Sunday, September 9, 2018
Resurrection Anglican Fellowship
Fr. Phil Eberhart
QUICK - SLOW - SLOW
Has any one here taken dance lessons ... other than me ... that totally failed?
The sermon this morning is titled: QUICK, SLOW, SLOW! It just sounds like the instructions for a samba or waltz dance step... I can hear the count, 1,2,3... 1, 2, 3... 1,2,3
And it is a kind of dance step count --- for all of life!!
James' instructions for the dance of life!!
1,2,3... 1,2,3... 1,2,3...
and what are the dance steps? I thought you'd never ask!!
1. be QUICK to listen
2. be SLOW to speak
3. be SLOW to anger
James' dance steps for a successful life!!!
James 1:19 (& 20)
19 My dearest brothers and sisters, take this to heart: Be quick to listen, but slow to speak. And be slow to become angry, 20 for human anger is never a legitimate tool to promote God’s righteous purpose.
QUICK, SLOW, SLOW!
QUICK TO LISTEN
SLOW TO SPEAK
SLOW TO ANGER
Let's look a little closer at the steps...
QUICK TO LISTEN
Two greek words that made it into modern useage... Tach and Acoustic
When I say I have a tach in my car, what am I talking about? An instrument that reads the RPM's of the engine - A speedometer for the engine!
TACHYS is the Greek word for speed, quickness.
The second word is simply the word for hearing ...
AKOUO from which we get the word acoustic.
Have you ever had a hearing test? It's an acoustic booth or a headphone set that they place over your ears to test your ability to hear frequencies of sound.
My point in all this is that this emphasizes two things: Speed and Hearing.
Be quick, be swift (the translators tell us)
To listen, to hear!
Interesting sidelight here - when Solomon was asked by God to ask for anything, he prays for wisdom, but if you look at the Hebrew there, what he actually says is give me a "hearing heart."
Oh, even more interesting... the word in Hebrew for hearing is shemah or sh'ma
As we began our service this morning we heard the Sh'ma - the great command of God to
His people:
Look in your bulletin and read it with me.
Barukh shem kavod malkhuto le’olam va’ed
Shma Israel, Adonai Eloheinu, Adonai ekhad.
Hear, O Israel, the Lord is our God, the Lord alone. And you shall love the
Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your
might. (Deut. 6:4-5)
So James is pointing us back to the original HEAR ISRAEL!
To Solomon's prayer for a HEARING HEART ... and I want to add another note here, from
the notes in the Passion Translation...
Although the Greek does not supply an object we are to listen to, it is obvious in
the context that we should listen to one another, to God’s voice, and to his
Word. May God give us listening hearts.
In fact, this verse is the front verse for a whole section in James 1 about hearing and
obedience to the Word of God! That's another sermon!!
So QUICK TO LISTEN!! ANY QUESTIONS?
2. SLOW TO SPEAK
One of the striking features about encounters with God in the Bible is how often one sees
references to NOT SPEAKING.
One striking example is the call of Isaiah in Isaiah 6:5-7
Isaiah's response to being in the Presence of God is "I am undone! I am a man of unclean
lips and I live among a people of unclean lips." And God's response was to send an angel
to the altar of incense in heaven and bring a hot coal to touch Isaiah's lips and cleanse
them.
Solomon's counsel in Proverbs and Eccl...
[Pro 10:19 NKJV] 19 In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, But he who restrains his
lips [is] wise.
[Pro 29:20 NKJV] 20 Do you see a man hasty in his words? [There is] more hope for a fool
than for him.
[Ecc 5:2 NKJV] 2 Do not be rash with your mouth, And let not your heart utter anything
hastily before God. For God [is] in heaven, and you on earth; Therefore let your words be
few.
And David's prayer...
[Psa 19:14 NKJV] 14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be
acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.
So our speaking should be circumspect. Almost a unanimous witness from Scripture!!
Does anyone else here suffer from occasional bouts of "foot-in-mouth" disease? Yeah...
thought so.
UM.... Nuf' Said!!
3. SLOW TO ANGER
Anger here is the word that goes back to the OT word for WRATH
It includes a kind of anger that includes judgement and punishment - as we say - all in one-
fowl-swoop!!
I've seen anger exposed that is this kind of anger - that punishes with words, that threatens.
Today we call it Road Rage! We've seen people shot and killed, because they cut someone
off or changed lanes to quickly or slowly.
Our anger can be righteous, but in my experience that is fairly rare! Jesus got angry, mostly
at sin and disobedience, at hard-heartedness, at the Pharisees. It was based in
righteousness, and so there is that possibility, but for most of us anger or angry outburst, do
not "work the righteousness of God!"
We are not THAT HOLY, friends!
Later in his letter, James turns his attention on the power of the tongue more completely.
He says, in 3:2 ... we all fail in many ways, but especially with our words! (TPT)
[Anger + your words = disaster!!] Anyone?
So stay away from anger, even if you think its the righteous kind!
Here is a good formula from the end of James 3...
13 If you consider yourself to be wise and one who understands the ways of God, advertise it with a beautiful, fruitful[j] life guided by wisdom’s gentleness.
17 But the wisdom from above is always pure,[o] filled with peace, considerate and teachable.[p] It is filled with love[q] and never displays prejudice or hypocrisy[r] in any form 18 and it always bears the beautiful harvest of righteousness! Good seeds of wisdom’s fruit will be planted with peaceful acts by those who cherish making peace.
So here's a checklist: (before you open your mouth to speak!)
Purity... check your motive for saying anything at all! Why do I need to speak?
Peace... is Peace from Christ going to be conveyed in what I say?
Consideration... Who's first here? Is it about me, or about the person who is hearing?
Humility ... If I am teachable, I am coming humbly, willing to hear correction to my
thinking and speaking.
LOVE... over and over and over and over again, we cannot emphasize this enough!
Without Prejudice ...
Without hypocrisy ... probably the two chief accusations made by people against Christians
who open their mouths!!
So if we check the checklist before we open our mouths, perhaps we will see...
A BEAUTIFUL HARVEST OF RIGHTEOUSNESS!! Just a final word from James...
Good seeds of wisdom’s fruit will be planted with peaceful acts by those who
cherish making peace.
QUICK - SLOW - SLOW...
QUICK TO HEAR
SLOW TO SPEAK
SLOW TO ANGER
Let's pray...
Gracious Lord, God our Father, and Lord Jesus Christ,
You love us so much, that you have given your Word to us to hear, read, mark, learn and
inwardly digest! Give us grace to so quickly hear You speaking to us, that we may quickly
obey. Teach us to consider our own words and like Isaiah, cleanse our lips, O God, with
the burning coal of Your Truth. Set us free from unclean lips and unfruitful words. Help
us to let our words be few. And finally, cure us from unrightous anger. We are told to be
angry and sin not! Help us Lord to be silent in own anger and to seek your
righteous ways, in all we say and do.
All this we ask for the fame of Your great Name, Jesus and the sake of Your Kingdom.
Amen.
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