Read Ephesians 4:2, 26-27, 31-32What makes you mad? Or maybe a better question would be, who makes you mad? We all get angry. In fact, even Jesus got angry. Does this make anger acceptable to God? Well, Jesus got angry over sin, making His emotion a righteous anger. If we're honest, when we get angry, it's not usually outrage over sin. Instead, we get angry when we don't get our way, when someone irritates or frustrates us, when we have conflict with people, etc.
Yesterday afternoon, I was reading through Ephesians 4 with a student, and we were talking about anger. Later on in the day, God put this lesson to the test in my own life, but more on that later...
In Ephesians 4:2, we're instructed to be patient, "bearing with one another in love." Let's face it...people make us mad. It could be an unfair teacher, an overbearing employer, an annoying sibling, a quarrelsome friend, a parent who doesn't understand you, etc. How are we to respond to the difficult people in our lives? God's word tells us to bear with those people in love. How can we show patience and love when people are unlovable? Only by God's grace. We have to ask Him to make us patient and loving, because these are fruits of the Holy Spirit's work in our life, not feelings we can muster up on our own.
I especially love verses 26 and 27 of this chapter. We are told in verse 26, "in your anger, do not sin." The fact that we will get angry at times is a given, but when we do get angry, we should not let this lead us into sin. Oftentimes anger leads to a lot more sins, such as slandering, gossiping, seeking revenge, harboring bitterness, or failing to forgive. We're given a way to avoid falling into these types of sins through the instruction, "do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold." If we do not resolve the problem before the day is over, we're giving the devil a foothold to tempt us into more sin. If we don't let the anger go, then we'll spend the next day, month, or year, harboring bitterness against that person. Instead, we're to resolve conflicts as soon as possible. I know this is a lot easier said than done, but I truly believe that this is the best way to handle anger. I remember in high school getting in a fight with a friend, and then going to bed that night. As I was lying there, this verse kept coming into my head, and I began to feel the conviction of the Holy Spirit. I got up and immediately called her. I told her that I forgave her for wronging me and that I wanted to move past our quarrel. I knew that if I didn't end my anger then and there, that I would probably spend the next day talking about her to my other friends and gossiping.
Verses 31 and 32 wisely state, "Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be out away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you." Harboring anger against someone is not God's will. When you really think about all that God has forgiven you for, can you really withhold your forgiveness from anyone else? You may think that the person who made you angry doesn't deserve your forgiveness, but you don't deserve God's forgiveness either! That's grace, plain and simple.
So, like I said, I was reading this passage to a student yesterday and teaching her what it meant for her life. Then, I went home and discovered that Lee had done something that really made me angry. I sat there fuming for a while with a pouty lip...then after a while I started to feel conviction. What a hypocrite I was! Here I was, harboring anger against my husband, failing to forgive him for the small way he had frustrated me, and definitely not showing kindness or a tender heart. If I was going to teach this passage to others, I needed to live it out myself. God was giving me an opportunity to practice what I preached. I still felt mad, but I decided to show Lee kindness anyway, and to serve him by fixing him something to eat while he studied. I cooked him dinner, made him some tea, and tried my best to show love through service, even though I didn't feel it in my heart. After I finished serving him, my heart started to change. It completely softened, and I honestly forgave him entirely for upsetting me. Instead of holding a grudge, I let go of my anger, and we ended up having an incredibly fun night together hanging out. I had to thank God for teaching me through His Word and giving me the opportunity to put it into practice.
Do you have anger in your heart toward someone? Who do you need to forgive? If the Holy Spirit is convicting you, don't ignore it. Put this passage into practice and extend the forgiveness to others that you've received from the Lord yourself~
