Does GOD get angry?

 In this week's readings from the "One Year Bible" (Lamentations-Ezekiel) God is angry and giving Israel over to its enemies.

Question: Who is God so angry with? 

Answer: "You have profaned me among my people for a few handfuls of barley and scraps of bread. By lying to my people who listen to lies, you have killed those who should not have died . . . . (Ezek. 13:19))." God's anger is directed to those religious leaders who "sell out" and tell people what they want to hear, according to "Idols set up in their hearts." The Word of God is truth that demolishes our false idols, our false sense of peace in the face of suffering and oppression all around us, our illusions that through some "spiritualized hokus-pokus 'goody two shoes' prosperity formula" or guru we are blessed by God.

God wants all who long for God's new spiritually-enriched world to "preach the Word (2 Timothy 4:2)," (not the "rhema word" or the "new-age" word, all figments of a materialistic (interpreting wisdom-spiritual promises as material gain), middle-class focused, oppression-blind mindset, the illusion and idolatry of our "profits and things before people and prophets" culture. Those who would be faithful to God and God's vision for the human race face great challenge in these times. In our time, we want to hear anything that feeds our egos and our desire to consume, and hate anything that suggests life is more than desire and consumption.

"For the time will come when human beings will not put up with actual truth from God, but Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers and seers who are ready to teach and preach and prophesy what they want to hear (paraphrased from Greek text, 2 Tim. 4:3-5)." The "spirit of the age" or our times, is not necessarily the "Spirit of God." For those of us who claim to represent God and give spiritual direction to others, heed the warnings from the prophet Ezekiel.