In the Bible, we encounter passages dealing with God being angry, bringing wrath, loving, caring, etc. Some Atheists have complained that God, after all, is merely an angry tyrant. They imagine God on his throne, in the throes of some galactic temper-tantrum, tossing about bolts of judgement and murdering entire races of people. The flip side is the version of God who is so sickly sweet and loving, that he cannot fathom harming a fly. After all, God is love. So, does this mean that God possesses emotions akin to human emotions?
This is not an easy question to answer because there are many things God reveals about himself which tend to be at odds with human emotions. The first and foremost problem, as I see it, is the doctrine of immutability. Immutability simply means unchanging. God is always the same. Now for us, the idea of immutability is a foreign category. That just means there is nothing unchangeable in creation. We change from second to second as time and motion encompass us, forcing us to move and react to thousands of different stimuli. However, God does not change. He is unlike us in a way that makes him seem almost alien.
Why is immutability a problem with emotions? I believe one problem is in the ambiguous definition of emotion. I think that the word emotion itself is poorly defined. This is because it is difficult to define exactly what constitutes anger and love by human standards. So let us consider what it means for a human to have emotions. What is an emotion and from whence does it arise? Consider the last time you were angry. Do you remember the feeling of anger? Where did that feeling come from and where did it go afterward when you were calmed. I truly do not know, but I do know that we change. Emotion is, at the very least, ‘motion within.’ How can a God, who does not change, have an internal motion that changes? Immutability suggests that God does not have such a thing happen to him.
Now the doctrine of immutability cannot be held ‘above scripture.’ What do I mean by that? I mean that, one can object that the doctrine of immutability is dependent upon scripture which means it should not be interpreted in a way that directly contradicts other scripture. In short, I cannot use the doctrine of immutability to overturn the doctrine of the Trinity. Both are taught in scripture and since both have the same authority, we cannot claim superiority of one to ‘overthrow’ the other. They must harmonize together somehow. In other words, if emotions change within God, then he is not unchangeable in every way. However, if God is unchangeable in every way, he cannot have emotions (as we have currently defined them). Either our definition of emotion is wrong, or our definition of immutability is wrong.
Now, In order to define emotion biblically, I ask simply what is love Biblically? How does the Bible define love for people? Is it by feeling “Peter do you love me?” Or is it by action, “Feed my sheep.” I will argue that love is by action, not feeling. As the old DC Talk song proclaimed, “Luv is a verb.” Most people would cite 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, “Love is patient, love is kind…” From there they would argue that patience is a disposition of the individual’s feelings. They might argue that patience is an inner emotion. Certainly, kindness towards someone seems to require an internal disposition of warmth toward someone. I do not intend to list all the characteristics mentioned in 1 Corinthians 13, but I do intend to point out that someone who is extremely angry can still exhibit patience. Someone who internally hates your guts can still be kind to you. If patience can be contrary to the inner disposition in the way I have just described, then the inner disposition is not what is in view.
Even so, let us dig further. Romans 13:10 provides us an unambiguous definition of love. It reads (ESV), “Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” This is a concrete and unambiguous definition of what love is! Love is the fulfilling of the law. This suggests to me that when we define the terms love and hate as they relate to God, we should not import the human category of internal disposition or ‘feelings’ and try to attribute them to God’s internal disposition. Rather, we should focus on God’s actions.
A few conclusions can be drawn through inference. First, when the Bible says that God hates evil, we should know that God will punish evil. Hatred is synonymous with action against. This also suggests that we, as humans, can act hatefully against people we care about. Consider homosexual unions where two people will swear by everything under the sun that they love each other, yet by disobedience to God’s law, are actually acting hatefully toward one another. Also consider how it could ever be possible to love your enemy if your disposition must match your actions. I love my children because I do not act out my feelings against them from time to time. When I restrain myself from making that snide remark to my wife, I am still loving. In other words, true love comes often when you do what is right (i.e., follow God’s commandments) for someone despite how you feel.
Finally, to return to God. Many biblical passages on love will seem much more consistent with the definition that scripture has provided. The question of immutability and emotion in God can be answered in a way that doesn’t harm the Gospel. Therefore, I suggest that we remember that God is not emotional like we are emotional. He never changes, he always loves what he loves and hates what he hates. He does not change his feelings based on your social status, race, or class. He is not a man, because he is much better.
Chairistotle 