James 5:13-20

Lots of folks think James is kinda random, disconnected. But we figure his major theme was addressing what he was seeing at work in the very early church, and helping Christians do a better job at being the church in Christ's name.

So we've heard about taking a long look at ourselves in the mirror of what God says, adjusting how we look at and judge each other, guarding our powerful tongues, and being mindful of the inner attitudes that shape us. It sounds, looking back, like James is interested in the whole body. Not just one or two people who gather together to follow Jesus, every member. And not just one or two aspects of each person's being, but the whole person, inside-out and in-between. And, oh snap, not just Christian people, but even how they spill over and affect the rest of the earth.

We hear a lot of this same kind of business nowadays when people talk about being holistic. "Mind, body and spirit" and yoga and acupuncture, yadda yadda yadda, right? But, really, apart from the extra meaning we add on to stuff that's "holistic", it's a good idea. It's just about being concerned with the whole, and that sounds an awful lot like much of what Jesus taught. And I think it's what we get through James: health, vitality, and LIFE depend on addressing the whole picture, especially in the Church.

So these last verses in the book talk about something very practical again, something we've hit on throughout the series - prayer. And James talks about prayer especially with regard to healing. Some of us can read this and be skeptical, as he talks about annointing and other methods for healing in the community - does James mean to give us step-by-step instructions that'll work like magic every time? Is he saying that the church will never again have to worry about the common cold, or broken bones, or cancer, so long as we pray just right for healing? Doubt it.

Instead, I think he paints a picture of holistic healing. Right away notice that he talks about more than just the physical, he also mentions confession of sin and salvation. I think it's a different idea of healing than just band-aids and instant cures. A deeper kind of healing. And it's tied to the whole body, how we in the fellowship interact together, and care for one another by God's Spirit living in us.

So what do James' closing words to the Church mean for us now? What kind of healing is there for us today? What does it mean for the fellowship, the body, the gathering of people calling themselves "Christians"?

Remember, this letter is concerned for the heart of the church. So this week we look at the inner part of us, and how that shapes what we say/do. James hits this by talking about two kinds of wisdom and which one we buy into. The first is earthly wisdom, the kind that focuses on self, on “getting mine”. Nowadays some of us call that street smarts or whatever else – this idea that we gotta watch out for ourselves, ‘cause no one else will, we gotta survive, build our own destiny, etc. Anybody who knows anything knows that.

It’s a cut-throat way of life. Where does it come from? Why is it so common to humankind? To me, this wisdom of the world attitude is most present in people who'd say they've been through the school of "hard knocks." Just listen to little orphan Annie in the video, for instance:

Orphans know about hard knocks. Kids from the street know about learning quick, wising up, and taking care of themselves. But, really, isn't that all of us sometime? Maybe some more than others, but however we grew up or whatever circumstances we're in now, haven't we all taken some knocks? And isn't it easy to think, "it's time I start fending for myself"? Well maybe that’s the first kind of wisdom, the world's wisdom, and James says that when folks buy into it, it’s the root of most of our envy/ambition. And it causes strife in the fellowship when everybody's looking out for number one.

But the other kind is heavenly wisdom, Godly wisdom that puts self last and nurtures those around us. A way of life that trusts and hopes for better, that allows us to be vulnerable to God and each other. Maybe this kind of wisdom says, "however many knocks I've had, I still know God is good and God loves me and I can't be or do my best all on my own"? To James, the second kind of wisdom nurtures our faith, which nurtures our action, which then nurtures true wisdom even more...and so on.

So at any given moment, which brand of wisdom do we buy into? And do we even know it? Do we know what basic assumptions are shaping our thoughts, and then our actions, the lives of those right next to us, and even our faith?

James 3:1-12.

There's a similar scene in at least two movies (A Christmas Story and Dumb & Dumber) where it's wintertime and a character decides to lick a frozen metal pole. Can't you just picture Jeff Daniels' character, "Harry", riding up the chair-lift at the ski slope, looking over at the pole and immediately deciding to lick it? No hesitation, no filter, just *BAM* and he's stuck.

James continues this week with more practical teaching, and nothing's more practical than NOT following that compulsion to lick the ice on the pole. James talks about what's on the line when we don't control our mouths. Just like Harry on the ski-lift, letting loose with our tongues affects our whole selves and those around us. Why? Maybe because the mouth, our words, are sometimes the first and sometimes the easiest way for us to be in action.

Think about it, ya don't have to break a sweat, you don't have to get off the couch, to use your tongue - for good or for evil. So once again as James teaches on having a faith that overflows into action, we see how vital our speech is - it's a primary place for us to act, but it may also be the thing we treat most carelessly.