“You have two ears and only one mouth, so you better spend twice as much time listening as you do speaking!” Those are words you’ve either said to your children, or heard from a parent or teacher. There is so much truth and wisdom in this, and it’s in God’s word.
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.”
Listen up to this great wisdom that James is revealing to us; In verse 19, we see how we are to interact with each other. Being quick to listen shows humility and honor to others, and shows that you value what they have to say. Then comes the instruction to put the skids on our motormouth. By the way, slow to speak, isn’t just for the words that leave our mouths, but should also be applied to that feverish typing on the keyboard, a.k.a social media posts and commenting. How we speak and listen matters!! Stephen Covey, educator and author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People suggests that we, "Seek first to understand then to be understood”.
And check out some of these pearls of wisdom from King Solomon: Proverbs 17:28 “Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues.” Proverbs 13:3 says “Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin.”
The wisdom from James continues with slow to become angry. It’s everywhere in our lives; people getting defensive before they listen to understand, they then rush to vocalize their opinion, frustration builds, and that short fuse quickly explodes. It’s so easy to justify our anger when really, we are just focused on our rights, entitlement, or selfishness. As we see in verse 20, our anger does not produce the kind of life God desires.
That first word in verse 21 caught my attention; therefore. I’ve been trained to ask, “what is it there for?” In other Bible translations I saw’ “take note”, “wherefore”, ”understand this”, “listen carefully”, and “know this”. I could hear a stern but loving, “Listen Up!” Let’s read on, ". . . 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." We are to put away that stinking sin in our lives, because that filth is not demonstrating the true gospel to the world. Hebrews 10:26-27 reminds us that, “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.”
The final call to action in today’s scripture is to accept the word, receive it, to allow it to be grafted in our lives and bring God a harvest of glory. Aren’t you glad that God is after our hearts and cares about our growth?
Chances are, you’ve already heard all of this before. But were you listening? Like REALLY listening? Have you ever wondered why you are not growing? Or not seeing the fruit of the Spirit in your life?
If any of us are pondering those questions, maybe it’s time for a few more tough questions, and some heart surgery to follow. Do we have a teachable spirit and ready to learn from anyone? Are we like the Jews who refused the truth that Jesus delivered to them? Do we care to take off the old and put on the new?
Listen up, if we truly have received the gospel, and it has taken root in our lives, it will grow and bear fruit that displays that gospel to the world. That’s the truth that will set you free!
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.”
Listen up to this great wisdom that James is revealing to us; In verse 19, we see how we are to interact with each other. Being quick to listen shows humility and honor to others, and shows that you value what they have to say. Then comes the instruction to put the skids on our motormouth. By the way, slow to speak, isn’t just for the words that leave our mouths, but should also be applied to that feverish typing on the keyboard, a.k.a social media posts and commenting. How we speak and listen matters!! Stephen Covey, educator and author of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People suggests that we, "Seek first to understand then to be understood”.
And check out some of these pearls of wisdom from King Solomon: Proverbs 17:28 “Even fools are thought wise if they keep silent, and discerning if they hold their tongues.” Proverbs 13:3 says “Those who guard their lips preserve their lives, but those who speak rashly will come to ruin.”
The wisdom from James continues with slow to become angry. It’s everywhere in our lives; people getting defensive before they listen to understand, they then rush to vocalize their opinion, frustration builds, and that short fuse quickly explodes. It’s so easy to justify our anger when really, we are just focused on our rights, entitlement, or selfishness. As we see in verse 20, our anger does not produce the kind of life God desires.
That first word in verse 21 caught my attention; therefore. I’ve been trained to ask, “what is it there for?” In other Bible translations I saw’ “take note”, “wherefore”, ”understand this”, “listen carefully”, and “know this”. I could hear a stern but loving, “Listen Up!” Let’s read on, ". . . 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." We are to put away that stinking sin in our lives, because that filth is not demonstrating the true gospel to the world. Hebrews 10:26-27 reminds us that, “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God.”
The final call to action in today’s scripture is to accept the word, receive it, to allow it to be grafted in our lives and bring God a harvest of glory. Aren’t you glad that God is after our hearts and cares about our growth?
Chances are, you’ve already heard all of this before. But were you listening? Like REALLY listening? Have you ever wondered why you are not growing? Or not seeing the fruit of the Spirit in your life?
If any of us are pondering those questions, maybe it’s time for a few more tough questions, and some heart surgery to follow. Do we have a teachable spirit and ready to learn from anyone? Are we like the Jews who refused the truth that Jesus delivered to them? Do we care to take off the old and put on the new?
Listen up, if we truly have received the gospel, and it has taken root in our lives, it will grow and bear fruit that displays that gospel to the world. That’s the truth that will set you free!