Colossians 3:8a

Colossians chapter 3 verses 5 through 9 Mortify therefore your members which are upon earth fornication uncleanness inordinate affection evil concupiscence and covetousness which is idolatry For which things sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience in the which he also walked some time when you lived in them. But now he also put off these anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth, lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds. May God bless to us, his sacred and holy word this morning. In Esauph’s fables, there is a dog that used to snap at everyone and even try to bite them when they came to his master’s house. And this vicious dog was a great nuisance. And so the master decided he was going to fasten a bell around the neck of this dog in order to warn people when he was present. And so the dog became very proud of his bell and strutted around tinkling it with immense satisfaction. An old dog, came up to him and said, the fewer airs you give yourself the better, my friend. That bell is a badge of disgrace. Sadly, people go strutting around with an anger problem and do not realize how disgraceful their behavior actually is. People can be vicious, so much so that others will avoid them and stay out of their presence. It’s certainly disappointing when professing Christians would display sinful anger. You can expect it from the world, but from a professing Christian to act in a vicious manner like this is very difficult to receive. While mortifying the great sins of verse 5 that we’ve talked about in our previous study, we must not overlook the more common sins of verse 8 and the first part of verse 9. There are two types of vices that are mentioned here. One, sins of the heart, anger, wrath, and malice, and two, sins of the mouth. Blastomy, filthy communication, and lying. This morning, I want to look at the sins of the heart, anger, wrath, and malice. Let me begin by saying, this, you should consider how sinful anger is defined. He uses the word anger or thumos, which refers to the initial flaring up of your anger, the first strike of the match, so to speak, the fire which suddenly kindles within your spirit, that flash of anger that comes over you. Scripture speaks of anger waxing hot, anger becoming fierce, anger being kindled like a fire. This is the initial spark when your spirit is provoked. There was a man who was once told he had a very bad temper for his anger rose in him rather quickly. However, his accuser sort of mitigated, he said, but at least it’s over quickly. To which the the man said, yes, but so is a shotgun blast, but it leaves a lot of damage behind. And so that is the same way it is with anger. It blows everything to pieces. So here is anger. The second word that he uses, and I’ll put it under that general category of anger, is wrath or gain. This is a more settled or abiding condition of anger. Anger is like the first gust of the storm, well, wrath is the continuation of that storm. One is the wind and the thunder. The other is the lightning and the hail, so to speak. Anger flares up against. Scripture says wrath abides on. And so we see the two slightly different ideas here. Scripture, interestingly enough, enough, in the Book of Revelation 1690, uses both of these words in one sentence. It talks about the fierceness of his wrath. The flaring up the initials anger of his indignation. When Haman, the prince, saw that Mordecai would not bow before him and honor him and show reverence, the Bible says in Astra 3-5, he was full of wrath. Haman didn’t merely become angry for the moment. he was continuously angry with Mordecai. Haman’s fire wasn’t going to get quenched. His wrath abided on Mordecai. It was a settled, unmovable indignation that he had toward him. It was sustained daily. So anger and wrath are very closely related, but I’ve given you sort of a subtle distinction when they’re used together. And then the third, term he uses here is malice. This is the intention of doing harm or evil to someone. Malice is a kind of sinful anger that plots to take revenge. It’s the outcome of the anger and the wrath. Fueled by settled wrath, you seek an opportunity to let that anger express itself in some fashion. When Jesus healed the man with the withered hand, and he did it on the Sabbath day that the Jewish religious leaders were furious with him. The Bible says that they were in rage. They were filled with madness and commune with one another what they might do to Jesus. There’s the malice coming in. Scripture speaks about those living in malice, hating, and hating one another in Titus in Titus 3-5. So here is how. sinful anger is defined for it. Anger, wrath, and malice. Secondly this morning. You must learn to judge between righteous and sinful anger. Anger is not necessarily sinful. Anger is an emotion that God has given us. And anything God has given us is not in and of itself wicked or sinful. This is why Paul can say in the book of Ephesians be angry and sin not. Much is revealed in scripture about the anger and the wrath of God. If you read through the Old Testament and the New Testament, you keep reading these kinds of statements indicating that anger is not evil or else God could not be expressing it. Yet the Bible says that God is angry angry with the wicked every day. The Lord Jesus Christ the sinless son of God. It said on several occasions to be quite angry. You’ll recall when he healed the man with the with the withered hand and he was condemned by the Jews, he looked round about on them the Pharisees with anger. They could be so hard-hearted that they wouldn’t allow a man to be healed on the Sabbath day. It was a, it is a reckless an irresponsible anger that Scripture condemns. But if we say that Christ could not become angry, if we say all anger is sinful, then Christ could not be the sinless son of God. So anger is a very necessary and useful emotion. What is anger all about? Why has God given us this emotion? It is a motivator. It motivates you to do things. Hopefully the right kind of things. You know, when Jesus went to Jerusalem at the Passover, he found in the temple merchants who were selling oxen and doves and sheep, and he found money changers who were exchanging money for fee. And Jesus became quite angry, thus fulfilling the scripture, the zeal for thine house, hath eat me up. This, what did it do? It motivated Jesus to drive out the money changers, the merchantmen, and all the animals, out of the Lord’s house. He made a scourge of small cords. And he told everybody, take these things, hence, make not my father’s house, a house of merchandise. So anger can be good and useful, as well as harmful and destructive. It’s critical to understand this. The great reason is, former Martin Luther once said this, I never work better than when I am inspired by anger. While I am angry, I can write, pray, preach well, for then my whole temperament is quick and my understanding sharp and all mundane vexations and temptations depart. So it can have a positive influence and should have a positive influence. So not all anger is necessarily evil or sinful. Now there is righteous anger. Righteous anger arises in someone out of love for God or love for your neighbor. The stubbornness of Pharaoh and refusing to let Israel go and to heed the command of God made Moses justly angry. He went out from the presence of Pharaoh in very great anger, the Bible tells us, in Exodus 118. You remember the episode of the golden calf, when Moses just got the law and he comes down from the Mount Sinai, and he is righteously angry when he came near the host and he saw the calf and the dancing, so Moses wrath waxed hot. Why? Because they would violate the law. He hadn’t even got it down from the mountain yet, and they have already violated it. When God is disobeyed, this is a proper response. It’s righteous. Anger. Righteous anger is a controlled anger. It does not respond rashly. It doesn’t overreact. Moses still loved the people. He still sought their forgiveness. He still sought to do them good. It motivated him, however, to destroy the golden calf. It motivated him to rebuke the people, and it motivated him to go up and intercede for the people to give up and intercede for the people to God. So you should be angry with sin. When you find it in yourself, or when you find it in others, this should be something that motivates you to correct the problem. If you love God, you’re going to hate evil. You’ll be angry when God is disobeyed. If God is angry about it, you ought to be angry about it, right? Jesus directed his anger at the problem. His anger motivated him to confront the problem. problem. And that’s what our anger should do. We should use our anger to confront the problem. And when he removed them and their goods by force and cleansed the temple, his anger was pacified. It solved the problem. It was used to correct a problem. So there is righteous anger. But there is sinful anger. And this is the anger that our text is talking about. This is what needs to be put off. Unrighteous anger. This is evil in God’s sight. This is an anger that arises out of pride and self-love and it can be malicious in nature. Its only concern is the fact that you’ve been harmed or disgraced. You see this anger in King Saul. He became very wroth when the women of the nation were singing the praises of David and how he had killed more than Saul had killed. And he became angry about. But it wasn’t at all about him. We see it in King Uzziah, who was Roth when the priests confronted him, when he went in, intruding into the priest’s office to burn incense in the holy place. And they told him, you’re not allowed to do this. You’re not permitted to this. He got angry with them. Was it a righteous anger? No, it was a sinful anger. Remember the elder brother and the story of the prodigal son? How he was angry at the reception of the prodigal, his brother, who had come back from this wasteful living and had repented, and now there’s a celebration and feast on his behalf, and he’s angry because he was envious. Dad never threw a party for me and my friends, and I’m the good son. I stayed home. Anger is also sinful when it’s not controlled, when it’s not kept within bounds, when it’s not excessive, or when it is excessive. I read in scripture about the sons of Jacob. You find that they were angry when their sister, Dinah, was raped or forced by the son of Hamar in Genesis Chapter 34. So what did they do? they talked the city and the males circumcising themselves, and while they were sore on the third day, they went in with a sword and killed all of them, and took all the goods to the city and so forth. And Jacob, their father, said this, cursed be their anger, for it was fierce, and their wrath, for it was cruel. They didn’t just kill the guilty. They killed the innocent, they killed them all. They didn’t care. There was excessive anger. Your anger is sinful when it calms, you to disregard God’s word. You know, God says, vengeance is mine, said the Lord. I will repay. But when we get angry, sometimes we think, I will repay. I’ll do it myself. And we decide that we’re going to step in God’s shoes, and we’re going to do it for him. Because after all, we’re going to get it right. We’re going to make sure they get exactly what they deserve. Some people internalize their anger. leading to bitterness and resentment. If anger isn’t used constructively to solve a problem and we internalize it, then that can lead to bitterness. You may explode with anger, which is the other experience, and give way to screaming and yelling and cursing and belittling someone, and who knows what, throwing stuff at them, and it becomes a part of a problem. You’re not really getting at the problem. You’re just blowing up at someone. one. So you must learn to judge between righteous and sinful anger. Now, second, now my third point is this. Your duty is to put off sinful anger. Your Christian duty. But now, he says, intimating, now that you are converted, now that you have been delivered from bondage to sin, now that you’ve been circumcised by Christ, you cannot walk and live like he used to do. That might have been, the old Jackworth, but that can’t be the new regenerated Jackworth. It behooves you to be different and to keep your distance from these types of vices that used to reign in you. For God requires from believers in a state of grace a holy life where all sinful anger, wrath and malice are mortified. Let us cast off the works of darkness and let us put on the armor of light. Romans 13, 12. Now put off is a term that’s used with regard to clothing. During my college and seminary years, I used to work for the Horner Box Company in Grand Prairie, Texas. I worked on the machine that was called the door core glower. and most of the time I spent on that machine. We made these large pads out of sheets of corrugated board that were glued together at certain intervals, and then they were cut in between one inch to one and a half inch size strips. And then you could pull them apart like an accordion. It would make like an accordion. They would go inside doors for houses, inside. inside house stores, you know, the ones that are not on the outside, but inner house stores. And we’ve been making those all night long. Now, we would be working with 50 gallon drums of glue. And you’re working with all this glue, and you’re working with all this glue, I had glue from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet all over me. When I got done working. and it was quite sloppy. So all my clothes had this splattering of glue on them. And so I had to put off those soiled clothes, take my shower, and go to bed, and the next day I had to put on new dress clothes and a tie because I was going to class. Now, obviously, I look much different in the morning than I did in night. But I didn’t get up in the morning and put back all. on those dirty clothes, that would be ridiculous. That would be foolish. This is what Paul is saying he must do spiritually. Those filthy clothes, that sinful anger and wrath as well as mouths are to be put off. It’s inappropriate that you should wear these things anymore. It’s unbecoming your profession of faith in Christ. In verse 10, you’ll notice he’s going to tell us, and have put on the new man, which is renewed. after the image of God that created him. And he’s going to tell us what kind of things were to put on. So these are the things you put off. This goes with the filth and the garbage of the old way of life. And then there are things that go with the new type of life that you’re to put on. That’s what you’re supposed to be wearing. And this is the distinction that he makes here with regard to us. But you have to put off the sinful things so that you can put on. the righteous garments. Whoever then has been truly regenerated by Christ will begin putting off these sinful activities. If you’re not regenerate, you would be content to walk around in your filthy clothes. You’d continue to go on like you used to live. But if you’re regenerate, you can’t go on like that. You must be different. So your Christian duties put it off. Now why putting off sinful anger is necessary? Let’s look at a couple of passages. Let’s look at Ephesians chapter 4 a minute. Versus 26 and 27. There’s one thing that Paul says here. Be angry and sin not. let not the sun go down in your wrath. Neither give place to the devil. Now, sinful sinful anger, without a just cause, opens the door to Satan, taking a advantage of you. For in the heat of the moment, when you’re burning with rage, you are capable of doing great evil. You lose control of your passions. You can be easily manipulated by safe. You remember when Abel and his offering were accepted by God, but Kane and his offering were rejected by God? And Kane, Kane, we read, was very Roth. Genesis four or five. And God warns Cain that sin lieth, literally in Hebrew, crouches at the door of his heart. It’s crouching there. It was like a wild beast ready to spring upon you and devire you, but we find Kane failed to check it. He did not restrain it. And the next thing you read is what? Kane is out in the field with his brother and he kills him. That anger led to murder. and so we’re told to be sober, be vigilant because your adversary of the devil as a roaring, lying, walk of the bouts seeking you may devire. Don’t give place to the devil. Don’t give him opportunity to take advantage of you with sinful anger. The second thing, I suggest you, is it grieves the Holy Spirit. Just turn the page, or maybe look down the page, at verse 30 and 31 of this same chapter. for. And grieve not the Holy Spirit of God whereby you’re sealed under the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and evil speaking be put away from you with all malice. If you see where he places this particular phrase about grieving the spirit, we see it’s connected with anger and unrighteous anger at that. Now this grieving of the spirit is certainly a human expression. But it’s something that’s done that’s offensive to God the Spirit. He is grieved when believers who are sealed under the Day of Redemption engage in sinful anger. In the heat of your anger, you’re not being guided by the Spirit. You know, we’re really read about people being led by the Spirit. You’re being led by your own passions. And therefore it is a unbiblical use of your anger. We disregard God’s counsel and were directed just by our emotions. When the disciples entered a Samaritan village you’ll recall to prepare the village for Christ’s coming, he was just coming down the road he would be there soon. The Samarans didn’t receive him. Because they saw his determination was to go on to Jerusalem and so they weren’t very welcome. to him. And so James and John saw this and they asked the Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven and consume them. Sort of like Elijah in the Old Testament. And Jesus rebukes them and says to them, you know not what manner of spirit you are of all. For the son of man has not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them. Boy, you don’t know what kind of spirit you’re male. And so you’re really going against what I’m trying to accomplish. here. And so we have to be careful here that our passion doesn’t override what God would have us to do. And we’re not being led by the Spirit then. We’re being guided by our own anger. For the wrath of man, worketh not the righteousness of God. James 120. It’s contrary to the Spirit’s will. It grieves the Spirit. It makes you vengeful. Look at Romans chapter 12, if you would with me. Romans chapter 12. Romans chapter 12. verses 17 to 21. Recompense no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men. Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place under wrath. What is written vengeance is mine, I will repay, saith the Lord. Therefore, if thine enemy hunger feed him, if he thirst, give him drink, for in doing so, thou shalt he coals a fire upon his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. That phrase, give place under wrath here, indicates to us that this is, we’re to let God handle it and not take things into our own hands. He declares that he will take vengeance. But when we’re roused by sinful anger, we’re tempted to take God’s tempted to take God’s place. and take vengeance. And so we find this is a problem. You remember David, after he was slighted by Nabal, who refused to give David and his men provisions, that this so angered David that he and his men strapped on their swords, and they were going to the house of Nabol, and they were going to kill every male in the family. Only Abigail’s intervention prevented David from doing what he would certainly have regretted later on, as she reminds him of that. and 1 Samuel 25. It makes you vengeful. The third thing, or a fourth thing I want to mention here, is it causes you to commit heart murder. Now, if you would, let’s look at one more passage. Matthew chapter 5. Matthew chapter 5 and verses 21 and 22. Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, thou shalt not kill. And whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of judgment. But I have heard that it was said by them of old time, thou shalt not kill, but I say unto you that whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raka, shall be in danger of the counsel, but whosoever shall say thou fool shall be in danger of hellfire. The lowest, as well as the greatest outburst of wrath toward your brother without a just cause here is condemned. Is it not? thou shalt not kill then forbids this rash, uncontrolled anger, this sinful anger that we’ve been talking about. And God classifies it as murder. For when sinful anger flares up in your heart, that’s really the first step toward the physical murder that takes place later on. You remember Esau’s attitude after his birthright was stolen from him? In the book of Genesis by his brother, his heart smoldered with anger. As he awaited the death of his father, and he said this, my father will soon die, and then I will slay my brother. So that anger is right there, and it’s an anger that’s going to lead to murder. So you see that the same type of anger in the hearts of the scribes and Pharisees as they look for an occasion to kill Christ, because he healed someone. Did good on the Sabbath day. So your duty is to put off sinful anger. Well, that vicious dog that was given a bell around his neck was very proud of it and strutted around thinking he was somebody. But it was really a sign of disgrace. Anytime you engage in sinful anger, it is disgraceful, and it is disgraceful, and it is dishonoring to Christ. Sadly, we often fail to perceive just how evil. sinful, sinful anger is. You need to ask yourself what God asked Jonah in Chapter 4, when he got angry, because God didn’t destroy the city. And he got angry because a worm came along and destroyed the gourd that was giving him shade. And what does God say to him? Dost thou well to be angry? That’s a good question we ought to ask ourselves. Is this a righteous anger, or is this a righteous anger? sinful anger that I have. We’re to put off the sinful anger. If it’s a righteous anger, then let’s act and be motivated to do what is necessary to correct the problem. Well, let us close with a word of prayer.