Tuesday, July 28, 2015

MURDER

MURDER

Matthew 5:21-26 "You have heard that our ancestors were told, 'You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.'  (22)  But I say, if you are even angry with someone [without cause], you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.  (23)  "So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you,  (24)  leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God.  (25)  "When you are on the way to court with your adversary, settle your differences quickly. Otherwise, your accuser may hand you over to the judge, who will hand you over to an officer, and you will be thrown into prison.  (26)  And if that happens, you surely won't be free again until you have paid the last penny.

First I wish to point out that the word for “without cause” is not in all the Greek texts. That is the reason that phrase is grayed out in verse 22. James tells us very clearly that our anger does not work God’s righteousness (James 1:19-20). Therefore, I urge you to not use that phrase as justification for anger. And don’t use Jesus’ indignation in the temple as justification for your anger either. He is completely holy and can be angry and absolutely not sin. You and I need a lot of help with that.

Verse 22 is a warning against anger. The warning being that to allow yourself to become angry you put yourself in jeopardy of judgment. Paul tells us in Ephesians 4:27 that undealt with anger gives Satan a foothold. And let me tell you, if Satan gets a foot in the door he will cause as much damage as he can as fast as he can. Anger is the proverbial Pandora’s Box.

The next part of the warning moves from just being angry to name calling. At this point our anger has moved from just a heart issue to a verbal assault. The next step is speaking curses against the object of our anger. Proverbs 18:21 “The tongue can bring death or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences.” At the point you have begun to speak curses your anger has turned to rage and the next step after that is at least causing harm if not actual murder. So, it seems prudent to take action as soon as you see anger rising in your heart. I mentioned James 1:19-20 above. James 1:19-20 Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry.  (20)  Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires.

Matthew 5:23 takes us to a deeper love for God and our fellow man. If anger causes such harm and devastation for the person who is angry then I not only need to keep my own heart in check, but I must also quickly clear up any matters in which I have offended another. If you are even at the altar or, in modern days, in your pew with your offering dangling over the offering plate and suddenly remember someone has reason to be angry with you, leave the offering, but go and do all you can to reconcile with that person. Then come back and present your offering to the Lord with a pure heart and a clean conscience.

I know someone is thinking, “But that person doesn’t have a right to be mad. I didn’t do anything wrong.” Are you sure? Read verses 25 and 26 above again. Search your heart and ask God to show you if you did anything offensive and then ask Him if you’ve responded to the offended person in an offensive way. He loves you and will show you if you approach Him with an honest heart. You don’t have to admit to things you didn’t do, but be honest and understanding with yourself and the other person.

Our adversary is Satan and he is also known as the accuser of the brethren. Years ago we knew a young lady who had opened herself up to demonic influence. One evening at a bible study she sat in our living room on the floor with her knees drawn up to her chest. Speaking in a voice that was not hers she began turning herself to face each of us, one at time and accusing us of various sins. I’ll be honest, I was a concerned about what she would say my sin was. I started rebuking that demon in the Name of Jesus telling it to get out, but it didn’t stop and I was getting angry. She got all the around to me and accused me of some pretty heinous stuff. I bowed my head and asked the Lord why this thing was able to do this. In that moment He reminded me of the passage above. The King James Translation says, “Agree with thine adversary quickly.” So I did. I looked that young lady in the eyes and said, “You are absolutely right. I’m a low life sinner full of lust, greed and all sorts of sin. But it’s all under the blood of the Lamb, Jesus Christ.”

When I said that she screamed at me to stop it. We all started singing every song we could think of about the Blood of Jesus. A few minutes passed and she began to weep and to say, “It’s gone. It’s gone.” God set her free in that moment.

Had I allowed my anger to take control instead of admitting my failure and proclaiming the goodness and salvation of Christ Jesus, I believe that demon would have won a victory that day that could have effected everyone in the room. There would have been much trouble instead of freedom and rejoicing.


Father in heaven, It is so easy for me to get angry, for us to get angry. Help us to look to You and to trust You when others persecute us, pick on us, and treat us with contempt. Help us to honestly admit our own failures and to show our adversaries the love that You have given us. Thank You for the power and fruit of Your Holy Spirit that helps us in all things to glorify You. In Jesus Name, AMEN!!!

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