Journeying through James 1:21 – How the Implanted Word Grows

Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. James 1:21 (ESV)

Most of you reading this aren’t evangelists or pastors. You’re just one of 7.5 billion people living on this earth * . And you’re likely one of the 2.38 billion that consider themselves Christians * . Probably the best take-away for you from James 1:21 is that your life is exceeding precious to God. And not only to God, but also to any of the 7.5 billion people in this world that you might cross paths with. Why? One reason is that you can bear fruit in your life that would prove to be a good witness and blessing to others.

Jesus taught: “But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop” (Luke 8:15, NIV). God implanted the seed as a gift in your life. That’s what James 1:21 says, and the word that Jesus uses in Luke 8:15 for “hear” is past, completed action. In other words, you’ve heard the Word; it’s in your heart and mind—now what? In Jesus teaching, “retain…persevering“ and “produce” are all in the present—things that God is doing now.

The emphasis that Jesus and James are making is about the process that God has undertaken to produce fruit in our lives. Our lives truly do bear fruit. That fruit has an impact on people. God knows how powerful that impression can be. Take a moment, right now, and thank God that He’s planted Christ in your heart. How’s that message being seen though you in the life that God has given you. This is what producing fruit is all about. Try this exercise to Dig Deeper.

The US Census Bureau’s International Data Base estimated that the world population reached 7.5 billion on June 13, 2018 (https://www.census.gov/newsroom/stories/2020/world-population-day.html).