Godly Anger | Previous Challenge Entry

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TITLE: Godly Anger | Previous Challenge Entry
By Doug Laird
08/06/07
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Both believers and unbelievers alike have developed a very narrowly defined manner in which God’s people are expected to present and conduct themselves. Some sectors of Christianity have been notoriously hard on members of their group who would go against the grain and think outside of the box.

Since what a person chooses to wear is often interpreted by others as making some kind of statement, one can make a Biblically based argument both for and against virtually every form of clothing, hats, jewelry, hairstyles, bodily alterations, etc., on the market today.

In the early Church Age, long hair on men was disgraceful) while long hair on woman was her glory. A married woman who did not cover her head in Church dishonored her own head and dishonored the authority of her husband (1Cor. 11: 5-15).

Many forms of jewelry have a history of association with superstitions and the supernatural realm. Charms to solicit “good” luck or to ward off “bad” luck, deny the sovereignty of God. Tattoos were prohibited (Lev. 19: 28). Until Adam and Eve received a fallen nature, they didn’t even see a need for clothing at all (Gen. 3: 7).

In the ancient Biblical times, a woman who dressed in men’s clothing or visa versa were detestable in the sight of God (Det.22: 5). Men and women were created to both look and conduct themselves in accordance with gender of the body that God placed them. Any role that would require either one to do otherwise in order to function adequately speaks for itself.

Christian stereotyping is not limited to clothing and overt appearance. It attempts to project what those involved would call the “Christian” personality and its accompanying temperament.

The Lord selected men of all different personalities and temperament to be His disciples. Some had long fuses. Some could be set off with just a spark. But inevitably, we all have the capacity to explode or implode as a result of mismanaged anger that can result in irreversible consequences.

There is both Godly and ungodly anger. When the Lord Jesus Christ drove the merchants out of the temple area and overturned the tables of the moneychangers, He was genuinely angry, yet He did not sin. Our Lord’s anger led to the cleansing of the Temple area and a reiteration of Scriptural standards (Mat.21: 13).

When Cain’s sacrifice was rejected he, too, was genuinely angry. Cain’s anger, however, led to the first recorded homicide in human history (Gen. 4).

Godly anger is motivated by a serious desire to defend or promote a spiritual principle. While it may result an overtly hostile action, the individual remains in control of his/her emotions and actions. When involved in Godly anger, such a believer remains under the control of God the Holy Spirit, and does not sin.

Ungodly anger is a manifestation of the fallen nature within us (Galatians 5: 20). It is usually the result of the individual feeling rejected or offended. The person rejects the counsel and restraint of God the Holy Spirit and fills the resulting void with the rage. The person is overcome by his/her emotions and often enters into some form of mental or overt sin, and in some cases, criminality.

Uncontrolled anger has put many otherwise decent individuals in prisons.

Don’t ever think that any one of us could not find ourselves in such a predicament (Romans 12:3). While some of us have longer fuses than others, we all have the SAME sin nature and the SAME potential for falling under its influence. Who among us can say that we have never experienced ungodly anger that was followed up by thoughts, words, or actions in a fit of anger that was later regretted?

Is the anger being generated by the fallen nature within or it is Godly anger? If it is ungodly, it should be vented through confession to God (1John 1:9) as soon as possible. If it is Godly anger, it should be vented through the production of divine good under the control of God the Holy Spirit. If it is ungodly anger that was vented on us, we are to forgive and forget about it (Matt. 6: 12).

Anger is like a hazardous gas building pressure in the soul that must be detected, analyzed, and disposed of promptly and properly before it explodes. Scripture (Eph.4: 26, 27) tell us to deal with it TODAY!

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