As we saw in Washington, America has an anger problem. Deep reflection is required.

Matthew 5:21–22 (NIV): 21 “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister, will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, ‘Raca,’ is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, ‘You fool!’ will be in danger of the fire of hell.”

These verses have been heavy on my heart as I watched events unfold at the United State Capitol, especially these words from Jesus:

“But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment.”

For a long time now, I have believed that America has an anger problem. We are angry at our politicians, our community leaders, our teachers, our doctors, our pastors, our family members and our friends. We are angry because we feel unheard. We are angry because we feel left behind. We are angry because we cannot control. We are angry because we are afraid. In the words of then President-Elect Barack Obama on election night 2008, “Change has come to America.” And, let’s be honest. Many do not like the change we are seeing. So, we grow angry because truthfully, we are sad.

It’s easy to be angry. It’s much harder to be vulnerable and admit we are sad and afraid. It’s easier to storm the United States Capitol under the guise of righteous anger instead of admitting we fear not being in control. It’s easier to attack someone who may not believe like us, think like us, or look like us instead of admitting that we are intimidated because we do not understand why they are different. It’s easier to follow someone who stokes our anger instead of following those quiet, still voices that challenges us to look past the anger in order to identify the fear and sadness.

Being angry might be easy, but it’s also dangerous. Unresolved anger is like a cancer that can eat a person from the inside-out. I have seen many a people use anger to not only attack others, but ultimately do irreparable damage to their own soul and body, literally. Anger is dangerous because it affects the brain’s ability to rationalize. When we get angry at someone or something, our mid-brain goes into high gear and shuts down the functioning of our high-brain or front-brain (a.k.a. prefrontal cortex). Our high brain or front brain is where we reason and think through life. When we are angry, we literally lose our ability to think straight. When we lose our ability to think straight, we lose our ability to see our fellow human being as just that, a fellow human being made in God’s image. It’s then easier to vilify or attack them.

There’s a reason Jesus said that if we are angry with a brother or sister, we will be subject to judgment; judgment that includes broken bodies, broken relationships, broken families, broken churches, broken communities, and yes, a broken nation.

Our nation is broken because a large part of her people are angry. And Wednesday was a terrible display of where collective anger might lead us; insurrectionists trying to upend our democracy. If we continue to feed that anger as a nation, I fear that we will have failed to heed the lessons of our forefathers during the Civil War. If you are a confessing Christian, and you continue to feed the anger in your heart, I fear we will have failed to heed the lessons of the angry crowd in front of Pilate. After all, it was that angry crowd that yelled, “Crucify Him! Crucify Him!” Anger often reaches its zenith at obliteration; obliteration of a country, obliteration of a church, and obliteration of a Savior, who did not stay obliterated.

Side note. Donald Trump is not Jesus Christ. He did not die to redeem us. If any of us make an attempt to equate the “suffering” of Donald Trump to Jesus, we would be worshiping the wrong dude. And, all the “Jesus saves” signs in proximity to any Trump 2020 signage, as if the missions of the President and Jesus are related, just perverts the Gospel. Donald Trump is the President of the United States, but he sure is not THE Savior who died on a Cross to take away the sins of the world.

So, how does our nation deal with its anger problem? Anger can only be defeated through vulnerability. This means that our country can only be saved when vulnerable people start sharing their fears and heartaches with one another. We need leaders, politicians, and everyday citizens, next time they find themselves angry to the point to where they are dehumanizing someone, asking, “What’s underneath the anger? Why am I sad? Why am I afraid?” Grant it, this type of deep reflection is not the easy thing to do and it’s especially not the “macho” thing to do. But, it’s better than, in the words of Jesus, being subject to judgment.

Rev. Dr. Paul Gibson is the senior pastor at Harrodsburg Baptist Church.