|
Morning Devotion for the Season after Pentecost
November 15, 2024
Reading: James 1:19-25
You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger, for human anger does not produce God’s righteousness. Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls. But be doers of the word and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing.
Meditation - Peter Vanderveen
James had a way with words, even in translation. How can one simply read over (and pass by) references to “sordidness” and “rank growth of wickedness” without pausing to appreciate the palpable directness of these terms? There’s nothing abstract about them.
And yet, what many people seem to principally glean from this text is James’ admonition that real faith will be a busy faith. We have to do things that show what we believe, which in church circles generally boils down to acts of care for those in need: believers should demonstrate concern for people other than themselves. As an element of faith, I wholeheartedly agree with this responsibility. But I’m not at all sure that the problem James describes can be attributed to the tired gap between hearing and doing. I think it’s more integral to hearing itself – our hearing adequately in the first place.
Jesus frequently said, “Those who have ears, let them hear.” He didn’t mean by this that some in his audience might not actually have had ears as a physical trait. He meant that there’s more to hearing than simply being able to take in and perceive sound – or words. Hearing is always, immediately a process of discernment. Those who could “hear” him were those who knew what Jesus meant by what he said. Jesus recognized that not hearing is often the result of not paying attention or, more inherently, not allowing what is said to strike home.
When words strike home they inform how we think and act and respond. Apart from the work of careful listening, with the intent to truly hear, our actions can be just as meaningless as the words that whistle past our ears unnoticed. We are prone, then, to the very “sordidness and rank growth of wickedness” that James mentioned. Patience in listening, cultivating slowness and consideration, is not in keeping with the continual acceleration that characterizes our culture, valuing speed above all. But it saves us from many ills; losing our sense of ourselves, our integrity, is chief among them.
Prayer
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name,
thy kingdom come, thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver from evil.
For thine is the kingdom, and the power,
and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen
| 
