Read Revelation 2:12-17
“Repent; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth” (v. 16).
“By order of the circuit court of Johnson County, Kansas, you are hereby summoned to appear for jury service on the date and time of the court indicated below.” Perhaps you have received a letter similar to this in your mailbox. Somewhere in the letter, you may run across the inspiring words, “It is your civic duty.” As if they sense your civic duty is running on fumes, a stern warning also appears. “Failure to obey this summons may be punishable by a fine.” The implication is simple. Show up, or else…
Most humans do not respond well to such enforcement tactics. We want to be free to make our own decisions without aide or coercion. We want options, but not right and wrong. We want choices, but not consequences. God’s reality does not allow for such relativism. With a sense of urgency, God warns the church at Pergamum to repent. Their compromise is leading them toward certain judgment. Such a warning is an act of grace, not harshness. In fact, all of the “or else” messages throughout Scripture reveal the lovingkindness of God. He is “longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance”(2 Peter 3:9). (Jason Dodson)

God is a wooing Savior before He is a righteous judge.

This devotional is the Saturday, June 18, 2016 entry of Opening the Word.