I don't get mad. I get even.

How many times have we heard someone jokingly use that expression? I confess: I have myself.

You may not have thought about it, but there is a place for anger. Jesus was not singing "You Are the Sunshine of My Life" when he cleansed the temple. He was righteously ticked off. The injustice being done by the moneylenders, who were ripping people off, caused Jesus to take a whip and clean house.

I get angry at injustice, which is an appropriate form of anger. But I also get angry sometimes behind the wheel, which is why I don't have a fish on my car. When I get steamed at someone else's driving I need to take care to deal with it appropriately.

It's okay to be angry, but it's not okay to stay angry. If we stay angry at someone or some situation, we run the risk of letting the anger fester until it becomes a bitterness that can consume us. The Bible warns us about not letting bitterness take root (Hebrews 12:15), because bitterness can have all sorts of painful consequences, including physical problems.

Here's a case in point. During my ministry years in Hilton Head a lady came to my office one day for pastoral counseling. As she told her story of how her husband had left her, and how they had split custody, with one teenage son living 3 states away with his dad, and the other son living with her, I could sense a real bitterness in her. Thus, it was no surprise that only months later she found out that she had cancer. I'm convinced that her bitterness had a connection to her malignancy. Now that's not to say that every cancer is caused by emotional issues, but I do believe that there's a correlation sometimes between negative emotions and illness.

On a positive note, this young lady got her life turned around thanks to a women's Bible study group that I pointed her to. The Bible study leader, Jane, took a personal interest in this young woman and prayerfully and carefully worked with her over weeks and months. As time went on, it was evident that her attitude had changed. The peace was evident on her face, in spite of the cancer that was consuming her. When the cancer finally won the physical battle, it was clear that this young lady had won the spiritual war and finally found the peace that passes understanding.

Paul knew that anger was potentially deadly if not addressed. He writes in Ephesians, Go ahead and be angry. You do well to be angry—but don't use your anger as fuel for revenge. And don't stay angry. Don't go to bed angry. Don't give the Devil that kind of foothold in your life. (Eph. 4:26, The Message)

In his book, The 17 Essentials Qualities of A Team Player, author John Maxwell talks about the 24 hour rule. He says, "If you have any kind of difficulty or conflict with (someone), don't let more than twenty-four hours go by without addressing it."

So the application is this: Get mad. But get over it.

Blessings, y'all.

A good work in you.

The following comes from a devotional I sent by email to about 300 college students back when my son was away at school. This is an excerpt from an "e-votion" that I wrote in response to a student. I think it fits with the topic of how I can know that I'm a Christian.

_______

I received this message from a college student some time ago.

I have a friend who needs some help. We talked Saturday night about religion. He said he doesn't consider himself a Christian. He wasn't brought up in a Christian home, so he is "confused." He is very interested in religion of all types and feels that it is more of a philosophy than religion. I asked him if he believed in a heaven and a hell. He said that he didn't not believe in either of them but he just didn't know about them. He said he prayed , but on a different level (whatever that means). He doesn't understand how "Christians" can have a relationship and believe in something that wasn't physically there. I tried to think of something truthful and promising to say, but I couldn't really. I was stuck. His girlfriend was also there but left quickly...she is an extreme atheist. I didn't even try confronting her because I don't know her, and what in the world would I say? I feel I need to say something, but what? He seems very educated about the Bible and different religions, but he just didn't have faith in God and the relationship he needed to be a Christian. What could I tell him? Should I say anything?

How would you answer her? What would you advise her to do?

Here's the essence of what I told her.

The best evidence we can give a seeker for the existence of Jesus is our own testimony. There is proof of the reality of Jesus in the life of every believer. Some of you can remember your life before Christ, and you can definitely see a difference in your attitudes and your behavior. When Jesus comes into your life, He begins a good work in these ways.

1. You don't enjoy sinning. The Christian finds no pleasure in partying or "messing around." When we sin we are immediately convicted by the Holy Spirit.

2. You want to be with other Christians. We enjoy fellowship. True Christians like being with their family of faith.

3. You want to grow. You have a desire to spend time with God by reading His Word and talking to Him in prayer. You want to live a life that pleases Him.

4. You have a new attitude. When the Holy Spirit enters your life (which He did on the day you came to Christ), He begins to produce godly character in you. This is what the Bible calls the "fruit of the Spirit." These character qualities are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

5. You have a desire to see others come to know Jesus. I remember a young man named Brian whom I helped lead to the Lord during my years in Hilton Head. The Lord did a wonderful work in Brian. It would have taken radical surgery to remove the smile on his face when he realized that his sins were forgiven. He was thrilled to know that He now had a new life, a life worth living and worth sharing. He told all his friends and family about what Jesus had done for him.

How can I know?

I confess - I'm a Whitney Houston fan. And one of my favorite songs, from back in her pre-Bobby Brown days, is one in which she questions how she can really know "if he loves me." In fact, the title is, "How Can I Know?"

And that's a question that many of us have. How can I know that I'm really a child of God? How can I know for certain that I'm going to heaven when I die? I'd be willing to assert that most Christians deal with such doubts from time to time. As a matter of fact, one of our friends is dealing with this issue right now. She is struggling with whether or not she is really saved.

Maybe you've had similar doubts.

There are two important things to remember:

First, the Bible tells us that we're secure in Christ. In that wonderful passage in John 10, he states, "My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; no one can snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; no one can snatch them out of my Father's hand. I and the Father are one." As I understand this passage, Jesus is telling us that we're not only secure in his hand, but that we're also secure in the Father's hand. In other words, we're doubly secure; so secure that nothing can snatch us away. We can't even snatch ourselves away.

Although the security of the true believer is stated emphatically here and elsewhere in scripture, some of us struggle with being sure that this is true. We lack the assurance of our salvation. There could be any number of reasons why someone is not sure whether or not he belongs to Christ. On the bible.org website, several of these reasons are listed. Let me share them.

(1) People often lack assurance because they cannot remember or point to a specific time when they received Christ.

(2) People often lack assurance because they question the procedure they went through when they accepted Christ.

3) People often lack assurance because of struggles they have with certain sins.

4) The primary reason behind a lack of assurance is doctrinal misunderstanding and the consequent lack of faith in the finished work of Christ.

(5) Finally, people often lack assurance because they have erroneously been taught that they should look to themselves and their works as the primary proof of their salvation.

Over the next couple of weeks I'm going to address this issue, and hopefully provide some evidence that will help readers understand how they can know for sure that they belong to Christ.

From sinking sand

In the movie, The Princess Bride, the hero dives into a pit of quicksand to save the princess, who had disappeared from view. After several seconds, he emerges with her as they gasp for air.

Romans 5:6 describes how Jesus rescued us from the pit of sin and separation from God by giving his life for us. We were helpless and hopeless, going down for all eternity. But Christ came to our rescue, and called to us. As we reached our hand of faith toward his hand of love, he grasped us and drew us out of the pit, cleaned us up, stood us on our feet (on a rock, no less) and gave us a totally new life.

David describes this in Psalm 40: 1-3.

I waited patiently for the LORD;
he turned to me and heard my cry.

He lifted me out of the slimy pit,
out of the mud and mire;
he set my feet on a rock
and gave me a firm place to stand.

He put a new song in my mouth,
a hymn of praise to our God.
Many will see and fear
and put their trust in the LORD.

As the great old hymn puts it:

From sinking sand he lifted me.
With his own hand he lifted me.

Just in time

So go the lyrics of the old standard. And Romans 5:6 reminds us that "at just the right time" God sent his Son into the world. The Holman Christian Standard version says it was "at the appointed time." What does this mean?

First, God had a plan from the very beginning - a plan to redeem man and to give him a right relationship with himself. This plan and this appointed time are mentioned throughout the Old Testament.

So, when the time was right, God the Son came into our world as a tiny baby, lived a sinless life as Jesus of Nazareth, then gave his life for us on a cruel cross. Just in time.

The heresy of the comma

During my seminary days I remember my favorite professor, Dr. Findley Edge, talk about what he called "the heresy of the comma" in reference to the King James version of Ephesians 4:12. In the KJV the passage reads that God instituted the roles of apostle, prophet, evangelist, and pastor/teacher in the church For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: This makes it appear that it was the job of the pastor et al to "perfect the saints, do the work of the ministry, and edify the body."

Fortunately, more recent translations help us see that the real meaning of this passage is that the role of the pastor/teacher is to prepare God's people for the work of the ministry, or to equip the saints to do ministry.

As we heard in this morning's message, every true believer is gifted by the Spirit for ministry. And, as our interim pastor, Ron, pointed out, we can read in 1Corinthians 12, Romans 12, and in 1Peter, a list of many of these "ministry gifts." It is our responsibility, as growing saints, to discover, refine, and utilize our unique gifts (or gift mix) in order that the body of Christ may grow to full maturity.

For example, the hosts of our Tuesday evening Bible study, Peter and Carolyn, have the gift of hospitality. They love to open their home to others, and they're not hesitant to use their home as a means of pointing others to Christ.

Here's the bottom line: You are gifted by God and it is His intention that you use your giftedness as a means to bless (edify) others. So open your gift and use what God has given you.

That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

Ron Barker, our interim pastor, mentioned last week how the early Christians, following the stoning of Stephen, were dispersed. Persecution broke out against the young church, and the Greek-speaking Jews who were gloriously saved during the days after Pentecost, made their way back home to places like Pamphylia. Acts 8 indicates that, as they travelled, and as they interacted with friends and family back home, they told people what had happened to them.

Have you ever considered the change that occurred to you when you put your faith in Christ? Romans 5 tells us three important things about what happens to someone who in simple faith trusts Jesus Christ for salvation.

First, you are declared righteous by your faith. Just like God pronounced Abraham righteous because of his faith, He says the same thing of you. And nothing will ever alter your standing with God as His righteous child.

Second, we have peace with God through Jesus Christ. Colossians tells us that, before we came to Christ, we were enemies of God. (Colossians 1:21) Now we are at peace, and we have God's perfect peace that passes all understanding. (Philippians 4:7)

Third, we have access into grace. This access enables us to come into the very throne room of God Almighty and share our heart with Him. (Hebrews 4:14-16)

That's my story. I'm God's righteous child, now at peace and standing in grace. I want others to know that He will do the same for them.