GETTING ANGRY WITH GOD

GETTING ANGRY WITH GOD

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Psalm 22:1)”

Is it a sin to be angry with God? It's normal to sometimes feel anger at God. Just don't stay there.
Have you ever gotten angry with God when you or someone you love goes through hard times? If so, you aren't alone. In fact, many people get angry with God from time to time.

People who get mad at God often feel guilty about their anger and think their anger makes God angry with them. Their guilt sometimes drives them onto feeling condemned or distant from God.

This topic on getting angry with God is meant to put us in the right perspectives when we find ourselves in this situation.

LETS READ THE FOLLOWING BIBLE PASSAGES.

i. PSALM 22:1-6:

My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring?

2 O my God, I cry in the day time, but thou hearest not; and in the night season, and am not silent.

3 But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.

4 Our fathers trusted in thee: they trusted, and thou didst deliver them.

5 They cried unto thee, and were delivered: they trusted in thee, and were not confounded.

6 But I am a worm, and no man; a reproach of men, and despised of the people._

PSALM 22:22-31:

22 I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee.

23 Ye that fear the LORD, praise him; all ye the seed of Jacob, glorify him; and fear him, all ye the seed of Israel.

24 For he hath not despised nor abhorred the affliction of the afflicted; neither hath he hid his face from him; but when he cried unto him, he heard.

25 My praise shall be of thee in the great congregation: I will pay my vows before them that fear him.

26 The meek shall eat and be satisfied: they shall praise the LORD that seek him: your heart shall live for ever.

27 All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the LORD: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee.

28 For the kingdom is the LORD's: and he is the governor among the nations.

29 All they that be fat upon earth shall eat and worship: all they that go down to the dust shall bow before him: and none can keep alive his own soul.

30 A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation
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31 They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done this.

PSALM 13: 1-6:

How long wilt thou forget me, O LORD? for ever? how long wilt thou hide thy face from me?
2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? how long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?
3 Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;
4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.
5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.
6 I will sing unto the LORD, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.

PSALM 35:17-18:

17 Lord, how long wilt thou look on? rescue my soul from their destructions, my darling from the lions.
18 I will give thee thanks in the great congregation: I will praise thee among much people.

PSALM 42:9-11:

9 I will say unto God my rock, Why hast thou forgotten me? why go I mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?
10 As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproach me; while they say daily unto me, Where is thy God?
11 Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted within me? hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him, who is the health of my countenance, and my God.

1. SOME QUESTIONS FOR YOU ABOUT BEING ANGRY WITH GOD

• What part of these passages spoke to you the most? Why?

• What do you think about David complaining so openly to God?

• How did David (the person who wrote these Psalms) conclude his complaint? Why do you think he ended it this way?

• What did you learn from this study?

• Your contributions in the comment area please.

Key points about being angry with God

• One thing I appreciate about God is that I can be real with him. If I am angry with God, I can be honest about it instead of thinking I must hide it or act "religious." I know this by reading in the Psalms about times when David openly expressed anger or frustration with God.

• Although it's a normal thing to do, it’s a shame when we get angry with God, for he is our best friend. Yet since we are people, it happens.

• What’s both interesting and encouraging to me is that almost every time David expressed complaints toward God, he ended up praising God. That’s a good resolution to our anger. (Notice that in verses 1-6 of Psalm 22, David voices his complaint. Yet in verses 22-31, he praises God.)

• It’s just the same with our (human) friends. We get angry with them at times, yet in the end we turn back to them since we love them and we know they love us.

• I'm not saying it's a good thing to get angry with God. When I do, I am showing how little I understand his love, his goodness, and his purpose. I need to face my anger and deal with it, as David did.

• Plus, the better I know God, and the longer I walk with him, the less likely I will be angry with him. But, if I do get angry, I am glad he understands and helps me come to a place of repentance.

PRAYER:

Ask God to help you better know his love, and to trust him more than ever.

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