For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and wickedness of those who by their wickedness suppress the truth. Romans 1:18
God's wrath. How does that make you feel? Frankly, it makes me uncomfortable both because it challenges my image of God as loving and gracious, but it also makes me very nervous. While the Old Testament is filled with stories that depict God as angry and judging, the prevailing image of God in the New Testament is found in the person of Jesus Christ. Some might even argue that because of Jesus' death and resurrection God is no longer angry at humanity but loving. What then do we make of Paul's argument about God's wrath in Romans 1:18?
In Romans Paul offers a powerful indictment against all who seek to justify themselves outside of Jesus Christ. The ungodly Gentiles who believed they did not need God and the Jewish community who smugly thought they would be acceptable to God based on their merit or birthright are called out and blasted by Paul in the first two chapters of Romans. Simply put: there is no way to God through our own effort. On our own God's response to us is wrath. God is angry at our wickedness, our sin, our rebellion. While God's wrath may make us uncomfortable, shouldn't God be angry about some things? When is wrath from God the appropriate response?
I personally want a God who gets angry at injustice, oppression, and suffering. I want a God who cannot tolerate the evil that is present in our world. War, greed, indifference, exploitation, racism, abuse, all should make God full of wrath and fury. If God cannot get mad at these things so present in humanity, then what does that say? I believe God is a God of justice and wants us to actively fight for justice in the world.
At the same time, God's grace not God's wrath gets the final word. Paul's argument is that while we too deserve God's wrath, because of Jesus' death and resurrection we are offered the gift of grace rather than punishment.
Since all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; they are now justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. Romans 3:23-24
Through Christ we are made right with God, not because we deserve it (we deserve wrath) but because of what Christ did for us. The grace of God gives us a pass from God's wrath. But just because God is gracious and loving does not mean God accepts sin and wickedness. Perhaps a way to think about it is this: without God's wrath there is no need for God's grace.
What then is our response? Will we simply rejoice in the gift of grace, celebrating that we will not suffer punishment? Or because of what God has done for us are we called to speak against injustice, oppression, and exploitation and seek God's will for the world? God's grace has changed my life, but not just for me but for the world. What do you say?
1. Do you respond more to God's grace or God's wrath? How are you responding?
2. What should God be angry about in our world today? How should be respond?
3. How can we receive God's gift of grace and avoid judging others?
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