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Sunday September 20, 2009 "Draw Near to God" James 3: 13 – 4:3, 7-8a |
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Location: Blogs Brad's BlogBrad's Sermons |
 | | Posted by: Brad Miller | 10/12/2009 10:18 AM | As we continue our study of James, we look back to the lessons of the last to weeks: James proclamations that how we live our lives matters and what we say and how we say it matters.
Today’s scripture continues in this vein, but here, James begins to move toward helping us understand exactly what it is we should do to live the Christian life. This is especially welcome in light of the passage last week where James is so clear about we are NOT to do, but a bit less helpful in helping to define what we are supposed to do, and how to do it.
In this passage, James is stepping away from his diatribe style and moving instead into what Biblical scholars call an interrogatory style. In short, it means he is framing his advice by raising questions and providing answers.
The first question James raises is “Who is wise and understanding among you?”
If we were to look around this sanctuary this morning, each of us could come up with an answer to that question. We have all been blessed by the wisdom and presence of God’s saints in our lives. Now, the fact is that for me, a number of the folks that fall into that category are folks who are older than I am. Folks who have experienced more of life and who have learned from what the world has thrown at them. But, not all folks older than me fall into that category. And some of the people who I look to as wise and understanding are younger than I am. My first inclination, and maybe yours, is to say that wisdom comes with age. But that is not necessarily true and James makes that clear.
For James, there are several markers that show evidence of wisdom and understanding. For James, the wise and understanding person is gentle and humble. They are pure and peaceable. They are willing to yield and step aside. They are full of mercy and grace. They are without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy.
Do you know anyone that meets all these criteria? These criteria speak to a life that is NOT selfish or greedy or envious. These criteria speak to a life that IS selfless and generous and gracious. These criteria speak to a life that is at peace with the world and with God. James criteria are pretty tough. In our world of self-gratification and self-indulgence the person who embodies all these traits is difficult to find, but not impossible.
We know that because we all know people who embody these traits.
Now the questions become ours: How do these folks live out these traits in their daily life? What practices or habits seem to help them? Are there things that they are doing that we can emulate? We’ll return to those questions.
James shifts gears on us a little when he asks his next question: From what do conflicts and disputes arise?
Conflict is inevitable. Disputes will happen. They are not fun, but they are a fact of life. In our personal life, in our business life, in our family life, in our church life: conflict is going to come.
James thinks he has the answer for why conflicts arise: he believes serious conflict arises out of an attitude of envy. He call’s it different things: covetousness, selfish ambition, cravings…but at the heart of many, many conflicts is wanting what someone else has. It might be power or prestige or money or things. But James believe that envy is what fuels conflict.
In 21st century America, envy is part of our culture. It is promoted through marketing and advertising. Our desires to have the best and newest and fastest are played upon with every commercial we see. We see these things that others have and we are convinced that if we could get those things, our life would be better, we would be fulfilled. In short, we envy those who have what we want.
But be clear, these are just things. They do not sustain us. They do not fulfill us. They do not love us. What happens to our relationships when things become our focus?
A while back there was a commercial on TV that saddened and frightened me as no other commercial ever has. It was an advertisement for a van or an SUV. A father has spent the day crafting a beautiful tree house for his son and his sons friends. Excited and sweaty, the father finds his son playing cards in the family van with his friend. He invites them to come and see the new tree house and come play in it. The son asks a series of questions: does the tree house have air conditioning? Does the tree house have DVD player? Does the tree house have comfortable leather seats? When the father answers, “No.” The son says something along the line of “no thanks” and closes the door in the crestfallen fathers face.
This ad saddened me because it gets to the heart of what seems to drive us these days: our placement of things over relationships. It frightened me because without those relationships, we will surely lose our way as a society.
Again, the questions are now ours: how do we put aside our envy and all the places it leads us? How do we fight the mindless aquisitiveness that permeates our culture? How do we nurture relationships that nurture and sustain us?
Well, after three weeks of pointing his finger at us and telling us what NOT to do, James comes through for us at the end of this passage. Finally he comes up with an answer to many of our questions. Among those questions are: how are we to move into the world to serve others? How are we to use our words to build up and not tear down? How are we to become filled with wisdom and understanding? How are we to stay away from the envy that fuels so much conflict?
The answer: “Submit yourselves to God. Draw near to God and God will draw near to you.”
Still not enough specificity for you? Well, on this point, this is what we’re going to get. But James has given us enough guides that I think we can begin to figure this out.
Go back to his first question for a moment – Who among you is wise and understanding? And think about the questions that raises in our mind when we identify those folks who show the traits of wisdom and understanding - How do these folks live out these traits in their daily life? What practices or habits seem to help them? Are there things that they are doing that we can emulate?
I spent some time thinking long and hard about the people in my life who fit James’ description. Here is what I have come up with:
To a person they are people who intentionally set aside time to be in service to others. For each person on my list, the service was very different, but the idea of service was the same. They spend time with others and for others. They engage in service not out some sense of obligation, but out of a sense of thanksgiving. I actually talked to one person on my list about this and they told me that it wasn’t always the case. In fact, they told me, at the beginning it was not comfortable at all to make sure they undertook this sort of service. But the made themselves do it. And over time, it became second nature. It became something that if they didn’t do it, they had a hole in their week, and in their lives.
Another thing these people exhibit is a real willingness to listen before they speak. They seem to understand, either innately, or through practice that when they talk without listening or thinking, they run the risk of miscommunication, which of course can lead to a variety of problems. When I spoke to my wise example about this, he laughed and said, “To the extent that I do that – and I don’t think I do often enough – I have had to learn it. One of the hardest things I have ever had to do was just keep my mouth shut and listen. And I have to constantly work to do that.”
Another trait the wise and understanding show is true humility. No matter their station, no matter their lot in life, never do I see these folks act as if they are better than others.
What about practices that these folks undertake? Are there things that they do that we can learn from, that we can emulate? Of course there are.
All of the people I know in this category are people who intentionally undertake Bible study and prayer. And while I can’t speak for all of them, they seem to really work at it. They seem to set aside time for study. They set aside time for prayer. Many of them set aside time to simply be quiet and listen. Again, the person I spoke to about this during the week made it clear that it is not always easy. It did not always come easy. There were still days and weeks when prayer was difficult, where the thought of reading the Bible didn’t seem to do any good. But, they said, they made themselves do it. They were intentional about it. And over time, it became not just part of their routine, but a meaningful, necessary part of their lives.
Over and over again, the word intentional keeps popping up. Whether talking about service, or prayer, or study, or worship, or sharing with others along our faith journey, intentionality is a key. If we wait only to do these things until we are “ready”, we will never do them. In fact, the wise friend that I talked to this week was quick to say, “You can’t wait until you are ready to serve or pray; because it is the service and prayer that makes you ready!”
There is no getting around it: we must be intentional hard if we seek wisdom and understanding. I have yet to meet the person who possesses those traits without some intentional work on it. Oh, some people might be more predisposed to having those things come naturally, but work still needs to be done.
I get this. It makes sense to me. James has done us a great service by telling us what we shouldn’t do, telling us how we should behave and then telling us: look to those who are wise and understanding and you will begin to get an idea of what to do. Follow them. Emulate them. Mimic them. Eventually, you will become them.
Now here’s the most incredible part of all this. James asked two questions. One question about wisdom and one question about the cause of conflict. On first glance, they seem to be very different types of questions. But they are very much interrelated.
James tells us that conflict is born out of envy. To a person, the wise and understanding people on my list seem satisfied with who they are and what they have.
They celebrate the blessings of what God has provided for them. They do not seem to be envious of others.
And that is the key: if we do what needs to be done to become people of wisdom and understanding, we are in fact, drawing nearer to God. When we undertake the practices that lead to that wisdom and understanding, we are drawing nearer to God. And one of the by-products of coming nearer to God is that we become more and more comfortable in our own skin, we become content with the gifts we have been given. And when we become more comfortable and content, by definition we become less envious of others and their possessions. And when we become less envious of others and their possessions, we significantly cut down on the amount of conflict in our lives.
I must admit that there are times when I look at James and I wonder why he doesn’t just tell us these things! Why does he make us work so hard? Maybe because he is the brother of Jesus. Maybe because he understands that we need to step out and do some of the hard work of faith building and Christian development. Maybe because he knows human nature and knows that anything worth anything needs to be struggled for and worked toward.
It may sound trite, but I believe that James has the answer to about 97% of our questions. And it is as simple, and as difficult, and as rewarding as this: “Draw near to God and God will draw near to you.”
May it be so for you and for me and for the Brookhaven Christian Church.
Let us pray: Thank you Lord for those who are wise, those who are understanding, those who help us see how to take unnecessary conflict out of our lives. Give us the strength to be those people, for our sake, and for your glory. It is in the name of Jesus that we pray. Amen.
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