I was frustrated.
Typically when I have a question I write it in the back of my Bible with a reference to the chapter and verse that I'm confused with. Then I will seek out someone who is older and wiser and knows the answers to my questions. Sometimes it takes awhile and sometimes the question can be answered in the matter of a sentence. But this question I could not seem to get an answer that satisfied me.
My question was why is God so angry in the Old Testament, yet so loving in the New Testament. Why does He seem to change if God is supposed to be the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow? The verse that got me thinking was Exodus 32:11-12, "But Moses tried to pacify the Lord his God. “O Lord!” he said. “Why are you so angry with your own people whom you brought from the land of Egypt with such great power and such a strong hand? Why let the Egyptians say, ‘Their God rescued them with the evil intention of slaughtering them in the mountains and wiping them from the face of the earth’? Turn away from your fierce anger. Change your mind about this terrible disaster you have threatened against your people!" The exact question I wrote in my Bible was, "How can God be angry? Is He allowed to be angry?" In short the answer is yes, and I'll explain why.
You see, God didn't change, but the circumstances did.
In the Old Testament, God had a lot of righteous and Holy anger as He very well should. The Israelites kept sinning and God kept punishing them. When they used His name in vain God said they were to be stoned to death. If you took another man's life, God said you were to be put to death. If you killed another man's animal, God said you had to pay it in full. God hated sin. So that's why He sent his son. Now switch to the New Testament. When Jesus was crucified, God's wrath was nailed to the cross.
Jesus died a sinner's death even though He never sinned a day in His life.
His Holy wrath was poured out on sin that day, so after that all God had was love.
His love is unconditional. I am so fortunate to have such loving parents. It makes it so easy to understand God's unconditional love. I know no matter how bad I mess up, my parents will always love me. So when people think that God is angry at them, they just don't understand God. Your sin has already been paid in full. All of His righteous anger has already been poured out. You are a new creation. God can't be angry at you because all He has is love. Sure He may be disappointed because He knows you know better, just like your parents may be disappointed in you. But no matter how bad you mess up, you can drag your smelly, bruised, tattered, and broken self back to God and confess your sin and He will bring you up into His lap and say, "You are my child and I will always love you, no matter how far you stray, you are mine."
So God had a right to be angry in the Old Testament. The sins that the Israelites were committing had not been paid for. But our sins, our sins have been paid for. Jesus paid it all. Jesus paid it all, how powerful are those words? Jesus died the death that we should have died. We should have taken on God's wrath. To be completely honest, I'm not sure I would have lasted a day in the Old Testament, lucky for me, my sins have been paid for. All of them, every last one. Every time I used His name in vain, every time I've dishonored my mom or dad, every time I've idolized some stupid object that has no comparison to you majesty, honor, and grace, you have forgiven me. So He's not angry at you, He loves you, run into His open arms. He is calling you. He calls you daughter, He calls you son, He calls you friend.