BOILING over!

Rockne Newell went to the Ross, Pennsylvania township meeting full of rage. After killing three township officials, he was tackled by two residents and held until police arrived. His only regret, according to the police, was that he did not get to kill more people! Neighbors say that Newell is an intelligent, but eccentric man.  His property, in run-down condition and covered with trash, has attracted the attention of town officials for years.  Newell’s feud with the town escalated until this past Monday night when his rage boiled over into murder.

Are you angry with someone today? Is there a simmering resentment that comes to a boil when you see him? It’s time to deal with it, for Christ’s sake.  It’s not likely that your anger will turn into murder, or will it? 

Jesus said we become killers when we wish someone dead, when we exclude them from our hearts, not just when we pull the trigger!   He teaches,  “You’re familiar with the command to the ancients, ‘Do not murder.’ I’m telling you that anyone who is so much as angry with a brother or sister is guilty of murder. Carelessly call a brother ‘idiot!’ and you just might find yourself hauled into court. Thoughtlessly yell ‘stupid!’ at a sister and you are on the brink of hellfire. The simple moral fact is that words kill. “This is how I want you to conduct yourself in these matters. If you enter your place of worship and, about to make an offering, you suddenly remember a grudge a friend has against you, abandon your offering, leave immediately, go to this friend and make things right. Then and only then, come back and work things out with God." (Matthew 5:21-24, The Message)

We are most like our God when we release others from their debt to us, leaving judgment to the only One who is capable of true justice.  God forgave us, not because we deserved it, but because He is loving.  He desires a relationship with us even more than an even score!  Yes, there was, is, and will be justice before Him, but because of the offering of Jesus, we can find complete forgiveness for all our sins.  God does not do probation! "For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us. As a father has compassion on his children, so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust." (Psalm 103:11-14, NIV) Forgiveness is the godly choice, the healthy choice, the best choice. If you think carefully about resentment or hatred, you will see how must it costs you.  Carrying a grudge is your burden, weighing you down.  Keeping people shut out of our lives, being careful to make sure that they pay the penalty for offending us, is a time-consuming, energy-eating, draining task.  If we forgive, we are set free!

Let’s be real honest. Failure to forgive is really just an expression of self-love. When we get angry at someone who cuts us off in traffic, we are just saying, “I deserved to go first.”  Isn’t our resentment over spouse’s failure to be the person we dreamed they would be just selfishness disguised?  Humility moves us to let God judge, to trust Him to care for us. I hear your objection, “Pastor, I do matter.  I am worthy of respect.”  Yes, you are!  But, you can kill yourself demanding it, or you can forgive others and find the love that matters most:  the love of your Heavenly Father.  There are situations where we must, for the sake of ourselves and safety, remove ourselves from the presence of a toxic individual.  Even then, we need not wait for hate to give us a reason!  We can move towards wholeness, forgiving even that abuser, and leaving their judgment in the hands of God.

Here’s Jesus word.  Find freedom as you choose obedience. "Forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. “If you forgive those who sin against you, your heavenly Father will forgive you. But if you refuse to forgive others, your Father will not forgive your sins." (Matthew 6:12-15, NLT)

__________

Father, I live with so much hatred.

The voices of critics fills my ears.

Fights, feuds, and fear divide nations,

Churches, families.

Please let me feel Your love.

Give me faith to receive Your promise of justice.

Secure my mind, my heart, in You.

Then, make me one who loves,

Who refuses to take revenge,

Who will not speak ill of others.

And help me, Lord, for Your sake,

To remember that  You “bless those who work for peace,

for they will be called the children of God.”

In the Name of Jesus, Amen.