Anger, Violence, and the Christian Character
Question
Why do Christians sometimes have serious attitude problems and even become violent?
Originally published in Vol. 1, Number 9, September 2026, Ask The Theologian Journal.
Answer
Conversion does not remove the flesh, nor does it instantly produce mature character. Even believers who are otherwise spiritually mature can at times display serious attitude problems and, in some cases, violent responses. The question is not whether this happens—experience confirms that it does—but how it should be understood biblically.
Walking in the flesh versus walking in the Spirit
In this dispensation, believers are complete in Christ, yet still possess the old nature. We can walk in the Spirit or in the flesh. Serious attitude failures and sinful violence are examples of walking in the flesh.
However, it is important not to oversimplify by saying that all strong or forceful responses are necessarily fleshly. Scripture makes room for proper, even intense, anger.
Biblical teaching on anger
Commanded anger
Ephesians 4:26 states:
“Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil.”
Here, “be ye angry” is an imperative. There are situations in which indifference would be sinful. When wrong is present and demands confrontation, a holy reluctance to be disturbed can itself be a failure.
The warning is “and sin not,” not “never be angry.” Furthermore, the verse presses urgency: do not let your wrath linger until it festers and gives place to the devil. The idea is not merely “get over it before sundown,” but “deal with the matter promptly in a godly way.”
Anger to be put off
On the other hand, Colossians 3:8–10 commands:
“But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; and have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.”
Here anger is linked with malice and corrupt speech as part of the “old man” that is to be put off. So Scripture both commands and condemns anger, depending on context and motive.
The tension is resolved when we distinguish between principled indignation at true wrong and self-centered, uncontrolled, or malicious rage.
Examples of intense anger in Scripture
Moses
In Exodus 32:19, when Moses comes down from Sinai and sees the golden calf and the revelry, we read:
“And it came to pass, as soon as he came nigh unto the camp, that he saw the calf, and the dancing: and Moses’ anger waxed hot, and he cast the tables out of his hands, and brake them beneath the mount.”
Moses reacts with such intensity that he breaks the stone tablets. It is an unmistakable act of anger. Yet later, in a parenthetical note, Scripture says in Numbers 12:3:
“(Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth.)”
This is inserted precisely in the context where Miriam and Aaron speak against Moses because of his Ethiopian wife, and where the Lord Himself intervenes suddenly, calling them out and judging Miriam with leprosy (Numbers 12:4–10). Moses, the meekest of men, is not a man devoid of strong reaction; his meekness is not passivity. It appears, in fact, that he had long been patient with murmuring, to the point that the Lord steps in decisively.
Phinehas, Nehemiah, Jesus, and Paul
Numbers 25 records Phinehas taking lethal action in the midst of brazen immorality within Israel. His zeal is credited as righteousness, not condemned.
Nehemiah becomes angry over oppression among his own people and acts to correct it, sometimes with considerable force (see Nehemiah 5 and following chapters).
Jesus, in Mark 3:1–5, looks on religious leaders “with anger, being grieved for the hardness of their hearts.” In John 2:13–17, He drives profiteers out of the temple, overturning tables and using a whip.
Paul publicly confronts Peter to his face in Galatians 2, rebuking his hypocrisy regarding table fellowship.
These examples show that intense indignation and even physical action can be righteous when directed at genuine evil, within God’s bounds, for God’s honor and the protection of His people.
When anger and violence become wrong
While Scripture allows for, and sometimes commends, strong and even forceful reactions, it also clearly recognizes sinful manifestations:
Anger that is primarily about wounded pride or selfishness.
Violence that is disproportionate, uncontrolled, or directed at illegitimate targets.
Outbursts that function as manipulative tools or tantrums rather than principled stands.
Christians sometimes fall into these because:
They have brought untransformed patterns from their upbringing into their Christian life.
They have never learned to distinguish between necessary firmness and self-indulgent rage.
They confuse strong personality or zeal with virtue, when in fact it may be the flesh in religious clothing.
We must remember that there is “a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up” (Ecclesiastes 3:3). Wisdom is knowing which time it is.
Is there any place for personal violence?
Some would argue that all violence belongs exclusively to the state (Romans 13) as the ordained bearer of the sword. Ordinarily that is true: the normal channel for retribution is government, not private action.
Yet there remain extreme situations in which a man, simply as a man, must act decisively to stop a grave wrong in front of him when no governmental force is present. In such cases, a forceful, even violent, intervention may be morally required to protect life or prevent immediate evil. This is a separate matter from hot-headed behavior in personal disputes; it has more to do with emergency moral duty than temperament.
The problem of excessive passivity
Modern culture often swings to the opposite extreme: it treats almost any strong reaction as pathological. Boys on playgrounds are told to avoid any confrontation; bullies are left unchecked. Men are routinely urged to undergo “anger management” of a sort that can amount to flattening all righteous indignation. The result can be a society of passive males unwilling or unable to stand against wrong.
Scripture, however, envisions believers who are meek—under control, aware of the time and place—not paralyzed. There are times when refusing to be angry is the sin.
Why some Christians in particular struggle
Beyond general principles, some Christians have specific patterns of serious attitude problems and sinful violence because:
Their flesh has been trained to respond explosively over years; habits are not automatically undone at conversion.
They may have unresolved shame, fear, or insecurity that manifests as disproportionate rage.
They have never been discipled in the difference between principled firmness and sinful outbursts.
Such believers need teaching, accountability, and sometimes direct correction. They must learn:
To evaluate the object and motive of their anger.
To recognize when they are defending themselves rather than truth or others.
To accept that sometimes the godly response is to endure wrong patiently.
At the same time, the church should be cautious not to label all strong reactions as sinful. The goal is not to produce believers who never raise their voices or act decisively, but those who know when and how to do so in line with God’s will.
Conclusion
Christians can have serious attitude problems and even resort to sinful violence because they still possess the flesh and sometimes walk according to it rather than according to sound doctrine. Yet Scripture affirms that there is a place for righteous anger and, in rare cases, forceful action. The task is to distinguish fleshly rage from godly indignation, to put off the former, and to learn to exercise the latter in the right time and way.