Put Away Your Anger, Part 1

Today on Fellowship in the Word pastor Bill Gebhardt challenges you to become a fully functioning follower of Jesus Christ can continue to live the way you and then justified before God. He said that's not what Christ is taught. He said if indeed you have heard him and had been taught and just as the truth is in Jesus when Jesus said love your enemies and pray for those he wasn't stating that's what this is a suspicion that hit my opinion he anticipates the system joining us today on this addition of fellowship in the world. Pastor Bill Gebhardt Fellowship in the Words the radio ministry of Fellowship Bible church located in Metairie, Louisiana Pastor Bill Gebhardt now is once again he shows us how God's word meets our world.

Past week I seven-year-old man nine year St. Paul, Minnesota, they were waiting for a bus. He began yelling at her and saying why don't you show me some respect for law and became very nervous than in she took out her phone and decide to call the police high so he punched her in the face and a 63-year-old man. I tried to intervene in the young man began hitting him with a Fuller that he had in his hand and any which fell to the ground and he ran off.

But in his folder was his name. So the police were able to find him and arrest him and after a track I'm gone they found out that in his folder.

He was also doing his homework for his anger management class leases working on it. I guess anger is a huge problem all over the world but certainly in our country and it's just amazing how angry people are words that come into our culture. Now that I don't think we ever have before. Road rage just unbelievable. When I grew up. I never forget ever thought about something like that.

A young woman from Bay Area Pennsylvania where my wife and I are from. She was in Nashville, Tennessee, and she was murdered and it turned out well and that pappy may from the suspects and what it ended up happening was the suspect, who was accused of shooting said she cut me off you pulled right in front of me so I shot her.

It's like while in her then you start thinking I other stories I find our father bleed to death.

Another father at a youth hockey game. Father also clubbed to death a high school softball coach who would not let his daughter play because of team rules were violated circular and up but it's in every level. Having coach for many years in Pennsylvania Little League baseball just listening to the parents. Verbal abuse of their children, or someone else's children is just unbelievable. Anger has split so many churches have been split because of anger in the name of Jesus. Anger. So that's what I decided to do a short series on anger and this will be the final sermon in that short series because I really don't want to make you mad but about hearing about this anger thing over and over again. The first week we looked at Proverbs the wisdom basis of anger and said that what Solomon tells us is anger can be extremely destructive to us and others. He also said it can be at times a good thing if used in the right way. A kind word turns away wrath type of thing.

But most importantly, in Proverbs, he said what you have to do is you have to be able to look at life the way God looks at life and that's why when the great keys of anger that exist. You have to see life the way God does. And if you're honest with yourself. None of us do very good at this.

We just don't see life that way. That's why when Jesus says something like you need the love your enemies and you need to pray for those who actually persecute you. We should just scratch our heads. I don't get it. Why would I do that if we don't see life the way God does. Then last week we dealt with showing how anger is tied so directly to our selfishness and so we use examples of cane with Abel or Jonah of this anger that they had and that they carried around and then we went to the New Testament and James said look, if there's one thing you have to be is you have to be slow to anger that to be slow about your anger.

So today, this final when I want to have the apostle Paul talked to us about anger. I invite you to open your Bibles to Ephesians 4 in verse 17 Ephesians 4 verse 17 the book of Ephesians breaks into two halves. The first three chapters of the book of Ephesians is who are you and I in Christ. What does it mean for us to be saved. One of the things of God has done for us, not just the same as for who we are in Christ.

The second half of the book for five and six. He said then. How should we live, how should we act what's in our lives look like because of who we are in Christ.

So in verse 17 he says. So this I say, and I affirm it together with the Lord so positive is not just my opinion it's the Lord and I get together on this. He said that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk in the futility of their minds, Gentiles or unbelievers in the New Testament, and he says in the word walk is a metaphor for live so he says don't live like unbelievers or let me paraphrase. Don't live like you used to live. If you're a born again Christian, you have new life in Christ. The spirit of God indwells you, don't you live the way you used to live. He said that's what I'm telling you, that's the way this to be he, so when I speak of the unbeliever. He says being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them because of the hardness of the heart. They refused to accept Christ in his finished work on the cross he said excluded from God. They don't see life like God sees life at all.

Then he goes on and says, and they having become callous have given themselves over to sensuality for the practice of every kind of impurity, with greediness that last phrase every kind of impurity, with greediness that supported America that's America every kind. There is nothing off the table from an impurity or central point of view in America everything is on the table is normally on the table but they champion it on the table and we wrap it all up in our American greediness. He said yeah that's the way an unbeliever lives, our lives. That's how low they can go leases, but you did not learn Christ in this way, there's nothing Christian about that kind of life was important about that in the context here is does not necessarily in Christian about the way you were.

There's just not you can continue to live the way you did before you came to Christ and then justified before God. He said that's not what Christ is talking. He said if indeed you have heard him and have been taught in him, just as the truth is in Jesus when Jesus said, you need to love your enemies and you need to pray for those who persecute you. He wasn't stating an opinion he was telling the truth. That's what this is this is this is not hit while my opinion, he has his opinion know he said this is truth. That's what I'm telling you, you have to do now you know where that statement were not inclined that way. We just don't see life like that. It's very hard for us to do that were at the beginning stages and have been for some time of persecution for the first time coming to the church in America were just beginning. It's going to get exponentially much worse in the future when you say we need pray for that you need to pray for those people see what your natural inclination is no know that we view those people as an enemy there that there are enemies I would never pray for those people know you wouldn't Christ and he told you to see. That's the difference.

Our natural inclinations don't help us here at all. He goes on. He says if indeed you have heard and have been taught in him, just as truth is in Jesus. He said that in reference to your former manner of life you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the less the deceit is a lot in this verse. One of most important things as he says in reference to the way you used to be. You have to laid aside that this is important, you'll never change. If you don't laid aside, will never change, and God will never laid aside for you. That's your decision you have to laid aside, you have to choose the later side before you get any benefit from this at all. He says you have to laid aside any says the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lust of deceit.

See one of the things that you and I are continually victims of even as Christians is self-deception and it really happens in the area of anger. For example, Jeremias and Jeremiah 17 the heart of a man is desperately wicked.

It's deceitful above all things, so my heart and yours in our flesh is deceitful above all things and we deceive ourselves, and never in an area any greater than we deceive ourselves about our anger, the overwhelming majority of all the things that make us angry or born out of her own selfishness. I want my way. I wanted done.

I'm disappointed, all those kind of things and we deceive ourselves. Angry people always justify their anger always receiving a say things like this.

You made me mad nine.

You made yourself mad. You see, you made yourself mad.

Anger is an inside job. You see, and he says look you have to make the decision to put it away and you're going to have to worry about the deceit of why you have important pulled away hold a place here and go with me to Romans 12 Romans chapter 12 the first two verses again in Romans 12. In this case Paul spends up to 11 chapters talking about theology and now in chapter 12 to the end of the book he says. Now how do you live. This is Paul's pattern. Ephesians Romans won't matter who you are in Christ know how should you be living as a Christian and he says in verse one, he said.

Therefore, I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship there is again here. He says, present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, he said in revisions put aside the old put on the but here he says you have to present your life as a sacrifice to God.

Not noticing you have to do this you have to do it if you don't do it.

You'll never be the kind of Christian, you either. You never will be your go to heaven and be wonderful for you. That way, but you're not going to take advantage of the Christian life at all. Remember, the Holy Spirit was given to us not to get us into heaven but to get heaven and us. That's the point of he said I have to present my body given to God guide you did everything for me you save me that's a wonderful thing.

I'll look for you.

I'll do whatever you want me to do.

I go anywhere you want me to go at any cost to me that's just I presented no notice what Paul calls it, which is your spiritual service of worship.

Notice how we dumb down worship on what work I don't worse it was, we get together soon that's a very small aspect of worship that's not what worship is she why what I worship God because he saved me he loved me in spite of myself. He did everything for why wouldn't I worship. In fact, Jesus tells the woman at the well, God is seeking worshipers.

That's his point. He said that's what will worship him as I give my life to him. He said and do not be conformed to this world. JB Phillips is in his paraphrase. Don't let this world squeeze you into its mold will think about this one subject were talking about.

How does the world look at anger never see anyone angry ever when television on the streets run anyone ever angry. We champion anger we champion anger and we certainly don't champion love your enemy pray for those who persecute you. It's hate your enemy and show me a ring or he said yeah that's the way the world works to let the world squeeze you into its mold. My problem is in my flesh I buy the deceit and I think that way, he said, but be transformed. Metamorphosis is the word from a caterpillar to butterfly you beat. You can be transformed as a Christian.

From the way you were to the way you audibly how he says by the renewing of your mind so that you may prove what the will of God is that which is good and acceptable and perfect.

How do I do this I have to think differently about what most everything is you have to renew your mind. I have to know what has God said desire the pure milk of the word and I have to change my thinking and what ends up happening is we do this pretty easily.

In some areas of life, but not easily at all in others, and anger is one area where were entrenched in our flesh we don't want to say I don't want to hear what God says about anger is you want to justify my anger and understand something. It's easy to live on a cursed planet among sinful people and justify your anger you want to be angry you can be angry 24 seven. America are in this community. People do terrible things and it can make you angry. And if you want to be angry you can be angry 24 seven. You see, that's one of the problems. If you think you're going to marry someone in this wonderful bliss of holy wedlock, and you know what goat you will never be angry again.

While that didn't work that way. Did it now.

And boy, when you have children, those sweet little darlings you never got angry. Have you if you were lucky enough to say no then you had teenagers and we know your line, and I mean that's the point. Anger receipt that's anger for us angry and he says no you have to present yourself.

He said the God is a sacrifice, you gotta prove what the will of God is you gotta renew your mind and think differently now back to Ephesians, he says something very very similar.

He says that in reference to your former manner. Life you lay aside the old self.

There is been corrupted in accordance with loss of the seat and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind. Same thing. I have to think differently and I put on the new self, which is in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness and truth. So I have to put off the old self, put on the new self, not notice MI a new self yes are you a new self. Yes, the Bible says you and I are new creatures in Christ.

But for this to be advantage an advantage in our life. I have to lay aside the old me and after put on the new me.

I have to decide to do this enough. I don't let me put it this way if you struggle with anger in your struggle with anger. Your whole Christian life.

I'll say it you never did this. You never did.

You never presenting yourself a living and holy sacrifice to God. You never renewing your mind on this little unit lived in self-deception and so you find yourself angry all the time goes on. Then he says therefore, laying aside falsehood. If I do this thing put on the new self. What's the first characteristic to start my life lay aside falsehood, speak truth, each one of you with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. First thing will happen to me if you've done this you be a truth teller throughout.

You tell people the truth.

And by the way, that seems wonderful but is it ever so find yourself struggling to tell someone, the truth right it's the truth.

See one of the great things and that amazes me about Jesus is.

That's all he ever did. He spoke to truth. He says some of the most comforting peaceful wonderful hopeful words ever written. He also ate things that made people as angry and mad as possible because Eli don't know you told the truth that hated him for he told the Pharisees the truth and they crucified him for. A lot of times we don't like the truth. We want to live in self-deception. But he said he will speak the truth. Now you don't do it in the context of hate. You speak the word of God or truth in love. That's what he says in Ephesians, speak the truth in love, don't do with an attitude but I tell people the truth. Then he goes on, and he says be angry, and yet do not sin.

Do not let the sun regarding your anger.

Okay, this verse is very misunderstood a lot right. First of all, he says be angry. Some people want to interpret this as saying God commands me to be angry and that's why I'm angry. I think it's nobody's talking about what he's talking about is there are some things you and I should be angry about having her some things are pretty obviously you see a child abused should be angry.

You see babies murdered should be angry. You have a friend or commits adultery has a girlfriend for this marriage and his family should be in you should be angry at the things that make God angry. Now if you said that's what I do. You're not telling the truth.

I would guess 95% of your anchors about what you don't like to see you gotta be angry, glad he said don't sin is right with last week with James Jameson you be slow to anger, why it can go right into sin. Before you know it you better be very very slow to anger, anything that she should be angry only what God think we should be angry at sin is God, slow to anger. Yes, in almost every case I mean start in Genesis. On hated God's destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah out of his anger because they made a map for 15 minutes and he destroyed no factors go through the Old Testament I mean about the days of Noah. He destroyed everybody Monona's family because one day he had a bad day and you won't wipe them out. Decades went by nose building on for over 100 years. How slow is God anger. He's an infinitely slow to anger. He takes Israel as many Assyrian captivity tics student puts in the Babylonian Could he just got mad at him one day he was very slow to anger sent the prophets to warn them and try to turn them back God by nature a slow to anger Pastor Bill Gebhardt on the radio ministry of fellowship in the world. If you ever miss one of our broadcasting or maybe you dislike of the sum of the method one more time. Remember, you can Google a great website called one place.com that's one place.com and you can listen the fellowship and the word online at that website you will find on with today's broadcast but also many of our previous audio programs as well at Fellowship in the Word. We are thankful for those who financially support our ministry and make this broadcast possible. We ask all of our listeners to prayerfully consider how you might help with radio ministry continuous broadcast on this radio station by supporting us monthly with just a one-time gift support for ministry can be sent to Fellowship in the Word. 4600 Clearview Pkwy., Metairie, LA 7006 if you would be interested in hearing today's message in its original format that is of the sermon, the pastor Bill delivered during a Sunday morning service of fellowship monitored visit our website FVC Nola.org that FVC and oh LA not to RG at our website you will find hundreds pastor Bill sermon you can browse through our sermon archives to find sermon series are looking for. You can search by title. Once you find the method you're looking for. You can listen online or if you prefer, you can download the sermon and listen at your own. And remember, you can do all this absolutely free of charge.

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