A Country Divided (James 1:19-20)
A friend recently confided to me that he has a problem: He is a liberal Democrat, and he just learned that a really close friend is a conservative Republican. Lynn said he hated to lose a friend, but he just didn’t know if he could be friends with a Republican.
I was flabbergasted. Before I moved here, I had a friend to whom I spoke daily. Dillon and I were polar opposites on the political spectrum, but we talked politics all the time. We’d discuss specific issues; I’d tell Dillon what I thought, and he’d say, “But, Justin, have you thought about it this way?” Dillon expected me to be on my toes and to defend my position, and I expected the same from him. We enjoyed bouncing ideas back and forth; we never got angry, we never got our feelings hurt, and we never stopped talking to each other. We simply had different opinions about politics.
In “A Divided Country,” I suspect that many of you strongly disagree politically with people close to you—a spouse or a child or parents or coworkers or friends. You might not put up a yard sign for fear of offending someone. Perhaps you see all the vitriol in our country right now, and you just absolutely hate it. I know many, if not all of you, are deeply pained by the division we see in America. I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that many of you are troubled by statements from politicians on both sides of the aisle.
We see far too much political hatred and violence right now—from the shooting of Gabby Giffords to the Congressional baseball shooting to the attack on Paul Pelosi, former Speaker Pelosi’s husband, to the assassination attempt on former President Trump.
But political hatred and violence have been around a long time. In fact, James wrote about the political hatred and violence of his day in this morning’s passage. Most people were extremely poor due to political policies. In Rome, grain shortages led to riots. And, in Judea, the Jewish aristocracy sought to improve their relationship with Rome through political maneuvering; the Zealots, however, wanted a revolution and hated the aristocracy for trying to prevent one. Because of these simmering tensions, a full-blown revolt would break out in AD 66 and war would ravage the land for the next several years.
In response to the simmering tensions, James taught: “The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”
Scripture (James 1:19-20)
verse 19:
“Know this, my beloved brothers”
James surely wrote to people of differing political beliefs. Instead of calling names or questioning their integrity or their Christianity, James called them “beloved brothers.” He looked at the common bond in Jesus instead of political differences.
“Let every person be quick to hear.”
Why should everyone be quick to hear? Simply put, everyone—regardless of political affiliation or financial status or lifestyle—bears the image of Almighty God: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them” (Gen 1:27).
“Slow to speak.”
You’re be “slow to speak” instead of just spouting off your ideas. Why? Honestly, your tongue will get you in trouble: “The tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell” (Js 3:6). If you’re slow to speak, you have time to find appropriate words to speak.
“Slow to anger.”
James said why you must be “slow to anger”: “The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” Man’s wrath never produces God’s righteousness:
- Cain: “For Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell” (Gen 4:5). In his anger, Cain killed Abel.
- Saul: The Israelites praised David’s heroics in battle, but “Saul was very angry, and this saying displeased him” (1 Sam 18:8). Saul spent years seeking to kill David.
- Asa: A seer confronted him for depending on Syria instead of Yahweh, and “Asa was angry with the seer and put him in the stocks in prison, for he was in a rage with him because of this. And Asa inflicted cruelties upon some of the people at the same time” (2 Chron 16:10).
verse 20:
Man’s anger doesn’t produce the righteousness—the moral behavior—God seeks for his people.
Application
“The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” James wrote at a time of divided political loyalties among God’s people; we live in a time of divided political loyalties. But it doesn’t matter if you’re talking politics or marriage or friendship or neighbors or coworkers or any other relationship, “The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” How should you, therefore, live?
One: Tune
First, you Tune in to others: “Let every person be quick to hear.” Why should you be quick to hear—to Tune—to other people? Yes, those people bear God’s image, but let me give you another reason: “Whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matt 7:12).
If you want people to listen to you, you must hear others. Pay special attention to what people tell you—Tune in to them. Seek to hear what your friends and your neighbor and your spouse and your coworker tells you.
Two: Tell
Second, you Tell or speak: “Let every person be . . . slow to speak.” Why would the Holy Spirit instruct you to be “slow to speak?”
Scripture provides guidelines for your speech, and to follow those guidelines, you need to think before you Tell. For example: “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear” (Eph 4:29). Pause before you speak, and ask yourself:
- Is this corrupting speech?
- Is this edifying speech?
- Is this gracious speech?
Three: Temper
Third, you keep your Temper. Anger often arises because you feel slighted in some way or another, and you want to right that wrong. When you’re angry, you make things about you, but James said to keep your Temper, because it’s not about you: “The anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”
Your life is about doing what’s pleasing to Almighty God. It’s not about politics or that petty spat you had with your spouse or proving yourself right to your coworkers. Your life isn’t about getting your way—your life is about allowing God to have his way: Colossians 3:1-3.
Since “your life is hidden with Christ in God,” keep your Temper. “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all” (Rom 12:18).
Conclusion
You and I seek to “live peaceably with all” in “A Country Divided.” Many of our friends and family and coworkers disagree with us politically. Many see the stakes as high in this election, and you might be very worried about the outcome. Tammy will tell you that I myself am a little anxious about this election.
But I want to let you in on a secret: It doesn’t matter who wins in November, for Jesus still sits at the right hand of the Majesty on high. That’s what matters! “Let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken” (Heb 12:28). God’s kingdom isn’t going anywhere; heaven is going nowhere.
Listen to me: When you see Jesus face to face, do you really think you’re going to care if Donald Trump or Kamala Harris is elected President of the United States? When you hear Jesus say, “Well done, good and faithful servant,” do you think you’re going to care who sits in the Oval Office?
But will Jesus say to you, “Well done, good and faithful servant?” Are you prepared for that great day?
This sermon was originally preached by Dr. Justin Imel, Sr., at Church of Christ Deer Park in Deer Park, Texas.