Enjoying the Anger of Jesus
Here’s a surprise. In preparation to write about how we relate to Jesus day by day in the here and now, I re-read the Gospels. I was looking out for how he related to people when he was on earth as pointers to how he relates to his people now from heaven. Much of what I found was what I expected. He cares, protects, energizes, touches, and intercedes for his people—then and now. But one thing took me by surprise: Jesus on earth was often angry.
His emotional state may not often be specified, but his words can be surprisingly sharp and his attitude shockingly abrasive. Consider what happens when he goes to the home of a Pharisee in Luke 11:37–54.
Jesus is angry at hypocrisy and injustice (Luke 11:37–54). Imagine the scene with me. Jesus enters a home. Instead of washing his hands, as custom dictated, he goes straight to the table and sits down. This is not a failure of personal hygiene—the Pharisees had extended the ceremonial cleanliness required of temple priests into everyday life. But Jesus deliberately ignores this expectation. Make no mistake: this is a provocative act.
A shocked hush descends, into which Jesus speaks, “Now then, you Pharisees clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside you are full of greed and wickedness.” These are the first words anyone speaks. This is not a discussion that turned into an argument that then got heated. Right from the start, Jesus is confrontational. “Woe to you . . .”, he says three times. It’s as if Jesus is firing off accusations from a verbal machine gun. An expert in the law intervenes. “Teacher, when you say these things, you insult us also.” Big mistake. For Jesus then turns his fire on the experts in the law. They too get three “woes”—just like the Pharisees.
Then Jesus leaves. There’s no record of any food having been eaten! The religious leaders follow him out “to besiege him” with questions. It’s the language of violent assault, as if Jesus is a city under attack. Luke says they “began to oppose him fiercely.” We might say that things have turned ugly, but that would imply a preceding moment of calm!
This is the story told in Luke 11:37–54. But we see this confrontational posture throughout Luke’s Gospel. Here’s just a snapshot.
“Woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort” (6:24–26).
“‘You hypocrites! . . .’ When he said this, all his opponents were humiliated.” (13:10–17).
“Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division” (12:51–53).
“When Jesus entered the temple courts, he began to drive out those who were selling.” (19:45–46).
“Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces . . . . They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. These men will be punished most severely” (20:45–47).
Perhaps we’re shocked by an angry Jesus. This Jesus may be less familiar and perhaps even less attractive. But this is not only an essential aspect of his character; it’s also good news. We can and should enjoy the anger of Jesus.
Part of our problem is that we often think anger is bad. That’s not surprising because much of the anger we encounter is bad news. And if we’re honest, we know we’re as guilty of bad anger as anyone else. But the Bible presents a more nuanced picture of anger. Certainly, there are warnings against uncontrolled or misplaced anger. But God himself is said to be angry when people are mistreated. Anger is right when we respond to the right things in the right way. It is the appropriate response to sin and injustice. What provokes Jesus’ outburst in Luke 11 is the hypocrisy of the religious leaders and the way they prevent other people coming to God. The climax of his tirade is: “Woe to you experts in the law, because you have taken away the key to knowledge. You yourselves have not entered, and you have hindered those who were entering” (Luke 11:52).
We begin to enjoy the anger of Jesus by understanding it as the flipside of his love. When Jesus met a man with leprosy “he was indignant”—not with the man himself (whom Jesus was about to touch in healing love), but with the man’s leprosy (Mark 1:41). On another occasion, Jesus met a man with a shriveled hand on the Sabbath. It seems the man was being used by the religious leaders as they looked “for a reason to accuse Jesus.” So “Jesus looked around at them with anger, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts” (Mark 3:1–6). His compassion towards the man’s suffering makes him angry towards those exploiting that suffering.
What makes Jesus angry is his love for people. Imagine a person who never got angry. They would look at injustice and feel nothing. That’s not a sign of virtue, but of callous indifference. Jesus is full of love and when love sees injustice it expresses itself in rage.
Sharing the anger of Jesus. How should we respond to the anger of Jesus and the prospect of his coming anger? One answer is that we should share in his anger. We, too, should have a zeal for God’s glory and a concern for the poor.
Trusting the anger of Jesus. When human judicial systems do not work, we can entrust our cause to Jesus (Romans 12:19–13:7). The judgment of Jesus may not always work to the timescale we would like, but Jesus will see that justice is done.
Escaping the anger of Jesus. The anger of Jesus is good news for it means one day all the crimes that have gone unpunished and all the hurts that have gone unnoticed will be judged. The problem is, we’re not only victims of injustice; we’re also guilty. We’re all in the firing line. But there is hope. While Jesus will enact God’s judgment when he returns, at his first coming, Jesus bore God’s judgment on behalf of his people. Jesus himself has become the refuge from his own wrath (Psalm 2:10–12).
Enjoying the anger of Jesus. Can we really enjoy the anger of Jesus? I believe we can. When you’re wronged, it’s a comfort to know that Jesus is angry on your behalf. When you hear stories of oppression, it’s a comfort to know that Jesus is angry at this injustice. His anger is not general or unspecified—he’s angry about the situations that cause you distress. Your plight doesn’t go unnoticed; the wrongs you feel deeply will be remedied. Jesus cares. Jesus cares so much that he gets angry on your behalf.
When you see the anger of Jesus, you need to flip it over, and what you see on the other side is either the passion of Jesus for God’s glory or his love for the afflicted. You can enjoy his anger because it’s a sign of his love and a reassurance that every wrong will be put right.
This article is adapted from Enjoying Jesus: Experience the Presence and Kindness of the Son of God in Everyday Life by Tim Chester (The Good Book Company). In the book, Tim explores how Jesus acted and interacted with people in Luke’s Gospel and how, through his Spirit, we can experience the joy of Jesus’s presence and companionship in our day-to-day lives. Tim is a senior faculty member of Crosslands Training and the author of over 40 books.