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by Rev. Scott Licht
“Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good
conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if
you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not
boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that
comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For
where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every
vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure,
then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good
fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of
righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.” (James 3:13-18
ESV)
You’ve all seen it. The misguided pro-life zealot who blew up
the abortion clinic. The “anti-abortion extremist” who shot and killed the
doctor who performs abortions. The members of the church blocking funeral
processions for members of the armed forces who gave their lives in service
to our country—because the military allows homosexual men and women to
serve. The rancorous protests and vicious rhetoric when “physician-assisted
suicide” is debated.
God, through James’s hand, has a message for those who let
their emotions and their own reason take control. Love for God and your
neighbor demands a better way of getting your point across. “By his good
conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom” (James 3:13b).
That wisdom is described thus: “But the wisdom from above is first pure,
then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits,
impartial and sincere.” (James 3:17)
OK, but sex out of wedlock is wrong. Abortion is wrong.
Physician-assisted suicide is wrong. I can’t condone those things, so what
am I supposed to do?
When word gets out that an unmarried woman in your area is
pregnant, what do you do? Do you call the person in town who knows all “the
news” to find out about the father? Do you ignore her in the grocery store?
Do you ascribe to her all of the demeaning names and adjectives that
society uses? Or do you recognize the fact that she sinned, just as you
have MANY times? Her sin may be more visible and may have different consequences,
but it’s no more grievous than yours. That sin is just as forgiven as
yours. Why not offer to help her in whatever way she might need? Drive her
to a doctor appointment, throw a baby shower for her, offer to pick up
groceries for her, LOVE her. She is carrying a child of God regardless of
how that child was conceived.
A friend confides in you that he paid for his girlfriend to
have an abortion 10 years ago—what do you do? Remind him that he was an
accessory to the murder of his own child? Vow never to talk to him because
you would never do “THAT”? Tell everyone else you know to avoid him? Or do
you sit and listen, offering comfort and assurance of God’s forgiveness for
that sin? Offer him the number for the Word of Hope counseling service
(888.217.8679; word-of-hope.org), find a local support group for
post-abortive men, share Scripture with him regarding God’s unconditional
love, pray with him.
An 82-year-old gentleman whose wife died a year ago just found
out that he has Alzheimer’s disease. He’s going to lose his driver’s
license. He’ll have to move after the last time that he forgot to turn off
the stove and nearly set his house on fire. Soon he may need help brushing
his teeth, going to the bathroom, and getting dressed. He is sure that he
is going to be such a burden on his children, and when they do come to see
him, he probably won’t even remember who they are or that they came to see
him. Couldn’t his doctor just give him a pill to end it all? If his regular
doctor won’t do it, couldn’t he keep looking until he finds one who will?
What do you do? Perhaps you could offer to pick him up and bring him to
church each week. You could arrange for his friends to visit with him
throughout the week. You could stop by to visit and sing some of his favorite
hymns (or other songs) with him. You could be patient when he tells you the
same thing five times within five minutes. You could just be there for him,
reminding him you care and you will always care.
“By his good conduct let him show his works in the
meekness of wisdom.” Remember, “meekness” is NOT
“weakness.” In the scenarios above, the “meek” actions were often more
difficult and required more “strength” than following the ways of the
world. Those things are certainly more difficult than doing nothing. But
James also tells us that “a harvest of righteousness is sown in
peace by those who make peace” (James 3:18). Notice that James doesn’t
say that our actions are the cause of our righteousness—that has been won
for us by Christ. We are merely to sow in peace in order to benefit from
that harvest of righteousness.
Prayer: Gracious Father, we give You
thanks and praise for the gifts which You have given us. Help us to share
those gifts with people who are dealing with life issues—even if it means
stepping outside of our comfort zone. Let us always remember Your urging to
sow in peace as we share Your love and forgiveness, reflecting the love and
forgiveness that You extend to us. Amen.
Action: As this New Year begins and you
make resolutions of things to do for yourself, consider ways in which you
could spend one hour a week helping someone in need—at a crisis pregnancy
center, a hospice house, a nursing home, etc.
From Lutherans For Life
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