HelpMe God Week 2 – I'm Angry | Mark 3, James 1

Have you ever lost your temper? Do you ever dothings you wish you hadn’t done, or say things you wish you hadnever said?

I believe that the majority of us would saythat dealing with the emotion of anger is the most complex andchallenging of them all on a day-in day-out basis.

Anger can and will surface at the strangesttimes, brought about for the strangest of reasons, and exhibited inthe strangest ways.

Anger, if not handled properly, canbe a very dangerous and destructive emotion. It can be hurtful to usphysically, emotionally, relationally and spiritually.

There is always a price tag for improperlyhandling anger. Anyone who has experienced an incident when they lettheir anger get the best of them will admit that the actionscommitted in that kind of anger are later regretted.

That's the reason that we need to cry out, “Godhelp me, I'm angry.”

Mark 3:1-6.

Another time Jesus went into the synagogue, anda man with a shriveled hand was there. 2 Some of them were lookingfor a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see ifhe would heal him on the Sabbath. 3 Jesus said to the man with theshriveled hand, “Stand up in front of everyone.”

4 Then He said to them, “Is it lawful on theSabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?” Butthey kept silent.

“5 And when He had looked around at them withanger, being grieved by the hardness of their hearts, He said to theman, “Stretch out your hand.” And he stretched it out, and hishand was restored as whole as the other. 6 Then the Pharisees wentout and immediately plotted with the Herodians against Him, how theymight destroy Him.”

Jesus experienced Anger!

  • We know about the time Jesus was angry in the temple...people were being cheated and kept from worshiping...so tables got flipped
  • We might also be familiar with the time Jesus got angry at his disciples for keeping children from coming to him...but we may not be as familiar with this passage
  • The Pharisees had lost their compassion for others.
  • They did not care about the condition of the man with the withered hand.
  • All that mattered was maintaining legalistic obedience to the letter of the law.
  • They believed their traditions were more important than easing the pain or meeting the needs of another human being.
  • They had forgotten that " the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath." Mark 2:27.
  • Jesus looks at them in anger.
  • Yep...anger! Why?
  • He recognizes their compassion-less “rule keeping” mindset.
  • God had not given the law to keep people from experiencing love and compassion...and yet that’s exactly what these law-givers were doing
  • Withholding healing and compassion – IN THE NAME OF GOD
  • So yeah...Jesus was angry about that
  • How Jesus expressed His anger.
  • -He did not explode in a rage.
  • -He did not call down fire from heaven on them in wrath.
  • -He did not allow a resentful anger to smolder down inside Him.
  • -He didn't suppress His anger.
  • Jesus chose to channel His anger into carefully chosen words and to care for a man in need,
  • demonstrating the proper response that should be given.
  • Jesus love and compassion was greater than his anger
  • SLIDE What about us
  • When we become angry...what do we do
  • Explode in rage
  • Burry it away inside
  • Or channel it into acts of compassion?
  • As with sadness – it is important to remember that sometimes...anger fits the facts of what we experience in life
  • When we see people being mistreated
  • When someone hurts us of the ones we love
  • When we see people using God’s name to with hold love and compassion...
  • These are times when ANGER happens
  • So we must let the anger be there...and then we must say
  • HELP ME GOD – I'm angry...so that anger can be directed in a way that honors God

James 1:19-20 (New American Standard)

“Everyone must be quick to hear, slow tospeak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve therighteousness of God.

Anger can be DANGEROUS

Our anger has been compared to the combustibleexplosions in a car engine that produces the power to make the carmove. When those explosions are under control, they will take the carsafely to its destination.

But,... if instead of controlling the flow ofgas producing these orderly explosions -- we ignited all the gas inthe tank at once -- we'd blow up both the car and ourselves.

  • Proverbs 14:17 (NIV) says, "A quick-tempered man does foolish things." We already knew that because we’ve experienced that in our own lives.
  • Some may blame their quick temper on their red hair. Or they may blame it on their heritage, “After all, I'm Irish”, or something like that. They may even be proud of it.
  • But the bottom line is, if we have a short fuse, we’re going to do a lot of foolish things. When we lose our temper we’ll say things we know we shouldn’t have said, and do things that we’re going to be sorry for later on.
  • Our problem is that we seldom become angry for the right reasons or motives. Human anger tends to be self-motivated rather than God-motivated.
  • So HOW...how does God’s help with our anger

Proverbs 19:11“The discretion of a man makes him slowto anger, And his glory is to overlook a transgression.

1. Slow down anger response – putit through the filter of the Holy Spirit

  • Now there is the secret, isn’t it? If someone offends us, and if we are persons of wisdom (God’s wisdom), can we overlook it, and not allow the situation to become a major event that overwhelms us?
  • In Proverbs 16:32 having patience and a controlled temper is honored above being a great warrior. It says, "He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit, than he who captures a city."
  • In a land where safety depended on might and skill in warfare, this statement may seem surprising. Yet conquering oneself (14:17, 29; 25:28; 29:11) is of greater virtue than conquering a city.
  • If we are slow to anger, or are self-controlled, we possess an ability so great in God's eyes that it's more valuable than the ability to defeat an entire city.

Dr. David Seamands said, “Anger is a divinelyimplanted emotion. Closely allied to our instinct for right, it isdesigned to be used for constructive spiritual purposes. The personwho cannot feel anger at evil is a person who lacks enthusiasm forgood. If you cannot hate wrong, it is very questionable whether youreally love righteousness. To not express anger is to not be human."

2. Do something with the anger you feel

  • Anger is a normal emotion God put it in us to begin with.
  • But it is easy to turn immediately to sin when this emotion fills us...
  • Ephesians 4:26-27 “Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath, 27 nor give place to the devil.”
  • The point is.. it is possible to be angry and not sin. Anger in and of itself is not bad, God created anger for a good purpose – with good intentions.
  • Rather than turn our anger into sin with resentment, retaliation...we must do what Jesus did...control our anger and funnel it into act of compassion
  • Scripture says that it IS possible to control our emotions, to be good AND mad.
  • Maybe an infusion of anger is the very thing that the church needs.
  • To become angry at the increase injustice in this world
  • To become angry at the abuse of alcohol and drugs in our community.
  • To be anger that whole groups of people are being told God doesn’t love them because they look act or think differently
  • To become angry because there are millions of people who are dying and going to Christ-less graves.
  • Perhaps...It is time for the church to become angry, with a sanctified anger, a holy anger, that is channeled in the right places.
  • Into creating a safe place for people to experience God’s love for them
  • Into teaching better coping mechanisms than drugs or alcohol
  • Into speaking out against injustices in this world
  • Into proclaiming the Gospel of God’s love louder and more frequently to a dying world...

CONCLUSION

“God help me, I'm angry,”

Help me be angry for the rightreasons...because all too often our anger has nothing to do withGod's purposes in our lives.

Help me to channel my anger into compassion forothers...God has given us His Word and His Spirit to work in us toenable us to harness and take control over our anger so it becomes apositive and not a negative force in our life.

God wants us "to be angry and sin notsin." And GOD WILL HELP!