Anger and God's righteousness

The government has barred the owners of a Christian business who declined to provide services for a lesbian wedding ceremony from publicly stating they will not obey this immoral application of the law. The Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industry (BOLI) also ordered Aaron and Melissa Klein, owners of Sweet Cakes by Melissa, to pay $135,000 in damages.

“The goal is never to shut down a business,” BOLI commissioner Brad Avakian said. “The goal is to rehabilitate.” Sounds like a re-education camp to me: total ideological compliance and do not speak of civil disobedience.

Aaron Klein said he doesn’t intend to keep quiet.

“This man [Avakian] has no power over me,” he told Fox News. “He seems to think he can tell me to be quiet. That doesn’t sit well with me—and I refuse to comply.”

The Kleins were ordered to pay up, pipe down, and bake cakes to promote sinful relationships, or stop providing wedding services. At this point it would be easy for Klein and his supporters to slide from righteous indignation to sinful anger. But James, the brother of Jesus, wrote that our wrath “does not produce the righteousness of God.” We also have to be careful to avoid battling to win for our personal gain and trying to rack up points.

God hates sin and wickedness, and our indignation must flow from what offends Him:

“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21, NKJV).

Righteous anger is the kind that leads others to repentance, and God grants the repentant grace and mercy when they are struggling with some besetting sin, whether it’s lying or homosexuality. The difference in practical terms is that liars don’t have a lobby through which they’re changing the culture and enlisting action from the government in the name of “civil rights.” That such a powerful lobby represents a tiny “protected class” intent on suppressing our freedom of religion and speech is alarming and infuriating. But still, we must not sin.

Christ overcame the world. As we are in Him, we have the power to resist evil and avoid sinful anger. Stewing in resentment can open us up to pride and revenge. In this spiritual battle, the unrepentant are in rebellion against God, not us. Though we represent Him, we are not Him. God can and will work through us, but we do not have the power within ourselves to convict hearts and save souls.

Pulling back helps us to be more objective. It also calms and moves us toward a prayerful state of mind instead of one seething at the shameless decadence and mockery. In our unfair treatment, we’re still blessed. We’re still saved. We’re still under God’s grace.