MM:My studies have led me to conclude that literal holy angels will cause the forces of nature to cause death and devastation. It is also evident in the SOP that evil angels will be permitted to wreak havoc as well.

MM:Tom believes Jesus demonstrated/revealed everything there is to know about the God of the OT.

But you have to consider the whole picture. This includes, for instance, the driving of the moneychangers from the temple, which shows that God sometimes manifests His wrath actively (not just passively, "abandoning" the sinner). As I said once, "God is love" is not the same as "God is nice" ("Deus é bonzinho"). The Christ you portray to me is one who will not judge men, one who will not make any difference between righteous and wicked on the Day of Judgment, but one who will be smiling to all, without showing in His countenance any abhorrence for sin.

This includes, for instance, the driving of the moneychangers from the temple, which shows that God sometimes manifests His wrath actively (not just passively, "abandoning" the sinner).

With searching glance, Christ takes in the scene before Him as He stands upon the steps of the temple court. With prophetic eye He looks into futurity, and sees not only years, but centuries and ages. He sees how priests and rulers will turn the needy from their right, and forbid that the gospel shall be preached to the poor. He sees how the love of God will be concealed from sinners, and men will make merchandise of His grace. As He beholds the scene, indignation, authority, and power are expressed in His countenance. The attention of the people is attracted to Him. The eyes of those engaged in their unholy traffic are riveted upon His face. They cannot withdraw their gaze. They feel that this Man reads their inmost thoughts, and discovers their hidden motives. Some attempt to conceal their faces, as if their evil deeds were written upon their countenances, to be scanned by those searching eyes. {DA 157.4}
The confusion is hushed. The sound of traffic and bargaining has ceased. The silence becomes painful. A sense of awe overpowers the assembly. It is as if they were arraigned before the tribunal of God to answer for their deeds. Looking upon Christ, they behold divinity flash through the garb of humanity. The Majesty of heaven stands as the Judge will stand at the last day,--not now encircled with the glory that will then attend Him, but with the same power to read the soul. His eye sweeps over the multitude, taking in every individual. His form seems to rise above them in commanding dignity, and a divine light illuminates His countenance. He speaks, and His clear, ringing voice--the same that upon Mount Sinai proclaimed the law that priests and rulers are transgressing--is heard echoing through the arches of the temple: "Take these things hence; make not My Father's house an house of merchandise." {DA 158.1}
Slowly descending the steps, and raising the scourge of cords gathered up on entering the enclosure, He bids the bargaining company depart from the precincts of the temple. With a zeal and severity He has never before manifested, He overthrows the tables of the money-changers. The coin falls, ringing sharply upon the marble pavement. None presume to question His authority. None dare stop to gather up their ill-gotten gain. Jesus does not smite them with the whip of cords, but in His hand that simple scourge seems terrible as a flaming sword. Officers of the temple, speculating priests, brokers and cattle traders, with their sheep and oxen, rush from the place, with the one thought of escaping from the condemnation of His presence. {DA 158.2}
A panic sweeps over the multitude, who feel the overshadowing of His divinity. Cries of terror escape from hundreds of blanched lips. Even the disciples tremble. They are awestruck by the words and manner of Jesus, so unlike His usual demeanor. They remember that it is written of Him, "The zeal of Thine house hath eaten Me up." Psalm 69:9. Soon the tumultuous throng with their merchandise are far removed from the temple of the Lord. The courts are free from unholy traffic, and a deep silence and solemnity settles upon the scene of confusion.The presence of the Lord, that of old sanctified the mount, has now made sacred the temple reared in His honor. {DA 158.3}

Overpowered with terror, the priests and rulers had fled from the temple court, and from the searching glance that read their hearts....Christ looked upon the fleeing men with yearning pity for their fear, and their ignorance of what constituted true worship. In this scene He saw symbolized the dispersion of the whole Jewish nation for their wickedness and impenitence. {DA 162.1}

And why did the priests flee from the temple? Why did they not stand their ground? He who commanded them to go was a carpenter's son, a poor Galilean, without earthly rank or power. Why did they not resist Him? Why did they leave the gain so ill acquired, and flee at the command of One whose outward appearance was so humble? {DA 162.2}
Christ spoke with the authority of a king, and in His appearance, and in the tones of His voice, there was that which they had no power to resist. At the word of command they realized, as they had never realized before, their true position as hypocrites and robbers. When divinity flashed through humanity, not only did they see indignation on Christ's countenance; they realized the import of His words. They felt as if before the throne of the eternal Judge, with their sentence passed on them for time and for eternity. ...{DA 162.3}

...When they fled, the poor remained behind; and these were now looking to Jesus, whose countenance expressed His love and sympathy. With tears in His eyes, He said to the trembling ones around Him: Fear not; I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify Me. For this cause came I into the world. {DA 162.5}

T:Jesus Christ said, "When you've seen Me, you've seen the Father." The SOP says that all that man needs to know of God, or can know of God, was revealed in the life and character of His Son.

R:But you have to consider the whole picture.

R:This includes, for instance, the driving of the moneychangers from the temple, which shows that God sometimes manifests His wrath actively (not just passively, "abandoning" the sinner).

R:As I said once, "God is love" is not the same as "God is nice" ("Deus é bonzinho").

chresteuomai: to show oneself useful, i.e. act benevolently -- be kind. (http://biblelexicon.org/1_corinthians/13-4.htm)

R:The Christ you portray to me is one who will not judge men, one who will not make any difference between righteous and wicked on the Day of Judgment, but one who will be smiling to all, without showing in His countenance any abhorrence for sin.

R:God manifests His wrath actively because He is love - and love cannot let His creatures think that sin is something trivial.

R:Yes, God shows, both to those who reject Him, and to those of future generations who must be warned, that sin is offensive in His sight, and that He won't permit it to go on forever, and that those who reject His grace and disregard His warnings cannot be allowed to continue indefinitely to live in sin.

God could have destroyed Satan and his sympathizers as easily as one can cast a pebble to the earth; but He did not do this. Rebellion was not to be overcome by force. Compelling power is found only under Satan's government. The Lord's principles are not of this order. His authority rests upon goodness, mercy, and love; and the presentation of these principles is the means to be used. God's government is moral, and truth and love are to be the prevailing power. (DA 759)

The exercise of force is contrary to the principles of God's government... (DA 22)

R:This is the message conveyed by the episodes of the flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, and the plagues of Egypt.

R:Of course God loves those who will be lost, and suffers for them - but He loves His creatures - all of them - too much to not make His abhorrence of sin manifest to the universe.

The earth was dark through misapprehension of God. That the gloomy shadows might be lightened, that the world might be brought back to God, Satan's deceptive power was to be broken. This could not be done by force. The exercise of force is contrary to the principles of God's government; He desires only the service of love; and love cannot be commanded; it cannot be won by force or authority. Only by love is love awakened. To know God is to love Him; His character must be manifested in contrast to the character of Satan. This work only one Being in all the universe could do. Only He who knew the height and depth of the love of God could make it known. Upon the world's dark night the Sun of Righteousness must rise, "with healing in His wings." Mal. 4:2. {DA 22.1}

Satan had succeeded so well in deceiving the angels of God and in ruining noble Adam that he thought he should be successful in overcoming Christ in His humiliation. He looked with pleased exultation upon the result of his temptations, and the increase of sin in the continued transgression of God's law for more than four thousand years. He had worked the ruin of our first parents, and brought sin and death into the world, and led to ruin multitudes of all ages, countries, and classes. By his [Satan's] power he had controlled cities and nations until their sin provoked the wrath of God to destroy them by fire, water, earthquakes, sword, famine, and pestilence.... {Con 34.2}

I am bidden to declare the message that cities full of transgression, and sinful in the extreme, will be destroyed by earthquakes, by fire, by flood. All the world will be warned that there is a God who will display His authority as God. His unseen agencies will cause destruction, devastation, and death. All the accumulated riches will be as nothingness. . . . {CL 7.4}

No verbal description could reveal God to the world.

God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, (Hebrews 1:1, KJV)

gc: Heb 1:1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,

Isn't the Bible a "verbal description" of God? Furthermore, did Mark and Luke personally walk with Jesus, or did they write their books based on a "verbal description" they got from someone else?

No verbal description could reveal God to the world. Through a life of purity, a life of perfect trust and submission to the will of God, a life of humiliation such as even the highest seraph in heaven would have shrunk from, God Himself must be revealed to humanity. (RH June 25, 1895). {7BC 924.6}