The Age of Rage

Proverbs 19:11 “A man’s discretion makes him slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook a transgression.”

Proverbs 29:22 “An angry man stirs up strife, and a hot-tempered man abounds in transgression.”

Getting together for the second study with our small group Bible Study on the topic of “Conquering Destructive Distractions and Temptations” in our lives, we reach the issue of “Anger”. I kid you not when I tell you that the discussion on this subject lasted over an hour before we even started the reading, because this is such a “live” issue in our society in our day. We truly live in the “Age of Rage”. Anger is displayed everywhere: incensed road rage, short-fused and irritated, verbal abuse and violent outbreaks of the infuriated, and even maddened parents physically fighting at children’s sporting events. How are we to deal with anger in a culture that encourages pique and outrage when things don’t go our way? Tempers fly as our world “sweats the small stuff”, instead of taking a “chill pill” today.

Proverbs 14:29 “He who is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who is quick-tempered exalts folly.

Ecclesiastes 7:9 “Do not be eager in your heart to be angry, for anger resides in the bosom of fools.”

The emotion of “Anger” can be defined as an internal, deep hostility aroused by something that displeases us. Or a strong resentment of a perceived injury or wrong, characterized by wrath, fury, indignation, ire or rage. Or a sudden, keen displeasure provoked by an offense or injustice, and usually accompanied by a desire to punish. Indignation is an intense anger awakened by anything unworthy, such as cruelty or meaninglessness. Wrath and ire are literary terms for great anger (from the word “ire”, we get our term “irate”). Rage is a vehement and impetuous expression of anger (hasty and rash). Fury is an excess of violent rage. We’ve seen that the wise person deals carefully with anger, but why is it often so difficult to control our tempers?

Galatians 5:16-20 ^“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. The acts of the flesh are obvious: … fits of rage.”

The Spirit of God, who lives in every Believer, and the sinful flesh are at war with each other. They have different appetites and conflicting priorities, which leads to our internal struggle. Non-Believers cannot even see the struggle, because they perceive the sinful flesh desires as natural and practiced as a way of life. 1 Corinthians 2:14 tells us that the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. And Galatians 5:21 is clear when the Apostle Paul says: “I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. So, what is the answer?

Galatians 5:24-25 “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

In and of itself, anger is not a sin. Righteous indignation can spark actions that bring about needed change and repentance. God condemns the sins that results from misdirected or uncontrolled anger. Anger is rarely the first emotion we feel in any given situation; instead, it arises out of other feelings prompted by some sort of conflict. When we embrace the emotions prompted by irritating situations, we may open the door a crack to anger and give Satan a foothold (Ephesians 4:27). The problem of reacting with uncontrolled anger damages us and those around us. Walk in the Spirit, with a long fuse, rather than be controlled by the flesh. Step back to take a breath and deal with the initial emotions in a constructive way, rather than giving in and being angry. Respond, don’t react in the “Age of Rage”.

Colossians 3:8-10 “But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him.

In Christ, Brian