We are attracted to the loving side of God’s character, as portrayed so well in the earthly life and ministry of Jesus. God is full of blessings when we accept Him as our Lord and Savior.
At the same time, it is more difficult for us to grasp the justice God also reveals in His character. Often the word “anger” is used for His justice in the Bible. We tend naturally to associate His anger with negative consequences for those who don’t accept God.
To complicate the issue even further, our anger is usually that of an ugly emotion that is filled with painful, unpredictable, overreacting revenge and hatred. But God’s anger, or wrath, is always mixed with mercy and love, holding none of the distasteful expressions and actions that we are more likely to display. Ephesians 4:26 cautions us to be angry, but not allow it to make us sin, as we sinful beings are so prone to do.
Thinking of God’s anger as righteous indignation has helped us understand what God is forced to do when we turn our backs on Him. We, too, must remember to hate the sin, but love the sinner. We are told repeatedly that God takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked (Ezekiel 33:11), that He is not willing that any should perish (2 Peter 3:9).
It is indeed a merciful God who won’t let sin continue in the universe, making its victims suffer endlessly. Thankfully, no one’s pain and suffering lasts more than his or her mortal lifetime.
We will need a thousand years in heaven to understand God’s strange, final act of justice, when God’s anger is poured out for the last time on this rebellious planet (Revelation 20:7-9).
