Those who make initial confessions of their desire to follow Jesus Christ, but refuse to accept hardship or persecution, are characterized as the false, fruitless souls who are like rocky soil with no depth. They wither and die. Many people want a no cost discipleship, but Christ offers no such option. John MacArthur
James says that we must receive… the implanted Word of God. In other words we must be willing to study and learn the Word of God so that we can be transformed by the renewing of [our] minds. Romans 12:2 God’s Word is the standard by which we are to judge our thoughts, attitudes, and actions. Hebrews 4:12 God’s Word gives us life. Matthew 4:4 God’s Word leads us to holiness; the life of contentment and joy that God designed for us. Ephesians 5:26
James outlines three steps that we must follow so that we may receive… the implanted word.
First, we must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger. When we are wronged it is easy to jump to conclusions and misread the situation. It is easy to say things that we will later regret, it is easy to gossip, and it is easy to lose our temper. James says that all of these responses will keep us from hearing and considering God’s Word. Because these responses focus on us; our indignation and our hurt feelings, we will not be listening for God’s Word. Instead of getting angry and saying things that will only make matters worse we should heed the Proverb:
The mind of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things. Proverbs 15:28
In other words, when things are not going your way, even if you are opposed on every side, be careful with your words. Do not fall headlong into an anger that could consume you. Also, we are not to believe and repeat everything that we hear because the mouth of the wicked pours out evil. Mindlessly repeating such lies because they fit our narrative is destructive and divisive gossip.
In our world where the media can never be trusted to tell the whole truth and politicians brag about lying (wrap up smear) Christians, of all people, should be quick to hear but slow to speak. Remember Proverbs 18:17:
The first to state his case seems right until another comes and examines him.
Think it through, not in your own twisted understanding, but, rather, think about your response in the light of God’s Word. Proverbs is a good place to find God’s wisdom. Considering Christ’s teachings in the Gospels is a good place to find God’s wisdom. Reading the letters of the Apostles is a good place to find God’s wisdom.
Proverbs also warns us that:
He who corrects a scoffer gets himself abuse,
and he who reproves a wicked man incurs injury.
Do not reprove a scoffer, or he will hate you; Proverbs 9:8-9
Not only does misplaced anger keep us from hearing and carefully considering God’s Word, but it also can serve to only make matters worse, leading to sin on our part: hate, resentment, gossip, and, if the situation escalates, as tense situations often do, you could be physically injured, as the Proverb above warns.
Second, we must put aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness. In order to hear the Word of God we must get rid of those deceptions, attitudes, rationalizations, and actions, which make us deaf to God. We would like to believe that our actions and reactions are always the best. We like to think that we know how to handle every problem that comes our way but God warns us otherwise.
A wicked man listens to evil lips. Proverbs 17:4
There are a lot of voices in this world lying about many things. Christians should be discerning and not believe everything that they hear. God says that when we listen to, believe, and repeat those lies, even for a cause that we support, we are wicked.
Whoever conceals hatred with lying lips and spreads slander is a fool. Proverbs 10:18
Remember, James is warning that we must put aside filthiness. Do not conceal hatred, lie about it to yourself or to others and then slander or gossip about others. God promises that:
Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue will be exposed. Proverbs 12:19
Because we are inclined to believe convenient lies God warns:
“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways
and my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8-9
The writer of Hebrews explains it like this: Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, Hebrews 12:1 We are not the first believers to be persecuted. Hebrews lists prophets, patriarchs, slaves, prostitutes, and more who chose obedience over anger.
James advises us to; Put aside all filthiness. Hebrews says, throw off… sin that so easily entangles us. Because sin easily entangles us, we must all wrestle with our old sinful nature and our old habits. We are instructed to unlearn and discard destructive thoughts and behaviors; that tangled web of our self-deception. This is accomplished by learning and putting into practice the instructions of God. In the current language of brain science, this process actually creates new neural pathways in our brains.
Now this does not mean that Christians are to be doormats, meekly accepting abuse, or excusing injustice. We see, for example, when Paul was arrested, he defended himself in court and then made use of the Roman legal system to file his appeal. Acts 24 & 25 On other occasions he fled for his life. Acts 9:25 We are, at the very least, to defend ourselves with every legal means necessary, and perhaps, if possible, retreat to fight another day. As Christ taught his disciples; I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. Be on your guard… Matthew 10:16-17
Third, James instructs us to receive with humility the implanted Word, which is able to save your souls. Humility is called for because pride gets in the way. Pride hinders our ability to clearly hear God’s word. Proverbs teaches that,
Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit goes before the fall. Proverbs 16:18
Thinking more highly of ourselves than we should and placing our desires over God’s Word is as old as mankind. Despite God’s Word to the contrary, Eve, When she saw that the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eye, and also desirable for gaining wisdom, she took some and ate it. Genesis 3:6
We all must resist pride, which means that we must all resist the temptation to ignore God’s Word, as Eve did. We want to believe that if we can just do things our way everything will turn out okay. But the problem is, our way has become so twisted by the lures of desire that we have lost the path of God’s way. With humility we must admit that we often make a mess of things and, in humility, ask God to light the path with his Word. Psalm 119:105
Another way that pride manifests itself in our lives is through self-pity. When faced with persecution, rejection, disloyalty, or other trials, we can easily fall into wickedness; sin, bad choices and unhelpful behavior, because we allow ourselves to fall into self-pity. James is saying, stop seeing yourself as a victim. Remember, when correctly understood, God intends for the persecution and trials that we face to produce maturity.
The bottom line is this; James wants his scattered congregation to grow to maturity by hearing God’s Word. It order to get to the point where they can hear God’s Word they must examine the attitudes in their lives that they habitually cling to that prevent them from hearing God’s Word; anger, wickedness, and pride.
Sin always takes us further than we need to go, keeps us longer than we want to stay, and costs us more than we can afford to pay. Darryl Strawberry
It is illegal to be a Christian in Eritea. On the first day of their mandatory year of military training, the group of 17 year old high school seniors was asked, “Are any of you Christians?” As Sesuna rose to her feet her friends tried to pull her down. Because of her admission she was thrown into a woman’s prison where she shared a room with 15 other women in vile living conditions. The prison consisted of tin buildings which were freezing at night and boiling during the day. The women ate with their hands off of a dirt floor. They were allowed to use the bathroom once a day at 6p.m.
Every week Sesuna was dragged to an interrogation room where, for hours, she was harassed by prison guards and her former classmates. If she would deny Christ she would be free. When she became to weak to walk or stand she was taken to a hospital in the capital city of Asmara. After regaining her strength she escaped from the hospital and made her way across the border into Ethiopia where she was placed in a refugee camp. In the camp her Muslim tent-mates stole her rations and beat her.
In desperation she considered returning to Eritea, until she met some Christians leading worship services in the camp. They were able to arrange for her to leave the camp and begin attending a Bible school. They helped her get a job so that she could afford to rent a room while attending school. Having endured many trials in her young life, Sesuna remains keenly focused on eternity. “I know the world will pass away one day, but if we have the Lord, we have everything.”
Return to The Letter of James.