He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored. Mark 3:5
“Jesus’ anger is our medicine. It cures us of our shame. It remedies our wrong thinking by yanking us out of the clutch of mesmerizing lies that skew our thoughts. Jesus’ anger is a gift, not a punishment. It’s a flash flood warning, so to speak. It’s a loving, benevolent warning meant to steer us away from the “flood,” so we won’t drown. Just as floods rain down within seconds, destroying within minutes lovely buildings, fancy cars, and precious human lives, so sin sweeps people away sometimes quickly. Jesus doesn’t’ want you to be swept away by sin. He wants to save your from all sin, including the harsh sins of other people.
I thank Jesus for His anger; it assures us that God’s love isn’t angerless or toothless or indifferent to the evil that besieges us. “God is a righteous judge, and a God who has indignation every day” (Psalm 7:11). God is angry about the sins that beat you down. God is angry about injustices you’ve suffered. God’s anger is your shield. God’s anger is your refuge. God’s anger is your pillow to rest upon. I believe God is displeased when any sins at all are committed against you, including when you sin against yourself.”
Sarah Sumner in Angry Like Jesus: Using His Example to Spark Your Moral Courage (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2015) 34-35.
I was angry about something this week, so I decided to explore the idea of the anger of Jesus as presented in 15 different scenes in the Gospels. That was enlightening! No wonder the Apostle Paul urged us to “be angry” and yet coupled it with “yet do not sin” (Ephesians 4:26). When Jesus was rightly angry, he was saying, unashamedly and with courage: “That’s not right!” or in biblical terms, “That’s not righteous!” No wonder Psalm 7:11 tells us that God has anger or indignation daily. He sees everything and is unafraid to say: “That’s not right!” The key for us is that we must be angry with compassion rather than condemnation so we maintain a posture of love toward people.
In recounting 15 scenes where Jesus exhibits anger, Sumner helped me realize how to direct my anger rightly. In that light, I celebrate her conclusion: “Jesus’ anger is a gift.” There is much that is not right in this world. We get to speak out with Jesus, the Apostle Paul, and countless others with courage about such matters, but we must be careful to do this in a manner that shows love and compassion rather than law and condemnation toward others. For further counsel on how to do this, consider Paul’s counsel on Christian living in Ephesians 4:17-32, and give thanks with me (and Sumner) that Jesus’ anger is a generous gift! Without it, we’d be nothing but frustrated. Because of it, we can trust that someday He will make everything right!