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The Epistle of James, session two
Opening Prayer, Father God, we come tonight to study the Epistle of Jesus' brother James. Lead us in this study Lord and teach us to persevere in our effort to be the disciples that Jesus would want serving him. Give us the wisdom and the courage to face the trials and temptations that this world throws at us. Help us to grow in Christian stature and strength as we study this epistle. Impart to us the lessons You would have us learn from this study. In Jesus name we pray Amen.
James 1: 16-21; Be Quick to Listen, and Slow to Speak
16 Don't be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. 18 He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. 19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 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.
Discussion
In vss 16 & 17 James is describing God’s goodness. Why? Knowing God’s goodness is also a protection against sin. And a way to identify evil. Sometimes it is not so easy to do. When Satan first tempted Eve he tried to make her doubt the goodness of God. He told her that God was keeping her from something good, something wonderful. Eve thought about that and saw no harm in it, she failed to recognize the evil of it, as did Adam, and the world fell into sin. The truth is that everything good comes from God. He has our good at heart. When God gives us commands and rules they are to help us, not harm us. Trusting in God and His goodness is a protection against the enticements of temptation. And it is wise for the believer as God's goodness helps us in our daily walk, to recognize sin for what it is.
Christians are to be humble like Christ was. Part of humility is not thinking too highly of ourselves or our opinions. We should be willing to hear the opinions of others. Perhaps God has set this moment so that we can learn from them. But, we are to be always on our guard. That is the way Jesus said it as He spoke this to His Disciples when he said "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. But that does not mean we have no need of others or of their opinions.
We must remember the world is filled with every kind of individual, we must be observant and we must be seekers of truth. We must be teachable. There is still a time and a place for talking, teaching, and sharing our opinions. But we should be quick to listen and slow to speak. That means we should take the time to listen to others opinions, then carefully think it over before we speak. (Psalm 50:19 thru 120.3 ). Do not be in a hurry because once you say it you can’t take it back. It is almost always a good idea when we want to share our opinion with others to take a moment and just think over it first. Is it edifying? Is it true? Is it helpful? Is it kind? Are we saying it in love? Is it gentle? Then lastly James tells us to rid ourselves of all evil and moral filth that is so prevalent,
Questions
1. Vss. 16 & 17 are descriptive of God's goodness, what else are these verses telling us?
2. In what way does it take humility to receive the word of God?
3. How does one who hears the word and does nothing, become deluded?
4. What does James mean, “rid ourselves of all evil and moral filth that is so prevalent”?
5. Sometimes it is difficult to recognize the evil around us, How do we overcome that ?
6. What is meant by “quick to listen, and slow to speak”
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James 1: 22-27; Be Doers and Not Hearers only
22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it--not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it--they will be blessed in what they do. 26 Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their religion is worthless. 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.
Discussion
But be doers of the word, and not hearers only: We must receive God’s word as doers, not merely hearers. To take comfort in the fact you have heard God’s word when you haven’t acted on it is to deceive yourself. Jesus is looking for disciples, doers, not just hearers. Jesus used this same point to conclude His Sermon on the Mount. (Matthew 7:24)
This is one of the most important principles of a Christian's faith, being a hearer, for unless we hear the word we cannot know the word nor can we experience it unless we are taught. Then when we have heard and understand, the true believer begins to respond, and our response should be that of one who acts on the word of knowledge that they have heard. They then become a doer, not only a hearer. Christianity is not about how much of the bible you have learned, how much of it you can quote. It is all about our response to that which we have learned. The actual act of putting the principles that we learn in the Bible into practice. It is worthless for us if we learn the Bible front to back, but do not do what it says. The disciples prayer should include the desire to do that which is pleasing and acceptable to God, putting our faith into practice.
James then describes pure religion as reaching out to orphans and widows? First, we know that love is the mark of believers. True love is love shown with no thought of return. We know that it is easy to “love” those who love us, because there is something to be derived from loving one who loves you. But love shown to orphans and widows reveals one's heart for helping with no thought of personal gain from it. That is why God is so pleased with this expression of love. The last thing he mentions is holy living. The Jews thought true religion was ceremonies, washing of hands, and external rituals. But it’s not. It is inward holiness that will be expressed outwardly in our actions. In the day-to-day living out of holiness, it means the inner being is renewed. We set aside time to learn in community, we remember our baptism, we share in the Lord’s Supper. We are renewed in our spirit as individuals by the presence of the risen Christ through his Spirit in our midst. We study together, we feast together. We give of our time, money, energy; we do so with open hearts, knowing that somehow or other we become more when we gather and do his word, than when we are only hearers, on our own.
Questions
1. What is meant by the phrase “Be doers of the word, not hearers only”?
2. Why does James say if we are not doers as well as hearers, we decieve ourselves?
3. How does the comparison of looking at ourselves in a mirror emphasize this point?
4. What can God’s word do for us, and how should we live to receive its benefits?
5. What does the phrase “to look after orphans and widows in their distress”mean to us today”
6. As a doer, is it better to be alone in your efforts of should Christians work in community, explain?
7. In “doing” per se does that apply only to helping others, or are there self concerns?
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Scripture Reading
Psalm 50:19 - Thou givest thy mouth to evil, and thy tongue frameth deceit. 52:2 - Thy tongue deviseth mischiefs; like a sharp razor, working deceitfully. 52:4 - Thou lovest all devouring words, O thou deceitful tongue.109:2 - For the mouth of the wicked and the mouth of the deceitful are opened against me: they have spoken against me with a lying tongue. 10:7 - His mouth is full of cursing and deceit and fraud: under his tongue is mischief and vanity 5:9 - For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue. 120:2 - Deliver my soul, O LORD, from lying lips, and from a deceitful tongue. 120:3 - What shall be given unto thee? or what shall be done unto thee, thou false tongue?
Matthew 7:24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 25 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. 26 And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: 27 And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
Closing Prayer
Father God, as we depart this place, help us in our efforts to be worthy disciples in being doers as well as hearers of your word. Help us to recall your teaching and examples to hold our tongue and listen as James teaches, and bless us and our efforts in service to others that we might become worthy of the name disciple. And Father we pray for those in our congregation and those of our friends who need your healing touch. __________Bless these we have named Lord and give them Your peace that their lives might be made whole by your healing. Bless us now as we leave this study, and bring us together again next week. We pray these things in Jesus Holy name AMEN.
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Meditation on The Epistle of James;
“But be ye doers of the word and not hearers only”
(James 1:16-18).“Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be kind of first fruits of all he created”
There is no question for James as to where temptation comes from. "Let no man say 'My temptation comes from God". Temptation comes from within every man. The body is demanding, always crying out to have its basic needs fulfilled. The soul is always exhorting, encouraging the better angels of our natures. The body, soul and mind are not always incompatible, but many times they are. It is important to understand from where temptation comes, and it is even more important to recognize it when it appears. Thus the mind may make decisions to the benefit of the whole being. For sin inevitably leads to the corruption of all of the being - body, mind and soul. It is through God's goodness that we are to seek the wisdom that can protect us from the wiles of this world, and turn our hearts to God through leading a life of discipleship following the teachings of His Son, our Lord Jesus.
Don't be deceived." Believing the lie is often much easier and more appealing than believing the truth. Remember the Creation story of Adam and Eve. Do not think for a moment that God is the author of temptation. Instead of sending temptation, God is the giver of every good and perfect gift. Our free will is God's gift to all who inhabit the earth, even the animals. The concept of goodness rules out the possibility that God would send an influence as destructive as temptation. God does not change. He is always the giver of good gifts, never someone who would entice us to destroy ourselves in sin. God's goodness also helps us to combat the worlds temptations. Then James speaks of the birth a Christian experiences when "born again" describing that person as a kind of "first fruit" of all of God's creation. Do you see the comparison? The born again"True believer" is regarded by God as the epitome of his creation.
James says in verse 20, "Let every man be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger." Even our own folk sayings reflect the wisdom of James. There is a wise saying that speaks to this principle. “One should remain silent and be thought a fool, rather than to speak out and remove all doubt”. We must be careful to hear all the facts of a matter before we speak on it. This also applies in our daily life when making decisions regarding our moral actions. Listen to all the facts, do not be hasty, do not speak out of turn. Most of all, be slow to anger, for anger clouds the mind, and "does not produce the righteousness which God desires."
James tells us to "Prove ourselves to be doers of the word, and not hearers only” James's statement is not at all at odds with Paul's admonition that we are justified "on faith alone". Works are, indeed, important. Although it is faith in the Lord that will save the soul, it is works which will buttress that faith and prove it to be genuine. It is the doer of good deeds who reflects his faith to others. James tells us to be "quick to hear and slow to speak". But he also knows, that to be a Christian is not merely to stay in an Ivory Tower and listen to the word of the Lord. It is, after much heartfelt contemplation, to be "doers of the word". Finally this admonition; “to look after orphans and widows in their distress”. There is no greater service to mankind than to minister to those who are suffering and alone. God will bless Your every effort.....AMEN
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