Permission to get Ticked Off...Maybe?

Dec.13

Read: John 2:13-22,

Permission to get Ticked Off

“Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” James 1:19,20

We want permission to get angry. Sometimes, being angry feels good… right? We want God to give us the “thumbs up” to get ticked off at someone or something… to start stacking bodies… to fly off the handle and “turn over some tables”. The truth is that, “the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” Todays passage from John is often used as our excuse… as our permission from God… to get angry. If it is, then how do we square that with the rest of Gods word? Here are some things to consider:

ONLY GOD HAS PERMISSION TO BE ANGRY.

We like to think that we are capable of having “righteous anger”, but the truth is that we are not. Our righteousness comes from Christ - so if we want to have “righteous anger” it would need to come form Christ as well. How often have you asked Christ if he was the one giving you the anger you feel inside of you? When we feel as though we are experiencing “righteous indignation”, do we stop and ask Christ if it is from him? When we look at all of the times Christ has called us to forgiveness and loving others, it seems odd that he would be telling us… “hey, get pissed off - go for it - I need you angry!” (cf. Matt 5:43, 22:39, Mark 12:31, Gal 5:14, James 2:8, Luke 6:27,35 etc.) Only God is perfect enough…righteous enough… to be angry in a productive way.

JESUS WAS “ZEALOUS”, BUT IS THAT THE SAME AS ANGRY?

Todays passage has Jesus in the temple with a whip and turning over tables. Surely this must be an example of him being ANGRY… right? My friend Brandon Simpson and I were talking about this and I was so sure that Jesus was angry. I said to Brandon, “I mean, Jesus had a whip and was whipping those guys!” It was Brandon who said to me, “I think the whip was for the animals, not the people.” It caught me off guard. When I went back to read the passage, I saw how there were oxen, sheep, and pigeons involved. I was so wrapped up in picturing “angry Jesus” that I simply viewed everything through that lens. It makes sense that Jesus would use a whip on animals not people… how else are you going to get an ox to move? In the passage it says the disciples noted his “zeal” as a fulfillment of prophecy. (cf. Ps. 69:9) Could it be that Jesus was zealous and not angry? Is that a thing? Was Jesus actually correcting and rebuking - albeit passionately- with vigor and zeal but not anger? Or are we to see Jesus as filled with malice, anger, and bitterness towards these people? Because of my friend Brandon, I re-read this passage with fresh eyes and tried to imagine a way Jesus did this without anger. If nothing else, I no longer think Jesus was whipping those people. (Thanks Big B for that.)

JESUS IS PERFECT

Jesus is indeed perfect, and therefore could be angry in a way we cannot. Jesus did not rely on anyone else for his righteousness. I think God could give him assignments that he wouldn’t give to us. I admit, it is easiest to imagine Jesus totally hot-headed, flipping over the tables, and pouring money on the ground. If that is truly the case… he is the one human who could do that and still bring about what God wanted. We know Jesus only says and does what the Father tells him to, so obviously this is what the Lord called him to do. Even if Jesus was lashing out in “righteous anger” this doesn’t mean we have permission to “pop-off” whenever we want to. This might be a rare case of Jesus doing something we will not ever be called to do.

ROOM FOR EMOTIONS

I think anger is an emotion that we face often in this world. I do not like to admit it, but I know I am a person who can get “fired up” and become angry. (The Lord has been working on this in me.) I don’t think that anger is a sin per-se, but the reality is that it will never lead to the righteousness of God. This is why Paul says, “in your anger do not sin.” (Eph. 4:26) The actions that anger seems to motivate are not righteous actions at all. Look at this truth played out in God’s word:

Prov. 29:21

A man of wrath stirs up strife,

and one given to anger causes much transgression.

Ps 37:8

Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath!

Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil.

Prov. 14:29

Whoever is slow to anger has great understanding,

but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.

Prov. 15:18

A hot-tempered man stirs up strife,

but he who is slow to anger quiets contention.

God has called us to passion, zeal, action, love, mercy, forgiveness, protection, and so much more. There is much room for deep emotions in Christ, but when it comes to anger - we must be careful. It seems to me that “turning over tables”, “dumping out money”, and “whipping others” is a job for God and not for us. The work that God is calling us to in this world - bringing about God’s righteousness in this world - will not come about from our anger, bitterness, malice or frustration.

In those moments you feel angry, ask Jesus if he is the one giving this anger to you? (My hunch is that it is not!) Think about what outcome you are seeking. What is it that is creating this anger in you? What is it you think you deserve that you are not getting? (cf. James 4) In the end, Jesus in the temple is not our permission to be angry. Instead, let God be angry for you. If it truly is something to be “righteously angry” about… then God has enough anger for the both of you. Watch God fight for you! He is the one who can justly pour out wrath. He has our back. In our anger, may we turn to him. Even if anger is not wrong to feel, it is not what is going to fuel us in bringing about God’s righteousness. In the end, it is more likely to eat us up, destroy us, break up relationships, cost us time and money, and lead us into sin. Leave the table-turning to Jesus! Love you guys. - JDP