Love Is Not Easily Angered Series

Love Is Not Easily Angered

OKAY - Thursday morning as I was sitting at my desk working on today’s message (our 7th in our series, LoveIs)…

HEY – quick question, is anyone out there being challenged like I have been, during these conversations?

Wow, this LoveIs thing is LIKE, the real deal, amen!?

I MEAN - I cannot tell you how many people have talked to me about how God is using this truths in their lives and relationships in some pretty significant and tangible ways!

OKAY – back to Thursday morning… I am at my desk working on this message about another facet of God’s kind of love and a song pops into my head. Here are some of the words that starting playing in my head…

What’s love got to do, got to do with it

What’s love but a second hand emotion

What’s love got to do, got to do with it

Who needs a heart when a heart can be broken

NOW – no disrespect to Tina Turner, but love has everything to do with it… And love is so much more than a second hand emotion…

THAT – is why since October 13th we have been unpacking that incredible description of God’s kind of love found in 1 Corinthians chapter 13… Let’s stand and these 2000 year old words together.

If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.

If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.

If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.

It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Love never fails.

Love never fails…

QUESTION…

• Do you want all of your relationships to grow, to be better, healthier?

• Do you want to the world to know that you really are a follower of Jesus?

• Do you want to do the only thing that counts and that cover a multitude of sins?

• Do you want to make God smile by obeying the second greatest commandment, to love your neighbor as yourself?

• Do you want God to live in you and His love to be brought to full expression in you?

THEN – it’s times for you to get serious about not merely studying about God’s kind of love (sure studying about God’s kind of love is great)… HOWEVER - actually living it out is so much better, is what ultimately matters.

• Pursuing patience

• Unleashing kindness

• Not envying

• Deflating your pride, and

• Putting aside all of your rude ways.

NOW – this morning 11/24/2019 we are going to look at another facet of love found in 1 Corinthians 13:5

Love is not easily angered

NOW – the phrase ‘not easily angered’ is actually just one word in the original Greek….

Paroxyno – to sharpen, to rouse to anger, exasperate, easily provoked

English Word (paroxysm) – any sudden or violent outburst.

(Pa - roc – sue no)

AGAIN – the primary meaning is to sharpen, it’s referring to this edge that can cut someone.

YOU KNOW - I kind of have this picture in my head of a small child running around with a pair of scissors.

QUESTION – if you saw a 3 year old running around with a pair of very sharp scissors, what would you tell them?

Stop running! Right?

Why? Because there is a very good chance that could hurt themselves or someone else.

AND MGCC – it’s the same way when we, when you, when I are running around with a sharp edge of anger.

Someone is going to get hurt.

Love is not easily angered!

QUESTION – is anger always wrong?

ANSWER – no.

IN FACT - the bible says in Ephesians 4:26;

“In your anger do not sin"

Which means – the issue is not anger in and of itself, but instead it is in the way we express and choose to deal with our anger.

UNDERSTAND - God gave us the capacity to get angry.

AND LISTEN - sometimes anger is the appropriate response to a situation. I MEAN…

• when children are abused,

• when violent crimes are committed against the innocent,