1. Christian, examine your obedience, and thus your spiritual wholeness: hasty speech and anger do not please God (19-20)

• Obedient Christians should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger (19)
• Our anger does not produce “God’s righteousness” (20)

2. Obedience to the word is THE mark of genuine Christianity (21-25)

Therefore, Christian

• get rid of the sinful filth in your life and accept the word planted in you (21)
• do not deceive yourself: do not merely listen to the word, obey it (22-24)
• carefully study God’s word, obey it, and be blessed (25)

3. Three ways Christians obey the word (26-27).

(These manifestations of obedience to the word introduce or touch on key ideas James will return to later in the letter)

• Controlling the tongue (1:19-20; 3:1-12; 4:11-12).
• Concern for the helpless (2:1-13; 15-16; cf. 5:1-6).
• Avoidance of worldliness (4:4-10).