2 Chronicles 36:15-16
And the LORD God of their fathers sent to them by his messengers, rising up betimes, and sending; because he had compassion on his people, and on his dwelling place:  But they mocked the messengers of God, and despised his words, and misused his prophets, until the wrath of the LORD arose against his people, till there was no remedy.

God had compassion.  God gave the people a chance.  God wanted them to turn from their evil ways.  He spoke to them, but they wouldn’t listen.   Continually they pushed Him away to the point where He had to judge.  And then there was no remedy.  There was nothing they could do now to avoid the punishment of His wrath.  It would come just as surely as He always said it would.

But God always gives us a time of grace.  He gives us a window to repent.  He tells us what we are doing wrong and how to make it right.  But we have to respond to that.  We have to respond to Him.  Because at some point, that window will close and we will have to face the consequences.  It’s a pattern that plays out over and over in Scripture.  It is repeating just now in our lifetime.  We are in this age of grace.  God sent His Son to die for us, to enable us to be forgiven and united with Him, and He’s sent His messengers out into the world with news of His grace, and He’s given us His Word.  And so we have this open window of time to hear and respond to Him.

And it’s not just in regards to salvation, but even within our daily lives, if we fall into some sin or take a wrong path, God always lets us know about it.  He reaches out to us, extending His grace so we might respond to Him and be brought back into right fellowship with Him.  Always He is reaching out.  Always He is speaking to our world.  Always he is inviting us to come to Him or come back to Him.  But it’s up to us what we do with that.

So let’s not mock.  Let’s not despise God’s words and abuse His messengers.  Let’s not invite His wrath when He has compassion, when He would forgive, when He would bless if only we’d humble ourselves and repent.  Let’s take advantage of the open window of the grace of God and get things right while there is still time.  When that window closes, it will be too late.  When His wrath comes, there will be no remedy, no avoiding it, just the aftermath to deal with.  God has been compassionate and patient with us.  He has given us all we need, so may we respond properly to Him and not keep turning away.