Part 4 of a series taken from material created by Patricia Miozza.  See parts 1-3 in the archives on the right at June 6, 13, and 20, 2016.
 
            And so now the excuses are arising:  “My house is too small.”  “I don’t have any extra money in my budget for guests.”  “I’m too shy.”  “I live too far away.”  “I’m too busy.”  And so on and so on and so on, as many excuses as there are people to make them.

            Can I first just mention Priscilla and Lydia?  Both were working women, Priscilla alongside her husband making tents and Lydia with her own business.  Surely they were as busy as any woman today, especially when you remember the labor saving devices they did NOT have that we take for granted.  Yet they kept people in their homes.  In fact, Lydia said it this way to Paul and Silas, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come to my house and stay,” Acts 16:15.

            Am I faithful to the Lord?  Then “too busy” can be taken off the table right now.  I can always find a way around it.  Instead of cooking, take someone out to dinner.  Are you faithful to the Lord or to your overburdened schedule?  Prove it and postpone something.  Get your husband in on the act and ask for his help.  In Bible examples, it was almost always the husband who did the inviting and acted as a servant/host. 

            And speaking of sharing the work, go in with another family.  That will automatically lighten the cooking load and help with the shy problem.  The more people, the fewer awkward silences.  If that other family lives closer to the guests, have the meal in their home and you have another problem solved.  See what we are saying?  You can always make it work if you put your mind to it.

            Then there is the money problem.  And the “too small” house problem, which we would assume is at least partially caused by the “money” problem.  Once again, asking for another to help can remedy it, but assuming there is no one to ask, stop trying to find a hindrance and remember this:  Jesus looked at the widow and her two mites and said her gift was far greater than the richest man’s there.  Surely people who claim to be his disciples will also recognize your lack and the fact that you gave to them even in your own need and bless you for it too.

            When my parents were first married they had friends over nearly every Sunday night for scrambled eggs and toast.  No, not fancy eggs with smoked salmon or goat cheese or fresh herbs—just plain old scrambled eggs.  The other couple brought a loaf of bread for the toast.  They had a great time every week.  Do you know why?  It certainly wasn’t because of the food—it was because of their relationship.  Get over worrying about what you serve and start thinking about who you should serve.  Look for specials at the store and serve what’s cheap--chicken and dumplings, chicken and rice, macaroni and cheese, yes, even scrambled eggs. 

            And the “small” problem?  My guest room used to be my boys’ room—room for bunk beds and two bureaus.  As a guest room there is barely enough space for the double bed and a chair and one night table.  I do my best to offer the things in Patricia’s list, but there isn’t room for it all.  The shower is so small that a larger person has to get wet, step outside on a towel to soap up, and then step back inside to rinse.  If you dropped the soap, you couldn’t bend over to pick it up without the other side of you banging against the shower wall and, depending upon how cold it was, possible hitting the ceiling.

            Guess what?  No one has complained.  Without exception, all of my guests have thanked me for taking them into our home.  You are worrying about nothing, and I am here to prove it.

            I hope you have enjoyed Patricia’s material and I thank her kindly for allowing me to use it.  If you would like to thank her yourself, then do so in the comments section below.  She has a knack for mixing the scriptural with the practical.  I learned a lot just listening to her, and more by actually being a guest in her home, something I hope will happen again.  Maybe I will get to return the favor someday, and I hope she won’t drop the soap in that tiny little shower!
 
Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality. Rom 12:13.
 
Dene Ward

Part 3 of a series taken from material created by Patricia Miozza.  Parts 1 and 2 are in the archives at June 6 and June 13, 2016.
 
            Let’s get down to brass tacks.  Assuming you actually have a guest room and guest bath (which I stress in all caps IS NOT NECESSARY!), here is “the guest room test.” 

            Sleep in your own guest room just as it is, using the guest room pillows (you are not allowed to use the pillows from your own bed).  See if you are comfortable and think about the following checklist.  Ask yourself if there are any improvements you are able to make.  If you do not have an actual guest room, think about ways to make your sleeping area as comfortable as possible.
            Is the mattress comfortable?
            Are the pillows comfortable?
            Are the sheets and blankets comfortable?
            Do you have extra blankets for those who might like to sleep warmer?
            Are there end tables on both sides of the bed, i.e., places to set down a glass of water, eyeglasses, a book, medicine, etc.?
            Are there lamps beside the bed for reading or to find one’s way in the dark without having to walk across the room to the light switch?
            Is there a mirror to dress by?
            Are there space and hangers in the closet to hang up clothes?
            Is there a box of tissues and a waste basket?
            Does the window open easily for a guest who wants fresh air, and a screen in the window for that purpose as well?
            Are their curtains or shades for privacy?
            Is there a place to set luggage or a luggage stand?
            Is there a chair (often needed when dressing)?
            Is there an alarm clock?
            Are there guest towels set out in the bathroom, and more in case needed?
            Are there toiletries like soap and shampoo and plenty of toilet tissue?  ( I keep a painted porcelain pail of all types of travel size toiletries, including shower gel, body wash, deodorant, toothpaste, dental floss, hand and body lotions, chapstick, bath talc, shave cream, a disposable razor, and a clean toothbrush in the bathroom closet—dw.)

            As stated above, your house may not be the Ritz.  A fold-out sofa, a cot in the den, or an air mattress on the family room floor may be all you have to offer, but most guests—and all Christians, we hope—are gracious and grateful for whatever you offer.  Spending this kind of time together promotes an intimacy that keeps misunderstandings at bay and creates deeper relationships that last a lifetime.  God knew what He was doing when He commanded hospitality. 
 
Better is a dinner of herbs, where love is, Than a stalled ox and hatred therewith. Prov 15:17

Dene Ward

Today’s post is by guest writer Lucas Ward.  You will find parts 1 and 2 in the archives at April 18 and May 16.
 
Having determined that anger can be very dangerous from our Lord’s description in Matt. 5, and seeing that Solomon in the inspired Proverbs describes actions taken in anger as those of a fool and yet learning from Paul that it is possible to be angry without sinning (Eph. 4:26), we now turn to the question of whether any actions taken in anger are approved of by God. Or is anger without sin merely the emotion without ever acting on it? To answer this question, we turn to the New Testament which has several examples of both Jesus and various Apostles getting angry and acting on their anger. We will look at these, determine if sin is present (obviously not in the case of the Lord) and then examine what made these men angry and what the extent of their actions were. We will then try to draw some conclusions about this issue.

Obviously, our Lord never sinned (Heb. 4:15). So His angry actions should be the most instructive. The most famous events in which He showed anger came at the very beginning of His ministry and again at the very end, when He cleaned the Temple of merchants. John records the first instance:
John 2:13-17 “And the Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. And he found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting: and he made a scourge of cords, and cast all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the changers' money, and overthrew their tables; and to them that sold the doves he said, Take these things hence; make not my Father's house a house of merchandise. His disciples remembered that it was written, Zeal for thy house shall eat me up.”

While the other three Gospels record the latter event (Matt. 21:12ff, Mark 11:15ff, and Luke 19:45ff). Here is Matthew’s account:
Matt. 21:12-13 And Jesus entered into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of he money-changers, and the seats of them that sold the doves; and he saith unto them, It is written, My house shall be called a house of prayer: but ye make it a den of robbers.

In both cases, His anger was real. He made a scourge (a really souped-up whip) in the first instance, to drive out the livestock (and the merchants?) and in both cases He overturned tables, dumped out money, and forced the merchants to leave. In the later episode, He combine two Old Testament passages (Is. 56:7, and Jer. 7:11) into one quote in which He intimates that not only had the merchants turned the worship of the Father into a commercial exercise, but that their activities were not on the “up-and-up”. Read up on the House of Annas sometime, and you’ll see their shenanigans.

So, our Lord was obviously angry, and He took some rather drastic actions. He made a scene! He raised His voice and was physically violent!! Worst of all, He probably hurt their feelings!!! Why was He so riled up? Look at what He said: they were turning the worship commercial and were thieving as well. In the process of this, they were polluting the Father’s House. This is where the people of Israel came to worship and commune with God. It was to be holy. These merchants were making it common. This enraged the Lord and, as His disciples noted, zeal for the Father’s house consumed Him. So, He exercised His anger against the pollution of God’s House.

Another time the Lord was angry was recorded in Luke:
Luke 9:41 And Jesus answered and said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you, and bear with you?

He sounds pretty angry here, doesn’t He? “Faithless and perverse”? When you read the corresponding passages in Matthew 17 and Mark 9 it becomes clear that His anger here was directed at His Apostles for their lack of preparation for handling the major challenges they were to face. What’s perhaps most instructive is the fact that, though He expressed His anger in the above statement, He took no angry action against the Apostles. He let them know He was angry at their failure, then He instructed them in how to be better in the future. In other words, He seems to follow the principle given in Eph. 4:26. He was angry with them, but did not sin in His anger.

Next we turn our attention to Paul, who has several recorded instances of anger. The first takes place during his first missionary journey:
Acts 13:8-11 “But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn aside the proconsul from the faith. But Saul, who is also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fastened his eyes on him, and said, O full of all guile and all villany, thou son of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand.”

Obviously, Paul is angry here. You don’t say someone is full of all guile and villany an call him a son of the devil if you are feeling light and happy-go-lucky. So, the first question is, did Paul sin? Did he go too far in name calling and in striking this man blind? Even a cursory reading gives the answer as a resounding no. Paul was filled with the Holy Spirit when he did these things. They weren’t Paul’s words and actions so much as they were Holy Spirit’s. So what made Paul (and the Spirit) so angry? What justified such harsh actions? Elymas was trying to turn a listener away from the faith. In standing against the Gospel, he earned his fate. Twice more Paul displayed anger, in Acts 13:44-47 and 18:5-7, when the Jews tried to keep the Gentiles from hearing the Gospel and/or stood against it on their own. They also blaspheme both times. In both cases Paul angrily leaves them to their fate and turns to teaching the Gentiles alone. Other than his words denouncing their thickheadedness, though, he takes no actions against them in his anger. In fact, his actions mirror Jesus’ teaching to his disciples in Matt. 10:14 as he shakes out his cloak at them.

Finally, we have an instance of Paul cursing in his anger:
Gal. 1:8-9 “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.”

Here Paul literally pronounces a curse upon a class of people. Did he sin in so doing? Obviously not, as he was writing as the inspired prophet of God in recording the epistle to the Galatians. What has him so worked up? People who changed, perverted, the Gospel in some way or other. And this makes sense: if the Gospel is God’s power to save (Rom. 1) then changes to it would undo the salvation inherent in it. So Paul was angry and took approved actions (leveling a curse) in his anger.

While this is not quite an exhaustive list of instances of approved anger in the New Testament, it does cover every major category of approved reasons to act on anger. These are
1) When the House of God is being profaned.
2) When someone is actively trying to keep an individual from hearing the Gospel.
3) When people are opposing the preaching of the Gospel generally.
4) When people blaspheme.
5) When some try to pervert the Gospel.

In looking at the first category, I’m reminded that the Church is now the House of God (1 Cor. 3:16). When people are profaning the church by their sectarianism or their disregard for authority, or in whatever way they are profaning the Church and making it just a common, worldly social group, I had better follow my Lord’s example and get angry. The profaners need to be rebuked into repentance or driven out (“FIRST pure, THEN peaceable” James 3:17)! The sanctity of God’s House must be maintained and I had better care enough about it to get angry. When I look at number four, I wonder at my reaction to people who take the Lord’s name in vain – the most common form of blasphemy. These are the times it is ok to be angry. Indeed, these are the times I should be getting angry and that actions taken in anger will be approved of by God as long as they don’t go too far. NOTE: Jesus drove the merchants from the Temple, He didn’t hang them from the battlements.

Another thing I note as I look at the above list is that there is no mention of it being ok to take action in anger when the reason I’m angry is someone did something to me. When someone commits an affront to God (blasphemy) or pollutes His house, or stands in the way of the Gospel, it is permitted/expected for me to act in righteous anger. When someone does something to me, I am to “turn the other cheek”. Paul deals with this:

Rom 12:19-21 “Avenge not yourselves, beloved, but give place unto the wrath of God: for it is written, Vengeance belongeth unto me; I will recompense, saith the Lord. But if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him to drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.”

God claims the right to avenge wrongs done to us. If you think about it, He has priority. After all, when someone injures a son of God, that is an affront to deity, to God Himself. His family has been affected. Surely He has priority in the vengeance line over me merely trying to avenge myself. And, of course, God’s vengeance will be just, whereas I might go overboard. So, as Paul says, give place to God when angry over personal slights, but be filled with righteous zeal when any pollutes the House of God, perverts His word, or stands in the way of the Gospel. Those are the only approved actions from anger mentioned in the New Testament.
 
Lucas Ward

Part 2 of a series taken from material created by Patricia Miozza.
 

            Scriptures to read on your own about hospitality:  Gen 18:1-8; 2 Kings 4:8-17; 1 Tim 5:3,9,10; Matt 5:46-48; 25:31-46; Luke 10:25-42; Rom 16:23; Gal 6:9,10; Heb 13:2; 3 John 1-8.

            After reading those scriptures ask yourself questions like:  In what sorts of ways was hospitality shown? (You might be surprised at what we have labeled "hospitality," but really, it's nothing more than service.)  To whom was it shown?  How does God view hospitality?  How does the Bible describe people who show hospitality?  What does Jesus say about how important showing hospitality is?

            If you’ve done that little exercise, you undoubtedly see that showing hospitality is an essential trait of a Christian.  Maybe it’s time to ask myself some questions:  First and foremost, what are some steps I need to take to prepare my heart for an attitude of service?  That is where it all begins.  Things will come much more easily if my heart is right. 

            “It’s my duty,” may be true, but will not help you get the task done in the joyful and generous way God requires of us.  “The Lord loves a cheerful giver,” not one who hates every moment of his service.  So be practical and honest—if that is your problem, how do you go about fixing it?  Humility and gratitude will go a long way on this one. 

            Once you have that problem licked, it’s simply a matter of figuring out exactly what to do.  So the next question is, what are some steps I can take in my home to make my guests comfortable?

            Before you begin any project, especially spiritual ones, remember to pray for God’s help and guidance.  For some reason, this always seems to be the last step for us—the one we use when things fall apart or do not go as we expected.  Don’t put the cart before the horse. 

            The next step is to seek advice from others who have already shown themselves a worthy example of hospitality.  All of them will be more than happy to share their ideas with you, and that’s exactly what we are told to do in Titus 2, another very practical piece of scripture.

            So now that we are on the road, here are some suggestions for showing hospitality.  There are more ways than you realize. 

1.  Invite visitors in the worship assembly to your home for a meal OR take them out to dinner if they need to get on down the road.

2.  If you know ahead of time that visitors are coming from a long distance for a gospel meeting or extended study at your home congregation, invite them to stay in your home—don’t wait to be asked.  (And I will add to Patricia’s suggestion—even if you find out that night, invite them!  We ended up with two gospel preachers in our home for five nights on a last second whim one time, but we have never regretted it.  They were gracious enough to know we were not exactly prepared and never once complained about anything! dw)

3.  Have people over for a sing or a potluck.  If your home is too small for the whole congregation, divide it up and do it once a month until you get them all.

4.  Have a family over for dinner, or even just coffee and dessert.  While we all want to do a little extra for guests, it does not have to be elaborate.

5.  Have college students in your home for a home-cooked meal.  They are usually satisfied with just about anything and keep each other entertained.

6. Have a group of teenage girls over for a study and sleep-over, yes, even if there is no teenage girl in your home.  Show them that older people are worth knowing and have something to offer, and then listen well to their concerns and ideas to prove it.

7.  If someone needs a temporary home, invite them to live with you.

8.  Show kindness to strangers outside the faith, especially when you see them in distress.  This may not even involve a meal, just a ride home or the use of your phone.  You never know but what it may be their opportunity to hear the gospel.

9.  Have several widows in your home, or several singles.  They are often left out because we tend to think in terms of couples and families, particularly if that’s what we are.

10.  Now that you have seen several ideas, make a list of your own, one that suits the home you have and your own resources.  While hospitality in the Bible always included a meal, there are many other ways to show it.  What it’s really all about is filling a need.

            Challenge yourself to do one or more of these this year.  Look through those verses at the top if you haven’t already.  Be creative.  And use the gifts God has given you (your home, your cooking ability, your income) for His glory and the service of others.
 
Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. Show hospitality to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 1Pet 4:8-10.
 
Dene Ward

If you have been with me long, or in any of my classes, you know that I do my best to make my lessons practical.  Too many sermons end up short of the mark.  They are all theory, all concept, all theology, and fail to tell the listener how to apply those ideas to their lives in a concrete way.  “It’s up to the listener to apply it,” I heard one preacher say, which misses the most obvious point in the world: if it were easy to do, surely we would have done it already.  And then there is the big stumbling block for us all:  Applying the scriptures to my life means I must examine myself for faults that need correcting, and who is eager to do that!?   

Read the prophets sometime.  They were specific in their catalog of sins. 
Thus says the LORD: “For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment, because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals— those who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth and turn aside the way of the afflicted; a man and his father go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned; they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge, and in the house of their God they drink the wine of those who have been fined. Amos 2:6-8.

Do you think that was specific enough?  Read Micah, Hosea, and Malachi.  They are all that way, and they were not the first.  “Thou art the man,” Nathan told David, leaving no room for doubt in David’s mind.  Concrete applications should be part of every lesson if for no other reason than to help people learn how to make those applications to themselves.

I recently sat in a hospitality “workshop” given by a wonderful sister in the Lord named Patricia Miozza, the very ideal of hospitality herself.  Yes, we studied the scriptures and talked about the sacred obligation that hospitality is and always has been.  But after that we put feet to the lesson, learning exactly how to offer warm hospitality.  We talked about excuses and how to overcome them.  We talked about the various methods of showing hospitality.  Then we even talked about making guests comfortable in our homes in an extremely practical way.  Patricia called it “The Hospitality Challenge,” and since I will be using her material, far be it from me to change the title.  Besides, it fits because for many of us it is a challenge, but one I hope you will take.

For the next few Mondays I will share with you Patricia’s eminently practical suggestions for us as we all do our best to practice this God-given duty.
 
Let brotherly love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares. Heb 13:1-2
 
Dene Ward

Today’s post is by guest writer Keith Ward.
 
I am not noted for my patience unless you count the fact that bodies are not strewn in my wake through the day. I am no more patient with myself than with others. I have a 3 way plug on the end of the drop cord that comes to the carport from the shed. It runs the blower and, on summer mornings, the 18" fan that cools us and keeps the bugs blown away while we have our third cup of coffee. So, today, I needed it for the blower and instead of unplugging the fan, I unplugged the drop cord from the 3 way--for about the 43rd time in the last month. "YOU WOULD THINK YOU WOULD KNOW BETTER BY NOW!!” I muttered....well, given my hearing and that I had ear-plugs in to preserve some of the remainder of it from the blower, who knows how loud I was. As I plugged it back in and began blowing off the screened porch and carport, I thought that perhaps, just maybe, now and then, God feels that way about me--"He ought to know better than that by now!"
 
I can quote a lot more scripture than I can live: I have known the line, “as we forgive those who trespass against us,” for about 55 years. Yet I pray forgiveness of things I knew better than to do and get impatient with people who merely do irritating things in traffic.

I pray he just plugs me back in and proceeds with whatever chore I am suitable for.

Maybe, I need to remember that with others? I suspect I would have fired a worker who made the same mistake that many times? How about the brethren?
 
Maybe I need to quit praying or get real about being patient?
 
 
​For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, ​but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses. Matt 6:14-15
 
 
Keith Ward

The second in a series by guest writer Lucas Ward.
 
When I first started studying the topic of anger in the Bible and decided to see how it is discussed in the Wisdom Literature, I thought I would find just a few passages. Was I ever wrong! This is a topic that Solomon gives quite a bit of time too. So, let’s see some of what the wise man says about anger:

Prov. 21:24 “The proud and haughty man, scoffer is his name; He works in the arrogance of pride.”
The first thing you probably notice about this passage is that it doesn’t mention anger. However, the word arrogance here is the same Hebrew word that is translated “wrath” in Prov. 14:35. That passage specifically discusses the king’s wrath. The concepts of wrath and arrogance are linked in the Hebrew language. And don’t we often become the most angry when we begin to think too highly of ourselves? “Don’t you know who I am?” “How dare he do this to ME?” A person with a little more humility wouldn’t become angry in those situations. So, humility can help us avoid anger. Look at the company this word keeps: proud, haughty, scoffer. Those aren’t good traits. That is where anger and arrogance will take you. Again, caution is needed.

Prov. 16:32 “He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; And he that rules his spirit, than he that takes a city.”
Obviously, this is referring to value in the eyes of God. He is much less concerned with how great a warrior a person is than with how that person rules himself. But isn’t this trait also valued by men? However great a warrior someone might be, if he has no self –control, he is no fun to be around. This passage also hints at the idea that it is easier to conquer a city than to rule one’s spirit, and easier to be a mighty warrior than to be slow to anger. So, while the wise man repeatedly tells us how important it is to be in control of one’s emotions, he also acknowledges that this isn’t the easiest thing in the world. Like all aspects of being a servant of God, it takes work.

Prov. 15:18 “A wrathful man stirs up contention; But he that is slow to anger appeases strife.”
This only makes the best type of sense: no one ever started a fight when he wasn’t angry, but people who are angered quickly cause all sorts of issues. Meanwhile, the guy who is breaking up the fight, who is trying to keep things from getting out of hand is the one who is in control of himself. And this is a trait valued not only by men, but by our Father. Remember the beatitudes. Matt. 5:9 “Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called sons of God.” Those peacemakers are the ones who are “slow to anger.”

One thing you will notice if you search the wisdom literature for passages on anger is how often anger is paired with foolishness. I think it would be fair to say, based on the writings of His wise man, that one of the major traits of a fool in God’s eyes is a lack of control over his anger. A few passages:


Prov. 12:16 “A fool's vexation is presently known; But a prudent man conceals shame.”
Notice here that the parallel of vexation is shame. The prudent man conceals his, but the fool lets it all hang out for everyone to see. When he’s angry, everyone knows. (It’s not that the prudent man is never vexed, he just controls and conceals his anger.)


Eccl. 7:9 “Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry; for anger rests in the bosom of fools.”
Given the association here, we should see that anger isn’t something we want to hold onto. It belongs in the bosom of fools, right, so if it is in my heart what does that say about me?


Prov. 14:29 “He that is slow to anger is of great understanding; But he that is hasty of spirit exalts folly.”
Here wisdom is partially defined as a control over angry impulses. You have great understanding if you are slow to anger. On the other hand, foolishness is partially defined as being hasty of spirt. It’s not looking good for those of us with temper control problems, is it?


Prov. 19:11 “The discretion of a man makes him slow to anger; And it is his glory to pass over a transgression.”
This passage flat out says that it is wisdom, or discretion, that leads to controlling one’s temper. So if I don’t have a handle on my anger, what does that say about my general discretion? And notice that forgiving an insult adds to the glory of the forgiver.


Really, the only thing to say about this is that the wise have control over their tempers and those who fly off the handle are foolish by God’s definition. Not a pleasant thought for those of us who “lose it” more often than we’d like to admit, is it?

One thing that needs to be pointed out, though, is that what is being universally condemned in these passages is not the emotion of anger, but rather the actions taken because of the anger. Remember:
– Prov. 15:18 “stirs up contention” -- An action.
– Prov. 14:29 “exalts folly” -- Another action
– Prov. 12:16 “vexation is known” How? by what he did.
– Prov. 27:3 “A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty; But a fool's vexation is heavier than they both.” -- It is the consequences of the fool’s actions because of his vexation that are weighty, not merely his emotional state.

And this jives perfectly with New Testament teaching: Eph. 4:26-27 “Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: neither give place to the devil.”
This teaches that it is possible to have anger without sin. The emotion isn’t wrong, it’s what we do with the emotion. (Just like attraction to the opposite sex isn’t wrong, it’s what we do with that attraction.) So, then, anger is the temptation to go too far. How do we combat it? Notice that there is a parallelism in this passage. “Let not the sun go down upon your wrath” is parallel to “neither give place to the devil”. So that would mean that holding on to anger is giving the devil an opening. If feeling angry can be a temptation to go too far, then holding onto that anger, stoking it and feeding it, is to remain in the arena of temptation. It is to give Satan chance after chance to attack at our defenses. It is dangerous. The answer, the way to defeat this temptation, is to let go of the anger. I know, that is a whole lot easier to type than it is to do, but that is what the Holy Spirit is teaching us to do, through His word. When something raises our choler, when our ire is aroused, we have to keep those feelings in check and let them go as best and as quickly as possible.

Otherwise, we are fools.
 
Lucas Ward

Today’s thought-provoking post is by guest writer Keith Ward.
 
Jn 3:16 For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes on him should not perish but have eternal life.

”Comforting words,” “The Central and golden text of the Bible,” I have heard that verse described.   But, for years, I have missed a most important and significant point that it teaches:

If God loved the world so much that he would crucify and slay his Son by the hands of lawless men in order to save it, what would he do to me (or you), his “sons,” in His loving pursuit of the salvation of the world? There is absolutely no limit other than His mercy that “There is no temptation taken you but such as man can bear”. With Job as witness, that is a lot!

These thoughts may help explain why good people suffer. God is using Satan’s works to bring about His purposes, just as he did with Job and at the cross. Who knows how deafness, blindness, lost jobs, dying spouses or children, or any other number of trials bring about good toward someone else’s salvation? We see most of these as purposeless. But God who works, KNOWS.  Our part of the equation is to believe that and trust.
 
Keith Ward

This is the first part in a middle of the month series on Anger, by guest writer Lucas Ward.

The beginning of the Sermon on the Mount is about the internalization of religion. Jesus tells us that our religion should be who we are, not just rites that we do. He also talks about sins of the mind: how refraining from sin because of fear of the consequences all the while fantasizing about doing the sin doesn’t win us any points. It’s just as bad as the sin itself. We usually jump to Matt. 5:27-28 which says that looking upon a woman to lust after her is committing adultery in our hearts. We gravely, and appropriately, warn young men about the sin of sexual fantasy. We preach against pornography and urge self-control. We ask our ladies to dress with their poor, weak-willed brothers in mind. And all of this is right. But in jumping to this passage, we jump right over the warning that Jesus gives first.

The first thing Jesus speaks of along these lines is the dangers of anger. Whereas mental lusting, or sexual fantasy, is equated to adultery – which is bad enough – anger with one’s brother is called murder! If there is anything more universally condemned in the Bible than adultery it is murder. This, and the primacy of place given to this topic by our Lord, indicates that we should be even more aware of this danger than that of lusting. And, yet, we seldom talk about this. When we study the Sermon on the Mount we read this passage and quickly move on. This isn’t right. My intent is to write three entries about this issue, studying anger from a couple of different viewpoints. First, let’s examine what Jesus says about the issue.

Matt. 5:21-24 “Ye have heard that it was said to them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: 22 but I say unto you, that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be in danger of the judgment; and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council; and whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of the hell of fire. 23 If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee, 24 leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.”

Many translations have “angry with his brother without cause” and there is some evidence for that reading. There are a lot of ancient manuscripts that include that phrase. Roughly half, in fact. Of course, that means that roughly half leave out “without cause”. Literary professors, whose career is built on reconstructing ancient texts as nearly as possible based not only on the quality of the manuscripts used but also on the known tendencies of copyists, seem to lean to the conclusion that “without cause” was added in. It is the type of thing that a copyist would add to help explain an otherwise hard reading/hard saying of Jesus. On the face of it, we know that anger alone is not sin (Eph. 4:26), but then we also know that merely desiring a woman is not sin either. Men are designed by God to desire women, actually, and that desire has a God-given outlet. So it seems that in both passages Jesus is driving His point home by speaking very emphatically. By exaggerating for the point of emphasis. The dangers of anger are so great, as are those of sexual fantasy, that the warning is equally powerful.

Looking at the actual passage, notice that anger with one’s brother is equated with murder. It isn’t said quite as baldly as Jesus does with adultery in vs 28, but the consequence for murder is named as the judgment, and the consequence for anger is named as. . . the judgment. In giving the same consequence to both, Jesus is making them equal. Just as sinful lusting after a woman is more involved than merely acknowledging an attraction, anger here is more than just feeling the emotion. Have you ever thought “Of course, I’d never murder anyone, but boy what I’d like to do to so-and-so if I could get away with it” and proceed to fantasize about epic beatdowns? “Give me a baseball bat and five minutes alone with him in a closed room, please.” These are the thoughts that are under discussion.

Of course, we need not always murder someone. We can assassinate their character. Jesus deals with this as well. “Raca” is a contemptuous insult. Apparently it doesn’t translate well, but all cultures/languages have their own unique ways of showing contempt. This was the Hebrew way. Jesus also adds in “fool”. Notice the consequences of these: the council and the hell of fire. Someone who won’t kill but doesn’t mind destroying another’s reputation will face the same condemnation as the murderer. The sin is the same, whether we carry it out in our minds, in our words, or in actuality. Anger, and the actions proceeding from it, is dangerous.

Finally, note the urgency that Jesus places on dealing with this problem: “ If therefore thou art offering thy gift at the altar, and there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against thee,  leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy way, first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come and offer thy gift.” If there ever was a time that one might think it appropriate to put off dealing with a brother’s anger, it would be while participating in the worship of God. “Surely I should finish offering the sacrifice first, as God is most important, and then deal with my brother later, right?” But, no, Jesus says drop the offering and go fix the problem with the brother first. Anger is so dangerous that the greater urgency in placed upon reconciliation, even above worship. This should open our eyes to the fact that this is a topic that demands both attention and caution.

Having seen some of what Jesus says on this issue, we will next turn our attention to what can be learned about this from the Wisdom Literature.
 
Lucas Ward

Today's post is by guest writer Keith Ward.

Or, in the words of Jesus, “Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.”

Seems to me that we have blunted the meaning of, “REPENT!” with all sorts of rationalizations:
“That is just the way I am,”
“I am doing the best I can and one’s best is all that God requires,”
“Overall, I am walking in the light, I just have this one problem.”

Repent means change. It does not mean doing the thing less often. A thief does not repent by only holding up 1 store a month instead of 1 a day. Overall, our approach denies the “power of godliness” to change one completely.

We have substituted the power of a magic partaking of the Lord’s Supper for repentance. We seem to believe that if we really think really hard about Jesus’ sacrifice while we partake, and pray hard and feel real, real sorry for our failings (lets not use that 3 letter “S” word), then we will be OK. But, then we did that last week, and the week before and….
 
And we continue in the same sinful habits, maybe less often: “I’m getting better!”

Sounds a lot like 2 Cor 7, doesn’t it, where Paul contrasts this with the godly sorrow that works repentance and calls it a sorrow of the world that leads to death.

One may slip and fall after he repents, may even do so more than once. But, repentance means one stops the wrong behavior. God gives us the power to do so, the power of Christ in us, the hope of Glory. We, on the other hand, keep one foot in the pleasures and proclaim, “I am making progress.”

JUST SAY NO.
 
STOP!
 
OR PERISH.
 
For see what earnestness this godly grief has produced in you, but also what eagerness to clear yourselves, what indignation, what fear, what longing, what zeal, what punishment! At every point you have proved yourselves innocent in the matter.  (2Cor 7:11).
Do you not know that if you yield yourselves to any one as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness? (Rom 6:16)                                                           
Keith Ward