Topical Bible: The Anger of God: Averted by Christ

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The concept of God's anger is a significant theme throughout the Bible, reflecting His righteous response to sin and disobedience. God's anger is not capricious or unjust; rather, it is a manifestation of His holiness and justice. The Bible describes God's anger as a response to human sinfulness, idolatry, and rebellion against His divine will. However, through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ, God's anger is averted, offering believers reconciliation and peace with God.

Old Testament Context

In the Old Testament, God's anger is often depicted as a response to the covenant unfaithfulness of His people, Israel. For instance, in the book of Exodus, after the Israelites create and worship the golden calf, God's anger burns against them (Exodus 32:10). Similarly, in the book of Numbers, God's anger is kindled against the Israelites due to their constant grumbling and lack of faith (Numbers 11:1).

The prophets frequently warned of God's impending wrath due to the people's persistent idolatry and injustice. Isaiah 13:13 states, "Therefore I will make the heavens tremble, and the earth will be shaken from its place at the wrath of the LORD of Hosts, in the day of His burning anger." Yet, even in His anger, God often provides a way for repentance and restoration, as seen in the calls to return to Him and the promises of forgiveness.

New Testament Fulfillment

The New Testament reveals the ultimate solution to God's anger through the person and work of Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul explains that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), and that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). However, through Christ's sacrificial death on the cross, God's righteous anger is satisfied, and His wrath is averted for those who believe.

Romans 5:9 declares, "Therefore, since we have now been justified by His blood, how much more shall we be saved from wrath through Him!" This verse underscores the belief that Christ's atoning sacrifice shields believers from the wrath of God, offering them justification and peace.

The Role of Propitiation

Central to the New Testament understanding of averting God's anger is the concept of propitiation. Propitiation refers to the appeasement of God's wrath through a sacrificial offering. In 1 John 2:2 , it is written, "He Himself is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world." Jesus is portrayed as the perfect and final sacrifice, whose blood covers the sins of humanity, turning away God's anger.

Reconciliation and Peace

Through Christ, believers are not only spared from God's wrath but are also reconciled to Him. Ephesians 2:13-16 explains that through Christ's blood, those who were once far away have been brought near, and He has reconciled both Jews and Gentiles to God through the cross, putting to death the hostility. This reconciliation results in peace with God, as stated in Romans 5:1 , "Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ."

The Call to Live in Light of Christ's Sacrifice

While Christ's sacrifice averts God's anger for believers, the New Testament also calls Christians to live in a manner worthy of this great salvation. Ephesians 4:1 urges believers to "walk in a manner worthy of the calling you have received." This includes living a life of holiness, gratitude, and obedience, reflecting the transformative power of Christ's work in their lives.

In summary, the anger of God, a just response to sin, is averted through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. His atoning sacrifice satisfies God's wrath, offering believers justification, reconciliation, and peace with God. Through faith in Christ, believers are called to live in the light of this salvation, embodying the grace and truth of the Gospel.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Luke 2:11,14
For to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.
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Romans 5:9
Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.
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2 Corinthians 5:18,19
And all things are of God, who has reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and has given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
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Ephesians 2:14,17
For he is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of partition between us;
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Colossians 1:20
And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things to himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven.
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1 Thessalonians 1:10
And to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the wrath to come.
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Library

The Thunderbolt Averted
... BOOK I. ANTIOCH CHAPTER VIII THE THUNDERBOLT AVERTED. ... our conflagrations, has been
our crime and thy anger. Oh! ... inflicted on thee, as Eternal God daily forgives ...
/.../chapter viii the thunderbolt averted.htm

"Because the Carnal Mind is Enmity against God, for it is not ...
... you would find their faces turned backward and averted from God ... motion of the heart
deserves eternal misery, that anger is murder in God's sight, that ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xx because the carnal.htm

Conformed to the Image of Christ
... punishment; for punishment can sometimes be averted, but there is ... in the sweat of
our brow; but God's idea is ... a "partaker of his nature," and anger and revenge ...
/.../smith/the god of all comfort/chapter 16 conformed to the.htm

"Nineveh, that Great City"
... Their doom was averted, the God of Israel was exalted ... a gracious God, and merciful,
slow to anger, and of ... And it accomplished the purpose God designed it should ...
/.../white/the story of prophets and kings/chapter 22 nineveh that great.htm

The City of God. Index of Subjects.
... God, the vicissitudes of life dependent on the will of ... of angels or of men,
[712]282; the anger of, [713 ... evils which alone the pagans feared, not averted by, [ ...
/.../augustine/on christian doctrine in four books /the city of god index.htm

The Call of Matthew - the Saviour's Welcome to Sinners - Rabbinic ...
... and, in what cases repentance averted, or else ... I shall come and appear before God;'
to which ... d. Bibl.-Aram.) suggests the word regaz anger,' angry impetuosity ...
/.../edersheim/the life and times of jesus the messiah/chapter xvii the call of.htm

Against those who Think that what is Just is not Good.
... there is peace and rejoicing; but where it is averted, there is ... if it is proper to
call His admonition anger) is full of love to man, God condescending to ...
/.../clement/the instructor paedagogus/chapter viii against those who think.htm

The Last Pleading of Love
... but not one faint passing flush of anger tinges it ... our fellows"the universal love
of God in Christ ... and respectable Christianity passes by with averted head and ...
/.../maclaren/expositions of holy scripture b/the last pleading of love.htm

Watkinson -- the Transfigured Sackcloth
... by the tragedy of life with averted face; and in ... force which asserts itself against
God, and against ... affections, "every passion's wild excess, anger, lust, and ...
/.../the worlds great sermons volume 8/watkinson the transfigured sackcloth.htm

Letter ccxxviii. (AD 428 or 429. )
... we neglect or adopt measures whereby it may be averted. ... for, in difficulties of this
kind, God judges better ... We are at His disposal from whose anger none can ...
/.../augustine/the confessions and letters of st/letter ccxxviii a d 428 or.htm