God acknowledges a full range of emotions in us. Even anger
is addressed by Jesus when he says,
“In your anger, do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while
you are still angry.” Ephesians 4:26.
And Jesus, as recorded in Matthew, Mark and John,
“entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. ‘It is written,’ he said to them, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’” Matthew 21:12-13
“entered the temple courts and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. ‘It is written,’ he said to them, ‘My house will be called a house of prayer, but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’” Matthew 21:12-13
“When it was time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to
Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found people selling cattle, sheep and
doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip of
cords, and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he
scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those
who sold doves he said, ‘Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house
into a market!’” John 2:13-16
You can also read this in Mark 11:15-18 and find, in Mark 3,
another reference to Jesus’ anger.
Got Questions? is a wonderful website on which to have many
Biblical questions soundly discussed. The discourse this site provides on the topic of anger is of such Biblical integrity that I will quote a good portion of it here:
(As the website copyright graciously asks its users, please
do not reprint the following material for monetary gain and without proper
citation of the source, www.gotquestions.org).
"Many times, we think of anger as a selfish, destructive
emotion that we should eradicate from our lives altogether. However, the fact
that Jesus did sometimes become angry indicates that anger itself, as an
emotion, is amoral. This is borne out elsewhere in the New Testament. Ephesians 4:26 instructs
us “in your anger do not sin” and not to let the sun go down on our anger. The
command is not to “avoid anger” (or suppress it or ignore it) but to deal with
it properly, in a timely manner. We note the following facts about Jesus’
displays of anger:
1) His anger had the proper motivation. In other words, He was angry for the right reasons. Jesus’ anger did not arise from petty arguments or personal slights against Him. There was no selfishness involved.
2) His anger had the proper focus. He was not angry at God or at the “weaknesses” of others. His anger targeted sinful behavior and true injustice.
3) His anger had the proper supplement. Mark 3:5 says that His anger was attended by grief over the Pharisees’ lack of faith. Jesus’ anger stemmed from love for the Pharisees and concern for their spiritual condition. It had nothing to do with hatred or ill will.
4) His anger had the proper control. Jesus was never out of control, even in His wrath. The temple leaders did not like His cleansing of the temple (Luke 19:47), but He had done nothing sinful. He controlled His emotions; His emotions did not control Him.
5) His anger had the proper duration. He did not allow His anger to turn into bitterness; He did not hold grudges. He dealt with each situation properly, and He handled anger in good time.
6) His anger had the proper result. Jesus’ anger had the inevitable consequence of godly action. Jesus’ anger, as with all His emotions, was held in check by the Word of God; thus, Jesus’ response was always to accomplish God’s will.
When we get angry, too often we have improper control or an improper focus. We fail in one or more of the above points. This is the wrath of man, of which we are told “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires” (James 1:19-20)."
1) His anger had the proper motivation. In other words, He was angry for the right reasons. Jesus’ anger did not arise from petty arguments or personal slights against Him. There was no selfishness involved.
2) His anger had the proper focus. He was not angry at God or at the “weaknesses” of others. His anger targeted sinful behavior and true injustice.
3) His anger had the proper supplement. Mark 3:5 says that His anger was attended by grief over the Pharisees’ lack of faith. Jesus’ anger stemmed from love for the Pharisees and concern for their spiritual condition. It had nothing to do with hatred or ill will.
4) His anger had the proper control. Jesus was never out of control, even in His wrath. The temple leaders did not like His cleansing of the temple (Luke 19:47), but He had done nothing sinful. He controlled His emotions; His emotions did not control Him.
5) His anger had the proper duration. He did not allow His anger to turn into bitterness; He did not hold grudges. He dealt with each situation properly, and He handled anger in good time.
6) His anger had the proper result. Jesus’ anger had the inevitable consequence of godly action. Jesus’ anger, as with all His emotions, was held in check by the Word of God; thus, Jesus’ response was always to accomplish God’s will.
When we get angry, too often we have improper control or an improper focus. We fail in one or more of the above points. This is the wrath of man, of which we are told “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires” (James 1:19-20)."
No comments:
Post a Comment