James 4:8-9

Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.

Personal Challenge

We need God to be the center of our lives. No matter what is going on around us, whatever the pressures of life that are bearing down on us or pushes us to consider doing, we need to seek God for His guidance and mercy. This means that we cleanse ourselves of our sins through repentance, working diligently to purify our hearts, and to stop being double-minded with one foot in the heavenly realm and one here in this earthly realm. We must lament and mourn when we sin and turn to God, drawing near to Him. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

James 4:1-7

Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and adulteresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, “The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously”?

But He gives more grace. Therefore He says:

“God resists the proud,
But gives grace to the humble.”

Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.

Personal Challenge

Even in the early, first century church, there were divisions and disagreements. Why? It all comes from personal desires and expectations. Some want the music to be their way…more contemporary, more traditional, more like we hear it on the radio. Some want the design of the church to be what they think is right. Some want the older people to step aside so that the younger people can take over and make the church new and modern. Why do we take thriving and effective churches and break them down to be something totally different and destroy the legacy and the relationships in the process. We do this so that we can satisfy our own personal desires and passions. We do this because we are more aligned with the world than we are with God. We do this because of our pride. By doing this we must be prepared for God’s resistance because He prefers humility over pride. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

James 3:17-18

But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy. Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Encouraging Words

We have been blessed, and cursed, to live in the information age. We have all sorts of information available at our fingertips. Unfortunately, all too many people, including many Christians, believe that access to this abundance of information makes us wise. Many thrive on the number of websites that they peruse or the quantity of books that the read. They proclaim to be wise on their own accord. However, true wisdom comes from above, from our God, outside of all this man-created information-based wisdom. This is the wisdom that we should be seeking and cherishing. With this wisdom in our lives we will be makers of peace. Glory be to God!

James 3:14-16

But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth. This wisdom does not descend from above, but is earthly, sensual, demonic. For where envy and self-seeking exist, confusion and every evil thing are there.

Personal Challenge

The truth should always be upheld and defended. It is not something that we can twist to feed our own envy of others or drive our desires to be ahead of others. Truth, true wisdom, comes from God and not any earthly sources. Those powers that drive people to twist the troth are earthly, sensual, even demonic. Not only should we defend the truth but we should also flee from the presence of those who do not Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

James 2:26

For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also.

Personal Challenge

None of us can separate our spirit from our body. They are both needed for us to be alive. It is a similar, synergistic thing that exists in the life of a Christian with faith and works. Our journey as a Christian begins with our faith in Christ. Christ is the only source for salvation. That faith is then shoved up by the works for God that it draws us into. The works do not save us but they do help us to grow even stronger in that faith as well as helps to build the Kingdom of God. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

James 2:19-20

You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe—and tremble! But do you want to know, O foolish man, that faith without works is dead?

Personal Challenge

Here is where the rubber meets the road. It is easy to say that we believe in God, that we trust in Him, and many other faith-based statements. However, our enemy, Satan, and his demons also believe in God – and tremble. That belief must be transformed into action in our lives for it to be real. Are we different than we were before we proclaimed our belief in God? Are we different than the world around us? Are we loving our neighbor and taking care of those in need? A true belief in God incurs a true change within us and a desire to do His good works. Glory be to God!

James 2:17

Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Personal challenge

James continues to drive home the point that we must have works for God in our lives in order to demonstrate that we have put our faith in Him. Followers of Christ cannot be Christian couch potatoes We do these works out of our love for our Lord. If we do not do His work whenever we can, our faith begins to wain and die. If we do His works then our faith stays alive and thrives. Glory be to God!

James 2:14-16

What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit?

Personal Challenge

A big difference in Eastern Christianity and Western Reformed Christianity is how faith and works are dealt with. In both faith practices it is agreed to that all are saved through the work that Jesus did and our faith in Him. Eastern Christianity goes on to express that our salvation gets worked out, or grows, within us by our desire and willingness to do the good works of our Lord. We must be doing His good works. We do not stop with a profession of faith but follow it with actions. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

James 2:1-4

My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality. For if there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, “You sit here in a good place,” and say to the poor man, “You stand there,” or, “Sit here at my footstool,” have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?

Personal Challenge

In the Old Testament we have the story of Samuel, the prophet, who was asked by God to seek out the king of Israel that would be replacing Saul. Samuel, like so many of us today, looked at the stature and outward appearances of the sons of Jesse to determine who he thought God had chosen. Then God told him that none of his choices were correct because He had already chosen David, not for his looks, but for the state of his heart. How often do we treat those who appear to be more important in our lives, especially our churches, with higher esteem than those whose appearances offend us? Are we not sinning in this behavior? God demands that we treat the lowly, the dirty, the poor, the sinner, the alien amongst us, the scared pregnant girl, the uneducated, etc., with the love of Christ. We are to set them above the glamorous, the wealthy, the prestigious, if we are to be honoring God. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!