This All Age service was led by James Webb and Chris Johnson. It was an interactive service so we didn’t have a sermon but we do have the passages and some questions for you to reflect on with a brief summary of the key points.
How can you tell if someone else is angry?
When were you last really, really angry? And what did you do about it?
Read John 2:13-17
How would you describe Jesus emotion in this passage?
What caused this response in Jesus?
What does this teach you about handling emotions well?
Read Mark 3:1-5
How would you describe Jesus emotion in this passage?
What caused this response in Jesus?
What does this teach you about handling emotions well?
Read Matthew 23:1-13, 29-33
How would you describe Jesus emotion in these passages?
What caused this response in Jesus?
What does this teach you about handling emotions well?
Read James 1:19
How might following James’ advice help us to handle our anger better?
Read Ephesians 4:26-27
How might your anger give the devil a foothold?
Summary
Jesus never sinned
Jesus did get angry
We can conclude, being angry is neither right or wrong, it is an emotion. We need to learn to handle it well. James (Brother of Jesus not Webb) writes, be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. And the Apostle Paul tells us not to let the sun go down on our anger. So, we need to be slow to become angry and quick to deal with it. Of course, we need to deal with it in the right way not do the first thing which pops into our head. When Jesus was angry with the money changers in the Temple note that He took time to make a whip out of cords. He did not act in haste even in His righteous anger and let’s face it such a whip wasn’t much of a treat against temple guards with swords and spears. It was symbolic.
We need to admit when we are angry, find out what we are angry about and think about how we can best respond to our anger.
eg, laugh at ourselves, say sorry, choose to forgive or bear with someone, ask God how we can work to change something which is wrong…
When we deny anger then it often finds unhelpful ways out – revenge, bitterness, violence, etc or turns on us and make us feel depressed.