James

The epistle of James.

1. Trials and Perseverance

1: What are the "twelve tribes in the Dispersion"?

5: We have a deep problem with immaturity and foolishness in the church. We need more people to be seeking wisdom. God will give it generously!

6: Doubt destroys all our power. The only way God's power flows into our life is through faith.

9-11: Poetic lines. Poverty and wealth are temporary.

Americans are always in pursuit of wealth, and that is fading away.

12: Compare with other verses that discuss 'the crown of life.' Doing good works in faithfulness to God wins us eternal glory.

13-15: Desire brings temptations to sin, and sin leads to death.

17: In God there is no change.

18:

what does it mean for those who have received the word of truth to be a 'firstfruits of his creatures'? is this alluding to some kind of universal cosmic restoration? regardless, it seems to allude to creation imagery here, light and shadow and God's word calling forth - hearing about Christ is the new creation, bringing us out of the spiritual prison of desire sin and death.

19-21: We do not control our tongues! We speak in anger, malice, and filthiness all the time.

25: What does it mean to look into the law of liberty and persevere?

In one sense, we can do whatever we want. Nobody forces you to be righteous or to sin. But if what we want is sin, then we reap death in our life. And if what we want is to love God and our neighbor, and to persevere in that love, then the freedom will only grow.

26: Doing religious things is worthless if you can't control your tongue. Truly pleasing God means speaking good things, caring for the weak, and living a pure life.

3. Taming the Tongue

7-10:

Have you ever considered that you're laughing too much? It would be silly to make it a religious requirement that people laugh less. But I have been convicted by this verse. It is easy for me to carry on with sins and to presume upon God's mercy, to feel guilt and repent and to swiftly continue enjoying myself until I fall back into some kind of sin and despair again. Are you sinning? It's because you're double-minded. Maybe you should take a break from laughter. Set aside the comedies for a time. Mourn throughout the day. If you are caught in sinning, you are dying, and the appropriate response is to weep before God that this state of living death could be removed from you. Now, if you break your captivity to sin, if you find you are overcoming your temptations, then that is a great time for laughter. I'm not anti-laughs entirely. But we have such an amusement based culture that we don't even know how to properly grieve over our sin. We want to get right back to the happiness right away.

Some people are naturally gloomy and melancholic and they enjoy brooding too much. That's not what I'm talking about. I'm saying that if you have an area of active double-mindedness, where you are being torn between serving God and your lusts, then you need to take a break from the amusements of life and focus on drawing near to God in solemnity and mourning. The living God is at hand, and he demands humility. Let him make you holy.

People are too quick to be pursuing the house of laughter. Let God place you there. As long as you are double minded, stay humble and mourning until God exalts you. Do not exalt yourself - your gloominess is no reason to be proud. You ought to be happy, if you were near God.