Last night in our Bible study we looked at some words that David penned when he was angry. He was on the run from his son Absalom, and it seemed like everywhere he turned people were after him, or slandering him, or just doing their best to make him miserable. Yet in two back-to-back Psalms David says, “I lay down every evening and get a great night of rest.”
His sweet sleep comes from a moment of reflection before dozing off. He says:
In your anger do not sin; when you are on your beds, search your hearts and be silent. Selah.
- Did my anger today cross the line into sin?
- Am I allowing the time for the Holy Spirit to search my heart?
- When the Holy Spirit points out where my anger crossed the line, do I justify my anger, or am I silent?
How do we know if our anger has not crossed that line and become sin?
Aristotle wrote, “Anybody can become angry—that is easy; but to be angry with the right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way—that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy.”
Being angry is not the issue. David said it (and Paul quoted it in Ephesians 4:26): “Be angry; just don’t sin.” God gets angry, but He does not sin. Jesus, in His public ministry, got angry, but He did not sin. We need to search our hearts to make sure our anger has not crossed the line to sin. We have to be angry in a godly way.
I see at least four ways to become angry without crossing the line into sin:
1. Selfless Anger = anger at sin, but not angry at the sinner.
Love is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (1 Corinthians 13:5, 6)
2. Slow Anger = lengthen your fuse a bit.
Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools. (Ecclesiastes 7:9)
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. (James 1:19, 20)
Good advice from Thomas Jefferson: “When angry, count to ten before you speak; if very angry, a hundred.”
3. Protective Anger = when sinners entice others to join them in their sin. God is sad when people leave Him; He is angry at them when they take others with them.
But they put God to the test and rebelled against the Most High; they did not keep His statutes. Like their fathers they were disloyal and faithless, as unreliable as a faulty bow. They angered Him with their high places; they aroused His jealousy with their idols. When God heard them, He was very angry; He rejected Israel completely. (Psalm 78:56-59)
4. Righteous Anger = against those who are keeping others from coming closer to God.
For I endure scorn for Your sake, and shame covers my face. I am a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my own mother’s sons; for zeal for Your house consumes me, and the insults of those who insult You fall on me. (Psalm 69:7-9)
This verse was recalled by Jesus’ disciples when they saw Him get angry and clear out the Temple in Jerusalem. Jesus was angry because of the religious clutter that was keeping God’s house from being a house of prayer for all nations.
I think everyone is familiar with the acrostic WWJD = What Would Jesus Do?
I’d like to propose something similar: WGGA = Would God Get Angry?
This is a great question to ask to make sure our anger does not cross that line into sin. Get angry—in a godly way—and do not sin.
Craig T. Owens 
July 12, 2010 at 5:00 pm
Thank you for such wonderful insights and clarity.
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July 12, 2010 at 6:49 pm
I recently was angered and got into a huge argument with my fiance. Today, I searched around for some verses on anger and I have to say you hit the nail on the head with this post. Thank you so much for sharing this and I feel like it was at the right moment!
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July 13, 2010 at 12:28 am
Thank you so much for this. I find that when I’m angry, I do sin. I say things that I want to take back. I needed to read this.
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July 13, 2010 at 6:30 am
That’s what the Holy Spirit does for us: He helps us recognize when we’ve crossed the line. That gives us a chance to both ask forgiveness and make adjustments in the next anger-causing situation.
The mark of a maturing Christian is one who is closing the gap between sin and repentance. It sounds to me like you are doing just that. Keep it up!
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July 13, 2010 at 1:05 am
Thank you for this wonderful insight.
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July 13, 2010 at 2:40 am
Thanks for the reminder. But it seems to be the more I prayed concerning my anger, the more I lost it. Resently, I just lost it again by a simple question that I asked. It seemed to be the worse question ever asked. I was being perscuted for that by everyone including my partner. Help me please, I don’t want to get angry again by every little thing.
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July 13, 2010 at 6:22 am
Remember that it’s okay to be angry. We just don’t want to cross the line into sin while we’re angry.
And it doesn’t surprise me that the more you pray about anger, the more you notice it. That’s the way prayer works: it makes us aware. The mark of someone who is maturing is recognizing I’m getting off track earlier this time than I did last time. And the sooner I can recognize that “off-trackness” the sooner I can make adjustments or repent or change course. Keep going, Cassandra, you ARE making headway!
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July 13, 2010 at 8:31 pm
Thanks for the inspiring study on anger. This is certainly beneficial to the Body of Christ. God bless.
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July 15, 2010 at 10:22 pm
I think that the advise by Thomas Jefferson is good
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July 16, 2010 at 9:02 am
Yes,really touching. Its good to know that we have an HighPriest who is touched by our infirmities everytime.
LORD JESUS thank you for your HOLYSPIRIT in us that helps us in all our infirmities and corrects and confort us.
Its good to know the HOLYSPIRIT bcos HE is the only one we have as promised by our HEAVENLY FATHER. Keep doing this,we love and GOD bless u.
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July 16, 2010 at 9:05 am
Keep it up,the LORD is using u to bless our spirit. Thanks!!
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July 16, 2010 at 9:13 am
Yes,anger has done a lot of damages to peoples life and destiny.
The solution to this is to have the HOLYSPIRIT and heed to HIS leading in us in our lives.
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July 19, 2010 at 8:18 pm
I vented briefly before Holy Spirit led me to your site . Being silent certainly causes reflection .The next step MUST be prayer for forgiveness ! GOD bless you !
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July 20, 2010 at 8:55 am
How timely – Just yesterday, I became very angry with my husband and crossed the line into sin. Thank you Father for loving me and placing learning tools in front of me when I need them the most. This is definetly an area in my life that needs much attention. I’m very blessed and humbled by your post. Thank you!
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July 21, 2010 at 1:06 pm
this hits the nail for me. the 4 Ways… will be a helpful guide. think I will cut and paste and then print and cut and put this in my date book for ready reference!
thanks, Craig.
AC
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