“Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires. James 1:19-20

 

It remains a sad mystery to this day.  What happened to Paddy Moriarty?

In 2017, an Australian man mysteriously disappeared from his remote town of just 11 people. But when police, suspecting foul play, came to investigate, they were shocked to find that nearly every one of the ten remaining townspeople seemed to have a longstanding dispute or grudge against the victim. It became impossible to solve the case because so many people were suspects. In a town of just 11 people, anger unchecked led to cruelty and disgust being poured into almost every interaction.[1]

It’s easy to downplay the danger of anger. But Jesus said, “You have heard that our ancestors were told, ‘You must not murder. If you commit murder, you are subject to judgment.’ But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell” (Matthew 5:21-22).

Jesus spoke this way about anger because He knows where it leads. The Bible book of James puts it bluntly: “Human anger does not produce the righteousness God desires” (James 1:20). Our tempers, often driven by ego, can’t produce the goodness God calls us to.

If you frequently feel angry, there’s no shame in struggling with it. But Jesus invites us to bring it to Him (Matthew 5:23-24), and to reconcile with the people we feel anger toward. Left unchecked, anger develops into the poison of bitterness. “Understand this,” the Bible cautions, “…You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry” (James 1:19).

[1] Aikman, A. “Larrimah: a town likes malice.” The Australian, 9 April 2022.