Discipleship Series, Eschatology, General Principles

He who Overcomes, Part 4: Background Information

October 30, 2014 faithfulwon Leave a comment

The seven churches mentioned in turn through Revelation Chapters 2 & 3 are all situated in a small geographic area in south west Turkey.

The letters that John wrote to them were given to him using Jesus’ own words which makes them quite special among all the New Testament writings. Apart from some sentences in Acts to Paul, there are no other places in the NT where Jesus speaks after his ascension like this that I can recall.

A messenger could go to each church delivering the message for that church in the order in which they were written. However there is no doubt that though each church had a specific message (or at least the angel of that church did), the message of each letter was of value to all the churches.

Each letter follows the same format. Each starts with an address to the angel of the church. What exactly that means is hard to know. I like to think that it means that it is the culture /collective spirit of the church that is being addressed and not just individuals in it or the main pastor or anyone else who may or may not have responsibility in it. It always amazes me how different churches led by the same Spirit can have different spiritual cultures – different angels if you like. We spent 18 years in our first church together and coming up to 15 years in our present one (www.openarms.ie) so we have got to know both pretty well. There is no doubt that the same Holy Spirit that led one also led the other but you would be hard pressed to come across two more different cultures. It seems from the short descriptions that we have that each of the seven churches of Revelation were equally diverse. Is this what is meant by the seven spirits of God (Rev. 3:1, 5:6)?

The overall format is:

1) A command to write to the angel of the church

2) A description of Jesus in his glorified state

3) A commendation or praise of the church (only Laodicea doesn’t get this)

4) A complaint or rebuke (but not to Smyrna or Philadelphia)

5) An exhortation or warning

6) A promise to the overcomer (or he who is victorious as the NIV puts it)

It is the last of these sections of the letters that I want to look at in this series of blogs.

It is interesting that the promises to overcomers are set in the context of letters to some local churches. They didn’t have to be. In some ways they don’t have anything to do with the messages to each church and could have stood on their own. I believe that the reason they were put in this context is because the Holy Spirit is indicating that you probably won’t be an overcomer in any other context than full participation in the life of Christ’s body in a local church. A local church is full of those that need a doctor – those who are well rarely come in (Matt. 9:12). The spiritually poor, hungry and often lost people that are welcomed into a healthy church give lots of opportunities for those who have been made well by the grace of God to be overcomers. If you can stick it in a local church it is because you have had to come over and over again to the throne of grace to find help in time of need.

I know, church can be wonderful, just saying…. stick around, overcome…..

Always remember, I could be wrong about anything I write here (1 Cor. 8:2). Let the Holy Spirit instruct you and not me (Hebrews 8:11). And ask your pastor or whoever you trust in this kind of thing if you need to.

[Acknowledgements to SpritandTruth.org for the picture but I have to confess I haven’t read their Revelation commentary – or anything else their writers have written (at least not yet)].

Discipleship Series, Eschatology, General Principles, heaven

He who Overcomes Part 1: Heaven is for Real

October 27, 2014 faithfulwon 1 Comment

There is no point in me talking about the promises to overcomers unless you also share my understanding of what the Scriptures say about heaven. Overcomers are at the end of their sometimes long, and always testing, journey with the Lord and are looking forward to rewards. A lot of these rewards are related to the next life so it is good to know a bit more about that. Scripture is full of revelations about heaven.

First let us draw a (biblical) distinction between the heaven and earth that now exists (2 Peter 3:5-7) and that which is to come, i.e. the new heaven and new earth:

Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea.

Rev. 21:1.

(I’ve written in an another article about the significance of the mention of a sea in this verse.)

Everyone who lives on it is familiar with this old earth and the heaven we can see in all its glory around us on a starry night. Most people also vaguely think about heaven in terms of where they might go when they die. Very few think about the distinctions between the old and new heaven and even fewer think about the implications of there being a new earth to come.

Heaven Now.

Paul says in 2 Cor. 12:2-4 that he knew someone (evidently himself) that was caught up to the third heaven or paradise. This implies that there are three heavens. The rest of Scripture would lead one to believe that the first one is the heavens we see around us physically (Psalm 8:3), the second is where the prince of the power of the air and other various spirits rule (Ephesians 6:12). The third is where God, Christ (and us in Christ) are seated. There is a hierarchy to these heavens, the third rules over the second and first, and the second rules over the first.

There is also a connection between each of these heavens and predestination and free will. From the view point of the third heaven everything is predestined – we ought to live in that as much as possible (Hebrews 4:14-16, 10:19-25) – the devil looks up from the second heaven and knows his time is short and manipulates all he can in the first. The first is all most people see and they think from there that their choices determine everything – as indeed they do.

Do you believe in predestination or free will? The answer is yes.

Of course only God can make all three views true at the same time. Equally, because all three viewpoints are true we quickly reach the inadequacy of intellectual comprehension and rational thought to describe it all. I don’t have a problem with that. I’ll continue to use my mind anyway whilst knowing its limits.

As far as the third heaven is concerned there are others who have gone into it and returned. Jesus of course came from it and returned to it. The others went to it and returned from it like Paul. Moses looked into it when he went to the top of Mount Sinai and copied what he saw when he made the tabernacle (Exodus 24 – 31 and Hebrews 5:5). Daniel saw Jesus presenting His blood to the Father on the mercy seat after His resurrection (Daniel 7:13-14, Hebrews 9:16 – 10:22), Isaiah saw the throne room and got his sins forgiven there (Isaiah 6:1-7) and Ezekial saw the motorised version of the Lord’s throne (Ezekial 1). Zechariah saw Jesus there (Jesus in Greek = Joshua in Hebrew) (Zechariah 3-4). Stephen looked into it when he was being stoned (Acts 7:55, 56). However the person who gives us the most detailed description of what it looks like is John in Revelation. As homework, look up each of the passages above and note down all the similarities between what each of them saw. I think you will find that the same place is being described in each case.

[I’m quite convinced that others have gone to the third heaven and returned since like Colton Burpo (of Heaven is for Real) but, while interesting, I don’t think we need to go outside Scriptural examples to prove the point.]

The new heaven is not of this creation. In the sequence of events detailed in Revelation 20-22, the old heaven and earth are done away with, the great white throne judgement occurs and then the new heaven and earth are ushered in. There is a three fold aspect to this new heaven also. The new heaven exists on the new earth, the new earth holds the third heaven (or inner sanctum) which is the heavenly Jerusalem. Which of these heavens we can enter into can be deduced from the messages to the overcomers as well as other Scriptures which I shall deal with later in this series.

And of course there is the lake of fire also. We’ll deal with that a bit too.

I’m going to write this disclaimer at the end of the rest of this series: Always remember, I could be wrong about anything I write here (1 Cor. 8:2). Let the Holy Spirit instruct you and not me (Hebrews 8:11). And ask your pastor or whoever you trust in this kind of thing if you need to.

Discipleship Series, General Principles, His Story

Knowing the Truth and Systematic Theology

October 25, 2014 faithfulwon 1 Comment

It is the glory of God to conceal a matter but it is the glory of kings to find it out. Proverbs 25:2

I know the Truth because I know Jesus (John 14:6).

But of course that is not the same thing as saying I know every particular detail of everything there is to know.

Wouldn’t it be great if there was a systematic theology that told you all or at least most of what there is to know about Jesus? Of course there isn’t but that is not the same as saying there is no value in systematic theology.

Now by the phrase “systematic theology” I mean an intellectual construction of arguments and proofs that explain something about the Truth.

Paul’s letter to the Romans is systematic theology. He builds argument upon proof to show the basic doctrines about the Gospel and judgement (chapters 1-4) the flesh and the spirit and the relationship between the two (chapters 6-8) as well as dealing with predestination (chapters 9-11) and other fundamental subjects. These have been of great value to the church over the centuries and show just what a good systematic theology can do. Paul had special revelation and built his theology on that and used the Old Testament to back up much of what he said. Nothing he wrote was independent of his relationship with Jesus, and nothing was a lie about Him or was not found in Him. Christ for Paul was the beginning and the end of all revelation as it ought also to be for all systematic theology.

Being a logical kind of thinker (or at least I think I am, others can judge) I love systematic theology. It is so like the engineering discipline that I use every day. There are fundamental things that are true about creation, maths and machines that have to be obeyed and considered if I am to do my job right.

So you can see, perhaps, why I like systematic theology. If there is any subject that I like to dig deeper into and find out more about it has to be Jesus Christ. And I believe there is a place for deductive reasoning and analysis when doing so. The creation that Jesus Christ is in, through and for, and the ways he wants us to act in it are simple in one way:

Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind and with all your strength.
Love your neighbour as yourself.

(see Mark 12:30-31)

But creation and the creator are more complex than a computer system as Paul’s letter to the Romans explores. I want to explore God the way Paul did and I believe there is value and endless depths in doing so.

Having said that, it is essential that we recognise the limits that our intellects have.

Firstly, we actually can know nothing that is not revealed to us. As Christians, creation and the Scriptures are our main means of revelation and prayer and preaching are the best delivery mechanisms (catalysts if you like) for revelation. According to the Christian gospel you can’t even begin to have this kind of revelation unless you are born from above (John 3:3, 1 Cor. 2:9, 10). Secondly, there is a limit to what the intellect can know about God. As Paul, quoting from Isaiah, says at the end of his discourse on predestination in Romans: “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgements and his ways past beyond finding out! For who has known the mind of the Lord that he should be his counsellor?” Romans 11:33.

But we do have the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16). And God does want us to use it.

The posts I am putting up currently about “He who Overcomes” are a form of systematic theology. The subject matter is mainly eschatological and the conclusions are not always main stream evangelical but the application is here and now and the hope is eternal. I’ve found the understanding of what an Overcomer is and the implications of the promises to an overcomer very helpful for the last 20 years or so since God first began to show me these things. I’m really praying you will too.

There is a warning though, if you are looking for a debate I’m not interested. If you think I am wrong prove it from the Scripture but please do it in love.

Discipleship Series, Eschatology, General Principles

He Who Overcomes Part 3: What is an Overcomer?

October 23, 2014 faithfulwon 2 Comments

Everyone who loves the Lord is called by Him to be a disciple, next they are called to become a saint and then an overcomer. There is progression but there are also so many similarities between these terms that they could be thought of as similes. A disciple is a follower of Jesus, a saint is in fellowship with the Church and an overcomer keeps on coming over and over again to the Lord, s/he perseveres.

The Scriptures are only really written for disciples/ saints/ overcomers. It is unlikely that you will read them consistently, over and over again unless you are one. Only those who love the Lord will continue to receive from Him the freshness of His speaking through them. Saints don’t have to read the Scripture but they will probably want to. It has a way of getting in on you when you love Him. But like anything else it would be a mistake to be prescriptive about these things. A disciple doesn’t have to read the Scripture to be in a living and ongoing relationship with Jesus. But if you can read it you probably will if you are an overcomer.

So as you read through the New Testament note the progression and similarities between disciples, saints and overcomers. An overcomer comes last in the progression. As you persevere in being a disciple and a saint you become entitled to be called an overcomer – or at least you do if you persevere to the end, until the day you die in Christ. As we explore the promises to overcomers we will see why that is important.

For those interested in this kind of thing, the word for overcomer in the Greek has the same root as nike – the brand that took its inspiration from the Greek god of victory. There is a finality to it which is very fitting.

To be continued …

church, Discipleship Series, Eschatology, General Principles, heaven

He Who Overcomes, Part 2: A way to interpret Revelation

October 22, 2014 faithfulwon Leave a comment

Some people say Revelation is purely symbolic.

Some people say it is literal.

Personally I consider most of the images of Revelation open to a literal interpretation, i.e. it was literally what events on earth looked like from the vantage point of heaven to a human transported there (i.e. John).

John is in the third heaven where Paul went, the same place Moses saw from the mountain and others like Daniel and Isaiah also saw. He is in eternity looking down at events on earth occurring in time. There is bound, even for this reason alone, to be considerable differences between what he saw of the same events in comparison to someone viewing them from an earthly viewpoint and in time.

I also believe that he was looking at the spiritual rather than the physical bodies of each participant.

This should make the imagery in Revelation more easily understood (perhaps ….).

Here are some thoughts:
The sea is how time looks and it also gives a spiritual view of events on earth – c.f. Rev. 13, Daniel 7:2.

All the images in Revelation to do with this earth and time arise from the Sea.

In Chapter 13:1 we see a spiritual being (the dragon or Satan) standing on the shore of the Sea. Jesus is of course enthroned above the Sea, seated at the right hand of the Father.

Animals represent creatures/ corporations with no relationship with God.

Humans represent creatures/ corporations capable of a relationship with God.

Corporations in this sense are collectives of people with one spirit, e.g. nations, empires, etc.

When Revelation speaks of life and death it is normally spiritual life and death that is meant. Of course, this is far more important than physical life and death (see Matt. 5:29-30).

Revelation can be very hard to understand. John was in the spirit in eternity. Does Revelation make more sense if what John saw and describes are actually the spirits of nations, empires and kings and not physical views of those things? What if the sequence of events recorded in Revelation is not in time (where it is linear) but in eternity (the events happen more like a disk)?

In particular take note of Rev. 15:2 – those who can be seen rising up and standing on the Sea and praising God, I believe this is us the Church worshiping here and now:

²And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, having harps of God. ³They sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying:

“Great and marvelous are Your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Just and true are Your ways,
O King of the saints!
⁴Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy.
For all nations shall come and worship before You,
For Your judgments have been manifested.”

Revelation 15:2-4

Autobiographical, General Principles, Law & Grace

Letting Grace do her work

August 20, 2014 faithfulwon Leave a comment

Jesus Christ Prince of Peace (painting by Akiane)

My youngest just “is”. She is impossible to describe but she does me good every day. Unaffected, innocent, pure, without a trace of worry and unconscious of the good she is doing, she works on my soul like a tonic reminding me every day of her namesake’s work in my spirit soul body. There is turmoil in my being at times, probably like everyone, and the cure now seems to be to let Grace do “her” work. The being I am is far too great, terrible and fantastic for me to handle, only Grace can do that. Sin shall not have dominion over me, not because I follow any law, but because of Grace. For I am not under law and she works continuously even when I am not conscious of her.

Or should that be He works?

Discipleship Series, General Principles, Wisdom

Seared Consciences

August 9, 2014 faithfulwon Leave a comment

…seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron.

1 Tim 4:2

an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God. 3“These things they will do because they have not known the Father or Me.…

John 16:2,3

Oswald Chambers in his book “Biblical Psychology” describes conscience as being like the eye that colours everything we see depending on how it is enlightened. He says (Chapter 16, section 1):

“Probably the best illustration of conscience is the human eye. The eye records what it looks at, and conscience may be pictured as the eye of the soul recording what it looks at, and, like the eye, it will always record exactly what it is turned towards.”

He then talks about how we can look at something with the human eye and interpret what we see based on our experience of similar things we have looked at in the past – therefore not seeing with innocence. Therefore,

“The recording power of conscience may be distorted or perverted and conscience itself may be seared.”

He then uses another analogy about how things can look differently depending on the colour of the light you are looking at it in:

“Then again, if you throw a white light on trees, the eye records that the trees are green; if you throw a yellow light on the trees, the eye records that the trees are blue; if you throw a red light on trees, the eye records that the trees are brown. Your logical faculties will tell you all the time that the trees are green, but the point of the illustration is that the eye has no business other than to record what it looks at; and it is the same with conscience.”

Or in other words, conscience is to the soul what the eyes are to the body. Hence the reason Jesus talks about the “eye” of the body being clear in Matthew 6:22:

“The eye is the lamp of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. 23“But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!…”

This verse doesn’t just make literal sense, it also makes sense if you substitute conscience for eye and body for soul. In fact that is probably the main way Jesus meant it to be understood:

“The conscience is the lamp of the soul; so then if your conscience is clear, your whole soul will be full of light. 23“But if your conscience is bad, your whole soul will be full of darkness. If then the light that is in you is darkness, how great is the darkness!…”

Note that the eye/ conscience is the lamp but not the light itself. It is just a carrier of the light recording what goes through it. A bad conscience or eye can be that way because of what is going through it – though in some ways the analogy begins to break down at this point.

But we can see from these verses that having a good conscience is so important. Just like a bad eye leaves the body in darkness, so a bad conscience leaves the soul in the same way. You can also mistake the little light you have that is in you as being the light you should live by. As Jesus points out “how great is that darkness!”

We see this all the time in the lives of the Muslim fanatics. Their consciences are bad since they have been taught that doing evil is good. Ask a fanatic Muslim what should happen to a convert from Islam to Christianity and they will tell you that he should be killed and that by his older brother. Hence the fear that rules in those societies where this is believed. And hence their bad consciences.

Oswald goes on to illustrate how much the conscience can be affected and how unreliable it can be by giving the example of the Apostle Paul (chapter 16, section 1. c):

” “I verily thought with myself,” i.e., according to conscience, “that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth” (Acts 26:9). If conscience is the voice of God, we have a nice problem to solve! Saul was the acme of conscientiousness.”

Then he goes on to say: “It is not sufficient for a Christian to live up to the light of his conscience; he must live in a sterner light, the light of the Lord Jesus Christ.”

So we shouldn’t be surprised at ISIS or other evil fanatics considering that they are doing the right thing for God and believing it to death. It doesn’t change the fact that the light that is in them is darkness.

Our only hope is that they will encounter Jesus like Paul did and repent:

“I was once a blasphemer and a persecutor and a violent man, I was shown mercy because I acted in ignorance and unbelief. 14The grace of our Lord was poured out on me abundantly, along with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus.

15Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. 16But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe in him and receive eternal life.”

1 Timothy 1:12-17.

As in all things, the local church of Jesus Christ on the ground in these places is the only hope they have. By contrast, US and Israeli arms will just send them to their eternal destiny quicker.

My prayer is that my brethren who are being crucified and suffering in the Middle East will not do so in vain and that in their suffering they will also know the overwhelming comfort of Jesus as they go to be with Him.

Book Reviews, General Principles

Biblical Psychology

August 4, 2014 faithfulwon 1 Comment

I’m reading Oswald Chamber’s “Biblical Psychology”, a book I read perhaps 25 years ago with little understanding then. It is a compilation of his lectures and is not an easy book to read. However I have found it easier this time around – so much of what he says rings true in my experience. Here are few excerpts expressing things that I have found to be true:

On humility (chapter 15, section 2 (b)):

“What is a little child? We all know what a child is until we are asked, and then we find we do not know. We can mention his extra goodness or his extra badness, but none of this is the child himself. We know implicitly what a child is, and we know implicitly what Jesus Christ means, but as soon as we try to put it into words it escapes.”

On the heart, memory and thinking (chapter 11, section 2 (e) and (f)):

“The brain is not a spiritual thing, the brain is a physical thing. Memory is a spiritual thing and exists in the heart; the brain recalls more or less clearly what the heart remembers. In our Lord’s parable (see Luke 16:25) when Abraham said to the rich man, “Son, remember,” He was not referring to a man with a physical brain in this order of things at all….. We never forget save by the sovereign grace of God; the problem is that we do not recall easily. Recalling depends on the state of our physical brain and when people say they have a bad memory, they mean that they have a bad power of recalling.”

“Thinking takes place in the heart not in the brain. … The expression of thinking is referred to the brain and the lips because through these organs thinking becomes articulate… We may take it as a general rule that Jesus Christ never answers any questions that spring from a man’s head, because the questions which spring from our brains are always borrowed from some book we have read, or from someone we have heard speak; but the questions that spring from our hearts, the real problems that vex us, Jesus Christ answers those.”

And my favourite so far (chapter 15, section 2(b)):

“the Holy Ghost is the only Lover of God, and immediately He comes in, He will make our hearts the centre of love for God, the centre of personal, passionate, over-whelming devotion to Jesus Christ…..until we become incandescent with the very love of God. “Keep yourselves in the love of God” (Jude 21). That does not mean keep on trying to love God, it means something infinitely profounder, i.e., ‘Keep the windows of your soul open to the fact that God loves you’; then His love will continually flow through you to others.”

General Principles, Wisdom

The Relationship between the Four Wisdom Books in Scripture

July 12, 2014 faithfulwon Leave a comment

There is no substitute for a personal relationship with the Author when reading His Scriptures. However in the mystery of the interaction of the Holy Spirit and our minds the guidance of others is always welcome. We can get His gentle whisperings or the mind of Christ wrong at times. So God has given us the collective mind of Christ in our brothers and sisters.

Well, anyway, I thought this* was so good that I had to write out chunks of it again here:

The Big Picture

“Each of the four wisdom books (Proverbs, Job, Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs) is different in its contribution to our education in wise living. … The four books balance each other theologically, and any one of them read out of the context of the others can be easily misunderstood. Basically, Proverbs presents the rational, ordered norms of life, while the other three books present the exceptions and limitations to the rational, ordered approach to life.”

The Basic Approach to Life (Proverbs)

“Proverbs presents the rational, ordered norms of life. The many proverbs in the book are not universals (i.e. things that are always true), but rather norms of life (i.e. things that are normally true). …”

Exception 1: The Suffering of the Righteous (Job)

“The book of Job demonstrates that there are often events in life that humans cannot grasp or understand through the wisdom approach delineated in Proverbs. Sometimes tragedy strikes those who are wise, righteous and hard working, and God does not disclose the reasons behind such tragedy. Proverbs teaches us that life is rational and that the wise person can understand it. Job qualifies this with some real-world experience….. Our wisdom approach of Proverbs fails us in these situations, and we are forced to rely on faith in the Creator. This is what we learn from Job.”

Exception 2: The Failure of the Rational, Ordered Approach to Provide Ultimate Meaning to Life (Ecclesiastes)

“The book of Ecclesiastes is an intellectual search for meaning in life. While the author acknowledges that being wise is better than being stupid, he concludes that wisdom does not by itself provide meaning to life. Also, while Job told the story of one exception to the norms of Proverbs, the cynical analysis in Ecclesiastes chronicles numerous exceptions to the thesis of an ordered, rational universe. The ultimate conclusion in Ecclesiastes, not disclosed until the final verses, is that the only way to find meaning in life is to be in relationship with God. Logic and rational thought (wisdom) can help you on a day-to-day basis, but ultimate meaning in life requires relationship with God.”

Exception 3: The Irrationality of Romantic Love between a Husband and Wife (Song of Songs)

“Proverbs gives good, practical, wise advice about marriage. It advises men not to marry women who are quarrelsome or ill-tempered (21:9, 19) and it depicts clearly for women the fate of lazy fools and drunkards, thus implicitly warning against marrying such men. ….. All this advice is good and rational.

“However it is difficult to build a great love relationship in marriage with only logic and rational thought. The Song of Songs celebrates the wild, irrational, mushy, and corny aspects of true love. This book suggests that in the marketplace husbands and wives may need to be the quiet, discerning, hard working people of Proverbs, but that once the lights go out in the privacy of their home, they need to be the crazy, madly-in-love, slightly irrational couple in Song of Songs.”

Amen to that.

*All quotes are taken from “Grasping God’s Word” 3rd Edition, by Duvall & Hays, Chapter 22.

church, Family, General Principles

Anger May Be An Appropriate Response

June 27, 2014 faithfulwon Leave a comment

When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. (John 11:33)

The word translated “deeply moved” contains the sense of a brimming over and the word translated “troubled” is a hard word more akin to anger. Jesus wept shortly afterwards. The context is the death of His good friend Lazarus.

As a church we recently experienced to loss of a seven year old who had fought cancer for years and finally died of complications arising from the struggle and treatment. All sorts of emotions arise when you attend a funeral like that. Anger at God might be one of them. But being angry with (i.e. in company with) God might be a better way of seeing it. Jesus is God and He was angry too in similar circumstances.

So what troubled him so much that he brimmed over, wept and was angry? He knew what He was about to do. And it wasn’t too long before that He had told Martha that amazing truth:

” I am the Resurrection and the Life, he who believes in Me will live even if he dies, and everyone who lives and believes in Me will never die.”

John 11:25, 26a

So it wasn’t the death so much as the distress caused by the death that was the issue for Jesus. All that terrible consequence of the fall of Adam. Perhaps He was also thinking of what He had to go through to finally put an end to death.

So, anger is not a wrong emotion to feel at such times. Jesus felt it so there is no good reason why you shouldn’t also.