You do not often hear of God as one who destroys. He is the Creator God and the One who holds it all together. He is also the Savior who has delivered us and continues to deliver us. Yet we have several examples in history where God stepped in to destroy, such as the worldwide flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, and the night of the Passover.

What is remarkable in each of these instances of destruction is the offer of salvation: God would deliver those willing to accept it. This juxtaposition of destruction and salvation underscores God’s mercy, even in the face of His necessary work of judging evil. Evil cannot be allowed to continue indefinitely—God must step in to execute judgment. He does not do so immediately for every sinful act; if He did, none of us would be here. He allows people time to realize their wickedness and turn to Him in repentance.

His grace shines through as He focuses on the head of a family, Noah, a preacher of righteousness, warning the people of the impending judgment. Abraham’s concern was whether God would judge indiscriminately—what if some righteous people were in Sodom? His judgment is fair, and He never punishes the innocent. Thousands of families were gathered in their homes on the night of the Passover, and why were the Israelite families different than the Egyptian ones? The only difference was what was on their doorpost: the blood of the lamb.

The righteous judge executing the punishment for sin is also the one represented in that little lamb. God’s love is seen in that He Himself came to be our substitute, to go into death because that was what we deserved. He took our sins upon Himself that we might enter into His righteousness.