Anger – The Lack of Understanding 

When asked about anger, Jesus responded by delving deeply into the nature of anger and its spiritual significance. He said, "Anger is a material manifestation which represents, in a general way, the measure of the failure of the spiritual nature to gain control of the combined intellectual and physical natures. Anger indicates your lack of tolerant brotherly love plus your lack of self-respect and self-control. Anger depletes the health, debases the mind, and handicaps the spirit teacher of man’s soul."

To support his teachings, Jesus referenced various scriptures, highlighting the wisdom they contain about the destructive nature of anger and the importance of patience, understanding, and self-discipline. He emphasized the power of soft words and discretion to defuse anger and the folly of allowing anger to rule over one's actions. He explained, "Wrath is cruel and anger is outrageous."

Jesus shifted the focus to the internal aspect of defilement, stressing that true impurity originates from within a person's heart. He listed various evil thoughts and intentions that defile individuals, including murder, theft, adultery, jealousy, pride, anger, and revenge. According to Jesus, these inner impurities manifest in outward words and deeds, thereby defiling individuals spiritually. Jesus advised his followers to allow their indwelling spirit to deliver them from the tendency to vent in outbursts of animal anger. He considered anger to be inconsistent with the dignity and status of all heavenly ambassadors and children of God.

Jesus showed a great interest in knowing all people "as he passed by" which led him to intensely listen to their concerns. By doing this, he better understood their thoughts and feelings. He never needed to follow up after their meeting, because he had complete faith and trust in them. He wisely chose a response that perfectly suited their needs – one that reached into their soul. He found out what they needed and he did it for them. The moments he spent with them were treasured for a lifetime. Jesus loved each person more as he understood and knew them better. He not only showed each individual the love and compassion of the Father in a way that was meaningful to them, he was the human brother and friend they needed and that all people desire. This universal law of love makes much more sense to people today with our knowledge of psychology. We would do well to learn from Jesus' technique of ministering to others as per their individual needs. In a modern world filled with anger and despair, we would meet far greater success if we employed the method of Jesus through his Spirit of Truth.

Despite Jesus' teachings, some still struggled to fully comprehend his message, prompting the apostle Simon Peter to seek clarification. In response, Jesus reiterated the importance of seeking truth and understanding, emphasizing that spiritual blindness can lead both teachers and followers astray, and that misunderstanding often leads to resentment and division. We are urged to love one another more each day and to take time to know others if we have the will to live the life Jesus asked of us.

Overall, Jesus' teachings on the subject of anger emphasized the transformative power of love, self-discipline, and spiritual understanding in overcoming anger and inner impurities, such as evil thoughts that originate in the heart and find expression in the words and deeds of wicked projects of murder, theft, adultery, jealousy, pride, anger, revenge, and lies – and by fostering true spiritual growth and righteousness.

Throughout history, humanity's understanding of God has evolved. Initially, ancient civilizations depicted God in their own image, attributing human emotions like fits of anger, wrath, and vengeance to the divine. These sentiments are mean and despicable; and hardly worthy of being called human, much less divine. Such attitudes are utterly foreign to the perfect nature and gracious character of the Universal Father. However, over time, concepts of God matured through figures like Moses and the prophets, paving the way for a more enlightened understanding of the loving nature of the heavenly Father that Jesus presented to humankind.

The eternal God, as revealed by Jesus, transcends human emotions like wrath and anger. Such sentiments are considered to be inconsistent with divine dignity and are remnants of primitive religious beliefs. Instead, Jesus emphasized a God of love, mercy, and unselfish service, contrary to the wrathful gods of old. His teachings contrasted sharply with the primitive notions of God prevalent in his time. He was a living revelation of God's nature, and he emphasized divine love and mercy, inviting all to embrace the privileges of divine sonship through faith rather than fear.

Various philosophical and religious traditions also echo this understanding of a benevolent and merciful God. The Cynics described God as devoid of anger and enmity, while Hindu teachings promote compassion, forgiveness, and the golden rule as reflections of God's kindness and grace, that God is a kind friend and a gracious Father. The evolution of humanity's understanding of God reflects a progression towards a more compassionate, loving, and merciful conception of the divine, as exemplified by Jesus and echoed in various advanced spiritual traditions. Jesus said, "You who have lived with me well know that anger and wrath are not a part of the establishment of the kingdom of heaven in the hearts of men."

Jesus was often indignant at evil and intolerant of sin. He was often mightily moved to resist that which was inimical to the welfare of his children on earth. But his indignation against sin never led to anger at the sinner.

Though many of the temple rituals very touchingly impressed Jesus' sense of the beautiful and the symbolic, Jesus simply would not accept explanations of worship and religious devotion which involved belief in the wrath of God or the anger of the Almighty. Jesus once said to Joseph: "My father, it cannot be true—the Father in heaven cannot so regard his erring children on earth. The heavenly Father cannot love his children less than you love me. And I well know, no matter what unwise thing I might do, you would never pour out wrath upon me nor vent anger against me. If you, my earthly father, possess such human reflections of the Divine, how much more must the heavenly Father be filled with goodness and overflowing with mercy. I refuse to believe that my Father in heaven loves me less than my father on earth."

Impatience is a spirit poison; anger is like a stone hurled into a hornet's nest. Fear and anger weaken character and destroy happiness. Feeling anger is a normal human emotion, but managing it is crucial for maintaining healthy relationships.

Anger often stems from underlying feelings of fear or sadness, and recognizing this can lead to more productive communication. Uncontrolled anger is destructive and incompatible with love, which seeks to promote well-being and positive interactions. Effective management of anger includes admitting and expressing feelings constructively, setting ground rules for conflicts, seeking to understand other perspectives, and prioritizing the repair of relationships through understanding and forgiveness.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said: "Happy are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God." Jesus' hearers were longing for military deliverance, not for peacemakers. But Jesus' peace is not of the pacifist and negative kind. In the face of trials and persecutions, he said, "My peace I leave with you." "Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." This is the peace that prevents ruinous conflicts. Personal peace integrates personality. Social peace prevents fear, greed, and anger. Political peace prevents race antagonisms, national suspicions, and war. Peacemaking is the cure of distrust and suspicion.

On Pentecost, the Spirit of Truth endowed humans with the power to forgive personal injuries, to maintain a good nature amid the gravest injustice, to remain unmoved in the face of appalling danger, and to challenge the evils of hate and anger by the fearless acts of love and forbearance. Our world has passed through the ravages of great and destructive wars in its history. All participants in these terrible struggles met with defeat. There was but one victor – Jesus of Nazareth and his gospel of overcoming evil with good. The Master's teachings on human fraternity, good will, and mutual trust hold the key to a better civilization.