Confessions of a Freed Felon...

If you're like me, you tend to cringe when you hear the word "wrath." Why? Because we think of how we as humans carry it out. So when the scriptures talk about God having wrath we often passify it off. So many times we think of God being merciful, and gracious, and loving. God is those things, the very definition. But He is also holy. And he does get angry. If we go too far down the road of Him being love, peace, etc. we reduce Him to almost the status of a pier or a boyfriend. God is Just. God hates sin. God gets angry. Look at Jesus in the temple in Luke 19:45-46. God's wrath is his determination to deal with people and sin. But one of the things that I realized sitting in church tonight is that God's wrath and His love are uniquely connected.

But first there are some things we need to understand about God's wrath. Because there are those people who see Him as nothing as more than a vengeful, wrathful being. But you must understand. God's wrath is a response, not an attribute. It is not trivial or petty. It is not inconsistent. Instead it is always aimed at sin and evil. God's anger is not easily provoked nor ever uncontrolled. Ephesians 2 tells us that we are by nature subjects of God's wrath. But Christ has redeemed us from that.

Romans 2:1-16 talks about the future wrath of God. But in this passage we find that God will make all things right. He'll sort it all out. So many times we think of wrath as a negative thing. When you read the passage it even sounds condemning. But isn't this a good thing? Isn't it good that God wants to destroy evil in order to save His people?

This is why God's wrath and love are connected. If someone you love was sick with cancer, would you not want to see that cancer gone? Would you not hate it? So shouldn't God hate sin for our good because sin is destroying us?

The good news is for us Christians is that we don't have to worry about the wrath of God. Why? Because it was satisfied on the cross. The Father gave His son. Christ bore that wrath for us. Now notice that it didn't go away. The wrath of God was still there, it was just placed on His son. In Romans 3:25 it says that God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement. Yet another reason how wrath and love are connected.

Now, I don't know about you, but that kind of love boggles my mind. Why a perfect being would take on all the wrath that a Holy and Sanctified God had for sin, for someone like me is astonishing. That kind of love seems almost incomprehensible. And I am fathomed and in awe trying to wrap my mind around it.

David Nasser gives a pretty good analogy on this atonement. 1 John 2:1 tells us that we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense- Jesus Christ. Nasser writes, "Picture a court room with you on trial for committing a sin. The Father is the judge. Satan is the prosecutor, and Jesus is your defense lawyer. Satan delivers a blistering attack- with lots of evidence against you. You are guilty. No questions about it. Then Jesus gets up to speak. He says, 'Yes, your honor, my client is guilty, but his penalty has already been paid. By me. In blood.' The Father smiles and nods, 'Paid in full. Case dismissed.'"