Solomon emphasizes this point as he writes, "Buy the truth, and sell it not" (Proverbs 23:23). vii. In the early church the teachers were of first rate importance Wherever they are mentioned, they are mentioned with honour. The wisdom that is from above The pure religion of the Lord Jesus, bought by his blood, and infused by his Spirit. For surely that which a man says publicly will be used to measure himself; and it is well to be prepared for it. Accordingly the epistle savours of this. It originally meant spinning for hire and was used of serving women. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1950), p. 45. For the yoke, thereof is a yoke of iron and the bands thereof are bands of, brass. "Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh." This word "pure" (hagne) is closely related to the word "holy" (hagios). Speak not evil one of another, brethren. Of all Jewish writers, Jesus ben Sirach, the writer of Ecclesiasticus, was most impressed with the terrifying potentialities of the tongue. The wisdom from above is not envious, but pure; is not contentious, but peaceable; does not create confusion, but is patient and conciliatory; and instead of producing every evil work, it is full of mercy or benevolence, and of the fruits of benevolence, being not censorious or partial in judgment, and not dissembling, or acting dishonestly. (i) The true wisdom is pure. On the other hand, to "a servant of God" he adds, "and of the Lord Jesus Christ." There were no people so prone to ordinary swearing as the Jews. Unfortunately, this spirit often finds its way into the church. This leads to another character of trial in inward evil, not in outward. It is perfectly true that, when God begins to deal with a soul, He certainly begins with him as a sinner; but He never ends there. Has the tongue a hand? Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well: the devils also believe and tremble." WebTHE LETTER OF JAMES. John says, "And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure" (1 John 3:3). This is a highly compressed sentence. One sees thoroughly, in the midst of the utmost difference otherwise, how it is the same divine mind a mind above the contractedness of man. John MacArthur is the pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, as well as an author, conference speaker, president of The Masters University and Seminary, and featured teacher with the Grace to You media ministry. 15; Trall. There is a kind of depraved wisdom which seduces men away from their loyalty to God. The mouth is the voice piece of the heart of man. It is rendered by the Vulg., as not judging uncensorious; by Beza, without contending incontroversial; by Erasmus, making no difference impartial; and by Hammond, not doubting, i.e., as to the faith. Yet the remarkable feature we have also to weigh here is that when works are thus introduced, attention is directed to what would be perfectly valueless if they were not the result of faith, nay, worse than valueless, positively evil, and entailing the severest punishment. It is perfectly plain from the early portion of the Acts of the Apostles, and confirmed too by the latest glimpses which the Holy Ghost gives us of the church in Jerusalem, that there was still a great and decided cleaving to that which was properly Jewish on the part of the early Christians there. We pray father god here tonight that our hearts would be open to receive all the things you have for us. The picture was one the Jews of Palestine knew well. And of course you can go down to Sea World or over to Marineland and see how they have trained the fish. Thus it has been often and very aptly described as a loving parent who tells his child that he must go here or there; that is, the very places which he knows perfectly the child would be most gratified to visit. Speech is apt to be the expression of our nature of ourselves. This wisdom is then peaceable: This is one of the great words of character description in the NT. The true wisdom is full of mercy (eleos, G1656) and good fruits. He says that you should show forth the wisdom by your manner of living. In this sense the phrase very nearly means the wheel of fortune, always changing and always variable. That is to say, in the Old Testament we have an exceptional address to the Gentiles; in the New Testament we have an exceptional address to the Jews. Every teacher runs the risk of becoming "Sir Oracle." Cleanse your hands, ye sinners." Finding fault in others, while ignoring ones own shortcomings, causes the Christian to be hypocritical (Matthew 7:5). Alas! Note that blocking some types of cookies may impact your experience on our websites and the services we are able to offer. This he brings in: "If any of you lack wisdom." without partiality: "Without partiality" (adiakritos) is the next characteristic mentioned. Three times a day the devout Jew had to repeat the Shemoneh Esreh, the famous eighteen prayers called Eulogies, every one of which begins, "Blessed be thou, O God." All unconsciously they tend, as Shakespeare had it, to say, And when I open my lips let no dog bark!". It would be waste of time to speak of such a thing now, if it were not of practical moment; but I am convinced that it is' and that this and other stereotyped phrases of the religious world gravely need and will not bear an examination in the light of scripture. I could have let them know that it really didn't matter.Now he goes on to another subject and that is of true wisdom. Of all Greek words in the New Testament this is the most untranslatable. The rest of the chapter takes up another subject the case of God's discipline. WebJames 3:17 But the wisdom that is from above Which has God for its author; which is infused into the soul by the Spirit of God; and leads into the knowledge of things that are James warns these Christians not to show preferential treatment to certain ones. So, if it were his only son that came of Sarah, so much the more bound to his heart because so singularly given in the pure favour of God, yet he would give him up, and be prepared with his own hand to do the dreadful deed. But we have to take care that we are guided of God in this, which is important in the present day when we know that the spirit of the age is endeavouring to blot out God in all that touches man here below. But not more certainly was Paul inspired to present Abraham's faith and Abraham's act too in this closing circumstance of his life (we may say, the great and final test of his faith), not more was Paul guided in his application, than James was in that which has been just now before us. These "general epistles," as they are called, are placed not after the Pauline but before them. There is no disguise or mask assumed. Surely, brothers, a fig-tree cannot produce olives, nor a vine figs, nor can salt water produce fresh water? is the opposite of stiff and unbending. (Moffatt) Eupeithes can mean easy to persuade, not in the sense of being pliable and weak, but in the sense of not being stubborn and of being willing to listen to reason and to appeal true wisdom is not rigid but is willing to listen and skilled in knowing when wisely to yield. (Barclay). So on Rahab's story I need not dwell, except just to show how remarkably guided of divine wisdom was James's allusion. When a man is conscious that his wisdom is of a suspicious kind, one can understand him unwilling to have his mind or will disputed; but the truth is, that there is nothing which so much marks the superiority of grace and truth and wisdom that God gives as patience, and the absence of anxiety to push what one knows is right and true. It is not merely that we are objects of this blessing. Strenuously by the Holy Ghost, there is no question that the facts which scripture presents to us regarding the church in Jerusalem are as I have endeavoured to state them. We know how easily "learned discussion can produce passion." So the Orphic devotee who had achieved could say, "I have flown out of the sorrowful, weary wheel." James uses two interesting words. Due to security reasons we are not able to show or modify cookies from other domains. If the danger of hypocrisy was real for Peter, it remains just as much a threat for Christians today. This too is a practical subject. 3:2 There are many things in which we all slip up; but if a man never slips up in his speech, he is a perfect man, able to keep the whole body also on the rein. So in talking about the tongue, it's a very small part of our anatomy. Gods word is perfect and needs no human improvement. James 3:17 On the mount He says, "Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God" (Matthew 5:8). He must, therefore, all his life struggle to avoid two things. It might be easy to say one thing to one individual and an entirely different thing to another, but wisdom does not do that. In all that we have had the question naturally arises, Wherein lies the special propriety of such exhortations or why are they addressed to the twelve tribes? ", On the other hand, one may and should be "blessed." James Commentary They are under that influence in their souls, and accordingly they cloud the light of James with that which was meant to veil the guilty in darkness. An especially if we don't seek to control the tongue. Why Does God Compare Our Relationship with Him to That of a Bride and Groom? The word enters by faith, or, as the apostle has it in Hebrews, is "mixed with faith in them that hear it." In man there is something of the ape and something of the angel, something of the hero and something of the villain, something of the saint and much of the sinner. There are two reasons why the damage which the tongue can do is like a fire. "For what is your life? James 3 See how large they are and how they are driven by rough winds, and see how their course is altered by a very small rudder, wherever the pressure of the steersman desires. This in point of fact weakens instead of establishing what is said; for it is evident that whatever is uncalled for gives no strength to an assertion, but is just a fruit and proof of weakness. (James 1:2-3) Thus it is at once apparent that we are on practical ground the manifestation of godliness toward both man and God, that here the Holy Ghost is pressing this as the very first injunction of the epistle. Because they wanted to do what God prohibited. ". You are free to opt out any time or opt in for other cookies to get a better experience. God was indeed eulogetos ( G2128) , The Blessed One, the One who was continually blessed. word occurs only here in the NT and denotes a consistent, unwavering person who is undivided in his commitment and conviction and does not make unfair distinctions. Do We See Any Gospel Connections in the Book of Numbers? Such disorders raise many temptations, strengthen temptations, and involve men in a great deal of guilt. (b) In Christian thought eleos ( G1656) means mercy which issues in good fruits, that is, which issues in practical help. - MSB, Without partiality (); here only in the New Testament. Again, the epistle of James was written not merely to the church in Jerusalem, but to the twelve tribes that were scattered abroad. Then it entered politics and came to mean that selfish ambition which was out for self and for nothing else and was ready to use any means to gain its ends.
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