SUNDAY 16TH JULY 2017

TOPIC: AVOID PERMANENT ANGER!
TEXT: EPHESIANS 4:26 “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath…”

The leopard- a cruel and savage beast can best describe a state of one that has permanent anger. This led to hatred and oftentimes murder in various dimensions. (Prov 27:4, 37:8 & Eccl 17:9).
Uncontrolled anger is like jumping into your car, reversing the engine, and discovering too late that the brakes don’t work. The Bible says, ‘Don’t stay angry. Don’t go to bed angry. Don’t give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life’ (vs. 26-27). Uncontrolled anger opens the door to Satan – and it’s all downhill from there! So before you say something you’ll regret and can’t take back, ask yourself:
1) Is the relief I’ll get from venting worth the aftermath? The Bible says, ‘A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger’ (Prov. 15:1). By sounding off, you run the risk of making the finest speech you’ll ever regret. By its very nature anger encourages exaggeration, and makes you say things you can’t retract. Long after you’ve moved on, harsh words maintain their power to wound and divide.
2) Is it really worth dragging other people into it? Anger inevitably affects those around you because it’s human to want to take sides, even if you’ve ‘no dog in the fight’. Involving other people is usually a way to feed your ego and justify bad behaviour. .
3) Is my anger appropriate? Anger over ignorance and injustice has always led to progress, but it’s easy to let small stuff like thoughtless comments and remarks make you overreact. For anger to have a healthy result it needs to be measured and constructive. Paul says, ‘The mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace’ (Rom 8:6). It comes down to a control issue, and a controlled response is a Christ like response. It always wins. Beloved, the Book of Colossians 3: 8 encourages us strongly to put off anger- the old man with his deeds and put on that is the new man which is renewed in knowledge after the image of Him that created you. Perhaps there is still a struggle with the challenge of anger from time to time; prayerfully admit it and thank Jesus for setting you free. (Rom 8:32).

MEDITATION: Col 3:8

BIBLE STUDY
Josh 23, Acts 3, Jer. 12, Matt. 26