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Deutsche Version | Wiki Start | Topics Collection vi
Sermon on the Mount V: Anger ...
Friday, Nov 28, 2014. Are you angry, sometimes? Of course we are angry now and then. Anger is a part of our life - and when others treat us with ignorance or badly, anger comes. That is a very natural process. But now Jesus talks about anger, and he formulates sincere warnings.
Jesus about Anger …
21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire. 23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift. 25 Come to terms quickly with your accuser while you are going with him to court, lest your accuser hand you over to the judge, and the judge to the guard, and you be put in prison. 26 Truly, I say to you, you will never get out until you have paid the last penny. (Matth. 5, 21-26)
Jesus gives us heavy advice about our anger. You know that he does not want us to speak badly about other people, if this is not really necessary. But at the same time, it is a difficult command. If people cause problems, you need to address these problems. How could you not identify and talk about mistakes or behavioural patterns, which are not good.
There are different ways to deal with the question of “righteous anger”. Anger, which comes from outrageous behaviour, from hatred or harassement, can be fully justified. One route many translations take is to formulate “anger without cause”. Others keep “anger” without this additional words, Some formulate “in danger of judgement”, keeping it open if the anger really leads to judgement, or if it is judged to be alright.
My Anger …
Perhaps anger is not your problem. It still might be the problem of others around you, and you need to deal with it. For me I can say that I am angry. When I see stupid things, it makes me angry. When I cannot be efficient, it makes me angry. When I contribute, and others ignore it, that makes me angry. Much of the news today makes me angry, because it reflects bad attitudes towards other people, and many lies. My feelings can be quite strong.
So it is a key topic for myself, where I should go with my anger. How can I control it and lead it into a good pathway? In what way does God want to change me and my anger, such that I can be calm in the presence of insult and injustice? I am still on my way to learn and to change. What about you?
I also must admit: anger can give you quite some strength. It is like a burning oven, which can help you to work hard and achieve things. Anger about injustice can lead you to act. This type of anger is not bad, it is good. You do not need to accept every stupid structure or rule, you do not need to accept suppression or torment or hunger or war. But we need to get our reaction patterns right! (RWEP) ... more texts