Main Point
Listen to and live out the Word
Sermon Notes
Passage
James 1:19-27 (NIV)
My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness 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 someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 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.
Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their 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.
Explanation
VERSES 19 - 21
Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry
Quick to listen can be both to the word that we were saved by in verse 18, or can also just be a general principle. The former fits the context, the latter fits the wisdom traditions of Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Sirach. The slow to speak fits more likely the general principle, but also can fit as a synthesis.
Ecclesiastes 5:1-7 Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong. Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few. A dream comes when there are many cares, and many words mark the speech of a fool.When you make a vow to God, do not delay to fulfill it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow. It is better not to make a vow than to make one and not fulfill it. Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands? Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore fear God.
Slow to become angry
Once again, the goal is to be like God who Himself is slow to anger
Exodus 34:6; Numbers 14:18; Psalm 86:15; Psalm 103:8; Psalm 145:8; Jonah 4:2; Joel 2:13; Nehemiah 9:17; Nahum 1:3
Again, this is advice also for us that the fool is one of quick temper.
because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.
The Greek here is literally God’s righteousness
Remember what the point of our hardship and trials are?
Remember the paths of life and death?
Which path is human anger on?
The problem with human anger
Injured pride, false judgment
James’s very simple point is that human anger does not produce behavior that is pleasing to God. Presumably, he is thinking especially of different sinful acts, such as violence, murder (see Matt. 5:21–26 and Jas. 4:2–3), and especially, in this context, unwise speech, that stem from anger. (Moo)
Does James intend to prohibit all anger of any kind—even what we sometimes called “righteous anger”? Probably not. James falls into the wisdom genre at this point. And wisdom sayings are notorious for the use of apparently absolute assertions in order to make a general, “proverbial” point. Qualification of that general truth is often found in other biblical contexts. So we can assume that James intends us to read his warning as a general truth that applies in most cases: human anger is not usually pleasing to God, leading as it does to all kinds of sins. That it can never be pleasing to God would be an interpretation that is insensitive to the style in which James writes at this point. (Moo)
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.
The NIV rid yourselves of translates a Gk. verb (apotithemai) that means to “take off.” The word connotes the idea of removing clothes (cf. Acts 7:58), and the imagery is applied metaphorically in the NT to the “stripping off” of the pre-Christian lifestyle from the believer (see Rom. 13:12; Eph. 4:22, 25; Col. 3:8; Heb. 12:1; 1 Pet. 2:1). (Moo)
This verb in Peter and Paul’s writings often conveys the image of conversion or baptism. (Blomberg and Kamell, 87)
James warns believers that putting off sin involves a fight against a foe that takes many different forms. Like an army with many soldiers, sin attacks us persistently and in many guises. Knock down one sin, and another quickly arises to takes its place in the spiritual conflict in which we are engaged. (Moo)
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.
He has just been speaking of the word of God as the seed in the womb (18) issuing in birth. Now he speaks of the word of God as the seed in the soil (21) growing to the (full) salvation of the soul. He has held before us the stimulating prospect of the future crown (12). Now he wants to help us to enter into a present salvation (21) and a blessing here and now (25). He has made us aware that our position as Christians is one of conflict, the battle of the two natures within us. But the word is able to save (21), and God’s law is a law of liberty (25). (Motyer)
We should especially note that James here portrays salvation as future from the standpoint of the believer. Some Christians, accustomed to equating salvation with conversion or regeneration, might be troubled by this future orientation. But, in fact, such a focus is quite customary in the NT, where the verb “save” and the noun “salvation” often refer to the believer’s ultimate deliverance from sin and death that takes place at the time of Christ’s return in glory (see, e.g., Rom. 5:9, 10; 13:11; 1 Thess. 5:9; Phil. 2:12; 1 Tim. 4:16; 2 Tim. 4:18; Heb. 9:28; 1 Pet. 1:5, 9; 2:2; 4:18). James’s other uses of the terminology share this future orientation (2:14; 4:12; 5:20; in 5:15, “save” applies to physical, not spiritual, deliverance). This perspective on salvation is important to keep in mind if we are to understand James’s theology correctly. (Moo)
Humility is another key expression for James. By it, he is not commanding us to become doormats, enjoining a wimpy submissiveness to whatever might come one’s way. Rather, he calls for a patient self-effacement free of any malice, anger, repressed frustration, or even arrogant assertiveness. IN the Grec-Roman world, humility was not typically viewed as a virtue; many then saw it as an outright weakness. In Judaism and Christianity, however, humility before God remains essential, as demonstrated by Christ’s example of humble submission to the will of the Father even unto death. (Blomberg and Kamell)
VERSES 22-25
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.
While we should be quick to listen, we should not think listening is enough.
1 Corinthians 8:1-2: Now about food sacrificed to idols: We know that “We all possess knowledge.” But knowledge puffs up while love builds up. Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know. But whoever loves God is known by God.
Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 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.
Matthew 7:24-27: “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
Both making it clear that listening to the word without doing it is foolish and wasteful.
The illustration unfolds as the person studies their face closely “in a mirror”. Mirrors were typically used for toiletry, and as such “they formed useful items for illustrations for all teachers.” Mirrors in the ancient world were very different from our modern crystalline inventions. Generally made of polished bronze or copper, they produced dim and warped reflections. While one could gain a good impression of oneself, one could not simply glance at such a mirror and learn much. So one would have to “consider” carefully what one saw in a mirror. Martin adds that “what is seen in a mirror is meant to lead to action, usually regarded as remedial,” for example a dirty face that needs washing. Yet here this person goes away and fails to deal with the flaws that the mirror revealed. (Blomberg and Kamell, 90)
Another contrast here
Listening without doing is like looking at a mirror; Listening with doing is about looking into the perfect law
Once again the focus turns from me and my circumstances to the eternal
Not what I see and desire, but what I see God desires
Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 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.
The Law was a gift, a tool, a joyous and wondrous thing
Deuteronomy 4:8; Psalm 19; Psalm 119
But why? Why would the people of Israel consider these rules a treasure? What’s the big deal? To understand their enthusiasm, we need to walk a mile in their sandals. The Israelites lived in a time when people were desperate to know what the gods were saying. Since the gods didn’t normally speak audibly as you and I do, priests were trained to read the signs they left in the natural world. .Sometimes they manufactured situations in which the gods could reveal things to them, such as the elaborate rituals in which they dropped oil or flour into water and interpreted the results. They sacrificed animals and studied their livers or intestines (yes, their bloody guts) for clues about what the gods were thinking or what they would do next. They watched for strange births or newborn animals with defects. They studied the stars. They contacted the dead, doing whatever it took to forecast the future or discern the will of the gods. The answer was not guaranteed. Sometimes they just couldn’t figure out what the gods wanted. Check out this excerpt of an ancient prayer written in Akkadian, the language of ancient Assyria and Babylon. Dating roughly to the same time as the Exodus, the “Prayer to Any God” is characteristic of the literature of this period, which depicts humans as unable to comprehend the ways of the gods.May (my) lord’s angry heart be reconciled,May the god I do not know be reconciled,May the goddess I do not know be reconciled,May the god, whoever he is, be reconciled,May the goddess, whoever she is, be reconciled,O (my) lord, many are my wrongs, great are my sins,O my god, many are my wrongs, great are my sins,O my goddess, many are my wrongs, great my sins,O god, whoever you are, many are my wrongs, great my sins,O goddess, whoever you are, many are my wrongs, great my sins!I do not know what wrong I have doneI do not know what sin I have committedI do not know what abomination I have perpetratedI do not know what taboo I have violated!The prayer is soaked in anguish. The one praying is not at all certain to whom he is even praying-”whoever you are”-or how he has angered the gods-”I know not know what wrong I have done”. His prayer is a scramble to cover all his possible bases. He was desperate to know the deity and to please him or her.Not so with Israel. God took the initiative. He chose them, rescued them, established them as his people, and then told them exactly what he expected. God spoke. No more guesswork. No wondering what would make him happy or angry. He made it all clear up front. How freeing! (Imes 33-34)
The perfect Law - love God and love others
John 8:34-36: Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.
Continues in it - the path of life - sanctification
VERSES 26-27
Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their 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.
Matthew 12:33-37 “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their 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.
Matthew 25:31-46 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’“They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’“He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’“Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
Those who consider themselves religious and yet do not keep a tight rein on their tongues deceive themselves, and their 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.
MIcah 6:8 - He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
Application
LISTEN TO THE WORD
We need to listen to the Word of God made flesh - the Lord Jesus Christ. We need to know Him by reading the Scriptures.
As great as sermons, or studies, or classes, or books are, they are just tools to help us - the Scriptures are the power of God that we need to have deep within us.
LIVE THE WORD
It is possible to be unfailingly regular in Bible reading, but to achieve no more than to have moved the book-mark forward: this is reading unrelated to an attentive spirit. The word is read but not heard. On the other hand, if we can develop an attentive spirit, this will spur us to create those conditions—a proper method in Bible-reading, a discipline of time, and so on—by which the spirit will find itself satisfied in hearing the Word of God (Motyer)
As a prominent component of that new covenant arrangement, God promises to put his law within his people, to write it on their hearts (Jer. 31:33). The repeated failures of Israel to obey the law that God gave to them had made it clear that the human heart was not capable of submitting to external rules. A new, interior work would have to be done, giving people a “new heart” (see the somewhat parallel passage in Ezek. 36:24–32) so that they could respond truly and obediently to God’s word. James’s language reminds his readers that they have experienced the fulfillment of that wonderful promise. But it also reminds them that the word that has saved them cannot be dispensed with after conversion. God plants it within his people, making it a permanent, inseparable part of the believer, a guiding and commanding presence within. (Moo)
People who merely listen to the word, James says, are on dangerous ground: they deceive themselves. Paul uses this same verb in Col. 2:4 (its only other occurrence in the NT), where he warns the Colossian Christians about false teachers who “deceive” people “by fine-sounding arguments.” The idea of “deceive” in these contexts is clear: to be “deceived” is to be blinded to the reality of one’s true religious state. People can think that they are right with God when they really are not. And so it is for those people who “hear” the word—regular church attenders, seminary students, and even seminary professors—but do not “do” it. They are mistaken in thinking that they are truly right with God. For God’s word cannot be divided into parts. If one wants the benefits of its saving power, one must also embrace it as a guide for life. The person who fails to do the word, James therefore suggests (in an anticipation of his argument in 2:14–26), is a person who has not truly accepted God’s word at all. (Moo)
WATCH YOUR WORDS
Our society is full of words - and more than that we are full of words designed to destroy.
We know that anger sells - and that algorithms and creators and yes, even news outlets and politicians are trying to incite us to anger and rage and hate because it controls us (BBC)
Uncontrolled anger leads to uncontrolled speech. How often do we find ourselves regretting words spoken “in the heat of the moment”! The wise person, James reminds us, will therefore learn to control the emotion of anger and so eliminate one of the most common sources of hasty and unwise speech. Psychologists will sometimes claim that emotions, since they are a natural product of the personality, cannot truly be controlled—only suppressed or ignored. But James’s exhortation here (and many similar biblical exhortations) presume differently. Emotions are the product of the entire person; and, by God’s grace and the work of the Spirit, the person can be transformed so as to bring emotions in line with God’s word and will (Moo)
Resources Used
Barclay, William. The Letters of James and Peter. The Daily Study Bible. Rev. ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2003.
Blomberg, Craig L., and Mariam J. Kamell. James. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008.
Bray, Gerald L., ed. James, 1–2 Peter, 1–3 John, Jude. Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, New Testament XI. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2000.
Imes, Carmen Joy Bearing God’s Name: Why Sinai Still Matters. Downers Grove: IVP Academic, 2019.
Moo, Douglas J. The Letter of James. Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000. (Digital edition)
Motyer, J. Alec. The Message of James. The Bible Speaks Today. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1985. (Digital edition)
Wright, N. T. The Early Christian Letters for Everyone: James, Peter, John, and Jude. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2011.
Wright, N. T., and Michael F. Bird. The New Testament in Its World. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Academic, 2019.