Anger and fear

Since 9-11 the world is changing in other direction. Although political world leaders proclaim that the terrorists will never win, the world is influenced by the attacks. Economical changes, security measures, panic actions and paranoia is the result. Therefore I think this article is relevant. It is a free and paraphrased translation of a sermon of our church.

Introduction
Citation
Anger is a feeling which is often hard to deal with. You hear people say that you may not get angry. In the education of our children anger is an annoying feeling. A child who is fallen, is hurt and sad because the bike is damaged, can be comforted, can be approached. A child who is angry on his father or mother and furiously fulminating runs to his room is harder to approach. How do you deal with anger?

Anger is an emotion that God has given
In the Bible we read in the books of the prophets that the LORD has wrath about the iniquity of Israel and the other people. Also Jesus could be angry. Jesus showed it as resistance, a reaction on the injustice. Anger about sin and injustice is healthy. When you feel anger coming up then it is a very normal reaction.
(ref. Isa., Jer., Mc3:5, Jh2:13vv)

Sin in your anger
Kain went on in his anger so far that he killed his brother. His thoughts and view on the situation were true! However it is very dangerous to interpret your feelings as true. You can be wrong. How can it happen that when you offer help to somebody one would say: “Great that you want to help” while another would say: “Do you think I am crazy; I don’t need your help”. Anger is highly related to the way we think and interpret. So what makes you angry is not the behavior of the other, but how you think about that behavior.
Some people are very afraid to become angry, because they think it is not good. They think that anger only results in a lot of problems. Those people are in danger to give anger a wrong place, with all the related consequences. They don’t take their emotion seriously!
God warns us for hatred and revenge. Anger can become bitterness. It sets up a lot of confusion which can infect others. That is sin!
As human being you are responsible for your own feeling! Nobody can make you angry, except yourself! When you blame somebody else for the cause of your emotion, you also put the solution at this person. In other words you make yourself dependent of the other, you are stuck to it.
(ref. Gn4:5-8, 1Jh3:12, Ef.4:26, 27)

What to do when you are angry?
*Make sure that you are relaxed. Someone who sleeps too little becomes easier unreasonable and irritated. Sleep and eat healthy.
*Don’t reason your anger away. Understanding the other is fine, but not to cover or even deny your anger. That would reflect to yourself and become bitterness easily. (ref. Jb, Ps.42:88)*Talk with God. This seems so obvious, but so often it doesn’t happen. In the book of Job and Psalms we see many examples of how personal feelings and emotions are shared with Him. Go take time with Him; isolate for some moments from the world and share your thoughts with God.
*Reflect upon the word of God.(e.g. Lv.19:17,18, Ef.4:26,27)
*Ask yourself what are the facts. What has exactly happened? Ask about the intention, the purpose of the other, listen to his story. Is there a matter of sin, injustice acting of the other? Maybe it is an old wound inside yourself that is hurt. Try to remember when you had the same emotion in the past in what situation and again talk it over with God. Let Him help you overcome these negative emotions. God is Love and God is a Healer.
*When somebody discovers that you were wrong in your judgement, then be honest to hime and yourself and admit it. However if the other is wrong, take your responsibility to confront the other, if possible. Don’t run away from it, don’t hide yourself and don’t hit back in emotion. In practice this is not easy at all, especially when you have to learn to get rid of certain behaviour, old patterns. When you cannot approach the other, because he won’t let you, then decide to forgive the other and let go the matter. Ask God to help you. When you keep holding others responsible, it locks thoughts, dreams, emotion and makes bitter. Don’t say “I cannot forgive”. You have to decide to forgive! Don’ wait until somebody gets what he deserves, but leave it up to God. (ref. Gl.6:1, first follow the principles of Mt.18:15vv, Mt.6:12, 14, 15, Rm.12:19)
In the ideal world, when all people would practice these principles, there would be no hurt from emotions, no damaging anger and blocking fear. Yes, God, have mercy on us.

Thank You Lord for our emotions. Bless them and holy them to your work in this damaged world.

(ref: translation of ED0303, lecture summaries EBG "Het Baken" 2003)

Hope lets live (Revelation 19)

The last words of a book are important. Nobody reads an exciting novel and leaves the last chapter unread. The last words in the Bible? Rev. 22:20: “Yes, I am coming quickly.”
(ref. Rev.22:7-21)

Hope
God chooses these last words “I am coming quickly”, because these are the only words of hope for this world! We cannot be without hope. The greatest loss, the most severe pain, financial worries, economical recession, war, terrorism…. We can overcome it all. Time heals a lot. But without hope… when there is no more hope, it is done with us.

As summary of Revelations here are four things of which God hopes that this last Bible book releases it in our lives.

1. Devotion
Revelation is a personal letter of Jesus Christ to His community. The book starts with seven small letters to local communities (in Turkye) and every letter ends with a message of hope: “To him who overcomes …” (ref. Rev.22:16)
The community is the city on the mountain, the light of the world, the salt of the earth and as the only the message of hope for this world! (ref. Rev.2-3, Rev.21:7)
It is necessary to be a triumphing and Jesus devoted community. And it all depends of your and my personal devotion. The vision of our church is ‘to be a biblical functional community of fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ.’. (ref. Mt5:13-16, Rev.21:2, 10)

What kind of letter would the Lord Jesus write to our, to your church, when we would measure the spiritual situation of the community based on the state of my personal devotion?
I like to invite you to draw a line which represents your devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. Put 10% at the left and at the right 100% devoted follower of Jesus Christ. Where would you put yourself on the trend line? Wehre would you like to be? What are you concrete going to do about it?

2. Worship
In the beginning of Revelation did you read how John after the seven mission letters took us to the hall with the throne in Heaven? “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and is and is to come.” At the end of Revelation John is so overwhelmed by the majesty of God and jesus Christ that he falls down in worship.
(ref. Rev.4, Rev.22:4)

There is something odd in spiritual growth. Our body gets bigger when we grow. But when we grow spiritually, God becomes bigger and we get smaller. God seeks such worshippers. (ref. Jh.3:31, Jh.4:23)

3. The coming judgements
This is one of the largest themes of the book Revelations. For many people who suffer under pursuit Gods judgement is their only hope. It is in our human nature to think that for many things we will get away with it. However one day justice will come to pass. This certainty helps to submit all injustice in our own life to God. When Paul writes about the renewing of our mind, he also mentions not to repay evil for evil, not to avenge yourself, because it is written: “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay, says the Lord” A deep awareness of God’s judgement shall drive us to spread the gospel and save many.
(ref. Rm.12)

4. Love for the Word of God
Among evangelical Christians the lack of healthy bible knowledge is a worrisome problem. The prophet Hosea said: My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you from being priest to Me. Since you have forgotten the law of your God, I will also forget your sons, even I.” (Hs.4:6)
“Blessed is the one who reads and hears the words of the prophecy, and the ones keeping the things written in it, for the time is near.” “Blessed is he who keeps the words of the prophecy of this Book.” “Blessed are they who do his commandments, that their authority will be over the Tree of Life.” (ref. Rev.1:3, Rev.22:7, 14)
In this text ‘they” is the bride of the Lamb. And this bride is cleansed by the water of the Word of God. Most Psalms deal with deep emotions, worries, questions of life, and they start with: “Blessed is the man who has not walked in the counsel of the ungodly, and has not stood in the way of sinners, and has not sit in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is only in the law of the LORD; and in His law he meditates day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivulets of water that brings forth its fruit in its seasons, and its leaf shall not wither, and all which he does shall be blessed.” A community which consists of such trees will stand as a tree! (ref. Ef.5:25-27, Ps.1:1-3)

Revelation, God’s hope for His community:
* God’s hope for renewed devotion
* God’s hope for deeper worship
* God’s hope for us taking His judgments more serious
* God’s hope for greater love for His Word.
Yes, I am coming quickly, Amen. Yes, come Lord Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you. Amen.

This hope lets live!

(ref: translation of ED1403, lecture summaries EBG "Het Baken" 2003)

The Wedding of the Lamb (Revelation 15)

In the Netherlands a couple with wedding plans first engage to be married. In the USA before the actual wedding all people present are asked if somebody has objections against the marriage: ‘let him speak now, or for ever hold his peace’ (ref. Rev. 19:1-10)

A Fairy-tale
The same happens in Revelation. The community is the fiancée of the Lord Jesus Christ, but then a false bride stands up. This woman us unmasked as an impure whore who has forfeited all claims on the wedding and ‘now for ever holds her peace’. The wedding can begin. But then there appears to be an army of jealous enemies. However they are also defeated, when the wedding couple goes on a 1000 year honeymoon, enjoying the peace and quietness. All’s well that ends well. Just like a fairy tale…
But Revelation is not a book of fairy tales. It is a call from God’s heart to His community to be light in the lost world, and salt of the earth. A triumphing community, a bride who prepares herself to meet the Bridegroom. (ref. 2Col.11:2, Ef.5:24-32, Rev.17-18, Matth.5:13-16)

The bride gets herself ready
The three verses about the wedding is used by God to tell two things. The first thing is that the bride is dressed with the benefactions of the holy. The second is that an invitation is gone out for the wedding meal.
These two things are exactly the assignment of the community of Jesus Christ. God so loves the world and hands out invitation cards for the wedding of His Son to his community to share with everybody who want s to come and celebrate. The ‘holy’ are thereby abundant in benefactions. (ref. Matth.28:19, Rev.21:6, 22:17, Rev. 19:8, 1Col.15:58, Ti2:14, Ef.2:10)

The fine linen
Every benefaction of you and me is a separate wire in our wedding gown. Each wire is taken by God and woven as fine linen. Every personal contribution counts. In our church we have 10 “Values” of which the first five are:
Discipleship, Loving Relationships, Evangelization, Spiritual Gifts and Stewardship. These reflect our personal devotion to God. That is logical, because which bride doesn’t take her wedding dress seriously?

The beauty parlor of life
In the final weeks before the wedding every woman is busy with her bride dress and how she will look like. As community of Christ we also get this time to prepare for the wedding in the beauty parlor of life. New opportunities to invite people, new challenges for benefactions. Does God long for Christian activism? No, but God longs for active touched Christians who walk in good deeds, which God already prepared. For this purpose God created us. That is what God does for us. But also the Lord Jesus is active to cleanse and consecrate his bride, to take away every stain, every wrinkle, so that we will then stand shining before Him.
(Ref. Ef.2:10, Ef.5:25-27)

Imagine…
Everything that we must do is give Him all opportunity and room for letting Him do His work in us. And here is the big question for all of us: Which place does He really have in our life? What priority? There was a moment that also Paul had to answer this question. A practical way to image your devotion is answering the question “What may it cost to me?”
In your private room give yourself an honest answer on that question and then you have a reasonable indication what temperature your devotion for Jesus Christ will be.

Imagine what it means for our personal religious life and for the community, when we all would accept Paul’s statement in our hearts: “But none of these things move me, neither do I count my life dear to myself, so that I might finish my course with joy, and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus Christ, to testify fully the gospel of the grace of God (Acts 20:24).

(ref: translation of ED0103, lecture summaries EBG "Het Baken" 2003)

Impossible with Man, Possible with God

By: John Ogden, Sr.

Hebrews 11:1 states, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” This scripture is both interesting and the definition of faith. Faith can be looked at in two areas, man’s faith and God’s faith. This setting of scripture talks about faith as a substance. I believe the substance in this verse deals with the Spirit of God speaking on the day of creation to a world that was void and without form, creating something out of nothing, an eternal substance above man’s substance. Evidence in this scripture can be looked at in many forms, but the evidence that I like best is knowing that I am redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. This evidence is what Christ did for all of us at Calvary. When I think of faith from this standpoint it makes it easy for me to put my whole confidence and trust in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, for where my faith stops, His holds me up. When I realize that I owed a debt that I could not pay and He paid a debt that He did not owe, I then begin to understand the evidence for our faith. Jesus Christ is the author and the finisher of our faith, which to me means He not only wrote the blueprint, but He completed it. He is all that we have need of in any situation; for any question we might have, He is the answer. May I encourage you to look to Him for the faith that you need in your life.

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