James 1

James 1:19–25(NKJV)

¹⁹So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; ²⁰for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God.²¹Therefore lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.²²But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. ²³For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; ²⁴for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. ²⁵But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it,and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does.

Explain: 

James is writing to the Jewish believers scattered by persecution. He begins by telling them to recognize within their persecution an opportunity for maturity. God is not sending the evil upon them, but He is using the evil to develop them. In the middle of that persecution, then, it is important for disciples to exercise self-control. V19 reveals the correct response in the middle of persecution: We are to

• LISTEN CAREFULLY – Quick to listen. Listen to whom? Well, I believe we are to be quick to listen to:
• The voice of the Spirit.
• The words of those who would persecution.
• MEDITATE BIBLICALLY – Having heard our opponents, we are to think through what we have heard. I take this from the fact that we are to be slow to speak. We consider carefully what we say.
• SPEAK WISELY – The idea is not that we NEVER speak but that we speak deliberately and deliberatively. 
• RESPOND CAUTIOUSLY – We are to be slow to wrath

These measured responses are made possible by a few actions:

• We dump “filthiness” and the “overflow of wickedness”. This pictures a heart that is focused on self and sinful desires. What will come out of that heart will be evil because out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
• We implant and embrace with humility the Word of God. We focus on the Word of God instead of on the slights of men.
• We act on the word of God.

Apply:(See above)

Respond:Today, I will meditate on, implant and embrace God’s word.