Mensa Otabil - Be Angry, But Do Not Sin
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Psalm 4, verses 4 and 5: Be angry and do not sin. Meditate within your heart on your bed and be still. Selah. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness and put your trust in the Lord. Very interesting two verses. Remember, in verse two, David is asking, «How long, O sons of men, will you turn my glory to shame? How long will you love worthlessness?» He is frustrated by people who are persistently against him and trying to disrupt his life. Sometimes in life, we encounter people who seem to always want to make our lives miserable.
In verse 4, David is still responding to verse 2, and he tells us how to react to these people who want to make our lives miserable. There are four things he tells us to do. First, he says if you have people like that who are trying to disrupt your life, every time you go out, they just want to do something bad against you. He says, «Be angry and do not sin.» Be angry, but don’t sin. Later, this instruction is found in the New Testament: be angry but don’t sin. What does that mean? It’s okay to be angry, but don’t repay evil for evil. Don’t reach out your hand to do something wrong; don’t imitate the ways of those doing wrong. If you do that while you are angry, you are sinning. So David says it’s okay to be angry, but be careful that you don’t do something wrong out of anger. That’s a warning: if people are against you or harassing you, be angry but don’t sin.
The second thing he says is to be still and meditate in your heart. Instead of allowing your mind to run wild with thoughts of how to get revenge and make their lives miserable, he says to meditate in your heart. Don’t meditate on plans to destroy someone; meditate on the Lord. Let the word of the Lord dwell in you richly. Think about the goodness of the Lord. While people are plotting evil against you, be angry but don’t sin, and meditate on the Lord.
Then he says the third one, which I like very much: «Offer the sacrifices of the righteous.» He says, «Be angry; don’t sin; meditate on the Lord; then offer the sacrifices of the righteous.» What does that mean? It’s praise, worship, and adoration. That’s the sacrifice of the righteous. If you are a child of God, that’s your sacrifice. So if people are against you, just worship the Lord. Be in His presence; seek the goodness of the Lord. Allow the Holy Spirit to fill your atmosphere with the presence of God. It is in that place of worship that God provides help for you. That’s when He tells you that you don’t need to fight in this battle; the battle is His. He comes on the scene and helps you, but if you want to fight your own battle, God removes Himself from the battlefront. So the psalmist says to worship.
Anger is selfish. When you are angry, you want to do something for yourself, but when you worship, you are selfless. You’re taking everything and giving it to the Lord. So be angry, don’t sin, meditate, and then worship. The last thing he says is to put your trust in the Lord. In verse 2, David says those who want to turn his glory to shame are the sons of men; they trust in themselves, but he will trust in the Lord. He puts his trust in the Lord. The people who are against you are mere men and women; they’re just people, and people can’t do much against you. When you lift your hands in worship and seek the presence of God, the Lord fights battles for you. Just put your trust in God, and if you’re going through anything similar to what David faced, follow this guide he has left us: be angry but do not sin, meditate before the Lord, offer the sacrifices of the righteous to the Lord, and put your trust in God. That’s how you win your spiritual battles.
Let’s pray. Say with me: Heavenly Father, I offer to You my sacrifice of worship and adoration. Keep me from acting in anger. In Jesus' Name, Amen and Amen. That’s how you win. This is how we overcome. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom. Peace and life to you.