Talkers
The “gift of gab” is not a call to be a teacher or a preacher. We have had enough ad libbers! This is why God often calls a Moses who is slow of speech or an Amos who is called and is self-effacing about the assignment. Those who have a great estimation of themselves
Faith and Love
“Faith works by love” (Galatians 5:6). The Great Commandment is to love God with our whole being and our neighbor as ourselves. This love for God is the driving force of our faith in God. If I truly love Him I will completely trust Him. Faith is holding on, in love, to our trustworthy
Faith and Works (4)
James uses Rahab as an example of faith. She was an inn keeper. Her story is told in Joshua 2:1-24. She believed that the Israelites would be successful in their conquest of the land. When two spies came to her for lodging, she hid them and then enabled them to escape. By this work
Faith and Works (3)
The great example of faith being joined to works is Abraham (Hebrews 11:8-19). When God called him, he believed God and went out “not knowing where he was going.” When tested with offering Isaac, he believed God could raise his son from the dead, so he was prepared to act. Abraham is a great
Faith and Works (2)
“But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. (James 2:18 ESV). Faith and works are not an either-or proposition. The two are to be joined inseparably. Even the demonic world has a kind
Faith and Works (1)
Works has gotten a poor rap in evangelical Christianity. Martin Luther did not even want the book of James included in the biblical canon because of his belief in “faith alone”. We tend to lean heavily on Paul’s words and fail to balance them with James’ words. James lays a convincing case for faith
Showing Partiality
We show partiality to those with status, wealth, beauty, youth, position, etc. We especially like those we gravitate to our groups. We prefer their company and their opinions. A senior adult lady said to me, “Now that I am old I feel invisible; no one even acknowledges my presence.” Where do we seat people
Pure Religion
“Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” (James 1:27 ESV). We have come to think that pure religion is to have all of our theological words expressed perfectly, and without error. Theology is
How’s Your Bridle?
“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless” (James 1:26 ESV). Well, there is a lot of “worthless religion” going on! Without a bridle an untrained horse will run wild. This metaphor James uses to try to teach us something about
Dining and Doing
I have heard a lot of preaching and teaching of the word in my life. I have dined on some of the best. But dining is not enough; dining is to be followed by doing. After James tells us about the implanted word being able to save our souls he immediately reminds us to
Implanted Word
“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). Think of your inner being as soil on which seed is planted. Jesus, in the Parable of the Sower, taught using this image, as does James here. It takes
I Will Try
When faced with a request, God never said anywhere or at anytime, “I will try.” God is always working to bring about good from our circumstances and situations. There is helping grace with Him. “Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find
What We Know
We do not know as much as we think we know. “We know in part” and “we see in a glass darkly” (1 Corinthian 13:9, 11). In fact, pride about our knowledge can make us puffed up (1 Corinthians 8:1). This has and does produce divisions among us. Knowledge must be expressed through love.
What He Gave Up
Most political leaders do not see the quest for an office as giving up something but of acquiring something more. They climb up and Jesus climbed down. They love being exalted; Jesus came to be humiliated. He taught that the greatest would become the least, and the first would become the last. The leaders of
Not Made Up
The story of Jesus was not what someone decided to make up. It is the story of one who came to live among humans; they bore witness of who He was and what they saw. “For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of
Our Reaction to Trials
We don’t like them. We think they are an unnecessary interruption to life; truth is, they are just life. Life is made up of these difficulties; the believer may have a whole new set of troubles. James taught that we are to count it joy when we enter into trials, not because of the
God Uses Aliens
Rahab, the Canaanite, protected the spies and became a part of the Messianic bloodline. Uriah, the Hittite, was more faithful at one point to the cause of Israel than was David the King. Ruth, the Moabite, possessed a righteous faithfulness to Naomi that brought her a new future as well as a place in
Unity Matters
Unity matters to the Father; it matters so much He sent His Son on a gathering mission. Jesus came to save Jew and Gentile, male and female, black and white, brown and yellow, poor and rich, etc.; He came to unite then into one family. Parents want unity and harmony among their children. They
Life’s Burdens
“Cast your burden upon the LORD and He will sustain you” Psalm 55:22b (NASB). This is a wonderful promise. Most of us find that it is not always easy to do. Sometimes we have short-term burdens. Sometimes we have to deal with life-long burdens; these are the kind that we end our day with
The Christian Life
The Christian life is not an achievement; it is a deep surrender. It is not an arrival, but a journey. It is a poverty that has found true riches. It is a discovery that makes you desire to sell all else to have it. It is not our possession; it is the One
Marks of the New Birth
Belief in Christ: “Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father loves the child born of Him”. (1 John 1:5:1 ESV) Loving each other and obeying Jesus’ words: “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and observe His
A True Shepherd
David was a “shepherd” who became a king; David’s descendent would be our shepherd. Jesus was a king who became the Good Shepherd. The standard for OT kings was that they had to truly shepherd, to truly care for the people. Most of their kings and leaders only cared for themselves; they consumed and
God Seekers
The Father has sent out an invitation for you. “Seek the LORD while He may be found; Call upon Him while He is near” (Isaiah 55:6 NASB). We seek God until we are found by Him and we continue to seek God to get to know Him more and more. Seeking God is not
On Confessing Jesus
“Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God.” (1 John 4:15 ESV). This is deeper and more profound than at first glance. We read it as instruction/formula for conversion; this is much much more; it is a profound insight about the nature of conversion itself.
“Depart from Me”
“But Lord, I accepted you as my personal Savior”. Might He say, “But you never accepted me for who I am. You never let me be the true Lord of your life. You shaped me like you wanted Me to be. Yes, you believed that you could use Me only for salvation. I often