Solomon prays for wisdom, and he defines it like this. He says, “God, give me a heart that can discern right from wrong.” You might say, “He was the king of Israel. He had the law of God. Why does he need a heart to discern right from wrong?” The answer is wisdom is not less than being moral and good, but it’s quite a bit more. It’s knowing what the right decision or right course of action is in the vast majority of life situations the moral rules don’t address.

If you’re going to live a wise life, if you’re going to have a heart that discerns, you need to understand anger. You need to be able to understand and handle anger, not only in yourself, but in other people as well. There are four things we’re going to learn about anger that you have to know to be wise: its dangerous power, its basic goodness, why it goes wrong, and how it can be healed.

This sermon was preached by Rev. Timothy Keller at Redeemer Presbyterian Church on October 17, 2004. Series "Proverbs: True Wisdom for Living". Scripture: Proverbs 14:29-30; 15:1,18; 16:32; 19:11,19; 24:28-29; 25:21-22; Jeremiah 45:5.

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