Don’t go to bed mad

"Be angry, and do not sin": do not let the sun go down on your wrath, neither give place to the devil.” - Ephesians 4v26


Over the years I have sadly watched home after home deteriorates and collapse. I have seen best friends part company forever. I have seen churches destroyed over petty issues. I have seen physical and emotional violence and abuse in relationships in homes and churches.

I think I can say fairly that in the majority of these cases something happened that made someone angry. That anger grew and festered and developed. Eventually wrath and anger were replaced by bitterness. Then, as we are warned, that bitterness has defiled far too many.

We are going to get angry; there is no doubt about it. Something sets us off and we “see red” and logic loses out to emotion. That’s why God says to “be angry.” That emotion is from Him and He can use it to deal with situations that need to be dealt with. But God does not stop there – He says, “and do not sin.” The problem is when that anger produces sin instead of a resolution to the issue at hand. Anger should seek to resolve the problem, not focus on the person who has made us angry.

So God graciously gives us a time frame. “Don’t let the sun go down on your wrath.” I personally do not think this is figurative. I take it literally to mean, “Don’t go to bed angry.” Anger that festers through the night and into the next day can be terribly destructive. I wish I could tell you the number of times that I have had to ring people late at night and sort out my own anger. I am not always able to deal with the issue, that might be able to wait till tomorrow, but I do need to deal with my anger.

I wonder how many problems in homes, friendships, and churches could be avoided if we determined, by God’s grace and in His strength, never to go to bed angry?