of those He lovingly has pulled from the sea of sin. He came down among us, suffered death at our hands, in order to buy us out of a slave market where we had been reduced us to slaves of His enemy. Not every slave is bought, but praise Him that some were.

Lest we think God has "changed" between the testaments, consider the fate of Jerusalem in AD 70! And that was only a foreshadow of the fate of the world as seen in the prophecies of the end of the world!! God is still righteous and will not be mocked by evil men. He will destroy those who want no part in Him. The god-less will remain god-less for all eternity -- getting exactly what they wanted all along -- being left utterly alone!

Yes, this doctrine is a stumbling block, but ever so necessary to assure that God is God and does not change. For if God changed, we could never trust Him.