Illus.: A passenger boarded a Los Angeles-to-New York flight. He asked one of the flight attendants to wake him up and make sure he got off in Dallas when the plane was transiting there. But he woke up just as the plane landed in New York. He was furious. He called the flight attendant and asked for an explanation. The flight attendant was shocked and realized that she had woken the wrong passenger in Dallas.
Last Sunday, we learned to understand anger, the side effects of uncontrolled anger, and the stories in the Bible about people who could not control their anger and the consequences they suffered. Today we will learn more about the factors that cause anger and the four types of anger that the Bible shows. As we learn about factors that can cause anger, we'll see that not all anger is wrong or sinful.
Many factors can trigger anger:
1. Physical Factors. Certain physical conditions can make someone sensitive, irritable, cranky, upset, or angry, such as physical tiredness, sickness (having constant pain, headaches), and for ladies, hormonal changes. Accidents that impact the brain also can change someone's emotions. Last Sunday, I told you about Arthur Millard, a 'monster' father of Bart Millard. According to his family, he became angry after recovering from several weeks of coma because a truck hit him. Before that, he got several accidents and concussions when he played football. Many football players got emotional problems when they retired. Doctors think concussions have impacts on their brains that control their emotions.
2. Emotional Factors. Memories of traumatic or enraging events can also trigger angry feelings. For example, physical, verbal, or emotional abuses, being rejected by parents or teachers, being betrayed by a spouse, losing a loved one, or precious things. Anger relates to other negative emotions, such as Depression, Anxiety, Stress, Fear (fear makes us intense, nervous, and sensitive), and Frustration.
3. Social Factors. A stressful environment (working under a mean and demanding boss, living with an abusive spouse or parents) can make us angry. For some people, an injustice situation, bad people, and criminals such as corrupt leaders, drug dealers, human traffickers, kidnappers, murderers, or rapists, can make them angry.
4. Spiritual Factors. Instead of the Holy Spirit, a life led by the flesh, instead of the Holy Spirit, will make a person not have self-control (Gal 5:22-23). Illus.: A lady once came to Billy Sunday and tried to rationalize her angry outbursts. "There's nothing wrong with losing my temper," she said. "I blow up, and then it's all over." "So does a shotgun," Sunday replied, "and look at the damage it leaves behind!" Pride also can be the cause factor of our anger (we'll talk more about this next week). Choleric people tend to have more problems with anger than phlegmatic people.
If you struggle with anger, you should observe and find out what factors make you angry: physical, emotional, social, or spiritual? And now, let us look at four types of anger that the Bible shows to us. The Bible not only addresses anger but also indicates the four types of anger and advise about them:
1. Anger of a short-tempered person. The Book of Proverbs talks a lot about this kind of anger. For example, 14:17 says, "A quick-tempered man does foolish things." People who quickly lose temper may say and do things they regret or be sorry for later on. 15:18 says, "A hot tempered man stirs up dissension." People who are a hot temper often create and conflict. Illus.: Will Rogers said, "Whenever you fly into a rage, you seldom make a safe landing." And he is right. 21:9 – "Better to live on a corner of the roof than share a house with a quarrelsome wife." A spouse of an angry wife/husband prefers to live alone. Again in 21:19 – "Better to live in a desert than with a quarrelsome and nagging wife." There is a warning in 22:24-25 – "Do not make friends with a hot-tempered person, do not associate with one easily angered, or you may learn their ways and get yourself ensnared." If you associate with a hot-tempered person, you will get used to them. More than that, you will become like them. So ovoid that type of person. Finally, Proverbs 19:19 warns, "A hot-tempered man must pay the penalty." Illus.: Jim Taylor in Currents tells the following story about his friend, Ralph Milton: One morning, Ralph woke up at five o'clock to a noise that sounded like someone repairing boilers on his roof. Still, in his pajamas, he went into the backyard to investigate. He found a woodpecker on the TV antenna, "pounding its little brains out on the metal pole." Angry at the little creature who ruined his sleep, Ralph picked up a rock and threw it. The rock sailed over the house, and he heard a distant crash as it hit the car. In utter disgust, Ralph took a vicious kick at a clod of dirt, only to remember -- too late -- that he was still in his bare feet. Uncontrolled anger, as Ralph leaned, can sometimes be its reward. Allow me to ask you: "What does your husband/wife, children, friends, co-workers say about your ability to control your emotion?" I hope no one will call us a short-tempered person. If you have struggled with being patient, ask Holy Spirit to take control of your life. Allow Him to take charge of your life, trust in Him, and obey His wills!
2. Sinful anger. Not all anger is sinful, but some anger is. So let me give you some tests this afternoon to help you determine whether your anger is sinful or not. In Matthew 5:21-22a, Jesus says, "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, `Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment." This passage can help us realize when our anger is sinful. Notice first of all that it says, "Anyone who is angry with his brother." If you're a brother or sister to someone, it indicates that you are a member of the same family, whether a domestic family or the family of God. If we're brothers and sisters, we ought to be lifting each other, supporting, and helping each other. We should not spend our time being angry at one another. The King James Version speaks about being angry at your brother "without a cause." If we are angry and don't have a legitimate reason for being angry, then this tells us that our anger is sinful. Then if you're angry at your brother, that indicates that you are focusing your anger on a person. We should never focus our anger on people but rather on the sins they commit. Jesus was never angry at people, but He was angry at their sins. So, look beyond the person. We must love the person but hate their sin.
In Romans 12:19, Paul says, "Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: `It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord." Illus.: A soldier fighting over in Iraq received a letter from his girlfriend that said she was breaking up with him. She also asked him to send the picture she had given him when he left because she needed it for her bridal announcement. The soldier was heartbroken and told his friends of his terrible situation. So, his whole platoon got together, brought all their pictures of their girlfriends, put them in a box, and gave them to him. So, he put her picture in the box with the rest along with a note that said, "I'm sending back your picture to you please remove it and send back the rest. For the life of me I can't remember which one you are." We love revenge, don't we? But the Bible reminds us not to take revenge. Take revenge will not make our life better. It will create more problems, damages, and destroy our lives. Let God be the Judge! Learn to forgive because Christ already forgave us! Eph 5:32 says, "Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."
3. Prolonged anger. One of the most famous passages that deals with anger are in Ephesians 4:26-27, which says, "In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold." "In your anger do not sin" shows that we can be angry without sin. But if we let our anger stay for days, weeks, and months, that makes us sin. Why? Because this unresolved anger steals the peace in our hearts. This prolonged anger can be a way for Satan to control us, and therefore, we fail to be people of God He intends us to be. Illus.: Lam Luong, a 37-year-old man, confessed that after getting angry about a dispute with his wife, he murdered his four young children by throwing them off the Dauphin Island Bridge.
4. Righteous anger. This anger is a kind of anger motivated by a pure heart or holy motivation for the sake of God's Kingdom, His truth, and glory. Jesus was meek. Look what He said in Matt 11:29, "Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls." In 2 Corinthians 10:1a, Paul also said, "By the meekness and gentleness of Christ." But last week, we learned that Jesus was angry when He saw people at the temple courts misused the house of prayer and "making it 'a den of robbers." (Matt 21:12-13). The apostle Paul also got angry at Peter because what Peter did could hinder evangelism among non-Jews.
Maybe this kind of anger is something that the church needs today. To become angry at the forces of evil. To become angry at pornography that reaches into every segment of society, including children. To become angry at the millions of abortions. To become angry at the increase in violence, crime, human trafficking, and murder. To become angry at the abuse of alcohol and drugs in our society. To become angry at Satan, who keeps billions of people away from receiving the grace and mercy of Christ. It is time to no longer stay silent from the devil's works that destroy humans with righteous anger as William Wilberforce did. He was a British politician. In 1785, he became an evangelical Christian, which resulted in significant changes to his lifestyle and a lifelong concern for reform. When he saw injustice in his society, he was angry and led the movement to abolish the slave trade in his country.
Next week, we will learn how to deal with our anger rightly. Some people try to ignore, repress or attend "Anger Management" programs. Can they really help? What does the Bible teach on controlling anger? May God help us to be more patient. Remember what Proverbs 16:32 says, "He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city."
