This is a sermon on anger and if you want to preach a message on this subject, the highlighted notes will provide you with the insights you need for it. There are various other themes that you will find as you go through the notes and I have ensured that it is simple and easy for you to understand.
Introduction
In the Bible, anger is presented as a powerful emotion that can lead to sin if not managed properly. While many see anger as solely negative, the Bible provides a more balanced perspective. It acknowledges that anger itself is not sinful, but it’s how we respond to our anger that matters.
In Ephesians 4:26-27, we are encouraged to be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger. This implies that feeling anger is natural and permissible, but we must handle it in a way that aligns with God’s teachings. In the Bible, the root of anger is often associated with sin and selfishness.
Additionally, in James 1:20, it states, “human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.” This suggests that allowing anger to control us can lead us away from God’s will and righteousness.
Overall, the Bible teaches that the root of anger lies in our sinful nature and our selfish desires, and it reminds us to handle our anger in a way that aligns with God’s will.
The Bible says: “Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires” (James 1:19–20). You cannot be angry and live the righteous life that God desires.
Uncontrolled anger is a problem because it is a gateway to so many other problems. Anger can cause great damage not only in your life but in the lives of those around you. Anger can cause relational problems; loss of marriage, loss of family, loss of friends. Anger can cause major life problems; loss of job, lawsuits, damage to property, harm to others; it can even lead to murder. Anger can cause emotional problems; if you are an angry person, that will affect you emotionally at every level.
Anger can also cause physical problems; high blood pressure, heart disease, headaches, stomach problems, ulcers, colitis, and insomnia have all been linked with unresolved anger. It is important for Christians to recognize and address ungodly anger through prayer, seeking guidance from Scripture, and practicing forgiveness and reconciliation.
SCRIPTURAL TEXT: Ephesians 4:26-27, Ecclesiastics 7:9.
OBJECTIVE:
The objective of this sermon on anger is to
- help the believer understand the meaning of anger
- know what the bible says about anger
- examine the different types of anger
- understand the causes of anger
- Know the effects of anger and
- Know how to deal with anger.
What Does Anger Mean?
Anger is an intense emotional response to perceived wrongdoing or injustice. In the biblical context, it often indicates a deep sense of moral outrage. Scriptures highlight the importance of recognizing and addressing anger rather than ignoring it.
Anger is the emotion of instant displeasure on account of something evil that presents itself to our view. In itself it is an original susceptibility of our nature, just as love is, and is not necessarily sinful. It may, however, become sinful when causeless, or excessive, or protracted.
What Does The Bible Say Concerning Anger?
Briefly, let’s look at a few things that the bible says concerning anger:
The Bible encourages believers to be Slow to Anger: Proverbs 14:29;
Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly. When one is slow to anger, it helps him or her not to say or do things that they may regret later.
The Bible encourages believers to Avoid Anger: Psalm 37:8;
Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. When a believer avoids anger, it enables him or her to stay away from committing evil that will affect his or her relationship with God.
The Bible emphasizes the Tendency to Sin when Angry: Ephesians 4:26;
Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger. One of the major warning the bible gives concerning anger is that, when a person is angry and is not controlled, it can lead such a person to fall into sin.
Anger does not Produces Righteousness: James 1:20;
For the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. The bible is saying that when a believer is angry and does wrong, it cannot be justified before God. It simply means no man can walk in righteousness when he walks in anger.
Anger breeds bitterness: Ephesians 4:31;
Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. The bible states that when a man lives in anger, bitterness will always live in his or her heart. When we avoid anger, we avoid and tame bitterness of heart.
Anger promotes strive among brethren: Proverbs 15:18;
A hot-tempered man stirs up strife, but he who is slow to anger quiets contention. Another thing that the bible says concerning anger is that the presence of anger is the abundance of strive among brethren.
Anger makes people behave like fools: Proverbs 14:17;
A man of quick temper acts foolishly, and a man of evil devices is hated. When one is always angry or easily gets angry, foolishness is not far from him or her.
The Bible discourages friendship with Angry People: Proverbs 22:24;
Make no friendship with a man given to anger, nor go with a wrathful man. The bible also encourages us not to make friends with people that easily gets angry so that we will not be like them.
God is always Angry with the Wicked: Psalm 7:11;
God is a righteous judge, and a God who feels indignation every day. Another striking thing that bible says about anger is that God gets angry but not with everyone but with those that walks in wickedness. Except he changes from his or her wicked ways, God is always angry with wicked men and women.
Anger is a manifestation of the works of the flesh: Galatians 5:19-21;
Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger…”. The bible teaches us that anger is a manifestation of the works of the flesh. Meaning, whoever lives in anger, operates in the flesh.
What Are the Types of Anger?
When you study your bible, you will find out that there are different kinds of anger but we will be considering just two (2) in this sermon. They are:
Righteous Anger
Righteous anger, also known as justified anger, is portrayed in the Bible as a response to injustice or wrongdoing. It is a form of anger that is in alignment with God’s will and seeks justice.
In Ephesians 4:26, it is advised, “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger.” This suggests that anger, when directed towards righteous causes, is permissible but must not lead to sinful actions. There were different persons who exercised righteous anger in the bible. They are:
God (Psalm 7:11): For example, God expresses righteous anger. We read in Psalm 7: “God is a righteous judge, a God who expresses his wrath every day” (Ps. 7:11). In fact, the Bible speaks over a hundred times of God’s anger. Obviously, God does not sin, and so anger is not sinful in and of itself.
Moses, David (Exodus 32:19; 1 Samuel 17:26): There are also a few (very few!) examples of people exhibiting righteous anger in the Bible. Moses demonstrated righteous anger over the people’s rebellion with the golden calf (Ex. 32:19). David demonstrated righteous anger when
Goliath mocked the true God of Israel (1 Sam. 17:46).
Jesus Christ (Mark 3:5, 10:14, 11:15-17): And then of course, there’s Jesus. Jesus demonstrated righteous anger with the Pharisees who didn’t want him to heal on the Sabbath (Mark 3:5). He demonstrated righteous anger with his disciples who were trying to stop the people from bringing their children to Jesus (Mark 10:14). And then of course, Jesus really demonstrated righteous anger when he cleared the temple and drove out the money-changers (Mark 11:15-17).
Unrighteous/Sinful Anger (Proverbs 29:22)
If righteous anger does good rather than harm, then sinful anger does harm rather than good. Unfortunately, we have a lot more experience with sinful anger than righteous anger.
Back to Proverbs 29:22: “An angry man stirs up dissension, and a hot-tempered one commits many sins.” Sinful anger, rooted in personal grievances or selfish motives, can lead to destructive outcomes. There are also examples of people who exercised sinful anger in the bible. They are;
King Saul’s jealousy and anger towards David: In 1 Samuel 18, after David had defeated Goliath and gained favor with the people, Saul became increasingly envious and fearful of David.
This jealousy eventually turned into rage, leading Saul to make several attempts on David’s life. This story demonstrates how unchecked jealousy and anger can lead to destructive behavior.
Cain anger towards his brother Abel: Genesis 4:5-10, tells us the story of two brothers who offered sacrifices to God. Cain’s sacrifices was rejected and that of Abel his brother was accepted by God and Cain was angry and killed his brother.
Causes of Anger
There are different factors that makes a man to become angry. We will be considering both the cause of righteous and sinful anger.
Hurt: (Cain, Genesis 4:5-6): Hurt is one of the major factors that leads to anger. When you feel rejected, betrayed, unappreciated, unloved or treated unfairly, you will often respond with anger. We see a good
example of this with Cain and Abel in the Bible. Why did Cain get angry and murder his brother? Because his offering was not accepted. He felt the emotional pain of rejection, and he responded in anger.
Frustration: (Naaman, 2 Kings 5:11–12); A second trigger of anger is frustration. When we run into unmet expectations or a loss of control, we often respond with anger. This is a huge one, because we face so many unmet expectations in life expectations about our marriage, our kids, our job. You’re frustrated, so you get angry.
A good biblical example of frustration leading to anger is the person Naaman. Naaman was a Syrian general who went to Elisha the prophet for healing. Elisha told him to go wash in the Jordan River. What made Naaman angry? Unmet expectations! He expected Elisha to do one thing, and Elisha did another. Naaman was angry because Elisha didn’t do what he wanted him to do.
Fear: (King Saul, 1 Samuel 18:7-12); A good example of fear leading to anger is King Saul in the Old Testament. When David killed Goliath, the women came out and danced in the streets.
We read in 1 Samuel 18: “As they danced, they sang: ‘Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.’ Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him.… Saul was afraid of David, because the LORD was with David but had left Saul” (1 Sam. 18:7-12). Saul felt threatened by David, and he responded in anger.
Zeal for God’s righteousness: 1 Kings 18, we see how the Prophet was zealous to see the people of Israel live in righteousness. His zeal to see righteousness made him kill the prophets of baal and brought down their altar. It is a desire to see His will upheld, and a passion for justice. It is not about seeking revenge or holding grudges, but rather about standing up for what is right and confronting sin in a spirit of love and humility.
Zeal for the Father’s house: One famous example of biblical anger is when Jesus overturned the tables of the moneychangers in the temple (Matthew 21:12-13). This action was motivated by His zeal for the Father’s house and his desire to purify it from corruption.
Effects of Anger
Anger has so many side effects that is not good for the believer’s life and these effects has the tendency to stop and affect his or her walk with the Lord. Let’s consider a few of them.
- Bitterness and Strive
- Envying and Jealousy
- Murder
- Unanswered Prayers
- Hinders effective communication
- Fosters disunity among brethren
How To Deal With Anger
In other to have an effective and efficient walk with God, you must learn how to handle and deal with anger as a Child of God. Let’s look at a few ways on how to deal with anger. They are;
Ask for God’s help (1 John 1:9): The first step to take as a child of God is to ask for God’s help. 1 John 1:9 says: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” You can’t fix this problem on your own. You need God’s help. Confess your sin to God and receive his forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Always ask God for help and to heal your hurts. Stop trying to control everything and give God your frustrations. Let go of fear and learn to trust God instead. Ask for God’s help.
Recognize early (Proverbs 17:27): You must learn to recognize the warning signs early. Proverbs 17:27 says: “A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even-tempered.” The Bible says there is power in knowledge and understanding. The more you understand how anger works in general and the more you understand how anger works in you, the more you understand your own triggers, the more you will learn to exercise restraint.
Resolve quickly (Matt 5:23-26 ; Eph 4:26-27): Always learn to resolve your anger quickly. The Bible says: “Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold” (Eph. 4:26–27). There’s an old Latin proverb based on this verse that says: “He who goes angry to bed has the devil for a bedfellow.” I don’t want to go to bed with the devil, and you don’t either. When you get angry, don’t stay angry, but resolve it. Pray about it, talk it over with a friend, take care of it before the sun goes down if you can.
Practice Forbearance and Forgiveness (Ephesians 4:31-32, Colossians 3:13): As believers, we must learn to practice forbearance and forgiveness. God tells us in his word: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you” (Eph. 4:32). “Just because you got it off your chest doesn’t mean it’s not still in your heart” (Chip Ingram). Learn to say, “I’m sorry” when you’re the one who’s wrong. Practice forgiveness when the other person is wrong.
Possessing the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23): And then finally, ask God to develop the fruit of the Spirit in you. The fruit of the Spirit are those positive character traits God builds in you through the Holy Spirit that counteract and replace the negative character traits that are in you because of sin. “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23).
Almost every one of those will counteract anger in your life. It’s hard to be angry when you are practicing love. It’s hard to be angry when you are full of joy. It’s hard to be angry when you have peace, or when you’re being kind. It’s hard to be angry when you practice gentleness and self-control.
Memorize key Scriptures that relate to anger: Proverbs 12:18 states, “There is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.” You can use your tongue like a sword to destroy or like a scalpel to heal. God has brought that verse to my mind many times just as I was ready to start swinging my “sword”!
Another helpful verse is James 1:19-20, “But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.” There are many other helpful verses that God can use, but only if you’ve committed them to memory. You won’t have a Bible and concordance available when you’re tempted to be angry.
Conclusion
Jesus came to help you with your problems, and he can help you with the problem of anger. Ask for God’s help. Recognize anger early. Resolve anger quickly. Practice forgiveness. And ask God to develop the fruit of the Spirit in you.
The point is, your anger won’t get better by itself if you don’t take radical, decisive action to put it aside. You’ve got to recognize that all sinful anger and abusive speech are not pleasing to the Lord. They’re old, dirty clothes, but they should be cast aside by the person who has died to the old life and has been raised up to new life with Christ.
Don’t accept it or excuse it as normal. Anger can be controlled and dealt with when you take and right steps and actions.
Sermon on Anger PDF
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