James 3:1-18

What *faith should do

James

Ian Mackervoy

The word list at the end explains words with a *star by them.

Chapter 3

Responsibility of the teacher 3:1-5a

v1 My Christian brothers and sisters, not many of you should be teachers. God will demand more from teachers than from other people when he *judges them. v2 All of us often make mistakes. Anyone who is never at fault in what he or she says is perfect. That person is also able to control his or her whole being. v3 We put a *bit into the mouth of a horse to make it obey us. When we do this, we can turn the horse. We can make it go where we want. v4 For another example, look at ships that sail on the sea. They are large, and strong winds push them over the water. But a person can use a small *rudder to make the large ship turn where he or she wants it to go. v5a The tongue is like that too. It is a very small part of the body but it talks about big things.

Verse 1 In the early church, the role of the teacher was a very important one. The church members had a great respect for their teachers. So, it seems that many church members wanted to be teachers. Some of them may have wanted it for the wrong reasons. They wanted other people to think well of them and they wanted to enjoy the power of the job. Most of them did not qualify for the task. They did not have the natural skills and God had not called them to do it.

Teachers must take care to teach the truth of God and not their own ideas. They are responsible for the way in which the church grows. They have power that they could so easily use wrongly. They must show by their lives the truth that they teach. It would be easy and wrong to speak great words but fail to do good things. There should not be a large number of teachers. They should be able to teach. They must know that God has called them to this work. Only those whom God calls should become teachers in the church.

God expects a higher standard of those who teach. He will be more strict when he *judges them than he will be with other people. They have the task of teaching the other Christians how to live. They will receive the greater judgement if they fail to do what they have taught. This verse should not stop those whom God calls to teach. The writer, James, was a teacher.

He warns that it is a responsible task to teach in the church. No-one should take on this work unless God asks him to.

Verse 2 We have all said wrong things. If we were to examine what we say, we would see that. We all slip up, or make mistakes, and say bad things. Often we do not mean to *sin in this way. It is as if bad words just come out of our mouths. There is no man in this world who does not *sin in something. There is no *sin into which it is easier to fall than the *sin of the tongue. In this letter, the writer uses the word ‘tongue’ to mean the words that we say.

If someone could have control over all that he or she says that one would be a perfect person. The tongue is the hardest of all the parts of the body to control. It is out of the heart (which includes the mind) that the mouth speaks (Matthew 12:34). It is from inside of us that bad actions and evil words come. If anyone does not *sin in what he says, then he or she would not *sin in other ways either. If a person could control the tongue, it would follow that he or she has power over the whole of his or her life. That one would be a perfect person. Apart from the *Lord Jesus, there never has been a person like that.

Verse 3 There are now three pictures to show the power of the tongue. First, there is the horse in this verse. Then there is the ship in verse 4. Later, in verses 5 and 6, there is fire. These all teach us that there is great danger in the wrong use of words.

The rider holds the horse by the *bit and *bridle so that he can control it. The *bit is a piece of metal that men put into the horse’s mouth. The *bridle joins to the ends of the *bit and fits over the head of the horse. By using the *bridle and the *bit, the rider can control the mouth of the horse. This gives the rider power to control the horse. So, the rider can guide the horse in the direction that he or she wants to go. What is true about horses is also true about men. The man who can control what he says can control his whole being. If the tongue is not under control, the whole of life will go the wrong way.

The aim of this example is to show that a small part can have control over a large body. The *bit is small but by it the rider directs the large horse. The tongue is a small part but what it says affects the whole person and other people. This is true for a church as well as for a single person. The words of a teacher can affect the whole church for good or bad.

Verse 3 In those days when people went on a journey they went on horses or in ships. Looking at ships, we can see how a small object can control a large one. The small *rudder sets the direction in which the large ship sails. The *rudder was a piece of wood, or an oar, under the back of the ship. As the sailor turned the *rudder, so the whole ship turned.

The ship may be large and driven by strong winds yet a very small *rudder can guide it. Here is a contrast. The ship is large, the force of the winds is strong but the *rudder is so small. This small object can direct the way that the whole ship will go, even in a storm. The rider pulls the *bit to change the direction of the horse. So the sailor turns the small *rudder and changes the direction of the large ship. The tongue is a very small part of the body just as the *rudder is a small part of the ship. If we could control what we say, we could guide the direction of the whole of our life. The tongue is small, yet it affects the whole body and life of a person.

Verse 5a The tongue is so small yet it has such great power. As the *bit and the *rudder have such an effect, so the small tongue can do great things. It talks big. And it makes itself seem to be better than it is. What we say can bring about much good or much damage. Words can cause acts that have enormous results for both good or bad. Words can move a crowd to do bad things. Words can change the future of nations.

James is not saying that we should not talk. He is arguing for control of the tongue, and the wise use of words. The mind and the heart control what we say. With the help of the Spirit of Christ, we can have that control. Then we can use our tongue to bless people.

Danger of the tongue 3:5b-12

v5b Just think how a tiny flame can set a large forest on fire! v6 The tongue also is like a fire. It is a like a world of evil among the parts of the body. It is a small part of the body but it makes the whole person bad. It seems to set the whole of a person’s life on fire. It is the fire that comes from hell. That is what makes the tongue so dangerous. v7 *Human beings can make all kinds of animals, birds, snakes and fishes, do what they want them to do. v8 But no person can rule the tongue and stop it from saying evil things. It never rests and is full of poisons that can cause death. v9 We use the tongue to praise our *Lord and Father. We also use it to speak evil things against people. But God made people to be like himself. v10 So we use the same mouth to praise and to speak evil things. My Christian brothers and sisters, we should not do this. v11 Bitter water and sweet water cannot come from the same spring. v12 My Christian brothers and sisters, a *fig tree cannot grow *olives. A plant that grows *grapes cannot also grow *figs. Neither can a spring have both bitter and sweet water.

Verse 5b In the dry season, the grass, the low growing bushes and other plants were like dry straw. A small flame could set it all on fire. The flames of that fire would spread like a wave that no-one could stop. It would soon be out of control. It takes just a tiny flame to set on fire a great mass of material. A little flame can destroy a great forest. What we say can be as dangerous as that fire. It can cause real problems for those to whom we speak. And it can cause real problems for those about whom we speak. The bad things that we say can spread like the fire in the forest. The tongue can hurt people and cause them much trouble. Bad words can spoil a person’s good character. They can, in effect, destroy that person. They can set people against each other.

Verse 6 The danger of the tongue is that it is like a fire in the dry straw. A careless word can cause great damage. Once the word has left the mouth, there is no way to take it back. Most *sins that people do involve what they say.

The tongue is like a fire and it is also like a world of evil. It is like a world of bad things set among the parts of the body. The word ‘world’ here means a world without God and so it is evil. The tongue that speaks bad things is like a world that is at war with God. It fights against God and does not obey his laws. We use the tongue to express all kinds of evil. Words hurt and damage the whole body. The body here is not just physical but it is the whole of the person. So, the words that come from our hearts and minds spoil the entire character. They have an effect on the whole of life, from beginning to end. Each life is like a wheel that rolls on from birth to death. It goes through many phases and changes on its way to complete its time on earth. The evil effect of the tongue spreads all round this wheel of life. It affects all those who come into contact with it. The source of the evil tongue is the fire of hell. The devil uses the tongue as a fire that spreads evil in man.

The word hell comes from the *Hebrew word *Gehenna. This was the name of the valley to the south of *Jerusalem. It was there that they burned the rubbish from the city. The fires there seemed to be always burning. To the *Jews this was like the punishment for *sin that would go on for all time. So the name of that *eternal place of *sin and death became hell. Here is the source from which the tongue gets its evil power.

Verse 7 *Human beings can control all kinds of animals, birds, snakes and fishes. When God made the earth, he gave Adam this authority. We do not now see *human beings in control of all other life on earth. But we *humans have learned to control and make use of many of them. It does not say that we can control every single living thing.

Verse 8 *Human beings can still control some of the animals. But because of *sin, they have lost control of themselves. They can make animals tame but they cannot rule their own tongues. No-one by his or her own efforts is able to make the tongue tame. The tongue is like an animal in a cage. It will not rest and it always tries to get free. We can keep an animal like this so that it cannot escape. But this is not possible with the tongue. It is never at rest long enough for us to control it. It is ready at all times to break out into evil. It is not that it never speaks good. But it often speaks evil. It is like a snake full of poison that can kill. Evil words are worse than the bite of animals and the poison of snakes.

Verse 9 With the tongue we praise our *Lord and Father. Both of these words ‘*Lord’ and ‘Father’ refer to God. *Lord is the special name that God gave for himself in the Old Testament. We usually write it in capitals, LORD (see word list). He is the great and powerful God. We call him *Lord because we respect him and we belong to him. Christians know him as Father because in his love he has given them a new birth. Several times in the *New Testament Christians are called children of God. They are now his children by trusting in Jesus. They call him Father because they know his love and love him for it. The highest use of human speech is the praise of God, the *Lord and Father. We use the same tongue when we curse men. We speak our praise to God and we say bad things about people. But God made men to be like himself and that image remains in people. It is what helps us to know what we ought to do. It also helps us to hear God. However, *sin has damaged that image of God in *human beings. But something of it is still there. We ought not to curse people whom God made to be like him. As God made *human beings in his own image, to curse a person is in effect to curse God. So to use the same tongue to bless God and to curse people is wrong.

Verse 10 People say what is in their hearts and minds. Mature Christians will control what they think and say. The Holy Spirit gives them power so that they can control their tongues. They will praise God and they will also speak well of people. But so often, they fail to make use of the control that he gives. It is wrong to bless and curse with the same tongue. Christians should not mix good words with evil talk like this. To curse men in that way makes the blessing just empty words and of no use. They praise God. They think and speak evil about people at the same time.

Verse 11 The land where James lived did not have much rain. A town or village may have to depend on springs or wells for their water. Both sweet and bitter water cannot come out of the same hole. It can have only one type of water, sweet or bitter. Sweet water is that which is fresh and good to drink. Bitter or salt water is not good to drink. But the tongue can produce both bad and good words from the same source. Two kinds of speech come from the same tongue. This is against nature where good comes from good and bad comes from bad.

Verse 12 *Figs, *olives and *grapes were the three most common fruits that the farmers grew. The *fig tree had *figs. The *olive tree had *olives. The *grape *vines had *grapes. Each tree could only have its own fruit and could not have any other fruit. It is a fact of nature that like produces like. As is the root, so the tree will produce the fruit. A plant has the fruit that comes from its own nature. Similarly, a fountain has one type of water. It will have sweet water or it will have bitter water. It cannot have both. Out of the mouth of a good person, there should come only good words. Out of the mouth of a wicked person, we would expect bad words. *Figs, *olives and *grapes are examples of how the tongue should be either good or bad. It is against nature when we speak both good and bad words. We ought to praise and not to curse.

Two types of wisdom 3:13-18

v13 Some of you are wise and understand these things. So, show your wisdom by the good things that you do. But be *meek and live quiet lives. v14 But if in your heart you are jealous, bitter and selfish, do not be proud of it. Do not be so proud that you deny the truth. v15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above. It is not the wisdom that is from God. No, it is from the earth, from the bad parts of human nature. It is like the wisdom of *demons. v16 Where people are jealous and have selfish ambitions, there will be trouble. They will do all kinds of evil things. v17 But the wisdom that is from heaven is pure. It is also calm and quiet, gentle, and friendly. It is loving and kind, doing good to all. It values each person. And it is genuine and honest in all that it does. v18 Those who bring peace to other people help them to live at peace with everyone. Those who bring God’s peace to other people, God will make *righteous.

Verse 13 James asks who among them has wisdom and knowledge. Perhaps he has in mind the teachers or those who want to be teachers. Those who know more may think that they are better than the other people. But knowledge and wisdom are not the same. A person can know a lot but have little wisdom. They need to have both. They do not show wisdom so much in what they think or say. They show it more in what they do. It is not what they say. It is how they live. True wisdom does good works. Just as we can see real *faith in what it does, so we know this wisdom by its actions. We will know a wise person by his good life. A wise person will be *meek. ‘*Meek’ is a word that is hard to translate. The *meek person is strong yet humble and gentle. The wise person does not desire honour or fame. When other people do wrong to him, he does not do wrong to them. The Spirit of God gives us the strength to be gentle and humble. The life that is wise and *meek is one that is under the control of God. The *Lord Jesus is for us the great example of this. He was *meek and humble in heart because he had real strength of character.

Verse 14 Those who want honour for themselves are not like the wise and gentle. They are jealous of those who seem to do better than they do. They work hard for their own advantage. Their attitudes are not good and they will cause bad relations in the church. They may be proud that they have the truth. But, by being proud, they are denying the truth. Suppose that a speaker has a wrong attitude. The true words that he speaks may give a false message. Even the truth from the lips of those who are proud can become error. To speak in a proud manner is to speak against the truth. The person who is proud of his wisdom lies against the truth. James says that they must not be proud. Those who are wise and know God will be humble and gentle.

Verse 15 Where people are proud and have selfish ambition, there is not true wisdom. There is a false wisdom that has nothing to do with God. It does not come from above, that is from God. To have wisdom from above is to have the wisdom that God gives. The false wisdom is from human nature and is of the earth. It is unlike that which comes from above. It has its source not from God but from the devil. It works to the standards of this world and not as God directs.

Verse 16 This human wisdom is proud and jealous. It is the cause of disagreement and not peace. Where this wisdom is, there will be confusion. The ambition of man tends to destroy life with God. The works of this wisdom are bad and of no worth. No real benefit for the church can come from them. They do nothing to help Christians and build the church. These works just destroy the unity that ought to be there.

Verse 17 There is the true wisdom that comes from above. This wisdom that comes from God is so different. It is a gift from God. It is not what a person can achieve. It is not of this world. James has described what this wisdom is not. Now he shows what it is. He uses seven words (in the *Greek language) to show what it is like:

• Pure. It is clean and has no selfish ambition. It is holy, as God himself is holy.

• Peace-making. It brings people closer together and nearer to God. It does not fight but brings peace.

• Gentle. It is fair and kind. It knows the weakness of *human beings and helps them. It does not insist on its own rights. It is always ready to help and not to blame.

• Open to reason. It is easy to approach it. It will listen to what other people say.

• Full of *mercy and good fruits. It helps those who suffer. And it has sympathy for all those who are sad. It has the pity and the love to do good for them and all people.

• Fair to all. It shows respect for all people. It does not make distinctions. It does not do things from prejudice. It is sure about what is true. It has good standards that do not change.

• Real and sincere. It is honest. It does not pretend or act a part. It is sincere in all that it does and with all people. It does not work for its own benefit.

Verse 18 This verse could be a well-known saying that James used. He is teaching here that true wisdom is the wisdom of peace. Those who have this wisdom do good works. Those good works result in blessing and peace. They are like seeds that grow up into a plant. The fruit of that plant is *righteousness. And the soil in which it grows is peace. It is those who make peace that sow and look after the plant of *righteousness. They do not only love peace and live in peace. They also try to create peace. Peace cannot grow where people are jealous and work only for their own good. Nothing good can grow where people fight one another. There has to be unity and they have to work together for the same things. Peace means a right relationship with other people and with God. If this does not exist, there can be no true *righteousness.

faith ~ belief that something is true; trust in someone or something; belief and trust in God and in Jesus Christ his Son.
judge ~ to judge is to do the work of a judge; to test and decide what is right or wrong.
bit ~ a piece of metal put into the mouth of a horse so the rider can control the horse.
rudder ~ a piece of wood or an oar fixed to the back of a ship. You can turn it to change the direction that the ship is going.
sin ~ to sin is to do wrong, bad or evil; not to obey God; sins are the wrong things that we do.
Lord ~ a title for God, or Jesus, to show that he is over all people and things. The name that God gave to himself in the Old Testament. He was the One who had made a covenant with the Jews.

Old Testament ~ the first part of the Bible; the holy things that the writers wrote before Christ’s birth.
covenant ~ when people agree something together; when God and a person or people agree to a special thing.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
bridle ~ attached to the ends of the bit to help the rider to control the horse.
humans ~ people.
fig ~ kind of sweet fruit that grows on a tree. The tree is called a fig tree.
olive ~ tree or its small fruit with a stone. People make oil from olives. They use the oil to cook food.
grape ~ fruit of a vine (a climbing plant). You can make it into wine.
vine ~ a plant that climbs. Its fruits are called grapes.
Hebrew ~ the language of the Jews.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
Gehenna ~ a valley near Jerusalem where the Jews burned their rubbish.
Jerusalem ~ the capital city of Israel.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
Israel ~ the country of the Jews; another name for Jacob, the first father of the Jews.
Jerusalem ~ the capital city of Israel.
Israel ~ the country of the Jews; another name for Jacob, the first father of the Jews.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
Jews ~ people who were born from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and their children.
eternal ~ what has always been and will always be.
humans ~ people.'New Testament ~ the last part of the Bible, which the writers wrote after the life of Jesus. It is about the things that Jesus did and taught and about the church.
fig ~ kind of sweet fruit that grows on a tree. The tree is called a fig tree.
vine ~ a plant that climbs. Its fruits are called grapes.
grape ~ fruit of a vine (a climbing plant). You can make it into wine.
meek ~ strong but humble.
demons ~ bad or evil spirits that work for the devil.
righteous ~a righteous person is right in what he does; or a person whom God says is right.
meek ~ strong but humble.
Greek ~ the language that James used to write this letter.
mercy ~ kindness and help to a person who does wrong, to show love to that person.
righteousness ~ the quality of being righteous.
righteous ~a righteous person is right in what he does; or a person whom God says is right.