{"id":5169,"date":"2019-10-20T09:00:41","date_gmt":"2019-10-20T14:00:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.barbdahlgren.com\/?p=5169"},"modified":"2019-08-07T21:45:00","modified_gmt":"2019-08-08T02:45:00","slug":"choose-not-to-sin-if-you-get-angry","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/barbdahlgren.com\/?p=5169","title":{"rendered":"Choose Not to Sin if You Get Angry"},"content":{"rendered":"

Choices change our lives\u2026 <\/em><\/p>\n

By Barbara Dahlgren<\/em><\/p>\n

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I wanted to title this blog \u201cChoose Not to Get Angry,\u201d but I felt that was unrealistic and unbiblical. After all, the definition of anger is an intense emotional state induced by displeasure. So anger itself is not the problem, but uncontrolled anger can be.<\/p>\n

The Bible doesn\u2019t say not to get angry. It does say: cease from anger (Psalm 37:8), let anger be put away from you (Ephesians 4:31), be angry but don\u2019t sin (Ephesians 4:26), and don\u2019t let the sun go down on your wrath (Ephesians 4:26). So I think it\u2019s reasonable to assume even the meekest and mildest of us will get angry from time to time. Even Christ got angry occasionally, but it was directed at the sin, not the sinner.<\/p>\n

When Jesus turned the money changers\u2019 tables over at the temple, He was angry at the wrong being done and the total disrespect for God. They were taking advantage of the poor and making God\u2019s house a marketplace, instead of a house of prayer (John 2:13-17<\/a>, Matthew 21:12-13<\/a>,\u00a0Mark 11:15-18<\/a>,\u00a0Luke 19:45-46<\/a>).<\/p>\n

When religious leaders were testing Jesus to see if He would heal on the Sabbath, Jesus looked at them with anger because He was deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts (Mark 3:1-6).<\/p>\n

Anger is a difficult emotion to keep in perspective. That\u2019s why we are told not to get angry with a brother (Matthew 5:22). Anger against a brother can cause bitterness, resentment, retaliation, and sometimes murder. Think of Cain and Abel. Unchecked anger embeds itself into our souls. So much so that we can lose all sense of reason. Remember that the word \u201canger\u201d is just one letter short of \u201cdanger.\u201d<\/p>\n

I can\u2019t help but think of the old TV show, The Incredible Hulk<\/em>. Mild-mannered Dr. David Banner would say something like, \u201cYou wouldn\u2019t like it if I got angry.\u201d And when he got angry, he turned into a big green monster. The same thing can happen to us if we aren\u2019t careful.<\/p>\n

When we get angry, it is seldom for a righteous reason. We think we\u2019ve been wronged. We think we deserve more. We think we aren\u2019t accepted. We think we aren\u2019t respected. We think we aren\u2019t appreciated. We think no one loves us. We think we are being ignored. To be truthful, we think everything is all about us!<\/p>\n

Then we each have anger trigger points heightened by being tired, hungry, frustrated, embarrassed, disappointed, stressed, or hurt. Maybe we are having a bad day so our anger gets blown out of proportion. We are like a spray can full of pressure. When just one more thing is added, our button gets pushed and we spray venom all over everyone in our path. We can never get what is spewed out back in that aerosol can. It stays in the air forever. Uncontrolled anger is not good.<\/p>\n

When Moses carried the tablets of stones down from Mount Sinai to share with the Israelites, he was angry to find the Israelites betraying God with idol worship. Moses threw the tablets down and broke them. He \u201cshattered them at the foot of the mountain\u201d (Exodus 32:19 NAS). That\u2019s what anger can do \u2013 shatter things like relationships, opportunities, reputations, and so much more. Think about that when you are tempted to let anger control you. God forgave Moses, but the damage had been done (Deuteronomy 10:2 NAS).<\/p>\n

Consider this\u2026 <\/strong>When Cain was upset that God accepted his brother Abel\u2019s sacrifice and not his, God said, \u201cWhy are you so angry? You should rule over it\u201d (Genesis 4:6-7). But Cain did not rule over it. He let it fester! He became bitter! He ended up killing Abel. If we don\u2019t learn to control our anger, it will control us.<\/p>\n

Here are a few biblical insights that will help us control anger.<\/p>\n