Jump Start # 1407

Ephesians 4:26-27 “Be angry, and yet do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and do not give the devil an opportunity.”

  Anger is a tough one to deal with. It can come so quickly. We can be doing just fine and then something happens and in an instant we are angry. It takes a lot longer to cool down than it does to get angry. Some are still mad days after something happened. Maybe this is why we have the “do not let the sun go down” phrase. The longer it simmers, the more we steam. Have you ever noticed how many different words and expressions we have for anger? We could start with the nice and delicate terms such as, “upset,” or, “mad.” But there are others. Boiling. Rage. Fuming. Anger is the reaction from things that don’t go as we planned. Our anger can be pointed at the government, our boss, the neighbors, our family, or, even God.

Naaman the leper got angry. He was told a miraculous cure for his incurable disease. He had to dip seven times in the Jordan River. That wasn’t what he wanted to hear. You’d think he be happy with any answer that would get rid of his leprosy. He was counting on the prophet showing up. He didn’t come. He expected the prophet to wave his hands and say some profound words. Didn’t happen. No one waved their hands. No profound words. The message came from a servant, not even the prophet. He got mad.

There are Naaman’s today. Instead of leprosy, they have a worse disease. They have incurable sin. They will die with that. It will take their souls. There is one solution, the blood of Jesus. When the crowd  interrupted Peter’s sermon with a desperate plea, “What shall we do?” Peter told them to repent and be baptized for the remission of their sins. The blood of Christ would cure them of their sins. But there are some who, like Naaman, do not want to hear that. They don’t want to dip in water. They expected a miracle. They expected something dramatic. Like Naaman, they walk away mad. Some never come back.

Anger—it is mentioned often in the Bible. James tells us to be quick to hear and slow to speak and slow to anger. I know a few who are slow to anger. It takes a lot for them to get mad. Others get mad fast and quick. They are known to have a short fuse. It doesn’t take much and they are good and mad. James further tells us that the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God. Anger takes us the wrong direction.

Is it wrong to be angry? Jesus, the gospels tell us, looked upon the crowd with anger. We know that Jesus never sinned. The question we ought to be asking is not whether anger is wrong, but what does anger do to us. Usually, that answer isn’t very pretty. Some tailgate the car in front of them, blowing their horn the whole time. Some say mean words that are later hard to forgive and take back. Others punch. They might punch a wall or someone’s face. I’ve seen golfers throwing their clubs in disgust at a terrible shot. Sometimes the trail of disaster that follows anger is like the path of a tornado. You can just see where an angry person has been. Some are afraid to speak their minds for fear that it will make someone angry with them and they will get a chewing out. An angry person is intimidating and often feared.

Folks have gotten angry during church services. It happens. It rather kills the atmosphere of worship. A few of us preachers have been known to preach when we were mad. Instead of teaching others about Jesus, we used the sermon to whip and beat up on some. Most times that just deepens problems.

Our passage reveals three DO NOT’s. Did you see them?

• Do not sin. Be angry and yet do not sin. That’s really tough for many of us. To be angry without any controls means we are likely to think, say and do things that we shouldn’t. We justify it because we are angry. We’ve been mistreated so we are going to set the score right. We are going to get our own justice. Like the mobs in the Old West, we want to string someone up without a trial. We’ve become the judge, jury and executioner.  Interesting the passage does not say, DO NOT BE ANGRY. That’s nearly impossible. People will disappoint us. People will hurt us. We will spend our money on products that do not work. Be angry, but don’t sin. Control the situation. Control the temperature. Self-control is the key.

• Do not let the sun go down on your anger. Deal with it. Get over it. Move on. Forgive. That’s the thought. The more you linger on the hurt and the injustice, the worse you become. Anger moves quickly to telling others and then getting even. Wrath follows anger. It’s hard to find wrath without finding anger first. Sometimes it helps to get away from the situation, collect your thoughts, think reasonably and then respond. This is not to say look the other way. This is not to say let others take advantage of you. But this is saying, Do not let the sun go down on your anger. That’s Biblical. That’s God’s command. We give reason for being mad because of our situation. We think we are justified in allowing our anger to grow. The longer you think about it, the madder you become. Let it go. Remember our Lord, He was reviled and uttered no threats back. Boy, could He. But, He didn’t. He lived this passage.

• Do not give the Devil an opportunity. That’s an interesting statement. It’s just hanging out there. We’d expect something to be connected to it. Don’t give the Devil an opportunity for what? What’s the opportunity? The opportunity is for the Devil to take hold of you and take advantage of you. Being mad, your guard is down. You are seeing red and only red. You’ve taken your eyes off of the Lord. That’s just the chance the Devil has been waiting for. Now, like that roaring lion, he’s ready to plunge at you. He’s been waiting. He’s been watching you. And now, while driving home, your guard has been dropped. Another driver has gotten you angry and now Satan lunges at you. At work, you are ready to head out the door, but here comes another stack of papers that are dropped on your desk. Not now, you think. And in an instant, Satan pounces on you, right at work. It may happen at home while you are watching a show on TV. The cable goes out, or there is a weather bulletin and you miss part of the show. Just like that you get mad and just like that, the lion who you never saw on the other side of the couch has leaped upon your heart. Angry words. Angry thoughts. Angry actions. Angry attitude. Our anger is an invitation for Satan to come right over and come on in. We have a couple of invitations on our frig. We have them there as reminders. One is for a birthday party and the other is for a wedding. Our anger can be a fancy invitation for Satan to come and ruin our day. He can, using our anger, ruin relationships. He can, using our anger, ruin our souls.

So, what am I do to? Do Not…implies that I’m not going for a ride and my emotions are at the wheel of my life. No, sir. I’m at the wheel. The very expression, do not, means that I have a choice. I can sin or I may not sin. I can let the sun go down on my anger or I may not let the sun go down on my anger. I can give the devil an opportunity or I may not give him a chance. My call. It’s up to me. Am I going to let anger take me for a ride or am I going to fence it in and not let it get the best of me?

I wonder what the apostle would think about our times. We live in angry times. The movies are about angry people. The music is angry. People are angry. It seems that everyone has a chip on their shoulders and they are just daring someone to knock it off. Offended is just the breeding ground for anger. Too many are overly sensitive these days. If a person says the wrong thing, it’s just the ticket for someone to blow up at them. It’s hard today, with so many angry people all around us.

These words are just as true where I live as they were in far away Ephesus. Do not…do not…do not.

What we should do, is honor the Lord.

I hope this helps.

Roger