- The Word of God is true
- The Word of God is implanted
- The Word of God is able to save
- The Word of God is God’s tool for regeneration
- The Word of God accomplishes God’s righteousness
1. The significance of God’s Word being true for believers is three fold.
FIRST: It reveals the character of the giver of the Word. As believers, we know that it accurately represents our Creator and his intentions for us, his creation. That’s why James adds in vs. 18 of the text that we were born again to be first fruits of God’s creation.
SECOND: It is able to save the hearers of the Word. Romans 1:16 I am not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation for all those who believe. It is no small thing to take a dead heart and make it alive to Christ. You need more than light to make a blind man see. You need more than sound to make a deaf man hear. There is big supernatural TRUTH with a capital T needed to do what this is describing in the text.
THIRD: It accomplishes God’s Righteousness. If you spend time in the word of truth it can and will accomplish God’s righteousness in you. The problem is that we like the students in my class are not particularly predisposed to accepting the Word of Truth.
Now what does James have to say to us and how we are to receive this word.
We are to understand, We are to be quick to hear, We are to be slow to speak, We are to be slow to anger, We are to be prepared and We are to be humble.
First we are to understand God’s word. We don’t just come here week after week with notintention of grasping, or receiving what it is God would have us learn about our new life in Christ. We are to grow in our understanding of Grace. We are to grow in our awareness and understanding of our own sin. We are to grow in our understanding of God’s calling on our lives as we receive his Word, we grow in our understanding of what our DUTY and DIGNITY in Christ are.
We are quick to listen to God’s word because without it we would stray. We must remain in God’s word, and receive God’s word readily. We come here on Sunday ready and waiting to hear God’s word. Socializing is great. Singing is awesome. I don’t want to diminish the value of those things in our meeting, but the Word of God must be chief among our purpose of coming together. It must inform how we talk to one another, it must lead in what we sing, it must be on our lips in how we pray. We must come with hearts that are quick to listen to God’s word.
Being slow to speak does not mean ‘don’t evangelise’ but it means to be careful about distorting the Word of God be it from the pulpit or between friends. This can also help relationships as we should hold our opinions until we figure out what God wants us to know and share. Furthermore, being slow to anger has different meanings but the one focused on today is anger boiling under the surface – a grudge. Don’t be dissuaded from hearing God’s Word because of your personal feelings for the one who is telling you about it.
Be prepared to receive God’s word. We do this by actively seeking conformity and submission to his word in our daily lives. It says get rid of all moral filth and wickedness that is so prevalent. I John 1:5-10 says very expressly that the word of God cannot abide where sin is. We must be active in confessing and turning from sin as we come to hear God’s word. We do this when we prepare to receive the body and the blood. We should do it when we come to receive the bounty of the truth of God’s word as well. Prepare your heart to receive God’s word continually by spending time confessing and praying before you come to hear from him. How can we expect to receive anything from him if we are not actively ridding ourselves of the evil in our hearts when we come here.
Finally, we come to receive God’s word Humbly. We recognize it is a gift from God unto new life. We admit our lack of understanding and pray for God’s wisdom. We are eager to hear, we need to hear. We are slow to speak or cause disagreements. We don’t hold a grudge against those teaching us. We prepare ourselves by confessing and getting rid of habitual sin in our lives. Humility describes the whole man who is under the control of God’s word. Amen