Quick to Hear, Slow to Speak, Slow to Anger

About two months ago I preached on James 1:19-27 (you can listen to the sermon here).  James 1:19-27 is probably the most well-known passage in the whole book, especially verses nineteen and twenty.  Most often believers understand James 1:19-20 to say that in our day-to-day relationships with people we should be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger.  In other words, listen carefully, consider how you speak to others, and be self-controlled. 

While the Bible has a lot to say about our personal interactions with others (especially with our tongues), I don’t think this is what James has in mind.  Remember James is writing to Jewish Christians who are facing persecution for their faith in Christ.  The context of chapter one is how the church is to deal with trials. 

James 1:2-4: Have joy in trials for God is making you complete.

James 1:5-8: If you lack wisdom in trials, ask God for it and he will give it freely.

James 1:9-11: Understand the nature of trials.  Trials can come to all people.

James 1:12-15: Do not find fault with God in trials. 

James 1:16-18: God is good and his goodness is demonstrated in our salvation.

I believe that 1:19-20 is a continuation of what James has been talking about in chapter one.  In our trials we must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger.  In our trials we are to be quick to hear the gospel.  We are to remember God’s love for us in Jesus Christ.  We must be quick to hear (or remember) what God’s word says about our relationship to him in the midst of trials.  A loving God brings trials into my life to conform me to the image of his Son (cf., Rom 8:29; Col 3:10; Heb 12:3-11).  Likewise, we must be slow to speak.  What do we often say in our trials?  God is mad at me, he has forsaken me, and he has turned his back on me.  We speak out of our frustration, rather than remembering that a merciful God does all things for our benefit.  Finally, we must be slow to anger.  When we fail to remember the gospel in our trials we are tempted to become angry, bitter, and resent God.  When we face trials we must not become angry with God, but with a teachable heart learn what God has for us.  It is certainly biblical to have a righteous anger toward injustice, but when we suffer because of injustice we should never assign evil to God.  In the midst of our trials we must live out the truth of who God has already made us (1:18) and we must live in the good of the gospel, which reminds us of God’s love, mercy, and grace. 

Asaph was faced with the temptation to speak without knowledge in the face of his trials.  He wrote in Psalm 73:12-17:

Behold, these are the wicked; always at ease, they increase in riches. All in vain have I kept my heart clean and washed my hands in innocence. For all the day long I have been stricken and rebuked every morning. If I had said, “I will speak thus,” I would have betrayed the generation of your children. But when I thought how to understand this, it seemed to me a wearisome task, until I went into the sanctuary of God; then I discerned their end.

Asaph realized that he was in no position to be angry with God, but in his presence remembered God’s justice, mercy, and love.  As we face trials in our lives we must remember the gospel.  We must recall the truth of God’s love found in the gospel.  We must not speak falsehoods about God in our trials, but recite gospel truths.  Moreover, we must not become angry with God when we face trials of various kinds, but understand that our loving Father deals with us as sons so that we might share in his holiness.  

I appreciate what Tim Lane and Paul Tripp have to say about trials.  

Trials do not cause us to be what we have not been; rather, they reveal what we have been all along.  The harvest the trial produces is the result of the roots already in our hearts. (How People Change, p. 102)

Will we remember the gospel in our trials or will we forget it?  What will be revealed to be in our hearts in the midst of trials?

Gospel-Centered Life Workbook

Tim Chester and Steve Timmis (authors of Total Church) have a new workbook due out soon: Gospel-Centered Life.  Read about it here.

Be Who You Already Are in Christ

As I study the New Testament the essential ethic that the apostles teach the church is “be who you already are in Christ.”  Yet the question I often get asked is, how?  How can I be who I already am in Christ?  Well, the simple answer is start reckoning in your mind the truth of what Christ has done at the cross for you and begin to live that truth out.  However, for many, more practical suggestions are needed to help think about our position in Christ.  Several weeks ago I finished preaching through Titus and one of the applications I made was to be who you are in Christ, but I followed that statement up with three ways to help the believer in this task.  These points are in no way exhaustive, but hopefully prove helpful.

1.) Understand the Gospel

The way in which we understand the full depth of who we are in Christ is by understanding what God’s Word says about the gospel. Specifically, we must understand the Old Testament promises to God’s people. It says in Galatians 3:8 that Abraham had the gospel preached to him when God said, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” The gospel began in the Old Testament. For us to appreciate and savor the richness of who we are in Christ demands that we know and understand what was promised in the Old Testament. We need to believe that what was promised in the Old Testament has now been given to us through the preaching of the gospel and our union with Christ.  Since we are the recipients of the Old Testament promises then we must live as we truly are in Jesus because he has accomplished all these things for us.

Concerning this salvation, the prophets who prophesied about the grace that was to be yours searched and inquired carefully, inquiring what person or time the Spirit of Christ in them was indicating when he predicted the sufferings of Christ and the subsequent glories. It was revealed to them that they were serving not themselves but you, in the things that have now been announced to you through those who preached the good news to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven, things into which angels long to look. 1 Peter 1:10-12

2.) Meditate on the Gospel

We must not only know and understand what Scripture teaches concerning the gospel, but we must constantly subject our minds to meditating on gospel truths. Meditation means thinking and reflecting seriously and thoughtfully about the gospel. And the way we do this is when we give our attention to God’s Word. We must constantly be reminded of who we are in Christ and what we have been given in him. How do we meditate on the gospel? We read it, we listen to it, and we memorize it. One of the greatest benefits in your life can be memorizing God’s Word.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you. Philippians 4:8-9

3.) Pray the Gospel

We must pray to God and thank him for the gospel.  When we pray this way, we recount the gospel and remind ourselves of it. One of the best things you can do is read the prayers in the New Testament and see how they are packed with gospel content. Paul is especially fond of reminding his hearers of what they were before Christ and who they now are in Christ because the gospel has changed them. Our prayers need to be full of gospel content giving thanks to God for what he has done in his Son.

And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God. May you be strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy, giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:9-14.

You see the progression here: Understand the gospel (i.e., understand the content, how it fits together, what it means), meditate on the gospel (i.e., internalize it, make it part of who you are, fill yourself up with it), and then pray the gospel (i.e., verbalize it, give thanks, pray always with this goal in mind). Notice that we need all three, but also notice that one cannot be done without the other. True Christian growth must begin with the gospel. We grow by knowing the gospel, teaching the gospel, preaching the gospel, meditating on the gospel, memorizing the gospel, writing out the gospel, listening to the gospel, and praying the gospel. We must do this minute-by-minute, day-by-day, and year-by-year because the gospel is the total work of God in our lives. We must think, live, and reflect in every sphere of our existence the promises of God that are now fulfilled in Christ and given to all those who believe in him.

Practical Love

• I am patient with you because I love you and want to forgive you.
• I am kind to you because I love you and want to help you.
• I do not envy your possessions or your gifts because I love you and want you to have the best.
• I do not boast about my attainments because I love you and want to hear about yours.
• I am not proud because I love you and want to esteem you before myself.
• I am not rude because I love you and care about your feelings.
• I am not self-seeking because I love you and want to meet your needs.
• I am not easily angered by you because I love you and want to overlook your offenses.
• I do not keep a record of your wrongs because I love you, and “love covers a multitude of sins.”

Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace, p. 39

The Kingdom of God, The Jews, and Us

This past Sunday I taught our New Testament Sunday class about the Intertestamental Era.  As I prepared to teach, I was reminded about how the various Jewish groups that developed during this time formed their own misconceptions about the Kingdom of God.  For the Pharisees the Kingdom of God meant boundary markers of what a true Jew looked like and strict adherence to the Torah.  For the Sadducees it meant political compromise and positioning in order to preserve their existence.  For the Essenes it meant withdrawal and asceticism as the way to gain entrance into the Kingdom of God.  And finally for the Zealots it meant crushing pagan influence and murdering Jews who comprised Judaism.  Each of these groups represents who Jesus and Paul addressed as they quoted the prophet Isaiah.

Indeed, in their case the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled that says: You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive. For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them. Matthew 13:14-15

And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet: Go to this people, and say, You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive. For this people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed; lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them. Acts 28:25-27

As I think about these groups of Jews living during the time of Jesus who failed to see and understand the Kingdom of God, I cannot help but think of many who profess Christianity and have the same misconceptions about the Kingdom of God.  We have modern day Pharisees who believe that entrance into the Kingdom of God is through moralism and obedience to a set of man-made traditions.  We have modern day Sadducees who believe that through political action we can usher in the Kingdom of God and make America a Christian nation.  We have modern day Essenes who think that separating themselves from the world makes them the true people of God.  We have modern day Zealots who think that physical violence against the evils of the world will bring favor from God and gain entrance into his kingdom.  However, none of these methods are the means to gain entrance into the Kingdom of God.  Jesus tells us how to gain entrance into the Kingdom of God.

If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul? For what can a man give in return for his soul? Mark 8:34-37

Entrance into the Kingdom of God requires a denial of self and a submission to the King and his Kingdom.  Entrance into the Kingdom of God means hating my mother, and father, and brothers and sisters, and even myself for the sake of the King and for the sake of his gospel.  Entrance into the Kingdom of God requires a spiritual change.  It is a spiritual kingdom that requires spiritual eyes to see it.  The Kingdom of God is being built not with bricks and mortar, but with the souls of men and women.  The Kingdom of God is not protected with swords and spears, but by the Spirit and the Word.  The Kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom 14:17).   The Kingdom of God has come . . . will we see it?

Let us pray and ask God to grant us eyes to see his kingdom, ears to hear his truth, hearts to follow the King, and a voice to preach his gospel.

On Being Christ-Centered and Gospel-Saturated

Since I’ve changed a few things about my blog (one being the subtitle), I thought I would write a little about what it means to be Christ-Centered and Gospel-Saturated.

Committed to being Christ-Centered.  When I think about being Christ-Centered Paul’s words in Colossians 1:15-18 come to mind.  In Colossians 1:15-18, Paul discusses the nature of Christ, his work, and his preeminence in all things.  To be Christ-centered means to recognize the supreme worth and glory of Jesus in everything.  He is the end goal of what the Old Testament promised.  For us to be a Christ-centered people means that we must read the Scriptures from a Christ-centered perspective.  Every promise, story, event, person, or institution found in the Old Testament must find its meaning, significance, and transformation in light of Jesus Christ. In Christ all the promises of God are yes and amen (2 Cor 1:20).  Being Christ-centered also means that our destiny, our purpose in life as believers is to be conformed to the image of Jesus Christ (Rom 8:20; Col 3:10).  Jesus is the man par excellence (Heb 2:5-18). The very purpose for which we have been created is to bring God glory.  The way we come to understand that purpose is by looking at the true man; the Son of Man who teaches us what it means to be true worshippers of the Father.  The appearance of Christ in the world instructs us in godliness, which is nothing less than thinking, living, and reflecting the splendor, majesty, and holiness of our Father (Titus 2:11-12).  To be Christ-centered also means recognizing that cultural and cosmic renewal will take place in Christ.  The miracles we read about in the Gospels testify to this truth: the creation obeys his commands, the demons fear his authority, sicknesses are cured by his mere touch, and the dead are raised to life.  Jesus has already begun this cosmic and cultural renewal with his appearing, but we wait for the final consummation of the age when there will be a New Heavens and New Earth (Rev 21-22).  As Christ’s disciples we are to carry out this mandate of renewal.  We are to bring every thought, action, work, leisure, art, activity, and pursuit under the Lordship of Jesus Christ (2 Cor 10:5).  Adam failed to properly exercise dominion over God’s good creation.  Christ is now bringing all things in conformity to himself as the true Adam.

Committed to being Gospel-Saturated.  Being Gospel-saturated is the practical outworking of seeing the supremacy of Christ in all things.  The gospel is simply the good news that in Christ sinners are reconciled to God. Therefore, to be a gospel-saturated people means to have this good news of peace with God change every bit of our lives, relationships, and surroundings.  The gospel becomes the basis for every action in our lives.  In other words, the gospel is not just the message that gets us saved, but it is the message that continually informs us of what it means to live and grow as kingdom people (sanctification), and it is that message which ensures our future glorification.  The New Testament is replete with this teaching. The very basis for our sanctification is internalizing the gospel and living it out.  For example, the reason we forgive others is because God in Christ has forgiven us (Col 3:13).  The gospel truth is that God has forgiven us and the outworking of that gospel truth is to forgive each other.  Another example is 1 John 4:11.  If God has loved us by sending his Son to die for our sins, then we ought to love one another.  A final example is how marriage has been transformed by the gospel.  Marriage was an institution formed by God at creation.  Yet marriage has been distorted and perverted because of sin.  However, the gospel shows us that marriage was always a picture of a greater marriage–a wedding together of Christ and his people.  Our union with Christ (the gospel) becomes the basis for instruction of how husbands are to love their wives and how wives are to submit to their husbands (Eph 5:22-33).  There are many other examples in the New Testament and one need only to read it to see the countless ways that the gospel is the basis and means for our regeneration, sanctification, and glorification.  And so, if the gospel has an ongoing relevance in our lives we must not only know this gospel, but live in light of the gospel, share the gospel, talk about the gospel, preach the gospel, pray the gospel, memorize the gospel, teach the gospel, and set our hope in the future glory of the gospel, which is nothing less than eternal communion with the living God through Jesus Christ our Lord.