[Jesus said] “You have heard that it was said to those
of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’
But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to
judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and
whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” (Matthew
5:21-23 ESV).
Today we continue in our look into Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. It is really a teaching about anger. Jesus frames anger in terms of the sixth commandment (“You shall not murder,” Exodus 20:13), knowing that most of his listeners would think they hadn’t broken it. But rather than congratulating them for being obedient, Jesus explains how they have violated the spirit behind the command. I think we all would do well to look closely at how we are much like they were and learn to be passionate about issues without personal attacks, name-calling, and ridiculing others.
Jesus does this by giving two examples
of angry speech that are judgmental or condemning. The Aramaic word Raca
can be translated as “idiot” or “stupid”—it’s a way of questioning the mind of
someone who has wronged you. The second word Jesus uses, which is translated as
“fool,” is a judgment on another person’s character. Both of those attitudes
are so prevalent in much of the political and social discourse of our day.
It may seem like a stretch to compare
angry speech with physical murder, but Jesus wants us to understand the power
of our words. Angry speech is destructive against another person made in God’s
image. It can push them into shame or self-loathing, rather than leading to
fruitful repentance. And oftentimes our angry words create a cycle of
retaliation and escalating anger.
So, we must learn to control our anger
and not to speak rashly. Thankfully, through Christ, we can find the grace to
root anger and its hurtfulness out of our lives, and to become the peacemakers
we are called to be.
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