It’s OK To Get Mad…But Not To Act Bad

"Be angry, and do not sin."

(Ephesians 4:26)

As humans we are all born with something called emotions. Sometimes our emotions are the catalysts that propel us forward to very positive behavior. At other times, if we are not on guard they can push us to negative or even sinful behavior. Anger is one such emotion. Even the mildest mannered person has within them an innate ability to become angry. We think of anger as blowing our top, yelling, or totally losing control. Anger can also be a sense of inward agitation, or a sense of being unsettled or ill at ease.

Often times we wonder why God created us with these kinds of emotions. We try to hide them or downplay them because we have come to believe that to be angry is a sin. If something provokes feelings of anger in me then surely we must be in trouble with God. Or so I may think.
It may come as a shock, but the Bible actually gives us permission to get angry. If we were never angry then we would never right the wrongs of this world. If we never got mad injustice would rule and the Kingdom of God would not advance. If we never got angry we could not kick sin out of our lives. We would become passive and purposeless.

We can and will get mad. But we as believers must remember the rest of what God has said. "Do not sin." That is the hard part isn’t it, especially if we react in the flesh. Fleshly anger is ugly. It destroys, demolishes and totally deviates from the Word of God.

So, how can we do it? How can we be angry and not sin? The answer is simpler than we might think. We do it first of all by hiding God’s Word in our heart. "Your Word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You." (Psalm 119:11) This is not something we do on occasion. We dedicate our lives to hiding His Word in our hearts, knowing it will take time and commitment on our parts. Then we do it secondly by walking out His Word daily in our lives. We can consult Him about every circumstance and situation. He is the Living Word and He left us a teacher, The Holy Spirit Who can guide and instruct us when we do not understand.

Yes, there are times when we will fail and perhaps even fall flat on our faces. Thank God the Word says that the "righteous falls down but He picks them up." All we can do is repent, get up, and move on. I believe that as we grow and mature in the ways of the Lord we will exhibit more and more of His characteristics. As that begins to happen we may still get mad…but we will not act bad!