I Am Sooooo Mad! - Eph. 4:26-27
"22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. 25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26 "In your anger do not sin": Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need. 29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."
I was talking to my son the other day in his room about how he responded to his mother, and he tried his best to explain a physical and emotional reaction that he had. He said, "dad, I just felt so mad! I felt like I was dizzy!" I don't know about you, but I remember that type of feeling. There are times that we get so mad that we literally feel out of control (dizzy like). We don't think straight, and we have a tendency to say things we don't mean.
Anger is such a huge issue! James tells us that "man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires." But anger is only a response to a deeper issue. When our lives are fragile, any little thing can set us off! When our identity in Christ is suffering, we tend to easily respond in anger. Think about it... What enables us to show grace? The fact that we understand that we have been shown grace! It comes from deep within! So if our sense of identity is suffering, then it doesn't take much to set us off, which perpetuates our deeper problem and allows the devil to have a foothold in our heart.
When you don't deal with your anger and allow it to fester, you give way to bitterness. Bitterness distorts our view of reality! Bitterness is a response to an unforgiving heart. It goes back to identity. We lose a part of ourselves when we get bitter! Paul tells us to forgive as the Lord forgave you! This is why the devil has a foothold... he is destroying you through an unforgiving heart.
So how do you deal with an unforgiving heart? I wish it was as easy as taking an antibiotic when you have an infection, but it requires time and a relentless pursuit of what is true about YOU! It requires you to "re-center" and grasp your identity in Christ. Without this re-centering, an unforgiving heart is difficult deal with... and the longer you live in bitterness, the harder it becomes.
Paul tells us to deal with our anger right away! Don't let the sun go down! Don't let it go another day! He knows that anger quickly turns into an unforgiving heart and our sense of self (identity) deteriorates.
Just for fun... Paul tells us in our anger to not sin... indicating that it is possible to get angry and not sin. What do you think that looks like? I would love the feedback!
Eph. 4:22-32
I was talking to my son the other day in his room about how he responded to his mother, and he tried his best to explain a physical and emotional reaction that he had. He said, "dad, I just felt so mad! I felt like I was dizzy!" I don't know about you, but I remember that type of feeling. There are times that we get so mad that we literally feel out of control (dizzy like). We don't think straight, and we have a tendency to say things we don't mean.
Anger is such a huge issue! James tells us that "man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires." But anger is only a response to a deeper issue. When our lives are fragile, any little thing can set us off! When our identity in Christ is suffering, we tend to easily respond in anger. Think about it... What enables us to show grace? The fact that we understand that we have been shown grace! It comes from deep within! So if our sense of identity is suffering, then it doesn't take much to set us off, which perpetuates our deeper problem and allows the devil to have a foothold in our heart.
When you don't deal with your anger and allow it to fester, you give way to bitterness. Bitterness distorts our view of reality! Bitterness is a response to an unforgiving heart. It goes back to identity. We lose a part of ourselves when we get bitter! Paul tells us to forgive as the Lord forgave you! This is why the devil has a foothold... he is destroying you through an unforgiving heart.
So how do you deal with an unforgiving heart? I wish it was as easy as taking an antibiotic when you have an infection, but it requires time and a relentless pursuit of what is true about YOU! It requires you to "re-center" and grasp your identity in Christ. Without this re-centering, an unforgiving heart is difficult deal with... and the longer you live in bitterness, the harder it becomes.
Paul tells us to deal with our anger right away! Don't let the sun go down! Don't let it go another day! He knows that anger quickly turns into an unforgiving heart and our sense of self (identity) deteriorates.
Just for fun... Paul tells us in our anger to not sin... indicating that it is possible to get angry and not sin. What do you think that looks like? I would love the feedback!
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