December 8

“Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger . . . be put away from you.” Ephesians 4:31

I am a Christian, and I feel an outburst of temper rising within me. I cannot repress it by merely repeating such Scriptures as “My old man was crucified with Christ,” “I have died to sin,” for afterwards I have to admit that if I were really dead I could not have lost my temper anyway! No, the simple recital of Bible words produces no result.

The cross of Christ is not meant to relieve our symptoms, but rather to deal with our disease. The disease which causes the temper has to do with our “self.” Let no one excuse himself by saying that it is his disposition to be quick-tempered, for the slow can equally lose his temper, though he may manifest it in a different way. We need to know how to deny our self. This is where the death of Christ is effective. If self is being dealt with before God, then our explosive ill temper will naturally fade away.