Douglas Jacoby Podcast

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

James 3:13-16

Intro

• In our next 2 reflections, James considers two types of wisdom.
• The Greek of James is so fine that some scholars deny that he could have penned this letter!
  • See Greek text below (Jas 3:13-16). See also papyrus copy of James 1 (below, R).
  • Whether these are James’ original words or they have been recorded by a scribe / improved is unknown!
  • Either way, they are a pleasure to read. If you want to learn NT Greek, you will need to take a proper course in a college or university. Not realistic to become “self-taught.”
• The situation:
  • Some people evidently viewed themselves as superior.
  • Yet they are overflowing with negative feelings.
  • Far from being wise, they are profoundly unspiritual.
• On pseudo-wisdom:
  • Wisdom is a matter of character—not education.
  • Wisdom is a matter of character—not intellect.
  • Wisdom does not necessarily come with age.
  • Rather, wisdom is knowledge used in a spiritually way.
  • Pseudo-wisdom is characterized by bitter envy, selfish ambition, disorder, sin, and pride.

Next: The final passage in ch 3, and a passage most churches ignore!

3:13 τίς σοφὸς καὶ ἐπιστήμων ἐν ὑμῖν; δειξάτω ἐκ τῆς καλῆς ἀναστροφῆς τὰ ἔργα αὐτοῦ ἐν πραύ̈τητι σοφίας. 14 εἰ δὲ ζῆλον πικρὸν ἔχετε καὶ ἐριθείαν ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ὑμῶν, μὴ κατακαυχᾶσθε τῆς ἀληθείας καὶ ψεύδεσθε. 15 οὐκ ἔστιν αὕτη ἡ σοφία ἄνωθεν κατερχομένη, ἀλλὰ ἐπίγειος, ψυχική, δαιμονιώδης. 16 ὅπου γὰρ ζῆλος καὶ ἐριθεία, ἐκεῖ ἀκαταστασία καὶ πᾶν φαῦλον πρᾶγμα.

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

James 3:9-12

• So many images in this chapter: (tongue), bit, rudder, spark, taming (animals), poison, spring, fig tree… which bring to life the importance of the topic.
  • Common illustrations from the ancient world
  • Or from Jesus, like Matt 7:15-20.
• The focus: the misuse of tongue in worship
• “The good set of mind does not talk from both sides of its mouth: praises and curses, abuse and honor, calm and strife, hypocrisy and truth, poverty and wealth, but it has one disposition, uncontaminated and pure, toward all men. There is no duplicity in its perception or its hearing” (T. Benj. 6.5, 6).
• Application
  • Negative words:         
    • Slander            
    • Gossip              
    • Hypercritical of church leaders
    • Media posts….
  • Negative deeds:
    • Punitive driving                      
    • Punitive tipping            
    • Making a workmate’s job more difficult
    • Foot-dragging at work            
    • Getting back at an unpleasant boss
    • Various passive-aggressive behaviors
  • Controlling the tongue is esp. important as all members are called to ministry of instruction, at least on some level (Col 3:16; Rom 15:14; Heb 5:12-14).
• “Set a watch, O Lord, over my mouth / Keep the door of my lips” (Ps 141:3).

Next: Pseudo-Wisdom

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

Reminders:

• All of chapter 3 addresses the tongue, and has special relevance for and application to church leaders.
• The influence of the tongue may be enormous, despite its minuscule size (like a rudder, bit, or spark). The body of Christ can be significantly influenced—for better or worse—through the words of a single person.
• James wants to ensure that his readers / audience appreciate the seriousness of the point, so he offers even more illustrations (two in vs. 7-8, and two more in vs. 9-12).
• Keep in mind that James is speaking into an already tense situation, both economically and politically.

James 3:7-8

• Taming animals is a cinch compared to taming the tongue.
• "Restless"—There's no end to the harm we can cause with our tongues, if we throw discretion to the winds and ignore what God’s Word says.
• The impact of our words can be poisonous.
• Selected proverbs on the tongue (NRSV): 6:16-19; 10:19-20; 12:18; 15:1-2; 18:21; 21:23; 25:15; 26:28; 28:23; 31:26.

Questions for self:

• In a conversation, do I usually dominate?
• Do others every tell me I talk too much?
• Am I typically the loudest voice in the room?
• Do I always have to have the last word?
• Do I make unfavorable comments about others (even if they’re true)?
• Do I ever use profanity?
• Do I ever use coarse language?
• When others talk, do they feel that I am listening—or distracted? What do my children say? My spouse?
• Do I break confidences?
• Am I a flatterer?
• Am I tempted to answer tough questions dishonestly, or do I speak frankly and truthfully?
• Do I make promises that I fail to keep—or never intended to keep in the first place?
• Do I talk about others (without their permission) to third parties?
• Do I repeat third-hand information?
• Do I often say hurtful things—even unintentionally?
• Do I ever lie?
• (Teachers) When I’m speaking on a complex or sensitive subject, have I done the appropriate research, or do I tend to be careless with study, preparation, and attribution of sources?
• (Leaders) Do others feel I have heard them out, when they have criticisms, suggestions, or other things on their heart?
• (Speakers) Do I tend to go overtime?

Things to work on immediately

• Notice when others gossip – and refuse to join in.
• Record myself—and listen. How is my tone?
• If I'm loquacious, count to 3 before speaking / answering.
• Ask my family / friends if they think I need to improve in my use of my tongue.
• Reread the Proverbs.

Next: a passage most churches ignore.

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

.Review: "The Tongue of the Teacher: (no. 16)

• James 3:1 applies to all Christian leaders, at least those who speak, teach, preach—which is pretty much everybody.
• Reading between the lines, we realize that unspiritual teachers were a threat to the communities that James oversaw.
• As we will continue to see, it is broad applications for all followers of Christ, leaders or otherwise!

James 3:3-5

• Illustrations of the impact of a careless tongue:
  • Bits control horses, even though the bit itself is very small compared to the horse.
  • Rudders are essential for steering ships, although in comparison with the entire vessel the rudder(s) may be minuscule. 
  • A small spark can still cause an enormous conflagration!
  • There is a note of the diabolical, with the reference to hell. (Gehenna in Josh 15:8b; 18:16b; Neh 11:30 is the word for hell in the N.T., e.g. Mark 9:43, 47. See also Isa 66:23-24.)

• The danger is either potential or actual.
  • The Christian community is susceptible, vulnerable to the predations or errors of ungodly teachers.
  • James may be implying that some present teachers ought to step down.
  • Or he may be asking some to reconsider their interest in teaching others.
  • “Teachers who permit their tongues to get out of control are well on the way to becoming false teachers.”
• The solution isn't to get rid of the teachers (who would include, after all, all elders, preachers, and others who speak to the church), but to make sure of their character and biblical training.

Our next reflection: “The Untamable”

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

James 3:1-2

• What is the context of James's warning?
  • James is the most influential person in the Jerusalem church. 3:1 applies to him.
  • What’s the leadership model in the communities James is addressing? Teachers & elders (3:1; 5:16)—no mention in this epistle of prophets, evangelists, or other leadership roles involving speaking. Actually, there seem to be multiple models of church governance in the New Testament:
    • Antioch – prophets, teachers, and probably elders (13:1; implied by 14:23).
    • Corinth – teachers and prophets—apostles also mentioned, in the gift lists, though no evidence they were present in Corinth—(1 Cor 12:28).
    • Ephesus – elders (shepherds), deacons (servants), teachers, evangelists (at least Timothy), and possibly
      prophets (Eph 2:20; 3:5; 4:11). 1 Tim 3:1-7.
    • Jerusalem – apostles, elders (Acts 15:22).
    • Philippi – shepherds, deacons (servants) (Phil 1:1).
    • Rome – teachers and prophets, a collaborative model (Rom 12:6-8).
    • Evangelists show up only in the Ephesian "model," though I presume that they were mobile, planting churches, exposed to danger in a variety of situations. In Acts 20:17 Paul called for the elders, who appear to be the church leaders. No evangelist as "senior pastor" (as among many Protestant churches). Let's not get bogged down with titles and definitions. The N.T. seems to indicate that church governance is an area of freedom.
  • In speaking of the tongue of the teachers, in other words, James is almost certainly referring to church leaders. To those who speak, teach, influence the body of Christ.
    • Unfit teachers troubled many first-century churches (Acts, 2 Cor, Col, 1-2 Tim, Titus, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, Jude).
    • It seems unfit teachers were also a negative influence among the communities James oversaw.
    • For suggested criteria for anyone serving as a congregational teacher, please click here.
• And so it is today.
  • People want to be teachers but they don’t know what they’re talking about (1 Tim).
  • People have wrong motives—e.g. seeking to undermine legitimate leadership (2 Cor; Phil 1).
  • Their doctrines are spiritually unhealthy. (Ways of approaching spiritual life, as opposed to misinterpretations of isolated scriptures.)
  • Some seek popularity / a following, or to be accepted by the world (thus giving in to liberal sexual ethics or worldly politics).
  • Many presume to speak authoritatively in areas they have never properly studied. (I often ask, when people approach me with a new idea, what they have studied… and to cite their sources…)
  • Some are attracted to novelty for the sake of novelty.
• Biblical integrity means:
  • Respect context—not just choosing isolated words or phrases that seem to say what we want them to say, or what we expected. Reading the paragraph in which those words appear, in light of the entire book of the Bible in which they are found.
  • Message preparation—starting with the text, not adding scriptures in at the end to fortify inspirational messages.
  • Teaching or preaching Scripture's agenda, not our own.
  • Learning and applying all of scripture: no mere lip-service to 2 Tim 3:16-17.
  • Training‚ and continuing education for ministers of the gospel!
  • This task requires prophetic courage.
• Jas 3:1-2 applies not only to leaders / speakers, however, but to us all.
  • All of us sin with the tongue!
  • The “perfect man” isn’t sinless. Don’t despair. Teleios = completeness and maturity. Holiness.
• All of Jas 3 is about the tongue, so let’s seek connections with other passages throughout James. There are many!

Next: The Rudder

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

Next: We begin James 3—with important insights on spiritual leadership.

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

Luther’s translation of the N.T. (1522)

• Separated 4 books from the other books of the N.T.—almost an appendix.
• Other books he removed to the end were Heb, Jude, Rev—but at least he included them in the translation.
• He also made a tweak to Rom. 3:28 (allein durch den Glauben—adding the word "alone").
• He could not accept Jas 2:24. At least he was honest about this doubt.

Why did Martin Luther have such a low opinion of James?

• He liked James in some ways: “I praise it and hold it a good book, because it sets up no doctrine of men and lays great stress on God’s law.” After all, he did include it in his translation – just not with the 23 NT books he thought were inspired.

• Compared to the legitimate NT books, James is “an epistle of straw.”
• He said James contained nothing of the gospel.
• It is not of apostolic authorship. [All N.T. documents are apostolic, but many are not written by apostles: Mark, Luke, Acts, Hebrews, James, Jude.]
• James opposes Paul and mixes up law and works. It is erroneous vis-à-vis faith and works.
• "Many sweat hard at reconciling James with Paul ... but unsuccessfully. `Faith justifies' [Paul's teaching] stands in flat contradiction to `Faith does not justify' [James 2:24]. If anyone can harmonize these sayings, I'll put my doctor's cap on him and let him call me a fool." [Yet Luther was reading his own theology into the text and thus finding a "contradiction."]
• There is no mention of the passion or resurrection.
• Jesus is mentioned only twice—but James “teaches nothing about him.” [Actually, as biblical scholar Rudolf Kittel (1853-1929) observed, “No writing in the NT outside the Gospels is so interlaced with reminiscences of the words of the Lord as [James].”

Lessons to learn:

• Don’t add or subtract to/from God’s word.
• Be honest about the Bible, including the parts that trouble us. Many people aren’t as honest as Luther. They leave James in the Bible, but still reject what Scripture says. Others claim that Paul and James are opposed. They may accept Hebrews as scripture, but rationalize away the 12 passages that refute "once saved always saved."
• Shouldn't we actually be surprised if we agreed with everything in God’s Word? Isn't the one whose thoughts and ways are far, far above our own more likely to give us a revelation which sometimes diverges from our expectations and opinions?
• Let's not be too quick to judge—to be dismissive of biblical teachings, or even biblical books, where they rub us the wrong way.
• A key verse in regard to the faith/works/justification issue is James 2:22. (This is a good memory verse!)

Next: Reading of James in The Message

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

Further comments on Jas 2:14-26:

• Re: deeds (v.14):
  • Jesus frequently emphasizes deeds, both in the gospels and in Revelation. For “I know your deeds,” see Rev 2:2, 19, 23; 3:1-2, 8, 15.
  • We need to be comfortable talking about the way of Christ. It is not a good sign when we prefer vagueness in our conversation or fellowship to actual obedience.
• Re: being God's friend (v.23:
  • Abraham (in Jewish tradition) was called God's friend.
  • Keep in mind that this is the opposite of being the world's friend (4:4).
  • See also John 15:15.

• Note also the parallel between James 2:26 and 1:26.
• Illustration: The Magic Wand & the Touch, by Dave Malutinok (adapted)

Next: "The Epistle of Straw"

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

Notes on James 2:14-26:

• The word “deeds” is more palatable for many religious people than “works,” with is association with trying to earn our salvation.
• Vs.14-16 seem to address a real situation among the believers to whom James is writing. 
  • See also 1 John 3:16-18, Matt 25:31-46, and Gal 6:10.
  • Keep in mind also the likely famine conditions in Judea at the time of James’s letter. 2 Cor 8-9 and Acts 11:28 refer to this hardship.
• I admit it’s difficult to know who exactly is speaking in vs. 18, or the exact point (though I assume it’s fully in line with the thought of vs.14-17 and 19-26).
• Demons have mere intellectual assent (v.19).
  • The Shema‘  (Hear, O Israel...) is found in Deut 6:4.
  • Were some wealthy persons allowed into the fellowship whose behavior did not match their profession of faith?
  • Orthodoxy (right belief) isn't enough. Orthopraxy (right behavior) is essential; it completes and confirms orthopraxy.
  • There is no such thing as faith in a vacuum
  • Both persons were proselytes to the faith.
  • Both were commended for faith because faith was complemented by deeds.
• A widely twisted and ignored verse is 2:24
  • Liberals often accept that this is a “contradiction”—that James and Paul are somehow at odds with each other.
  • Evangelicals – ignore v.24, esp. when they hold to the “once saved, always saved” teaching. Many evangelicals and other Protestants hold to the slogan "faith alone," which does not appear in the N.T.
  • Further: for "Why I am Not an Evangelical—Or Am I?" please click here. For "Why I am Not a Protestant," please click here.
• Re: v.17, see Titus 1:15-16.

Next: “The Magic Wand & the Touch"

• James then offers two examples from the OT, from Genesis and Joshua, in vs. 21-27. 

For additional notes and resources check out Douglas’ website.

• Why is this a “royal" law? It's the Law of the kingdom, law of king for his people.
• It's "Love your neighbor as yourself."
• James's readers / hearers are called to stop showing partiality.
• This is not mere suggestion, but a law! It’s a law of love, the perfect law of freedom.
• It dictates the sort of people we are, and how we treat one another—not just outsiders, but fellow subjects of the king.
• Mercy flows out through us. We are embodying the attitudes / behaviors of Matt 5:21-48.
• Re: v.2:8:
  • niversal human teaching? Usually it's the silver rule that prevails, not the golden rule. Rabbinic Judaism: “What you hate do not do to your neighbor. That is the essence of the Torah; the remainder is commentary” (Hillel, b. Shabbath 31a). Classical Buddhism: “Hurt not others in ways that you yourself would find hurtful.”— Udanavarga 5:18 [Silver Rule]. Confucius: “Never impose on others what you would not choose for yourself.” — Analects XV.24 [Silver Rule]. For more examples from among the religions and philosophies of the world, click here.
  • Paul teaches the same in Gal 5:14 and Rom 13:8-10.

• Lev 19:18. Is this a u
• Re: v.9, the sin in question is favoritism.
• Re: vv.10-11:
  • Deut 27:26.
  • We are lawbreakers even if we break only one commandment. (Think of one crack/hole in the windshield.)
• Re Vv.12-13:
  • Christians are judged by the supreme law, the law that sets us free: the law of love.
  • A failure to love the poor makes us transgressors—showing favoritism to the rich—we are actively violating God’s law.
  • Here is an echo of Matt 5:7.
  • Judgment without mercy!

Finally

• Looking into the mirror has not led to repentance—hence the severity of James’s scathing rebuke. They have failed to live by the royal law in their Christian community.
• Nor was his rebuke given hypocritically. He was, after all, “James the Just” (widely respected by Jews and Christians alike for his compassionate care for the needy).

Next: Cold Deeds with Warm Words