So we have come all the way to Exodus 17:14–16; and I would call this “The Violence of Redemption.”
Then the Lord said to Moses, “Write this as a memorial in a book and recite it in the ears of Joshua, that I will utterly blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven.” And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The Lord Is My Banner, saying, “A hand upon the throne of the Lord! The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.”
This is a sobering passage because in this passage, we are faced with the terrifying anger of God. God expresses his determined commitment to make war with the Amalekites until they are no more. Now, I want to ask you a question, “When you're faced with the terrible anger of God in the Bible, what is your response? What do you think?” I want to say this to you, “God's anger is not the embarrassing uncle of his characteristics that you want to hide from the rest of the family. In God's anger, we have hope.”
You say, “Paul, I don't know what you mean.” Well, first of all, God's anger is an expression of his love. I want to share some passages with you. This is Nahum 1:2–3, “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. The LORD is slow to anger and great in power.” I'll stop there. When it says, “The LORD is a jealous God,” think of this, “Jealousy is a beautiful and natural part of love.” If my wife, Luella, would say to me, “I'm going to spend a weekend with another man,” and I say, “Sure, that's fine,” I don't love her. God is jealous because he loves us, and he wants us for his own. His anger is an expression of his love.
His anger is also an expression of his holiness. “The LORD is slow to anger and great in power, and the LORD will by no means clear the guilty.” Because God is holy, he hates what is evil, and he will not rest as long as evil lives inside us and our world.
There's another thing. Not only is God's anger an expression of his love and an expression of his holiness; it's an expression of his justice. Psalm 7:11, “God is a righteous (just) judge, and a God who feels indignation every day.” Because God is just, he cannot live in a world and be at peace as long as that world is marked and destroyed by evil. You see, the anger of the Lord is our hope. You would not want to live in a world where the one who rules it is incapable of anger.
Now think about this: “It's the anger of God as an expression of his love; it's the anger of God as an expression of his holiness; it's the anger of God as an expression of his justice; it's the anger of God as an expression of his mercy and the desire to right wrong that sent Jesus to the cross.” You see, Jesus was not on the cross just because of the grace of God, but because also of the anger of God with sin. On the cross, the anger of God and the grace of God embrace, and in that, we get forgiveness, reconciliation to God, the defeat of sin, and an eternal destiny where those things are no more. You see, God's anger guarantees that evil will not win! Anger is one of God's beautiful characteristics in his holiness, his justice, his mercy, and his love!
Questions for Personal Reflection or Group Discussion
1. In the past, how have you typically viewed the anger of God when you see it in Scripture? How has your previous view of God’s anger confused or frustrated you? How has it painted your perspective of God and shaped your relationship with him?
2. As you think about your own life, why is God’s anger necessary in relation to you and your own sin? Why is God’s anger necessary when it comes to righting the wrongs we see in our world and even in your own heart?
3. How does God’s anger toward sin point directly to Jesus? How does God’s anger help you to love and appreciate the sacrifice Jesus made for you on the cross?
4. How is it possible to see the grace of God in the anger of God? Don’t those two things contradict each other? Why or why not?
5. Why does the anger of God give you a guarantee that evil will not win in this world and your own heart?
For Younger Children:
1. How do you think it’s possible for anger to show care? Is it possible for anger to show love somehow? Can you give me an example of how that might work?
2. What do you think the world would be like if God didn’t care and wasn’t angry at sin?
3. How does Jesus on the cross show us how much God loves us?
4. How does God’s anger guarantee that evil won’t win?
For Older Children:
1. Why isn’t anger always a bad thing? How can anger be a good thing? Can you give me an example of how anger can be a good thing?
2. Why is it important that God is angry at sin? What do you think that anger points us to?
3. How does Jesus on the cross show us both the anger of God and the love of God at the same time?
4. How does God’s anger guarantee that evil won’t win?
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