We have all had those moments when we have faced a sudden disappointment and there it is welling up within us, ANGER. It could even be righteous indignation over a disrespect for God and or others. The point is moments of anger happen and will happen. It’s what takes place after you sense the anger that is important. Notice the text below:
Ephesians 4:26–27 (ESV) — 26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.
OK, you are angry. Something or somebody has made you mad. Now what do you do?
It’s a real simple instruction, simply do not sin. Secondly do not let the sun go down on your anger, and thirdly do not give an opportunity to the devil.
Since we are instructed to not sin when we get angry, let’s consider how we could sin when we get angry. The foremost way is to let someone have it verbally as in calling names, chewing a person out, or any way that would seek to inflict harm on that person verbally. Consideration should also be given to other responses that could be physical, or even emotional as many do in passive aggressive statements of manipulation, all of which seek the same thing in doing harm.
Wait a minute. We are talking about sinful ways of dealing with sudden moments of anger. Inflicting harm upon another verbally, physically, or emotionally is sin and fits of such expressions of anger will only make the situation worse.
Proverbs 29:22 (ESV) — 22 A man of wrath stirs up strife, and one given to anger causes much transgression.
Ecclesiastes 7:9 (ESV) — 9 Be not quick in your spirit to become angry, for anger lodges in the heart of fools.
James 1:20 (ESV) — 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
Proverbs 15:1 (ESV) — 1 A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.
Like any sin when recognized with the help of the Holy Spirit, there needs to be confession and repentance which means there needs to be a plan with a new and different direction.
If you have ever found yourself in the state of regret over your response when angry, (and who hasn’t?) maybe you need to ask yourself what the appropriate response would look like. Here’s a hint:
1 Peter 2:21–23 (ESV) — 21 For to this you have been called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, so that you might follow in his steps. 22 He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. 23 When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly.
When you are confronted by a moment of anger – PRAY. Pray for the person who inflicted the grief, pray for your own heart that has been stricken down with the moment of madness, and pray for all those who have been affected by the situation. Notice again that Jesus committed no sin and there was no deceit in His mouth, rather He entrusted Himself to His Father who judges fairly, and He will have His moment.
If you want to avoid sin when you get angry, develop a plan of instantly looking to God in prayer. It’s worth writing out the plan and rehearsing the plan so when the moment happens you can follow the plan and avoid sinning.
The second part of the admonition is to make sure you do not let the sun go down on your anger. This is so very important to practice in marriage because when a husband and wife have a disagreement that gets heated and they part ways refusing to work things out instead try to go to bed on the matter without resolution, the matter gets worse overnight as conversations are rehearsed in the minds of both parties and sleep is lost, so that in the morning everything is worse than it was.
As important as this adage is to the marriage scene, it is vital to all of life because the same thing happens. Neither party sleeps, and everything which is rehearsed overnight gets larger than it was. The best thing is to do as the admonition, “don’t let the sun go down upon your anger.” The Bible is clear that if you are a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, you have the responsibility of making the first move. If you are offended, you are to go to the one who offended you to seek to work things out. If you realized that you are the offender, then you have the obligation to go to the offended to work things out.
Matthew 18:15 (ESV) — 15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.
Matthew 5:23–24 (ESV) — 23 So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, 24 leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.
By the way, whenever we take the initiative and seek to make peace, we are reflecting our status of being a child of God because God, being the offended, has reconciled us, the offenders, to Himself. This is why peacemakers are called children of God – they reflect Him.
2 Corinthians 5:18 (ESV) — 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation;
Matthew 5:9 (ESV) — 9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.
The third point in Ephesians 4:26-27 is to make sure we do not give place or opportunity to the devil. That is simply reminding us that when we go off the rail in verbal, physical, or emotional rage, we have now given up control of our lives and open the door for the adversary to have a foothold in leading you astray into other sinful thoughts and actions. This is so frequent that Paul admonished Timothy to labor with people who have been taken captive by the adversary to do his will.
2 Timothy 2:24–26 (ESV) — 24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, 26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
Think of it. One little act of rage if not caught, confessed, and repented of, could be the beginning of being taken captive. Remember the adversary is describe as a “roaring lion” seeking to devour, which is why we need the power of the word of God and prayer to resist, even when anger raises up as we remember the threefold admonition.
Ephesians 4:26–27 (ESV) — 26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.
Godspeed,
Bob Brubaker, Pastor
Christ Community Presbyterian Church
