The Book of James, A Word Fitly Spoken, James 1:19,20 - Lesson 7

We will begin our lesson by reading the remainder of James 1.

James 1:19-27,  Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: ²⁰For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. ²¹Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity (a superabundant or excessive amount) of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. ²²But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. ²³For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: ²⁴For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. ²⁵But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. ²⁶If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man’s religion is vain. ²⁷Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

Our lesson for today will concentrate on verses 19 and 20.

Lest we think that James is presenting a new idea let me read an admonition from the Old Testament which states a truth similar to that which James propounds.

Looking to Ecclesiastes 5:2 we are told,  Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter anything before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few.

Notice that in this admonition there is a hierarchy presented which is connected to the use of your mouth.

That hierarchy is that God is in heaven and you are on the earth.

That tells us that the One who is above has first position in speaking but the one who is below is to have first position in hearing that speech.

We have heard that God has said, Be still and know that I am God which in essence means stop talking, stop running around, stop trying to figure things out by your own senses, and instead start listening.

But we do not live in the age of listening for this is the age of expression.

The message of this age is to reveal yourself, to open up yourself to all, to speak your mind, to tell of every event that occurs in your life, to twitter, to facebook, to promote your space on myspace, to text, to email, to announce, to cell phone others with your every move.

This is the age where we cannot pause to hear others for our impatience pushes us to express our ideas even if it requires us to interrupt and overspeak others.

Our pastor wrote of this ever present speech in the Editor’s Desk of the Spring 2007 Projector when he addressed the issue of blogging which is a word derived from the words web log.

He wrote: The lion’s share of what we are reading (in blogging) are the hurried opinions of zealous people typed out in a matter of minutes rather than serious thoughtful remarks weighed in the balance of Scripture and bathed in prayer. We will all be held accountable for every idle word, which I believe, would include written speech (Matthew 12:36-37).

Writing articles for this periodical (The Projector) involves months of prayer and preparation. Dr. Dayton Hobbs, our founding editor, taught me over the years that the articles we print should never come out of the warehouse of quick ideas and opinions. Rather, time should be spent in prayer and God’s Word in order for the thoughts to be founded and framed from Scripture rather than from personal ideas. That is not to say that we do not have quick opinions on certain issues because of our background in the Word. However, there is wisdom in taking the time to develop our opinions.

But our world does not operate according to the Word of God.

We live in the age of quick speak, the age of quickly giving your opinion.

It is the age where we casually respond to polling questions which in reality require deliberate and thoughtful responses.

It is the age whereby we respond with an opinion about an 1100 page health care bill, the contents of which we know little.

It is an age where that ignorance even brings many to be quick to wrath at town hall meetings and protests where that wrath is not based on reasoned argument for there was not a quickness to hear on the part of either disputing party.

Even our representatives and senators know little about this bill yet we hear innumerable speeches and opinions concerning its content and their pro or con positions.

We are sated with news shows and opinion givers who it is obvious, have not sat down and studied the issue concerned.

This is indeed the age of slow to hear, quick to speak, and quick to wrath.

It is an anti-Biblical age, an anti-Word of God age for here in James we are told by God the exact opposite of what this age broadcasts in our ears.

This is an age where it is obvious that Satan is working long hours earning overtime pay to bring this battle of good and evil to a head.

This fearsome angel studies the scriptures and determines to invent a process whereby every yes of God is turned to no, every truth of God is turned to error, every thus sayeth the Lord is turned to "He doesn’t really mean that!"

When James tells us to be quick to hear, the devil, tells us to shut up your ears and be quick to speak.

When James tells us to be slow to wrath, that old serpent tells us to let every thought be expressed whether good or evil.

We know that Jesus Christ is the Word of God.

Satan not only attacks Jesus Christ but he attacks the very idea of words working the work of God.

We are told in God’s word that words are given of God to accomplish God’s work, to praise God, to broadcast the glory of God. ¹¹

Isaiah 55:11,  So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

It ought to be that our words also accomplish a purpose and are not simply vain.

Satan in our day attacks the very idea of words fitly spoken, words that are given to accomplish God’s purpose.

Proverbs 25:11 tell us of the proper use of words when it says,  A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of silver.

Notice that phrase "a word fitly spoken."

Words are designed to accomplish a purpose, they are to be like tools fitted for the job to be done.

You ladies are careful to wear clothing that not only fits you but is fitting to the occasion.

If our words were as carefully chosen as our outfits were chosen how much better off we would be.

Words spoken will be accepted more readily if spoken properly or fitly.

Proverbs 15:23,  A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!

Isaiah 50:4,  The Lord GOD hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season to him that is weary: he wakeneth morning by morning, he wakeneth mine ear to hear as the learned.

So God expects his children to use words that are fit.

He expects us to present words in a way that enhance the attractiveness of truth.

He expects his children to us words that frame truth in a way that attract, a way that enhances the word's ability to accomplish a purpose.

Truth can be presented in such a way that it repels.

But God desires that truth be presented in a fitting way, in an acceptable way.

As God's child we are not to use words that are unfit,

words that do not fit the times or the seasons or the temperament or the age, words that are not acceptable.

Not words that are dragged along, or forced but words that roll smoothly along like wheels.

That is speaking words fitly.

As Job said in Job 6:25,  How forcible are right words!

Look at Jesus Christ as the Word of God.

Jesus is the Word of God, totally fitly spoken by God.

Remember his discourses on living water, the bread of life, the new birth, and how they arose naturally in the conversation.

He is the ultimate example of the word fitly spoken.

Look at the written Word of God and its fitness.

See how it fits the times and the seasons and the temperament and the age.

Word fitly spoken is that which God uses to accomplish his purpose.

It will accomplish that which he pleases because all of God's word is fitly spoken.

He spoke the worlds into existence by word fitly spoken.

God believes in fitness and we see that everything he does fits together.

He does not do things that do not fit together.

All the trees of a forest fit together.

The leaves fall at random and yet fit the scheme of the forest.

All the worlds he called into being fit together.

And all his word fits together in the person of Jesus Christ.

Word then, fitly spoken, is the will of God for those created in the image of God.

We are created in God's image and even our word fitly spoken does not return unto us void.

He accomplishes his purpose with his word and our word should do the same.

A word fitly spoken accomplishes its mission.

It is not just spoken to be spoken.

It is not spoken just to relieve our conscience.

I must not say it just to make me feel good or to get it off my chest.

Words are to be spoken to accomplish a purpose.

If rebuke it must be fitly spoken, spoken to accomplish a purpose of correction.

If instruction it must be fitly spoken to be most effective.

If it is to be a word of encouragement it must be fitly spoken if encouragement is to be realized

God expects his Word to be fitly preached so that truth will attract his own.

That is why we must be prudent with our words.

We must be slow to speak as James 1:19, tells us,  Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath:

As in fitting anything, fitting speech takes thought and time.

Fitting speech are words of truth and if spoken we must consider not only what we say, but to whom we say it, the time we say it, and the place we say it.

Now James precedes this admonition to be swift to hear and slow to speak by telling us that God sends adversity our way in order to perfect us.

The block of marble accepts the pounding of the hammer on the chisel in order to be perfected.

It is God’s will that you be conformed to the image of his Son.

Ponder for a minute how far you are from that conformance and how much work the sculptor has to do to make that happen!

Considering how far you and I are from that image is it any wonder that we must face the diverse trials of life that bring about that conformance?

Adversity is designed to reveal our deficiencies, but God does not leave us to ourselves during that adversity but provides for our needs in times of trial, producing maturity, wholeness and conformance to His Son.

The perfection, the completeness, the wanting of nothing comes to those who do not kick against the pricks of adversity.

But many times adversity brings out the worst in men or women, anger and harsh words, even the exercise of wrath against others.

So James cautions the marble to not rebel with quick words, unreasoned words, words not fitly spoken, words that will hinder the conforming power of the sculptor.

James has already told us to ask of God for wisdom and that wisdom most assuredly will come from the Word of God but it may also come from those who can give godly counsel from the word, or it may come from those who have previously endured such affliction themselves.

Hebrews 2:18 tells us of this connection,  For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour (help) them that are tempted.

Did you ever think that the adversity that you have suffered was given to you by God so that you may help others who are going through similar trials?

We should therefore be quick to hear and to heed godly counsel.

Conversely, we should be slow to speak and slow to anger.

Adversity many times results in blow ups where things are easily said and done that are foolish and hurtful.

Some people have learned that anger is a way of manipulating others.

It is common today that children get their way by throwing fits of anger.

Children are geniuses in finding the weak spots in parents and they quickly find that anger actually does work, for anger intimidates and manipulates others so that they easily give in to them.

Human anger may produce sinful results, but James tells us that it will never achieve God’s righteousness.

The flesh never produces righteousness, and human anger is a manifestation of the flesh:

We read of this in Galatians 5:16-26,  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. ¹⁷For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. ¹⁸But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. ¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, ²⁰Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, ²¹Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. ²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, ²³Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. ²⁴And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. ²⁵If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ²⁶Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.