Remembering God's Anger

“Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” the most famous sermon from the Great Awakening, had a profound impact in Jonathan Edwards’ day. It is said that people interrupted the preaching of this sermon, crying out “What shall I do to be saved?” That sermon, preached in 1741, is still studied and read widely to this day.

Much has changed in the intervening years. The idea of an angry God causes more offense than it once did in American culture. The Christian message has always been objectionable. The reasons change. The points of harmony and disagreement change. But the ultimate incompatibility remains. Christianity offends every human culture. 

Our culture has developed an aversion to anger in general (since it’s not nice), and God is not exempt from the taboo. Narcissism has also been on the rise. How can a narcissistic society accept that it deserves God’s wrath?

While Christians should seek to remove any unnecessary offense by making the Gospel message clear and undiluted by needless culture baggage, our attempts to communicate clearly without compromise often fall short. One way many have missed the mark in this effort is by downplaying or denying the wrath of God.

Is God Still Angry?

There is widespread confusion about God’s anger in American Christianity. Remember this video for example? Some suppose that God never was angry. Others think that only the Father was angry. Many believe that God’s anger is a thing of the past, that God’s wrath was somehow done away with at the cross. Do we need to be saved from God?

The of doctrine hell was a significant subject in the Great Awakening. There is perhaps no greater witness to the wrath of God than the concept of eternal punishment. Hell doesn’t get much airtime these days. But didn’t Jesus have a lot to say about hell?

Love or Wrath?

At the heart of the issue is the (supposed) tension between wrath and love.  If God is love then how can he be wrathful? It’s gotta be one or the other.

The Bible indicates that God is indeed love. And it also makes clear that God is wrathful. So how do we harmonize these two traits?

Why Wrath?

The motivation behind God’s wrath is always the same – love. It’s precisely because God loves humanity that he shows anger towards us. In the presence of evil, love requires wrath.

Anger motivated by love can be seen in human relationships. And God himself is identified with human roles and relationships in Scripture. The Bible talks of God as a governor, father, and husband. Each of these human roles sometimes requires anger.

God the Governor

The Lord Jesus is the supreme King and Judge of the earth (John 5:22-27; Rev 19:15-16). As the kind and loving ruler of all creation he cannot overlook rebellion. When citizens of the Lord’s kingdom break the law there must be consequences. Otherwise innocent citizens will wrongfully suffer and rebellion will spread.

Mercy toward the oppressed sometimes requires severity toward the oppressor (Psalm 136:10). The just and righteous governor will be angered when the innocent are hurt. Punishment is the duty of any just ruler. The loving governor is angry at the enemies of his loved ones.

God the Father

Our Lord is more than a king to us – he is a father (Mat 6:9). As creator, God is a father to the entire human race (Acts 17:28). In any family a loving father wants what’s best for his whole family. His loving work of protecting and teaching the family sometimes involves corrective punishment.

As a father who loves his entire family, there are times when he is angry with some of his offspring. Children who work to destroy the family rightfully merit anger from a loving father’s heart. The father is angry because of his love.

God the Husband

The church is in preparation to be a bride for Jesus (Eph 5:25-32; 2 Cor 11:2). Normal husbands love their brides. And Christ loves his bride-to-be with an intense and sacrificial love.

Anger is the proper reaction of a husband toward those who do harm to his bride. He is bound to protect his wife from interlopers and rapists. God’s anger toward offenders is not in spite of his love, but because of his love.

Seeing God’s Wrath

God’s wrath was revealed in the Old Testament. When the Egyptian king went back on his word and tried to again enslave the Hebrew nation God unleashed his anger and destroyed Pharaoh’s army in the sea. He threatened the fledgling nation of Israel with wrath and punishment if they began to mistreat widows and orphans. When the Israelites began to fornicate with Moabite women and worship idols God’s anger sent a plague. His wrath was again stirred up when the Israelites began to offer their children as sacrifices to the idol Molech. Because of their transgression they were sent into captivity.

Then came Jesus. Many believe that since the death and resurrection of Jesus things are different. Now God is no longer angry at evildoers. But is this really the case?

The New Testament reveals a God who is still angry at sinners. Though it’s not stated explicitly, there can be no doubt that when Ananias, Sapphira, and then Herod were killed by God as a consequence of their sins we were seeing God’s wrath in action. And don’t forget the believers who were sick or dead (!) at Corinth because of their ungodly practices during their so-called Lord’s Supper.

The wrath of God is still being revealed – even after the cross (Rom 1:18; 2:5-8; 5:9; 12:19; 13:4; Eph 5:6; Col 3:6; 1 Thes 1:10; 2:16; 5:9). Perhaps most interesting is that wrath is ascribed to Jesus. At the end of time the world will see the “wrath of the Lamb” (Rev 6:16-17; 11:18; 14:10, 19; 15:1, 7; 16:1, 19; 19:5).  

Fleeing God’s Wrath

John the Baptist witnessed people who had been warned to “flee the wrath to come.” That kind of language might sound a bit antiquated, but it describes the wisest of all human activities. The day of God’s wrath is coming.

Today, however, is the day of salvation.

By running to Jesus now we can be saved from divine wrath. God saves us from his holy wrath against sin and its practitioners by transforming us into holy people. This transformation takes place from the inside out. All those who flee to Jesus now in faith and repentance will be saved. God’s plan is that we become united with his Son. We do this by baptism, receiving the gift of the Spirit, and following Jesus as disciples. As his bride (the church) our destiny is anything but wrath – we look forward to an unending relationship of love (1 Thes 5:9; Rev 19:7).