I used to lose my temper all the time when I was young. I remember throwing my cell phone once and breaking it because it wasn’t working right. I remember two times, I threw golf clubs and broke them. Along with losing my temper I also would lose control of my mouth. It embarrasses me to think of some of the words I would say in the midst of my rage.
But when I became a Christian at twenty-three, my anger problems dissolved. That change of behavior is what Paul describes to believers in the city of Corinth.
“Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:9-11, NASB).[1]
Paul’s main point here is that faith in God must make the believers in Corinth different than non-believers. The “effeminate” and “homosexuals” were people common among the Romans and Greeks. In fact, fourteen of the first fifteen Roman emperors practiced homosexuality. Paul was making it clear that a Christian should not be confused with such things. Paul essentially tells us today that faith in God leads to a change in lifestyle.
The change for me occurred with my temper. No longer did I “lose my temper” after becoming a Christian. Instead, I now have control over it. It does not control me. This shows the change that has occurred because of my faith in God.
Do I still feel anger from time-to-time? Yes, of course. I feel that old temper start to flare up, like a volcano about to erupt, but I control it now. I’m no longer controlled by my anger because I am no longer a slave to my sin nature. “We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin” (Romans 6:6, NLT).
Now I have the Holy Spirit that lives in me and helps me control that sinful anger. As Paul’s words remind us, “You were washed . . . you were sanctified . . . you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God” (1 Corinthians 6:11, emphasis mine).
Through Christ’s death on the Cross, our faith in Him for salvation, and the Holy Spirit that lives in us now, we have been set free from sin’s power and control over our lives.
[1] Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible, Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995. Used by permission.