Jonathan Edwards on Righteous and Sinful Anger

I know that when the Bible says, “Be anger and do not sin” it is clearly teaching us that there is such a thing as righteous anger. It is referring to that just angry which is a response to the evil of sin in relationship to the holiness of God. I doubt very much that any of us have experienced any act of undiluted righteous anger. In the heart of the godliest saint there is always a principle of selfish desire mingled with holy desire. This is the apostle’s point in Romans 7, and it’s acknowledged to some extent by every believer who knows anything about the sinfulness of their soul. I remember being upset, several years ago, about the sinful actions of an individual in the fellowship of which I was a part. This person’s sin was affecting the congregation on the whole. I went to speak to a friend about what had happened. In the course of our conversation my friend said to me “It sounds like you’re angry because you’re taking this individual’s actions as a personal attack. Instead, you should be more concerned about their sin before the Lord. You should be concerned about their relationship with the Lord.” This rebuke was much needed in my life at that time. There is perhaps no better explanation of, and warning against, the subtlety of sinful anger and how we are cured us of it than that which we find in Jonathan Edwards’ Charity and its Fruits. There we read:

Charity or love, which is the sum of the Christian spirit, is directly, and in itself, contrary to the anger that is sinful; and, secondly, that the fruits of charity which are mentioned in the context, are all contrary to it.   Continue at Nicholas T. Batzig