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1 Nov: 

JAMES: A BOOK OF WISDOM

Taken from:  “10 Things You Should Know About the Book of James”      www.crossway.org 8/23/’26 David Gibson

The book of James can and should have an impact on our lives because it has a grand central them: the undivided life of God’s people. James writes to show us what the person wholly devoted to God believes and how to display what they think, live, speak, and pray.

The first of Jame’s instructions is one of the most counterintuitive things in the New Testament: James 1:2 “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds”.

James does not say  “feel”  it all joy. He says count it—reckon it, think it through with a clear mind. The logic is this: testing produces steadfastness, and steadfastness produces an undivided life. God uses the furnace (think of three young men in a furnace) of suffering not to destroy us but to refine us, to kill off the dividedness inside us, to press the two halves of our souls back into one. Paul echoes this: Rom 5:3-5 “And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulations brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out withing our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.”    The road to growth and maturity is often times the path of pain. This is not a comfort that removes suffering; it is a framework that explains it. C. S. Lewis captured the grand scale of what God is doing in our pain—he is not renovating a cottage; he is building us into a palace.

A R E     O U R     S T R U G G L E S    D E E P E N I N G    

O U R     F A I T H      &       T R U S T ???

An additional point which Jame’s addresses is the error of “double-mindedness. For example, “You adulterous people” (James 4:4) is a dramatic and powerful pictorial description of a believer who is divided and is therefore two-timing God.

The Greek word for double-minded (James 1:8) is dipsychos—literally “two-souled”—and it appears to be James’s own coinage; a term he invented to name the precise malady he sees in the churches he is addressing. The double-minded person is not the ordinary Christian who wrestles with doubt or struggles to obey; it is the person who is fundamentally divided in their loves. Jesus Himself speaks to this in Mtt 6:24 “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.”

The person trying to serve two masters has one foot is planted with God while the other is still touching down in the world. They love Jesus on Sunday and the world’s way of thinking by Tuesday. Their speech, their treatment of the poor, their attitude toward money, their planning and their praying—all of it reveals a fractured self, a soul going in two directions at once. James wants to name this disease before he prescribes the cure which is found in James 4:4 “You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” It is so critical that we follow the instructions in Col. 3:1,2,3 “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, NOT on the things that are on earth. For you have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

A R E   W E    T R Y I N G   TO    S E R V E   T W O    M A S T E R S ?

A third point which James brings to our attention is the problem with a life which is void of evidence that God dwells within us. James 2:24 “You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone.”    This seems to be a contradiction with Paul – Rom 5:1 “Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” But the two apostles are answering different questions. Paul is addressing the anxious sinner, asking, How can I be accepted before a holy God? His answer: by faith and faith alone. James is addressing the complacent believer, asking, Does it matter whether my belief changes anything? His answer: YES! It matters.

A faith that produces no fruit is not a saving faith at all. Paul and James are not contradicting each other; they are complementing each other. James drives this point home – James 2:21,22 “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You see that faith was operating with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected”. This point is clearly illustrated in the parable of the sheep who are invited to inherit the kingdom that was provide for those whose lives were lived according to Jesus – “love your neighbor”.

ARE   W E   R E L Y I N G    O N    “F A I T H  A L O N E”    T O    S A V E    U S ?

A fourth point found in James is his diagnosis of the tongue which goes deeper than speech. The vivid images of James 3—the bit in the horse’s mouth, the ship’s rudder, the forest fire from a single spark—might suggest that James’s answer is simply to speak more carefully. But that is exactly what James says we cannot do. “No human being can tame the tongue” (James 3:8). His point is not that we need to try harder with our words; his point is that the tongue is the heart’s publisher. What the mouth produces is in perfect harmony with what lies at the bottom of the well. Angry words, gossip, blessing mixed with cursing from the same mouth—these are symptoms, not the disease itself. You don’t correct the symptom –  you change the source. Jesus Himself affirms this:  Luke 6:45 “A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”   How we spend our time; what we spend our finances on; what do we do for entertainment; and how we speak to family, friends and loved one speaks volumes on the condition of our heart!

W H A T    F I L L S    Y O U R    H E A R T    A N D

O V E R F L O W S    F R O M    Y O U R    H E A R T ???

 

The vivid images of James 3—the bit in the horse’s mouth, the ship’s rudder, the forest fire from a single spark—might suggest that James’s answer is simply to speak more carefully. But that is exactly what James says we cannot do. “No human being can tame the tongue” (James 3:8). His point is not that we need to try harder with our words; his point is that the tongue is the heart’s publisher. What the mouth produces is in perfect harmony with what lies at the bottom of the well. Angry words, gossip, blessing mixed with cursing from the same mouth—these are symptoms, not the disease itself. You don’t fix the symptom; you change the source.

James ends where he begins: with the preciousness of God’s people to one another.         The final two verses might appear to be a throwaway addition, but they are in fact the emotional climax of the letter. “My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death” (James 5:19–20). After chapters of diagnosis and prescription, James finishes with this: we are worth so much to each other that we must go after one another when we wander. Part of what divides us is our conception of ourselves as islands. The undivided (spirit filled) life is not a solo achievement. It can't be. The second greatest commandment tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves. Therefore our Christian life is a shared mission. We are healed, in part, by the faithfulness of brothers and sisters who love us enough to come and find us when we are lost. Heb 10:23,24 “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds.”

If we are holding fast to our confession, our faith, and if we are putting our faith “to work” then it is impossible that we are not fulfilling the role prescribed in Hebrews and Phil 2:3,4 “Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others.” And here is some glorious news: James presents a God who is eager to welcome back His wandering people.

At the heart of James 4 is one of the most startling divine responses in all of Scripture. James has just called his readers “adulterous people”—they have been unfaithful to God, in bed with the world, two-timing the one who loves them. Isn’t this at the heart of the parable of the “Prodigal Son”. A son who disrespects his father and squanders his inheritance and then comes back to his father wanting forgiveness and help.

Any normal jilted lover would respond with cold anger, withdrawal, rejection. Instead, God says: “Draw near to Me, and I will draw near to you” (James 4:8). The Prodigal Father, with open arms unconditionally welcomes his son back with full status. God chooses to fully welcome back those who have betrayed Him. He calls back the ones who have gone elsewhere  as the “Lost Sheep” parable illustrates. God offers grace (James 4:6).

The truth of this is superbly illustrated time and again in Israel’s history of unfaithfulness, repentance and forgiveness/restoration:  Ezek 11:17,19,20 “Therefore say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God, ‘I will gather you from the peoples (which I sent you into) and assemble you out of the countries among which you have been scattered, and I will give you the land of Israel.”  “And I will give them one heart and put a new spirit within them. And I will take the heart of stone out of their flesh and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My ordinances and do them. Then they will be My people, and I shall be their God.”

H O W    I S     Y O U R     H E A R T?

A R E     Y O U     G R O W I N G    I N     K N O W L E D G E,

T R U T H    A N D    L O V E???

                                                        

 

 

  25 Oct:    Do We See God As Our Provider???  By this I mean – do we lean on Him?   Do we trust Him to provide for our care?

In Leviticus we see a ceremony which God instituted to be observed on an annual basis:

Leviticus 23:36  “For seven days present food offerings to the Lord, and on the eighth day hold a sacred assembly and present a food offering to the Lord. It is the closing special assembly; do no regular work.”

God instructed His people to gather for the Feast of Tabernacles as a time to remember how He sheltered them in the wilderness and brought them safely home. For seven days, they lived in temporary shelters, celebrated with joy, and rested from their regular work. On the eighth day, they closed the feast with sacred assembly, a final gathering before returning to ordinary life.

This wasn’t just a history lesson. It was a living testimony of how God had cared for them. The Feast of Tabernacles was not a casual celebration. It was a deliberate act of remembering. God’s people built temporary shelters and lived in them for a week, reenacting their ancestors’ journey through the wilderness. They remembered the fragility of tents and the strength of God’s presence. They remembered hunger met with manna, thirst quenched by water from rock, and fear calmed by the pillar of cloud and fire.

On the eighth day, they gathered one more time. Not to work. Not rushing back into their routines. But to close the feast with reverence, gratitude, and rest. How are we doing with remembering God’s providence in OUR lives? Is our Sunday morning worship time a high priority in our lives and schedules? Is our bible study time and prayer time an adequate reflection of our love for God? Do our schedules, financial spending, and service to God and others adequately reflect our love of God and God’s children? Do we set aside time to nurture our relationship with God?

The Feast of Tabernacles wasn’t just about looking back, reflecting and remembering all that God had done for them. It was also about trusting forward. When God’s people remembered His past faithfulness, they learned to trust Him with their future. They didn’t need permanent walls or guaranteed security. They had something better. They had a God who had never left them, even in the wilderness. This reminds me of what is written in Malachi 3:10 “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, so that there may be food in my house, and test Me now in this, says the Lord of hosts, “(see) if I will not open for you the windows of heaven and pour out for you a blessing until it overflows.”

That same God is with us now! That same challenge sits before us today. He has brought us through past struggles and do we not trust Him to do so in the future.

 John 10:10 “… I have come to bring you life, abundant life.”   And Paul tells us in   Phil 4:19 “And my God will supply every need of yours according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”           James 1:17 “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, come down from the Father of lights”. And of course, there is the remembrance of the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus tells us that God knows what we need and will provide.

In the same way that Israel had much to remember regarding God providing for them we have much to also be thankful. Col 2:12,13 “having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. When you were dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive together with Him, having forgiven us all our transgressions”.

The Lord has brought us from sinfulness and condemnation to forgiveness and salvation. Our response to this gift brings about a heart of appreciation and thankfulness and a desire to better know this God and Father who is willing to even offer up His Son on the cross for us. Subsequently, we find ourselves desiring a time set aside for the purpose of remembrance and thanksgiving. We likewise develop a need for our “sacred assembly” in the middle of ordinary life where we stop our regular work and remember with love and appreciation what has been done for us. Isn't that what is alluded to when Paul writes “Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving” (Col 4:2).

The eighth day of the feast carried special meaning, much like our Sunday morning worship service. It was the closing, the final gathering before returning to normal rhythms. But it wasn’t rushed. It wasn’t a quick wrap-up. It was intentional, sacred, complete. It said, “We will not move forward without honoring what God has done.” And so likewise we come together each and every first day of the week!

This annual celebration and our weekly celebration is not the end all of our worship. In the same way that Jesus spent many evenings and mornings in prayer we too must, like Him, set aside time for reflection, study and prayer. This kind of setting, a set aside time, is what accomplishes what God would have for us: Col 3:15,16 “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts…. Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you”.     This is the peace which never leaves us and carries us through our darkest moments. Your set aside time brings you rest and a better understanding of the God who is working in your life and for your life. Your set aside time enables you to better set your mind on things above (Col 3:1,2)  and avoid being caught up in the passions of this world (Col 3:5).     Col 3:9,10 “Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self who is being renewed to a true knowledge according to the image of the One who created him”.    Eph 4:23,24 “and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.”

We need to take up the Word of God and the armor of God and in a regular and consistent basis bring our hearts and minds together with the Lord and Holy Spirit.

• Ephesians 5:1 says, “Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children” This calls us to imitate God’s nature—love, holiness, and righteousness—because we are His children.
• 2 Corinthians 3:18 describes believers as “with unveiled face beholding the glory of the Lord… transformed into the same image from glory to glory”. This is a progressive transformation by the Spirit, not just a one-time change.
• 1 Peter 1:16 reminds us, “Be holy, for I am holy”, linking our holiness directly to God’s own nature.
• John 13:15 says, “I have set you an example that you should do as I have done” This requires us to “know’ what those examples are.