I've taken a new magazine recently as a Christmas gift from my mother-in-law: Forbes. It is a generally conservative, in my opinion, business rag that I have enjoyed quite a bit; delivered bi-weekly.
The last page of each edition is delegated to quotations on topic. And always at the lower right of the page is a reader submitted Bible verse.
The April 26th, 2004 issue's verse is James 3:13 (NIV):
Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.
This is from a slightly longer passage discussing two types of wisdom.
14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.
There is a great corresponding commentary from the Bible Gateway website, which I have copied below. It reminds me of two idioms that I try my hardest (but yet fail miserably most of the time) to focus on:
- Sometimes it is better to keep quiet as opposed to openning your mouth and letting people know how little you actually know, and
- The more you know, the more you know you don't know.
And I suppose there is another, which is to give God the glory for all things great and small -- even when our lives seem to be in turmoil if, through faith, we can trust God to execute His plan in our lives we are able to take strength in the fact that with His wisdom and strength we can overcome any obstacle.
Off on a tangent, but to me it would seem that these are the things of wisdom. Here are a few more.
Who Is Wise Among You? (3:13-18)
When James invites people who are (supposedly) wise and understanding to step forward and identify themselves, he is returning more explicitly to the topic of "teachers" addressed in 3:1. Especially for those who think they are wise enough to teach others, James wants his readers to know what true wisdom means. What he gives is more a description than a definition of wisdom. In fact, he has been describing it all along, with his talk of believing God, relying on God's goodness, doing what God's word says and living the righteous life that God desires. Now he will label this as wisdom and describe it further as a humble submissiveness to God which results in a life of goodness, purity and peace toward other people. To explain this, James analyzes three aspects of wisdom.The Nature of Wisdom
In regard to the nature of wisdom, first the impact of the question in 3:13 must be faced: Who is wise and understanding among you? For those who do not care about true wisdom but only want the status of being thought wise, the question is a challenge; James's answer will expose them for what they are. For those who honestly aspire to being wise, the question is an invitation; James's answer will divulge the way to attain their aspirations. James is saying, "I am about to tell you the nature of true wisdom; treasure this." Let all readers, then, first examine their own hearts before reading beyond the question posed in 3:13. Do you really want to be wise?
Then we must submit to James's answer about the requirement of true wisdom. Consistent with his previous instructions, James again requires actions that authenticate words. Who claims to be wise? Let him show it by his good life. Today the phrase good life has taken a connotation of a prosperous, pleasurable life. James, of course, is talking about quite another matter: moral goodness. His phrase is kales anastrophes, "good conduct" or "good behavior." He elaborates: Let him show it . . . by deeds. James is thinking with the same verb deiknymi and noun ergon as in 2:18; his point must be very close to that earlier verse. Genuine wisdom, like faith, is a practical matter; it shows up in how one lives. Literally James says, "Let him show by good behavior his deeds in the humility of wisdom." Wisdom, then, is not something I will merely possess in my head; if I am wise at all, it is something I will demonstrate in my conduct.
Finally, the personality of wisdom should be taken to heart: the wise deeds will be done in humility. Humility is the character trait underlying the Christian behavior described in the entire letter; this is the trait to cultivate if one would take James's teaching deeply into one's life. James would have approved of what Calvin wrote quoting Augustine, "When a certain rhetorician was asked what was the chief rule in eloquence, he replied, `Delivery'; what was the second rule, `Delivery'; what was the third rule, `Delivery'; so if you ask me concerning the precepts of the Christian religion, first, second, third, and always I would answer, `Humility' " (Institutes 2. 2. 11).
Therefore James's notion of humility is worth exploring. His term praytes is variously translated as "meekness" (KJV) and "gentleness" (NASB), but the NIV's "humility" is much to be preferred. "Meekness" today connotes a touch of weakness and passivity, which are not at all true in James's requirement of active obedience. "Gentleness" is appropriate in reference to our relationships with each other (and should be brought out in an exposition of 3:17-18); but James has a larger concept in mind as humility.
The terms prays and praytes ("humble" and "humility") do not occur in the Gospel of Mark, in Luke's Gospel or Acts, in Hebrews, or in the Johannine writings of the New Testament. This reflects the Christology of those writers, who place their emphasis on Christ as powerful Son and Lord. In Matthew the adjective prays is used three times, as a significant, characteristic trait of Jesus himself and of his followers. In Matthew 5:5, when Jesus pronounces the "meek" to be blessed, he is calling people to enter his kingdom with this stance of humility. In Matthew 11:29, Jesus invites people to come and learn from him specifically because he is himself "gentle." In Matthew 21:5, Matthew identifies Jesus as the "gentle" messianic king promised in Zechariah 9:9. Paul uses the noun praytes several times, notably as a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:23) and a trait of Christ (2 Cor 10:1) to be exhibited by all Christians toward other people (Eph 4:2; Col 3:12; Tit 3:2). This Christian virtue of humility is modeled after the ministry of Christ, who served others, sacrificed himself and placed himself wholly at the Father's disposal in perfect trust and obedience.
This seems to be very much James's own concept of humility, as observed in three applications within his letter. Humility is, first, the teachability by which we are to accept "humbly" the word of God in 1:21. But James emphasizes there that humbly accepting God's word entails doing the word. Therefore humility is, second, a submissive readiness to do what the word says with deeds done in . . . humility. Third, James shows in our current passage that in humility toward God we will become humble (and gentle) to live at peace with each other. The opposite of humility is an unwillingness to learn and a refusal to yield: the bitter envy and selfish ambition that will result in disorder. For James, humility is a yielding of oneself in ready teachability and responsiveness to God's word, resulting in a good and unselfish life of peace with other people.
Compare the two terms James employs when talking about humility. In 1:9-10 he used tapeinos to refer to the poor person's "humble circumstances" and tapeinosis to mention the rich person's reduction to a "low position." James used that term when thinking of circumstantial station in life. When speaking of the spiritual stance of teachability before God (as in 1:21 and here in 3:13), however, James uses praytes. Davids explains the awkwardness of the phrase "in the humility that comes from wisdom" as due to "a preference for the Semitic-influenced genitive construction" (1982:150). But the phrase is prompted by more than a grammatical preference. James is talking about a foundational element in a person of faith.
The problem James is addressing, then, is not that there are teachers spreading false doctrine (as would often be the concern in Paul's letters). James is addressing the problem of arrogance, which can be present even when correct doctrine is being taught. His warning should bring all teachers to an abrupt halt for self-examination. I can be correct in my doctrine down to the most esoteric details; I can attain a consistency in my orthodoxy which surpasses others'; I can gain a reputation for my thorough grasp of theology and be regarded as a protector of the faith; and my teaching may still be earthly, unspiritual, of the devil, resulting in disorder and every evil practice by stirring up suspicion, slander, distrust and contention within the Christian community.
James puts the critical issue to me: Am I teaching from humility or from selfish ambition? If it is the latter, then I am even failing in the matter about which I am most proud: my grasp of truth. For then my claim to be wise is itself a falsehood. That is the sense of James's conclusion, Do not boast about it or deny the truth.
Follow the link to read more on this topic. It is a great life lesson that is easy to lose sight of.
