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“The Christian's Words And Ways” • 5.13.18 •
Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service
Intro.
- James has been writing to a
group of first century, Jewish Christians, who have been chased out of
Jerusalem by the threat of persecution.
- As that threat had cooled,
perhaps by the loss of the lead persecutor Saul, they re-entered their
Christian lives, which despite their previous trouble, still included trials
and temptations.
- Their faith was to continually
be tested, which they had to endure, and temptations were to abound, which they
were to seek to escape.
- That faith wasn't only an
intellectual exercise of belief that the Christian held as a personal
conviction. It should work if it was to be vindicated in the eyes of men.
- In the chapter before us, James
continues to speak to them along these practical lines, addressing the subject
of our speech and our way of life. Let's pick it up in verse 1.
Text
• James
3:1,2 : "My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that
we shall receive a stricter judgment. For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in
word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body." : James hasn't left his previous thought from chapter 2:12. "So speak and so do as those that will be judged by the law of liberty."
- Their Pastor wants them to know that he isn't
immune from his own warning because of his position. In fact, he and all that
are like him are in a more precarious position!
- With that in mind, James warns them not to seek
the office of a teacher or "master" lightly. Even amongst brethren,
there is a warning against seeking something for it's own sake.
- Remember that these people are
"post-pentecost" but "pre-Jerusalem council." As a result,
they are predominantly Jewish and their form of worship closely resembles the
synagogue.
- With that as their frame of reference, it
seems that many sought to fill the role of a teacher, even in they weren't
necessarily called to it. "Let not many" may signal a large number of
applicants!
- James is not discouraging them or us from that
service, but he won't have them ignorant of the gravity either. Teachers will
be subject to a "stricter judgment."
- The person who stands to teach God's people
will have to answer to the degree of their responsibility.
- Teachers in the church are not only
Christians who will be judged for how they adhere to the law of liberty, but
are also held responsible for how they teach others to do the same!
- If you have ever wondered why I hold the
positions I do with regard to Bible studies, look no further! For those that
teach here, please take notice and respond accordingly!
- There is a judgment seat for reward that all
Christians will report to and we want to be sure that we don't lose any on that
day or receive correction for not leading they way the Lord intended!
- Knowing that there will be accountability
before God should inspire appropriate fear but James is not so foolish to
expect perfection!
- Everyone stumbles. You have to love the
honesty: We all stumble in various ways!
- There has never been a time in Christian history
when that wasn't the case. Christians have never been perfect, even in what
many consider the "golden age" of the church!
- Think about the New Testament's church
finder. Want to find a good legalistic church? Check out Galatia! How about a
carnal church? Corinth is right up your alley! I could continue!
- We all stumble, offend in many things.
Teachers especially will find themselves in the position of learning to live
out what they are learning and not doing so perfectly.
- How then can a teacher be tested? It begins
by looking at his speech. If he is able to tame his tongue, it generally
follows that he has control over the rest of his life.
- We don't often think much about this, but
consider your first impressions of a person. Before you know anything about
them, oftentimes, their speech reveals certain clues to who they are.
- James is telling us that this is especially
the case with teachers. Verse 3.
• James
3:3,4 : "Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may
obey us, and we turn their whole body. Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by
fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot
desires." : Have you ever considered the
insanity of this? A person of average weight and size can mount a 2,000 pound
animal and control their behavior with a 4 inch leather strap?
- With only a little tug here or a slight
motion of the hand there, that person can control the entire course that the
horse will take without a single objection from the larger animal!
- The same is true of ships, which are tossed
upon the immensity of the sea, but are turned by very small rudder comparable
to the size of the ship. Generally, at sea, it isn't even visible!
- A human being at the helm of a ship can
change the direction of an entire vessel on the ocean with a movement of his
hands, even while under duress.
- James is telling his readers that the element
of control is widely known in the world and it shouldn't be thought unusual for
a person claiming to be a Christian to exercise it over his mouth!
- "But I have a strong need to say
things." Horses have wills! "But the circumstances are such that I
must say something." Ships are driven by fierce winds and they are
controlled!
- There isn't any excuse not to have control
over what comes out of your mouth if you claim to be a Christian and especially
so if you embrace the role of a teacher. Verse 5.
• James
3:5-8 : "Even so the tongue is a
little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles! And the tongue is a fire, a world
of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole
body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird,
of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind. But no man can tame the tongue. It
is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison." : The
tongue, like the bit and the rudder, is literally a micro member!
- The average tongue is only 10cm long and we
generally only see 2/3 of it. The tongue is the only muscle in the body that
isn't supported by your skeleton.
- It is the strongest muscle in your body and
at the same time, the most sensitve. It's small and inordantly mighty! And what
a vehicle it is for boasting! It's a micro member with mega claims!
- James sees the tongue as the tiny spark which
ignites the entire forest before it. The tongue is a fire. In a strange way,
the tongue might even resemble a spark by it's shape and color!
- It's responsible for a whole litany of
troubles! It opens the door to a world of unrighteousness! It invites trouble.
It poses godless ideas and passes them off as truth.
- Consider the position that the tongue holds
among our members. For the Jewish person, the tongue stood guard against that
which would bring ceremonial defilement into the body.
- James, however, must be thinking about what
His brother taught in Matthew 15.
- The religious leaders of His day believed
that eating without properly washed hands could defile you before God. Jesus
taught them true defilement came from within.
• Matthew
15:18-20 : "But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the
heart, and they defile a man. For out
of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts,
false witness, blasphemies. These are
the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a
man.'" : In Matthew 12:34, Jesus summed a similar teaching like this: "Out of the abundance of the heart, the
mouth speaks!"
- How many times in your life can you say that
you were a witness to a tongue's forest fire?
- I can't help but think that James is also
thinking about the speech element within the church of God! Look at where it's
positioned in Christ's body!
- The person who is a teacher, if his tongue is
not controlled, will pass along all sorts of error and falsehood to God's
people! You won't have to look hard for examples of this!
- In such an instance, that tongue can
introduce profound defilement to the body, setting a destructive blaze over all
that God intended for the body of Christ!
- That plan for destruction in a congregation's
life comes from the pit of hell itself! The tongue itself is neutral. It's the
heart that controls the tongue that can bring catastrophic results.
- A man apart from the Lord is unable to tame
the tongue, even though every wild beast in nature has the capacity to be tamed.
We have dancing bears and a "Shamu!"
- Our tongue though is "wnruly"
meaning that it cannot be held. James is telling us that the tongue cannot be
restrained and when it is loose, it's effect is to bring forth death from it's
poison.
- Once again, you have to step back and
consider what James is saying.
- A Christian will be marked by their speech.
Is it edifying? Is it orthodox? Is it gracious and generous? What effect is
being observed when that person speaks? He continues in verse 9.
• James
3:9-12 : "With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men,
who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed
blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring send forth fresh
water and bitter from the same opening? Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear
figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh." : The evil that pours forth from our tongue is the ultimate in
hypocrisy. On the one hand, we use it for what it was intended to produce.
- We open our mouth and we bless the Lord. We
sing our praises to Him. We thank Him and use all sorts of wonderfully worded
prayers that speak of our affection toward God.
- And then, with the same mouth, we look at an
image bearer of God and curse them to doom and that within an hour of worship!
This is awfully convicting isn't it?
- Our tongues, indeed our entire bodies, are
not meant to be in part time service to God! There should be a consistency that
marks our speech! One tongue, one body, one purpose!
- Look at nature and you'll see that same
expectation. You won't find a natural
spring that gives you the option for fresh or bitter water out of the same
opening.
- You can't go to a certain type of tree and
expect a variety of fruit. A tree bears singular fruit!
- Our words reflect the character of our
hearts. If I speak in a way that contradicts the Lord's heart, I need to be
concerned about the contradiction that I am reflecting.
- When it comes to speech, a teacher can't let
circumstances determine how he speaks, nor can he allow his tongue to have free
reign. He should demonstrate control and consistency.
- But what about his actions? How should he
proceed to live his life and what should be the marks of his leadership? James
looks at that beginning in verse 13.
• James
3:13-16 : "Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good
conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter envy and
self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from
above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking
exist, confusion and every evil thing are there. " : James isn't looking for hands to be raised when he asks for the
wise and understanding. He is about to impose a test that will root out
unqualified teachers.
- The words "wise and understanding"
were designations used by the Rabbis. If you were seeking to be a
"Master" among a new type of synagogue, you might desire that
designation.
- If you are truly wise and endowed with the
understanding of God's ways, then there will be a test of that claim which will
be verified through actions.
- James commands all that have such a testimony
to furnish proof by their a sustained, good manner of life that are marked by
the "meekness of wisdom."
- "Meekness" is essentially the
control of all faculties. This word was used by the Greeks to describe a horse
that had been tamed!
- If you have the power to say something, the
greater power is to abstain from saying something! If you are able to overpower
a person, the more impressive feat is to empower another!
- Humility, gentleness are sure marks of a
person who lives under the counsel of God's wisdom. Unfortunately, there is a counterfeit
which is sadly more prevalent.
- If this person claims to be wise and aware of
God's ways, but is yet found with bitter envy and self-seeking, there is
something that doesn't add up.
- Does this sound consistent to you, knowing
how it is that the Lord Jesus operated? "Bitter envy," could be
rendered a "sharp, piercing and harsh zeal."
- "Self-seeking" comes from a word
that is translated elsewhere, "strife." It's connected to
electioneering or positioning oneself for consideration to an office!
- Interestingly, Aristotle used this word to
describe a person who pursued political office by unfair means! (Blue Letter
Bible note on "eritheia")
- A person who claims to be following God's
ways, but is filled with sharp, piercing zeal and contention as their standard
operating procedure can't claim the leading of God's spirit!
- That kind of wisdom doesn't originate from
heaven. It's reeks of worldiness and isn't spiritual, but is natural, indeed,
because of it's intent, it's demonic!
- Wherever these things are found, you are sure
to find disorder and chaos. That doesn't come from the Lord! What does wisdom
from the Lord look like? Verse 17.
• James
3:17,18 : "But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable,
gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and
without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who
make peace." : Before anything else can be said,
it's patently obvious that anyone that calls themselves a Christian, must
desire to know and embody this.
- The two contrasting viewpoints are not promoted
as options. Worldly wisdom is to be forsaken and godly wisdom is to be
embraced.
- That wisdom that comes from God is first,
primarily, chiefly, pure. The word is used to describe something as being clean
or as the metaphor goes, innocent.
- Compare that with the previous words. This
person has no agenda, but is promoting something that comes from a clean
conscience. On top of that, the Lord's wisdom is peaceable.
- Peace comes along with the Lord's wisdom. It
is part of the package. So it is with gentleness, which refers to that which is
suitable, or equitable.
- The people that espouse God's wisdom will
always be able to discover a road that's agreeable and fair to multiple parties.
- When something is prolonged, the person that
is filled with God's wisdom is willing to yield. They can be persuaded to take
an alternate course.
- They are not doggedly determined to have
their way. For the sake of everyone else's best, they are happy to oblige.
- These type of people are filled full of mercy
and good fruits. You won't be able to find them in another state without
extreme duress. This is their supernatural disposition in the Lord!
- They aren't dubious and they are completely
sincere in their dealings. Wouldn't you like to be surrounded these people?
That is what a Christian community is supposed to look like!
- This cannot be engineered by a Pastor or a
group of leaders. This can only take place by the power of the Lord and the
guiding influence of the Holy Spirit!
- This happens when God's people willingly
submit themselves to the Holy Spirit and not until then! But what production
comes from such a group!
- The fruit of righteousness, the harvest that
comes from this group, can only come when that group lives peaceably with each
other! Listen to verse 18 in the
NLT.
• James
3:18 (NLT) : "And those
who are peacemakers will plant seeds of peace and reap a harvest of
righteousness." : That sounds like a wonderful place
to live!
Conclusion
- If you
consider yourself a Christian, that claim will be verified first by how you
speak. If the criteria were put before a public court, would they be able to
find the following verdict to be true.
- "This
person demonstrates an ability to control their tongue and what they say is
consistent with what we know of God's Word." Control and consistency is
the mark for Christians and teachers!
- And what of
your way? Are you prone to letting your harsh zeal and campaign strategy lead
the way? You haven't embraced God's wisdom yet and it won't lead anywhere good!
- God's church
and the life that God touches must be lived in God's way if you expect God's
blessing! "So speak and so live as ones that will be judged by the law of
liberty!"
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