Recently I was browsing in a
store (not shopping, but killing time while my wife shopped) and there were a
couple children running amuck through the store. Without looking up from her
examining of an item, she would yell at them to stop running whenever they
passed her. They ignored her completely. She began turning the volume up, but
did not make any move to discipline them. Finally, she stopped what she was
doing turned to them and called them naughty kids, then returned to her
perusing of stuff. That really made a difference – not. I meandered to another
part of the store shaking my head.
The word “naughty” doesn’t carry
the same connotation these days as James meant when he penned this book. It
means “wickedness” which drives the point home for me. To say “you naughty boy”
sounds more like a joke. At the very least it minimizes his behavior, making it
sound almost cute.
Everywhere I go there is
immorality and a super abundance of naughtiness. James admonishes me to throw
my immorality and my overabundance of wickedness in the dumpster.
Since that leaves a void in my
life he tells me to receive the engrafted Word with meekness. Just as a branch
is grafted into a tree of a different species, the Word was grafted into this
world. It isn’t a natural part of wickedness and immorality.
It’s interesting to me how sin
brings arrogance and pride, but Godliness brings meekness and humility. I am
learning that when I put aside my sin and turn to the Word, I have a repentant
attitude and do so with meekness.
“Wherefore lay apart all
filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the
engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.” James 1:21
© copyright Kevin T Boekhoff
https://tugsandnudges.wordpress.com/2015/12/31/you-naughty-kids/
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