In an email to a friend yesterday I had the privilege of sharing some insight that I have gained from reading Dr. John Piper's newest book, What Jesus Demands from the World. The chapters are actually a list of 50 different demands Jesus spoke, found in an exploration of the four Gospels. In doing so, Dr. Piper assumes first that the Gospels are true and they are unified. It also assumes that Jesus is not just someone who sets an example for us or does something for us, but he is God and has authority to make demands of us.
In this post I will be taking some words from one of the chapters, Demand #18: "Do not be angry—trust God’s Providence." It is based on Matthew 5:21-22 and Matthew 10:28-31. Because his outlook in that chapter was so encouraging to me as I read, I would like to share some of it here in light of yesterday's post on God's Providence and also in light of anything you may be going through at the moment which causes you to be angry, frustrated, confused, anxious, or concerned. When we say the words, "God is in control," do we really believe what we are saying? Or perhaps we believe it but only to a certain extent. The question I want you to ponder is: How much control does He really have over His creation and over the circumstances His creation encounters?
Below is a portion of the email, with the quotes from Dr. Piper's book.
One of the greatest truths that Jesus taught to help us be free from sinful anger is the truth of God’s all-encompassing providence—His wise and sovereign control over all things for the good of His children. The rise and strength of our anger should be governed by our trust in God’s providence—that He is ruling over the evil that makes us angry and will not let anything occur with us that is not ultimately good for us (even though it often does not seem as such).
The rage that could rise in our hearts when we are treated unjustly and when we watch loved ones treated cruelly is natural and strong. Interestingly, Piper points out, that when dealing with these kinds of threats, Jesus spoke directly to our fear, not our anger. But the implications for anger are plain. He said in Matthew 10:28-31, And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.
The point here is, first, the smallest details of life on earth are governed by God—not a bird falls to the ground apart from Him. And the second point is that God is near, and His acquaintance with our situation is total—even the hairs on your head are all numbered. The conclusion is: Nothing will come to pass apart from His wise and loving providence over your circumstances. Don’t fear. And don’t be angry in a way that contradicts your confidence in God’s care over your life. God’s providence should change the way we experience circumstances that would otherwise be totally infuriating.
We have the assurance that God’s providence will govern all the evil that comes against us so that His good purposes are fulfilled. Yes, evil is being done. But it does not have the last say, and in the end even serves God’s hidden designs.
Rejoicing In Persecution
One of the clearest illustrations of how God's Providence overcomes the controlling effect of anger is Jesus' command that we rejoice when we are persecuted unjustly. He says, "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you" (Matthew 5:11-12). Few things would ordinarily make us angrier than unjust treatment. Not only are we being hurt by this reviling and persecution, but Jesus emphasizes that it is "evil" and it is "false." These are the factors that tend to infuriate us.
But Jesus transforms that ordinary, understandable emotional experience of anger. Although he recognizes that the normal response of any human being would naturally be anger; meaning that we all have the "right" to be angry about this, Jesus demonstrates what happens with our "rights" when he is Lord of our life (my added thought). Instead of saying, "Be legitimately angry" or "Try to control your anger," he says the most incredible thing imaginable: "Rejoice and be glad."
Rejoicing does not mean that we approve of the treatment. It does not mean that we stop thinking it is unjust. It probably does not mean there is no anger whatsoever. Some kind of holy anger--strong emotional disapproval--may be emotionally compatible with joy. The human soul in the image of God is that complex. And we know, from all that Jesus taught us about God, that God experiences anger and joy simultaneously because he sees and responds perfectly to all evil and all good at the same time.
Our joy in the presence of persecution is possible because of God's Providence. Not a hair of your head will perish (when they kill you). Not a bird (or a hateful blow to your head; or a hateful word of slander to your name) falls without the will of the Father. Providence governs your suffering. And in the end, "Your reward is great in heaven." That is Jesus' argument why joy and not anger can dominate our experience of persecution: "Rejoice and be glad, for great is your reward in heaven" (Matthew 5:12).
Last night these things came to mind as I was singing with Brock and Kaylee before their bedtime. The song we were singing was "Blessed Be Your Name" by Matt Redman. Whenever we sing songs together I usually like to take time to explain the words to them, where it is found in the Bible, and why we sing them (side note: this practice has certainly helped me to discover songs that are more biblically grounded and speak truth as well as move our spirits to worship).
Anyway, when we were singing the line, "You give and take away, you give and take away. My heart will choose to say, Lord, blessed be your name," we stopped and talked about what that means. I explained to my kids that Matt Redman borrowed that line from the book of Job in the Bible. I told them the story of Job, how he was wealthy and felt very blessed by God. But God allowed Job to be used, perhaps as a reminder to Satan for how strong the relationship of faith in God is and how man's loyalty to God does not reside in the number of earthly blessings we are given. I told them about how in an instant all of Job's earthly blessings began to be removed from him one by one.
His sons and daughters, and property, and animals, and servants, and nearly everything he cared about on earth was taken away in the most amazingly treacherous set of circumstances one could ever imagine. And Job's response was why we sing the song. He cried out, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord" (Job 1:21). And the author of the book then gives us this incredible reminder. I wonder if we truly understand the significance of this added line at the end of chapter one? He says, "In all this Job did not sin or charge God with wrong."
He did not charge God with wrong? But he recognized that God was still in control of the situation. That God can give (which we usually always attribute as a blessing to us), and that God can take away (which we usually always attribute as evil toward us). And we can recognize that both of those things come from God without being in danger of accusing God of wrongdoing.
How can that be? It must be because when we are seeing things as "wrong" and "terrible", God is using those very things for good, and He is accomplishing His good purpose in us, even when our circumstances are awful.
When Job became physically sick, with sores all over his body, he responded by saying, "Shall we receive good from God, and shall we not receive evil?" Then the author of the book again tells us that in saying this "Job did not sin or curse God with his lips."
So I reminded my kids that even in their most awful times of trial and pain, God is still involved and he is working in it for good. Do we always know how exactly that is happening? Nope. Can we always see clearly what He is doing in our times of pain? Nope. Job couldn't see it either. He did not know what was going on behind the scenes. He did not know that countless millions would still be reading and being edified by his story to this day.
The bottom line is this. I believe in God's Providence. My trust is not in a God who has no control over his creation. Nor is it in a God who may have control over his creation, but chooses not to exercise it because he would rather we do everything down here on our own. My trust is in a God who can and does have control over the most minuscule details as well as the most significant ones. And because of that I sleep well.
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