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Relatable Fear

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Relatable Fear
Relatable Fear

There is a typical sermon of the Great Awakening, emphasizing the belief that Hell is a real place. Jonathan Edwards, the author of Sinner in the Hands of an Angry God hoped that the imagery and message of his sermon would awaken his audience to the horrific reality that awaited them should they continue without Christ.The underlying point is that God has given humanity a chance to rectify their sins. Edwards says that it is the will of God that keeps wicked men from the depths of Hell. This act of restraint has given humanity a chance to mend their ways and return to Christ. Fear is a strong tool to use when persuading people and trying to get what you want. Just as if a murderer held a gun to someone’s head, that person would be submissive to the murderer, Jonathan Edwards and characters in The Crucible install fear into people to achieve certain goals. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God uses fear for good and to help people, while The Crucible uses it for both good and as an evil way to manipulate people. Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God is a sermon preached by Jonathan Edwards. He tries to scare the congregation in order to save them from going to Hell.
One way that he does this is by using the metaphor of God being angry at everyone with a bow and arrow pointed directly at each person; the congregation realizes that they could die at any minute and if they aren’t saved, they will fall into a “lake of burning brimstone that is extended abroad under them”. Edwards also compares what would keep the lost from going to hell to a spider web trying to stop a falling rock. He tries to establish fear into his audience by telling them that God holds them over Hell just like “one holds a spider, or a loathsome insect” and this God also has “wrath towards [them that] burns like fire”. Jonathan Edwards preached this sermon so that the congregation will feel as though they had no other option than to accept Christ as their savior that very day if

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