PREACHED:OL,
James Study #3
“PRACTICE
MAKES PERFECT”
INTRODUCTION
1@ RECURRING EMPHASIS—UNDERSTANDING
A. Vs. 13, 16. “Let no one say when he is tempted, ‘I am being tempted by God’…Do
not be deceived…”
B. V. 22. “But be doers of the word and not hearers
only, deceiving yourselves…”
C. V. 26. “If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives
his heart, this person’s religion is worthless…”
D. Thus
far James has helped us understand, Vs. 1-18:
1.
Trials
of life
Temptation to sin
Nature of God
2. We
have looked at three focuses:
a. The
Christian’s patience in the trials of life, vs. 1-12
b. The
Christian’s power over temptation to sin, vs. 13-17
c. The
Christian’s position as a redeemed soul, vs. 18.
2@ TONIGHT—THE CHRISTIAN’S PRACTICE
A. Vs.
19-27.
1. What
do we mean by the Christian practice?
DISCUSSION
1Ü CHRISTIAN PRACTICE INVOLVES THE EARS, TONGUE AND HEART
(DISPOSITION):
A. V. 19 “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow
to speak, slow to anger…”
1. Generally,
a concept of righteous wisdom:
a. James
has already introduced wisdom earlier -
1) V. 5. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God…and it will be given him…”
a) Important
because we need wisdom in all our Christian walk—think, say and do!
2. The
O.T. books of Wisdom speak to what is introduced here by James:
a. These
Jewish converts would be well-acquainted with the references:
1) Proverbs 1:2-7. “To know wisdom and instruction, to understand words of insight, to
receive instruction in wise dealings, in righteousness, justice, and equity; to
give prudence to the simple, knowledge and discretion to the youth—Let the wise
hear and increase in learning, and the one who understands obtain guidance…The
fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and
instruction…”
2) Proverbs 18:15. “An intelligent heart acquires knowledge, and the ear of the wise seeks
knowledge.”
3) Proverbs 17:27. “Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool
spirit is a man of understanding.”
4) Proverbs 18:6, 7. “A fool’s lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a beating. A
fool’s mouth is his ruin, and his lips are a snare to his soul…”
5) Proverbs 29:20, 22. Do you see a man who is hasty in his words?
There is more hope for a fool than for him…one given to anger causes much
transgression.”
3. Other N.T. writers speak to the
same:
a. Romans 12:18, 19. “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.
Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is
written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’”
b. Eph 4:26. “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your
anger…” V. 29. “Let all bitterness
and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all
malice…”
1) The
anger that Paul speaks about is a feeling of provocation, but it becomes sin
when I allow it to fester and produce bitterness, a desire for vengeance and a
loose tongue that tries to destroy the character and reputation of another.
3. You
may have wondered where these words came from, but they were originally those
of Zeno,
the
classical writer: “We have two
ears, but only one mouth, that we may hear more and speak less.”
4.
Another classical writer said the best rulers were those who do so, “Without anger, speaking little, and
listening much.”
5. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN: “A pair of good ears will drink dry a hundred tongues.”
B. All
of us could testify to the tragedies that have occurred because somebody didn’t
listen, spoke without really thinking it through and became boiling mad and
struck out in ignorance and pride!
1. Marriages
have been destroyed, relationships between parents and children have been
strained, jobs have been lost, churches have been splintered, lives have been
taken by mistake and souls have been lost!
2Ü CHRISTIAN
PRACTICE INVOLVES MORAL PURITY:
A. V. 21. “Therefore, put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness…”
1. “Therefore,” indicates
James’ conclusion from his foregoing exhortation concerning listening, speaking
and disposition…
a. Here
is the instruction he wants them to readily hear, meditate on without
responding too quickly to it, and not to be angry and rebellious!
2. Any
kind of morally impure action or word that could be easily described as dirty,
filthy and defiled:
a. Colossians 3:5-10. “Put to death therefore whatever is earthly in
you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which
is idolatry. On account of these things the wrath of God is coming. In these
you too once walked, when you were living in them. But now you must put them
all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth…”
1) What
is normal and glamorous to a corrupt world is filthy, dirty and abnormal for
the Christian!
a) God
destroyed the earth with the flood when He, “…saw
that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of
the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”
B. JOHN HOWE: “A religion that never suffices to govern a man will never suffice to
save him. That which does not distinguish him from a sinful world, will never
distinguish him from a perishing world.”
3Ü CHRISTIAN PRACTICE IS INSEPARABLE FROM GOD’S WORD:
A. V 22. “…and receive with meekness the implanted
word, which is able to save your souls.”
B. He has already used the image of birth:
1. What sin gives birth to—death!
2. What
God gives birth to—New life that is to be “firstfruits of his creation.”
C. Here,
James reveals the “seed” that produces the new birth, the new person, the “firstfruit” kind of person, the best of his creation!
1. The Word of God!
D. Jesus
said, that the seed of the kingdom is the Word of
God, Matthew 13 & Luke 8.
E. I Pet
F. Jesus
spoke of the soil being an imperative to fruit bearing—good soil…lasting,
constant fruit—bad soil… no fruit or temporary fruit!
1. What
makes the soil receptive? “Meekness!”
a. We
may best see what meekness is by seeing what it is not: Self-assertiveness
and Self- interest.
1) Meekness
has a calmness, tenderness and simplicity of spirit about it because it is not
occupied with self at all!
a) A
Spirit of total surrender and submission!
b) It
is a Samuel saying, “Speak Lord, for
your servant hears!”
4Ü CHRISTIAN PRACTICE IS NOT JUST
HEARING BUT DOING:
A. Vs 22-25. “But be doers of the word, and not hearers
only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the
word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in
a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away
and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect
law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer
who acts, he will be blessed…”
1. The law of liberty—The New Covenant:
a. Not
a covenant of perfect law keeping, but a covenant of trust and obedience.
1) Romans 1:4. “…we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith…”
2) Romans 16:25,26. “Now to him who is able to strengthen you
according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the
revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has not been
disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all
nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about obedience of faith…”
b. It
is a law that can be “looked into” so it is not a matter of personal
intuition, but of recorded instruction.
1) II Timothy 3:16,17.
“All scripture is breathed out by God
and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, and for training in righteousness,
that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”
c. It
is a message that can also be heard and acted upon.
1) I Thessalonians 2:13. “And we also thank God constantly for this, that
when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not
as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work
in you believers.”
2) Ephesians 4:17-24. “Now this I say and testify in the Lord that
you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds.
They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God
because of their ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.
They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to
practice every kind of impurity. But that is not the way you learned Christ!—assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus, to put off your old
self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through
deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self created after the
likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness…”
d. It
will be our standard of judgment:
1) 2:12. “So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of
liberty!
2) John 12:48. “..The word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day…”
B. The
point is clear: You may be quick to listen but it means nothing if you
don’t immediately apply it in your life!
1. I
hope and pray that you will leave tonight with the firm intention to act on
what you have seen tonight about yourself
in the mirror the soul!
CONCLUSION
1Ø AND WHAT WILL BE THE RESULT?
A. V. 27. “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the Father…”
B. That
same meekness that selflessly bows before the will of God for its life’s
standard, will also selflessly seek to care for the needs of others, especially
those who are without any help themselves:
1. This
religion is practical it will: “…visit
orphans and widows in their affliction, and…keep oneself
unstained from the world…”