Remember a few years ago when the magician of Sigfried and Roy was attacked by his tiger? He had raised it from a cub; yet, it turned on him, ignoring his commands and nearly killed him. He was used to commanding that little tiger, but when it was grown, it decided listening was optional.
When we were learning Lusoga (the language in Uganda), I sat under a mango tree for months on end trying to learn imperatives. This was made considerably more difficult by the fact that I had no idea what the term meant and couldn’t point to an imperative even in English! The book of James is full of imperatives. Imperatives say “Do this, don’t do this.” They are commands--emphatic directions. James is practical and pragmatic. Sometimes a little heavier on the imperatives than we might like him to be.
In the middle of James chapter one, James offers a few imperatives regarding temptation. Actually he gives us a flow chart for sin, saying it begins here, moves to here and ends up here. First it looks like this, then this, and finally this. James makes it clear that sin is headed to one place: death.
On one hand it’s not very encouraging to hear, “Don’t blame God. Do blame yourself.” Knowing we’re the problem and we’re to blame doesn’t help much, does it? I had so many problems with imperatives in Lusoga because I never used them in English, or at least not without trying to be polite. I softened them with, “Well, maybe you could . . .” or “What about trying this . . .”
Now that I have kids, I understand the need for imperatives. I find myself asking, “What part of ‘don’t’ did you not understand?” I want to be clear and direct, especially when it is “imperative” they get it. If my son heads toward traffic, I don’t suggest he stop; I demand it. James has neither the time nor inclination to soften his imperatives because he understands the result of sin is death.
Sin is like a baby tiger we take into our lives. It’s cute, interesting and cool to have around, but James knows it will mature, and when fully grown (his words, not mine), eat us alive. So if James sounds a little harsh and direct, maybe it’s because he knows good and well the nature of the beast we are dealing with and just how dangerous it is to play with it. Sin is a tiger, and we have a promise that one day it will turn on us, and we will be no match for it.
When we were learning Lusoga (the language in Uganda), I sat under a mango tree for months on end trying to learn imperatives. This was made considerably more difficult by the fact that I had no idea what the term meant and couldn’t point to an imperative even in English! The book of James is full of imperatives. Imperatives say “Do this, don’t do this.” They are commands--emphatic directions. James is practical and pragmatic. Sometimes a little heavier on the imperatives than we might like him to be.
In the middle of James chapter one, James offers a few imperatives regarding temptation. Actually he gives us a flow chart for sin, saying it begins here, moves to here and ends up here. First it looks like this, then this, and finally this. James makes it clear that sin is headed to one place: death.
On one hand it’s not very encouraging to hear, “Don’t blame God. Do blame yourself.” Knowing we’re the problem and we’re to blame doesn’t help much, does it? I had so many problems with imperatives in Lusoga because I never used them in English, or at least not without trying to be polite. I softened them with, “Well, maybe you could . . .” or “What about trying this . . .”
Now that I have kids, I understand the need for imperatives. I find myself asking, “What part of ‘don’t’ did you not understand?” I want to be clear and direct, especially when it is “imperative” they get it. If my son heads toward traffic, I don’t suggest he stop; I demand it. James has neither the time nor inclination to soften his imperatives because he understands the result of sin is death.
Sin is like a baby tiger we take into our lives. It’s cute, interesting and cool to have around, but James knows it will mature, and when fully grown (his words, not mine), eat us alive. So if James sounds a little harsh and direct, maybe it’s because he knows good and well the nature of the beast we are dealing with and just how dangerous it is to play with it. Sin is a tiger, and we have a promise that one day it will turn on us, and we will be no match for it.
Mark
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