Teague Bible Church

 

Roadblocks to The Gospel                 12/1/13

 

OPENING: Short verses, easy to remember, to be used in a moments notice.

                        

 

POINT: Our verse today is one of those valuable short , easy to remember verses

                  that will save you time and time again.

 

JAMES 1: 19- 21     READ vs. 19 only

 

“The Single Biggest Problem With Communication

    Is The Illusion That It Has Taken Place”   ( George Bernard Shaw)

 

Albert Mehrabiah /1971 study:  Real Communication

          Not correct in every conversation, (for example; in college classroom, exegetical teaching, etc.) but it somewhat close in percentage in marriage relationships. Overall it does reveal an important truth we ignore at our own peril.

 

       7%   WORDS  ( What is actually said)

 

               38% TONE OF VOICE  ( How we say the words)

 

                     55%  BODY LANGUAGE

                                 ( clues and signs that you are bored or interested)

 

 

 

Example: * A couple disagree in parking lot at Wal-Mart yesterday

 

                  If you have been through the “Love Bank Seminar” with me you

                       know the second part is called, “PROTECTION.”

 

PROTECTION from :    1. Your Anger

                                            2. Annoying habits

                                                3. Pushy demands

 

You are to be your wife’s “husband” / (one who nurtures) / not her teacher or her parent. You are to be his “wife;” one who supports, helps, and respects him, and defers to him.

 

 

PROTECTION from:  1. Your Anger

 

“Never punish your spouse; never curse, make disrespectful judgments, or lecture by verbal reprimand; express your anger as a feeling, not as an instrument of vengeance!”

 

* What he said in parking lot was, “Let me tell you what your problem really is!”

 

Other statements we make in marriage like it ,

 

                                         “Straighten this out or I will have to step in and fix it,

                                              since it is obvious you can’t do it!”

 

                                               “ I just can’t trust you to do it right , can I?”

 

 

My Question I had on this verse:  I can see the connection between “ quick to hear”

                                                        and “slow to speak,” but I never got the connection to,

                                                                   “slow to  anger” till much later in my life.

 

The word of ANGER in this verse is-

 

                     “ORGE”  a slow wrath; a bitterness that sets in when

                                           related to people or the events of life.

                                               It subtly carries over into your conversation, via tone of

                                                    voice and body language.

 

The Greek for a quick outburst is “THYMOS.” Not used here

 

This kind of anger is a big distraction to communication of the truth of the word of God, and the receiving of the word of God.

 

Example: Colorado session I taught on “Loving Your Wives.” A man refused to go

                      to the session. Recently divorced, so listening might ruin his new attitude

                         that, “all women are bad.”  A slow anger and bitterness

 

 

ANGER SOURCE: GENERAL ATTITUDE:

 

     “ Sin has messed up the world and I doubt that God can do much about it.”

 

 

 

Specific attitudes: Sources of anger

 

1. “People fail me over and over so why try to get anything productive going?”

       ( this assumes you are the center of the universe) 

 

2. “I keep failing so I must not be getting anywhere in my walk with God!”

 

3. “God intercedes too much and spoils my fun!” 

                   (ck. Website  J.B. Phillips  “ Conscience.”)

 

4.  “God should intercede more!”  (Ex. Johnny Cash – Man in black)

 

5. Failed dreams and expectations

 

6. Feeling you have no control over your life

 

7. Aging- opinionated, grumpy

 

 

All these angers blind you to the new life you have inside; given to you by Christ through the Holy Spirit!

 

READ vs. 20-21

 

If we don’t act like our Lord, by restraining our anger ( loving, forgiving, giving to the ungrateful, reserving judgment till later), then our anger puts an obstacle to others seeing our Lord.

 

 And is this not what we want most of all; to clearly be a witness to the lost?

 

Is that what you want most of all?

 

 

If so we must live to the new nature. You can only do that by giving up all hope that the old nature will improve; it will not improve! That old self is completely anti-God and fully selfish and will not get better. Given all the time in the world and a perfect set of outward circumstances and it will still be the same sinful self! God works through the new nature in Christ given to you when you believed the gospel and were born again.

 

READ Ephesians 4: 24-32 

                 (note vs. 31 all these related to speaking through the grid of anger!) 

 

Both James and Paul assume this can be done. “Putting aside” / “Put on the new self”

         They make it sound easy! How could that be?

 

The hard part is the surrender ( Romans 12:1-2). The easier, yet a little off- balance part, is practicing walking in the power of the Holy Spirit (working through the new nature we have in Christ!)