Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - Nov/90

Contributor - John Heeg

Title - Anger

Topic - Anger

In the Bible we discover that there is a difference between human anger and divine anger. Anger expressed by humans are often unjustified reactions of one's own sinful nature; while God's anger is always rooted in His holiness and justice towards mankind.

When we discuss human anger, scripture portrays two kinds of anger. There is a just and holy anger that can be expressed by human beings. This arises when man takes up God's cause of justice and hates what God hates. It is an expression of rightful indignation over wrong and seeks to promote God's justice and His ways among man. It is a just anger anchored in love that seeks to correct, to warn, and win back people to the Lord in order to prevent further human tragedies. True servants of God will at times demonstrate this justified anger, which from a biblical view is seen in a positive light. Remember, this kind of anger has been instilled in them from above by God's very own Spirit and therefore can be considered holy and pure, always seeking to build the kingdom of God. However, scripture also shows us that this rightful anger is very seldom found among the children of men. It has been known and expressed only by a very few in the Old as well in the New Testament.

Most human anger that is being expressed is unjustified, selfish, arising from one's sinful nature and this can be very dangerous. This type of anger often is the first step to murder, to kill and to destroy (e.g. Cain and Abel). It is an anger that falls into the hand of Satan rather than standing in the service of God as mentioned above. In fact, this kind of anger can do great harm to the well being of mankind. Many wars have been started by provoking one another to become angry. Congregations have experienced much pain and harm when this kind of anger was not controlled by God's Spirit.

It is for this reason that scripture repeatedly exhorts us to refrain ourselves from becoming angry and instead be filled with His Spirit.

For example:

Be angry but do not sin (Ephesians 4:26).

A bishop must be not soon angry (Titus 1:7)

Be not hasty in thy Spirit to be angry (Eccl. 7:9).

What we learn from scripture is that because of our human nature we are very prone to express this kind of unjust anger. To be filled with the right kind of anger, that stands in God's service, is very uncommon among mankind. Yes, even righteous anger can turn into unrighteous anger if we are not careful! This is particularly seen in the capable leadership of men like Moses, Jeremiah, Paul, Peter and others.

May we then always stand in God's service seeking to enhance the cause of Christ at all times!

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