ANGER, a good thing...       by Carl McMurray

 

In Mark 3:1-5, Jesus entered a synagogue where there was man with a withered hand. The passage says they were watching Jesus, to see if He would heal the man, so they might accuse Him. In verse 4, Jesus asked the group whether it was lawful to do good on the Sabbath and the record says, “...they kept silent.” Verse 5 notes that Jesus was grieved at their hardness of heart, and especially that He was “angry.”

 

We live in a culture that says it’s OK to get passionate about baby seals, but is con­fused about saving baby humans. You can get angry and attack others about a hyped up, unscientific global warming theory and what it might do a thousand years from now, but if you raise your voice about perverted (read that homosexual) human rela­tionships that affect our culture and the generation to come right now, you are told to sit down and shut up, or enroll in anger management classes.

 

We are becoming like the Orwellian citizens, peaceable, calm, and medicated. We are told not to make a fuss, don’t raise your voice, and get along with everybody. Even many in the church are more concerned about offending those who practice and sup­port false doctrine, than offending our Lord by making peace with sin and error.

 

Today anger has become the great sin, not to be tolerated and I want to state clearly that this is gross error. Jesus got angry over hard hearts. On two other occasions he was angry enough to cleanse His Father’s house of those who were misusing it. I know many today who misuse the temple of God, the church, by changing the mission and even the organization of the Lord’s church. On which side of the money changer’s tables would these have been found in Jesus’ day, do you suppose?

 

Anger, like every human emotion, was given to us by our Creator and has its purpose. It is a motivator. When we are angry we will stand up and do things, including good things, that ordinarily we might not do. Anger and passion have their place. David said that he “hated” those who did evil, every false way, the double-minded, and falsehood just to name a few, Ps. 97:10; 119:104, 113, 163. He also said clearly that he “hated” all those that hated the Lord, with the “utmost hatred,” Ps. 139:21-22. I’m not ignor­ing our Lord’s teaching on love. I’m just saying that we have other emotions too, and so did He. Don’t get used to error and wrong doing. May it “torment” your soul day after day, like it did with Lot, 2 Pet. 2:8. When you are angry about what sin does in the lives of men and what it cost our Lord then you will resist it in all its forms with all your strength. You will also know a little of how God feels, Ps. 5:5.