Exodus 4.13-17
Well, Moses has finally done it. He’s gone and gotten God mad at him. In
what most people think of as quaint language we read, ‘the anger of the LORD
was kindled against Moses.’ I think that it’s fair to say that most
Christians are more than a little embarrassed when it comes to God’s anger.
It’s like a teenage girl who doesn’t want any of her friends to come over to
her house. Her father goes around the house in these ugly shorts and a
sleeveless t-shirt that shows his paunch. Like her, we don’t want people to
see this aspect of who our Father is. It’s too embarrassing. So, we just don
’t talk about God’s anger much. But as a result there are aspects of the
Gospel that we fail to see properly and to appreciate enough and to enjoy
much at all. So, today we’ll talk about this disconcerting topic of God’s
anger.
Let’s start by hearing some of those biblical passages that we would prefer
didn’t exist. ‘The LORD is a jealous and avenging God; the LORD is avenging
and wrathful; the LORD takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath
for his enemies… Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the
heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are
broken into pieces by him. The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of
trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him. But with an overflowing
flood he will make a complete end of the adversaries, and will pursue his
enemies into darkness.’ [Nahum 1:2, 6-8] That’s pretty strong. But now, of
course, someone chirps that this is the Old Testament idea of God and that
this is completely changed in the New Testament. So let me read this from
the Apostle Paul: ‘For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all
ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness
suppress the truth.’ [Romans 1:18] And then for any who might think that
Jesus is different, there’s this: ‘Then the kings of the earth and the great
ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and
free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains,
calling to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of
him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb"…’
[Revelation 6:15-16]
These verses can make Christians squirm a bit, especially when someone who
isn’t a Christian raises questions about them. But you shouldn’t feel at all
uncomfortable. The truth expressed in these passages and the many others
like them reveal to us some comforting things – yes, comforting things –
about the heart of God. Imagine something like this. Fred comes home after
work. He goes to his wife and gives her a hello kiss. His wife responds in
kind. She then tells him that dinner will be on the table soon. So, Fred
goes upstairs to change out of his work clothes. Just as he begins back down
the stairs he hears his wife scream. He runs down the stairs only to find
some unknown man assaulting his wife. What does Fred do? Now, if I were in
Fred’s place I would grab this guy by the throat, slam him to the floor as
hard as I could and then sit on his chest. If I had a handgun nearby, I
would grab it and press the barrel against his forehead and then cock it.
And then, I would wait for the police to come. The guy on the floor would
feel the barrel pressing against his skull and he would see fire in my eyes.
I have just described rage. But it would be a just rage. It would be the
right thing to do. Now, let’s go back a few frames. Fred hears his wife’s
scream. He runs downstairs and sees this man atop his wife. What if Fred
then said, ‘Excuse me? Sir, what are you doing? Could there be some mistake
here? Why are you assaulting my wife? I don’t understand. Can we discuss
this?’ That would say a lot about Fred, wouldn’t it? The question that pops
in my mind is simply, ‘Fred, don’t you love your wife?’ Even if it was a
matter of Fred hearing the screams of some woman he never met, his sense of
what is good and right should move him to come to her defense and attack
this vile man – and that with some intensity! How much more so if it’s his
wife? In the first scenario, where Fred ends up with the pistol, the
intensity of his rage against the man is a function of the intensity of his
love for his wife. Whenever God sees evil being done, it is as if someone He
loves has just been violently assaulted. God must become angry. There has to
be rage. If there is no rage in God against the people who create evil
against others, then that just means that He does not love those suffering
that evil. God’s rage against evil is a function of His love, His love for
what is good and right, His love for you.
Please note, though, that this does not mean that God goes into such a fit
that He is completely out of control. Fred has the pistol at this man’s
head, but he does not pull the trigger. He has no authority to take this man
’s life. His refusal to pull that trigger means that he is still in control
of himself. There is rage, but it is not a rage that is out of control.
Likewise, God’s rage is a measured rage. He doesn’t just lose it and
explode. It is a rage that is under control and designed to achieve a
particular end. Not everything deserves God’s most intense wrath. God’s rage
against evil is a measured response that has a specific goal in mind. It is
an appropriate rage.
This leads to that other unpopular biblical teaching: hell. What is hell but
the just expression of God’s rage against those who create evil? Hell is God
’s rage, experienced forever. But even here, it is a measured response. Hell
will not be the same for all who experience it. God’s rage against some will
be greater because their evil was greater. God’s rage against others will be
less because their evil was less. And we learn this from Jesus, Himself.
[See Luke 12.47-48.] Hell is God’s measured anger, and it is necessary
because of evil.
All of this leads us to the cross. What is the cross of Christ? It is the
expression of God’s rage against evil. It is God’s rage against your evil.
The cross provided propitiation. Propitiation is the satisfying of God’s
rage against evil. That rage, remember, has a goal. It demands that things
be set right, that evil pay for what it has done, for the sake of all that
is good and right – and loved. In the cross, the goal was met. God’s rage
was fully expressed and it was fully satisfied. And who satisfied God’s rage
against evil? Who suffered the rage of hell? God did. I’m glad that we have
a cross up behind me. It is a bare cross as it should be. But whenever you
see it, you should remind yourself that you should have been on the cross
instead of Jesus. Forget the shame of being hung naked for all to see.
Forget the pain of having spikes driven through your bones. Forget the
experience of slowly suffocating to death. Just think about the rage of God
against the evil that you pursue and enjoy. Think about the rage that you
would have been experiencing. But you weren’t on that cross. Jesus was. God’
s rage is fully satisfied when it comes to you and all who entrust
themselves to Jesus as the only Savior. For you and all who are like you,
there is no rage left.
Some lessons to take home with you to ponder this week.
- Never be embarrassed by anything about our God. If you find that you are
embarrassed, it just means you don’t understand something about your God
well enough yet. Just tell yourself that there’s nothing to be embarrassed
about and that in time you’ll understand this aspect of God’s character,
too.
- Consider the vile nature of sin. I have been calling it ‘evil’ in the
sermon, and that is what it surely is. Consider how God hates sin, to the
point of being enraged by it and at it. Now, with that in mind, does it make
any sense to dabble in this evil? Does it make any sense to think that this
or that sin isn’t quite so bad so that you really don’t need to deal with
it? Does it make any sense to coddle sin habits in your life?
- Think about God’s love for you. I hope that you have a little better sense
of God’s rage at your sin. Take that and then think about the cross. Jesus
endured divine fury against your evil, your sin. Can you imagine what that
must have been like? He did it because He loved you. What difference does
that make in your life?
- What about those who are not Christian? What do they have to look forward
to if they do not come and submit to Christ? Hell awaits them – and justly
so. Is that okay with you? Do you not care about them? Bear in mind, you
know some of these folk. Will you do anything about this?
- Then my last thought. Remember that my goal for this series on Exodus is
that you would get to know your God well. Let me offer you a verse to
meditate on: ‘…thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence
and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.’ [Hebrews 12:28-29] We live in a
time and place that has no time for serious thoughts of God. He is a buddy,
the ‘man upstairs’ – or just someone to be ignored except maybe for
Christmas and Easter. Certainly, you can see the foolishness of that.
Pointing to God’s just rage, the Scriptures call us to worship Him
carefully. He is worthy of reverence and awe – and not just on Sundays. Know
your God.