Refresh
A Recap from Sunday's Sermon

Preaching Text: Matthew 5:21-30

The 6th commandment, “You shall not murder,” is not just about the outward, physical act. Anger is just as deadly. Perhaps we never would hit someone, but we wish we could. Perhaps we never would kill someone, but in our anger we wish they disappeared.

Anger towards someone is offensive to God because we are created in His image (Genesis 9:6). One author writes, “A person may not be killed for this reason, that he is, either actually or potentially, someone who declares God's praise, and therefore anybody who kills another person thereby robs God."

The type of anger Jesus refers to is a deliberate, long-standing anger. Settled anger expresses itself when we verbally attack a person’s name, character, intelligence or value. As Matthew 5:22 states, “Whoever says…‘Raca!’…‘You Fool!’” It’s the tone of contempt. Jesus also says leaving our anger unchecked is like making a garbage dump our home (“Gehenna”; “fire of hell”). That is, we separate ourselves from God and others. It’s a waste. People can see and smell our anger from a mile away. 

Dealing with anger means not hiding behind the appearance of being righteous, or pretending it will all work itself out on its own. We are to take the first step, and make our best attempt to reconcile with the individual with whom we are angry, or who is angry with us. It may require an inconvenient journey, but it’s that important to God. 

Thanks be to God that Jesus Christ paid our debt, so that we don’t have to be imprisoned by anger. May we cry out to him to help us forgive, or apologize. Thomas Kempis, writes, “Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.”

Taking it home: How does Jesus Christ want you to view and resolve anger in your relationship with others?