Tips for Life
By Alan Bailey
Anger can lead to tragedy. The case of an alleged murder before a Brisbane court is a sad example.
A father-of-three from New Zealand, who was due to marry in a week’s time, had an altercation with an older man who was aggressively following him on a Queensland highway on December 1.
The accused allegedly pushed the man who fell into the path of an oncoming garbage truck.
The man, a father of four, was killed.
Apparently, the accused had no past record and lived a normal life. In court it was revealed that the victim was a former professional driver and had an alleged history of road rage incidents. The case will be re-heard in April.
A cool head would have saved all of this.
WHY ARE SO MANY ANGRY THESE DAYS?
One reason that stands out to me is the impatient desire of people to have their own way.
So often this means obtaining their next pleasure. So much can be gained and so much experienced in our modern life-style and we hate people interrupting us or standing in the way of our pursuits. In other words, we are selfish.
IS IT ALWAYS WRONG?
There is such a thing as righteous anger. It’s hard not be angry at injustice, or cruelty, or exploitation of the weak.
Jesus was angry at hypocrisy (Mark 3:5). But selfish anger is bound to hurt someone. Think of anger within families, against neighbours – as well as road rage.
Perhaps we all need to relax more and stop pushing our own agendas at all costs. Then we ought to consider the needs of others around us.
THE ANGER THAT SHOULD CONCERN US MOST
In more than one place, the Bible shows that God is angry about our sin.
I know this idea offends some who feel this contradicts His love. But think of the parent who loves a child but is angry at wilful disobedience? The two things, love and anger, can exist together.
The anger of God was seen at the cross. When Jesus died He felt the wrath of the Father against sin. Though He of course was sinless, yet He was standing in our place, thus opening the way for our forgiveness and freedom.
The love and the grace of God are the most amazing and precious concepts. When we come to know Him personally, we will show more of the same.•