By Dr. Don Dunlap
Pastoral Counselor
God does not want us to deny our feelings of anger, but He does expect us to handle them biblically.
Family Counseling Ministries -
Are you often quick to anger? Do you ever get so angry that you feel you are out of control? Unbridled anger is unbiblical. People who have an angry spirit demonstrate dissatisfaction with Gods sovereign control in their lives. They are very aware of anyone or anything that gets in the way of their rights. In this first of a ten-article series on anger, Dr. Don Dunlap reminds us that as Christians, we have no excuse for explosive, abusive outbursts of anger.
Anger is often an excusable sin for many Christians.
Although the very thought of cheating or stealing, for example, is unacceptable
to us, we give ourselves permission to explode in outbursts of anger, and we
tell ourselves that we cannot help it. We rationalize our sin with such
thoughts as, Thats just how I am. I have a bad temper. Im not nearly as bad
as someone who is physically abusive.
Gods Word tells us that a Christian has no excuse for
explosive, abusive anger.
The Word of God, however, does not excuse the sin of
anger. The writer of Colossians 3:8 admonishes us,
But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice,
slander, and abusive speech from your mouth.
Anger that is quickly aroused and readily expressed,
characterizes our old self apart from Jesus Christ. We are quick to anger when
we live to please ourselves instead of the Lord.
Unbridled anger is unbiblical. We read this warning in
James 1:19-20,
This you know, my beloved brethren. But let everyone be
quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not
achieve the righteousness of God.
Someone who has an angry spirit demonstrates
dissatisfaction with Gods sovereign control in his life. He has not yet
yielded his heart to Christ in complete submission and obedience to His will.
An angry person is very aware of his rights and he is unhappy when anyone or
anything gets in the way of those rights.
God does not want us to deny our feelings of anger, but He
does expect us to handle them biblically.
Meekness is the opposite of anger. Meekness is not weakness.
People who are meek are actually very strong because they have learned to deal
biblically with their anger.
They have come to understand the biblical truth of Gods
ownership in their lives. They acknowledge the fact that they have been
purchased with Jesus blood and they are no longer their own. They willingly
relinquish their rights to God. Jesus Christ is our supreme example of the
character quality of meekness.
Meek people do not deny their angry feelings, but,
instead, they ask God to harness and channel their anger in a God-honoring way.
They take seriously the command of Romans 6:12-14,
Therefore do not let sin (anger) reign in your mortal body
that you should obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your
body to sin (anger) as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves
to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of
righteousness to God. For sin (anger) shall not be master over, you, for you
are not under law, but under grace.
A Christian who is given to anger cannot love other people
unconditionally.
Anger disrupts unity in the Body of Christ. A Christian who is
easily angered cannot genuinely love other people. Harmonious relationships are
based on a selfless, Christ-like love.
When we fail to put aside anger, we grieve the Holy
Spirit, we give Satan undue opportunity in our lives, and we diminish our
witness to a lost and dying world.
If we have a sincere desire to learn the scriptural
principles of how to overcome anger, we must choose to obey Gods Word
wholeheartedly, in every circumstance of anger and with every person involved,
even if our feelings should dictate otherwise.
Dr. Don
Dunlap, a pioneer in the placement of Pastoral Counselors in the offices of
Christian physicians, has conducted over twenty thousand appointments during
his ministerial career. His counseling practice includes adults, children and
families in crisis. Dr. Dunlap is committed to facilitating a network of
telephone counselors. His goal is to provide help for the many people unable to
meet face to face with a competent Bible-based counselor. For a complete
library of Dr. Dunlaps articles, indexed by topic, go to Family Counseling
Ministries. You may make a telephone appointment for personal counseling by
clicking on Family Counseling
Ministries. Family Counseling Ministries is a Christianity.com Partner Ministry.