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Words, Anger, and the Heavenly CourtPreached at St. Barnabas Church, Bellville, TX Sixth Sunday after Trinity, 2009 by The Rev. Stephen E. Stults Romans 8:22 For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. Our selection from Matthew 5 is a powerful exposition on the power of words. According to our Lord, words spoken in anger can not only expose us to the attention of the Heavenly Court, but also can possibly lead us to Hell. Christ also explains that words, while powerful, pale when compared with the intentions behind them. Let’s examine these three points in turn. First, according to some commentators, our Lord’s speech today, which is part of the Sermon on the Mount, is actually an exposition of several Old Testament principles.1 Jesus uses a commonplace Jewish teaching methodology by saying, “You have heard…but I tell you…” We see this when Jesus tells us, (Matthew 5:21) "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.'” Christ then follows this up with Matthew 5:22 "But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment.” In other words, Christ, in His role as Prophet (with a capital ‘P’), is expounding to us the Old Testament law more perfectly.2 He is, in fact, presenting us with a radical application of the Old Testament Law. Under the Old Testament law, if one committed an overt crime, there was most certainly judgment and punishment. Usually, the punishment was harsh. In fact, a priest associate of mine recently reminded me of the fact that virtually every crime in ancient Jewish society carried a death penalty! In this case, Christ moves way ahead of mere overt acts. He tells us that intense anger, i.e., rage without a cause, is actually akin to murder. This is a radical application of the Law of Love to every day life and a radical expectation of how we should act. When we have this intense anger towards our neighbor, in Christ’s mind, we are angry enough to kill and in some sense have actually committed murder! Even if our anger is not that intense, we at least kill the love we are supposed to bear towards every man. Thus, in a very real sense, meaningless, causeless anger is a great sin. One commentator says that “Anger that would generate murder if unimpeded is the spiritual equivalent of murder.”3 It is also a sin that does not go without notice. In Old Testament Israel, one could be judged by the Council, i.e., the Sanhedrin. This, as we’ve mentioned, could have serious consequences, including physical death. Here, Christ speaks of the “the judgment.” He is not referring to the earthly system of justice, because to my knowledge no court can prosecute you for your thoughts, even if they are angry ones, unless they spill over into slander, libel, or some violent act. Instead, Christ speaks of the Heavenly Court, which notices, records, and judges all offenses. Christ continues his teaching on the power of words when he tells us about the power of insults and their consequences. If one calls his neighbor “Raca” (emptyhead), one is in danger of the council, presumably both earthly and heavenly. If one says to someone, “You fool!”, one is in danger of hell fire, i.e., damnation. Once again, in light of today’s flammable verbal environment, where insults pass daily between people, this is serious indeed. Considering the usage of this one word in the popular “street” vernacular, we have a perilous spiritual situation. Let us not, however, become fixated necessarily on the literal usage of this one word, although we do not want to totally discount it, either. For example, I seriously doubt that anyone here today routinely calls his neighbor a “fool.” Rather, let us focus on the intentions and the spiritual disposition of the one using such verbal assaults without due cause. Of course, we recognize that anger, while never really a good thing, is unavoidable in life and is justified in some situations. Even our Lord grew angry with the Pharisees for their hardness of heart, as when he healed the man with the withered hand on the Sabbath. He was angry with them because all they see was a supposed Sabbath violation, rather than the outpouring of God’s mercy and grace in their presence. So, that’s a given. What then are the reasons for our unjustified anger and our contempt? What might cause us to react in such a fashion and why is God so displeased with such behavior? There are many reasons, but we will submit to you that one of the chief may be that of pride, which often leads to scorn and then insult. Pride that says, “I know better,” or pride which says, “Don’t they know better?” This leads to judging our neighbor and may lead even to scornful or demeaning comments. When we do this, God is not pleased, because He wants us to be holy as He is Holy.4 Let us all confess and admit that this standard in today’s society is difficult, nearly impossibly high. As we see the ethical standards and moral quality of life degrade visibly before our eyes, and we behold the public conduct of some people that would have been unacceptable just a short while ago, we want to ridicule, or comment, or correct. As we see the fabric of family life become more and more threadbare, we want to judge or condemn. If one has been exposed to higher standards or strives consciously to uphold high standards, this is natural. It is very, very difficult to see one’s cherished standards, even society’s cherished standards, so flagrantly disregarded. Yet once again, we must look to our own motives and intentions. If we peer down from our vaunted position of superiority haughtily, we are in sin. If we seek to show others the way more perfectly because we know we’re right, we may be in sin. In short, if we experience the self-comforting feeling of righteous superiority, we are in sin. Now, this doesn’t mean that we are not correct in our assessment of the situation. It doesn’t mean that we are not “right.” We very well may be. As the bumper sticker says, “Those of you who think you know everything really annoy those of us who do!” Once can always see the error of another, usually more clearly than they can. Yet, it is not our job as Christians to judge unworthily, or to insult scornfully, or in the language of the KJV, to be “froward” with our neighbors. No, rather our job is to be charitable. We are to be charitable in all things. We are to withhold judgment and anger and scorn, despite the fact that our fallen natures want to “belt them out” with all of our vigor. Again, how difficult this is, especially as in my own case, when people don’t behave or act as I would have them to do. Thus, while an earthly court won’t judge this, the Heavenly Court will. God takes notice of our hearts and our attitudes and our intentions. He sees the nature of our interior being. In short, if we do these things without remorse and without repentance, we are in deep spiritual trouble. Without acknowledging our error and without a firm purpose of amendment, we are danger of the Judgment. We are, in effect, asking for judgment in much the same way we have judged others. As we mentioned earlier, this is a radical application of the Law of Love to everyday life. This is a radical expectation of Christ regarding our behavior. This is an expectation of Christ to do our jobs as Christians: to be as charitable as possible in every situation and to provide an example. This is our calling. This is also not a call for passivity in the face of evil or wrong. It is not a call to sit there smiling weakly while things become corrupt and chaotic around us. No, we have a moral obligation to do what we can, when we can, to oppose evil, wickedness and vice. Let us be clear about that. It’s just how we go about it that that is so important. For example, I once knew a lady, and I use that term intentionally, who was brilliant and cultured. She was incredibly well read and well-schooled in all the social graces. She was also very correct on her views of society’s errors and the various foibles of mankind. It’s just that she expressed her views with such vitriol that despite her correctness, one tended to be offput by her message. It was such a pity, because if said in a more temperate manner, one could hardly disagree with her. So it is with us, dearly beloved in Christ. Let God grant us both correctness and temperance. Let God grant us both impeccable moral character and bearing, while giving us the ability to demonstrate this simply and with charity. Let us be, as Paul told Timothy: “And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,”5 When we do this, we will win men’s hearts and minds much more amply than with harshness and rigor. One more point must be made. We are not merely to “be nice” to people while ignoring their danger to society and to themselves. No, but we are to be nice to people “with an edge.” That is, just as we are confronted with the radical demands of the Gospel on our lives, when the time is right, we need to confront others with Christ in a gentle, loving, yet real way. Christianity does not call for stasis; rather it calls for growth. When someone needs a positive change in their life, let us be there with the Good News of Jesus Christ. It is this call that allows us to grow beyond ourselves and “begin to become” the People God wants us to be. It is this call that allows us to be charitable in all things. 1 http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/Luke 5 2 ibid 3 http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/Matthew 5 4 1 Peter 1:15-16 |
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