The text for this morning is one of ‘those’ texts. And by that I simply mean
that it’s a text that prompts lots of questions. If you were to read it all
by itself there would be no problem understanding the point. The problem
comes when you see it in its context. James is talking about patiently
waiting for Jesus to come back. So, what’s this verse doing in this context?
The context affects the meaning. Remember that the Bible wasn’t written in
verses. It was written in sentences within paragraphs focused on a thought.
The context affects the meaning. How should we understand this verse in this
context? Now, obviously, the original audience understood what James was
getting at. They had all the details to understand why James is writing this
here. But I don’t have all the details. So, I won’t try to answer all those
questions about understanding the text.
But I do want to point out one thing from this text. I would like to explore
one aspect of what James says here that ties in with a theme that was
obviously very important to him. Time and again, James highlights his
concern for the relationships that the saints had with each other. That’s
why he tells them to stop their grumbling against each other. That little
phrase is very important. He is concerned for their relationships. We’ve
seen this concern before. Back in chapter two he talked about the problem of
the people being partial to the wealthy and, as a result, insulting the
poorer Christians in the church. His example of a living faith also fits
with this concern of his. Listen: ‘If a brother or sister is poorly clothed
and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, "Go in peace, be
warmed and filled," without giving them the things needed for the body, what
good is that?’ [James 2:15-16] And then, there are his comments in chapter
four about the quarrels and fights that were going on. And do you have any
idea how many times James refers to these folk as ‘brethren’ in this short
letter? There are other examples of this, but I think that you see what I
mean. The whole area of the relationships within the church was an
important issue for James.
What I’ve pointed out to you have been, for the most part, are James’
responses to those situations in which the saints have dropped the ball.
Fortunately, we also have a positive statement of what James was aiming for
when it comes to relationships. He tells us his ideal for the church.
Listen: ‘And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make
peace.’ [James 3:18] James expected the church to be a people who pursued
peace. The gathering of the saints was to be an experience of peace.
Obviously, grumbling at each other doesn’t fit with that goal. Now, it’s
important to bear in mind what the Bible means by ‘peace’. I’ve mentioned
this before, but it bears repeating. Peace is not merely a truce between
people. It’s not simply the lack of quarrels and fights, or the absence of
complaints. That’s merely the negative. Those are things that are not
supposed to happen. But peace is clearly a very positive concept. But I don’
t want to use ‘church words’ to explain it. Let’s use normal language to
describe what James is concerned to see.
We’re in the middle of something new this summer. We’re having a four-week
Sunday School module. It’s one class for everyone which I am teaching. And
the topic is friendship. It’s not about the watered down notion where a
friend is almost anyone you have more than just a passing acquaintance with.
It’s about the biblical idea of friendship. Being a friend is being someone
who loves. It’s making that commitment of will and heart to the welfare of
another. Being a friend is working for an open, honest relationship. No more
hiding or fear. And certainly no more attacking. That includes things like
really listening. It means always speaking the truth to your friend. Being a
friend is enjoying a bond with another person, a bond that is strong and is
growing stronger as the two of you become close. Here’s a verse that I used
in the class that speaks to this idea of friendship. ‘Two are better than
one, because they have a good reward for their toil. For if they fall, one
will lift up his fellow. But woe to him who is alone when he falls and has
not another to lift him up! Again, if two lie together, they keep warm, but
how can one keep warm alone? And though a man might prevail against one who
is alone, two will withstand him—a threefold cord is not quickly broken.’
[Ecclesiastes4:9-12] Now, that’s a far cry from a mere acquaintance.
This is what James was aiming for. This is his ideal. This is what peace
within the church is about. And this is a theme that runs through all the
New Testament. We see it there, but it doesn’t always strike home because we
use church words to talk about it, words whose meaning, sadly, has been
blunted. James’ desire is that the saints in the church to which he was
writing would be friends, real friends. So, to paraphrase our text a bit,
James writes, ‘Hey! Friends don’t grouse at each other. Stop it!’
In the course of our Sunday School class someone made the point that this
idea of friendship is related to the Members’ Pledge we recite when someone
becomes a member here. To put it in every day language, that pledge is a
promise to be a friend to this newest member of our congregation. I find
that a very helpful idea. Now, remember, don’t water it down to friend as
mere acquaintance, someone you see once a week and briefly say, ‘Hi’ to. It’
s being a friend as the Scriptures explain it.
For that reason, it is good and appropriate that we are going to celebrate
the Lord’s Supper today. There are a lot of things going on when we gather
around the table to enjoy Communion. Here’s one of them. Whenever you take
the Lord’s Supper you are, in effect, saying, ‘Lord, I heard what You said
in the sermon. I understand a little better now what You require of me as a
Christian. I renew my promise to You to work at obeying all that You’ve
commanded in the preaching of the Word. I promise that I will work at
believing this part of the Gospel also.’ The fancy theological term for all
this is covenant renewal. So, when you take the Supper this morning this is
what you will be doing. In effect you will be saying, ‘I heard what You said
about my relationship with the rest of the saints here, Lord. I heard what
you said about being a friend to these folk. I renew my promise to obey You,
and I will work at being a friend to these Christians who are sitting around
me.’
Now, it is oh so important to remember that Jesus is also doing something
when we take the Supper. He is renewing His promise to you. In Communion He
is saying to you, ‘I renew My promise to you to be your God. I renew My
promise to provide all that you need. So, I will bless you so that you will
be able to keep your promise to obey. I will bless you so that you will make
progress at being a friend to these folk.’ Without His blessing any real
progress is impossible.
But that’s not all that’s going on here. There’s also this. By the Lord’s
Supper we are all doing this covenant renewal thing with each other. When
you take of the Supper in a few minutes you will be renewing your promise to
the other saints here. You will be renewing that members’ pledge, a promise
to be a friend to the other people who are here. It’s a promise you renew in
the hope that Jesus will provide the grace you need to keep it.
The Church has been called to be a light in a very dark world. One part of
what that means is that we are to be friends to each other, real friends,
friends as the Bible describes that, and in this way display the fruit of
the Gospel before so many lonely people. As we do that, they will come, and
we will be able to tell them how Jesus makes such friendship a reality.
