Isaiah 61:8-11
8 “For I, the Lord, love justice.
I hate robbery and wrongdoing.
I will faithfully reward my people for their suffering
and make an everlasting covenant with them.
9 Their descendants will be recognized
and honored among the nations.
Everyone will realize that they are a people
the Lord has blessed.”
I hate robbery and wrongdoing.
I will faithfully reward my people for their suffering
and make an everlasting covenant with them.
9 Their descendants will be recognized
and honored among the nations.
Everyone will realize that they are a people
the Lord has blessed.”
10 I am overwhelmed
with joy in the Lord my God!
For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation
and draped me in a robe of righteousness.
I am like a bridegroom dressed for his wedding
or a bride with her jewels.
11 The Sovereign Lord will show his justice to the nations of the world.
Everyone will praise him!
His righteousness will be like a garden in early spring,
with plants springing up everywhere.
For he has dressed me with the clothing of salvation
and draped me in a robe of righteousness.
I am like a bridegroom dressed for his wedding
or a bride with her jewels.
11 The Sovereign Lord will show his justice to the nations of the world.
Everyone will praise him!
His righteousness will be like a garden in early spring,
with plants springing up everywhere.
Anger
Over the last few weeks, we
explored how Jesus helps us overcome sin, manage our time wisely, and deal with
grief so we can be at Home with God this Christmas. Today, we will look at one more common
obstacle that can keep us from saying, “I’ll be Home for Christmas”—anger.
I once
heard a Christmas song that said, “Half
way round the world, sometimes that’s how it seems when walls of anger keep us
from familiar Christmas scenes. We ache
for them to disappear, but don’t know how to start. Lord with Your light, somehow tonight, bring
Christmas to our hearts.” I love those
lyrics because they expresses so beautifully the way many people feel this time
of year.
This year, don’t let
anger keep you from saying, “I’ll be Home for Christmas.” In an imperfect world, we have many reasons
to be angry. Anger can be a normal and healthy
emotion that motivates us to seek justice.
But anger also has a dark side.
When it is not channeled properly, it can fester deep inside a person
and turn into something very dark and ugly.
Anger can become a prison that keeps us locked away from those we love
and those we are called to love.
Jesus came
to help us overcome the walls of anger that keep us from being at Home with
God. He has the power to break our
chains, but we must cooperate with his liberating work. The first step is to be willing to let go of
our anger. Sometimes, anger feels good. It makes us feel good about ourselves when
we hold another in contempt for the bad things they’ve done. But we must humble ourselves and remember
that we are not perfect either.
Christmas
is a time when we think of that cute baby, Jesus, lying in a manger, but we
forget that Isaiah 53:5-6 says, “He was wounded and crushed for our sins. He was beaten that we might
have peace. He was whipped, and we were healed! All of us have strayed away like sheep. We have left God’s paths to
follow our own. Yet the Lord laid
on him the guilt and sins of us all.”
We have no
right to self-righteous indignation against anyone. No one is perfect. We have all sinned. Jesus came to bring forgiveness. The famous prayer he taught us says, “Forgive
us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us…”[i] It is not good for us to harbor
resentment.
We should deal with our anger with
humility and love. The moving words of
1 Corinthians 13:4-5 are a good model for us to follow. “Love is patient and kind. Love is not
jealous or boastful or proud or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is
not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged.” How much better off we would be, how much
easier it would be for us to get along if we embodied this kind of
love—especially with the people to whom we are closest.
Every family has a “crazy Cousin Eddie.” He’s the guy that dresses weird or smells funny or acts crazy. If you can’t figure out who in your family is the “Crazy Cousin Eddie,” watch out—it might be you!!! Humility reminds us we’re all a little bit “crazy” in our own way. Yet God loves us in spite of our irritating habits. Patience and kindness and humility help us to bear with the idiosyncrasies of others without being irritable or rude.
And love keeps no record of wrongs… This doesn’t mean we pretend as though a wrong
didn’t happen. It means we don’t keep
beating people up about their past sins.
Jesus said, “If your brother wrongs you seven times in a day and each
time repents and asks forgiveness; you must forgive him.”[ii] You shouldn’t hold people hostage with
yesterday’s sins. If they repent, forgiven
them and try to move on.
Here’s some more helpful advice
gleaned from scripture about dealing with anger. Avoid acting on impulse when you are angry.[iii] When tempers flare, wisdom takes a back seat
to emotion and you do things you will regret latter. Wait until you calm down and can think more clearly. Timing is very important. And try not to impulsively speak your mind
when you are angry.[iv] A sharp tongue cuts its own throat. (That’s not in the Bible, but it’s
true!) Wait until you aren’t so hot
before you speak your mind with a sharp tongue.
That way you will choose your words more carefully or even realize that
you don’t need to say anything at all.
And avoid disciplining people when you are angry.[v] The difference between harmful abuse and helpful
discipline can be as little as ten seconds.
Stop, take a deep breathe, count to ten, and ask your self, “Is what I
am about to do retaliation? Or am I
genuinely trying—in love—to help this person do better next time?”
Conclusion
Because
Jesus, the Word of God, became flesh and lived among us, he understands the
struggles we face that make being Home for Christmas difficult. But because Jesus is the Son of God, He has the power to overcome any obstacle that
threatens to separate us from God.
What keeps
you from being at Home with God? Is it
sin? Are you too busy? Are you weighed
down by a load of grief? Is there anger
in your heart? Jesus understands your
struggles and he has made a way for you to come Home. Do you hear him calling you Home? Will you accept his invitation? Will you come Home for Christmas this year?
Gracious Heavenly
Father,
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