*The last 2 weeks
are here! These will also be 5-day
weeks instead of 6. If you would
be interested in sharing personal reflections or things God has shown or taught
you through the year, please email me at ejmushlock@gmail.com
.
James 1-5
*Click here to read this passage:
There is a lot of wisdom within the book of James, but the main
theme seems to be this – “Faith, by itself, if it is not accompanied by action,
is dead.” (2:17) Or as the Message translation puts it:
“God-talk without God-acts is outrageous nonsense.”
This does not negate what Paul said that, “It is by grace you have
been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of
God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians
2:8-9) Both statements
are true. Faith comes first …
works do not save us, but because we have faith it should move us to
action. What we say doesn’t matter
much if it doesn’t match how we live.
There are several challenges presented in James in his call to action. A big one for me is this example in
chapter 2: “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish
you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs,
what good is it?” How often do
Christians pray for God to bless someone or provide for someone, without being
willing to be a vessel for God to use to answer those prayers? Our good thoughts and good intensions
don’t actually do any good if there is no action that goes along with it.
Another challenge for me also found in chapter 2 is about showing
favoritism and judging, which I’m pretty sure everyone does more than they’d
care to admit to or maybe even more than they realize. We need to have the eyes of God and not
the eyes of the world. “Has not
God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and
to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him?”
There are several other challenges too such as taming the tongue,
being peacemakers, confessing sins to one another and praying for one another …
and one I come back to again and again … a challenge and a promise: “Come near
to God, and He will come near to you.”
But here’s something to keep in mind along with that promise – Our God
is not a stagnant God. When we
draw near to God and He draws near too, don’t expect to stay still for long!
No comments:
Post a Comment