Overcoming Problems With Anger

Definition: Anger is a whole personed response arising from a negative moral judgment against a perceived evil.

Anger is a God given ability to respond against sin and its consequences.

Righteous anger focuses on God and God’s kingdom, rights and concerns, not on me and my kingdom, rights and concerns.

Righteous anger is accompanied by other godly qualities, and expresses itself in godly ways.

1)God’s anger

Deuteronomy 32:36-42

36 "For the LORD will judge His people And have compassion on His servants, When He sees that their power is gone,
And there is no one remaining, bond or free.

37 He will say: 'Where are their gods, The rock in which they sought refuge?

38 Who ate the fat of their sacrifices, And drank the wine of their drink offering? Let them rise and help you, And be your refuge.

39'Now see that I, even I, am He, And there is no God besides Me; I kill and I make alive; I wound and I heal;
Nor is there any who can deliver from My hand.

40 For I raise My hand to heaven, And say, "As I live forever,

41 If I whet My glittering sword, And My hand takes hold on judgment, I will render vengeance to My enemies, And repay those who hate Me.

42 I will make My arrows drunk with blood, And My sword shall devour flesh, With the blood of the slain and the captives, From the heads of the leaders of the enemy."' NKJV

Psalms 2:2-5

2 The kings of the earth set themselves,
And the rulers take counsel together, Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying,

3 "Let us break Their bonds in pieces And cast away Their cords from us."

4 He who sits in the heavens shall laugh;

The LORD shall hold them in derision.

5 Then He shall speak to them in His wrath, And distress them in His deep displeasure: NKJV

Isaiah 34:1-2

Come near, you nations, to hear; And heed, you people! Let the earth hear, and all that is in it,
The world and all things that come forth from it.

2 For the indignation of the LORD is against all nations,
And His fury against all their armies; He has utterly destroyed them, He has given them over to the slaughter.
NKJV

Romans 1:18-19
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men,
who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,

19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them.
NKJV

John 3:36

36 He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."
NKJV

2)Jesus’ anger

Mark 3:1-5

And He entered the synagogue again,
and a man was there who had a withered hand.

2 So they watched Him closely, whether He would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse Him.

3 And He said to the man who had the withered hand, "Step forward."

4 Then He said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do evil, to save life or to kill?" But they kept silent.

5 And when He had looked around at them with anger,
being grieved by the hardness of their hearts,
He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."
And he stretched it out, and his hand was restored as whole as the other. NKJV

Mark 10:13-14

Then they brought little children to Him, that He might touch them; but the disciples rebuked those who brought them.

14 But when Jesus saw it, He was greatly displeased and said to them, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them;
for of such is the kingdom of God.
NKJV

John 2:13-16

Now the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

14 And He found in the temple those who sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the money changers doing business.

15 When He had made a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen, and poured out the changers' money
and overturned the tables.

16 And He said to those who sold doves,
"Take these things away!
Do not make My Father's house a house of merchandise!" NKJV

3) Righteous human anger

Exodus 32:19-22

19 So it was, as soon as he came near the camp, that he saw the calf and the dancing.
So Moses' anger became hot,
and he cast the tablets out of his hands
and broke them at the foot of the mountain.

20 Then he took the calf which they had made, burned it in the fire, and ground it to powder; and he scattered it on the water
and made the children of Israel drink it.

1 Samuel 11:1-6

hen Nahash the Ammonite came up and encamped against Jabesh Gilead; and all the men of Jabesh said to Nahash,
"Make a covenant with us, and we will serve you."

2 And Nahash the Ammonite answered them,
"On this condition I will make a covenant with you,
that I may put out all your right eyes, and bring reproach on all Israel."

3 Then the elders of Jabesh said to him,
"Hold off for seven days, that we may send messengers to all the territory of Israel. And then, if there is no one to save us, we will come out to you."

4 So the messengers came to Gibeah of Saul and told the news
in the hearing of the people. And all the people lifted up their voices and wept.

5 Now there was Saul, coming behind the herd from the field; and Saul said, "What troubles the people, that they weep?" And they told him the words of the men of Jabesh.

6 Then the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard this news, and his anger was greatly aroused.

1 Samuel 20:33-34

33 Then Saul cast a spear at him to kill him,
by which Jonathan knew that it was determined by his father to kill David.

34 So Jonathan arose from the table in fierce anger, and ate no food the second day of the month,
for he was grieved for David,
because his father had treated him shamefully. NKJV

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The truth is, most human anger is sinful.

James 4:1-3

4:1 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you?

2 You want something but don't get it.
You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God.

3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

James 3:13-18

13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life,
by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.

14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.

15 Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil.

5

16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive,
full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

18 Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.

James roots the cause of anger in one’s sinful desires.

A desire becomes sinful when you desire a sinful object or
when you desire a good object

too much – inordinately – for selfish reasons.

Notice the following progression: I desire → I demand → I judge → I punish

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Sadness + Anger = Depression

Anger often hides.
The angry person is always the last to know that he or she is angry Anger can be “hot” or “cold”.
Anger reveals more about your own heart than it does the other person.

When you are angry, in conflict, depressed, afraid, complete the following statements:

• “I must have ______ to live a meaningful fife.”

• “What I think I need or desperately want is _____.”

• “You must give me ______ or I’ll be angry at you or cold toward you.”

• “If only ______ would change, I would be satisfied or content or joyful.”

  Unrighteous anger is really a result of failing to trust God to take care of a situation.

  Romans 12:14-21

  14 Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not.
  15 Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep.

  16 Be of the same mind one toward another.
  Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.

  17 Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men.

  18 If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men.

  19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.

  20 Therefore if thine enemy hunger, feed him;
  if he thirst, give him drink:
  for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire on his head.

  21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

Ephesians 4:26-27

26 "Be angry, and do not sin": do not let the sun go down on your wrath, 27 nor give place to the devil.

Matthew 7:3-5

3 "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?

4 How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye?

5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remov
e the speck from your brother's eye.

Matthew 6:12-15

12 Forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.'

14 For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you.

15 But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.

Mark 11:25

25 And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."

Matthew 18:21-22

Then Peter came to Him and said,
"Lord, how often shall my brother sin against me, and I forgive him? Up to seven times?"

22 Jesus said to him, "I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy times seven.

Proverbs 19:11

11 A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense.