Wrath or Love?

Eph 4:29-32
29 Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. 30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you. NASU

What is it with Christians? I have heard many among us say lately that “we talk too much of God’s love and not enough of his wrath.” I ask those of us who say such things to consider Paul’s writings, or to even consider Jesus in the Gospels. What consumed Paul? Was it God’s coming wrath? God’s righteous indignation? God’s holy anger? Yes, Paul mentions God’s wrath and lists it in his writings, but the question remains as to whether or not Paul spent as much time dwelling on the issue as some of us think we should.

Here in Ephesians, Paul admonishes us to look to the positive, to do those things that encourage and build up folks. Can wrath do that? Yes, a warning and recognition of God’s wrath is a good motivator when I am feeling lazy or lax in my Christian duties, but at the same time are we more motivated to act in a good way by love? What does the lover seek? The lover seeks to be bound to the object of his or her love, to be enraptured and enveloped by the object of love, to be quite literally obsessed with the object of love. That is the kind of disciple we should seek to be—one so in awe of and in love with Christ that we act in a fashion pleasing to him without even a second thought.

How does the person under the threat of punishment act? Do they labor joyously? Do they act positively? In many cases such a condemned one will merely do the minimum requirement to avoid punishment. That is, they will do enough to get by so that they will not incur wrath. Oh, but the lover, the lover will go far and beyond what is expected. Why? Out of sheer love they will act! Think of it—what mighty acts have ever been accomplished out of a sense of impending doom or judgment? Then ask yourself what mighty deeds were accomplished for the sake of love. Do we not see the difference? Are we so blind as to think that we see when we do not see?

Thanks for reading!