James 3 – The Power of Words

Lectionary Readings for July 3, 2022                       4th Sunday after Pentecost, Year C
2 Kings 5:1-14  Naaman’s Leprosy Healed
Psalm 30 v2-3 O Lord my God, I cried to you for help, and you have healed me. O Lord, you brought up my soul from Sheol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the Pit.
Galatians 6:(1-6) 7-16 v9-10 So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all and especially for those of the family of faith.
Luke 10:1-11, 16-20   v2 Jesus said to His 72 disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.

But this week we’ll dig into James chapter 3 as we continue our series in James.

Peace through Leadership Quotes

“Independence is happiness.”  ~ Susan B. Anthony

“The seed that flowers into justice will always be planted in peace by those who embrace peace.”  ~ James 3:18

Wherever and however possible, let us all continue the long history of working for peace which includes helping people live independently from oppressively controlling governments and cultures. And following James’ advice, let us all plant seeds of peace so that we – and future generations – may enjoy living among the peace that sprouts from those seeds.

Any time I preach or lead a group, regardless of age, I start the same way. I’m going to say three short sentences. Please repeat each sentence, with enthusiasm.
God made me. God loves me. God has plans for me.

Preface to Today’s Scripture Reading

We’re now halfway through the book of James. The first chapter taught us that God tempts no one and the purest form of religion is to care for the most vulnerable people in our community. The second chapter cautioned us against showing preferential treatment to anyone and emphasized the importance of putting our faith into action.

Today we move into chapter 3 which opens with addressing the power our words have to do good or harm. As you hear these verses, you might remember Thumper’s famous quote from the 1942 movie Bambi, “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say nothing at all.”

James ends this section with some very direct advice concerning ambition and wisdom that, frankly, conflicts with many attitudes and behaviors our society seems to condone if not outright reward.

I’m currently watching a somewhat fictional TV series about Wall Street’s modern financial titans. In that arena, unkind words are common, nobody is gentle, and arrogance and selfish ambition are the norm. In contrast, Margie pointed out during our Bible Study how the fruits of wisdom – purity, peace, gentleness, deference, and mercy – closely parallel the Fruit of the Spirit we often discuss (Galatians 5:22-23).

Let’s open our ears, minds, and hearts as James reminds us of the importance of what we say as well as how to identify Godly wisdom.

Read James 3:1-5, 7-8, 13-18 and the rest of Chapter 3 this week.

As we celebrate this 4th of July weekend, you’ll frequently hear the words freedom and liberty. It’s good for us to remind ourselves of the freedoms and liberties many Americans too often take for granted. We should remind ourselves of the need to redouble our efforts to see that everyone in our nation and community is able to equally enjoy our nation’s and our faith’s ideals.

Perhaps the greatest freedoms we have are the freedoms of expression – speech, religion, press, assembly, and the right to petition the government. Many (but not all) of us can exercise those freedoms whenever we like without worrying about being attacked or arrested. Those luxurious freedom are not available to billions of people across the globe.

As we heard from today’s reading, our Christian faith both contains and directs our freedoms. James warns us about the harm we can do with stray, thoughtless, or vindictive words. And for as pessimistic as James may sound about the tongue’s nature, I do love that he describes the tongue as “a small muscle, capable of marvelous undertakings.”

In verse 10, James says, “From the same mouth comes a blessing and a curse.” Can you imagine his frustration at hearing Jesus’ followers chastise new followers, bicker with each other, or jockey for leadership roles? I think this is why so many preachers would rather avoid James… this stuff hits too close to home. It’s too practical.

When we find ourselves beginning to argue about church policies or procedures, perhaps could we hit the pause button and use that same energy to encourage one another. What if we became known as the church that refused to fight with… anyone? What if we became known as the church that refused to say anything negative about… anyone? That might take some real effort on our part! And I think that’s exactly what James (and God) wants us to do: spend time really thinking about how we can use our tongues to offer marvelous words of hope and healing, marvelous words of grace and forgiveness.

Just in case you’ve been avoiding the news, the political world has given nearly everyone a plethora of topics about which to argue. It’s difficult to find any political leader who exemplifies James’ description of heavenly wisdom: purity, peace, gentleness, deference, and mercy.

Rather than fall into the black holes of fear and hopelessness, we can embrace our freedoms and choose to let our faith inspire and direct us to try to be the best people God created us to be. We won’t always get that right, but if we make a consistent effort, we will become better models of heavenly wisdom over time. And that’s progress, and progress is good.

Remember, we are a faith community. We do not have to figure this stuff out by ourselves. Who are the wise people we know who can teach us? Today and this week, I’d like you to write their names down. Thank God for them; no really, offer God your prayers of thanksgiving for the wise people in your life. If at all possible, call or write them and tell them how much you notice and appreciate their wise presence. And don’t let them dismiss your compliments. Explain to them how they project peace, gentleness, humility, or mercy and how that’s impacted you.

The world wants and needs to hear what we are for more than what we are against. The Good News is that we are for peace; with whom can each of us share some peace? We are for gentleness; with whom can we share some gentleness? We are for humility, not arrogance; how can we model that? And we are for mercy; how can we show mercy, not might, this week? Yes; that may take a lot of effort on our part, but each of us is worthy of that effort.

Let us freely use our words to marvelously remind people that we are ALL precious children of God, created to love and to be loved. Please, word that in whatever way makes it easiest for you to share and for them to hear. This is what it means to be the Kingdom of God – welcoming others, with their flaws AND our flaws, into a community that cares about and wants the best for each other.

Amen? Amen!