Title: When We Make God Angry
Key Texts: Romans 11:22; Ephesians 5:6; Hebrews 10:31
Introduction
In our modern culture, we often prefer to focus exclusively on the "gentle" attributes of God—His mercy, His grace, and His infinite love. While these are true and glorious, the Bible presents a complete picture of the Divine character. Scripture teaches that God also manifests a holy wrath against sin (Psalm 7:11).
As Paul writes in Romans 11:22, we must behold both the kindness and the severity of God. His anger is not a temper tantrum or a caprice of emotion; it is the necessary, holy reaction of a perfect Being toward rebellion, injustice, and evil. Understanding what displeases the Lord is not meant to drive us into a state of terror, but to lead us toward a life of reverence and true communion.
Proposition: Scripture reveals specific attitudes and sins that provoke God's anger, and we must identify them to walk in a way that pleases Him.
I. God is Angered When We Depart From Him
Scripture: 1 Kings 11:9
The story of Solomon is a tragic warning. Despite his wisdom, his heart was turned away by foreign influences.
• The Heart of the Issue: 1 Kings 11:9 says, "The Lord was angry with Solomon because his heart had turned away from the Lord." * First Love: Departure usually begins subtly—a loss of "first love" (Revelation 2:4-5) before it manifests in open rebellion.
• Application: God is a "jealous" God (Deuteronomy 6:15) because He knows He is our only source of life. Turning away is not just a mistake; it is a rejection of the Life-giver.
II. God is Angered When We Reject His Mission
Scripture: Exodus 4:13-14
When God called Moses to deliver Israel, Moses responded with five excuses. Finally, he asked God to send someone else.
• Divine Frustration: The text says, "Then the anger of the Lord was kindled against Moses."
• The Great Commission: Today, every believer has a mission to "Go and make disciples" (Matthew 28:19). To say "no" to God’s mission is to claim we know better than the Sovereign Lord.
• Application: Like Paul, we should feel a "necessity" laid upon us (1 Corinthians 9:16). Disobedience to our calling is a direct affront to the Master.
III. God is Angered When We Reject His Word and His Messengers
Scripture: 2 Chronicles 36:16
Before the exile to Babylon, Israel mocked God's messengers and despised His words until "the wrath of the Lord rose against his people, till there was no remedy."
• The Chain of Rejection: To reject the message is to reject the messenger; to reject the messenger is to reject the One who sent him (Luke 10:16).
• The Root of Unbelief: Hebrews 3:12 warns against an evil, unbelieving heart that leads us to fall away from the living God.
IV. God is Angered by Murmuring and Complaining
Scriptures: Numbers 11:1; Numbers 16:44-46
Complaining is often viewed as a "minor" sin, but in the wilderness, it brought immediate judgment.
• Fire from the Lord: In Numbers 11:1, the people complained about their hardships, and the "fire of the Lord burned among them."
• The Poison of Murmuring: Complaining is essentially an accusation that God is not being "fair" or "good." It destroys unity and displays ingratitude.
• Biblical Mandate: We are commanded to do all things without grumbling (Philippians 2:14) and to be hospitable without complaint (1 Peter 4:9).
V. God is Angered by Idolatry
Scripture: Judges 2:12
Throughout the book of Judges, a cycle repeats: the people abandon God for idols, and the anger of the Lord burns against them.
• Modern Idols: Idolatry is not just bowing to a statue; it is putting anything—money, career, a relationship, or self—in the place that belongs to God (Efesians 5:5).
• Application: We are commanded to "flee from idolatry" (1 Corinthians 10:14). God will not share His glory with another.
VI. God is Angered by Wickedness and Disobedience
Scriptures: Psalm 34:16; Ephesians 5:6
God is not neutral toward evil. He is "of purer eyes than to see evil and cannot look at wrong" (Habacuc 1:13).
• Sons of Disobedience: Paul warns that because of things like immorality and greed, the "wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience" (Ephesians 5:6).
• The Face of the Lord: Psalm 34:16 tells us that the face of the Lord is against those who do evil.
VII. God is Angered by the Profanation of Worship
Scripture: Juan 2:13-17
One of the few times we see the physical anger of Jesus is when He cleared the Temple.
• Zeal for God's House: Jesus was consumed with zeal because the house of prayer had become a market.
• Reverence and Order: We profane worship when we approach it with a casual, irreverent, or self-centered attitude. God is looking for those who worship in "spirit and truth" (Juan 4:23-24).
• Application: Our gatherings must be characterized by order and a deep respect for the holiness of God (1 Corinthians 14:40).
VIII. God is Angered by a Contentious and Ambitious Spirit
Scripture: Romans 2:8
Paul writes that for those who are "self-seeking and do not obey the truth... there will be wrath and fury."
• The Sin of Contention: Selfish ambition and a "quarrelsome" spirit are works of the flesh that break the communion of the body of Christ (Santiago 3:16).
• The Goal of Peace: As much as it depends on us, we are to live at peace with all (Romans 12:18).
Conclusion
God is indeed a God of love, but His love is a Holy Love. Because He is holy, He must be angry at that which destroys His creation and mocks His character.
The good news of the Gospel is that Jesus Christ took the weight of this holy anger upon Himself on the Cross so that we might experience His kindness. However, as believers, we must not use grace as an excuse for the very things that grieve the heart of God. Let us walk in fear of the Lord, which is the beginning of wisdom, and strive to live lives that are "well-pleasing" to Him.
