Friday, Nov. 30

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Friday

Today marks the end of our series on the book of James called “The Gospel in Real Life”.  We have been examining how James instructs us in the practical, everyday application of our faith.  James was the leader of the early church in Jerusalem, keep in mind that James was the half-brother of Jesus (Matt. 13:55) and that he did not initially believe in Jesus as the Messiah (John 7:5).  Eventually James came not only to believe in Jesus, but to give his whole life in service to Him and to His church.

James’ primary concern in his letter is to help Christians understand how to live out the gospel in real life circumstances. You might say that James was interested in making faith real or authentic.  Anybody can say that they believe in God, but how do you know if your faith is genuine? 

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.  But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”  Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds.  You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.   - James 2:17-19

Each chapter in the book of James provides us with a kind of litmus test for the authenticity of our faith.  Take a few moments to reflect on each of the following faith tests, and ask God to help you discern which is the area(s) where your faith most needs to grow.

James 1:2-4 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.  Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. Trials and temptations reveal the true character of our faith...

James 1:22-23  Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.  Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror.
What we do with God’s Word reveals the true character of our faith...

James 2:1-4  My brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in.  If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?
How treat the poor and the oppressed reveals the true character of our faith...

James 3:9-10  With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness.  Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.
What we talk about and the way we talk about it reveals the true character of our faith...

James 4:1-3  What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?  You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
The way we treat other Christians reveals the true character of our faith...

James 5:16  Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
Our prayer life reveals the true character of our faith...

Oh God, help us by your Holy Spirit to live authentic lives of faith.  Teach us how to proclaim with our lives the gospel that we proclaim with our lips - Amen.

Jeff Frazier

Thursday, Nov. 29

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Thursday

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?  You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God.  When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.     - James 4:1-3

This passage from James 4 makes it clear that the primary problem in Christian community is our own pride.  Christians often talk about the side of pride, but I am not sure that they (we) always have an accurate picture of what pride is.  Most of us think of pride as a form of arrogance or self-confidence gone way overboard.  While proud people can certainly be, and often are arrogant, there is much more to it than this. 

C.S. Lewis writes about pride in his book Mere Christianity...

It is Pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began. Other vices may sometimes bring people together: you may find good fellowship and jokes and friendliness among drunken people or unchaste people. But Pride always means enmity-it is enmity. And not only enmity between man and man, but enmity to God.

So what is the root of pride?  Where does it come from?  James actually gives us some clues as to the source of all human pride and how it destroys our relationships.  Notice that in verse 1 James refers to our desires that battle within us and in then in verse 2 (bold above) he says that our real issue is that we want something but we cannot get it.

What is it that we want but we cannot get?  The greek word James uses here is the word ‘hedone’ and it is where we get our english word hedonism, which means pleasure or pleasure seeking.  The point that James is making is that our desire for our own satisfaction and pleasure is at the heart of all of our trouble and relational conflicts.  
If we come to any relationship or community demanding (even subconsciously) that our needs be met, we can be certain that they won’t!  But, if we approach the christian community thinking not about what we can get, but about what we can give and how others might be blesses, we discover that in the process, we too are blessed!  

I see this truth at play in the way that people “shop around” for a new church.  They will come to a weekend worship service and the whole time they are evaluating the experience; the quality of the music, how good was the sermon, how nice were the people, etc.  Now there is nothing wrong with visiting churches to find one that will be a good fit for you and your family.  However, at some point, if you want to grow in the kind of Biblical community that James is talking about, you must move past the questions of what am I getting out of this?, and start asking questions like, what can I give, and how can I bless others and bring glory to God?

All throughout the Bible we see that pride is really a kind of spiritual cancer.  It eats away at us from the inside out and it slowly destroys our ability to love and serve others.  This is why James quotes the OT when he says that, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”  

Or, in the words of C.S. Lewis,  As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people: and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you.  

Jeff Frazier

Wednesday, Nov. 28

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But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says; “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.  Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.  Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.  Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.   - James 4:6-10

In this passage, James makes it clear that our biggest problem is the pride of our own hearts, and the only solution is to become truly humble people.  But humility is kind of a tricky thing, it is the one virtue that you do not get by focusing on it.  Have you ever noticed that when you begin to think about how humble you are, you immediately stop being humble?

Jonathan Edwards was a 17th century pastor and theologian in New England.  Edwards had the opportunity to experience 2-3 great spiritual revivals during his ministry.  Edwards noticed that over time, each awakening or revival began to fade and disintegrate due to factions, disputes and fighting amongst the people involved.  Edwards wrote a little book about his experiences called “Thoughts on Revival” in which he noted that spiritual pride was the number one obstacle to true revival.  

(The following six characteristics are adapted from that book)

1. Spiritually proud people are much more aware of others people’s faults than they are of their own.   Truly humble people are more concerned about their own failures than they are about those of others.

2.  Spiritually proud people speak with condescension and condemnation about the failures of others.  Truly humble people speak with compassion and grace about those who struggle or fall. 

3.  Spiritually proud people are quick to distance themselves from those with whom they disagree.  Truly humble people move toward those with whom they disagree or have conflict.

4. Spiritually proud people are rigid and dogmatic about every area of their faith because they feel they must be right about everything.  Truly humble people are not rigid about things that are not essential, and they are open to the possibility that they may not know everything.

5. Spiritually proud people either love confrontation or they avoid it all together (in both cases they are focused on what they want; to prove the other person wrong, or to avoid an uncomfortable encounter).  Truly humble people neither love nor avoid confrontation, but they are willing to confront when necessary for the good of the other person.

6. Spiritually proud people are often full of bitterness and self-pity because they are focused on what they do not have.  Truly humble people are not full of self-pity, because they are not full of “self” at all.

Take a few minutes to read over this list again and reflect on your own heart.  Ask God to point out the areas where you are prideful.  Confess these things to God and ask Him to help you grow into a truly humble person.

Jeff Frazier

Tuesday, Nov. 27

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Tuesday

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?  You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.  You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.  Or do you think Scripture says without reason that the spirit he caused to live in us envies intensely? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. 

- James 4:1-6

James was a pastor and a leader of the very first church in Jerusalem.  James wrote his letter to Christians living throughout the Roman world in the first century A.D. to instruct them and to encourage them in living out their faith.  

Sometimes I think we have a tendency to idealize the early church.  We think, “It must have been great to be a part of the first century church!  It was so dynamic and powerful, they experienced miracles and incredible growth through the Holy Spirit.  They had such incredible faith and community!”  But the reality is, the early church was made up of people much like today! Many (if not all!) first century churches wrestled with conflicts between the members. The Corinthian church was split. The Philippian church had at least a couple of women who couldn’t get along, so much so that Paul called them out by name in his letter. 

The Galatian church chewed each other up: If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. (Gal 5:15)

In Ephesians, Paul offered an appeal to unity, tolerance, and love between the members, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.  Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love. Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. (Ephesians 4:1-3)

On a more personal level, Paul and Barnabas had a serious disagreement that led to a parting of the ways.  They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.       - Acts 15:36-40

So, when James addressed the problem of fights and conflicts among the believers, it was very real.  It was not a unique situation when James addressed the problem of quarrels and conflicts among the believers to whom he wrote, and it certainly applies to all of our relational conflicts today, whether in the church or at home.  

I have a good friend who often reminds me that there are no perfect churches in the world, because churches are made up of people and people are not perfect.  In fact my friend likes to joke that if you ever find the perfect church, you should never attend there, because you might be the one to screw it up!

James is showing us that our fundamental problem is not other people. it is the sinful pride of our own selfish heart!  Now James is not exactly a master of tactfulness or sensitivity in the way that he addresses our problem.  He is not concerned with being nice, or polite, and he certainly doesn’t seem to be worried about offending anybody.  James is a doctor of the soul who speaks the truth plainly, even when it hurts. But we should prefer a doctor who speaks the truth over one who is “nice”, but never tells you what is really wrong with you.

Jeff Frazier

Monday, Nov. 26

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Monday

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you?  You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight. You do not have, because you do not ask God.  When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.  - James 4:1-3

Did you know that there are 82 different kinds of Baptist churches in North America?  (I think that is more than enough don’t you?)  Have you ever wondered why we have so many different churches and denominations in Christianity?   Now not every division is necessarily a bad thing.  Malcom Muggeridge once said that the wonderful diversity of Christian communities is like one army with many regiments.  Perhaps he has a point, but I have a hard time believing that all of the separations and divisions in the church are quite what Christ envisioned when He said that He would build His church (Matt. 18).

I remember reading a story about how one such division got started.  R.C. Horner was a Methodist minister in Canada during the late 19th century.  He was part of the Pentecostal, holiness movement in that denomination and was known for his bold and demonstrative sermons.  One evening, Rev. Horner was enthusiastically preaching at a revival meeting when his tie became wrapped around his hand. He concluded that the devil was trying to bind him in his preaching.  So he tore off his tie, threw it on the ground, stomped on it, and said that ties were from the devil.  From then on he taught that Christians ought never to wear ties, because they bound them in their Christian lives. Others disagreed, which led to quarrels, which led to division. Today in Canada, there is still a tieless sect of this  group called the “Hornerites.”

While I might personally sign a petition to ban neckties, I find it ridiculous and tragic that Christians would quarrel over such a trivial matter.  Sometimes, when serious doctrinal issues are at stake, division among professing Christians is demanded. If we compromise the gospel, we are no longer Christian in any meaningful sense of the word. But, sadly, all too often our divisions and quarrels are over trivial issues and petty disputes, not essentials.

In John 13:35, Jesus says, “By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”  Notice that Jesus does not say the world will recognize us as His disciples if we obey Him, or talk about Him, and He certainly doesn’t say that the world will know we belong to Him if we will divide ourselves up! 

Think about that for just a moment...Jesus says (in effect) that one of the most important things we can do to communicate His love to the world is to love each other well!  Have you ever considered that the way you treat other Christians is actually a witness to the world?    This is what James is addressing in his letter to first century Christians.  James is showing them (and us) that when we fight, quarrel, and divide within the family of God, we are doing damage to ourselves, and to the reputation of the gospel!

Jeff Frazier

Friday, Nov. 23

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James 5:13-16

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

Over the past year I have met twice with a woman who does not attend FBCG but who sought spiritual counsel as the primary care-giver for a sister struggling with a debilitating illness. In our first conversation she simply shared the sadness and helplessness that she felt as she watched her sister suffer. At our last conversation she shared that her sister had indeed passed away but that she was still struggling to understand why God had allowed such suffering. 

At one point she said, “I don’t know how to pray; I don’t know if I even want to pray.”

I asked her if she felt more angry or sad about her sister’s death. She said, “Probably both.”

I said, “Pray what you feel.”

She said, “What do you mean?”

I quoted from Romans 8:

In the same way, the Spirit helps in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. Romans 8:26

I told her that prayer is a relationship with God and that all relationships begin with some degree of honesty. I told her that God already knows our hearts and when we share our hearts with him we, in a way, are agreeing to an intimate relationship with him.

Confession is honesty with God. Confession means being honest with God about our pain and our joy, as well as our sin.

James is pointing us here to a miracle greater than physical healing.

In Mark 2 four men bring their paralyzed friend to Jesus hoping for physical healing. Jesus looks at the man and and his friends and says, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Those watching are confused and surprised. Some are offended that Jesus has dared to equate himself to God by offering forgiveness for sin. Others undoubtedly are confused because the man has obvious physical needs that Jesus seems to have ignored.

Then Jesus says something very important. 

Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…” He said to the paralytic, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” (Mark 2:8-11)

In short, Jesus performs two miracles in this story. He heals a paralyzed man, restoring his physical ability to walk; and he forgives the man’s sins, thus healing his soul for all eternity.

Which is the greater miracle?

Sometimes we forget that, as important as physical health and healing are, spiritual healing is far more important in the scope of eternity.

I think this is what James is teaching us when he says:

If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed.

He is not saying that God will not grant physical healing if we fail to confess our sins. He is not saying that we are sick because of unconfessed sin. He is saying that while physical healing from sickness and disease is important, spiritual healing through the forgiveness of sin is far more important; and he wants us to know that we are invited to pray for both.

Brian Coffey

Thursday, Nov. 22

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James 5:13-16

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

Three years ago this fall my father suffered a major stroke (technically a “subarachnoid hemorrhage”). The first doctor who examined him told my brother there was “zero chance of meaningful recovery.” Eventually another doctor revised that prognosis and told us he believed that my father’s condition could be reversed with an appropriate surgical procedure. We authorized the procedure and we prayed. Within 24 hours my father woke up from a coma and within a month he was driving a car and working again. We praised God.

Less than a month later a woman approached me after a worship service and told me that her father had experienced a similar stroke but that, despite their desperate prayers for healing and recovery, he had never regained consciousness. 

I can’t begin to estimate how many times I have been privileged to pray with and for people who are sick. I’ve prayed in hospitals and in homes; for those who want to be restored to physical health and for those who long to be released from this earthly life. Some people that I have prayed with have recovered completely. Some have died. Some got better for a while then got sick again and died. I don’t have any idea how many people I have prayed with God has chosen to heal; and I don’t know why he chose not to heal so many. But I do know that he has invited us to pray for physical healing. James writes:

Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up.

Is James saying that every sick person will get well if we pray following his instruction? Is there special healing power in the oil he talks about? Is this a “prayer formula” that, if followed in detail, will result in physical healing every time? These are good questions.

One of the basic rules for interpreting any particular passage of scripture is to understand it in the context of God’s word a as whole.

We know, for example, that Jesus did not heal every sick person that he came across. In John 5 he walks through a whole crowd of sick and infirm people and chooses one paralyzed man to speak to and ultimately heal.

We can also assume that those Jesus did heal eventually experienced physical death from some other cause. 

We also know that although every human life is created by God and is precious in his sight, this earthly life pales in comparison to the eternal life that awaits those who die in faith.

The Apostle Paul writes:

For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Phil. 1:21

For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. 2 Cor. 4:17

So I don’t think James is offering a guarantee of physical healing through prayer. But I think he is saying that prayer gives us access to the God who has both the power and authority to heal the sick.

As the creator of all life, God can and does heal. Sometimes he heals through what we would call “natural processes”; the human body’s seemingly natural ability to heal (but which was created by God to do so). Sometimes he heals through the medical sciences, which also are a gift from his hand. Sometimes he heals supernaturally; that is, as a response to prayer that we do not fully comprehend from our human perspective. And sometimes the healing he brings is not physical and temporary (as all physical healing is temporary), but spiritually and eternally – which will be our topic tomorrow.

James simply wants us to know that when we are sick we are invited to pray for healing. What an unspeakable privilege of faith; what a wonderful blessing of the gospel!

Brian Coffey

Wednesday, Nov. 21

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Psalm 98

Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.

The Lord has made his salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations.

He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to the house of Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn – shout for joy before the Lord, the King.

Let the sea resound and everything in it, the world and all who live in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy; let them sing before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth.

He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity.

Once, in the midst of a conversation that I no longer remember very well, my brother said to me, “Be careful not to limit the joy of your own life.” I’m sure he was reacting to my “older brother” tendency to focus on duty before fun and to turn fun into work. His words seem as wise to me today as they did then.

After all, Jesus said that joy was the whole point of the gospel itself!

John 15:11

I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.

How often do you experience and express joy? How often do you laugh?

I saw an article recently that cited research that indicated that children laugh as often as 400 times a day whereas, by the time we are adults, that number drops to 17 times a day. I’m not sure I laugh 17 times in a week sometimes! 

What happens to our capacity for laughter and joy as we grow older? I think it leaks. Like the tire on my car that had a nail stuck in the tread causing it to slowly lose air, our joy leaks slowly, imperceptibly, through the tiny and not so tiny wounds we collect over time.

Yet James says:

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. James 5:13

In four short sentences James touches the outer extremes of human life: trouble and joy. He’s telling us that the gift of prayer is wide enough to encompass both our troubles and our joy. We can pray in our trouble and pain; and we can pray out our joys and praises. It seems to me we have the first down pretty well; the second, not so much.

I don’t know about you but prayer comes pretty easy to me when I am in trouble. Something isn’t going well; something hurts; I need help; I pray. It seems like the natural thing to do. But when I experience the gift of joy and when that joy has not leaked from my heart; when the blessings of my life are particularly sweet; when my family is healthy and happy; when my work is going well; when all is good in my world; sometimes I forget to praise God. 

Why?

I think I forget because I kind of like to take credit for my own joy. I think I forget because I kind of like to pretend I deserve the joy that comes my way instead of seeing joy as a gift from God. The truth is, as James says,

Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above… James 1:17

James is teaching us to be people who pray not just when we are in trouble and need God’s help, but also when we are healthy, happy and filled with joy. When we offer our songs of praise to God we are not only more deeply aware of our joy but we recognize God as the source of all joy.

Read again the words of the Psalm:

Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him…

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music; make music to the Lord with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and the blast of the ram’s horn – shout for joy before the Lord, the King. Psalm 98:1, 4-6

I believe that both James and the Psalmist are teaching us that the more we recognize God as the source of all joy; the more we offer our praise to him; the more joy we tend to find and the less our joy tends to leak!

Brian Coffey

Tuesday, Nov. 20

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James 5:13-16

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

Years ago I led a Bible Study for high school students that met on Wednesday nights. I would always end the meeting by asking the students for any prayer requests they might have – then I would pray and close the meeting. On one particular night a student who was very new to the group raised his hand. When I asked him what he would like me to pray for, he said, “Pray that I won’t get grounded.”

That sounded like a bigger story to me so I followed up, “Do you mind me asking why you are worried about being grounded?”

He went on to describe how he had gone out to a movie the night before and that one thing had led to another and that he never went home. In fact, he had not been home yet and he feared that when he finally arrived home after Bible Study his parents would be upset and would ground him for punishment.

As gently as I could I told him that I couldn’t pray for him not to be grounded because, frankly, that was his parent’s job! But I said I could pray that he would have the courage to be honest with his parents; to apologize to them for staying out all night; and to accept any punishment that they saw fit.

While that young man struggled to understand the concept of accountability, he did get one thing right! James says,

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray.

The “prayer of trouble” is probably the most common form of prayer. This is the “fox hole” prayer. It seems to be human instinct to pray when we find ourselves in trouble. I have read that something like 80% of people who call themselves atheists pray from time to time. My guess is that people who don’t even believe in God tend to pray to the God they don’t believe in when they are in trouble! 

It seems to me there are at least three ways to pray when we face trouble.

The first is to ask God to get us out of trouble! We see this kind of prayer in the Psalms:

Psalm 59:1

Deliver me from my enemies, O God…

Psalm 70:1

Hasten, O God, to save me; O Lord come quickly to help me.

These are the prayers we cry out when we lose a job or when a loved one is struggling with addiction. We need God’s intervention and we ask for it. James is inviting us to pray this kind of prayer.

The second way to pray when in trouble is to ask God to teach us something important through the troublesome experience or situation. This is actually how James begins his letter to young believers who were facing persecution.

James 1:2

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

This kind of prayer both requires and produces spiritual maturity. This kind of prayer recognizes God’s presence and purpose transcend our pain and can work through our troubles to produce maturity in our lives.

The third way to pray when in trouble is to ask God to use us to bear witness to him in the situation. I think we can see this kind of prayer reflected in the Apostle Paul’s words written from a prison cell in Rome:

Philippians 1:12-13

Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel. As a result, it has become clear to the whole palace guard and to everyone else that I am in chains for Christ.

Paul could have asked for God to deliver him from his circumstances, and he may have indeed done so in his private moments, but here he recognizes that God has chosen to use his imprisonment to advance the gospel.

I have sometimes seen this kind of prayer when I have visited people in the hospital. There have been occasions when I have offered to pray for a person struggling with a very grave illness, but instead, the sick person asks me to pray that he or she might be an encouraging witness for Christ to the doctors and nurses.

Jesus said,

I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. John 16:33

I think James remembered those words. I think he wanted his readers to know that God is greater than our trouble and that through prayer we have access to the power, presence and help of God.

Brian Coffey

Monday, Nov. 19

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James 5:13-16

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

Several years ago I agreed to meet with a woman who had never attended FBCG but called me on the recommendation of a friend. As I recall, the woman was Jewish although she was not active in her faith.

I no longer remember the details of what led her to seek my counsel but I do remember how the conversation ended. I offered to pray for her as I almost always do in pastoral conversations. She looked a bit surprised but indicated that would be fine. So I bowed my head and prayed for her and for whatever her difficult situation happened to be. When I said, “Amen” and looked up she was staring at me with her eyes wide open. I realized that she had not bowed her head or closed her eyes and it suddenly occurred to me that she had never seen someone do that before; that she had never had anyone pray for her. 

I remember feeling both stunned and saddened that someone could live into adulthood without knowing or experiencing the blessing of prayer!

Throughout this letter written to some of the earliest followers of Christ, James has been applying the gospel to everyday life and here he turns his attention to what might be called the “gospel of prayer.”

Is any one of you in trouble? He should pray. Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise. Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.

Remember that the “gospel” is the good news that God saves sinners through he life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The gospel tells us that through Christ God has done for us what we cannot do for ourselves. The gospel tells us that by faith we who are sinful, selfish and hopeless can become children of God, secure in the knowledge that we are loved, forgiven and granted the great hope of eternal life in Christ! 

James is telling us that prayer is also part of the gospel because God makes himself available to us in every dimension of our lives.

Are you in trouble? Pray for God’s help.

Are you happy? Sing songs of praise (certainly a form of prayer).

Are you sick? Pray for healing.

Are you struggling with sin? Pray for forgiveness!

James wants us to know the good news that God not only created us, loves us and saves us, but that he is available to us every moment of every day through prayer!

When I was about 11 years old our family lived in a wing of the small church building where my father was pastor. One day I was playing with my brother and I burst through the door that led to my Dad’s church office thinking no one was there. I charged right into the middle of a pastoral counseling session that my father was having with a member of the congregation.

I stopped dead in my tracks but before I could exit the room my father said, “Come here,” and motioned for me to come to his side of the desk. I was expecting to be reprimanded for interrupting an important conversation. But, instead, he simply turned me around to face his guest and said, “This is Brian, my oldest son.” Then he turned to me and said, “What do you need son?”

I realized that not only was I not in “trouble” (he probably reminded me later to knock before coming into his office!), but I had a special relationship to my father. He not only allowed me to come to him; he wanted me to come to him! I had access!

Do you know God feels that way about you? Do you know that you can come to him when you are in trouble? When you are happy? When you are sick? When you have failed?

James wants us to know the door to God’s office is always open!

Brian Coffey

Friday, Nov. 16

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Friday

This week we have been examining what James meant when he told the early Christians (and us) not to show favoritism, partiality, or discrimination in the way that you treat people.  

Scripture speaks of God's characteristic of impartiality many times in order to show us that because God has no partiality, anyone in any nation who fears Him and repents of their sin is accepted by Him.  Social status, educational ability, looks, wardrobe, financial bank account, all of that is insignificant non- consequential.

The Apostle Paul acknowledged that God was impartial with reference to social status and occupation. It was inconsequential to the Lord whether you were a slave or whether you happen to be the slave owner...whether you are the boss or the employee.  And in Ephesians 6 where the Apostle Paul writes to slaves, to employees, and masters, employers, he says your master is also in heaven and neither is there respect of persons with Him.  He doesn't have greater affection for, love for, blessing for a manager, a President, a vice-president, an executive, a boss then He does for the humblest of all slaves. That by the way is repeated in Colossians 3-4.  In the matter of salvation God is no respecter of persons, in the matter of judgment He is no respecter of persons, in the matter of social status and employment He is no respecter of persons.

God is also not partial when it comes to disciplining sin; God is not partial when it comes to correcting and disciplining His children.  He looks only at the sin and only at the heart and He holds nothing back because you're wealthy or successful and He adds nothing because you're poor and somewhat unsuccessful by worldly standards. That is a non-issue to Him. So whether you're talking about salvation, judgment, job status, or sin and discipline, the standard is always the same. God deals purely with the heart of the person.

James speaks to the very same issue. Only James focuses on the impartiality of God with reference to a person's social status, economic status.  And he is dealing with us in a very practical way in the life of the church. We don't like to admit it but in the church of Jesus Christ we tend to be very partial to certain people.  We are impressed with their bank account.  We are impressed with the car they drive. We can be impressed with their wardrobe, their jewelry.  We can be very impressed with the job they hold, the profession they're in.  We can be impressed with their reputation.  We can very impressed if they have a lot of degrees at the end of their name. 

God is not impressed with any of that!

It is utterly of no consequence to Him whatsoever in the matter of evaluating the worth of a soul.  It's inconsequential.  They're non-issues. God judges and God evaluates and God estimates your worth and my worth and the worth of everyone purely on the basis of the inner person.
To put it simply in Old Testament terminology, man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the heart. God is not interested in your bank account, your wardrobe, your jewelry as any kind of commendation of your character.

On the other hand, God is not disinterested in you because you are poor or because you don't look so good, or because you don't have so many clothes, or because you have a common job or you don't have any degrees or any reputation or any social standing.  He is not disinterested in you because of what you lack, nor is He interested in you because of what you possess.  And frankly, all of us who belong to God and say we are the children of God should certainly demonstrate this wonderful characteristic of our God.

JeffFrazier

Thursday, Nov. 15

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Thursday

My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism.  
- James 2:1

James is talking about the fundamental human tendency to judge others.  We are all prone to make judgements and evaluations of other people.  The problem is not so much with the fact that we are making judgments, but that we are basing our judgments on the wrong things.  It is one thing to agree with this in theory, but is often quite another thing to try and put this into practice in our everyday lives.

For example...

What about a poor man who learns how to “play the system” by asking for money and support from local churches, while continuing in the addictive and deceitful behaviors that are causing his desperate situation...is it ever wrong for a church or individual to tell this man “no more”?

What about a mother who sees her daughter getting involved in a relationship with someone who abuses and mistreats her...is it wrong for her to make judgements about the character of her daughter’s boyfriend?

What about a son who sees his father breaking his marriage vows and making choices that are destroying his family...is it wrong for this young man to feel partial toward his mother in this situation?

These are difficult questions that require something more than throwing a verse or two of the Bible around, they require a deeper grasp of the teaching of God’s Word on this subject.

Matthew 7:1, “Do not judge, or you too will be judged”, may be one of the most often used and misapplied verses in the Bible.  I have heard people use this verse as a kind of shield against anyone calling another person’s actions sinful or wrong.  Jesus (and James) are not saying that we must never make any distinction or judgment about a person’s character or behavior.  In Matthew 7:6, Jesus says that we are not to give to dogs what is sacred or throw our pearls to pigs.  Now if we assume that Jesus was using dogs and pigs as metaphors for certain kinds of people, then how are we supposed to determine who is a pig and who is a dog if we must never make any judgments about anyone?  Later in the same chapter, Jesus says, “Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them.” (Matt. 7:15-16)  Jesus Himself tells us to recognize them by their fruit, but once again, how can we discern the wolf from the sheep if we never make any judgment or distinction?  

You have to judge carefully to discern that, someone isn’t a sheep, but rather a wolf masquerading as a sheep!  Jesus’ point seems clear: if we don’t make correct judgments about others, we’ll be eaten by wolves! 

Paul also tells us that we are actually responsible to judge those in the church who profess to be believers, but who are living in willful sin and disobedience (1 Corinthians 5:9-13).

Does this mean that we are to be judging each other after all?  Not quite, the Bible is often so much more nuanced than the simple either or categories we try to fir it into.  The Bible makes a very important distinction between the kind of judgment that discerns the quality and integrity of a persons actions and motivations - and - the kind of judgmentalism that treats people as if they do not matter at all to God.  

Perhaps the best example of how to do this comes from Jesus Himself.  In John ch.8, Jesus has an encounter with a woman who was caught in the act of adultery and is about to be stoned by the Jewish leaders.  These leaders tried to get Jesus involved in a debate over the punishment for this woman, but Jesus took a different approach...

When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”  Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.  At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there.  Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”  “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”  - John 8:7-11

Jeff Frazier

Wednesday, Nov. 14

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If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!  - James 2:8-13

Throughout ch. 2, James makes it clear that the Christian faith is incompatible with favoritism.  This means that in our service, in our worship, in our witness, and in all of our life as a church family, we must manifest the principles of the gospel.  James states from the outset that the Christian faith is utterly incompatible with petty favoritism and shallow prejudice.

James uses several terms for this in this passage in order to indicate what kind of behavior he’s talking about. In verse one, he speaks of personal favoritism, in verse three, he speaks about paying special attention to some while ignoring others. In verse four, he talks about making distinctions. In verse nine, he speaks about showing partiality, and in verse thirteen he even uses the language of showing no mercy towards the person.  All of these are the words that he uses to indicate the kind of behavior that is a fundamental and functional denial of the Christian faith.  

So, we’d better ask, “What is that? What does he mean by personal favoritism?”

Well, let’s start off with what he doesn’t mean first. What does James not mean by personal favoritism?  Well, among other things, he doesn’t mean that it’s wrong to make appropriate distinctions. It would be totally wrong to condemn, let’s say, an usher who met an elderly person at the door who was on crutches or in a wheelchair and at the same time a healthy nineteen year old strapping lad was coming in, there would be nothing wrong with that usher bringing that person who was older and infirm into a convenient place to sit during the service.  

James doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t show due deference to people. If the President of the United States showed up in worship or the governor of the state showed up in worship, there would be nothing wrong with us showing a due deference to such people as God has put in authority over us (Romans 13).  James is not arguing about some sort of radical egalitarianism here that wipes out all social distinctions and says that you cannot show due respect to people in authority. That’s not James’ point.

What does he mean, then, by personal favoritism? What does he mean by partiality?  He means this: he means a self-serving discrimination based upon shallow externals that fails to recognize the dignity of each human life and the glory of the God who made them.  

James does not say that this kind of prejudice is in bad taste, or that it is not a very good idea for Christians, he says that it is SIN! (I know he didn’t use all caps, but I just wanted to make the point).  We are naturally blind to our own prejudices and partialities.  James is showing us that we are kidding ourselves if we think that we are good Christians because we go to church and give money to the poor and avoid the “big sins”, but we judge and discriminate against people in our own hearts.  

Father, protect us from the sin of prejudice and favoritism.  Help us to see people the way that you see them.  We thank you that you are not a partial God, and that your mercy triumphs over judgment through Jesus Christ.  - Amen.

Jeff Frazier