The Sun is Going Down

Ephesians 4:26-27 “In your-anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold."

I have always heard this verse explained as a literal sun going down.  Do not go to bed angry.  I have missed out on a lot of sleep trying to live it out literally. Recently, I was considering this verse and thought there might be more to it than that.  

What if I rephrased the verse to say it this way, "Do not let darkness come in and use your anger to give the devil a foothold."  When we hold on to anger and refuse to forgive it comes in and destroys from the inside. 

When an offense happens we have to choose how we are going to deal with it. There are some things in life we need to work out.  Sometimes they need to be taken care of immediately.  Other times it is better to sleep on it and give it some time to gain perspective.  Often you will realize that you can let some of those things go.  However, do not be fooled.  There is a difference in choosing to let something go and not dealing with it.   


The common thread in all of these ways of dealing with things is bringing light into the situation.  When we keep things in the dark, dwell on them, do not deal with them, that is when problems arise.  The anger and hurt will turn into bitterness.  It has been said  "Bitterness is like taking poison and waiting for the other person to die" (Source Unknown). 

Instead of focusing on the sun setting, focus on letting the Light of the World come in and bring healing.  

To quote the great philosopher Yoda, "Fear leads to anger.  Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering."