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“For the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.” James 1:20 (NIV)

In speaking and writing about anger, I often quote James 1:19, which states, “Everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger.” Such wise words. But, I recently realized that I never go on to James 1:20, which is equally important. It says, “For the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.” I love this because it gives us the rationale and the motivation to focus more on listening and less on speaking and getting angry. You see, the Bible tells us that others will know we are Christians by our love (John 13:35), and when we are so quick to get angry, we certainly aren’t showing our love. Yes, it’s true that there is righteous anger (and examples of both God and Jesus getting angry can be found throughout the Bible), but keep in mind James 1:19 doesn’t tell us to never get angry. It simply says to be slow to anger. So that we can be right with God and so that we can be more like God. Anger that comes from within us does not help us or others. In order to successfully follow the words of James 1:19, we need to remember the words of James 1:20. So, the next time we are tempted to get angry let’s quickly remember that it won’t do us any good…and it certainly won’t draw us or others close to God.
“Dear Lord, please help me to be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger because I know that my anger does not draw me or others closer to You.”
For His Glory

Laurel Shaler (www.drlaurelshaler.com)
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