Slow to Speak

About three days ago I wrote a post on memorizing scriptures and thought I would share the newest scripture I’ve chosen and the reasoning behind it. When I’m memorizing scripture I try to be consistent and stick with one particular Bible, but, sometimes the wording from a different Bible resonates with me more and makes the scripture easier to memorize. The two Bibles I’m usually learning the scripture from are the NKJ(New King James bible) because of it’s modern wording or from the NASB (New American Standard Bible) because of the actual word for word interpretation. But I also tend to like the ESV(English Standard Version), the NLT(New Living Translation) and the NIV (New International Version) again because of the wording.

But one thing I enjoy doing, is once I’ve identified a particular scripture to memorize I like to look it up in my AMP (Amplified Bible) for a more detailed reading. This often adds more clarification and can even help with the memorization process by understanding that particular scripture more deeply.

The scripture I’ve chosen to memorize this week is one I believe will help me in my Christian growth and to help me as I journey through these unprecedented times. Because, I do believe a time is coming when Christians in the United States will be persecuted for their belief in Jesus, just as He warned. For those who are not aware, Isis and Iran are on our doorsteps, so, it’s vitally imperative that every Christian be ready. The scripture I chose says;

You know this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Now everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger; for a man’s anger does not bring about the righteousness of God. James 1:19 (NASB)

This scripture helps to keep me humble. It’s a reminder that God is righteous and we are flawed. But to fully grasp the deeper meaning of this scripture, I’m using the AMP (Amplified Bible) to provide additional information. It says;

Understand this, my beloved brothers and sisters. Let everyone be quick to hear [be a careful, thoughtful listener], slow to speak [a speaker of carefully chosen words and], slow to anger [patient, reflective, forgiving]; for the [resentful, deep-seated] anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God [that standard of behavior which He requires of us]. James 1:19 (AMP)

See what I mean?

After taking the time to study the scripture in a more detailed manner I’ve learned that most of us may “hear” what’s being said, but, we’re not necessarily “listening” to the person. What I also found fascinating is the, “slow to speak“, reference which indicates we should choose our words carefully. And then the slow to anger reference indicates the need to exhibit patience, reflective and forgiving. But what does reflective mean? It’s someone who is thoughtful.

As a Christian, if I act from a place of love, someone who is patient, thoughtful and chooses their words carefully, non-believers may see me in a different light. It could open up a conversation between the two of us that is respectful, and even if we don’t agree, at least I’ve planted the seed.

However, the reason I chose this particular scripture is it’s exactly the actions I saw in Christ when He was arrested and taken to Caiaphas, the high priest, and was presented before the Sanhedrin(Jewish high Court). Even during this difficult time Christ listened to them attentively and chose His words carefully. He did not allow anger to interfere with God’s plans. And He displayed the same characteristics when He went before Pilate.