Love Is Not Easily Angered | Chino Seventh-day Adventist

“Love Is Not Easily Angered”

 I’d like to start today with a story of a young man who was trying to sell an old worn out lawnmower. A pastor was interested in buying it. So the pastor pulled on the starter rope a few times to make sure the mower would work. But nothing happened. The engine didn’t even sputter. 

The young man told the pastor to kick the mower and say a curse word and then, the motor would start.

The pastor said, “I can’t do that.” “I’m a Christian.” “It’s been many many years since I’ve uttered a curse word.” The young man replied, “Well, just keep pulling on that rope, and I’m sure it’ll come back to you.”

Here in our series on 1 Corinthians 13 the next aspect of God’s love that  we’ll be looking at is found in Verse 5 (NIV). “…(Love)… is not easily angered.”

Most of us have a daily battle with trying to keep our cool. It could be something as small as not being able to get a lawnmower started.

It could be frustrations with co-workers or bosses. It could be anger at a parent, spouse, child, relative or anyone in our sphere of contact. Or it could be something that comes out when we get behind the wheel of a car.

Now, right at the beginning, let’s establish what we’re not talking about. We’re not talking about perfection. We’re talking about maturity. Pursuing maturity is rewarding and healthy. Pursuing perfection is frustrating, neurotic and a terrible waste of time.

Perfectionism is an unhealthy addiction to control that refuses to accept anything that falls short of absolute perfection. In the spiritual realm, perfectionism is rooted in the lie that we have to earn God’s love and work our way to heaven.

Now, most of us would never admit to believing anything like that.

Yet, too often, we live like that’s what we believe. Because that’s how we treat ourselves.

And when we demand perfection of ourselves it’s almost guaranteed that we are going to expect the same from others. And when we or others don’t live up to our standard of perfection you get anger.

You get frustration. You get roots of bitterness that build up with others, with God, and even ourselves. 

The writer of Hebrews issues us this warning in Hebrews 12: 15. Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;

Now, what does it mean to “fall short of the grace of God”? Grace is the unearned and unmerited favor we have with the Lord. There are ultimately just two different camps when it comes to salvation.

Some believe we are saved by grace. Some believe we are saved by works.

Gospel believing Christians, believe that we are saved 100% by the grace of God. And our faith is what connects us to the salvation that Jesus has already accomplished for the whole planet. 

We are either saved by grace or works. It can’t be both. Paul puts it this way in Galatians 5: 4. You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.

You see, if we think we can earn God’s favor by our performance we are actually replacing Jesus with ourselves! If we attempt to be justified by our good works, we are no longer trusting in the Savior, we are trusting in us!

And so, to “fall from grace” or “fall short of the grace of God” are the very same thing. It means that we think there is something we must do in order to win God’s favor. To “fall short of the grace of God” means that we don’t actually believe that we are saved by God’s grace.

And when we don’t know that God treats us with grace it’s hard to share grace with others. And so, roots of bitterness and animosity and resentment start to take hold.  

Let’s look at Hebrews 12: 15 again. Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled;

A recent Pew Research Survey found that 52% of Protestant Christians no longer believe that we are saved 100% by God’s grace through faith. The majority of modern Protestants believe that salvation is by works to one degree or another.

No wonder there are so many roots of bitterness everywhere springing up and causing trouble. No wonder so many turn away from the Lord and become defiled. When we “fall short of the grace of God”, we fall short of everything. Because everything hinges on the Good News of God’s grace. The Good News of the Gospel.

Brothers and sisters, when we know and believe that we are saved 100% by the grace of God it’s not hard to be gracious! It’s not hard to have a heart of gratitude toward God. Believing the Gospel actually makes it hard for “roots of bitterness” to take hold of our lives.  

Again, we are not talking about perfection. But we are talking about pursuing maturity. And maturity starts by embracing and rejoicing in the grace of God rather than “falling short” of it. 

Let’s look at Philippians 1: 6. “Being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;”

Brothers and sisters, the only way the enemy can defeat us is by causing us to give up and quit. If we don’t give up, God will see us through to the end come what may. You see, the enemy is going to be trying to tell us things like: “How can you think you are saved by God’s grace when you did that?” The enemy is in complete denial of the love of God and the grace of God. And he’s always trying to get us to buy into that same kind of thinking. Because he knows that’s how those roots of bitterness start to take hold of our lives.

Let’s not let that happen. Let’s build our lives on the incredibly Great News that we are saved 100% by faith in God’s unearned, undeserved favor toward us.

1 Thessalonians 5: 24 says, “He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.”

The Lord promises to carry us and empower us every step of the way to His eternal kingdom.

And brothers and sisters, when we know and believe and remember

That underneath are the everlasting arms, it’s easy to be easy going.

It’s easy to not be easily angered. It’s easy to “not sweat the small stuff.” It’s easy to contrast the little inconveniences of the time with the enormous privileges that will be ours in eternity!

The core teaching of the Bible is that God is love. And God’s love is different from our human love in three primary ways. It’s unconditional, unchanging, and self-sacrificing.

And because that’s what God is like, that’s what heaven is like.

And the Lord is wanting more of the atmosphere of heaven to pervade this earth.

Before the fall, the Garden of Eden was heaven on earth. Jesus came to our world, to bear the curse that we deserved so that His original plan for us could be restored.

When we build our lives on the principles of His kingdom of agape love it’s a tremendous blessing to us personally and to everyone around us.

Now, is there some room for improvement in our relationships to grow and be better and healthier? Of course, there’s room for improvement. Is there some room for improvement in our relationship with God to grow and be better and healthier? Sure there is.

That’s why we are each here today. We are all still in process. We are still in the process of becoming in our experience what we already are through the unearned, undeserved grace of God.

And so, rightly understood, we are not pursuing maturity in order to try to get something more from God. We are pursuing maturity because we want more of what God has already given us to be revealed in our lives.

We are pursuing maturity, simply because as 2 Corinthians 5: 14 says, “The love of Christ compels us”.

Now, the focus of our message today is that “Love is not easily angered.”

Ephesians 4: 26 says, “Be angry, and do not sin…”

Anger itself is not the problem. Anger is not always wrong.

But many times it’s very wrong and extremely destructive.

Proverbs 16: 32 says, “He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.”

Now, some people will say, “I can’t control my anger.” “I just can’t help it.” “That’s the way I am.” “That’s the way I was raised.” “That’s just the culture I come from.”

But if that’s true, then the Good News of the Gospel isn’t true. Because the Gospel tells us that we are “new creatures in Jesus.”

It tells us that the old things have passed away. And as believers, we just want to allow that newness that is already ours in Jesus, to shine out in our lives.

And so, there is godly anger and ungodly anger. The classic example of godly anger is Jesus chasing the money changers out of the temple with a cord of rope.

The Bible doesn’t say that Jesus got angry. But what it does say is that He was “consumed with zeal.” And what was Jesus’ zealous for?

He was zealous toward protecting the right to free access to a place of worship for all people. Including Gentiles.

In Jesus’ day, the Court of the Gentiles is where they set up this market that had a carnival-like atmosphere. It wasn’t just a market but a place where religious extortion was constantly practiced. 

The religious leaders had ruled that only “temple currency” could be used to purchase livestock for offerings. And they manipulated the “temple currency” so that the exchange rates were astronomically high.

This is what caused Jesus’ blood to boil with righteous indignation. And Jesus didn’t just cleanse the temple once. He did this on two different occasions.

And yet, there is no Biblical evidence that any of the disciples were also “consumed with zeal.” In the Bible, when Jesus gets angry He’s always the only one. And the things the disciples got angry about didn’t faze the Savior.  

James and his brother John were furious when a Samaritan town refused to receive Jesus and the disciples because they were obviously on their way to Jerusalem.

In Luke 9: 54 James and John asked, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”

James and John expected Jesus to say, “Now, that’s the spirit, boys!” “You are finally being “consumed with zeal” like I am.”

But that’s not what Jesus said at all. Let’s look at the next two verses, Verses 55-56. “But (Jesus) turned and rebuked them, and said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. 56 For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” And they went to another village.”

Wow! Jesus said, “You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.” It certainly wasn’t the Holy Spirit who was encouraging James and John to call down fire on that Samaritan town.

In His love for those “Sons of Thunder” Jesus had to rebuke them for their hateful attitude and lack of concern for that Samaritan town. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught us to turn the other cheek. And He was doing just that.

Jesus was angrier at His disciples for becoming angry than He was at the Samaritans for not receiving Him and the disciples.

Having to go to the next town to get fresh supplies was going to be an inconvenience for Jesus and the disciples. But what Jesus was really concerned about was the same spirit that started the war in heaven was still deeply rooted in the heart of His own disciples.

Here was Jesus making every effort to reveal and establish His kingdom of agape love while two out of three of His inner circle of disciples are wanting to call down fire from heaven because they were upset about being inconvenienced.

James and John were inner circle disciples of Jesus. But at that time, the agape love of God wasn’t even on their radar screens. They were still looking for worldly answers to spiritual problems.

And the same thing happens today with each of us when we allow our focus to be turned away from the pre-eminence of God’s agape love. 

Because as Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 13 we can be fluent in all the languages of earth and heaven. We can understand all mysteries and have all knowledge both secular and spiritual. We can have mountain-moving faith. We can be so sacrificial that we give away everything we own. And we can even be willing to die a martyr’s death by fire.

But if all of that isn’t done, out of gratitude for God’s agape love, then it profits us nothing. And why does Paul tell us these things?

Because especially in the religious world there is this constant push to try to make something else, anything else pre-eminent.

There is this constant pressure to make something else besides God’s agape love for us supremely important. Why? Because we all intuitively know that agape love is something we can’t produce.

And we are right. Agape love is an import item from heaven. We can’t produce it and God doesn’t expect us to.

But what He does want, is for us to by faith receive His un-earnable and un-deservable love and then let our lives be an expression of gratitude for that love.

Let’s look at James 1: 19-20. My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness of God.

James is telling us that we should “reflect before reacting”. Delaying our response can be a great tool in dealing with anger.

I’m not talking about long-term delay where we hold in our anger for weeks and months and years. That kind of delay just becomes resentment and allows weeds of anger to turn into trees of bitterness.

It’s been said that resentment is anger that forgot where it came from.

But when we become angry, which we all do it’s good to take some time to analyze what the real issue is.

A good question to ask ourselves is: is this anger directed toward a person or a behavior? God loves all people. But He doesn’t love all behaviors.

As we just saw, Jesus could sharply rebuke the disciples for their unloving behavior. And yet, of course, Jesus still loved them.

He always had and He always would. And James and John knew that He still loved them. They knew, that the Lord in His love for them was just calling them to a higher experience.  

Too often for us, the lines get blurred. We forget that people are human beings, not human doings. We need to be able to separate the beings from the doings. Like the Lord, we are called to love the beings even if we disagree with the doings.

God has an unconditional, unchanging, self-sacrificing love for all human beings. And human doings can never change that. And while God can’t change; we can. By the power of His grace and love, we can become more like Him.

At a men’s retreat, a group was asked to describe some practical ways that Jesus had made a difference in their lives. One trucker raised his hand and said, “Well, now, when I see someone tailgating my truck I don’t drive on the shoulder of the road to kick up pebbles and rocks on them. And I don’t slow down to try to teach them a lesson.  

I just humbly change lanes and let them pass when I can. And when I can’t, I continue at my regular speed until they are able to pass me.”

Now, brothers and sisters, that’s the power of Jesus right there. That’s the practical power of the Gospel on display.

Earlier, we saw how Jesus had to rebuke James and John for their lack of love.

And in the New Testament, there are definitely some occasions where Jesus spoke some very pointed words. Almost all of those words were directed at the Pharisees. The religious elites of Jesus’ day.

And yet, when Jesus said those things to the Pharisee’s tears were in His eyes and in His voice. Jesus never compromised with the truth.

And He also never compromised with His heart of agape love. Jesus always spoke the truth, and He always did so in love.

Let’s look at a great example of that in Revelation 3: 14-20. “And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: 15 “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. 16 So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. 17 Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— 18 I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eyesalve, that you may see. 19 As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. 20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.

The book of Revelation starts with seven short letters to seven Churches. And while these short letters were addressed to specific first century Churches they also have another application.

They also amazingly apply to seven different historical periods in Christian Church history with the seventh Church, representing the final period of time before Jesus returns.

Among the seven Churches, the seventh, the Laodicean Church is the only one that Jesus, the True Witness has nothing good to say about. Now, when I was 21 I first began to study the Bible. And when I was told that the Seventh-day Adventist Church claimed to be that Laodicean Church that did it for me.

All of the prophecies and other Biblical proofs were great. They were amazing. But when I saw the Adventist Church admitting that Jesus had nothing good to say about it that was a huge confirmation for me.  

I knew that this must be God’s last day Church. Because what Church, is going to admit to being the Laodicean Church?

All Churches are always just wanting to show their good side and why they are better than all the others. But to admit to being the Laodicean Church is so counterintuitive I knew that this must be it.

Now, it’s true that Jesus rebukes the Laodiceans. But it’s important that we ask why? He rebukes them for the same reason that He rebuked James and John. James and John thought they were rich in zeal for the Lord. When they were actually just rich in self-righteousness.

Self-righteousness is the most difficult kind of unbelief for the Lord to dislodge. Because we all have this natural tendency to trust ourselves and our goodness kind of like we naturally trust the law of gravity.

And just like Nicodemus, the more successful we are in our own self-righteous condition the more difficult it is for us to believe that we need a righteousness that doesn’t come from us.

But, praise God for Jesus, the True Witness who always tells us the truth in love. And in love in Revelation 3: 17 the Savior tells us the truth about what we are in and of ourselves. He says, “You do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.”

Alright Lord, tell us how you really feel. Talk about pulling no punches.  The first word Jesus uses is “wretched.”

Isaiah 64: 6 says, “We are all like an unclean thing, and all our righteousness is like filthy rags;”

The next word Jesus uses to describe Laodicea is “miserable”.

As we’ve seen, we can have all spiritual knowledge. But if all of that knowledge isn’t grounded in God’s agape love it’s going to leave us miserable.

The next adjective Jesus uses is “poor”.

Isaiah 55: 1 says,”Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters; and you who have no money, come, buy and eat!  Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.”

700 years before the time of Jesus the prophet Isaiah beautifully describes the free gift of salvation that is made available to all who will by faith “buy without money and without cost.”

Next, Jesus calls us blind. The Pharisees are the only group that Jesus ever referred to as being blind. Except for the Laodiceans.

Does Jesus think the Laodicean Church has a problem with Pharisaical attitudes? Well, Jesus is the True and Faithful Witness. He knows what He’s talking about.

And finally, He says that we’re naked. You see with Jesus, it’s all or nothing. It’s either all of His righteousness or none at all. And so, if we claim to have some righteousness of our own then, we can’t also claim His.

Paul puts it well in Philippians 3: 8-9. Yet indeed I also count all things loss for the excellence of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness, which is from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith; 

Paul, the former Pharisee knew what it was like to be a Laodicean. He knew what it was like to try to draw heat from the cold law of God. He knew what it was like to try to produce his own righteousness by his performance.

But, by God’s grace, Paul turned his back on all of that. And rather than “falling short of the grace of God” he immediately embraced the grace of God. He embraced the goodness of God. He embraced the agape love of God.

He was no longer trusting in his own filthy rags of righteousness. He was no longer miserable he was now rejoicing in Jesus! He was no longer poor because He had found Jesus to be the pearl of great price!

He was no longer blind because the Holy Spirit had opened His eyes to the Good News of the Gospel. He was no longer naked because he was now trusting in the righteousness of Jesus and not His own imperfect performance.

And then, in Verse 18, Jesus counsels us to buy three things from Him without money and without price. “I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eyesalve, that you may see.” 

That gold that is tried in the fire is faith that is empowered by love. The white garments represent the righteousness of Jesus. And the eye salve represents spiritual discernment so that we can see the Good News of the Gospel.  

In Matthew 22 in the parable of the Wedding Feast, one man got into the wedding feast without the garment the king had provided.

Verse 12 says, “So (the king said to the man), ‘Friend, how did you come in here without a wedding garment?’ And he was speechless.”

Brothers and sisters, the man was speechless because there is no reason for not putting on the free gift of the righteousness of Jesus.

Everyone who comes to the Lord trusting in their own righteousness and goodness is going to be sorely disappointed.

But Romans 9: 33 says that “…Whoever believes on (Jesus) will not be put to shame.”

Back in Revelation 3: 18 Jesus said, “That the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed”.

Brothers and sisters, this isn’t rocket science. The Gospel is beautifully simple and simply beautiful.

 And here’s the thing, there is no eighth Church in Revelation. This is it.

And yet, we have all these different offshoot groups of the Seventh-day Adventist Church all claiming that they are the true Church. But there is no eighth Church. Laodicea is the last Church, before the return of Jesus.

Let’s look now at Revelation 3: 19. “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent.” 

Who does Jesus rebuke and chasten? He says, “As many as I love.” He rebukes and chastens everyone because He loves everyone.

 Then, Jesus says, “Therefore be zealous and repent.”

Notice that Jesus first reminds us of His love for us and then He says, “Therefore.” That’s because Jesus wants our “response”– our “therefore” to always be based on His undying, agape love for us.

Now, if Jesus’ words sound harsh to us it’s because the truth is sometimes hard to hear. Sometimes it takes hard truth to dislodge deep-seated misunderstanding.

And why does Jesus counsel us? Because the law drives, but Jesus draws us. The law whips, but the Lord woos. The law commands, but Jesus counsels us like the true friend that He is.

And what about where Jesus counsels us to buy from Him? Well, to buy something is to exchange something we have for something we value more.

The real exchange that the Lord offers is that He invites us to exchange Jesus for us. Christianity is the divine exchange, of our life for His.

And it’s the best deal, we’ll ever make. With Jesus, we come naked, and we leave clothed. We come hungry, and we leave filled. We come thirsty, and by the power of His grace and love that is not easily angered, we leave satisfied.