He who is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city.

— Proverbs 16:32

When it comes to anger, someone has said that people tend to be of two different types. There are those who blow up and there are those who clam up. Some people do both. Paul deals with that in Ephesians 4:26. He says, “Be angry but do not sin.”

There is such a thing as righteous anger but the sin related to anger is when this bursts forth in all sorts of vicious speech. When we rail against another person, give place to malice, explode, and tell other people off. We have then given way to sin; we have given place to the devil.

So Paul tells us in verse 26 that we are not to let our anger explode. Furthermore, he says, “No not let the sun go down on your anger.” That is, do not close up like a clam and keep that hot boiling anger within you. There are some people who can keep it in for years, blocking any sort of communication.

But by His grace, many people are able to control their anger, to “be angry and sin not.”

Question to ponder:
How has the Holy Spirit worked in your life to control your temper?