Reading: James 1:19-27
Speaker: Paul McCabe
Thoughts on Wise Living
When I say the words “bath time” what image is conjured for you? Scented candles? Fragrant bubble bath? Dare I say, even a good glass of wine and an even better book?
Sounds delightful. And I am sure this will be true for me (and many other parents) in years to come. But for this season of our life, “bath time” elicits thoughts of rushing, yelling, splashing, and frayed tempers.
The witching hour in our house is the mad dash from dinnertime, to toileting, to teeth brushing, to bathing, to drying, to dressing … and I could go on. Some nights, God smiles and grace rains down on our happy little clan. But on many nights, wars are waged over whether little Elliott will poop or whether even littler Molly will brush her teeth or decide to eat toothpaste like fine French Canapés.
Please do not get me wrong. I love my family with a passion. Their idiosyncratic late-night antics will be sorely missed one day. But in the here and now, I read and re-read the final passage of James 1 like a thirsty deer lapping at its favourite stream. The waters of James are crystal clear. They nourish my soul and prevent collapse when I know tomorrow night (and the next, and the next) will have me back in the “bath time” trenches.
When I am tested by one of our children in the toilet and berated by the other in the bathroom, the angel on my shoulder says: “Come on. You know the drill. Remember the words of James.” But what does James say?
Almost all of us know James 1:22 – “Do not just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says.” The thrust of the original Greek is that we must “keep on becoming” doers of God’s Word. It says the Christian life is no one-time magic act, but a whole lifetime of trial and error.
True faith is obedience that endures. Doers of the Word are the opposite of Sunday morning Christians who only go to church to hear a sermon as an interesting spiritual discourse. That is not who Christ calls us to be. And James knew that the Lord taught only doers of the Word are blessed: “Even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice” (Luke 11:28). And I know I want to be blessed. Don’t you?
When I first studied Scripture, I struggled over the split nature of New Testament epistles. I was gripped by the first few chapters of each letter. Their profound theology would suck me in, but I would struggle with the practical chapters that closed out most epistles.
I thought God Word’s was given to open our minds to Christ and save our souls. Job done. So why did I then need Peter, Paul, James, or John to tell me how to live in this present kingdom. Well, because Christianity is about “the now but not-yet.” The not-yet of eternity was dealt with by Christ’s death on the cross, but the here-and-now of life is very much a work in progress.
James does not just suggest but he insists that as ambassadors of Christ we “must be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry” (James 1:19). God desires righteousness, and anger is not the way. The only way out of temptation to sin, James says, is to “humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls” (1:21).
So, when my patience is tested as our family’s day winds down, when my nerves feel frayed and my blood begins to boil, where do I turn? I turn to the Word that is treasured in my heart. I turn to Christ and His inspired authors. I remember the righteousness that God lays out in Scripture, and I am confronted with one pressing question: “Will I be a hearer or a doer?”
Mere hearers do not get off light. James calls them fools. Adherents in worthless religion. In the first of many profound illustrations, James says if we hear to the Word but do not obey and act out our Christianity, we are like men and women who glance in a mirror. We see ourselves, but like true fools, we then walk away and immediately forget what we look like.
But here is the good news! If we swap quick glances and fleeting interests in Sunday morning sermons for deep, penetrating searches of Scripture, we will be blessed and we will bless those around us. We will step out into this fallen world and represent Christ in all His glory. We will announce the One who rules today and who welcomes everyone into His eternal kingdom.