Set a watch, O LORD, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips_ – Ps 141:3
There’re 3 JAMESE in the Bible; 2 were part of the 12 apostles: James, the son of Zebedee and James the son of Alphaeus (aka “James the Less”). The third is in a special category of his own. He was not part of the twelve; in fact, he was not even a disciple. He was James the half-brother of Jesus.
You would think that growing up in the same house with the Christ Himself would make for an awesomely heavenly experience, but no, James was anything but a fan of Christ’s. Remember when Jesus said “A prophet is honoured everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” (Mk 6:4 NLT)? Well, it was people like his brother James that made him make that statement.
In Jn 7:3, our Lord’s brothers said to him, “Leave this place, and go to Judea so that your disciples can see the things that you’re doing” (GW). Why were they being this sarcastic? Jn 7:5 explains that it was because “Even His brothers didn’t believe in Him.” (GW) Sad! Right?
Well, Jesus didn’t let their scepticism get to Him. He remained faithful with His ministry and after His resurrection, these sceptical brothers became Believers. They were there at the “Upper Room” (Act 1:14), and one of them, the very James himself, became the de facto head of the Church (Act 15:13-21; Gal 2:9,12) and also the author of the Bible book of James (Jas 1:1).
Now, here’s an interesting fact: the Book of James has more quotations and references to Jesus’ words and teachings than any other epistle. Not even Peter, Jesus’ chief apostle who went everywhere with Him during His ministry, quotes Jesus’ words like James.
What does this tell us? It means all those years that he was being a sceptic, James was ACTUALLY listening. He may have been scoffing, but he was listening; he may have been jesting, but he was listening; and after Jesus’ Ascension, all those words that he was hearing our Lord speak came to have an eternally-lasting effect on James.
Beloved, be faithful with your ministry and encouragement to the sceptics and non-believers around you. They may act like they’re irritated or unaffected by your words, but two things are certain:
1: They’re listening to the words you speak to them every day.
2: They’re being affected by the words you speak to them every day.
And just like James, they may even end up being a greater repeater of your words than the believing ‘Peters’ in your audience right now.
GREG ELKAN