James 3:13 - Pura Vida!

We often hear that there is a special place in hell for certain people: dictators, abusers, greedy bankers, etc.  Perhaps that’s true, we leave judgment of men’s souls to Jesus as that is His realm alone.  Consistent with 2 Corinthians 5:9-10 we hear in James that there will be a judgment of the believer (no mercy to those who have not shown mercy, 2:13) and that some believers are held to a higher standard.  But who does the Bible say will be judged more strictly?

Those who teach the Bible (3:1)!  Well, if that isn’t sobering.  I don’t claim to be wise or to understand God’s ways - but I want to be wise and to have understanding.  Like you, I want my life to be meaningful.  Nay, godly.  But we find out in this chapter that there is a big difference between what is holy and what is not holy - selfish ambition and jealousy on one hand and purity and humble work for God’s way on the other.

        So let’s take this verse seriously.  It’s a verse that says, “prove it.”  Show your faith.  Maybe that’s what the Missourians are thinking about with their license plates?  We know what James says here is true.  We must actively work to prove God’s way is the Way.

        We must live honorable lives, doing good works with the humility that comes from wisdom.  Those of us holding ourselves out there as hearing from the Holy Spirit and understanding His message, and who take the role of the ambassador, reconciling people to God, must fear God and recognize the importance and responsibility of that role.  It’s the standard of the servant leader.  A good coach.

From the beginning, there have been good teachers (like James) and false teachers.  As James says, we all make many mistakes, but don’t think for a minute that God doesn’t see our effort, motives, and obedience.  He does.

Not only must we be disciplined, we must love discipline.  God challenges us to put our faith into action, to make our faith complete.  Genuine faith in Christ.  We must show what we believe.  James is not only setting the standard for the Christian teacher/leader, he’s telling us how to do it.  It’s a requirement of self-control, and discipline in what we say and do.  No, we don’t become aesthetics or Buddhist monks - God forbid.  But we do follow the teaching of this Scripture.

We are to beware of the power and the capacity for evil in the tongue - the spoken and written word.  We all know that the goodness and godliness of a person are shown in the fruit of a person’s life.  Like a pineapple, fruit can be tough to see from the highway, but not too tough for God to see.  He knows our relationships, work, parenting, ministry, and love for people in our community.  God sees the way we spend our time and whether we are puffed-up braggards or humble servants of Jesus.  Service, sacrifice, and love.  Laughter, joy, and peace.  And streams of living water that come only from the Source, Almighty God.  Those are marks of the good teacher, the believer showing their faith by living an honorable life.

Our fruit includes our words.  Is every story about you?  Are you always the hero?  Is your humility genuine and from God’s wisdom?  Are you full of boasting, lying, and selfish ambition?  Do people cringe when they see you (the smartest guy in the room) in a meeting?  We all have blind sides and we all can grow.  But let’s start by being honest with ourselves.  For the men, let’s start by committing to be the brothers in Christ that God James describes here.  Let’s man up.

James reminds us that discipline and self-control start with controlling what we say.  What we say is connected to what we think - our tongue is controlled by our heart.  The Holy Spirit is more powerful than any human wickedness.  Yet the restlessness, evil, cursing, and poisonous motives of man - thought, spoken, and acted - are strong indeed.

God’s people are to prove God’s ways are stronger.  We are to control our tongues so that we praise God with purity.  We are to produce godly fruit.  Speak out against injustice.  See something, then fearlessly say something - use your tongue for justice.  We show our faith in our Savior by living honorable lives and doing good deeds with the humility that comes from wisdom (3:13).

We are warned of evil jealousy and selfish ambition.  If you want to change the culture of a church or organization promote people who understand and exemplify James 3.  The world produces far too many self-righteous, arrogant blow-hards.  It is painful to see them leading and creating disciples of their destructive ways in the church.

But the Holy Spirit produces honorable lives - people who “prove it.”  They show God’s power by Godly wisdom, mercy, purity, and humility.  They have an earned reputation of being peace-loving, gentle at all times, willing to yield to others, full of good deeds, never showing favoritism, and always sincere.

Lord Jesus, like ways, but more than ever, we need your streams of Holy Spirit water flowing through us today.  We need your wisdom.  We ask for it today.  Without wavering.  We seek today to be merciful and good.  To show no favoritism and to be unified in a common cause - to live honorable lives and to make disciples of Jesus Christ.  Amen.

We spent last week in Costa Rica with friends of ours from Montana (La Fortuna in this picture with the volcano in the background).  In Costa Rica, rather than saying "cheers" like Canadians they say, "Pura Vida!".  Pure life.