One Leg at a Time
A Look at James 3:1
James 3:1 says, “Not many be teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive a stricter judgment” [Author’s translation].   What are we today to make of this verse?  Is James trying to discourage some people from becoming teachers?  Does he really think that teachers will be held to a stricter judgment?  Let us now embark to answer these questions and to take a closer look at this verse from the beautiful epistle of James.  On to our first question, is James trying to discourage some people from becoming teachers?  The answer is yes and no.  James was himself a teacher within the Lord’s church.  Notice the use of the first person plural pronoun, we.  He says that “we” will receive a stricter judgment.  Therefore James is including himself within the group that he is referring to.  What James is discouraging is not that people should teach the gospel; this would be in direct contradiction of the Hebrew writer, just a book earlier.  In Hebrews 5:12 the writer is disciplining his original audience and tells them “For also by this time, you all ought to be teachers.”  Clearly the Hebrew writer believes that his original audience should be teaching the gospel of Jesus Christ.  So then why does James discourage it?  It is our conviction that James is discouraging that many be public teachers.  Public teaching of the gospel is not a walk in the park.  There is an old saying, “Sam had two sons, one was a preacher, and the other did not do anything either.”  We would encourage people with this attitude to realize this truth, “God had one Son, and He was a Preacher.”  As stated earlier James is including Himself within this group.  As a public teacher of the gospel himself, he understood the trials and tribulations a public teacher would endure.  He is cautioning those who are pondering this career to take a second thought.  Why is James cautioning men who might become public teachers?  This question is related to our next question, does James really think that teachers will be held to a stricter judgment?  The answer is yes.  Notice the context of this remark.  James is about to launch into a discourse on the tongue and the dangers of it.  In verse 2 he says, “For we all stumble in many things.  If someone does not stumble in word, this man is complete, able to bridle the whole body.”  This is reason for not many people becoming public teachers, their own tongues.  But what does that have to do with a stricter judgment?  Think back and try to remember a time when you may have heard a public teacher say something that they should not.  Public teachers in the Lord’s church today are put on pedestals and thought of as better than the average Christian.  It is our conviction that the judgment James is referring to comes from the brethren.  It comes from those members of the congregation who refuse to forgive a public teacher for a slip of the tongue.  A professor remarked one time, “God will forgive me, but my own brethren won’t.”  In conclusion, we hope that you have a better understanding of James 3:1.  This verse is not a verse that only teachers can learn from, but that every single Christian can.  As public teachers we see that we must be careful what we say and how we say it, and as Christians we must not hold preachers and teachers to such high standards.  After all, preachers put their pants on one leg at a time too!      

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