Psalm 5

5 ¹ לַמְנַצֵּחַ אֶל־הַנְּחִילוֹת מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד׃

2     אֲמָרַי הַאֲזִינָה יהוה בִּינָה הֲגִיגִי׃

3     הַקְשִׁיבָה לְקוֹל שַׁוְעִי מַלְכִּי וֵאלֹהָי כִּי־אֵלֶיךָ אֶתְפַּלָּל׃

4     יהוה בֹּקֶר תִּשְׁמַע קוֹלִי בֹּקֶר אֶעֱרָךְ־לְךָ וַאֲצַפֶּה׃

5     כִּי לֹא אֵל־חָפֵץ רֶשַׁע אָתָּה לֹא יְגֻרְךָ רָע׃

6     לֹא־יִתְיַצְּבוּ הוֹלְלִים לְנֶגֶד עֵינֶיךָ שָׂנֵאתָ כָּל־פֹּעֲלֵי אָוֶן׃

7     תְּאַבֵּד דֹּבְרֵי כָזָב אִישׁ־דָּמִים וּמִרְמָה יְתָעֵב יהוה׃

8     וַאֲנִי בְּרֹב חַסְדְּךָ אָבוֹא בֵיתֶךָ אֶשְׁתַּחֲוֶה אֶל־הֵיכַל־קָדְשְׁךָ בְּיִרְאָתֶךָ׃

9     יהוה נְחֵנִי בְצִדְקָתֶךָ לְמַעַן שׁוֹרְרָי הוֹשַׁר^ק̇ לְפָנַי דַּרְכֶּךָ׃

10     כִּי אֵין בְּפִיהוּ נְכוֹנָה קִרְבָּם הַוּוֹת קֶבֶר־פָּתוּחַ גְּרוֹנָם לְשׁוֹנָם יַחֲלִיקוּן׃

11     הַאֲשִׁימֵם אֱלֹהִים יִפְּלוּ מִמֹּעֲצוֹתֵיהֶם בְּרֹב פִּשְׁעֵיהֶם הַדִּיחֵמוֹ כִּי־מָרוּ בָךְ׃

12     וְיִשְׂמְחוּ כָל־חוֹסֵי בָךְ לְעוֹלָם יְרַנֵּנוּ וְתָסֵךְ עָלֵימוֹ וְיַעְלְצוּ בְךָ אֹהֲבֵי שְׁמֶךָ׃

13     כִּי־אַתָּה תְּבָרֵךְ צַדִּיק יהוה כַּצִּנָּה רָצוֹן תַּעְטְרֶנּוּ׃

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If you didn’t see it in your reading, there are 5 stanzas to this Psalm.  Each of them bounces back and forth from the holy and the wicked.  We start with verses 1-3 start with David asking God to hear him, and the fact that in the morning David prays with his requests at the feet of the Lord and this starts the Psalm off.  Next comes verses 4-6 and David tells God that He hates evil.  Obviously God knows this, perhaps this admission is more for David’s well-being than God’s (please see the sarcasm).  Verses 7-8 go back to David and show why he believes God should hear Him.  He is not the man in verses 4-6, but in reverence (without pride) and he wants God show him His ways.  Verses 9-10 calls God to banish the wicked from trying to talk to Him.  Verses 11-12 goes back to the righteous and calls God to let those who follow Him take refuge in Him.  See the way it is bounces back and forth.

Another thing to consider and notice is that the last couple of Psalms we have studied employ different musical instruments.  One had stringed instruments (harp? guitar?) and the other flutes.  See that even the ancient Hebrews used different instruments to worship God.  I have a hard time with anyone making an argument about worship and music style.  Music is a big part of our lives, yes, but it is not worship.  Worship is our lifestyle – what we should be doing/living/acting like.  Our praise in musical form should merely be an expression of our hearts.  Music style, loudness, instruments used etc. are mostly preference.  The organ was invented after the harpsichord (a precursor to guitar).  It is wrong for us to say that an instrument is sinful (it is an opinion).  I know that this may be controversial, but it is just something I want to say.

Shouldn’t our worship be about what instead of how?  I want to be open before God – this is good.  I want to consistently come to God – this is good.  I want to let Him know what is really going on with me – this is good (and He already knows anyway).  Our lives are to become more and more like Jesus, not squabble about how songs are written, what instrument is played etc.  What do you all think?

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^ק̇Ԡהַיְשַׁר

^[1]The Hebrew Bible : Andersen-Forbes Analyzed Text; Bible. O.T. Hebrew. Andersen-Forbes. 2006; 2006 (Ps 5:1-13). Logos Bible Software.

Psalm 4

4 ¹ לַמְנַצֵּחַ בִּנְגִינוֹת מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד׃

2     בְּקָרְאִי עֲנֵנִי אֱלֹהֵי צִדְקִי בַּצָּר הִרְחַבְתָּ לִּי חָנֵּנִי וּשְׁמַע תְּפִלָּתִי׃

3     בְּנֵי אִישׁ עַד־מֶה כְבוֹדִי לִכְלִמָּה תֶּאֱהָבוּן רִיק תְּבַקְשׁוּ כָזָב סֶלָה׃

4     וּדְעוּ כִּי־הִפְלָה יהוה חָסִיד לֹו יהוה יִשְׁמַע בְּקָרְאִי אֵלָיו׃

5     רִגְזוּ וְאַל־תֶּחֱטָאוּ אִמְרוּ בִלְבַבְכֶם עַל־מִשְׁכַּבְכֶם וְדֹמּוּ סֶלָה׃

6     זִבְחוּ זִבְחֵי־צֶדֶק וּבִטְחוּ אֶל־יהוה׃

7     רַבִּים אֹמְרִים מִי־יַרְאֵנוּ טוֹב נְסָה־עָלֵינוּ אוֹר פָּנֶיךָ יהוה׃

8     נָתַתָּה שִׂמְחָה בְלִבִּי מֵעֵת דְּגָנָם וְתִירוֹשָׁם רָבּוּ׃

9     בְּשָׁלוֹם יַחְדָּו אֶשְׁכְּבָה וְאִישָׁן כִּי־אַתָּה יהוה לְבָדָד לָבֶטַח תּוֹשִׁיבֵנִי׃

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If Psalm 3 and Psalm 4 seem similar, that is no mistake.  In fact, many commentators seem to think that they were both written by David as he fled from Absalom.  They say that Psalm 3 is a “morning” psalm, which is meant to be sung in the morning and shows David’s distress the morning after his flight.  Some put Psalm 4 in the timeframe of the next night, and it is commonly considered a “night” psalm, mostly by the implication of verse 9 (or 8 in the NIV).  This prayer seems to be an emptying of feelings, emotions, pain and stress.  It will allow the writer/singer release to then fall asleep.  Do you ever need to do this? 

Stress can kill you, literally.  It also affects us in the here and now.  I have many friends who have been affected strongly by stress – they have lost hair and health because of unhealthy levels of stress.  Stress is a natural, normal function in our lives.  It can help us to focus, encourage us to actually get done what we need to do, cause us to survive in life-threatening situations and prevent us from many uncomfortable things.  However, if left unchecked or if our bodies are forced to live there too long and too much it can really affect us.  God doesn’t want you to live like this.  This is once again a derivative of this passage.  David is running for his life, and has the wherewithal to say “In your anger do not sin,” and “offer right sacrifices and trust in the Lord.”  What would you do if your life were falling apart?  Who would you really call upon? 

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^[1]The Hebrew Bible : Andersen-Forbes Analyzed Text; Bible. O.T. Hebrew. Andersen-Forbes. 2006; 2006 (Ps 4:1-9). Logos Bible Software.

Psalm 3

3 ¹ מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד בְּבָרְחֹו מִפְּנֵי אַבְשָׁלוֹם בְּנֹו׃

2     יהוה מָה־רַבּוּ צָרָי רַבִּים קָמִים עָלָי׃

3     רַבִּים אֹמְרִים לְנַפְשִׁי אֵין יְשׁוּעָתָה לֹּו בֵאלֹהִים סֶלָה׃

4     וְאַתָּה יהוה מָגֵן בַּעֲדִי כְּבוֹדִי וּמֵרִים רֹאשִׁי׃

5     קוֹלִי אֶל־יהוה אֶקְרָא וַיַּעֲנֵנִי מֵהַר קָדְשֹׁו סֶלָה׃

6     אֲנִי שָׁכַבְתִּי וָאִישָׁנָה הֱקִיצוֹתִי כִּי יהוה יִסְמְכֵנִי׃

7     לֹא־אִירָא מֵרִבְבוֹת עָם אֲשֶׁר סָבִיב שָׁתוּ עָלָי׃

8     קוּמָה יהוה הוֹשִׁיעֵנִי אֱלֹהַי כִּי־הִכִּיתָ אֶת־כָּל־אֹיְבַי לֶחִי שִׁנֵּי רְשָׁעִים שִׁבַּרְתָּ׃

9     לַיהוה הַיְשׁוּעָה עַל־עַמְּךָ בִרְכָתֶךָ סֶּלָה׃

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2 Samuel 13 and 14 record a truly upsetting story.  It is one of lying, murder, immoral relationships, etc.  I will leave it to you to read it for the details (in case my readers are of mixed company).  However, I will tell you this: one of David’s sons (Absalom) gets so angry at his half-brother Amnon that he murders him.  Absalom then conspires against his father and David is forced to flee.  According to the heading on this passage, David wrote this as he fled from Absalom.  How would it feel to have a real enemy?  How would that feel if your enemy was a family member or someone you loved?  Now do you understand the angst in David’s voice?  I would call on God too – I would bear my soul to Him.  I just wouldn’t share it with the world.  David does, showing us something into the life of a transparent leader.  How transparent should leaders be?  What should they share, etc.?  Sound off in the comments if you want.

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^[1]The Hebrew Bible : Andersen-Forbes Analyzed Text; Bible. O.T. Hebrew. Andersen-Forbes. 2006; 2006 (Ps 3:1-9). Logos Bible Software.

Psalm 2

2 ¹ לָמָּה רָגְשׁוּ גוֹיִם וּלְאֻמִּים יֶהְגּוּ־רִיק׃

2     יִתְיַצְּבוּ מַלְכֵי־אֶרֶץ וְרוֹזְנִים נוֹסְדוּ־יָחַד עַל־יהוה וְעַל־מְשִׁיחֹו׃

3     נְנַתְּקָה אֶת־מוֹסְרוֹתֵימוֹ וְנַשְׁלִיכָה מִמֶּנּוּ עֲבֹתֵימוֹ׃

4     יוֹשֵׁב בַּשָּׁמַיִם יִשְׂחָק אֲדֹנָי יִלְעַג־לָמוֹ׃

5     אָז יְדַבֵּר אֵלֵימוֹ בְאַפֹּו וּבַחֲרוֹנֹו יְבַהֲלֵמוֹ׃

6     וַאֲנִי נָסַכְתִּי מַלְכִּי עַל־צִיּוֹן הַר־קָדְשִׁי׃

7     אֲסַפְּרָה אֶל חֹק יהוה אָמַר אֵלַי בְּנִי אַתָּה אֲנִי הַיּוֹם יְלִדְתִּיךָ׃

8     שְׁאַל מִמֶּנִּי וְאֶתְּנָה גוֹיִם נַחֲלָתֶךָ וַאֲחֻזָּתְךָ אַפְסֵי־אָרֶץ׃

9     תְּרֹעֵם בְּשֵׁבֶט בַּרְזֶל כִּכְלִי יוֹצֵר תְּנַפְּצֵם׃

10     וְעַתָּה מְלָכִים הַשְׂכִּילוּ הִוָּסְרוּ שֹׁפְטֵי אָרֶץ׃

11     עִבְדוּ אֶת־יהוה בְּיִרְאָה וְגִילוּ בִּרְעָדָה׃

12     נַשְּׁקוּ־בַר פֶּן־יֶאֱנַף וְתֹאבְדוּ דֶרֶךְ כִּי־יִבְעַר כִּמְעַט אַפֹּו אַשְׁרֵי כָּל־חוֹסֵי בֹו׃

What is the fear of the Lord? This passage shows that all will one day truly fear Him (11).  Even though the world does its best to try to rise up against Him and “show Him who’s boss,” they have little sway.  I meditated on this Psalm all day yesterday and I thought about verse 2 the most.  The world marches against 1) God and 2) His anointed one.  However, does the world really know that it marches against Him?  Sure, many in the ancient wars and battles spouted off about the fact that they were there to show that He wasn’t real, or that He couldn’t really do anything.  The Persians and Babylonians both speak of how every god they came in contact with fell to their power.  They saw the Lord as no different.  They were wrong, this passage is wrong.  So did they ever come to fear the Lord?  Some did, when they came in contact with His power.  In this Psalm, we find that His wrath can flare up in a moment and that one day everyone will be under His sway, but do they really “fear” Him and what does that mean?

I want you to see that the person who most fears the Lord is the one writing the Psalm.  He knows God, and has seen His goodness.  Therefore the fear is not one of cowering and shame, but one of confidence in who is the true king.  He wants the world to show a cowering and shameful fear – because that is at minimum what God deserves, but he is calling the world to see God as who He is.  He is the all-powerful, mighty King of all that scoffs at the peas being thrown at Him.  No weapon fashioned can stand before Him, yet the world tries.  No amount of words can make Him not be “I AM,” yet they try.  Fear Him, seems to be a major theme in this Psalm – because one day His wrath will be felt, so why not take refuge in His kindness.

Psalm 1

1 ¹ אַשְׁרֵי־הָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר לֹא הָלַךְ בַּעֲצַת רְשָׁעִים וּבְדֶרֶךְ חַטָּאִים לֹא עָמָד וּבְמוֹשַׁב לֵצִים לֹא יָשָׁב׃

2     כִּי אִם בְּתוֹרַת יהוה חֶפְצֹו וּבְתוֹרָתֹו יֶהְגֶּה יוֹמָם וָלָיְלָה׃

3     וְהָיָה כְּעֵץ שָׁתוּל עַל־פַּלְגֵי מָיִם אֲשֶׁר פִּרְיֹו יִתֵּן בְּעִתֹּו וְעָלֵהוּ לֹא־יִבּוֹל וְכֹל אֲשֶׁר־יַעֲשֶׂה יַצְלִיחַ׃

4     לֹא־כֵן הָרְשָׁעִים כִּי אִם־כַּמֹּץ אֲשֶׁר־תִּדְּפֶנּוּ רוּחַ׃

5     עַל־כֵּן לֹא־יָקֻמוּ רְשָׁעִים בַּמִּשְׁפָּט וְחַטָּאִים בַּעֲדַת צַדִּיקִים׃

6     כִּי־יוֹדֵעַ יהוה דֶּרֶךְ צַדִּיקִים וְדֶרֶךְ רְשָׁעִים תֹּאבֵד׃

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Verses 1 and 2 are in stark contrast to each other – one speaks of the wicked man and his choices; the other the righteous and what he meditates on: God’s Word.  The law is a continuing desire of much of the Psalms and the entire Psalter seems to be addressing man’s confrontation with God’s perfect law, the result of either following it (blessing) or deciding not to (curse).  The book of Psalms ends with a set of hymns that point us to God and let Him be praised by action, word and thought.  Verse 3 points us to the result of following the law and God – specifically a fruitful life or a legacy (something that lasts beyond our life).  This verse, like verses 1 and 2, is contrasted to verse 4, which shows what happens to those that don’t follow God (look at 1 John 2:15-17).  A life not walking with God results in a life that will not be sustained.  It will fade away.  Verse 5 mirrors the second half of verse 1.  Where verse 1 talks of taking the sides of the ungodly, scoffers and the wicked, verse 5 shows that in the end the ungodly will have no power at judgment and no say in the end.  Verse 6 wraps it up by repeating the concept again. 

This gives Psalm 1 a style that looks like this: 

A(1) – B(2) – B(3) – A(4-5) – B(6a) – A (6b)

In many ways, this is classic Hebrew, and classic Psalms’ language.  However, to go to application, what side of the seat do you sit on?  What are you putting your hope in?  Are you meditating on the ways and purposes of God to see Him change your life?  A life without God doesn’t mean much and suffers from not being sustainable.  So what is your choice?

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^[1]The Hebrew Bible : Andersen-Forbes Analyzed Text; Bible. O.T. Hebrew. Andersen-Forbes. 2006; 2006 (Ps 1:1-6). Logos Bible Software.

James 5:7-12

Verse 12 was huge for me in high school.  I memorized it so that I would not swear anymore.  I didn’t read the rest of the verses.  James isn’t speaking here of swearing in the sense of “cursing” – four-letter-words, but instead is pulling from the last chapter and suggesting that we aren’t supposed to say, “I swear I will do that” – because we don’t know what God has in store!  Let me explain: a few years ago I read a book called Understanding God’s Will by Kyle Lake.  In this book, he does a great job in describing how some are crippled by trying to figure out the will of God and he proves the point that those that are obedient to God and are trying to live for Him are following the will of God.  Instead of a “soul mate” – work hard on marriage and it will work, etc.  He was talking about raising his kids and having the uncertainty of whether he would be there for it or not.  The problem is – he had died earlier in the year that I chose to read the book.  The Lord took him home.  He died tragically – in his early thirties – and now isn’t there for his kids.  Crazy, yes, but this is why we must live for God today, right now.  We can’t “swear” that we will do anything – because we don’t know the master plan.  We also can’t lose faith or sight of what is important because God works in everything – like through the life of Job.  Thank you, James for reminding us!

James 5:1-6

James here sounds more like an Old Testament prophet or Jesus when He is delivering the “woes” in Matthew 23.  The idea through the book has been that we should be thankful in trials and seeking God’s wisdom no matter what happens.  Now, the people are reminded that God will vindicate by removing wealth from the wealthy in the end and that God is ultimately in charge – even of the finances of the wealthy.  Remember, those that live to hurt us are ultimately going to deal with God and not our wrath.  Thank you God!

James 4:13-17

Let’s suppose you receive a gift from someone.  Let’s say it is a great gift, one that shows they care about you and gives you an experience where you feel important and valued.  Now, when you receive the gift, you are honored and then you look the person in the eye and say, “What more did you bring me?”  Now this may sound like a childish thing to do – and rightfully so!  My daughter’s first words for some people are, “What did you bring me?”  This is wrong, but it is how many of us treat God.  He gives us things we take for granted – and then we ask for more! 

James is pointing this out here in one way or another.  He is seeing each day as a valuable gift – a chance to feel loved and appreciated by God.  I think of “This is the Day” that song that I was forced to sing as a 10-year-old in Sunday School.  What a thing to have air to breathe, a life to live and a day to bless others!  Yet, we want more.  James is talking about this and just one chapter before called his people infants.  I am this way often – I am blessed by God with things I take for granted, but when I meet with Him my words too often are “What did you bring me?”  Forgive me, Lord, and change me!

James 4:7-12

Most great war movies have a point where the “heroes” are being defeated or pressed into a corner.  This is Helm’s Deep, or the Battle of the Bulge, or any number of famous battles, real or not.  The “heroes” are being pushed back and have nowhere to turn.  This leads them to “the Stand” and a time when they will push back, with all that they have to change things.  They will give one last ditch effort to make the enemy disappear and ultimately win!  Gandalf will come riding over the hill with the horsemen and the ents will join.  The reinforcements or bombers arrive just in time to sweep and make the changes necessary to win.  How often are you this way with sin?  How often do you resist to the point that suddenly you realize you have nowhere to go – backed into a corner and pressured by the flesh or by Satan? 

This passage is describing this.  James is telling us to submit to God – or to serve Him and Him alone (remember that much of this book is talking about persecution – so James is saying, “When things don’t go our way… submit to Him”).  Then he tells us to resist the devil, and the word used here describes a “last stand” effort.  If you ever go through a trial, it will feel like this, I promise.  There will be a moment when you feel totally in a corner – backed in and given only one choice – press on and give a last ditch effort; give in and let sin take its toll.  James is saying to stand – and then God will come to the rescue!  He will be there!  So, cleanse your hands, purify your hearts, be wretched and mourn and weep!  Be broken in tough times and lo and behold – He will be riding over the hill.  He will be there to help and to win the battle on your behalf!  Amen!

James 4:1-6

Emnity means strife or issues between two things/people.  Here, James is showing us that our wants and desires cause major problems between people and between God and us.  What is the greatest commandment?  We are to love God and love people, right?  Therefore James rightly points out here that our desires and wishes become the things that put issues between us.  Do you agree with this?  I think every fight or disagreement I have ever dealt with comes directly from this.  Sometimes it is someone not feeling that they are noticed or heard.  Sometimes it is something that is causing envy or something like that.  What is causing strife in your life?  

James 3:1-12

I wanted to break this up and really spend more time on pieces of it – but it doesn’t break down very well.  Sorry about that.  What do you see in this passage?  Is it as convicting to you as it is for me?

James starts with a warning to teachers (which keeps me straight often, honestly) and then dives into an idea that is hard to understand – keeping our bodies in “check.”  He gives this after pointing out that we all stumble in many ways – perhaps too many to count!  This leads to the rest of the chapter – that the toughest part to control is our tongue – or mouth specifically.

He gives multiple examples of how little things can control big things – rudders on ships/bits for horses – and then reminds us that our tongues and our speech is very similar (which is one reason why teachers are held to account).  Then he goes into the idea that words are like sparks – the tongue sets fires and is nearly impossible to control.

Do you find this to be true personally?  Do you struggle with your language?

Would any of these verses or this whole passage help at all?

James 2:14-26

You could say that this passage asks us to “put our money where our mouth is” when it comes to faith.  That expression comes from people who have a big mouth and tell us what they are capable of, how great they are, and – by inference – how inferior we are.  “I can juggle canned food items while wrestling an alligator easily,” he says and I respond, “put your money where your mouth is.”  Also, one might say, “back it up.”  We do this because of one key point when dealing with humans – talk is cheap.  One might even say belief is cheaper, because you could hide it deep down and say, “that’s private and personal, you shouldn’t ask me that.”  Ah, the world we live in.  Truth is, our beliefs should affect our lives and actions.  None of us can sit back and idly say things we believe. 

Now, it is fitting that James is writing this passage here – right after scolding the church for showing favoritism.  He says, “so you believe that all men are to be saved – that all deserve the gospel?  Prove it, by your actions.”  He even goes one step further to prove it, and I think it is genius.  Think about this – are the demons more aware of the spiritual realm then us?  Do they understand reality in many ways better than we do?  Of course they do.  They are constantly in understanding of the coming judgment.  They fight to trip others up (see Screwtape Letters).  They know that God is one God.  They know He is powerful and should be feared – probably better than us all the time – yet they have no different actions.

This means that there are some on this earth who really believe that God is real, one and the God the Bible speaks of – all while denying the fact that their lives should change along with this belief.  How do you act out your faith?

James 2:1-13

Who do you love? When I read this passage I see that how we love God really does affect how we treat others. This is seen in the 10 commandments – check them out and see how many are "God-centered" and how many are "neighbor-centered." Jesus continues this teaching with "the greatest commandment is this: love the Lord your God with all your heart, mind, soul and strength and you neighbor as yourself." You tell me that you love God – how are you treating people. Are you selfless? Are you patient? Are you serving? Are you living for something bigger than yourself – or loving more than just you? These are tough questions but they indicate how our walk with God is going. So, how is your walk with God going? As you look into the mirror of His Word, do you see a servant (Phil 2, Isa 52-53) or a prideful self-serving boastful man or woman? How should we change?

 

Discuss – leave comments!

James 1:19-27

We have a major problem in our day – God's Word is not studied the way it should: in fact, it may not even be read all that much. We use excuses like, "I don't understand it" or "I don't have time." This is far from good and it is producing Christians who are not Christ-followers. These verses remind us why we should read. We'll come back to that in a moment.

The Bible is God's Truth – it is the life-giving book of thousands of generations. It tells us how God perceives us, lets us know what God wants us to do, answers the questions plaguing man, provides for us a way to know Him deeper after we enter into a relationship with Him. Yet, we don't like to read (never mind Psalm 119), or we don't like learning (the word for disciple means "learner") and a million other things that go through our minds. Don't we see that our lack of desire for God's Word is similar to us "being our own master – or god?!?" This is the lie that has been given since the beginning of time. We must read this book in order to grow.

James understood this and encourages the church to investigate and swim deeply in God's Word. Here in these verses he reminds us to be slow to speak, quick to listen and slow to become angry. This is not the natural human way to do things. Any reality TV show can show us this – humans like to fly off the handle. This is "good TV" but bad for us to learn. Suppose that we watch 4 hours of TV a day. What might we see? We might see quick tempers, seductive glances, adultery, murder, children born out of wedlock, abuse (verbal, physical, sexual), or any other number of bad things. Some of us assume this is normal and act like this without even thinking twice. Others of us know these things are wrong, but we realize that we are not like any of these people and we go on with our day thinking, "I am better off than them – I am a good Christian because I don't…"

This makes TV a mirror into our lives. We look at it, see the evil and pain in all the world, realize we are better and think we don't need to grow. Yet, James saw something else that should be a mirror into our lives – God's Word. A mirror shows us what we look like and what we need to do to change. Four months ago, I finally saw the fat man in the mirror staring back. This morning, I saw a crazy hair-do from my sleep that encouraged me to shower and do my hair. A mirror tells us what we look like and a mirror tells us what is wrong. If we use a dirty mirror (TV), we are deceived. Use a clear mirror, one that will show us imperfection (Bible) we have somewhere to start. Now many have used James as a book about human works and how this book seems to focus on how humans can become righteous. I don't see that at all. James is telling us to look into the right mirror – ask God for help (James 1:5) and to trust that He can change us (James 1:17). We have a problem in our day – but I know where to start.

James 1:12-18

Job was a righteous man. He did the right things for himself, and even tried to do the right things on his children's behalf. He was wealthy and had all that anyone could possibly want. God blessed him and gave him all of these things. Somehow, Job's righteousness got intertwined with blessing and everyone got confused. When God took it all away, all of his friends came over and wanted to know what he had done wrong to lose it all. Job maintained his innocence and tried to praise God still.

This happens a lot. Especially in America, there is a belief that if we obey God He will bless us. Yet these two passages in James are talking about trial and difficulty. Many of us read this and without even realizing it, we think, "not gonna happen to me, I am obedient." Are you this way? I know I can be. Look at what God has done for me. I have an amazing wife, two kids, a house, two cars, a dog, enough money to provide for my family, a great group of students who seem to love and trust me and a church that seems to appreciate me and likes what I am doing. Better yet, I have my health and the time and ability to continue my education. God is so good – He is surely a mighty provider. Yet, did He provide because of my obedience? This to me sounds a lot like the ancient gods of the world and in the land that Israel lived. The formula was – offer things to a shifty god – be blessed – when things go wrong, figure out what you did wrong to get everything back (or make it rain, etc). These gods were fickle and mean – and fake. They didn't really exist.

So, when James tells us to "remain steadfast in trial" he seems to be saying, "Don't go out and offer things to God in trial!" Sure, God does desire our lives and He does desire holiness – so we should see if it was our mistake or some sin that is coming to the surface based on our bad choices (desires, verses 14-15) or actions. Like, if you suddenly have an STD, don't just remain steadfast, but be open with someone about the fact that you have an active sex life and want help. However, if you get an STD and don't have an active sex life, get ready to trust in God and walk with Him as the rumors start, etc. However, often trials are just that – trials – and there is no "special sacrifice" needed. Sometimes the rain falls in our lives, but God is still God.

I see James telling everyone that God is not like the "shifting shadows" and I realize that our God is God – no matter what. He isn't fickle and asking for different things around each turn. He is asking for us – and to trust in Him no matter what. He can give when He wants – and He can take away. He is still to be praised. Besides, if we could get what we want with just a little gift, who would really be in charge? All of us want to be comfortable. All of us want to be "set." God is all we need. Anything else is just a bonus.

And our God doesn't change – ever.

Our obedience does not necessitate that God give us anything. Success is fleeting – and an idol. Good health is fleeting – and can be our pride and joy. God is God, and I am not – I need to remember this. Job needed to learn this – do you?

James 1:1-11

There are a few things to look at when dealing with the book of James. James is very colorful and likes to use imagery to make his point. Already in these verses he is doing this – what are some of the images he is giving us? Another thing is that James likes to compare and contrast things as the LORD lays them on his heart. We see this happening as well here.

However, the most important thing to see here is James' understanding and perspective of how to grow in our faith. It is not "normal" to most that our faith grows the most when things aren't going our way. However, this is exactly what James is saying. Trials lead to x, which leads to x, which leads to x and that leads to it all. Check that out and you will be on a good start here in James. It is a great passage – and there is so much more to go! Let God's Word TRANSFORM us this year!

New Year

We really want you all reading with us this year! Check out www.bethefuse.com to download the Bible study sheets and to find any resources that will help you study. See ya back here so that we can talk about what God is teaching us!