“Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath.”

Ephesians 4:26

There is such a thing as righteous anger. There are things that should anger us. Jesus had righteous anger when he turned the tables over in the temple. The ungodly turned the house of prayer into a den for thieves and robbers. Now, I am not suggesting we flip tables over even if we have a righteous reason for doing so. However, I am saying we ought to be angry and upset over sin, both our personal sin and the sins of others. The Bible says to be angry, but do not sin while you are angry. There is a right way to be angry and a wrong way.

God has a holy hatred toward sin. As sinful mankind, we cannot display a holy hatred toward sin, but we can display righteous indignation toward unrighteousness. For example, if we are around people who blaspheme the name of God, we can point out their sin in a loving way while being angry at the sinfulness. If we don’t reprove sin, then do we really care about people? Do we really love God if we see people offend Him and never be angry about it? When we disobeyed our parents as a child, they were angry at us, but they corrected us in their anger. A loving parent will always correct their child. God does the same for his children. He will lovingly correct his people. Do not make the mistake of confusing anger and hatred. May I remind you that a loving angry earthly father or mother corrects and disciplines their child not because of hatred, but always out of love.

In today’s society, we are told to be more loving, more open-minded, and more tolerant. God is intolerant of sin. He cannot and will not tolerate that which is sinful, wicked, and evil in His sight. That is why God in His love for sinners points them to the cross. God’s desire is that men and women are saved from His wrath and hatred of sin. Christians ought to do the same. If we truly love people, we should point them to Christ. The most loving and kind thing we can do is explain to a lost person that Christ is the remedy of sin and their only hope. That is true love. That is divine, real, and pure love.

It is very important that we understand what righteous anger is. Especially when addressing the subject of sin. Sin is any want of conformity unto, or transgression of, the law of God.” This is what ought to provoke our anger. So, when faced with the question, does God allow Christians to be angry the answer is yes, but under strict conditions. God does allow His people to express anger, for example, a reaction against sin. We must answer these questions if we want to address the subject frankly and biblically. Consider the following. 

1. Do you point people to Christ? 
2. Are you upset when sin is committed? 
3. Do you reprove sin or are you silent? 
4. What do you think and feel about sin? 
5. Are you contending for the faith by standing for biblical truth in this ever-growing ungodly world?