Learning How To Be Angry (Ephesians 4:26-27)

Good to see you this morning.

Grateful for the opportunity to be up here fighting a little bit of a cold this morning.

So I've got a cough drop in.

Apologize for the rattling around in there actually reminds me of

story of an old Baptist preacher who He used to keep track of how long he was to preach by putting a

cough drop in his mouth at the beginning of his sermon and when he Finished, you know when it was dissolved then it was time to

stop.

I work really well for a long time until one day he reached into his pocket and pulled out a button by accident put it In all

right.

Let's pray as we start.

Well our father we committee your presence this morning and We desire to hear from you

through your word.

Father calm our hearts help us to focus our minds.

Help us to have a well -tilled soil to receive the living word as it comes to us.

And our Lord we desire to be obedient to what we hear.

A change real change to be made in our hearts as we Submit ourselves to you.

Father we ask this morning for clarity clarity of speech clarity of thought clarity of

comprehension.

The name of Christ would be glorified here in Jesus name.

Amen.

Well the year was 1847 1847 and an Italian chemist

by the name of Ascanio Sobrero synthesized a heavy

colorless oily chemical compound by nitrating glycerol

with white fuming nitric acid.

The resulting.

Compound called nitroglycerin Was extremely unstable

and highly explosive.

About 20 years later after a number of accidents the Swedish chemist

Alfred Nobel Figured out how to make nitroglycerin commercially viable

by combining it with diatomaceous earth.

The resultant product called dynamite was patented by him and made him fabulously

wealthy.

In 1878 Dr. William

Morrell began treating his heart patients with small diluted doses of nitric

glycerin to alleviate the angina and Reduce blood pressure.

A few months before his death in 1896 Alfred Nobel was prescribed nitroglycerin for

his own heart condition and Writing to a friend.

He said the following and I quote.

Isn't it the irony of fate? That I have been prescribed nitroglycerin to be taken

internally.

They call it trinitrin.

So as not to scare the chemist and the public.

Beloved the hate.

The same highly volatile and dangerous chemical compound can take a life.

Or it can save it and it all depends on the how and the

why.

It is used the same is true for anger.

Our text this morning is Ephesians chapter 4 verses 26 and 27.

As you find your way there to Ephesians chapter 4 verses 26 and

27.

When you get there you get a look up at me and I

will take up the reading beginning at verse 25.

Therefore laying aside falsehoods speak truth each one of you with his neighbor.

But we are members of one another.

Be angry and yet do not sin.

Do not let the Sun go down on your anger and do not give the devil an opportunity.

He who steals must steal no longer, but rather he must labor Performing with his own hands what is good

so that he will have something to share with the one who has need.

Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth.

But only such a word that is good for edification according to the need of the moment.

So that it will give grace to those who hear.

Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

Let all bitterness wrath and anger and clamor and slander you put away from you

along with all malice.

Be kind to one another.

Tender -hearted forgiving each other just as God in Christ also has

forgiven.

You.

Unlike lying and Stealing which are to have no place in the

life of a child of God.

Anger is more nuanced.

Anger is more nuanced.

Notice in verse 31 there.

Paul says that wrath and anger are to be put off.

And in their place verse 32 we are to supply kindness and tenderness and forgiveness they are to be

put on.

Notice also as you let your eyes drop down the page to chapter 5 in verse 1 where Paul

calls us to be imitators of God as his beloved children.

And.

Then notice further in verse 6 of chapter 5 Where Paul says let no one deceive you with

empty words.

For because of these things the wrath of God Comes upon the sons of disobedience.

Paul speaks here of the wrath of God against that which once characterized their

former way of life.

So the result of all of this is we see that the topic of anger and wrath is not as straightforward

as one might first suppose.

There is a nuance involved in this.

Furthermore in our text this morning verses 26 and 27 Paul

uses four imperatives four commands.

To speak about the topic of anger to address the topic of anger.

Four of them there.

They are you can see them be angry is one.

Do not sin.

A second.

Do not let the Sun go down on your anger.

A third and do not give the devil an opportunity.

There's your four commands your four imperatives.

Now this first imperative Be angry verse 26

a present middle imperative for those keeping track has caused no

end to Consternation among Bible commentators and even translators

as to how to render this command this imperative.

How exactly is it to be understood.

A number of possibilities have been put been put forward?

So some see it as what's called a conditional or a concessional imperative.

In other words, it could be translated something like this if this is what you assume Paul's doing.

If you do get angry make sure you do not sin.

And that's actually how the NIV handles the text where they said in your anger do not sin.

They translate it that way.

Others think it's more what's called a permissional a permissive imperative.

Be angry.

In other words, I cannot prevent it and you cannot prevent it, but don't sin.

The third and the one to which I'm attracted is that it is a.

Command.

It is a command.

There is a moral obligation to be angry as the occasion requires.

And there's also a moral obligation not to sin in the expression of that anger.

Now notice when you look at your text here your Bible probably designates it somehow for you that this is a

quote Paul is quoting from the Old Testament he's actually quoting Psalm 4

in the Subtuagent and there in the subtuagent translation of Psalm 4

We find the following in verse 4.

Be angry and do not sin.

But what's going on there in Psalm 4 again?

There's a difference of opinion in Psalm 4.

The psalmist is accused unjustly by his enemies of some crime or sin and

Although he knows the the that he's innocent the weight of the accusation is weighing very

heavily upon him.

Now again difference of opinion.

What is David saying here in verse 4.

Is he speaking to the ungodly and Counseling them to restrain their anger against him

the permissive imperative.

Or is he speaking to himself?

And counseling his own heart to restrain his anger against their unjust accusations and trusting

God to vindicate him.

I believe David is speaking in the latter.

Therefore I Understand Ephesians 4 and verse 26 to a come to be a command

to righteous anger righteous indignation.

Remember with me now remember the Ephesian believers had come out of a life

of darkness sin idolatry.

Their consciences had been dulled to sin.

It really didn't bother them as It didn't bother you or

me.

Before the work of the Spirit of God in our hearts.

It was their environment.

They knew nothing else.

Once God though had opened their blind eyes to the beauty of Christ.

Everything changes.

Everything changes.

They become new creations, right?

2nd Corinthians 5 17 that they needed to change the way their lives operated and that includes the realm of

anger.

Look at verses 22 and 23 and.

Reference to your former manner of life.

You lay aside the old self Which is being corrupted in accordance with the lust of deceit and that you be renewed in

the spirit of your mind.

Lay Aside the old man and his behaviors his attitudes his his reactions.

All things become new in Christ.

All things become new.

What is true of them is true of me and it's true of you.

If you are a child of God by faith in Christ this morning.

One of the fact effects of becoming a new creation in Christ is is learning how

and when?

To be angry how and when.

To be angry.

So.

Here's our outline for this morning.

It's pretty simple.

For commands that must be simultaneously obeyed in order to

biblically learn how to be angry.

For commands that must be simultaneously obeyed In order to biblically learn

how to be angry.

All right, the first one in verse 26 the first command

repent of your Complacency repent of

Your complacency.

Be angry.

Beloved sin does not shock us like it ought to.

Like it ought to.

Daily we are inundated with news that has the effect of hardening us to

sin and It's devastating consequences.

Theft.

Fraud.

Rape.

Murder.

Pornography abortion sex trafficking.

That's just a few.

Just a few.

We become numb.

We turn away.

We're also in danger of becoming numb to the lesser sins That

frequent the church.

Things like gossip.

Slander.

Factions Criticism irreverence

Immorality Fornication.

One writer says in the face of blatant evil.

We should be indignant and not tolerant angry

and not apathetic.

And not apathetic.

Can we find examples of this kind of righteous anger in the scriptures.

You bet we can.

You bet we can.

Yahweh The God the Lord himself is his anger is displayed many

times in the Old Testament many times.

There's a very small sampling Ephesians.

Ephesians that is not in the Old Testament.

Exodus chapter 3 and verse 14.

Exodus in 314 we find God angry over Moses is unbelief.

God said to Moses I am who I am and he said thus you shall say to the sons of Israel I

am has sent you wrong citation.

Sorry for 14 that works better.

3 3.

14 is good for 14 is better more to the point.

Then the anger of the Lord burned against Moses and he said is there not your brother Aaron the Levite?

I know that he speaks Fluently and moreover behold he is coming out to meet you

when he sees you he will be glad in his heart.

God is angry with Moses because Moses Is unbelieving of the Lord

the commission that God has put upon him he says I can't do it Can't do it.

God demonstrates anger against Israel Exodus 22

because of their mistreatment of the helpless.

Exodus 22 verses 21 and 20 through 24.

Exodus 22 21 to 24 you shall not wrong a stranger or oppress him.

For you were strangers in the land of Egypt.

You shall not afflict any widow or orphan.

If you afflict him at all, and if he does cry out to me I will surely hear his cry and my anger will be kindled and

I will kill you with the sword.

And your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.

God cares about the helpless.

It provokes him to anger when they're mistreated.

God is angry with his people when they grumble numbers.

Chapter 11 verse 1.

Now the people became like those who complain of adversity in the hearing of the Lord like

those who complain of adversity in other words like most people and

When the Lord heard it his anger was kindled in the fire of the Lord burned among them and consumed Some of the

outskirts of the camp.

But it's angry they're grumbling.

Chapter 12 verse 9.

We have Miriam and Aaron Who murmur and

and grumble against Moses.

Verse 9 so the anger of the Lord burned against them and he departed and of course, you know what happened to Miriam

struck with leprosy.

Grumbling makes God angry.

I will turn you there, but it's familiar enough to you.

But 2nd Samuel chapter 6 and verse 7 When David is seeking to bring the Ark of the Covenant into

his capital city.

You remember that The Ark is placed on an ox cart and it is as it's being brought in the the ox

Stumbles the cart shifts in the the Ark of the Covenant.

It's on on the cart.

Looks like it's going to fall in and Uzzah sticks out his hand to prevent it from falling into the mud and God strikes him dead.

Anger of the Lord flashed and struck him dead.

There's a whole sermon by the way in that event.

But let's just say this first Uzzah was a Levite.

Likely of the sons of Kohath who were a Kohathite who was who was appointed by God to

carry the Ark.

Not put it on an ox cart not touch it.

In his flagrant disregard for his Levitical duties God slayed him

beyond that.

Shame on man to think his hand is less defiled than the mud.

That is not in rebellion against God

we have the example of Moses.

Again, I won't turn you there, but you can remember this this is Exodus chapter 32.

Moses comes down from the mountain after receiving the Ten Commandments because he he hears that the people had

Descended into idolatry and he he pleads with God first Not to destroy them then he comes down from

the mountain and he smashes the stones the tablets in his anger

time will escape me if I turn to King David in His sin with

Bathsheba, right?

He's confronted about a year later by Nathan who tells the story of the rich man who took the poor

man's only lamb.

You remember this?

Then the anger of David flashed forth said that man should should repay fourfold.

And Nathan says thou art the man and David does repay

fourfold in the loss of four sons the loss of four sons.

Paul.

Galatians chapter 2 in his in his anger over Peter's defection from the gospel

Confronts him openly to his face.

And the last and I will turn you here is Jesus in Mark chapter

3 and verse 5.

We'll pick it up at the beginning of the chapter and he that is Jesus entered again into a synagogue and a man was there Whose hand was withered

and they were watching him to see if he would heal him on the Sabbath so that they might accuse him

and he said to the man with a wither hand get up and Come forward and he said to them

Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath to save a life or to kill?

But they kept silent verse 5 After looking around

at them with anger Grieved at their hardness of heart.

He said to the man stretch out your hand and he stretched it out in his hand was restored.

We certainly are well aware of Jesus entering into the temple And making a whip out

of cords and driving the money changers from the temple cleansing the temple twice.

The beginning and the end of this public ministry is Their biblical

precedent to be angry Absolutely all over the place

all over the place.

So what can we learn?

What can we learn from these?

Examples.

Here's a few Suggestions for you.

You can develop these on your own and add many more.

I'm sure Sin makes God angry.

This is the first one sin makes God angry and As those bearing the family image

it should make us angry too Should make us angry too.

Second.

The instances of anger come in response to serious spiritual

defection serious spiritual defection and often

manifested itself in rebellion against the law of God.

It is the serious spiritual defection that comes in Manifest rebellion

against the law of God that draws the anger of God and that should draw the anger of his people.

And third God's anger rises slowly.

It is not explosive and it is not out of control.

Exodus 34 I will turn you there

and verse 6 Then the Lord passed by in front of him

that is Moses and proclaimed the Lord the Lord God compassionate and gracious

Slow to anger and abounding in loving -kindness and truth who keeps loving -kindness for

thousands who forgives iniquity Transgression and sin yet.

He will by no means leave the guilty unpunished.

Visiting the iniquity of fathers on the children and on the grandchildren to the third and fourth

Generation.

God is Compassionate and slow to anger and as his children we need to

be just like that.

David Polissen in his book good and angry writes the following.

The wrath of God is the clearest example.

I know of how to get good and angry and Be patient

Merciful and generous at the same time

now.

The danger in repenting of our complacency is that it can quickly go from righteous to unrighteous

anger and Then it becomes an occasion for sin.

Then it becomes occasion for sin.

Like a nuclear reactor.

We need to keep the fuel rods cool.

Or things can quickly melt down and spew deadly radiation all over the place.

To keep things under control Paul provides the three additional commands

That provide a counterbalance to the weight of that first one.

So we find our second command Restrain your passions.

Restrain your passions.

Back to Ephesians chapter 4

and verse 26

be angry and Yet do not sin.

And do not sin.

Anger is a very volatile substance and Even righteous anger can

easily become corrupted and turn into bitterness Resentment self

-righteousness and various other destructive thoughts and behaviors.

It can tip quickly.

It is like the nuclear reactor furthermore

I am convinced that Frequently our anger is not a result of God's glory being

impinged or offended but our own.

Our own injured pride.

Sometimes coming when we baptize our ambitions and then attribute them to God

Becomes a source of our anger when our ambitions are frustrated.

We confuse our ambitions with God's our glory with his.

One writer wrote anger is an acid that destroys its container.

Anger is an acid that destroys its container.

Because passions can so easily get out of control the New Testament counsels us to be

slow to anger.

To be slow to anger, right?

James chapter 1 verses 19 and 20.

Know this my beloved brothers.

Let every person be quick to hear slow to speak

slow to anger.

For the anger of man does not produce you fill it in.

What?

The righteousness of God.

Or chapter 3 of James letter verses 16 through 18.

But where jealousy and selfish ambition exist there is disorder and every evil thing.

But the wisdom from above is first pure then peaceable gentle reasonable

full of mercy and good fruits unwavering without hypocrisy.

And the seed whose fruit is Righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

James has got a lot to say about the role of anger, by the way in the local assembly and The

tongue which is often the source by which the anger is vented.

Brian Chappell in his Fine little commentary on the book of Ephesians writes the

following lack of control over anger.

May be evidenced by how long it is held as well as by how vigorously it

is expressed.

So.

Repent of your complacency.

Secondly restrain your passions.

Third command.

Release the offender.

Release the offender again.

Verse 26.

Be angry and do not sin.

Do not let the Sun go down on your anger.

Do not let the Sun go down on your anger.

Hanging on to anger for whatever reason puts us in a vulnerable

position.

So Paul commands us to let it go.

Let it go.

Now.

This is not a literal command by which sunset is a fixed marker of time.

But rather this is a warning about brooding in your anger or nursing it and

Letting it fester.

It's a wisdom statement.

Actually the wisdom statement.

So.

The husband and wife have a strong disagreement that bubbles forth in

anger.

At four o 'clock in the afternoon.

Paul is not saying they've got till 5 p .m. When the Sun goes down to get this result.

So get after it.

Although that's a good idea.

But here's what he's saying to them.

Do not hang on to the anger that has been generated.

But quickly release it and the offender.

Because you can't let go of the anger without letting go of the offender and resolve the problem as

soon as practically possible.

When it comes to releasing the offender the words of D Martin Lloyd -Jones, I think are

quite helpful here so I have a a Bit of a lengthy quote from Lloyd -Jones, which if you know

anything about Lloyd -Jones, he doesn't do anything in short.

His Ephesians commentary, I forget it's eight volumes.

Is that what it is?

Yeah.

Not bad, huh?

Six chapters eight volumes, but he writes the following

you may have a great struggle with yourself.

But do not go to rest until you have settled it.

You may have to argue it backwards and forwards.

Go on I say until you have realized the love of God in Christ to you.

Until you have seen Christ bleeding and dying on the cross that you might be

forgiven.

Dwell on it until he has melted your heart and broken you down and made you sorry

for the one who has offended you and Until you forgive freely

then but not until then get into your bed and put your head down on the pillow and Sleep

the sleep of the just and the righteous and the holy.

Because you have a right to do so.

You will be doing it as a son of God himself did it.

You will have acted in your life and domain as God himself has acted with

respect to.

Wow.

Preach the gospel to yourself.

Until you have been broken again.

By the reality of what Christ has done for you what

he sacrificed for you your unworthiness.

His.

Willingness his desire To forgive you

and when you get a good grip on that at that point you can then release

the offender.

This is practical Gospel soul work.

Do not listen to your heart speak truth to your heart.

Speak truth to your heart.

Repent of your complacency.

Be angry for the right things.

Restrain your passions.

And your anger do not let it go over into sin.

Release the offender.

Forgive as God has forgiven you.

And finally Recognize the danger here.

Recognize the danger.

Verse 27 Do not give the devil an opportunity.

Do not give the devil an opportunity.

It's a fascinating statement, by the way Racking my brain standing up here, but I think I'm

on safe ground to say this.

This is the only place that I can think of Where a sin is directly related in the

New Testament this way to a believer about opening themself up to the work of the devil.

False teachers are demonic and and bring in demonic doctrines of demons in that way, but

Terms of behaviors.

This is interesting how it stands out the greatest

danger of Unrighteous anger is that the devil will exploit it For

his own purposes.

He will exploit it for his own purposes.

When we hang on to anger we provide the devil with a base of operations from which to create

destruction in our lives.

We say that again to you when we hang on to anger we provide the

devil with a base of operations from which to create destruction in our lives or

Giving him a foothold an opportunity a breach in the wall.

Peter writes in first Peter 5 a be of sober spirit.

Be on the alert your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion.

Seeking someone to devour.

Probing testing.

How are the defenses?

Beloved prolonged anger should frighten us.

It should frighten us Because it opens up the gates of

the city to the invader.

This is true with regard to our own spiritual and emotional health for sure

but in even a More important I would say in wider context.

It is true of the community of believers.

It is true of the church Anger unrighteous anger held on to

brood it over that turns inward to bitterness Becomes a point

of vulnerability in a local congregation such as ours

Proverbs chapter 30 and verses 32 and 33.

If.

You have been foolish exalting yourself.

Or if you have been devising evil put your hand on your mouth for pressing milk

produces curds.

Pressing the nose produces blood and pressing anger produces strife.

Pressing anger produces strife.

Notice by the way, and I will just try to contextually tie this in for you at the beginning of chapter 4

Verses 1 through 3 where Paul there is the turning point in the letter right chapters 1 2 3 are the great doctrinal

Foundation of the letter chapter 4 5 6 or the so what of the letter now that this is

true.

So what how do we live?

And notice how Paul begins the so what section of the letter?

Therefore I.

The prisoner of the Lord implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called.

With all humility and gentleness.

With patience showing tolerance for one another in love being diligent to preserve the unity of the

Spirit in the bond of peace.

In other words in light of the great doctrinal truths of the gospel outlaid in chapters 1 2 & 3.

We are to walk in unity with one another.

To be long -suffering with one another to be in humility with one another.

Anger is the exact opposite of all of that.

It's an attack on that.

How did church splits happen?

You've been a believer long enough.

You've unfortunately been party of one or Observed it at least

how do they happen?

They happen when someone is offended and cannot let go.

Someone is offended and they cannot let go.

Soon others in the body line up like little tin soldiers in battle formation to take up the

cause.

Then the two sides square off.

And it becomes a holy war in which compromise is considered heresy

and Satan just laughs in delight as another gospel lighthouse.

Goes dark anger in the local body.

It's incredibly dangerous.

But God would have us angry at the right things and for the right reasons.

Then he would have us react to that anger by humbly gently Passionately and

lovingly preaching the gospel both to ourselves and into that situation.

May the Spirit of God renew our thinking with regard to this most important

Topic, let's pray

our father.

There is enough conviction here for all of us this morning.

But we have been angry and not in a righteous way in fact more times than

We can even remember when we have substituted our glory for

yours and When our will was thwarted we

lashed out In anger and then father.

We also confess that when we should be angry we find ourselves to be.

Blase.

Uninvolved we turn away And move on with the happy

things of life.

And yet you have called us to be angry in the right way for the right things and then to let it

go.

To bring the only thing that can resolve the problem and that is the gospel.

Oh Lord, may you help us this morning to renew our commitment to live in light of the

reality that All of our sin has been placed on Christ.

And he has consumed your wrath to the final drop.

Nothing remains for us.

Let us be Those who understand who practice and who preach that reality into this

broken world.

We ask for Jesus sake.

Amen.