Daily Devotional • September 3
A Reading from James 3:1-12
1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, for you know that we who teach will face stricter judgment. 2 For all of us make many mistakes. Anyone who makes no mistakes in speaking is mature, able to keep the whole body in check with a bridle. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we guide their whole bodies. 4 Or look at ships: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, yet they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great exploits.
How great a forest is set ablaze by a such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire. The tongue is placed among our members as a world of iniquity; it stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of life, and is itself set on fire by hell. 7 For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, 8 but no one can tame the tongue—a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless the Lordand Father, and with it we curse people, made in the likeness of God.10 From the same mouth comes a blessing and a curse. My brothers and sisters, this ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers and sisters, yield olives or a grapevine figs? No more can salt water yield fresh.
Meditation
Not many of you should become teachers … for you know that we who teach will face stricter judgment. (James 3:1)
On May 20, the Church marked the 1700th anniversary of the first ecumenical council, convened in Nicaea. Much has been written about the council, its Creed, and its foundational role in shaping the Church’s understanding of the Trinitarian relationship and theology.
The Council addressed other matters as well: it condemned teachings that denied Christ’s full divinity, set a unified date for Easter, established standards for ordaining bishops, and introduced discipline for clergy who lent money at interest—even as little as 1%.
Councils then and now seek clarity. They set teaching standards precisely because teachers have much to account for. To “bear the tradition” requires rigorous debate and deep understanding. To tell the story of God’s saving work is a high calling—one that demands reverence and care.
History is full of those who led others astray in God’s name: Jim Jones and the Jonestown tragedy; Josiah Priest, who defended slavery using the curse of Ham; Heinrich Kramer, who justified witch hunts and executions.
What is the teaching? How is it to be taught? What does it aim to instill? Can a teaching or practice evolve in the name of a deeper principle? Forbidding clergy from charging interest protected the poor from exploitation. While penalties may have changed, exploitative lending remains contrary to the unfolding Kingdom of God, for anyone.
The study of Scripture, the fervent prayer of the righteous, the practice of the Eucharist, and the Church’s gathering in council, all qualified by the Holy Spirit’s inspiration, are allies of those who teach. Pray for those who stand at the lectern, ascend the pulpit, gather in council, and write in Christ’s name. Pray not only for our teachers, but that we, the Church, may discern the truth they are called to proclaim.
The Very Rev. Timothy Kimbrough is the director of the Anglican Episcopal House of Studies and the Jack and Barbara Bovender Professor of the Practice of Anglican Studies at Duke Divinity School. He was previously dean of Christ Church Cathedral, Nashville, Tennessee.
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Daily Devotional Cycle of Prayer
Today we pray for:
Church of the Ascension, Chicago
The Diocese of Oke-Ogun – The Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion)
The Rev. Timothy E. Kimbrough is a Guest Writer. He is the Director of the Anglican Episcopal House of Studies and the Jack and Barbara Bovender Professor of the Practice of Anglican Studies at Duke Divinity School. Previous appointments include Dean of Christ Church Cathedral, Nashville, TN. He is a seven-time deputy to General Convention.
