There are verses in the Bible that bring comfort to the person who wants to believe and serve God—assurances that what Christ has begun in our life Christ will finish. There are other verses in the Bible that should terrify the individual who is neglecting his or her salvation, who is yielding to the pressure of the world spirit, the seductions of the flesh, or the imaginations and drives of personal ambition.
In our day in America the numerous assurances are presented again and again but one does not often hear the terrifying warnings. All of the tribes are on Mount Gerizim proclaiming the blessings. Mount Ebal is silent.