Love and Justice

It is popular to portray Jesus and by extension God, as loving and forgiving while ignoring the indignation our Creator has for those who rebel against Him. Theologians who preach a message of love and only love have garnered a great number of followers in the name of Jesus Christ. However, when faced with the difficult questions regarding sin and salvation, these teachers often remain opaque and vague, not wanting to offend anyone.

While it is certainly true that God is loving (1 John 4:16), and that his love is boundless (Psalm 100:5; Psalm 118:1; Psalm 145:8-9 ), He is simply so much more than only love. Jesus is the image of the invisible God (Colossians 1:15), and when we analyse the attributes that made Jesus, Jesus, we find a refreshingly complex and human Messiah, embedded with the character of Almighty God.

Jesus Got Angry

In Matthew 21:12-13, we read that Jesus overturned the tables of the money lenders in the temple and drove them out with a whip. His intolerance for injustice illustrates God’s indignation for those in positions of power who take advantage of the helpless and less fortunate through extortion.

Additionally, Jesus had harsh words for the religious leaders and teachers of the Mosaic Law and chastised them severely. The twenty-third chapter of Matthew’s gospel contains several severe rebukes directed towards the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law because they did not practice what they preached. Their self-righteousness exasperated Jesus.

In verse 13, we read, “Woe to you, teachers of the Law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.” (Matthew 23:13-14).

Mark 3:3-5 illustrates Christ’s impatience with the Pharisees and how He intentionally healed a man with a crippled hand on the Sabbath to expose their hypocrisy. “Jesus said to the man with the shriveled hand, ‘Stand up in front of everyone.’ Then Jesus asked them, ‘Which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?’ He looked around 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.”

Another time that Jesus admonished hypocrisy, is recorded in Matthew 6:1-18. His critique of those who give to the needy in order to receive acclamation, pray in public to gain followers, or fast as a public display of their religiosity. He saw right through their facades and false motives.

Was Jesus sinning when he was angry? In the fifth chapter of Matthew, Jesus taught, “You have heard that it was said long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgement. But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgement. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.” (Matthew 5:21-22).

The word Raca in Aramaic means “worthless” or “empty.” The Jewish religious leaders used this word in a derogatory sense towards those whom they despised. Slanderous and malicious statements made in a self-righteous context constitute character assassination that can be very damaging to others. This contempt for people is sinful from God’s perspective.

The Bible says that Jesus was without sin (2 Corinthians 5:21). And Paul writes in Ephesians 4:26-27, “In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” So anger in itself is not a sin, however when we do not let go of our anger and forgive those who wrong us and choose to repay evil with evil, we enter into sinful territory.

Righteous Anger

Righteous anger does not involve retribution but rather desires justice. Nehemiah displayed righteous anger (Nehemiah 5:6), and God demonstrated righteous anger in 1 Kings 11:9-10 when He became angry with Solomon for not keeping His command. Similarly, God’s anger burned against Israel for their disobedience in the desert (Numbers 32:13).

Paul instructs in Romans 1:18, “The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who supress the truth by their wickedness.” God is just and He cannot deliver justice unless He despises injustice.

God has ordained a day of judgement for all mankind, when He will deliver justice in His sovereign assembly (Acts 17:31; Hebrews 9:27; Matthew 12:36). Jesus is the authority who will pronounce this judgement as He proclaimed in Matthew 25:31-46. Christ’s divinity is revealed in this proclamation as a direct reference to Daniel 7:13-14 and once again in Mark 14:62.

With this in mind, when scripture warns of the wrath of God, we must equate Christ with the One who will deliver this wrath through the condemnation of those who oppose Him. The Bible says that Jesus, “is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of His being, sustaining all things by His powerful word.” (Hebrews 1:3).

The text goes on to reveal, “To which of the angels did God ever say, ‘Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet’?” (Hebrews 1:13). Indeed Jesus will return to destroy His enemies and Revelation 19:11-21 contains the details of how Christ “treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.

One cannot base their theology upon half truths. We must embrace the full counsel of God’s word and in doing so, we will gain a much deeper comprehension of the magnitude of who God is and what He is truly like. He did not spare Jesus from the cross, thereby demonstrating He is both impartial and just. Paul warns in Galatians 6:7-8, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.”

Psalm 145:8 tells us, “The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love.” Furthermore, 2 Peter 3:9 teaches that, “The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” The longsuffering nature of God demonstrates His love for mankind but He never offers impunity. He promises justice. Unless justice is served, love can never be expressed in its fullness to those who hope in the Lord.

In 1 John 4:16-18, the disciple states, “God is love, Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgement, because in this world we are like Him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.”

Redemption requires judgement, otherwise there is nothing to be redeemed from. Similarly, punishment of the wicked demonstrates the just foundation of God’s righteousness as He executes vengeance against those who oppress the innocent. Paul teaches in Romans 12:19, “Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,'”.

God will not turn a blind eye to sin, nor will He ignore the cries of the oppressed. Psalm 89:14 declares, “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; love and faithfulness go before You.” Deuteronomy 32:4 describes God, “He is the Rock, His works are perfect, and all His ways are just. A faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is He.”

Jesus Christ exemplifies the complete nature of God and in Him we have assurance that we will be justified through His sacrifice on our behalf. Paul wrote, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 8:1). This is the hope for those who believe. John adds the perspective, “Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son.” (John 3:18).

Preaching love and only love implies that there is no need for repentance. Revelation 3:19 adds clarity to our understanding, “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent.” When salvation is identified as the contrasting outcome to judgement, God’s love has even deeper impact, penetrating to the very core of our being. It judges the thoughts and attitudes of our hearts.