We began last week to get a closer look at the kind of righteousness that we are to walk in as disciples and followers of Jesus Christ.

 

Simple put we are to be different, different than we were before God came into our lives, and different than those around us. This difference will cause us to be salt and light in a needy and broken world.

 

Do you , do I, really, deeply desire to change? Is the Father at work in you, in me, to transform us into the image of His Son Jesus Christ through power of the indwelling Holy Spirit? Do you, do I, truly desire to be kingdom people?

 

Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount shows us what it is to be kingdom people in a fallen world

 

Last week we saw that Jesus went straight to the heart of what some people call the second tablet of the law -- those commandments having to do with human relationships – to the commandment about murder.

 

Absence of murder does not reveal a deep righteousness. Most unrighteous people I know have not murdered anyone lately. But their hearts and lives may be filled with anger, bitterness, malice, prejudice, contempt, and hatred toward others, or simply with selfish neglect of the good of others.

 

The emphasis of Jesus’ words in Matthew 5 is on relationships. There is no righteousness apart from rightness of relationships.

 

There is no deep spirituality apart from rightness of relationships.

 

Now, we have only begun to look at all the Sermon on the Mount is going to tell us about our role in right relationships.

 

Last week, to make the point that in a narrow sense Jesus was speaking here more about broken relationships, I contrasted what we might think of simply as bad temper or impatience with bitterness and hatred toward another person.

 

However, I need to deal with anger in a broader sense today and show how all kinds of anger – rage and temper included also ultimately contribute to brokenness in relationships.

 

I also want to help us see how the Scripture leads us to deal not only to obvious relationship conflict, but to some of the patterns which contribute to that conflict.

 

Anger is an emotional bi-product of or reaction to a threat or hurt or disappointment or frustration or injustice in our lives.

 

We wanted something and didn’t get it. We didn’t want something and did get it. A person or thing just keeps frustrating us. Our honor is offended.

 

Sometimes anger is good. When the Mongol hordes are swarming across the land, a little anger and aggression might help keep them at bay. When the powerful are killing the weak anger can help motivate us to intervene. But mostly anger isn’t good.

 

This emotion may express itself quickly and violently with or without personal animosity. It may simmer under the surface. It may develop into bitterness or hatred or malice. It may channel itself into cynicism. It may seek comfort in alcohol or drugs. It may vent itself in dark and biting sarcasm. It may express itself in open aggression. It may seek outlet sexually. It may look for subtle ways to find revenge all the while smiling and acting as if there is nothing wrong.

 

Different people handle disappointment and frustration and injustice differently. Temperament plays a part. Training and upbringing molds the way we deal with life situations. Our genetic material impacts our natural capacity to deal with frustration.

 

One man who comes to Christ is hot tempered; another is easy going; another holds grudges. One had a stable home with decent parents; another had a violent and angry home; another was abused by a parent.

 

As individuals what is important is that from wherever we start out we grow from there into the image of Christ. If all of us are growing in Christ from where we started, then as a whole we will be different from the surrounding world and our community will be different too. But God works with the material at hand when it comes to us as individuals.

 

The Apostle Paul spoke to this fundamental purpose of being remade into the image of Christ in Ephesians four, and he sued anger as an example of whet he meant.

 

 

Paul here underlines Jesus’ words in Matthew. Jesus said that our righteousness must surpass that of the teachers of the law and Pharisees. Paul here says that we are to put on the new self created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

 

The bible is so practical, so real. So right off Paul tells us what he means. We are to speak truthfully and put off falsehood. Jesus Himself deals with the matter of truthful speech in the Sermon on the Mount. Then Paul addresses the issue of anger. OK, so putting off the old self which is being corrupted, and putting on the new self created to be like God in true righteousness, thought this sounds so high and lofty and ethereal and super spiritual comes down to something so earthy and everyday as dealing with anger.

 

Yes, this is the Christian life. This is Christian spirituality.

 

Paul says, quoting the Greek version of Psalm 4, verse 4,

 

 

This is not granting permission to be angry, but recognizing that anger will occur, and warning us what to do and not do when it does occur.

 

Let’s take a quick peek back as Psalm 4:

 

In Psalm 4 David is in distress and deep anguish. He is under pressure of his enemies, and is being the victim of their terrible slanders. He has a lot to feel anger and anguish about. Night is approaching.

 

You’ve been there. A bad day. One disappointment after another. A wrongs suffered. Night is approaching. Brooding ahead. Sleeplessness. Fear. Worry.

 

Psalm 4 opens up with David crying out to God. That’s always where we start in dealing with frustration and disappointment.

 

 

Then he directs his hearts toward those who are bringing him harm and slandering his name, who do not believe David to be God’s anointed.

 

 

In verse 3 we don’t know if David is still directing his thoughts to the ungodly or to himself or just to the reader of the Psalm. But he affirms what is really important and opens up the key to dealing with the turmoil inside.

 

 

When I am angry or troubled, I choose not to act upon that anger. I don’t take matters into my own hands. I don’t retaliate. I don’t lash out. In meekness I turn to the one who has set me apart from himself and I call out to Him. He will be my mighty rock. He will vindicate me if I need to be vindicated.

 

 

The Hebrew seems to say not “be angry” but “tremble” – so the serve reads “tremble” but do not sin. The idea is that I am filled with passionate emotion and I am trembling –with anger, fear, frustration, hurt, whatever. It’s there, I can’t just make it go away. But what I do with it is crucial.

 

I call to the Lord. He is my God. I am His. I pray. I seek Him. I search my heart, that is, I look into the reality of my own heart, I remember who God is and who I am, and I quiet myself in faith before him. I remember that he is God; he is in control, and that he loves me, and I choose to trust him

 

 

That is, some doubt that the Lord will deliver. But I will call upon Him anyway. I will ask Him to fill me not with whatever I am angry not to have, but with himself.

 

 

Because, see, even for David, the rightful King, when the Lord who is his shepherd lets the light of his face shine upon David, this fills David with more joy than all the advantages and privileges of being king. OK, so there are imposters out there posing as king. Yes, they are murderers and thieves and they hate David and David’s God. Right now they are sitting pretty. They are prosperous. They are eating and drinking and doing great. And here’s David on the run and in hiding.

 

Nevertheless.

 

 

And so…

 

 

 

Now back to Ephesians 4.

 

Paul goes onto say

 

 

The focus of what Paul is saying is that if we are to put on Christ and be remade in his image, we must not indulge anger.

 

Indulging anger is a decision. It is a moral choice. Anger is not primarily a psychological issue but a moral issue.

 

The blood vessels dilate, the anger builds, and we want to act. We write the blistering letter in our minds. We let that person have it. We storm around and say all sorts of things we shouldn’t. We make threats. We get in someone’s face.

 

Doesn’t the verse here seem to suggest letting anger out? I mean, if we’re not to let the sun go down on it, shouldn’t we just let it out and get rid of it? No. Letting it out doesn’t get rid of it.

 

A lot of anger is not caused directly by another person. If it is, or if the anger person thinks it is, it may or may not be possible to work through the matter with that person before the day is over. If you are really angry or upset it probably isn’t the best time to work through it anyway. Often a good night’s sleep or a day or two just sitting on it will bring perspective and you will wonder why you were so upset in the first place.

 

So how do you not let the sun go down on your anger? By doing as David said in Psalm 4. By talking your anger to the Lord and working through it with Him.

 

Don’t go to bed brooding or nursing a grudge. Doing that lets the anger take root in the heart. Deal with your anger before the Lord. Tremble before the Lord and call out to him until you are quieted before Him, and go to sleep trusting Him for your good.

 

Don’t indulge your anger, either before sundown or the next day!

 

Anger indulged wreaks more havoc.

 

 

 

Anger indulged gives the devil a foothold, which is how Paul ends his exhortation about anger.

 

 

Behind the scenes, waiting to take advantage of any opportunity, is the great enemy of God and of our souls.

 

The devil will take advantage of anger indulged – whether indulged openly and quickly in hot temper or indulged over time passive aggressively in gossip or support denied -- to wreak havoc in relationships, to dishonor the name of God, to discredit the gospel of Jesus Christ, to make us miserable, to divide and conquer us. The devil fights against peace, love, and unity. He lurks around angry people ready to exploit their passion and wreak havoc on relationships.

 

We must resist the devil. We must take our stand against the devil’s schemes. We must stand firm and escape his traps.

 

We cannot be salt and light if we indulge our anger. We cannot be remade into the image of Christ if we indulge our anger.

 

Anger and all it’s forms of expression is a bigger issue for some than others.

 

For some of us it has wreaked havoc upon our lives. We find, even though we did not mean to or desire to, that out temper, or aggressive approach to conflict, has alienated people everywhere we have gone. Or, we have found that though we have been spared relational consequences as a result of our anger, that it is eating us up inside. Or we have found that we continually find ourselves expressing anger through fantasies of getting even or telling someone off or writing angry letters.

 

We have not seemed able to get a handle on it and the devil has gotten a foothold.

 

The first thing to do is to see this issue in moral and spiritual and not therapeutic terms. When we look at anger therapeutically we tend to think of anger as a sickness and the causes of anger as like bacteria. We tend to blame our anger on others, living or dead. We say things like, OK, I’m not happy, in fact, I’m angry, and anger isn’t good for me, so I must somehow get rid of the sources of my anger, I must make changes in my life, I must hand out with people who don’t make me angry or unhappy, maybe a new wife, or new kids, or new church, or new job, etc. etc.

 

Rather we must see anger in moral and spiritual terms. Anger is sin. But even here, not so much in terms of private morality or private spiritual wholeness but in larger terms -- by the grace of God, and by His indwelling Spirit, in terms of what your life purpose is before your creator God – to be made into the image of Christ, and with others in community to be salt and light in a hurting world.

 

If there is even a hint that aggression or anger or impatience is hindering your god given purpose to love God with all your heart and your neighbor as yourself, but maybe you’re not sure, then ask a bunch of Christian friends if they think this is the case, and be open to their counsel.

 

Once identified, start practicing regularly what David speaks about in Psalm 4.

 

However, if anger is just to deeply rooted into your life, you may need more help. I would encourage you to lay out the issues before a group of Christian friends, or go see your pastor, or go see someone who can work with you over time and help you make progress in this important part of your life as a disciple of Jesus.