Beloved Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,
As we have recently discovered, the little Epistle of James carries a much harder punch than one might expect. The brother of our Savior speaks with a bluntness that is almost offensive, and certainly seems to be out of touch with modern sensibilities regarding ‘micro-aggressions’ and the need for ‘safe spaces.’ And yet, what he has written is the very Word of God. His letter is filled with references from the Old Testament and from the teachings of his older brother, our Lord Jesus. In the section we are currently examining, 1:26-27, James speaks emphatically of two and only two kinds of “religion.” The one is completely “worthless,” the other “pure and undefiled.” One is composed of all the religions and philosophies of the world, and all defective versions of Christianity. The second is, of course, what James’ other brother Jude called “the faith that was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 1:3), Biblical Christianity.
And then James proposes three tests that one should conduct in order to distinguish them. The first test appears in verse 26–“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.” If you knew nothing about the Epistle of James and had time to think about what might be first on a list of tests to authenticate one’s profession of Christianity, you might not anticipate that it has much to do with one’s speech. But here it is in black and white. The kind of “religion” that honors and pleases God, that proves to be “pure and undefiled” in the end, is made evident by a controlled tongue. This matter is of such concern to James that he mentions it in some way in each of the five chapters of his letter. And this subject gets a painstakingly exhaustive treatment in 3:2-12. You’d soon get the impression that this is, for sure, a very big deal to James! Our words matter . . . a lot!
Given how serious a theme this is we are going to take a couple of Sundays to explore these verses––this test of a controlled tongue. This week we will try to understand why our speech is so significant, and why disciplined, pure speech is such a critical mark of true faith in Christ. We will attempt to construct what we might call ‘a Biblical theology of speaking.’ And then the next week we will make our way through 3:2-12 where James gets down to the details about the power and the danger of the tongue. So pray hard, meditate on these verses, and buckle in!
I love you all with all my heart!
Mike