Kingdom Relationships Series

Several years ago, the Arizona Republic carried a story about Steve Tran of Westminster, California. He activated 25 bug bombs in his apartment to get rid of some unwanted guests, the cockroaches that shared the space with him. He closed the door thinking he had seen the last of them. But when the spray reached the pilot light of the stove, it ignited, blasting his screen door across the street, breaking all his windows, and setting his furniture on fire.

He said, “I really wanted to kill all of them, [and] I thought if I used a lot more, it would last longer.” According to the label, just two canisters of the pesticide would have solved Tran's roach problem.

As it was, the blast caused over $10,000 damage to his apartment building. And the cockroaches? Tran reported, “By Sunday, I saw them walking around.”

Proverbs 29:11 says, only “a fool gives full vent to his anger.” (The Arizona Republic, 4/25/95, Leadership, Vol.17, no.2; www.PreachingToday.com)

Anger is destructive, and it seldom if ever gets rid of the problem. James 1 says, “The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God” (James 1:20).

So what are you supposed to do with your anger when it wells up within you? How are you supposed to handle the rage that sometimes arises within? Well, if you have your Bibles, I invite you to turn with me to Matthew 5, Matthew 5, where Jesus addresses the subject of anger.

Matthew 5: 21 You have heard that it was said to those of old [better “said BY those of old] ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ (ESV)

What are you supposed to do with your anger? Well, the old legal experts, the Scribes, said...

DON’T COMMIT MURDER when you’re angry.

Don’t kill someone or you could be in trouble with the law. Don’t take a person’s life or a judge could penalize you.

And they’re right. You don’t want to do anything stupid when you’re angry, or you could end up in jail; or worse than that, you could end up in the electric chair.

You certainly don’t want that, but somehow their answer seems inadequate, and that’s because the scribes focused only on the outward act and its consequences. Jesus has a better answer when it comes to dealing with anger.

Matthew 5:22 “But I say to you...”

The scribes and pharisees loved to quote one another and the old legal experts. Jesus does not quote anybody. He speaks with all the authority of God Himself, reminiscent of the Old Testament prophets, who said on numerous occasions, “Thus says the Lord!” The old legal experts said such and such, but I myself say to you – the “I” is emphatic in the original Greek. Jesus speaks with all the authority of God in the flesh, so we better pay attention.

Matthew 5:22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment... (ESV)

The old legal experts said, “Don’t commit murder,” but I say to you...

DON’T EVEN THINK MURDEROUS THOUGHTS.

Don’t commit murder in your heart. Don’t harbor bitterness and anger within.

Warren Wiersbe says the anger Jesus describes here is “a settled anger, malice that is nursed inwardly.” In classical Greek usage, the term “is especially oriented to revenge” (Theological Dictionary of the New Testament). When someone hurts you, the natural response is to want to hurt them back, but Jesus warns, “Don’t nurse those thought of revenge. Don’t dwell on how you’re going to get even,” or that could land you in jail, as well.

David Brooks, in an article for the New York Times called “When the Good do Bad” talks about David Buss, a professor at the University of Texas. He asked his students if they had ever thought seriously about killing someone, and if so, to write out their homicidal fantasies in an essay. He was astonished to find that 91 percent of the men and 84 percent of the women had detailed, vivid homicidal fantasies. He was even more astonished to learn how many steps some of his students had taken toward carrying them out.

One woman invited an abusive ex-boyfriend to dinner with thoughts of stabbing him in the chest. A young man in a fit of road rage pulled a baseball bat out of his trunk and would have pummeled his opponent if he hadn't run away. Another young man planned the progression of his murder — crushing a former friend's fingers, puncturing his lungs, then killing him. (David Brooks, “When the Good Do Bad,” New York Times, 3-19-12; www.PreachingToday.com)

We’re all capable of such thoughts; and if we dwell on them long enough, those thoughts will turn into actions, which WILL get us into trouble.