Slides: Active Listening (James 1:19-27)

Quick to listen

¹⁹ My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, ²⁰ for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.

• God gave you two ears, one mouth
• Ears open, mouth shut, temper calm

 Slow to listen

He who answers before listening—that is his folly and his shame. (Proverbs 18:13)

The LORD sent prophets to the people to bring them back to him, but they would not listen. (2 Chronicles 24:19)

 Quick to speak

When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.  (Proverbs 10:19)

Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for him. (Proverbs 29:20)

 Quick to anger

A quick-tempered man displays folly. (Proverbs 14:29)

Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools. (Ecclesiastes 7:9)

 Quiet and calm

A man of knowledge uses words with restraint, and a man of understanding is even-tempered. Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue. (Proverbs 17:27-28)

 Soil plowed, seed planted

²¹ Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

Doers, not just hearers

²² Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. ²³ Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror ²⁴ and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.

 Deceiving yourself

• Playing church
• Collecting trivia
• Eyeing others
• Exempting self

 Enjoying the sermon

They listen to your words, but they do not put them into practice. Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice. (Ezekiel 33:31-32)

 Focused & active

²⁵ But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it—he will be blessed in what he does.

• Continual focus, prompt action

 Word within

• Births new life (1:18)
• Saves your soul (1:21)
• Frees and blesses (1:25) 

Worthless religion

²⁶ If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.

blab (1:19), insult, blaspheme (2:6), dismiss (2:16), mislead (3:1), boast (3:5), curse (3:9), slander (4:11), grumble (5:9), swear (5:12)

 Real religion

²⁷ Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.

• Stand with young and old at risk
• Stand against corrupt influences

 Word working

• Manage your tongue
• Help the helpless
• Reject worldly filth

 Word within

• Births new life (1:18)
• Saves your soul (1:21)
• Frees and blesses (1:25)

 Active Listening

Be doers of the Word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. (James 1:22 ESV)