James 1:19-27
Listening and Doing
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it - he will be blessed in what he does.
If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
One of the hardest concussion and post-concussion syndrome (PCS) symptoms that I’ve had to deal with is anger. I had never considered myself an angry person but, after my brain got a good toss around, it seemed like something I was struggling with all of the time; and honestly it’s still something I have to battle now.
In James 1:19-20 he addresses how we should direct our attention and actions and gives us insight into the quality of our anger.
James 1:19-20
My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.
James isn’t instructing us on how to carry ourselves in situations that trigger heavy emotions because he wants us to all be emotionless robots. He isn’t saying that we are never allowed to be angry.
Friends, there is a good and right time to be angry. However, we aren’t talking about the exception today. We’re talking about the rule of thumb in how we approach conversations.
Be quick to listen. Slow to speak. Slow to become angry.
By being quick to listen, our ears and minds are opened to others needs, desires, pains, joys, experiences. We take a step back from ourselves and choose over and over again to give our full attention to who is speaking to us. There is a difference between hearing and listening. Anyone can sit across from a dear friend or stranger and hear their words. But, it takes a great intentionality to actually clear our minds, comprehend, and fully listen to what they are sharing.
We are called to be quick to listen because we are supposed to be intentional with one another. If we are so focused on what is going on around us or preparing for what we will say next in the conversation, we miss out on an entire level of authentic knowledge and communication.
By being slow to speak, we are able to check our words; fact check them if you will. Are we speaking for the sake of speaking or, is there intentionality behind our words? Are our words rash or well prepared? We cannot speak full truth and love that is cross checked with the Gospel if we rattle off the first thing that comes into our minds.
If someone wrongs us and we choose to be quick with our speech, we are likely to show a display of anger and disgrace the other person. If someone wrong’s us and we choose to slow our minds, and intentionally speak, we are given the opportunity to show the other person love and grace. By being intentional and slow with our speech we are given endless opportunities to preach the Gospel in everything we say and do.
And slow to anger. My post brain injury nemesis. James tells us that our anger “does not bring about the righteous life”. And he’s right. There has never been a time where my anger flared up where I later felt proud of my words and actions. There has never been a time where I didn’t later feel the guilt of who my anger caused me to be.
We are asked to be slow to anger for our own good. Our emotions are so good, they help us to feel and experience the world, they enrich our experiences and they are a gift. But, our emotions can also be a trap that drags us downwards. It’s good to feel but it’s not good to be controlled by those feelings.
We are called to these three qualities so that we can be a people who act rather than a people who react. We are called to these qualities to live intentionally with one another and in how we share the Gospel.
James 1:21
Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
We accept the call to be quick to listen and slow to anger and speech because we know a God who created us and we have an entire Gospel filled with the testimony of how intentional His son was with us.
We won’t always get it right. I know that. I still have days where I get angry and I have to acknowledge that I am stuck in a reaction. However, we were born into the word. By being Christian, we chose to accept the word and embrace it. It is because we know the Gospel and we know a good God that we can train ourselves to step out of our reactions to life and into actions for life.
God’s word in us is the redemptive promise that even when we fail, we are still redeemed, we are still saved, we can still try again.
But just listening to God’s word isn’t enough.
James 1:22-25
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it - he will be blessed in what he does.
If we look at the good and right word of God, we cannot merely turn away and continue living our lives however we want.
Friends, we cannot truly look into the face of God, into the redemption of His son and, the promises that He has extended to us and not be changed.
We aren’t doing the work that the gospel calls us to because we have to be saved. That work has already been done. We look into the face of the Gospel and then go about it’s work because the Gospel changes us. Our God changes us.
Just like how we don’t forget our own image, we can’t intently look at God and then forget who He is. We don’t choose to walk towards Christ because of a fairytale story that we can read whenever it feels good.
We choose to walk towards Christ at all costs because His story? It gives us freedom. It gives us life. It gives us the blessing to persevere through this life and eventually be restored by His side.
James 1:27
Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
Our God is asking us to set aside our own selfish desires, to arm our hearts with His word and to be intentional with others. By guarding ourselves from the world, by pursuing Christ at all costs, we become quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger.
Thoughts for the week:
*
Which of the three qualities mentioned do you struggle with most? Quick to listen? Slow to speak? Slow to anger?
Take some time and consider why you struggle with that quality. Once you have an understanding of it, make a plan for how you can catch yourself when you start to fall and how you can correct it.
Traits and qualities come with practice. Practice being who God calls you to be.
*
We are called to live by the Gospel not near it.
In what situations do you find yourself forgetting God’s calling to you? How can you revive the Gospel in that area of your life?
*
What does it mean for you to “keep oneself from being polluted by the world”?
*
Prayer
Come Oh Holy Spirit,
Bless us with your presence and may your peace wash over us. We strive to be a people of the Gospel. Calm the desires that can burn in our hearts that will lead us astray and create a new, deeper and more beautiful desire to pursue You. May our hearts be filled with a love so great for the calling you have given us, that we no longer feel like we are being restrained but rather, are able to embrace the great freedom Your calling gives us. You asked us to be disciples, Lord. Disciples who make other disciples. Your call gives us the freedom to connect with others, to show good and to love so deeply. Everything we have ever wanted is in You Lord. Help us to train our ears to listen deeply and intently. Train our mouths to slow our speech that we might share words of wisdom and hope. Train our emotions to be focused on forgiveness and patience rather than anger. You are for us Lord. Your plans are for us. And we love you so deeply. We trust you with our lives. We choose to be intentional with your word and how we share it.
In your name we pray,
Amen
Commentaires