I Wasn't Aware of This (By Margaret)

Consuming Fire begins by telling us that many people see the judgement after the millennium as proof that God directly kills people. A superficial reading of the book of Revelations 20 not only gives someone that idea that God kills but also that hell will last forever, but this book helps us understand that this idea is not true and that God does not kill, but rather the sins of people are what lead to their demise.

https://fatheroflove.info/book/view/consuming-fire

The book goes on to tell us that God is a God who loves. He is not a destroyer. In Genesis 1:26 God says "Let us make man in our own image and likeness." The fact that God makes man in his own image and likeness and even blesses and gives man dominion over all creation shows that God loves and does not destroy. How so? Because the Bible tells us that God created the world and continues to sustain it, which means that without God's power there would be total chaos. Every thing is sustained by God's power and only one thing can unsettle the order sustained by his power and that thing is sin. Adam was given the instruction to maintain and uplift the creation, never to destroy it.

For by Hom all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. (Colossians 1:17 NIV)

We understand that  death came as a result of sin.

“After Adam had fallen, the earth and everything in it started reflecting his rebellion against God which explains animal rapacity and poisonous vegetation. Chaos in nature was a visual aid to help man recognize that there was a problem and therefore repent. If man was in harmony with God the earth would also reflect that and bring forth good fruit.” (from the book Consuming Fire. To learn more about this principle, see the booklet The Dominion of the Earth)

When Christ was on earth he did not kill anyone. He was a perfect example of God. He was a representative of God's character. He embodied the principle of God's law of love. In John 12:47-48 Jesus says that he comes not to judge but to save the world. (See the booklet Christ's Mission to the World)

God's law of love has different impacts depending on the kind of person it is revealed to. To the righteous it is life giving but to the wicked it is death. This is explained in the fact that when the wicked see God's unselfish love, they realize the wickedness of their sins and this is extremely painful. The anguish and pain of this process has deadly results, confirming that the wages of sin is death – meaning sin will pay its wage of death – which shows that God is not the source of death but sin is. God does not want to pay that wage; He is trying to remove sin and its corrupting mindset from us so we won’t receive that wage! God is love and does not change His person nor his character. He is always trying to hold life together. God does not cease from showing mercy because His patience has ended, but rather it is man that has lost faith and patience in God’s power to overcome sin. Humans believe God can’t overcome sin and thus He can’t be forgiven, and then man thinks that God doesn’t love him because he can’t live up to the law of God. It is by deceit that sin murders man using the law of God.

I have learnt that God is manifested thorough His Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and Christ manifests and exalts His Father's glory. Through this relationship we can understand that the source of Christ’s suffering was sin, which was much worse than His physical ill treatment. Christ died from the guilt of sin that crushed His soul and not from His physical crucifixion on the cross. Jesus lived a life of perfect sacrifice and selflessness, giving us a picture of how the law is to be written in our hearts, leaving us with no excuse for our own sinfulness. Through Jesus’s manifestation of truth we are able to see God's loving character.

It's such an outstanding lesson to learn that Jesus kindles a spiritual fire which burns through all the self-deception of man that he creates to live a life of depravity without feeling guilty. This fire will either consume sin from the hearts of the people who repent, or it will consume them in the last days when they see the gracious face of God.

If you are having trouble understanding the nature and the character of God's love this book is good for you. It will help you understand God's law of love and His character. It will show you the love that God has for this world, man and all of His creation. The book will help you understand that God does not want man to die and is not that one that kills man, but that sin is the reason for man's demise.

For a deeper study into this subject, I have been reading this book:

https://maranathamedia.com/book/view/end-of-the-wicked-fiery-final-judgment

And for more answers to this type of question, check this website here: https://lastmessageofmercy.com/category/view/questions-concerning-gods-character

May God help us to understand this important subject more. Amen