Preached @ Metro 19th March 2006 by Jeff Williams

Ephesians 4:26-27

1. Don’t let anger gain control of us

Verse 26 - "In your  anger, do not sin." Anger is not necessarily sin. It is what we do with it.  Jesus said be angry and sin not. Jesus used a whip in the temple to clear out the money changers, because He said that His Father’s house was to be a house of prayer. Don’t let anger give way to rage!!!  Anger will cause us to loose control.

How do we let anger cause us to loose control?

We may feel that something said or done is an attack on us. We feel we will try to defend ourselves and take steps into our own hands. It is when we take personal offence. Anger has gained control when we loose control. Psychiatrists use a term to describe an epidemic in our society. LFT. (Low Frustration Tolerance) We have allowed circumstances, situations, schedules, and people to crowd out our ability to tolerate frustration.  We become people who live on the edge, on the brink of eruption.

2. Don’t let sun go down while you are still angry

Deal with the way you feel, or else it will grow and lead to something worse. BITTERNESS RESENTMENT HATRED MURDER ETC

3. Anger gives the devil a foothold

Anger opens us up to devil. Gives him a foothold (A BEACH HEAD) from which to launch an assault on our lives.

The Remedy

It is an issue of control

Eph 4 V 26 Don’t let anger gain control over you. Chapter 5: 18 Be filled with the Holy Spirit – “Let the Holy Spirit fill you and control you.” We need to allow the Holy SPirit to control us instead of our anger.

WHAT’S YOUR BOILING POINT? An old proverb says,"The emptier the pot, the quicker it boils." The less water in the pot, the quicker you reach a boiling point. You are aware that WATER in the Bible is a symbol of the Holy Spirit. In other words, the less the Holy Spirit has of you, the quicker you act like you don’t have the Holy Spirit.

Galatians 5v 22 tells us when the Holy Spirit controls us then we will produce the fruit of the Spirit.