James

Undefiled Religion What About James? More Good Advice from James Wisdom Submit Yourselves to God Our Life is a Mist

Undefiled Religion Let us sit at the feet of James awhile and revel in the Word as revealed through the Holy Spirit, the best news ever heard. Be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to ungodly wrath. Man’s anger can lead him astray from the righteous, holy path. Humbly accept the Word of God which can save you from your sin. Get rid of evil, moral filth that rots you from within. Do not merely listen to the Word, by yourself to be deceived. Continue in its teachings; deeds are proof that you believe. Religion accepted by God is this: mercy toward our fellow man, being unpolluted from the world while we lend a helping hand. § What About James? The epistle of James was written by the half-brother of the Lord. They grew up together as playmates, but the family caused some discord when Jesus began to preach and teach  as the only begotten of God. Not only did they not believe; they thought he was rather odd until he arose from that borrowed tomb, triumphant over death. Then they became disciples and listened with bated breath to every word he uttered, obeyed his blest commands guided by the Holy Spirit, persecution to withstand. In Jerusalem, James led the church, wrote to the scattered tribes in all the nations round about, God’s teachings to transcribe. The Spirit gave him words to speak that guide us yet today. Eternal bliss can now be ours if we will but obey. § More Good Advice from James It’s not hard to find the road to hell - just follow the thronging crowd. Their cries of pleasure are hard to resist, so amusing, rowdy and loud. Run fast from such temptation, just turn around and flee, resist old Satan until your back is the only thing he can see. Always offer prayer to God as the first line of defense, not only as a desperate last resort, but also a great offense. Pay careful heed to the Word of faith so that you don’t drift away. If your proximity to God has changed, who moved?  He’s here to stay. Now wash your hands (seek forgiveness) and purify your heart. Stop filling your mind with filth and hate; be holy and apart. If you succumb to smaller things, then larger they’ll become until you’ve wandered off the path and lost sight of the Son. Grieve, mourn and wail for all your sin, humble yourself to the Lord and he will surely lift you up as you obey his Word. If we purposely keep on sinning after we know the truth, there is no more sacrifice for sin, no money, popularity, youth that can override decisions to strike out on our own. The joys of Christianity have suddenly vanished, gone! § Wisdom (James) Everyone on earth would like to be considered wise, but earthly, unspiritual “wisdom” is foolishness in God’s eyes. It is full of envy, covetousness, selfish ambition and pride. It causes disorder and evil, will leave us empty inside.   Earthly wisdom is of the devil; it often drives people apart. From heaven comes the wisdom that makes peace in the human heart. The word of Jesus Christ unites, is undiluted, pure, uncontaminated by the world, forever will endure. In the last days, (Christian era) God speaks to us by his Son, and those old enemies, Gentiles and Jews, have now been made as one in the body of Christ, the kingdom, the church, where all have equal rights, yet gladly submit to another to enhance his eternal life. The wise man is the one who daily shows it by his deeds and humbly seeks in every way to serve his brother’s needs. He sows peace in sharing salvation’s Good News, reaps a harvest of righteousness, is considerate, merciful, fruitful, impartial and bountifully blest. § Submit Yourselves to God (James) What causes your fights and quarrels? Don’t they come from your own desires? The desires that battle within you are fuel for raging fires. You kill and covet, quarrel and fight but cannot have what you want. You don’t have because you refuse to ask, your self-reliance to flaunt. Or you ask with selfish motives to spend on your own pleasure. God hasn’t promised you worldly success and money without measure. The Christian church is the bride of Christ; friendship with the world is adultery. Being holy means to be different, obedience is mandatory. Taking part in the worship of money, sex, violence, entertainment is like speaking the language of Ashdod, soiling our righteous raiment. Sin is contagious, we‘re not immune. Our humanness tends toward envy. Flirting with danger outside in the world can leave a torn soul empty. Even Demas, a missionary with Paul, being by the world enticed, went back to sin’s allurement, forsook his life in Christ. Approach life from God’s perspective, submit yourselves to him. He will give you grace to overcome, fill your cup of joy to the brim. § Our Life is a Mist (James) The first book God gave us is nature, the wonders we see every day which may send the reader out on a search for the artist who made the display. The Bible he gave to inform us of how to be happy and wise, to live in the world, but not of the world where Satan is fun in disguise. Our life is so fragile and fleeting, a mist that appears for awhile then vanishes into eternity after we’ve walked that last mile. We like to assume there’s tomorrow with plenty of time for amends, to worship and pray and answer to God, but today we’ll have fun with our friends. To boast of our big plans is evil, ignoring our God up above. “If it is the Lord’s will” should be our intent, governed by mercy and love. We must be ever watchful to avoid the bold tempter’s snares. We sin when we know to do good and refuse; let’s never be caught unawares! When David went up on the rooftop, perhaps for a breath of fresh air, he had no intention of falling in sin, til he saw lovely Bathsheba there. Adultery started his downfall, and murder was next on the list. He paid for it dearly the rest of his life, resulting from one little tryst. cgtrent@att.net Home