James 4:11-12

Bringing the sermon home:

Having just written about the humility produced by godly wisdom, James then devotes the following three passages to three specific examples of the kind of pride he’s denouncing, beginning with critical speech. While the language of “speaking evil against” someone is general enough to include slanderous speech (i.e., telling lies about someone) and maligning speech (i.e., sharing spiteful truths about someone), the rest of this passage indicates that James is primarily focused on judgmental speech (i.e., judging the motives of a person’s heart).

But as James explains, God’s law prohibits such presumptuous, judgmental behavior, and to disobey the law in such a manner is to judge the law. Actually, we’re judging God’s law to be wrong every time we violate it, precisely as our forbearers did in the garden of Eden. But in this case, we’re playing God in additional ways as we presume to know another person’s heart and as we put ourselves in the place of being their judge.

Of the different kinds of sinful judging addressed in the New Testament, including hypocritical judging (see Matthew 7) and legalistic judging (see Romans 14), this presumptuous judging is probably the most common (see also 1 Cor 4:3-5), especially between members of the same church. May we be a people who humble ourselves before the Lord, resolving not to play God when it comes to judging the motives of each other’s heart.

Sermon Outline:

1. A prime example of not humbling yourself: judgmental speech. (v.11a)
2. Placing yourself above others places yourself above God’s law. (v.11b)
3. Presuming to know another person’s heart is playing God. (v.12)