James 1:19-21 “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.”
The nickname “diarrhea mouth” isn’t just given to anybody. You have to earn it. I don’t remember what I said, or why I said it, but I remember my dad calling me that once or twice in my early adolescent years. It was another way of saying “you don’t know when to shut up, do you?” I can’t say he was wrong! Most of us have been there, forgetting that God gave us two ears and one mouth so we could do more listening than we do talking. Listening opens the door to having a teachable spirit and producing the righteousness that God desires. However, being quick to speak opens the door to outbursts of anger and a prideful spirit. Think about your last outburst of anger for a moment… Chances are, you did not punch somebody, you did not murder anyone, or even break something. For most of us, most of the time, our anger is expressed with reactionary words. From those words, people receive what our hearts are feeling. That is why James exhorts us to be quick to listen and slow to speak and slow to anger. James then spells out for us what it really means to listen, how we should listen, and how listening should produce action and doing.
So, how are we to listen? First, we must “get rid of” and then we can “humbly accept”. Several years ago, I worked as a garbage truck driver during a transitional period in vocational ministry. The job was mostly enjoyable, but it stank sometimes! Literally. Especially as the days got warmer, the trash would stink more! As a kid I loved watching the trash men drive by, hop off the back of the truck, throw the trash in, and compact it with the blade. As an adult, I got to live that dream. With stinky trash comes a stinky trashman. Every day I would come home, and before going inside to shower, my wife would make me strip the dirty trash clothes off before entering the house as to not spread the stink any further. As kids, I’m sure our mothers made us all strip our muddy clothes after a day of play before coming into the house or venturing any further than the “mud room”.
Our listening first requires a “stripping” or getting rid of. Like an ear stuffed with earwax, we must dig out the gunk in our lives to better hear and listen to the word of God. Strip away all the filth and evil in your life to better listen to the Word of God. Once the system is purged, we can humbly accept the word of God. Real listening requires a teachable spirit. If you have an attitude of “I know everything,” it will be hard to listen. Once we are ready to humbly accept, we are ready to listen to the word planted in us. And so, what is planted in you, Christian? The Gospel is planted in you, the knowledge of Christ crucified, risen, received, and reigning in your life. The fruit of our speech is fueled by the roots in our lives that we must constantly be listening to. That way when a dry and painful wind blows in your life, you can be held solid by the root of truth that is saturated by the Gospel. You can speak with words of patience, encouragement, love, and truth instead of responding in harsh and quick anger. Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry so that God’s righteous desires are displayed in your life!
The nickname “diarrhea mouth” isn’t just given to anybody. You have to earn it. I don’t remember what I said, or why I said it, but I remember my dad calling me that once or twice in my early adolescent years. It was another way of saying “you don’t know when to shut up, do you?” I can’t say he was wrong! Most of us have been there, forgetting that God gave us two ears and one mouth so we could do more listening than we do talking. Listening opens the door to having a teachable spirit and producing the righteousness that God desires. However, being quick to speak opens the door to outbursts of anger and a prideful spirit. Think about your last outburst of anger for a moment… Chances are, you did not punch somebody, you did not murder anyone, or even break something. For most of us, most of the time, our anger is expressed with reactionary words. From those words, people receive what our hearts are feeling. That is why James exhorts us to be quick to listen and slow to speak and slow to anger. James then spells out for us what it really means to listen, how we should listen, and how listening should produce action and doing.
So, how are we to listen? First, we must “get rid of” and then we can “humbly accept”. Several years ago, I worked as a garbage truck driver during a transitional period in vocational ministry. The job was mostly enjoyable, but it stank sometimes! Literally. Especially as the days got warmer, the trash would stink more! As a kid I loved watching the trash men drive by, hop off the back of the truck, throw the trash in, and compact it with the blade. As an adult, I got to live that dream. With stinky trash comes a stinky trashman. Every day I would come home, and before going inside to shower, my wife would make me strip the dirty trash clothes off before entering the house as to not spread the stink any further. As kids, I’m sure our mothers made us all strip our muddy clothes after a day of play before coming into the house or venturing any further than the “mud room”.
Our listening first requires a “stripping” or getting rid of. Like an ear stuffed with earwax, we must dig out the gunk in our lives to better hear and listen to the word of God. Strip away all the filth and evil in your life to better listen to the Word of God. Once the system is purged, we can humbly accept the word of God. Real listening requires a teachable spirit. If you have an attitude of “I know everything,” it will be hard to listen. Once we are ready to humbly accept, we are ready to listen to the word planted in us. And so, what is planted in you, Christian? The Gospel is planted in you, the knowledge of Christ crucified, risen, received, and reigning in your life. The fruit of our speech is fueled by the roots in our lives that we must constantly be listening to. That way when a dry and painful wind blows in your life, you can be held solid by the root of truth that is saturated by the Gospel. You can speak with words of patience, encouragement, love, and truth instead of responding in harsh and quick anger. Be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry so that God’s righteous desires are displayed in your life!