God is loving, holy, righteous and kind. Isn’t that why we worship Him? Because He loves us despite our transgressions? While God is wonderful beyond our own comprehension, He is also what we should fear the most. Scripture shows that God gets angry. But why? Isn’t anger a sin? To rightfully understand this concept, it is crucial to see how scripture uses God’s anger as an important part of His character.
The Beginning of God’s Anger
In the early New Testament, God shows displeasure, but not anger, until Exodus 4:14. God chose Moses to free the children of Israel from slavery, but Moses was hesitant. God gave Moses three signs of His power so Moses would trust His divine plan. Still, Moses resisted. God became angry with him.
"Moses said to the Lord, 'Pardon your servant, Lord. I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor since you have spoken to your servant. I am slow of speech and tongue.' The Lord said to him, 'Who gave human beings their mouths? Who makes them deaf or mute? Who gives them sight or makes them blind? Is it not I, the Lord? Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say.' But Moses said, 'Pardon your servant, Lord. Please send someone else.' Then the Lord’s anger burned against Moses and he said, 'What about your brother, Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak well. He is already on his way to meet you, and he will be glad to see you.'"
Moses was doubting God, even as He was being given sign after sign, and God was speaking straight to Him. God was patient with Moses at first, but he chose to remain doubtful. God then became angry that fear kept Moses from completing His divine plan.
In the very beginning of time, in the Garden of Eden, Adam and Eve were punished for disobeying God. While the scriptures don’t say God was angry at them, the response pattern of God is the same as it is for the rest of the Bible: displeasure at humanity's rebellion.
God’s Anger vs. Man’s Anger
When speaking about God’s anger, we must understand that this kind of anger is different than the one we feel. We are sinful, tempted by acting on our anger, which is what makes it sinful. Though it is not a sin to be angry, it is a sin to sin because of it. But God, He is perfect and never sins, therefore His anger is always righteous. Righteous anger is targeted at what irritates God, while man’s anger is caused by mere human frustrations.
Though humans will never fully achieve the high degree of righteous anger that God has, when we are angry at the things that make God angry, it is a kind of anger that mimics that degree of justice and holiness. God does not get mad because of emotional overreactions as we do. He is never mad without reason.
What Makes God Angry?
Because God is so patient and merciful, people misconstrue His character. God is in heaven on a throne, not a La-Z-Boy recliner. He judges everyone perfectly from a righteous standard.
"There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to Him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community."
The big lie that the enemy convinces us is that “creation is better than the Creator.” When we worship anything other than God, we are not only rejecting our own Creator but also disobeying our Father. We have a Father who gets jealous when His children know how good He is, but continue to doubt and disobey, like Moses in Exodus 4.
When we sin, we are choosing the thing that is the opposite of what our Father wants for us. The pattern of God’s anger is that He made a purposeful plan for us, we disobey and He gets frustrated. Anger is the response when we don't choose the perfect path that He has for us.
The Good News
The wrath of God is the ultimate consequence for sin. Because God loved the world, He sent Jesus as the solution. The consequence of sin is death. So when we see the cross, we must not only think of the love that Jesus has to die for us, but also of the ultimate expression of God’s justice.
We must not be discouraged when God disciplines us, because God disciplines those He loves.
"For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning."
Because God is so good, He must detest evil. We choose to be evil every day with sinful anger, and yet He still loves us. Thank you, Lord, for your character that is worthy of praise every day and your perfect standard of right and wrong.
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