Jesus' anger/God's wrath is NOT sin!

[MrVersatile48]

Timely word from Selwyn Hughes of http://www.cwr.org.uk

October 23


Looking around with anger

Mark 3:1-6
"He looked round at them in anger ..." (v.5)

Did Jesus ever lose His temper? Some, looking at the passage before us today, might think so. In fact, I once heard a Christian defending his temper by saying: "If Jesus could not control His temper when faced with the scorn of the Pharisees in Mark 3, why should I be condemned for my inability to control mine?"

Did the behavior of Jesus on this occasion result from a loss of temper? Of course not.

One luminous phrase lights up the story and puts the matter in its proper perspective: "being grieved by the hardness of their hearts" (v.5, NKJV).

The reason why Jesus "looked around at them with anger" was because He was "grieved by the hardness of their hearts."

The cause of His anger was grief, not loss of temper -- grief at their insensibility to human need. It was grief at what was happening to someone else, not personal pique at what was happening to Him.

Whenever we get angry, it is usually because our ego has been wounded and hits back, not in redemption but in retaliation. There is a temper that is redemptive and there is a temper that is retaliatory.

The redemptive temper burns with the steady fire of redemptive intention; the retaliatory temper simply burns you up. It was intended to burn the other person up, but all it serves to do is to burn you.

Patience, the fruit of the Spirit, works in us -- if we let it -- to temper our purposes to the Kingdom, and to Kingdom purposes alone.

Prayer:

My Father and my God, dwell so deeply in me by Your Spirit that my temper shall be tempered and produce no tempests -- either in myself or in others. For Jesus' sake I ask it. Amen.

For Further Study

Eph. 4:1-27; Prov. 19:11; Eccl. 7:9

1. How can we be angry without committing sin?
2. Why is it important "not to let the sun go down on our wrath"?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'm sure Selwyn's series will soon cover how the Bible repeatedly says that God's judgements are righteous, just & true

Revelation tells us that Jesus will 'tread the winepress of the fierceness of the wrath of God'

Armageddon is in Joel 3, Zechariah 14 & Revelation 16-19, where Christ slaughters the Antichrist armies for daring to invade His Holy Land & attack His Holy City

Revelation 20 & Matthew 13 show clearly that Hell is even worse than Armageddon - eternal, conscious torment is how Jesus describes it, several times, in several ways

Isaiah, Jeremiah etc tell us very clearly - passing on God's own Word, which He places higher than Himself - that God has the right of Creator, Redeemer & Judge of all Earth

He makes the rules

He calls the shots

We mere clay cannot judge the Potter

But the Potter must judge the clay

Romans 1 & 1 Corinthians 1 etc show us that we are neither clever enough to fool Him nor strong enough to defeat Him

See "'Nutty Prof Dorky Dawkins' debunked >>"..

http://www.christianforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=25700

"God commands everyone, everywhere, to repent & believe the gospel"

& Ambassadors for Christ are only messenger boys/girls, authorised only to pass on faithfully the messages of the King of kings & Lord of lords, not to pontifficate our own will/whim

Galatians 1 curses anyone - evan an angel (demons are fallen angels as in Jude 1 & Revelation 12 etc) - who preaches any other 'gospel'

Ezekiel 2-3 clearly warn us of the consequences of failing to pass on God's Word faithfully & Revelation 22 curses any who add to or take from God's Word

Jesus said, "If you are ashamed of Me & My words, I will be ashamed of you..If you deny Me before men, I will deny you before My Father in Heaven"

Jesus is none less than the Almighty Creator in human form, as John 1, Colossians 1 & Hebrews 1 make crystal clear

Not the Dude to mess with, Dawkins: you need to repent, ask Jesus to forgive all your sins & invite Him into your heart as Saviour & Lord of life, as in John 3, Romans 3, Galatians 2:15-16 & Ephesians 2:8-9 etc

Back Tues, DV

Must go!

Ian

 

[MrVersatile48]

& more:-

How Jesus Handled Tension

Luke 12:35-53
"But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is completed!" (v.50)

Jesus' behavior when He looked around at the Pharisees "with anger" was not the result of a bad temper but the fulfilling of a redemptive purpose.

The cutting was not to hurt, but to heal.

When we display anger, it is usually for purposes of destruction rather than construction.

Although Jesus was free from bad temper, however, He was not free from tension, that is: "a state of moderate stress." Moffatt, in fact, translates our text for today in this way: "What tension I suffer, till it is all over!"

A certain amount of tension is a necessary part of life. Jesus experienced it, and so will we.

And it is not necessarily a bad thing.

The violin string that is free from tension is incapable of music, but when tightened gives forth a sound that delights the ear. The tension that Jesus felt was a tension that was harnessed to the interest of others.

He was on His way to a cross and the tension was not to be loosed until He pronounced the words: "It is finished."

The tension, however, did not leave Him frustrated and bad-tempered; it left Him calm and composed, with a prayer for the forgiveness of His enemies upon His lips. It drove Him, not to pieces, but to peace -- the peace of achievement and victory.

This was so because the tension was harnessed to God's perfect will -- hence it was a constructive urge.

Unfortunately, many of our tensions drive us, not toward God's will but toward our own will. We are more concerned for ourselves than for the divine interests.

This kind of driving will succeed only in driving us "nuts."

Prayer:

Dear Lord and Master, teach me how to harness my tensions to Your purposes, so that they are transformed into rhythm and song. In Christ's Name I ask it. Amen.

For Further Study

1 Cor. 9:1-16; John 9:4; 2 Cor. 5:14

1. What tension did Paul feel?
2. What does the word "compel" convey?

 

[Veritas]

Mr. Versatile,

Thank you so much for posting this:

The cause of His anger was grief, not loss of temper -- grief at their insensibility to human need. It was grief at what was happening to someone else, not personal pique at what was happening to Him.

Whenever we get angry, it is usually because our ego has been wounded and hits back, not in redemption but in retaliation. There is a temper that is redemptive and there is a temper that is retaliatory

Recently, in a Bible study, we were trying to grasp what it means to be a Christian man, and how we are kind of seen as wimps in some ways. We were also trying to get a grasp on anger and violence. We couldn't really come to a conclusion to what was right.

I think this helps. How do you think it relates to violence?

 

[MrVersatile48]

Hi Veritas!

Thanks: that's a big question you ask

There are 2/3 conversations nearby in this public library, so I just asked God what He wants me to say


The Bible says, "Be angry & sin not"

It also says, several times & ways, that God's ways are higher than our ways & that His purposes & will are not fulfilled thru our sin - though it also says that He will fulfil His purposes despite our sins & failures & anything the enemy of souls throws at us for our harm, God will turn to our good

I only have @ 7 mins to reply @ violence

Romans 13 talks about the need for law & order to be enfored: "he who carries the sword does not bear it for nothing"

Jesus met several soldiers & never told any to leave the army

& Armageddon is when Christ slaughters Antichrist armies for daring to invade His Holy Land & attack His Holy City - see Joel 3, Zecharaiah 14 & Revelation 16-19

Must go!

Ian

 

[MrVersatile48]

Timely word here:-

Growing in Your Relationship with God

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today
* Yet More One Another Commands
* Today's Read through the Bible Passage
* One Another Passages
* Forward this to a Friend

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Yet More One Another Commands



Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will
fulfill the law of Christ. (Galatians 6:2)


Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
(Ephesians 5:21)


Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit,
but in humility consider others better than
yourselves. (Philippians 2:3)


Bear with each other and forgive whatever
grievances you may have against one another.
Forgive as the Lord forgave you. (Colossians 3:13)



Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong,
but always try to be kind to each other and to
everyone else Seek after what is good for one
another (1 Thessalonians 5:15)


Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.
show hospitality (1 Peter 4:9)


Young men, in the same way be submissive to those
who are older. All of you, clothe yourselves with
humility toward one another, because, "God opposes
the proud but gives grace to the humble." (1 Peter
5:5)


Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray
for each other so that you may be healed. The
prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
(James 5:16)


But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we
have fellowship with one another, and the blood of
Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin. (I John 1:7)



Compiled by Marji "Mike" Kruger

For more on a relationship with God. . . - http://rs6.net/tn.jsp?t=rmainzbab.0.ggg ... 4027&ts=S0
211&p=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.anchorlife.org%2Fhtml%2Fwhy_bother.htm