This week, we will be focusing on Genesis 4:1-26, Anger According to God.
We all get angry. It's a common emotion.
We get angry at traffic...at politics...at our sports team...at people.
Oftentimes our anger feels justified...even comforting. We hold onto it. We nurse it. We let it simmer and grow. We justify it. And then we act on it in ways that we may have never expected.
Anger in itself is not a sin. In a sin-cursed world, it would be odd if we never felt anger at the unjust and unfair things that happen to us or to others. But there is a serious danger to anger, especially when we let it reside in our hearts over time...and when we never stop to think about what's driving our anger nor allow the Lord to search our hearts and expose the fear, envy, selfishness, and pride that often lie at the root of our bitterness.
The story of Cain and Abel is well-known.
But there is much truth in this story that needs to be explored and applied to our daily lives.
Sin is crouching at the door of our hearts, eager to attack, waiting to consume us.
When we ignore God's Word and choose to act on our own impulses, we experience the consequences...and others suffer the collateral damage.
May the Lord deliver us from our own sinful desires, strengthen us inwardly, and call us to a deeper love and trust in His goodness and grace!