TOPICAL BIBLE STUDY

Name: Ritchie Jane Brion

Topic: Anger
Living an “Anger-Free” Life
Introduction:
"Road Rage" is a term that defines an alarming new phenomenon in North America. Angry motorists shoot and
kill or deliberately crash their cars into drivers whom they feel have performed some inconsiderate maneuver.
This growing problem is so real that the Automobile Association of America is running a series of TV adds to
teach drivers how to keep their cool and avoid becoming a victim.
We are truly living in the "Age of Rage." People are simmering and seething inside. Ulcers and antacids are not
the only byproducts of this angry world. Daily the headlines shows stories of people who lost their tempers and
then committed some horrific act of violence against total strangers, fellow workers, or (even more commonly)
members of their own families.
Is there an antidote or remedy for anger? Can we control anger? Or can we live an “anger-free” life?
Today, we will know that though we get angry easily and even have experienced the results of anger, we can
still change it and find peace amidst this angry world. We will also learn that we may get angry but will not
commit sin, just as Jesus did. Through His promises, we can have assurance that we can partake of His divine
nature. 2 Peter 1:4 says, Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises; that by these ye
might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

Baseball coach Billy Martin told about hunting trip he had in Texas with baseball legend Mickey Mantle. Mickey
had a friend who would let them hunt on his ranch. When they reached the ranch, Mickey told Billy to wait in
the car while he checked in with his friend. Mantle’s friend quickly gave them permission to hunt, but he asked
Mickey a favor. He had an old mule out in the barn who was going blind, and he didn’t have the heart to put
him out of his misery. He asked Mickey to shoot the mule for him. Mickey decided to play a trick on his hunting
partner. When he came back to the car, he pretended to be angry. He scowled and slammed the door. Billy
asked him what was wrong, and Mickey said his friend wouldn’t let them hunt. "I’m so mad at that guy," Mantle
said, "I’m going out to his barn and shoot one of his mules!" Mantle drove like a maniac to the barn. Martin
protested, "We can’t do that!" But Mickey was adamant. "Just watch me," he shouted. When they got to the
barn, Mantle jumped out of the car with his rifle, ran inside, and shot the mule. As he was leaving, though, he
heard two shots, and he ran back to the car. He saw that Martin had taken out his rifle, too. "What are you
doing, Martin?" he yelled. Martin yelled back, face red with anger, "We’ll show that man! I just killed two of his
cows!"

Mickey, as we can see is just playing with Martin, as if he is angry with his friend, owner of the ranch. But the
result is bad, Martin get angry too and shoot two cows. Anger is like a contagious disease that can easily spread
and sometimes if not controlled lead to anyone’s ruin. But God has a promise,

Main Point 1: God will bless us, if we refrain and turn away from anger.
Proof Text 1: Numbers 20:10
And Moses and Aaron gathered the congregation together before the rock, and he said unto them, Hear
now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of this rock? And Moses lifted up his hand, and with his rod
he smote the rock twice: and the water came out abundantly, and the congregation drank, and their
beasts also. And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron, Because ye believed me not, to sanctify me in
the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the land which I have
given them.

Illustration:

The Israelites travelled from Egypt for almost 40 years, led by Moses and Aaron, when they arrived in
the dessert of Zin. There was no water and they were very thirsty. So they gathered and went to Moses
and Aaron and said; you have taken us out of Egypt and bring us unto this evil place? It is no place of
seed, or of figs, or of vines, or of fruits (pomegranates) in short, no food, and no water! Did you bring us
here in this wilderness that we and our cattle will die here? So, Moses and Aaron went to talk to God
and fell upon their faces. And the Lord, said unto them to gather the people and speak to the rock before
there eyes and it shall give forth water, and you will the congregation and their beasts water to drink.
But Moses shouted while standing by the rock, "Hear now, ye rebels; must we fetch you water out of
this rock?" Then he lifted his hand and struck the rock twice in a rage. Moses wasn't supposed to hit the
rock at all. He was supposed to speak to it. God told Moses and Aaron, "Because ye believed me not, to
sanctify me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore ye shall not bring this congregation into the
land which I have given them."

Like Moses, when we face problems in the family, such as parents looking for job but still couldn’t find
any work to buy food or supply the needs of the family, students who study hard but still couldn’t meet
their parents expectations.. Because of frustrations and anger, we utter some very cutting and toxic
words without thinking to those people around us. Wounding words spoken in haste are never easily
retracted.
Proof Text 2: Psalm 37: 8-9
Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret- it leads only to evil. For those who are evil will be
destroyed, but those who hope in the Lord will inherit the land.
Comments:
The Lord will bless those people who will refrain from being angry and those who will turn away from it.
But those who cannot will be destroyed. Anger is not good for our health. Many people are physical ill
because of the feeling of bitterness and anger inside. Proverbs 17:22 says, A merry heart doeth good like
a medicine but the broken spirit dries the bones. And that happiness could only be found in Christ.
Proverbs 16:20, He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good: and whoso trusteth in the Lord, happy
is he.
Proof Text 2: Psalm 15: 1
A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Comments:
 Give your anger to God. Remember angry words stirs up anger to others. Proverbs 16:23, the heart of
the wise teacheth his mouth, and addeth learning to his lips. Pleasant words are a honeycomb, they are
sweet to the soul and health to the bones.
Main Point 2. Our situation is not hopeless, anger can be controlled.

Proof Text 1: Mark 11: 15-17

And they come to Jerusalem: and Jesus went into the temple, and began to cast out them that sold and
bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold
doves; And would not suffer that any man should carry any vessel through the temple. And he taught,
saying unto them, Is it not written, My house shall be called of all nations the house of prayer? but ye
have made it a den of thieves.

Comments:

Did Jesus ever become angry? Yes. Did He ever lose control? No, not once. It was God's design for His
temple to be a holy house of prayer for all nations. It was to be a reverent dwelling place for Jehovah,
but instead, it had become more like a smelly stockyard or flea market. Local businessmen had brought
all kinds of animals into the courtyard to sell to pilgrims who had come to offer sacrifices. Everyone was
arguing over prices, and it was hard to hear anything except the lowing of oxen, the bleating of sheep,
and the cooing of doves. When Jesus entered the courtyard and witnessed this cacophony of confusion,
a holy indignation was revealed in His face. With power and authority He walked over and took a string
of cords that were used for tying up the sacrifice victims. He made a little whip and held it in His hands.
Then He said with trumpet tones, "Take these things hence." John 2:16. There was so much power in His
word that all the greedy salesmen, without ever questioning his authority, began to flee. Next Jesus
flipped over the money tables, and the coins went bouncing off mingled with dove feathers. The Son of
God was clearly angry.

God has moments of wrath, but it is never uncontrolled. His anger when He disciplines us because it's
designed to bring about good. Likewise, parents should never discipline their children in uncontrolled
anger. It's not wrong to be angry when they've done something wrong, but we must never let those
feelings provoke unjust punishment. Always discipline children in love. The purpose of parental
correction is to bring reform, not to seek revenge.

Proof Text 2: Proverbs 16:32

He that is slow to anger is better than the mighty; and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh a city.
Comments:
One of your most potent weapons against anger is the attribute of patience. We must have control,
because what we do not control is controlling us. Jesus offers to us to offer our anger to Him that He will
control it or else Satan will not snatch it away and we will be under his control and eventually will destroy
our life.
 Extra Text: James 1: 19-20

Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the
wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

Comments:

Jesus is our example. He is not easily get angry with us sinners. He is patient to us, even though we are
sinners, He still love us and even died for us. We must also be like Christ, we are Christians and we are
His followers, that’s why we should always be slow to heat up in anger and quick to cool off. One secret
in dealing anger is not to respond too quickly. We’ve probably heard the expression, “Count to ten.”
Thomas Jefferson, is the one given credit for having first said this. When we’re angry, always take a break
before we say anything. Time is the greatest remedy for anger.

Main Point 3: We can live an “anger-free” life.

Proof Text 1: Ephesians 4:26

Be angry, and do not sin’: do not let the sun go down on your wrath.

Comments:

Some people with bad tempers participate in the "frequent flier program." When offended, they won't
say anything right away, but they'll create a mental file and begin storing your "miles." You know the
people I'm talking about? They appear to smile through every incident of disagreement, but in reality
they are marking up your card and placing it in the file. This might go on for years. Then one day, out of
the blue, you'll do or say something offensive and they'll decide to send you on an international trip with
the mileage points they've been storing for you! Often, it takes time to cool down after your anger has
peaked, but the Bible advises you to release your anger as soon as possible. Deal with anger quickly.
Don’t let it accumulate. If you need to ask someone’s forgiveness, do it.

Proof Text 2: 1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.

Comments:

Forgive yourself for being angry. Confess to God whys we feel angry, accept our faults and ask the Lord
to forgive our feeling of anger and bitterness to ourselves and to others. With faith, that He alone can
understand feelings and believe that He will forgive us for being that way. Colossians 3:13 says,
forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ
forgave you, so also do ye. Forgive others who have wronged you. Since God has forgiven you for what
you have done to Him, ask Him to give you forgiveness for what others have done unto you.

Summary:
Today, we have learned that anger doesn’t do us any good, it will just ruin our life. We also learned
that our situation is not hopeless, we can control anger by giving to Jesus our hearts and feelings and
be the One to control it. When we acknowledge our feeling of anger and ask God for forgiveness, He
will eventually free us from anger and forgive us from our sins and gives us peace.

Appeal:

My friend, do you want to have an “anger-free” life? Do we want to have a closer relationship with our
family, our neighbor, our friends and above all to God without being angry? Do we want to have
peace?

Anger can break a relationship, ruin our health and make our lives miserable. It doesn’t give us peace
and happiness. It entangle us and control us. But God has a promise for us in Psalms 119:165, "Great
peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them."

When we invite Jesus into our hearts, He will give us the peace that passes understanding. The Prince of
Peace can do things in and through us that we did not know were possible. He can help us get control,
because the Spirit of God will bring that into our life. Let us let go all the bitterness and the things that
are eating us up inside, and ask Him for peace and serenity so we can walk with Him in glory.

Decision:

Is it your decision you let go and let God handle our anger today and receive the forgiveness and peace
that He gives you? Would you want to ask God to control the feeling of being easily get angry and
forgive you for having that feeling?

Prayer:

Dear Lord, thank you that you can control our anger. Thank you that you can get this feeling out of us and will
give us peace. Help us to be humble every day and every moment of our life. Help us to forgive others who
makes us angry. Remove this feeling, Oh God and help us to love others just as you love us. We trust this, In
Jesus’ name, Amen.