Last year my mom introduced me to sermons on dvd by Dr. S. M. Davis. He is a dynamic preacher who clearly presents God’s Word in a way that is easy to understand. I have purchased several of his sermons and have referenced them many times in my blogs. I have learned a lot from them and highly encourage you to listen to and/or watch Dr. Davis’ sermons if you ever get the chance.

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In the first sermon in Dr. Davis’ Anger Series, Anger The Destroyer, describes how bad anger really is. (Anything in Bold is directly quoted from the sermon.)

ANGER DECEIVES

1. Anger feels justified (“I have a right to be angry”).
2. Anger sometimes seems to work.
3. There is no justification for anger.
   • When you stand before God; He is not going to ask you if you had a good excuse for your rebellion, disobedience, bitterness, bad attitude, anger, etc.

ANGER DESCRIBED

1. Anger is like a city without walls. “He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.” Proverbs 25:28 (KJV)
   • Anger makes you weak and vulnerable so that you and those under you can be destroyed.
2. Anger is like an unbearable load. “A stone is heavy, and the sand weighty; but a fool’s wrath is heavier than them both.” Proverbs 27:3 (KJV)
   • “Heavier” = massive, abundant, burdensome, difficult, and oppressive
3. Anger is like a flood. “Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?” Proverbs 27:4 (KJV)
   • “Outrageous” = “a downpour or flood”
4. Anger is like a poisonous snake. “Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous; but who is able to stand before envy?” Proverbs 27:4 (KJV)
   • “Cruel” used in Deuteronomy 32:33 refers to the “venom of asps” (KJV)
5. Anger is like a fire breathing dragon. Job 41
   • Cruel and fierce

Image courtesy of Google Images

ANGER DISCOVERED

1. Anger comes from Pride. “Proud and haughty scorner is his name, who dealeth in proud wrath.” Proverbs 21:24 (KJV) & Matthew 18
2. Anger comes from tensions created by unresolved guilt.

Your anger isn’t caused by what is outside of you;

it is caused by what is happening inside of you.

ANGER DEFEATED

1. Quit justifying your anger.
2. Accept personal responsibility for your anger. Fight the anger not the consequences of anger. “A hot-tempered man must pay the penalty; if you rescue him, you will have to do it again.” Proverbs 19:19
3. Confess any pride by humbling yourself before God and others and ask for help.
4. Deal with unresolved guilt.
5. Forgive others. Leave vengeance to God.
6. Seek to become meek and gentle like Jesus. Meekness is strength under control and anger is weakness in control.
7. Think of the blessings that will be yours when you cease to be an angry person.

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I think the reason I did not start dealing with my anger until a year and a half ago is because I justified it. Every time I got angry I had a right to respond that way because someone did me wrong. In Matthew 5:21-22 Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, ‘Raca,’* is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.” Most people will agree that murder is a sin. Jesus takes it a step further and clearly says that anger is also. Jesus is speaking of the heart of the matter. Anger leads to murder. Although you may not murder someone physically; when you are angry with someone you either temporarily or permanently murder that person in your spirit. In the King James Version, Matthew 5:22 uses the phrase “angry…without a cause.” Dr. Davis points out that all other times this phrase is used in scripture; “without a cause” means “there is no cause.” (1 Samuel 19:5, Psalm 35:19, Psalm 69:4, Psalm 109:3, Psalm 119:78, Psalm 119:161, Matthew 5:22, John 15:25).

When I finally realized that was sinning in my anger;

I was finally able to start moving in the direction of healing.

Just as I did for most of my life; many of you will argue that “anger is not a sin” based on the fact that Jesus got angry or Ephesians 4:26 “In your anger do not sin…” Please note that Dr. Davis addresses those arguments among others in his sermon Freedom From the Spirit of Anger-Part 1 and Freedom From The Spirit Of Anger Part 2. In the mean time, pray that God will open your heart to the truths of scripture even if he reveals to you something different from what you have been taught for years. This is what happened to me.

* “Raca” means “empty headed one”

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Anger The Destroyer by: Dr. S. M. Davis

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I would love to hear your thoughts and stories if you have ever dealt with anger in your life!

Please feel free to comment on my posts and/or e-mail me at:  hearttreasurescontact@yahoo.com

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You can find links to all posts in this series on the Anger Series Index page.