Questions Grieving Christians Ask

8 Episodes

Episode 2 : Is Being Angry at God a Sin After My Loved One Died?

Downloads

Episode Notes

Is Being Angry at God a Sin?

Is it a sin to be angry with God? Let’s explore that topic together. First, it is valuable to remember where anger comes from. Anger is considered a “secondary” emotion because anger is a response to several “primary” emotions, such as disappointment, frustration, fear, and pain.

Almost every grieving person will experience disappointment, fear, and pain. It follows then that grieving people often struggle with anger. And, who do we lash out at when we are suffering? If you are a person who believes in God, believes that God hears your prayers, that God can heal, and that God loves you – it is understandable that you’d ask, “Why didn’t you answer my prayer and heal my loved one?” Or, “Why didn’t you protect my loved one from an accidental or criminal death?” And you may be thinking something like, “I trusted you, God, and you let me down big time! I’m disappointed and hurting because I was counting on you.”

It is also understandable that you may experience anger and, in turn, direct that anger toward God. If you are holding anger or resentment toward God, does that mean you are sinning? Not necessarily, because being angry isn’t a sin in and of itself. Jesus is recorded as being righteously angry at the money changers outside the Temple. And there are plenty of examples of God being angry in the Old Testament. If anger is a sin, that would mean Jesus and God the Father are sinners. And, of course, they aren’t.

So what are you going to do with your anger? The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Ephesian church, wrote, “In your anger do not sin”: (referring back to Psalm 4:4), and he goes on to say, “Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” So, anger itself is not the sin, but if you don’t try to regulate or diffuse your anger, you may stumble into sinful behavior and have regrets. In short, your anger itself isn’t a sin. But what you do with your anger may equate to a sin.

Tell God, in your own words, something like “Father in heaven. I’m so deeply sad and in pain because my loved one died. And I admit that I am disappointed and angry that you let this happen. I wanted you to answer my prayer for healing – WITH HEALING! But you chose not to. I confess my anger and disappointment are causing me to question my faith. Please have mercy on me. Please help me to understand my thoughts and feelings. I need you more than ever now.”

Stepping Stone: Please consider bringing your pain before your Heavenly Father. Confess your disappointment and all your feelings. You can write your prayer out in a journal or express your thoughts in the comment section below this video.

It may help to download and print out the Episode Notes, including the key points and any scriptural references in this episode. 

We care for you so much. You are who we built this platform for. We know the suffering of losing deeply loved people in our lives, and we hope our material is helpful to you in some small way. God bless.

Remember you can download and print out the Episode Notes including the key points and any scriptural references in this episode.