OUT OF THE BOX

Dear Friends This post is a follow-up to the previous post on Forgiveness. This one deals with anger. Anger often goes with unforgiveness. Hopefully the principles given here will inspire us to gain victory over these two stumbling blocks. Billy Long   “Cease from anger, and forsake wrath.”  Psalm 37:8    Our ability to forgive involves gaining victory over anger. Anger can be useful or destructive. It can be an instrument in God’s hands or a tool of the devil detrimental to our spiritual life. It can give courage to overcome insecurity and fear, or it can be a harmful instrument for venting selfish attitudes and inflicting pain on those who have injured us. Anger can be a response to perceived injustice or it can cause an irrational loss of control in those feeling victimized. Righteous indignation has its place, but human nature easily uses it as an excuse to justify bad behavior. It becomes an obstacle to forgiveness, and hinders our ability to gain victory over the past. The Bible

“Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” Matthew 6: 12.  One basic requirement for spiritual health is forgiveness. Conversely, unforgiveness is a major cause of spiritual derailment. It gives Satan an opportunity to take advantage of us (2 Corinthians 2:10-11) and makes us vulnerable to the “tormentors” (Matthew 18: 34-35). The following paragraphs give some very important lessons on forgiveness.   The Biblical command is clear and simple and yet one of the most difficult to obey. A person does not have to be spiritually "deep" or intellectually brilliant to understand the verses relating to forgiveness, but there is something in human nature that tends to embrace unforgiveness and receives some perverted sense of satisfaction in harboring resentment. “Victims” feel they have a right to be angry and bitter and will go to great lengths to customize scripture to fit the inclinations of the moment in order to justify their wrong attitudes. And those who do

          Religious people often substitute ritual and ceremony for real relationship with the Lord Himself. People who are short on intimacy with Jesus seem to find security in the outward forms. An organization can do the same thing. It is interesting that God gave Israel a portable tabernacle long before He gave them a stone temple. In Israel’s journey across the wilderness, they had to follow the cloud of God’s presence that rested above the tabernacle. When the cloud moved, they moved; when the cloud rested, they remained still. The cloud did not rise or rest according to any rigid schedule of the clock or calendar. They could not prepare for movement by watching the clock, the sun, or the date. They had to observe and follow the cloud (Exodus 40:34-38).       In the same way, Jesus Christ desires that the church and each individual in it be genuinely led by the Spirit in real spiritual growth where they can experience the riches and depth of what God intends for the true ch

Samaritans Purse set up a tent hospital in Central Park in New York City to help with the overflow of patients from the hospitals there during the corona virus pandemic. I read an article at that time stating that New York’s mayor De Blasio expressed concern that Samaritan’s purse is operated by Franklin Graham who is accused of having a “virulent hatred of homosexuals and is Islamophobic” and that Samaritan’s Purse will discriminate against homosexuals and anyone who “disagrees with their fundamentalist beliefs.” Some had even expressed concern that the Christian organization would deliberately refuse to aid those who disagree with the organization’s beliefs, or that they would intentionally spread the disease. How foolish and erroneous are such charges! You and I know the sincerity and love that motivates this organization. But we are living in a culture where this type of false accusation and unwarranted hate and prejudice will be directed at those who have the testimony of Jesus an