Mad at the World

Have you ever been mad? A stupid question, I know! You are mad at your kids because they continue to disrespect you; you are mad at your parents because you don’t like how and what they are asking you to do; you are mad at your husband because he doesn’t listen and understand you again; you are mad at your wife because she questions your financial decisions again; you are made at your friend because she has disappointed you again; you are mad at our government because they are either interfering too much or too little; you are mad at our church because the leadership is neglecting your needs; and you are mad at your peers at work because they are either too lazy or too self-seeking. I am certain there are other types of things or people we are mad at in our lives. I was mad last night about the uncertainty of life, and my wife took the brunt of it. Being mad or angry is a common problem for us all. Things don’t go our way and we get mad. Some of us deal with it internally and hold our anger in while others express it externally and more than willing to let everyone know that we are mad. No matter how we express it, we all must admit that we get mad.

So what we should we do with our anger? Does the Bible help us deal with our anger? How can our faith relationship with Jesus empower us to deal with our anger and find redemptive ways to respond to those who disappoint and make us mad? Proverbs, a book in the Old Testament, provides some wisdom:

Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. (Proverbs 14:29)

Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city. (Proverbs 16:32)

Before we feel guilty, let me remind us that there is much more to Proverbs. I like what Ed Welch says, “It has a method that connects with its content or theology. Wisdom is much too beautiful to be offered in drab propositional form. Instead, the content of Proverbs is situated in a decidedly family context. The royal parent is speaking to his beloved children. He wants the very best for the children. He wants them to steer clear of the many traps that can lead to ruin; he wants them to thrive. To this end, he woos, persuades, warns in love, spells out the consequences of choices, and thinks of catchy illustrations that tend to embed themselves in the mind’s eye. The royal parent works hard to make wisdom sound as attractive as it really is.”

So with this mind, we must consider the proper way to work through our ungodly anger. We must consider three essential truths about God. First, God is our model. God is our Father and we are his children, therefore, he is slow to anger and long suffering with us. The Psalmist reminds: “But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness” (Psalm 86:15). We need to remember that throughout the journey of God’s people and our own personal journey, we have sinned habitually and consistently against God. We have a history of doing things our way and not God’s! Yet, He has always dealt fairly and justly and mercifully with us. Let me remind you about his forbearing patience with you: He is with you always even though you ignore and do not listen to Him; He has not left you or turned His back on you even though you have turned your back on Him; He answers your prayers even though you ask in selfish ways; He is always for you even though at times you reject His will; and He always loves you even though you show hate to others and Him by how you speak and act. God the Father delights to be slow to anger with you!

Second, God is our way. Jesus Christ, the Son of God took the righteous anger of God for us on the cross. Jesus experienced the wrath of God for our sakes. Yes, God was angry at our sins for it separated us from enjoying a right and intimate relationship with Him. Jesus Christ provided the only way for us to have this relationship. Because we have this very real, intimate and right relationship with the Triune God through the willing and atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we now have the ability to deal with our anger. Meditate on these passages found in the New Testament.

My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. 2 He is the propitiation* for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. 3 And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. (1 John 2:1-3)

9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation* for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. (1 John 4:9-11)

A relationship with Jesus Christ is the only way to effectively work on our anger.

(*An atoning sacrifice that satisfies the wrath of God on behalf of those for whom it is made.)

Third, God is our power. The Holy Spirit is committed to breaking us of ungodly anger. The Holy Spirit helps us see through God’s Word what lies behind our anger. Our anger is only the fruit of something deeper going on inside of us—what we really believe about God and ourselves. We get mad because our demands are not meant or we are feeling inadequate about ourselves. We get mad because what we value or better said what we worship (our honor, our comfort, being right, our reputation, our expectations, etc.) is being threaten. We get mad because the center of the universe (me and you) is being replaced by someone or something else. Being mad is a matter of the heart. The Holy Spirit is not only helping us turn from our anger but more importantly enabling us to turn from worshiping our comfort, our reputation, our expectations—our self. He enables us to find our true value on what really matters—God and His Kingdom. He enables us to find our true identity not in being right or looking good but in Jesus Christ who is our righteousness and goodness. He reminds us of the Gospel—you, a sinner (ugh, truth hurts sometimes), are greatly loved by a Holy and Gracious God demonstrated by sending His much-loved Son to rescue, redeem and declare you as His very own righteous and much-loved child.

As the Holy Spirit empowers us to more and more believe the good news of the gospel, then we can more honestly and effectively deal with our anger. Will you and I still get angry or mad? Certainly! I am still wrestling with being mad as I write. But God has given us all the resources we need to turn from what lies behind our anger and to turn to Him finding our ultimate satisfaction and contentment and power.

I end with these words by the Apostle Paul in his letter to the church in Galatia.

16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, 21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. (Galatians 3:16-26)