Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God… James 1:19, 20
We usually end reading scripture during family worship with a simple prayer influenced by the verse above. We simply pray, “Thus the reading of the word of God, may He give us ears to hear, hearts and minds to understand, and wisdom to do. Amen.”
The reason for doing this is because I have such a difficult time living this verse out. To say the least, I am a bit tempestuous by nature and lightning quick to wrath. I do believe that God through His word and Holy Spirit is helping me to exercise self-control more and more. However, I have a long way to go.
Malchus was the servant of Caiaphas, the high priest, and was present during the arrest of Jesus. He was the poor chap that Peter smote and cut off his right ear. I find it fascinating that John was so concerned with precision that he mentions it was Malchus’ right ear. The Christian faith is a real, historically rich faith as the Apostles’ Creed attests.
Jesus healed Malchus’ ear and it is my hope that He will do the same for me, making me swift to hear.
