Anger is a big problem in our culture. Things like "road rage" and "going postal" are only the tip of the iceberg. Beneath the surface there are all sorts of volcanoes preparing to erupt in the lives of many.
Leslie Charles, the author of "Why Is Everyone So Cranky?" lists the following ten trends that are driving Americans to epidemic bouts with ill tempers: (See if these don’t sound familiar to you.)
1) Compressed time. "We are living in an age of immediacy, impatience, urgency, interruption, and intolerance to inconvenience."
2) Communications overload. You’re always tuned in to TV, radio, Internet, Cell phones, I-pods, etc. You’re surrounded by piles of papers and magazines you never get to.
3) Dis-Connectedness. We’re overloaded and don’t have enough time for one another. It’s hard to stay connected in houses where every family member has his or her own television, cell phone, computer, etc.
4) Cost. As the cost of living continues to rise we are bombarded with commercial enticements to earn, spend, and accumulate.
5) Competition. "We compete on the road, for parking places, in lines, so we constantly feel the pressure of other people around us…If you are in the grocery store’s express lane, chances are you will count the items in the cart of the person in front of you. We are constantly monitoring other people’s behavior."
6) Customer Contact. Since neighborhood stores seldom exist any more, clerks and customers don’t have time to build the relationships they use to.
7) Computers. Technology surrounds us and is part of the culprit in our era of emergency, urgency and interruption.
8) Change.
9) Coming of Age. "Old is younger than it used to be. People are living longer and staying healthier than ever before" and yet that still isn’t enough.
10) Complexity. Things like genetic engineering and reproductive technologies have us dealing with issues today that we don’t even have legislation for. We are overwhelmed to the point of feelings of inadequacy.
We’re finishing up the series today, "Loving the Life You Live", and trends that lead to unresolved anger are certainly major players in making it difficult to love life. It’s more difficult to stay happy when you or someone close to you is cranky.
That’s why we need to find out what triggers anger, like the things on the list I just read, and that’s why we need to consider how we can effectively deal with the things that are making us angry. Once again we look to the Word of God for answers.
There was a great man in Scripture who had a bad temper. His name was Moses. You probably don’t remember him as much for his temper but you’ll see from today’s Scriptures that anger was Moses’ Achilles’ heel.
By reading and studying his biography in the Bible you can learn what to do and what not to do when it comes to anger. We’re going to look briefly at several times when Moses’ anger got the upper hand in his life. We’re going to think about why he was so angry and what he could have done about it.
The first thing you can learn from Moses about dealing with a cranky person, even if that cranky person is yourself is:
1. Find out what makes you tick so you can handle what ticks you off.
The first time you read of Moses’ tendency to fly off the handle is when he was forty years old and has decided to identify himself with the Hebrews, his biological family, instead of the Egyptians who had adopted him as a baby. It was at this point in his life that his anger motivated him to commit murder.
Exodus 2:11 (CEV) After Moses had grown up, he went out to where his own people were hard at work, and he saw an Egyptian beating one of them.
12 Moses looked around to see if anyone was watching, then he killed the Egyptian and hid his body in the sand.
How could someone become so angry that they would take the life of another human being in cold blood? How could such a blemish occur on the record of such a great man?
Moses had what we call today "issues." We’re not told when he found out he was adopted, perhaps he knew it from childhood, but in his early life he was torn between two identities. In his favor, he eventually made the right choice.
Hebrews 11:24 (CEV) After Moses grew up, his faith made him refuse to be called Pharaoh’s grandson. 25 He chose to be mistreated with God’s people instead of having the good time that sin could bring for a little while.
You too have a decision to make when it comes to whom you identify with. Are you going to identify with God’s people or are you going to identify with those seeking the temporary good time that sin brings? You can’t live on a balance beam between two worlds.
James 1:8 (KJV) A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
Moses made the right choice and that’s one of the reasons we know him as a great example of faith.
Making that one right choice however did not negate his need for other right choices. He chose wisely in identifying with God’s people but he failed to deal with the inner issues associated with his choice.
When he saw the Egyptian mistreating a Hebrew his emotions ran hot. He yielded to the temptation to take matters into his own hands. For the first time in the biblical record we find Moses learning the hard lesson that you cannot do the right thing the wrong way and still expect it to be the right thing.
James 1:19 (GNT) Remember this, my dear friends! Everyone must be quick to listen, but slow to speak and slow to become angry. 20 Human anger does not achieve God’s righteous purpose.
Anger is a natural emotion felt by everyone from time to time. But it is what we do with our anger that matters.
Ephesians 4:26 (NLT) Don’t sin by letting anger gain control over you.
Getting angry isn’t always a sin. Even God gets angry. But letting anger gain control over you is a dangerous thing. And that’s what Moses did. Why did he do it? Because he let what made him tick, tick him off.
What was it that made Moses tick?
He was filled with compassion and concern for the Hebrews. Consequently he was also filled with angst and hurt over how the Egyptians had been mistreating them. How could he not be? You can’t blame him for being mad. All of us ought to be angered by injustice. But Moses did not control his emotions. Healthy anger crossed the line and became murder.
We talked about this briefly last week in "When Your Faith is Under Attack." Your feelings must follow your faith. Not just feelings of discouragement or depression, but also feelings of anger and bitterness and agitation. It was all right for him to feel angry at the injustice he witnessed. That’s what made him tick. He eventually became a great servant of God in delivering the people from this injustice precisely because he felt deeply about the great need of his nation.
But he fell from his perch on the moral high ground when he committed an injustice to deliver someone else from injustice.
He was like a man who incorrectly tries to prove his respect for life by murdering a doctor who performs abortions. It’s never right to do wrong in order to get a chance to do right.
Know what makes you tick and always be on guard when you are dealing with an issue you are passionate about. Be careful not to let what makes you tick, tick you off. Be aware that this is one of the situations where your temper can get the best of you. Don’t compromise your convictions in order to prove a point.
Be honest with yourself about your feelings. Don’t let your emotions control you, but be self-aware. Realize these things that make you tick can tick you off.
For his offense Moses became a fugitive from justice and spent the next forty years in desert solitude.
His next recorded display of anger is a balanced one. As he pronounces God’s tenth plague on Egypt he mirrors God’s anger at the rebellion against Divine authority.
Exodus 11:8c says, "…burning with anger, Moses left Pharaoh’s presence." He wasn’t throwing things; he didn’t curse or hit somebody; he just left. Moses had learned something about controlling his temper.
Unfortunately your weaknesses aren’t only tested a few times in life. Moses faced another test of his temper out in the wilderness, which leads us to our next guideline for dealing with a cranky person.
2. Count to Ten (Commandments).
You’ve heard the old saying before, "Count to ten." It’s a pretty good suggestion. When you feel yourself getting angry, count to ten before you say or do something you shouldn’t. It gives you time to think about your words and actions.
In our next scripture, while Moses was on top of Mt. Sinai, he should have learned from God about counting to ten when he was receiving the Ten Commandments.
It was while he was there that God informed Moses that the Hebrew people on the plain below were "defling themselves" in idol worship and self-indulgence.
God was angry at this ungratefulness. He had heard their prayers and led them out of Egypt by performing ten stupendous miracles followed by parting the Red Sea and providing food and water for them in the desert. To show their appreciation, Moses turns his back and the people make a golden calf to worship and lead them back to Egypt! (Acts 7:40)
Exodus 32:9 (NLT) Then the LORD said, "I have seen how stubborn and rebellious these people are. 10 Now leave me alone so my anger can blaze against them and destroy them all. Then I will make you, Moses, into a great nation instead of them."
What happened next is not the least bit ironic. Moses asks God to count to ten. He asked God to reconsider. It’s ironic because a man with a bad temper is asking God to have mercy. God doesn’t need to count to ten like you and I do. He would never do anything unjust in His anger. What He does in His anger is always right. But here you have a man who didn’t always do what was right in his anger petitioning God to reconsider His actions. And God answers Moses’ request to withhold judgment on the Hebrews.
It also becomes ironic because of what happens when Moses and his right hand man Joshua witness the idolatry first hand. Moses had asked God to not judge the people in anger yet when he witnesses the rebellion of the people firsthand his attitude changes!
Exodus 32:19 (NLT) When they came near the camp, Moses saw the calf and the dancing. In terrible anger, he threw the stone tablets to the ground, smashing them at the foot of the mountain.
A lot of people have thrown things when they were angry but it is what Moses threw that really raises the eyebrows. The Ten Commandments – he threw the Ten Commandments to the ground, smashing them to pieces!
Which proves that when you lose your temper it can lead to breaking all of the commandments!
You may get angry with God and decide, like the Hebrews, to serve other gods. You may get angry with your spouse and decide to break your marital vows. You may get angry with your boss and decide to steal from him by becoming lax in your responsibilites. You may get angry and murder someone’s reputation by gossiping about him or her. Anger may lead to overstepping many of the boundaries God gave you to live a healthy and happy life.
Can you imagine how revered the original tablets containing the Ten Commandments would be if they were still around today? Or the second set that God gave Moses after he broke the first? They’d probably be encased in a museum somewhere with hundreds of thousands of people passing by every year to look at them.
Was throwing the Ten Commandments to the ground an act of righteous indignation on Moses’ part or another lapse of self-control?
Probably both.
But it’s the part that was a lapse of self-control we need to look at.
You need to learn how to handle your anger when you see others doing things they shouldn’t be doing.
When people break the law it makes us all angry. When they flew the jets into the twin towers it made us angry. If someone breaks into your house or office and steals your property it makes you angry and there’s nothing wrong with being angry then. If someone held a gun in your face and stole your wallet or car you’d be justifiably angry.
But even though it makes us angry to see people commit crimes, it also makes us angry to see police brutality. Policemen have a difficult job somewhat similar to the job that Moses had. They must enforce the law without losing their temper. How do you do that? Even parents need this wisdom for raising good kids. How do you discipline your children without breaking their spirit?
One of the reasons for counting to ten is to give yourself time to remember how merciful God has been in answering your requests for mercy in the past.
Moses could have counted to ten and thought about how God answered his prayer for mercy on the people up on the mountain.
We shouldn’t totally exonerate law-breakers. We must have an orderly society and crime cannot go unpunished. But justice should always be administered in a dispassionate manner. That’s what counting to ten is all about. Take time to gain control over your emotions.
And don’t throw things!
Thirdly, our study of Moses’ anger management problems reveals this guideline for dealing with a cranky person - even if its your self.
3. Don’t play God.
The third example of Moses’ bad temper is found in the book of Numbers chapter 20. The Hebrews were complaining about not having water to drink. They said they’d be better off back in Egypt than out in the desert where they were going to die of thirst.
This complaint of wanting to go back to Egypt was a broken record with these people. As you can imagine the complaining was starting to get to Moses. It’s tough to lead a congregation of complainers. They should have learned by now that they could trust God - but they remained spiritually immature, which is the primary reason they wandered in the wilderness.
You may see yourself in Moses. Perhaps you have to listen to a griping co-worker or friend. You feel like reciting the bumper sticker that says, "I have only one nerve left and you’re starting to get on it."
But you might just as likely see yourself in these Hebrews. God has proven Himself in your lifetime again and again yet still you doubt Him and complain that He hasn’t fulfilled your expectations and met your needs. Perhaps if you will quit complaining and begin trusting and praising Him you will stop wandering in circles.
God gives Moses explicit instructions for meeting the needs of the people.
Numbers 20:8 (CEV) "Moses, get your walking stick. Then you and Aaron call the people together and command that rock to give you water. That’s how you will provide water for the people of Israel and their livestock." 9Moses obeyed and took his stick from the sacred tent. 10After he and Aaron had gathered the people around the rock, he said, " Look, you rebellious people, and you will see water flow from this rock!" 11He raised his stick in the air and struck the rock two times. At once, water gushed from the rock, and the people and their livestock had water to drink.
12But the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, " Because you refused to believe in my power, these people did not respect me. And so, you will not be the ones to lead them into the land I have promised."
In anger, Moses hit the rock instead of speaking to it as God had specifically instructed. This fit of anger was so serious that it kept Moses out of The Promised Land! That had to hurt. Can you imagine not being able to realize the fulfillment of a lifelong dream? That’s what anger can do to you.
Stop and let that soak in for a few moments.
What blessings of God is your anger keeping you from enjoying?
God said, "Moses, command the rock to give you water. Just talk to it Moses." Moses was so mad at the people, so frustrated, that once again, he lost it. He hit the rock with his walking stick. Not once, but twice. He was really angry and he wanted everybody to know it.
Angry people want you to know they’re angry. That’s why they throw things and hit things like Moses did. In fact, the Hebrew word for angry comes from the words for "face" and "nostrils." Anyone who has faced an angry person knows why.
Rage can reflect fear, frustration and impatience. In this instance it not only reflected those attitudes in Moses’ spirit, but it also deflected from the glory of God.
It wasn’t Moses hitting the rock that provided for the needs of the people – it was God’s power! It wasn’t Moses’ temper that needed to take center stage that hot, dusty day – it was God’s love and care for His people that needed to be acknowledged. In his fit of temper Moses was robbing God of glory.
Don’t play God with your anger. Don’t think that you can accomplish with your temper what God alone can accomplish by His great power and love!
The magnitude of this sin was multiplied by the time frame in which it occurred. Moses was no longer a young leader just out of the gates. This was year 38 out of 40 in the wilderness wanderings.
The argument can be made that he put up with complaining for a long time and therefore he had a right to be angry. But it can also be said that God had given him 78 years since his first recorded fit of temper to change things.
How long has God been dealing with you about your intemperance? Don’t forfeit God’s blessings by hanging on to your anger.
1.Find out what makes you tick so you’ll know what ticks you off.
2.Count to ten.
3.Don’t play God with your temper.
Let’s pray.
