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"In
His Steps ... Regarding Anger"
(Matthew 5:21-26)
by Sam Long
INTRODUCTION:
A. Matthew 5:21. “Ye have heard that it was said to them of
old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be
in danger of the judgment: 22 but I say unto you, that every one
who is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the
judgment; and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be
in danger of the council; and whosoever shall say, Thou fool,
shall be in danger of the hell of fire. 23 If therefore thou art
offering thy gift at the altar, and there rememberest that thy
brother hath aught against thee, 24 leave there thy gift before
the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother,
and then come and offer thy gift. 25 Agree with thine adversary
quickly, while thou art with him in the way; lest haply the
adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee
to the officer, and thou be cast into prison. 26 Verily I say
unto thee, thou shalt by no means come out thence, till thou
have paid the last farthing.” (Matthew 5:21-26, ASV).
B. Go back 30 or 40 years with me to the old movies. Back with
Roy Rogers in the days when movies (unlike today) were
“clean,” and often you could learn a moral lesson if you
were not careful...good guys always win.
1. Many of
the movies had a common theme; Cowboy wants a new horse.
He had seen one leading a group of wild Mustangs up in
the Bad Lands. Others had seen this “wild stallion”
but nobody has ever been close enough to get a rope
around it’s neck. The cowboy dreams about having this
horse as his own.
2. After several tries, the day comes when the cowboy
gets to rope the “wild stallion.” The stallion goes
crazy. He kicks and tries to run over the cowboy. But
after realizing he can not escape, the horse calms down.
3. The question that continues to go through the
cowboy’s head: “What Do You Do With A Wild
Mustang?”
4. Basically three options:
a.
Number one - let him run wild. All his power and
all his energy will be for nothing. A wild
stallion will run right over you if you are not
careful.
b. Number two - you could build a very strong
barn and lock the stallion in the barn. But
everyone knows that wild stallions do not do
well in barns. Anxiety will build and build and
he will eventually tear the barn down.
c. The third option is the hardest, but the
best. Control the wild stallion. Put a bit in
its mouth and a saddle on its back and ride it
where you wish. |
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Body:
1. Anger is God Given.
A. Anger is
like all of our emotions, it is God given. The problem
is not anger; the problem is what to do with my anger.
1.
Paul talks about the new man in Christ in
Ephesians 4:24, “and put on the new man, that
after God hath been created in righteousness and
holiness of truth. 25 Wherefore, putting away
falsehood, speak ye truth each one with his
neighbor: for we are members one of another. 26
Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go
down upon your wrath: 27 neither give place to
the devil.”
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Notice verse 26, “be ye angry, and sin
not...” |
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B. Anger is
like a wild stallion — if you let it run wild, it will
run you.
1.
James talks about the tongue in James 3:2 “For
in many things we all stumble. If any stumbleth
not in word, the same is a perfect man, able to
bridle the whole body also. 3 Now if we put the
horses’ bridles into their mouths that they
may obey us, we turn about their whole body
also. 4 Behold, the ships also, though they are
so great and are driven by rough winds, are yet
turned about by a very small rudder, whither the
impulse of the steersman willeth. 5 So the
tongue also is a little member, and boasteth
great things. Behold, how much wood is kindled
by how small a fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire:
the world of iniquity among our members is the
tongue, which defileth the whole body, and
setteth on fire the wheel of nature,
and is set on fire by hell. 7 For every kind of
beasts and birds, of creeping things and things
in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed by
mankind. 8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is
a restless evil, it is full of deadly poison.”
(James 3:2-8, ASV).
2. Our tongues and our anger have a lot in
common. James says you can never tame the
tongue, but you can control it.
3. Anger is like a roaring fire; it can
completely consume one. But it too is like a
deadly poison, it will build up in one’s heart
until it destroys. |
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B. Anger must
be controlled. Some say that is impossible; I could
never control my anger.
1.
Picture a couple having a “loud” family
problem. The husband and wife are boxing with
words, loud words! And the phone rings. One of
them will quietly and kindly pick up the phone
and in a sweet voice, suggest to the caller that
he or she can’t talk right now but, “if you
will call back in a couple of hours....” Hangs
up the phone and starts right back where they
left off.
2. What did they just do? They “controlled”
their anger. They put a bit in it’s mouth and
controlled their anger while on the phone.
3. Self control is a key to Christianity.
4. The wise man said; Prov 29:11, “A fool
uttereth all his anger; But a wise man keepeth
it back and stilleth it. (Proverbs 29:11, ASV).
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2. Number Two - Matthew 5:21-26
A. Matthew
5:21. “Ye have heard that it was said of them of old
time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill
shall be in danger of the judgment: 22 but I say unto
you, that every one who is angry with his brother shall
be in danger of the judgment; and whosoever shall say to
his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council;
and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger
of the hell of fire.” (Matthew
5:21-22, ASV).
B. Jesus gives a higher law than the Law of Moses gave.
1.
The Old Law; Exodus 20:13. “Thou shalt not
kill.” (murder)
2. But Jesus goes to the very seat of the
problem, anger! |
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C. Jesus
gives the deep spiritual meaning to the command the Jews
had never seen.
1. H.
Leo Boles (Gospel Advocate Commentary on
Matthew) writes: “Murder is the overt act of a
murderous spirit, which accompanies anger.”
Jesus goes back to the very roots of murder and
shows that the true teaching of the law as set
forth now by the principles of his kingdom
forbids even the thoughts of murder.
2. Three degrees of punishment are denoted by
the terms; “judgment,” “council,” and
“fire of hell.”
a.
“Judgment” - lower court.
b. “Council” - next high court - the
Jewish Sanhedrin.
c. “Fire of hell” - death was the
sentence for murder. |
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3. Number Three - Worship and
Anger
A. Matthew
5:23. “If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the
altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught
against thee, 24 leave there thy gift before the altar,
and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and
then come and offer thy gift.” (Matthew 5:23-24, ASV).
1.
Jewish worship, that of bringing a sacrifice to
the altar, must be stopped if one remembers that
he has something against you. The first thing
before worship is to be “reconciled” to your
brother; then come back and offer your gift.
2. Jesus says that anger can interrupt your
worship to God.
3. In order for the vertical relationship to be
right (with God) we must have the horizontal
relationship (with others) right.
a.
That is scary. How many today in our
assemblies on Sunday morning, have
members, knowing a brother or sister is
angry with them? |
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B. What about
today and our worship to God? Does anger effect my
worship to God today? Can we be doing the right things
and saying the right things and still not be worshipping
God because of anger?
| 1.
Anger is a serious matter. It can make my
worship void, knowing that a brother or sister
has something against me. |
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C. Jesus says
in verse 25, “Agree with thine adversary quickly,
while thou art with him in the way; lest haply the
adversary deliver thee to the judge, and the judge
deliver thee to the officer, and thou be cast into
prison.”
| 1.
“Agree” or “settle” a matter with your
adversary on the way to court. The teaching of
Jesus here would end all difficulties. If we can
agree quickly, then anger cannot take hold of
us. |
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Conclusion:
A. Anger (the
emotion) is God given.
B. Anger must be controlled, or it will control you.
C. Anger is the very seed of murder.
D. Anger can render worship void.
E. Anger is a matter of choice. |
Resources:
“Ride The Wild Horses” by J. Wallace Hamilton - Fleming H.
Revel Co. - Old Tappan, NJ.
“New Testament Commentaries” - Matthew by H. Leo Boles -
Gospel Advocate Co. - Nashville, TN.
“The Gospel of Matthew” Revised Edition - by William Barclay
- The Westminster Press, Philadelphia.
“A Commentary on Matthew and Mark” by J. W. McGarvey -
Gospel Light Publishing Co. - Delight, AR.
“Barnes’ Notes On The Old & New Testaments” by Albert
Barnes - Baker Book House - Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“The Pulpit Commentary” - Vol. 15 - Wm. B. Eerdmans
Publishing Co. - Grand Rapids, Michigan.
“Anger & Temper” (sermon) by Cecil May, March 1975.
Sermon from Anchor
of the Soul |
