Ncdataman
Member
- Joined
- Feb 15, 2007
- Messages
- 1,831
Righteous Anger
My zeal has consumed me, because my enemies have forgotten Your words.
— Psalm 119:39
Have you ever looked at the way our culture is going, especially what our youth are buying into, and found that it made you angry? Did you know there is a place for righteous anger? Even Jesus, who was God among us, was angry. We know that He displayed anger when He drove the merchants and money changers out of the temple, because they were ripping off God's people. There is a place for righteous indignation.
Indignation rose within the apostle Paul when he saw the way the culture was going. We read in Acts that while he was in Athens, "his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols" (Acts 17:16). The word "provoked" could be translated "exasperated," "irritated," or even "roused to anger." Paul was grieved to see the absolute absence of the living God and, in His place, every conceivable substitute.
If we want to reach our culture for Christ, then we must first have a burden for the people we are seeking to reach. The problem is that far too often, those outside of the church only know us for what we are against. They don't know what we are for. They know what we oppose, and I think there is a place for that. But do they know what we believe?
We could talk all day about various techniques we can employ in telling others about Christ. We could address the difficult questions unbelievers raise and how to best answer them. But none of that will really matter if we don't care about lost people. Do you have a burden for those who do not yet know the Lord?
The world needs to hear about Jesus. And we need to tell them about God's love.
From Harvest
My zeal has consumed me, because my enemies have forgotten Your words.
— Psalm 119:39
Have you ever looked at the way our culture is going, especially what our youth are buying into, and found that it made you angry? Did you know there is a place for righteous anger? Even Jesus, who was God among us, was angry. We know that He displayed anger when He drove the merchants and money changers out of the temple, because they were ripping off God's people. There is a place for righteous indignation.
Indignation rose within the apostle Paul when he saw the way the culture was going. We read in Acts that while he was in Athens, "his spirit was provoked within him when he saw that the city was given over to idols" (Acts 17:16). The word "provoked" could be translated "exasperated," "irritated," or even "roused to anger." Paul was grieved to see the absolute absence of the living God and, in His place, every conceivable substitute.
If we want to reach our culture for Christ, then we must first have a burden for the people we are seeking to reach. The problem is that far too often, those outside of the church only know us for what we are against. They don't know what we are for. They know what we oppose, and I think there is a place for that. But do they know what we believe?
We could talk all day about various techniques we can employ in telling others about Christ. We could address the difficult questions unbelievers raise and how to best answer them. But none of that will really matter if we don't care about lost people. Do you have a burden for those who do not yet know the Lord?
The world needs to hear about Jesus. And we need to tell them about God's love.
From Harvest
