Anger is a God-given emotion; it is part of being made in His image. It is a rising up of the
human heart’s sense of right and wrong. Robert Jones defines anger well in his excellent,
biblically faithful book Uprooting Anger: “Our anger is our whole-personed active response of
negative moral judgment against perceived evil.” Notice five parts of this definition.
But does the fact that anger is a God-given emotion mean that we are righteous in displaying it?
Well, sometimes, but rarely. Rarely, because even when the rising emotion is generated by a
righteous response to sin we quickly, and most often, cross the line into a variety of sinful
responses. And, not wanting to admit the sinful response, we seek to justify our response as
“righteous anger” when almost always it is very far from righteous.
Based upon James 4:1-3, where the brother of Jesus answers his own question, “What is the
source of quarrels among you?,” we conclude that sinful anger is basically, at its root, a product
of our self-exalting desire to rule over one another. This self-exaltation is driven by selfish
motives, which most of the time we are blinded to ourselves.
Here are 6 characteristics of the sinful desires that give rise to our anger. Desires are sinful…
Thus, anger easily becomes a tool of manipulation to get others to serve our selfish desires.
What Are the Two Most Common Ways People Sinfully Misdirect Anger?
Blowing Up (Ventilation, or what Jones calls “Sinful Revealing”): Energies are released
toward others or toward things. Proverbs 29:11 identifies this as the habit of the fool.
Many other Scriptures warn against the destructive power of out-of-control anger. Robert
Jones calls this “Sinful Revealing.”
Repent of sinful, self-exalting desires that wage war within you (James 4:9; Psalm 51:6).
Confess sinful anger to God (Psalm 51:4).
Confess sinful anger patterns to others you have sinned against (James 5:16).
Receive God’s forgiveness and the forgiveness of others (1 John 1:9-2:1, 12).
Replace sinful anger with self-control, love, and problem-solving (Ephesians 4:26-27).
Pray for God’s continued help in overcoming your anger (Mark 14:38; Matthew 6:13).
As we deal with our anger honestly and biblically, the Holy Spirit will empower us in self-
control and fill us with His others-focused love (Galatians 5:22-23).
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http://counselingoneanother.com/2014/06/24/anger-disorders