Second Section: James 1, 19-27
Begin by praying and reading through the specific passage as many times as you deem fit before answering the questions. You may find it helpful to write down your answers to the questions and any other thoughts you may have. Putting things on the paper will help you think through the issues, pin the most relevant thoughts in your mind and reflect on how they specifically apply to your own situation. It will also be of help when you look back to bring back all that God has been teaching you.
James 1:19-27 Amplified Bible (AMP)
Authentic religious behaviour (1:19–27)
19 Understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Let everyone be quick to hear [be a careful, thoughtful listener], slow to speak [a speaker of carefully chosen words and], slow to anger [patient, reflective, forgiving]; 20 for the [resentful, deep-seated] anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God [that standard of behavior which He requires from us]. 21 So get rid of all uncleanness and all that remains of wickedness, and with a humble spirit receive the word [of God] which is implanted [actually rooted in your heart], which is able to save your souls. 22 But prove yourselves doers of the word [actively and continually obeying God’s precepts], and not merely listeners [who hear the word but fail to internalize its meaning], deluding yourselves [by unsound reasoning contrary to the truth]. 23 For if anyone only listens to the word without obeying it, he is like a man who looks very carefully at his natural face in a mirror; 24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he immediately forgets what he looked like. 25 But he who looks carefully into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and faithfully abides by it, not having become a [careless] listener who forgets but an active doer [who obeys], he will be blessed and favored by God in what he does [in his life of obedience].
26 If anyone thinks himself to be religious [scrupulously observant of the rituals of his faith], and does not control his tongue but deludes his own heart, this person’s religion is worthless (futile, barren). 27 Pure and unblemished religion [as it is expressed in outward acts] in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit and look after the fatherless and the widows in their distress, and to keep oneself uncontaminated by the [secular] world.
James 1, 19–25: Hearers and Doers
When the word is heard and received all that is opposed to God’s righteousness must be put away. We do that by being doers and not just hearers of the word. James is telling us here that receiving the word it is not just to know it but obey it, put it into practice. In the next verses hearers of the word are warned of the dangers of not doing and a special explanation is given of the difference between vain and pure religion, as we shall see in due course.
In my view, these verses must be read against the background of the words with which Jesus concludes the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew's Gospel.
“So everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, will be like a wise man [a far-sighted, practical, and sensible man] who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods and torrents came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not do them, will be like a foolish (stupid) man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods and torrents came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great and complete was its fall.” [Matthew 7, 24-27]
In fact, it seems appropriate to say at this point that the entire letter can and should be considered an extensive commentary on the Sermon on the Mount. Reading the letter in this way sheds considerable light on its content and makes it easier to understand.
We see that it is not enough to hear the word of God, we must put it into practice, we must do it, obey it. Certainly, the first step is to listen to it in order to know that it is what God wants and asks of us, but we cannot stay there if we want the word of God to transform our life and the life of the Church and ultimately of the world. It is only when we act that we change our circumstances, our emotions and feelings and can come closer to God.
Another topic that appears in this section and that will reappear in chapter 3 is the topic of control of what we say [verse 19]. This theme was of great importance in the whole development of later Christianity; it appears in all the monastic rules, in the counsels of life of the Fathers of the Church and in all the spiritual writers of all the later centuries, especially the mystics. Of course, also this topic of the need to control what we say is taken by James from the preaching of Jesus [Matthew 5:33-37].
In verses 19, James makes a threefold appeal to his readers, to us:
(1) " quick to hear", (2) "slow to speak" and (3) "slow to anger".
Verse 20 is the explanation of what James has said in the previous verse. About wrath, we can say the same thing we have said above about controlling what we say. We can also trace it back to the preaching of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount [Matthew 5:22]. The wrath of God and the wrath of man have nothing in common. The wrath of God is his reaction to evil and is always just. The wrath of man leads to revenge, which, far from realizing the justice that God wants, increases injustice [See Amos 1, 11].
Based on what he said in verses 19 and 20, James exhorts believers to obey the content of verse 21. James establishes the route that the believer must follow in order to work the justice of God.
James establishes the route that the believer must follow in order to produce the righteousness of God, and this is a two-stage road: (1) get rid of all uncleanness and all that remains of wickedness. (2) with a humble spirit receive the word [of God] which is implanted. The Word was implanted in the believer in the act of regeneration, but it is necessary for that word to be rooted, that is, to be part of the believer's very life. It is necessary that the Word of God should dwell, "as in His own house," in the heart of the believer in order that He may accomplish His complete work
The need for believers to obey God's word, to put it into practice, in short to be not only hearers but doers of what they have received from God, is the recurring theme of the letter of James. And that idea of obedience closes the first chapter, in the last verses it concludes that true religiosity, the authentic relationship with God includes obedience to this law of liberty.
The law of Christ, the law of the Gospel, is the message planted in the heart of man, and that law does not enslave but frees man from his bondage to sin and disobedience to God.
Verses 26-27: Being a true Christian has nothing to do with our ability to multiply words when we pray or being able to build beautiful prayers that use many biblical quotations or even with how much we know about God and his word but with our obedience to God's word, with our willingness to be doers of the word implanted in us. That is the pure religion that he speaks of, a religion that is eminently practical because it leads us to demonstrate through our life what is in our heart. What we do is the most eloquent demonstration of what we really believe with our heart and is the best proclamation we can make of the lordship of Christ in our lives.
1. What kinds of things drown out God’s word in your life?
2. What can the triple exhortation of James to be "quick to hear", "slow to speak" and "slow to anger" mean in your daily life?
3. In what practical ways do you demonstrate in your daily life that you are not only a hearer but also a doer of the word. Can you recognize by their deeds someone who is obeying the word of God?
4. How, in your opinion, are law and freedom related? How do you put them together? Do you think they are compatible? Is not the law limiting? How do you manage this law of freedom in your own life?
Do you consider yourself a religious person who follows the true law of freedom? If not, what do you lack to become one? How can you improve? Is there anything the church can do to help you?
For further reflection and prayer
Reflect on the ways in which the way you read the Bible can become a more serious exercise in accepting and receiving the truth. What will this mean in terms of developing a different pattern of Bible reading, or cultivating new spiritual disciplines in your life?
Something to remember and keep thinking about:
This letter places great emphasis on the issue of trust. Trusting God is the basis of a successful life. Because we trust God we can:
â–ª experience joy in trials.
â–ª strengthen endurance and maturity.
â–ª obtain wisdom when needed.
â–ª overcome temptation.
â–ª Always walk the right path.