5b it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

“Don’t teach your children to never be angry, teach them how to be angry.”

1. Learn to master anger or anger will master you.

21 “You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ (5:21 Exod 20:13; Deut 5:17). 22 But I say, if you are even angry with someone, (5:22a Some manuscripts add without cause) you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, (5:22b Greek uses an Aramaic term of contempt: If you say to your brother, ‘Raca.’) you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, (5:22c Greek if you say, ‘You fool.’) you are in danger of the fires of hell (5:22d Greek Gehenna; also in 5:29, 30).

2. Disciplined anger is directed anger.

15 When they arrived back in Jerusalem, Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out the people buying and selling animals for sacrifices. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves, 16 and he stopped everyone from using the Temple as a marketplace. 17 He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer for all nations,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves.” (11:17 Isa 56:7; Jer 7:11). 18 When the leading priests and teachers of religious law heard what Jesus had done, they began planning how to kill him. But they were afraid of him because the people were so amazed at his teaching.

3. Be pause-oriented.

When we are pause-oriented, anger can be the fuel for us to be responsibly action-oriented.

“Anger is the result of love. It is energy for the defense of something you love when it is threatened. If you don’t love something at all, you are not angry when it is threatened.” - Timothy Keller

Have each person share a high and low from this past week.

Love is not easily angered. Being slow to anger is having the discipline to direct anger to build instead of destroy.

When you were little did you notice the emotions of the person being picked last?

Choose one or two questions for your group to discuss as time allows.

- Are you more likely to express or suppress your emotions?

- Read James 1:19. What could people do while having emotion in slow motion?

- Read Mark 11:11, 15-18:

- Have you ever noticed the pause in between the two temple visits? How do you think Jesus decided what to do about what he saw?

- What are you seeing in our world that needs to be addressed?

- What are some positive actions that could be motivated by anger?

- Who are some people you know that are pause-oriented?

Spend 1-2 minutes in silence with these questions then share your thoughts.

Where in your life do you need to be aware of anger?

Pastor Matt challenged us to “master anger or it will master you”. If you were grading your anger management, what kind of a grade would you give yourself?

What issue in our world makes you angry enough to do something? What is that something you should do?

Pray together that God will help you to be pause-oriented.