Slow to Anger
How would you describe God’s character?
Verse of the Day
“The Lord passed in front of Moses, calling out, “Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.”
Today’s Devotional
Let me set the stage. The Israelites were delivered from slavery in Egypt in a dramatic way: ten plagues, the parting of and crossing through the Res Sea, and the Egyptian army being destroyed in the same sea they walked through. Then they are given water and manna in miraculous provision. God’s Presence is always with them in the form of a cloud by day and a fire by night. After a couple of months in the wilderness, God gives the Israelites a set of rules to live by. They agree to live by these rules. God called Moses to come back up the mountain to receive further instructions about the Tabernacle. While he was on the mountain, the people (including the priest, Aaron) decided to build a golden calf to worship. They had just agreed to live by God’s rules, and pretty quickly they broke the first two rules: worship only God and have no idols.
It is really easy to want to judge the Israelites for their foolishness, stubbornness, and disobedience. But we are just like them. Thankfully, God was patient with them just like He is patient with us.
Today’s verse comes AFTER the people of Israel worshiped a cow made out of gold that they made for themselves. God describes Himself as compassionate and merciful. He says that He is slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness. David Hocking wrote, “God is never said to be patient about things or circumstances. Why? It is because He knows all things. He knows the beginning from the end. He does not have any need of that kind of patience. When we speak of the patience of God, we are not talking about enduring hard times; we are talking about being long-suffering toward people.”
We see the reason for God’s patience in Isaiah 48:9. “For my own name’s sake I delay my wrath; for the sake of my praise I hold it back from you, so as not to destroy you completely.” God’s patience with us reveals His glory and is reason to praise Him. Yesterday’s verse (Romans 2:4) gives us another reason for God’s patience: “Don’t you see how wonderfully kind, tolerant, and patient God is with you? Does this mean nothing to you? Can’t you see that his kindness is intended to turn you from your sin?” God’s patience is meant to change our hearts, which will turn us from sin.
I long to be a person of patience, but before I can grow in that area, I need to be reminded of the patience God has for me. I need to praise Him for His character. I need to see how patient He was with the people of the Bible to be reminded of how patient He is with me today. I need to look at the lessons He has so patiently taught me which turned me from sin.
God’s patience with us is evidence of His love. We see this portrayed in the story of the rich man in Mark 10. This man comes to Jesus and asks what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus starts listing the commandments, and the man tells Him, “Teacher, I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.” Let’s just take a pause in this moment in the story and collectively say, “Really? You’ve kept ALL the commandments for ALL of your life?” But this was not the Lord’s response. When the man tells Jesus of his righteous living, His response in Mark 10:21 stops me in my tracks: “Looking at the man, Jesus felt genuine love for him.”
Even in our arrogance and our misunderstanding of obedience, God is patient with us and loves us. God is willing to gently point out the things that may have taken over too much priority in our lives, just like the wealth for the rich man in Mark 10.
God is slow to anger, which is a different way to say that God is patient. His patience and His love are meant to point us to His glorious nature and to turn us from anything that is keeping us from Him.
Journal Prompts
Answer only the questions that seem relevant to you today.
How do you see yourself as similar to the people of Israel from the Exodus story?
How has God reminded you of His love and patience AFTER you have messed up?
How can you praise God for His patience today?
How do you see yourself like the rich man in Mark 10?
How has the love and patience of God drawn you closer to him in the past?
How does focusing on God’s patience and love help you today?