Faith At Work

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Who’s in charge today?

Dr. Jim Denison

James 1:1

Who was James?

The book of James names its author in its first sentence: “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” (1:1). But which James? The NT uses the name 42 times, of which 38 identifications are certain:

19 refer to James the brother of John and son of Zebedee

4 refer to James son of Alphaeus

3 refer to a son of Mary

2 refer to a half-brother of Jesus

8 refer to an unspecified James, a pillar of the Jerusalem Church

2 refer to “Judas son of James.”

James the son of Zebedee is the most prominent James in the Gospels.

He was among Jesus’ first disciples (Mark 1:29).

His mother was probably Salome (Matthew 27:56: among those at the cross were “Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons”; Mark 15:40: “among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome”).

John 19:25 lists these women at the cross: “his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.” Unless John omitted his own mother from his listing of the women at the cross, it is likely that she is one of these four and thus the sister of Jesus’ mother Mary. As a result, her sons James and John were Jesus’ cousins.

James was so important to the first Christian movement that Herod chose him for execution (Acts 12:2).

His early death (AD 44) makes it very unlikely that he is the author of our letter.

James son of Alphaeus, while a disciple of our Lord (Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:15), is not otherwise known to the apostolic record.

He is likely mentioned in Mark 15:40, “Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses”; and Luke 24:10: “Mary the mother of James, and the others with them” who told the apostles about Jesus’ resurrection.

His mother is likely the wife of Clopas (John 19:25), so that Clopas is usually identified as Alphaeus.

He may be the brother of Jude, the author of the letter bearing his name; or that Jude may be a half-brother of Jesus (Matthew 13:55).

Most scholars believe the author of our letter to have been a person of greater stature in the early church than James son of Alphaeus, and question whether this man could be known to a wide audience by the simple identification “James.” However, the Catholic tradition does not accept the thesis that Mary had children after Jesus, and thus denies that our letter could be written by his half-brother. Catholic theologians thus consider him to be the author of our epistle (see #6 below).

The James whose son is Judas (not Iscariot; Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13) is even less known to Scripture, and thus even less likely to be the author of our epistle.

We are left with James, the half-brother of Jesus. Here’s what we know about him from the Gospels:

He is named with Joseph, Simon, and Judas as Jesus’ brothers (Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3); he was likely the oldest of the brothers, as he is listed first.

He and his brothers did not believe in Jesus at first: “even his own brothers did not believe in him” (John 7:5).

Note the Roman Catholic doctrine that Mary maintained her virginity, so that James could not be her child. Two theories are proposed to support this assertion:

The Epiphanian theory (after Epiphanius, ca. AD 370): James and his brothers were the sons of Joseph from a previous marriage. But nothing in the text indicates such a previous family; and the flight to Egypt (Matthew 2) would surely have mentioned this other family if it existed.

The Hieronymian theory (proposed in AD 383 by Jerome, whose Greek name is Hieronymius): Jesus’ “brothers” were his cousins. Paul describes “James the Lord’s brother” as one of the “apostles” (Galatians 1:19); Jerome insists these are only the Twelve. He thus identifies him as James son of Alphaeus (Matthew 10:3) and asserts that Alphaeus was married to Salome, the sister of Mary, making James the cousin of Jesus. But “brother” does not mean “cousin” in family relationships; and the “apostles” were more than the Twelve (cf. Romans 16:7, where Andronicus and Junia are “outstanding among the apostles”). Nonetheless, this is the official position of the Catholic Church today.

Nothing in the biblical text suggests that James was anything other than Mary’s son and Jesus’ half-brother. This fact will become important in the applications which conclude this week’s study.

After the resurrection, Jesus made a special visit to his half-brother. He visited Peter and the Twelve (1 Corinthians 15:5), more than 500 of the “brothers” (v. 6), and “then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles” (v. 7). The second-century Gospel according to the Hebrews adds that Jesus shared the Lord’s Supper with James at this time (Martin, James xliv).

This distinction between James, the “Twelve,” and the “apostles” makes clear that this person is not James the brother of John or the son of Alphaeus (see also Galatians 1:19, where Paul says he met with “none of the other apostles–only James, the Lord’s brother”).

And it demonstrates that this James was important enough to warrant a specific visit from the risen Christ, and special mention by Paul.

Most interpreters believe that this event led James to faith in his half-brother as the Messiah.

Eventually, the other brothers came to the same faith commitment. By the time Paul wrote his first letter to the Corinthians, Jesus’ brothers are among the believers: “Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas?” (1 Corinthians 9:5).

Following this life-changing encounter, James became one of the most significant leaders of the Jerusalem church:

From the death of James the brother of John, the book of Acts refers to “James” as if there is only one person known widely by this name.

After his miraculous release from prison, Peter told the believers to “tell James and the brothers about this” (Acts 12:17), placing him in prominence over the other leaders of the church.

James spoke for the Jerusalem council in their decision to accept the conversion of Gentiles to faith in Christ (Acts 15:13-21).

When Paul visited the Jerusalem church three years after his conversion, he met with Peter for 15 days but “none of the other apostles–only James, the Lord’s brother” (Galatians 1:19).

Paul listed “James, Peter and John” as the “pillars” of the early church (Galatians 2:9).

He described a delegation coming from Jerusalem to the Gentile church at Antioch as “from James” (Galatians 2:12).

When Paul brought the Collection to Jerusalem at the conclusion of his third missionary journey, Luke records that “Paul and the rest of us went to see James, and all the elders were present” (Acts 21:18). This is the last mention of James in the New Testament.

Clement of Alexandria (born approx. AD 160), in the sixth book of his Hypotyposes, states that “Peter and James and John, after the Saviour’s ascension, though pre-eminently honoured by the Lord, did not contend for glory, but made James the Just, bishop of Jerusalem” (Ante-Nicene Fathers 2:579).

Jerome (AD 492) adds that “he ruled the church of Jerusalem 30 years, that is until the seventh year of Nero” (Lives of Illustrious Men ch. 2; Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers 3:362). Nero ruled Rome from AD 54-68, so that James died in AD 62.

From the third century, the large majority of interpreters have identified the Letter of James with James the Just, half-brother of Jesus.

Origen (AD 185-253), Eusebius (c. 265-340) and Jerome (c. 340-420) all favored this position.

The vocabulary of James’s speech (Acts 15:13-21) and the letter it inspired (vs. 22-29) is similar to that of the epistle:

The salutation “greetings” (chairein) is found in the NT only in Ac 15:23, James 1:1, and Acts 23:26

James 2:7, “the noble name of him to whom you belong,” is paralleled in the NT only at Acts 15:17, “who bear my name”

“Name” in James 2:7; 5:10, 14; and Acts 15:14, 26 is not used elsewhere in the NT in the same sense

James’ allusions to the OT (Acts 15:14, 16-18, 21) are consistent with the epistle

“Brothers” is common to the epistle (James 1:2, 9, 16, 19; 2:5, 15; 3:1; 4:11; 5:7, 9, 10, 12, 19) is found also in Acts 15:13, 23

Note James 2:5, “Listen, my dear brothers” and Acts 15:13, “Brothers, listen to me” (Oesterley, Expositor’s Greek Testament 4:392).

James’ authority (Acts 15:13; 21:18) coheres with the authoritative nature of the epistle (with its 46 imperatives).

Jerome (AD 492) states of him, “after our Lord’s passion at once ordained by the apostles bishop of Jerusalem, wrote a single epistle, which is reckoned among the seven Catholic Epistles” (Jerome 361).

What happened to him?

We have no record of James after Paul’s visit in Jerusalem (Acts 21:18). But he is mentioned prominently in the post-biblical literature. His character was known and admired:

Hegesippus, writing a commentary near the time of the apostles, calls him “the brother of the Lord” and identifies him further: “as there were many of this name, was surnamed the Just by all, from the days of our Lord until now” (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 2:23).

He then describes his character: “This apostle was consecrated from his mother’s womb. He drank neither wine nor fermented liquors, and abstained from animal food. A razor never came upon his head, he never anointed with oil, and never used a bath. He alone was allowed to enter the sanctuary. He never wore woolen, but linen garments. He was in the habit of entering the temple alone, and was often found upon his bended knees, and interceding for the forgiveness of the people; so that his knees became as hard as a camel’s, in consequence of his habitual supplication and kneeling before God. And indeed, on account of his exceeding great piety, he was called the Just” (ibid).

He may have been a mentor to Stephen, the first martyr.

Ignatius (A.D. 30-107), in his letter to the Trallians, asks, “what are the deacons but imitators of the angelic powers, fulfilling a pure and blameless ministry unto him, as the holy Stephen did to the blessed James, Timothy and Linus to Paul, Anencletus and Clement to Peter?” (ch. 7).

We know James the Just to have been an important figure in the Jerusalem church, though James the brother of John was still alive at Stephen’s death (cf. Acts 12:2). So we cannot be sure of the identity of “the blessed James,” though it is likely that he was James the Just.

His martyrdom (AD 62) was the subject of extended interest as well:

Josephus describes his death: the high priest Ananus “was a bold man in his temper, and very insolent; he was also of the sect of the Sadducees, who were very rigid in judging offenders, above all the rest of the Jews, as we have already observed; when, therefore, Ananus was of this disposition, he thought he had now a proper opportunity . . . so he assembled the Sanhedrim of the judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others, and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned” (Antiquities 20:9:1).

The circumstances which led to his death are noted by Hegesippus: as a Passover neared, the Jewish leaders positioned James on a wing of the temple and asked him to persuade the crowds “not to be led astray by Jesus.” His response: “‘Why do you ask me respecting Jesus the Son of Man? He is now sitting in the heavens, on the right hand of great Power, and is about to come on the clouds of heaven.’ And as many were confirmed, and gloried in this testimony of James, and said, Hosanna to the son of David, these same priests and Pharisees said to one another, ‘We have done badly in affording such testimony to Jesus, but let us go up and cast him down, that they may dread to believe in him'” (Eusebius, ibid).

Hegesippus then describes his martyrdom: “they began to stone him, as he did not die immediately when cast down; but turning round, he knelt down saying, ‘I entreat thee, O Lord God and Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’ . . . And one of them, a fuller, beat out the brains of Justus with the club that he used to beat out clothes. Thus he suffered martyrdom, and they buried him on the spot where his tombstone is still remaining, by the temple. He became a faithful witness, both to the Jews and Greeks, that Jesus is the Christ” (ibid).

Jerome adds that he “was buried near the temple from which he had been cast down. His tombstone with its inscription was well known until the siege of Titus and the end of Hadrian’s reign” (Jerome 362). Titus destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70; Hadrian was emperor of Rome from AD 117-138.

His integrity was recognized even by those who arranged his martyrdom:

The injustice of James’ death was noted even by the Jewish leaders: “as for those who seemed the most equitable of the citizens, and such as were the most uneasy at the breach if the laws, they disliked what was done; they also sent to the king desiring him to send to Ananus that he should act so no more, for that what he had already done was not to be justified.” Eventually his behavior cost him the high priesthood after only three months (Josephus, ibid).

Eusebius adds that many of the Jewish leaders believed the Roman destruction of Jerusalem “happened to them for no other reason than the crime against him” (Eusebius, ibid).

What does his life teach us today?

James calls himself “a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” (1:1a). “Servant” translates doulos, the Greek word for “slave.”

His self-description as the “slave” of God also places him in an Old Testament line of spiritual leaders and prophets:

Moses was the doulos of God (1 Kings 8:53; Daniel 9:11; Malachi 4:4)

Joshua and Caleb wore this title (Joshua 24:29; Numbers 14:24)

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were the “slaves” of God (Deuteronomy 9:27), as was Job (1:8)

The prophets were known as the doulos of God (Isaiah 20:3; Amos 3:7; Zechariah 1:6; Jeremiah 7:25; Barclay, James 35-6).

And his self-characterization as the “slave of the Lord Jesus Christ” suggests these facts:

James was unconditionally surrendered to Jesus Christ as his Lord. A slave was owned by his master. He had no rights of his own. There was no segment of his life which was not completely yielded to the one who owned him. To be the “slave” of Jesus is to be his entirely. In addition, his description of Jesus as “Lord” shows his surrender to his Emperor and King.

He was absolutely obedient to his word and will. A slave is allowed no will of his own. He must do what his master says to do, without question or qualification. James would obey his Master’s leading, wherever it took him–even to a martyr’s death.

He was humbly loyal to his Master. James nowhere identifies himself as Jesus’ half-brother, a fact which causes some commentators to question whether or not he wrote this epistle. Why would he not use such authority for his ministry? Because those who read his letter already knew his life and faith. They knew his family relation to Jesus. He would not take pains to remind them of his human connection with the Christ, only his spiritual devotion to him. No person has ever refused so lofty an honor as this.

Such humble submission is God’s will for us all:

“What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).

“The greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves” (Luke 22:26).

“By the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you” (Romans 12:3).

James knew who he was: the slave of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, completely committed to their will and Kingdom alone. This identity motivated his life, forged his character, and made his martyrdom an easy choice. He would live and die for the One who died and lived for him.

Why is humble submission so crucial to a life-transforming faith?

The word of God requires such surrender: “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18); “take my yoke upon you” (Matthew 11:29). We cannot live in God’s word and will unless we surrender to Jesus as our Lord.

Living a surrendered life is the most reasonable way we can respond to the divinity and authority of Jesus Christ. He possesses “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18), meaning that we possess none. And his resurrection demonstrates his divinity. As a result, we can serve no person who deserves our submission as much as the Lord. If he allows us to serve another master, he permits idolatry. The first of the Ten Commandments and the Two is therefore the same: to love God so much that we have no other gods before him (Exodus 20:3; Matthew 22:37). We were created to worship our Creator; our lives can find fulfillment in no other purpose. Such a decision is warranted rationally.

Submitting to Christ as Master is warranted experientially as well. Christians across 20 centuries of faith can agree with William Booth, the Salvation Army founder who asserted, “The greatness of a man’s power is the measure of his surrender.” Believers in every generation have learned that the road to joy is paved with humble submission to Christ as Lord.

Our hearts long to serve something or someone. As Pascal observed, there is a God-shaped emptiness inside us all. The earliest art known to man was painted as an act of worship. Every society known to history has worshipped God or the gods. We were made to serve Christ, and our hearts are restless until they rest in him (Augustine).

God will not share his glory: “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness” (Psalm 29:2). He intends to bring all nations to glorify his Son (Philippians 2:9-11). And so he can use our lives only to the degree that we advance his Kingdom and honor his Son.

Surrendering our lives to his will is in our best interest. He can lead only those who are willing to be led. His will is “good, pleasing and perfect” (Romans 12:2), but we must surrender to it before we can experience it. He wants to meet all our needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19), but he can give only what we will receive.

Such commitment unites spirit and flesh, Sunday and Monday, the “secular” and the “sacred.” Since the time of Orpheus, six centuries before Christ, the Western world has divided the soul from the body. When we make Jesus our Master and ourselves his slave, we experience the fullness of his abundant joy (John 10:10) in every dimension of life.

Our surrendered obedience to the Lord is our best witness to a relativistic, pluralistic post-modern world. In a culture which believes absolutes do not exist (itself an absolute assertion), our faith must be relevant before it can be considered to be right. We show others that Jesus should be their Lord only when he is our Lord. We must possess what we mean to share, and our lives must demonstrate the truth of our words.

Conclusion: how do we live the surrendered life today?

Believe personally, making Christ your King.

Commit daily, beginning each morning.

Make a moral inventory, asking the Holy Spirit to show you anyplace in your life which is not submitted to the will of God. Confess these sins in genuine contrition, claiming his forgiving grace (1 John 1:9).

Develop the habit of beginning each morning in submission to the will of God. Learn to pray first about every decision of the day. Go to God as your Master, remembering always that you are his slave. This hymn can be your prayer:

O Jesus, Lord and Savior, I give myself to Thee,For thou in thine atonement didst give Thyself for me.I own no other Master; my heart shall be Thy throne;My life I live henceforth to give, O Christ, to Thee alone.

Faith At Work

Written by

[email protected]

Who’s in charge today?

Dr. Jim Denison

James 1:1

Who was James?

The book of James names its author in its first sentence: “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” (1:1). But which James? The NT uses the name 42 times, of which 38 identifications are certain:

•19 refer to James the brother of John and son of Zebedee

•4 refer to James son of Alphaeus

•3 refer to a son of Mary

•2 refer to a half-brother of Jesus

•8 refer to an unspecified James, a pillar of the Jerusalem Church

•2 refer to “Judas son of James.”

James the son of Zebedee is the most prominent James in the Gospels.

•He was among Jesus’ first disciples (Mark 1:29).

•His mother was probably Salome (Matthew 27:56: among those at the cross were “Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Joses, and the mother of Zebedee’s sons”; Mark 15:40: “among them were Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome”).

•John 19:25 lists these women at the cross: “his mother, his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary Magdalene.” Unless John omitted his own mother from his listing of the women at the cross, it is likely that she is one of these four and thus the sister of Jesus’ mother Mary. As a result, her sons James and John were Jesus’ cousins.

•James was so important to the first Christian movement that Herod chose him for execution (Acts 12:2).

•His early death (AD 44) makes it very unlikely that he is the author of our letter.

James son of Alphaeus, while a disciple of our Lord (Matthew 10:3; Mark 3:18; Luke 6:15), is not otherwise known to the apostolic record.

•He is likely mentioned in Mark 15:40, “Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses”; and Luke 24:10: “Mary the mother of James, and the others with them” who told the apostles about Jesus’ resurrection.

•His mother is likely the wife of Clopas (John 19:25), so that Clopas is usually identified as Alphaeus.

•He may be the brother of Jude, the author of the letter bearing his name; or that Jude may be a half-brother of Jesus (Matthew 13:55).

•Most scholars believe the author of our letter to have been a person of greater stature in the early church than James son of Alphaeus, and question whether this man could be known to a wide audience by the simple identification “James.” However, the Catholic tradition does not accept the thesis that Mary had children after Jesus, and thus denies that our letter could be written by his half-brother. Catholic theologians thus consider him to be the author of our epistle (see #6 below).

The James whose son is Judas (not Iscariot; Luke 6:16; Acts 1:13) is even less known to Scripture, and thus even less likely to be the author of our epistle.

We are left with James, the half-brother of Jesus. Here’s what we know about him from the Gospels:

•He is named with Joseph, Simon, and Judas as Jesus’ brothers (Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3); he was likely the oldest of the brothers, as he is listed first.

•He and his brothers did not believe in Jesus at first: “even his own brothers did not believe in him” (John 7:5).

Note the Roman Catholic doctrine that Mary maintained her virginity, so that James could not be her child. Two theories are proposed to support this assertion:

•The Epiphanian theory (after Epiphanius, ca. AD 370): James and his brothers were the sons of Joseph from a previous marriage. But nothing in the text indicates such a previous family; and the flight to Egypt (Matthew 2) would surely have mentioned this other family if it existed.

•The Hieronymian theory (proposed in AD 383 by Jerome, whose Greek name is Hieronymius): Jesus’ “brothers” were his cousins. Paul describes “James the Lord’s brother” as one of the “apostles” (Galatians 1:19); Jerome insists these are only the Twelve. He thus identifies him as James son of Alphaeus (Matthew 10:3) and asserts that Alphaeus was married to Salome, the sister of Mary, making James the cousin of Jesus. But “brother” does not mean “cousin” in family relationships; and the “apostles” were more than the Twelve (cf. Romans 16:7, where Andronicus and Junia are “outstanding among the apostles”). Nonetheless, this is the official position of the Catholic Church today.

Nothing in the biblical text suggests that James was anything other than Mary’s son and Jesus’ half-brother. This fact will become important in the applications which conclude this week’s study.

After the resurrection, Jesus made a special visit to his half-brother. He visited Peter and the Twelve (1 Corinthians 15:5), more than 500 of the “brothers” (v. 6), and “then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles” (v. 7). The second-century Gospel according to the Hebrews adds that Jesus shared the Lord’s Supper with James at this time (Martin, James xliv).

•This distinction between James, the “Twelve,” and the “apostles” makes clear that this person is not James the brother of John or the son of Alphaeus (see also Galatians 1:19, where Paul says he met with “none of the other apostles–only James, the Lord’s brother”).

•And it demonstrates that this James was important enough to warrant a specific visit from the risen Christ, and special mention by Paul.

•Most interpreters believe that this event led James to faith in his half-brother as the Messiah.

•Eventually, the other brothers came to the same faith commitment. By the time Paul wrote his first letter to the Corinthians, Jesus’ brothers are among the believers: “Don’t we have the right to take a believing wife along with us, as do the other apostles and the Lord’s brothers and Cephas?” (1 Corinthians 9:5).

Following this life-changing encounter, James became one of the most significant leaders of the Jerusalem church:

•From the death of James the brother of John, the book of Acts refers to “James” as if there is only one person known widely by this name.

•After his miraculous release from prison, Peter told the believers to “tell James and the brothers about this” (Acts 12:17), placing him in prominence over the other leaders of the church.

•James spoke for the Jerusalem council in their decision to accept the conversion of Gentiles to faith in Christ (Acts 15:13-21).

•When Paul visited the Jerusalem church three years after his conversion, he met with Peter for 15 days but “none of the other apostles–only James, the Lord’s brother” (Galatians 1:19).

•Paul listed “James, Peter and John” as the “pillars” of the early church (Galatians 2:9).

•He described a delegation coming from Jerusalem to the Gentile church at Antioch as “from James” (Galatians 2:12).

•When Paul brought the Collection to Jerusalem at the conclusion of his third missionary journey, Luke records that “Paul and the rest of us went to see James, and all the elders were present” (Acts 21:18). This is the last mention of James in the New Testament.

•Clement of Alexandria (born approx. AD 160), in the sixth book of his Hypotyposes, states that “Peter and James and John, after the Saviour’s ascension, though pre-eminently honoured by the Lord, did not contend for glory, but made James the Just, bishop of Jerusalem” (Ante-Nicene Fathers 2:579).

•Jerome (AD 492) adds that “he ruled the church of Jerusalem 30 years, that is until the seventh year of Nero” (Lives of Illustrious Men ch. 2; Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers 3:362). Nero ruled Rome from AD 54-68, so that James died in AD 62.

From the third century, the large majority of interpreters have identified the Letter of James with James the Just, half-brother of Jesus.

•Origen (AD 185-253), Eusebius (c. 265-340) and Jerome (c. 340-420) all favored this position.

•The vocabulary of James’s speech (Acts 15:13-21) and the letter it inspired (vs. 22-29) is similar to that of the epistle:

a.The salutation “greetings” (chairein) is found in the NT only in Ac 15:23, James 1:1, and Acts 23:26

b.James 2:7, “the noble name of him to whom you belong,” is paralleled in the NT only at Acts 15:17, “who bear my name”

c.”Name” in James 2:7; 5:10, 14; and Acts 15:14, 26 is not used elsewhere in the NT in the same sense

d.James’ allusions to the OT (Acts 15:14, 16-18, 21) are consistent with the epistle

e.”Brothers” is common to the epistle (James 1:2, 9, 16, 19; 2:5, 15; 3:1; 4:11; 5:7, 9, 10, 12, 19) is found also in Acts 15:13, 23

f.Note James 2:5, “Listen, my dear brothers” and Acts 15:13, “Brothers, listen to me” (Oesterley, Expositor’s Greek Testament 4:392).

•James’ authority (Acts 15:13; 21:18) coheres with the authoritative nature of the epistle (with its 46 imperatives).

•Jerome (AD 492) states of him, “after our Lord’s passion at once ordained by the apostles bishop of Jerusalem, wrote a single epistle, which is reckoned among the seven Catholic Epistles” (Jerome 361).

What happened to him?

We have no record of James after Paul’s visit in Jerusalem (Acts 21:18). But he is mentioned prominently in the post-biblical literature. His character was known and admired:

•Hegesippus, writing a commentary near the time of the apostles, calls him “the brother of the Lord” and identifies him further: “as there were many of this name, was surnamed the Just by all, from the days of our Lord until now” (Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 2:23).

•He then describes his character: “This apostle was consecrated from his mother’s womb. He drank neither wine nor fermented liquors, and abstained from animal food. A razor never came upon his head, he never anointed with oil, and never used a bath. He alone was allowed to enter the sanctuary. He never wore woolen, but linen garments. He was in the habit of entering the temple alone, and was often found upon his bended knees, and interceding for the forgiveness of the people; so that his knees became as hard as a camel’s, in consequence of his habitual supplication and kneeling before God. And indeed, on account of his exceeding great piety, he was called the Just” (ibid).

He may have been a mentor to Stephen, the first martyr.

•Ignatius (A.D. 30-107), in his letter to the Trallians, asks, “what are the deacons but imitators of the angelic powers, fulfilling a pure and blameless ministry unto him, as the holy Stephen did to the blessed James, Timothy and Linus to Paul, Anencletus and Clement to Peter?” (ch. 7).

•We know James the Just to have been an important figure in the Jerusalem church, though James the brother of John was still alive at Stephen’s death (cf. Acts 12:2). So we cannot be sure of the identity of “the blessed James,” though it is likely that he was James the Just.

His martyrdom (AD 62) was the subject of extended interest as well:

•Josephus describes his death: the high priest Ananus “was a bold man in his temper, and very insolent; he was also of the sect of the Sadducees, who were very rigid in judging offenders, above all the rest of the Jews, as we have already observed; when, therefore, Ananus was of this disposition, he thought he had now a proper opportunity . . . so he assembled the Sanhedrim of the judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others, and when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the law, he delivered them to be stoned” (Antiquities 20:9:1).

•The circumstances which led to his death are noted by Hegesippus: as a Passover neared, the Jewish leaders positioned James on a wing of the temple and asked him to persuade the crowds “not to be led astray by Jesus.” His response: “‘Why do you ask me respecting Jesus the Son of Man? He is now sitting in the heavens, on the right hand of great Power, and is about to come on the clouds of heaven.’ And as many were confirmed, and gloried in this testimony of James, and said, Hosanna to the son of David, these same priests and Pharisees said to one another, ‘We have done badly in affording such testimony to Jesus, but let us go up and cast him down, that they may dread to believe in him'” (Eusebius, ibid).

•Hegesippus then describes his martyrdom: “they began to stone him, as he did not die immediately when cast down; but turning round, he knelt down saying, ‘I entreat thee, O Lord God and Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.’ . . . And one of them, a fuller, beat out the brains of Justus with the club that he used to beat out clothes. Thus he suffered martyrdom, and they buried him on the spot where his tombstone is still remaining, by the temple. He became a faithful witness, both to the Jews and Greeks, that Jesus is the Christ” (ibid).

•Jerome adds that he “was buried near the temple from which he had been cast down. His tombstone with its inscription was well known until the siege of Titus and the end of Hadrian’s reign” (Jerome 362). Titus destroyed Jerusalem in AD 70; Hadrian was emperor of Rome from AD 117-138.

His integrity was recognized even by those who arranged his martyrdom:

•The injustice of James’ death was noted even by the Jewish leaders: “as for those who seemed the most equitable of the citizens, and such as were the most uneasy at the breach if the laws, they disliked what was done; they also sent to the king desiring him to send to Ananus that he should act so no more, for that what he had already done was not to be justified.” Eventually his behavior cost him the high priesthood after only three months (Josephus, ibid).

•Eusebius adds that many of the Jewish leaders believed the Roman destruction of Jerusalem “happened to them for no other reason than the crime against him” (Eusebius, ibid).

What does his life teach us today?

James calls himself “a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ” (1:1a). “Servant” translates doulos, the Greek word for “slave.”

His self-description as the “slave” of God also places him in an Old Testament line of spiritual leaders and prophets:

•Moses was the doulos of God (1 Kings 8:53; Daniel 9:11; Malachi 4:4)

•Joshua and Caleb wore this title (Joshua 24:29; Numbers 14:24)

•Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were the “slaves” of God (Deuteronomy 9:27), as was Job (1:8)

•The prophets were known as the doulos of God (Isaiah 20:3; Amos 3:7; Zechariah 1:6; Jeremiah 7:25; Barclay, James 35-6).

And his self-characterization as the “slave of the Lord Jesus Christ” suggests these facts:

•James was unconditionally surrendered to Jesus Christ as his Lord. A slave was owned by his master. He had no rights of his own. There was no segment of his life which was not completely yielded to the one who owned him. To be the “slave” of Jesus is to be his entirely. In addition, his description of Jesus as “Lord” shows his surrender to his Emperor and King.

•He was absolutely obedient to his word and will. A slave is allowed no will of his own. He must do what his master says to do, without question or qualification. James would obey his Master’s leading, wherever it took him–even to a martyr’s death.

•He was humbly loyal to his Master. James nowhere identifies himself as Jesus’ half-brother, a fact which causes some commentators to question whether or not he wrote this epistle. Why would he not use such authority for his ministry? Because those who read his letter already knew his life and faith. They knew his family relation to Jesus. He would not take pains to remind them of his human connection with the Christ, only his spiritual devotion to him. No person has ever refused so lofty an honor as this.

Such humble submission is God’s will for us all:

•”What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).

•”The greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves” (Luke 22:26).

•”By the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you” (Romans 12:3).

James knew who he was: the slave of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, completely committed to their will and Kingdom alone. This identity motivated his life, forged his character, and made his martyrdom an easy choice. He would live and die for the One who died and lived for him.

Why is humble submission so crucial to a life-transforming faith?

The word of God requires such surrender: “be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18); “take my yoke upon you” (Matthew 11:29). We cannot live in God’s word and will unless we surrender to Jesus as our Lord.

Living a surrendered life is the most reasonable way we can respond to the divinity and authority of Jesus Christ. He possesses “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18), meaning that we possess none. And his resurrection demonstrates his divinity. As a result, we can serve no person who deserves our submission as much as the Lord. If he allows us to serve another master, he permits idolatry. The first of the Ten Commandments and the Two is therefore the same: to love God so much that we have no other gods before him (Exodus 20:3; Matthew 22:37). We were created to worship our Creator; our lives can find fulfillment in no other purpose. Such a decision is warranted rationally.

Submitting to Christ as Master is warranted experientially as well. Christians across 20 centuries of faith can agree with William Booth, the Salvation Army founder who asserted, “The greatness of a man’s power is the measure of his surrender.” Believers in every generation have learned that the road to joy is paved with humble submission to Christ as Lord.

Our hearts long to serve something or someone. As Pascal observed, there is a God-shaped emptiness inside us all. The earliest art known to man was painted as an act of worship. Every society known to history has worshipped God or the gods. We were made to serve Christ, and our hearts are restless until they rest in him (Augustine).

God will not share his glory: “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness” (Psalm 29:2). He intends to bring all nations to glorify his Son (Philippians 2:9-11). And so he can use our lives only to the degree that we advance his Kingdom and honor his Son.

Surrendering our lives to his will is in our best interest. He can lead only those who are willing to be led. His will is “good, pleasing and perfect” (Romans 12:2), but we must surrender to it before we can experience it. He wants to meet all our needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:19), but he can give only what we will receive.

Such commitment unites spirit and flesh, Sunday and Monday, the “secular” and the “sacred.” Since the time of Orpheus, six centuries before Christ, the Western world has divided the soul from the body. When we make Jesus our Master and ourselves his slave, we experience the fullness of his abundant joy (John 10:10) in every dimension of life.

Our surrendered obedience to the Lord is our best witness to a relativistic, pluralistic post-modern world. In a culture which believes absolutes do not exist (itself an absolute assertion), our faith must be relevant before it can be considered to be right. We show others that Jesus should be their Lord only when he is our Lord. We must possess what we mean to share, and our lives must demonstrate the truth of our words.

Conclusion: how do we live the surrendered life today?

•Believe personally, making Christ your King.

•Commit daily, beginning each morning.

Make a moral inventory, asking the Holy Spirit to show you anyplace in your life which is not submitted to the will of God. Confess these sins in genuine contrition, claiming his forgiving grace (1 John 1:9).

Develop the habit of beginning each morning in submission to the will of God. Learn to pray first about every decision of the day. Go to God as your Master, remembering always that you are his slave. This hymn can be your prayer:

O Jesus, Lord and Savior, I give myself to Thee,

For thou in thine atonement didst give Thyself for me.

I own no other Master; my heart shall be Thy throne;

My life I live henceforth to give, O Christ, to Thee alone.

Faith at Work

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Are you listening to God?

Dr. Jim Denison

James 1:19-27

I grew up defining Christians as people who go to church. A Rotarian is someone who goes to Rotary Club meetings; a Buddhist is a person who worships at a Buddhist temple; a Christian is someone who attends services at a Christian church. Ours is not the first generation to make that mistake.

Six centuries before Christ, the Orphic cult taught that our souls existed in a preincarnate, spiritual state, only to be placed in physical bodies for punitive purposes. The “spiritual” is good, the “secular” bad. The point of philosophy–and life–was to return the soul to its first state. This wedge between body and soul has persisted in Western and Christian thinking for most of our history.

We define the spiritual as that which is done inside the church, and the secular as that which is outside it. And we measure spirituality by time spent in church activities. A “good Christian” is someone who goes to worship and Bible study regularly and participates in the life of the church.

James begs to differ. He knows that listening to sermons and Sunday school lessons and attending church activities is no guarantee of spiritual health. I can spend all day in a health spa, but if my lifestyle does not reflect the values of my surroundings, I’m deceiving myself. Sitting in a garage doesn’t make me a car.

What commitments do lead to spiritual health, joy, and purpose? What kind of “religion” does God value and bless? When he examines your spiritual life, is he pleased?

Verse 19: Know you, my beloved brothers. But let every man be swift for to hear, slow for to speak, slow to wrath;

Know you is a transitional phrase which ties this section to the previous narrative: we are the “firstfruits” of his new creation, and now must act out our identity. It is best understood as an imperative, something we must know and believe (Gideon 16); “take note of this” (NIV).

Every man is another example of James’ use of anthropos (man) for mankind or humanity; no exceptions are permitted. Be is part of the present infinitive construction, a command for now and for all time.

Swift to hear (infinitive with preposition) can be translated, “swift for the purpose of hearing”; or it can mean, “swift with reference to hearing” (Rienecker 379). The meaning is essentially the same: always choose to listen before you speak, being ready to hear from all people at all times. James probably refers to the word of God–be eager to learn from the spoken Scriptures (v. 21; Adamson 78). The order is clear: we are to “hear” (v. 19), “receive (v. 21), and “do” (vs. 22-25). This is an attitude of the heart–every time we hear or read the word, we are to be quick to seek its life-transforming message for our lives.

Slow to speak means that we are to put listening before speaking. Proverbs warns us repeatedly that many words lead to sin: “When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise” (10:19); “He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin” (13:3); “Even a fool is thought wise if he keeps silent, and discerning if he holds his tongue” (17:28); “Do you see a man who speaks in haste? There is more hope for a fool than for him” (29:20; Barclay 55). The Stoic philosopher Zeno observed, “We have two ears but only one mouth, that we may hear more and speak less” (quoted in Barclay 55). One of the rabbis said, “Speech for a shekel, silence for two; it is like a precious stone” (Qoheleth Rabba v. 5, quoted in Oesterley 431).

With relation to the word of God, we are to learn from the Bible before we seek to teach its truths to others. James does not mean that we are never to speak, but that our speaking should follow our learning.

Wrath is the word for the flashes of frustration we all experience, not the Greek term for murderous rage. We are to be “slow to wrath,” demonstrating that such anger is inevitable in life. But to be “slow” is to control such anger: “in your anger do not sin” (Ephesians 4:26, quoting Psalm 4:4). The rabbis warned that to lose one’s temper was to lose the Shekinah glory of God (Adamson 78). If we will listen and learn from the word of God, our attitudes towards others will be affected and our anger released. Likewise, if we will be “slow to speak” when we are angry, we will sin less and release our anger more quickly (cf. Robertson 21; Moo 84).

Verse 20: for wrath of man does not work the righteousness of God.

Does not is another present tense, admitting no exceptions–there is never a time when our anger expresses the righteous will and work of God. Work is present tense, “practice” or “bring to pass.”

Righteousness of God speaks not of his character but his expectations for us (Rienecker 379)–wrath keeps us from living out the will of God for our lives. In addition, James may mean that our anger does not bring about the justice or judgment of God, that we should leave vengeance to him: “Do not leave room for revenge, my friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: ‘It is mine to avenge; I will repay,’ says the Lord” (Romans 12:19; Adamson 79).

Verse 21: Wherefore putting away all filthiness and prevalence of evil in meekness receive the implanted word which is able to save your souls.

Putting away is another present tense, a requirement for this moment. The word is a metaphor for stripping off dirty clothes (Romans 13:12; Colossians 3:8; Ephesians 4:22, 25; 1 Peter 2:1; Rienecker 379; Robertson 22), and carries the sense of getting rid of that which hinders and entangles us spiritually (Hebrews 12:1). All allows no exceptions.

Filthiness relates to dirty clothes, as in Zechariah 3:4, “Take off his filthy clothes.” Here it is a metaphor for dirty souls, physical and moral defilement. Its root originally had the meaning of ear wax as well, and may retain it here–“unplug your ears to the word of God” may be the sense (cf. Barclay 57). Prevalence means overabundance or excess, “superfluity” in the KJV. Evil points to wickedness, moral depravity; not mistakes but immoral choices which reflect immoral character. The word speaks to general evil but also to intentional malice (cf. Stulac 68-9).

Meekness is strength under control (cf. Matthew 5:5), subservient to God and willing to receive all that he intends to give. Receive is an aorist imperative, a decisive action God expects of us today. The word means “to welcome,” in the sense of the Bereans’ reception of the word of God (Acts 17:11; 1 Thessalonians 2:13; Gideon 17). Note that we must put away sin to receive the word of God. As Moody wrote in the flyleaf of a Bible he gave a friend, “Either this book will separate you from your sins, or your sins will separate you from this book.”

Implanted relates to an experience which happens not at birth but later in life (Rienecker 379, vs. Motyer 67), something added to us or planted in the preexistent soil of our souls. This is a “seed” which must be nurtured by obedience, and which is hindered by the weeds and poison of sin.

The word we are to receive is the Scripture, as James will make clear repeatedly (cf. 2:8-11, 21-23, 25; 5:10, 11, 17-18; Motyer 63). Able to save your souls points to the gospel which the word conveys to us. The message of God’s grace is the means by which he brings us to repentance and salvation: “I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile” (Romans 1:16).

Verse 22: And become doers of word, and not hearers only misleading yourselves.

Become implies that they are not this now. The present tense calls for habitual commitment and action. Doers of word would be understood by the Hebrews to mean “one who practices or keeps the word of God” (Rienecker 379).

Not hearers only indicates that this is their current status. The people would hear the word of God read each week in Sabbath worship. Such hearing is encouraged by James (v. 19). But they were to act on it, not merely listen to its recitation. Studies indicate that we retain only 5-10% of what we hear, 40% of what we hear and see, and 90% of what we hear, see, and do.

Misleading yourselves means to deceive through fallacious reasoning, to misjudge or miscalculate (Rienecker 380). James means that those who hear the word but do not act on it think they have done all it requires, but they are self-deceived and wrong.

Verse 23: Because if anyone is a hearer of word and not a doer, this one is like a man perceiving the face of his birth in a mirror;

If anyone can be translated, “since some are.” Perceiving means to examine carefully, becoming thoroughly familiar with the object viewed (Burdick 175).

Face of his birth means his natural appearance without modification or adjustment–the way we look first thing in the morning. Here James means our untransformed nature, the “natural man” without the work of grace. A mirror was generally made of highly polished metal, not glass.

Verse 24: for he perceived himself and has gone away, and immediately forgot what sort he was.

Perceived himself shows that the word of God reveals our true nature to us. When we read and hear it, we find revealed the God we are to imitate, the standards we are to emulate. In this sense “the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12).

Has gone away in the perfect tense demonstrates that he did this instantly, the moment he learned the truth about himself; “he went away quickly” would capture the sense, or “he is off!” (Adamson 83-4).

Immediately shows the effect of sin in preventing the transforming work of God’s word in our lives. Sin keeps us from understanding the meaning of Scripture for our lives. Then, as Jesus warned us: “When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart” (Matthew 13:19).

Verse 25: But the one having looked into the perfect law of freedom and remaining, not becoming a forgetful hearer but a doer of work, this one will be blessed in his doing.

Having looked could be rendered, “having stooped down and examined something to understand it” (cf. Rienecker 380; John 20:5, 11; 1 Peter 1:12). This is an intentional action, not the habitual or occasional glancing at the mirror but a deliberate act of self-examination (such as a doctor might do during a physical examination).

Perfect means to be complete, doing everything it is intended by its Author to accomplish. The word of God is all we need to follow God’s will every day. Law of freedom is a wonderful contrast: we are free to the degree that we live out the law of God. His word is intended to set us free from our sinful, fallen nature and world. It will guide us into the abundant life of Jesus (John 10:10), as the truth that sets us free (John 8:32). The world thinks that living by God’s word is shackling and restricting, when in fact it frees us from the shackles and restrictions of sin and failure.

Remaining means to stay in the word, to meditate on its truth until it permeates and changes our lives. We are to meditate in the law of the Lord, day and night (Psalm 1:2). Our Bible study is not complete until our lives are different in some practical way. Doer of work is literally, “a doer who does,” a person whose life is characterized by doing and obeying the word of God (cf. Robertson 24).

The logic of James’ argument in vs. 23-25 can be pictured (adapted from Martin 50-1):

The listener (vs. 23-24)

Sees himself

In a mirror

Immediately forgets

(Forfeits what he has learned)

The do’er (v. 25)

Looks intently

Into the perfect law that gives freedom

Continues to do this

Will be blessed in what he does

Verse 26: If anyone thinks to be religious, not bridling his tongue but deceiving his heart, of this one vain the religion.

Now James introduces the three main concerns of his letter, three ways to demonstrate that our faith is genuine: control your tongue (1:26; 3:1-12); care for the needy (1:27a; 2:1-16); and maintain personal purity (1:27b; 3:13-5:6; Motyer 11-13).

If anyone could be rendered, “Those who.” To be religious means to be scrupulous in religious exercise, devout in every way. Bridling his tongue means to hinder and direct his mouth and life, as a bridle hinders and directs a horse’s mouth and work. James will later refer to slander (4:11), a sin which the rabbis called the “third tongue” in that it injured the speaker, the one hearing, and the one spoken of (Adamson 78). We are to put the bridle in our own mouths, for no one else can.

Vain is empty, nonproductive, useless, dead (Rienecker 380), without any merit or purpose whatsoever. Religion relates to worship and service, every dimension of life before God, practical as well as devotional (cf. Romans 12:1-2, where “worship” requires the commitment of our “bodies” and lives). James points out that we can show up in church services, but attendance is no guarantee of true spirituality (cf. v. 27).

Verse 27: Religion clean and undefiled before the God and Father is this, to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, to keep himself unspotted from the world.

Clean means pure, the positive description. Undefiled means to be free from all contamination, the negative description (Gideon 18). Before the God and Father is the only definition and assessment of religion which is valid. Regardless of what we think of ourselves, or others think of us, only his verdict stands.

Visit means to look upon and provide help for the needy, to inspect and see the need and then meet it. The syntax points to a repeated and habitual practice of such ministry. Orphans and widows were the most vulnerable people in the ancient world. Having no father or husband to provide for them, they were easily victimized and forced into sinful practices to survive. God is therefore “a father to the fatherless, a defender of widows” (Psalm 68:5), and requires us to care for them as he does.

Affliction means stress or pressure, translating the Greek word for the weight which was used to grind grain into flour. Keep himself means to observe, to stay on guard. It requires continual, present-tense commitment and diligence. How we were yesterday is no guarantee (or condemnation) for today.

World does not refer to the physical world which God created, but to the world’s system and values. James is no Gnostic, devaluing the physical universe. Rather, he is warning us not to live as the fallen, sinful world lives, remembering that “friendship with the world is hatred toward God” (4:4).

Spiritual applications

James urges five commitments on his readers, if we would achieve spiritual health and significance. How do we attain them today?

How do we “do” the word of God?

•Seek to hear from God every time you open his word–be “quick to listen” (v. 19); “welcome” the word into your life (v. 21). The Bible is “God preaching” (J. I. Packer), “love letters from home” (Augustine). Read and hear to learn from the Lord of the universe, in obedience to his word (Deuteronomy 17:19; Acts 17:11; Romans 15:4; Matthew 22:29).

•Find an area for improvement which the Scriptures expose (v. 23). When you examine your life as it is reflected in God’s perfect word, you will always discover a way to be more like Christ. Pay special attention to the areas described in today’s study.

•”Continue” in the word until you know how your life is to change. Make a practical plan for transformation, using a journal (and perhaps an accountability partner).

How do we control our anger?

•See anger as a serious spiritual problem which gives the devil a foothold in your life (Ephesians 4:27). It harms your witness and keeps you from experiencing the fruit of the Spirit in your life (Galatians 5:22-23). God repeatedly warns us: “Refrain from anger and turn from wrath; do not fret–it leads only to evil” (Psalm 37:8); “A quick-tempered man does foolish things, and a crafty man is hated” (Proverbs 14:17); “Do not be quickly provoked in your spirit, for anger resides in the lap of fools” (Ecclesiastes 7:9).

•Know that you can control your anger–God would not ask us to be “slow to anger” unless this choice was possible.

•Refuse to speak while you are angry: “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (Colossians 4:6); “Words from a wise man’s mouth are gracious, but a fool is consumed by his own lips” (Ecclesiastes 10:12). It is impossible to un-ring a bell.

•Seek reconciliation as soon as possible: “Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry” (Ephesians 4:26); “if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift” (Matthew 5:23-24).

•Give the problem (and/or the person) to God, releasing the issue to his grace and justice. If you have been wronged, choose to pardon, refusing to punish. Instead, offer the grace God has given to you: “A man’s wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offense” (Proverbs 19:11).

•If you have a consistent problem with anger, seek the help of God and his people (Philippians 4:13).

How do we control our tongues?

•Value godly speech as God does: otherwise, our religion is “vain” or “worthless” (v. 26). If you sin with your tongue, you cannot be right with God in your worship or spiritual service. Why? Because “out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34). Our words reveal our true character.

•Choose godly speech for your sake: “The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person, sets the whole course of his life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell” (James 3:6); “He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin” (Proverbs 13:3); “He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity” (Proverbs 21:23).

•Know that ungodly words will be judged by the Lord: “Whoever slanders his neighbor in secret, him will I put to silence” (Psalm 101:5); “men will have to give account on the day of judgment for every careless word they have spoken” (Matthew 12:36). Before you speak, remember that God hears you, records your words, and will bring them into judgment one day.

•Choose to “bridle” or control your words (v. 26): “keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies” (Psalm 34:13). This is a choice God will help us make.

•Confess sinful words immediately: “rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind” (1 Peter 2:1). Make restitution with those you have harmed, unless doing so would harm them even further (Matthew 5:23-24).

How do we help those who are hurting?

•Look for the “orphans and widows in their distress” in your life (v. 27). Peter and John saw the crippled man beside the Gate Beautiful, the beginning of their ministry to him (Acts 3:4).

•Find a way to meet their need personally. Peter touched the crippled man (Acts 3:7), risking his own spiritual status to help this hurting soul.

•Develop a plan for continued ministry to this person, enlisting others to help as appropriate.

•Remember that your service to hurting people is the most revealing way you demonstrate your love for Jesus and service to his Kingdom: “whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40); “whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me” (v. 45).

How do we keep ourselves “unspotted from the world”?

•Expect to be tempted by the “evil that is so prevalent” (v. 21). Early in human history, “The Lord saw how great man’s wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time” (Genesis 6:5). Now “there is no one who does not sin” (1 Kings 8:46), for “Everyone has turned away, they have together become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one” (Psalm 53:3); “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). You are a fallen person, living in a fallen world. Assume you will be tempted by sin today.

•Adopt a zero tolerance policy: get rid of “all” moral filth (v. 21). Allow no exceptions. See sin as God does: the cause of death (Deuteronomy 24:16; Romans 6:23); “displeasing” to the Lord (2 Samuel 11:27); that which the Lord “hates” (Proverbs 6:16-19; Zechariah 8:17); “detestable in God’s sight” (Luke 16:15). There is no such thing as a “minor” sin, any more than there is a “minor” malignancy.

•Repent immediately: “get rid of” all moral filth (v. 21). Strip off the filthy clothes of sin now. Sin metastasizes; it will never be easier to confess your sin to God than it is today (1 John 1:8-10). Repentance is the necessary precursor to forgiveness and healing: “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).

•Claim the forgiveness God promises: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Count on God’s grace: “Let the wicked forsake his way and the evil man his thoughts. Let him turn to the Lord, and he will have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will freely pardon” (Isaiah 55:7); “if a wicked man turns away from all the sins he has committed and keeps all my decrees and does what is just and right, he will surely live; he will not die” (Ezekiel 18:21).

•Refuse to become further “polluted” by the values of the fallen world (v. 27). Such a commitment requires daily discipline, and is the result of a life surrendered each day to the word and will of God (application #1).

Concluding applications

•Commit daily to the Lordship of Christ over your anger, words, ministry, and life purity.

•Grow spiritually by meeting God daily in his word, seeking that truth which will transform your life for that day.

•Relate biblically by refusing anger and choosing pardon.

•Serve effectively by using your gifts and opportunities to meet the needs of hurting people you know.

Assess your spiritual health in light of these five diagnostic questions:

•When last did God’s word change your life?

•Would those who know you best say that anger is a problem for you?

•When last did you speak words which displeased God?

•Which “orphan and widow” did you last serve?

•If you knew you would stand before God today in judgment, would you make any changes in your moral tolerance and lifestyle?

Faith at Work

Written by

[email protected]

Are your plans surrendered to God?

Dr. Jim Denison

James 4:13-17

In 1870 the Methodists in Indiana were holding their Annual Conference. At one point in the proceedings, the president of the college where they were meeting said, “I think we are living in a very exciting age.” The presiding bishop asked him, “What do you see for the future?”

The college president responded, “I believe we are coming into a time of great inventions. I believe, for example, that men will fly through the air like birds.” The bishop said, “That’s heresy! The Bible says that flight is reserved for the angels. We’ll have no more such talk here.”

When the Annual Conference was over, Bishop Wright went home to his two small sons. Here they are: Wilbur and Orville.

God’s plan for our lives is always greater than any we can imagine for ourselves. I’d like us to think together about that subject: how can we know that will?

Knowing and doing the will of God is the key to living the abundant Christian life, the life Jesus died for us to experience. All of Christianity reduces to this: what is God’s will? Am I in God’s will?

Where do you need to know God’s will? If you could ask God one question, seek his guidance with one problem, what would it be?

Verse 13. Come now those saying, Today or tomorrow we will go into this city, and we will spend there one year, and we will trade and will make a profit;

Come now is a brusque address to get their attention, something like “listen to me!” Those saying are merchants: mariners, sea and caravan traders, and those who combined domestic and foreign trade (Adamson 178). Business travel was common; cf. Aquila and Priscilla (Acts 18:2, 18; Romans 16:3) and Lydia (Acts 16:14; Burdick 197). As Jews left Palestine to settle in cities throughout the Mediterranean world, growing commercial activity and commerce would be familiar to James’ readers (Moo 202). What follows is apparently a quotation, something James has heard them say.

Today or tomorrow is the correct reading, not “today and tomorrow” (as in some versions; Robertson 54). The phrase beginning, we will go into this city suggests “deliberate and calculated arrogance. They would go where they liked, and for as long as they liked. Their resolve, together with the refusal to reckon with death, has a modern ring” (Adamson 179). All four verbs in the verse are in the future tense, indicating assurance about what is to come. This city is specific, as though they are pointing at a map or a city on the horizon.

Verse 14. who do not know of the morrow, what for your life? For it is a mist, which for a little appears, and then disappears.

Who do not know of the morrow applies to us all, whether we are wealthy merchants or not. It is foolish to assume that life will transpire as we plan, and wise to assume that whatever happens is under the control of God (Martin 166). Proverbs 27:1 warns us, “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.”

Mist is the word for steam rising from a kettle or smoke rising into the wind (Rienecker 392); both are carried away instantly and are no more. James may have in mind the Mediterranean mountain mists familiar to seafaring merchants (Adamson 180). The word expresses the simple idea that life is short. Disappears was used by Aristotle for the migration of birds (Rienecker 392).

Verse 15. Instead of you saying, If the Lord wills, even we will live and we will do this or that;

Now James returns to his dialogue with those in verse 13.

Verse 16. but you boast in your presumptions; all such boasting is evil.

Boast refers to empty boasting which is intended to impress men, extravagant claims which cannot be fulfilled (Rienecker 393).

Verse 17. Then to one knowing good to do, and not doing it, it is sin to him.

This is likely an independent maxim incorporated into the text (note the switch from second to third person; Martin 168). James is fond of closing his argument with proverbs (2:13; 3:18).

Knowing to do good implies that we all know good we are not now doing. James may have in mind the good which the merchants in this section could do with their material gain (Moo 208). We consider such “sins of omission” to be less significant than those of commission. James does not: it is sin to him.

Theological applications

What is your view of history?

•Cyclical

•Chaotic

Shakespeare’s Macbeth(Act 5, Scene 5):

To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,

Creeps in this petty pace from day to day

To the last syllable of recorded time,

And all our yesterdays have lighted fools

The way to dusty death. Out, out, brief candle!

Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player

That struts and frets his hour upon the stage

And then is heard no more: it is a tale

Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury,

Signifying nothing

•Linear

Does God have a plan for us? (Jeremiah 29:11)

•Some evolutionists say that life began as a chance coincidence, with no particular plan or purpose at all. Existentialists say that this life is all there is, and life is chaos. Martin Heidegger, for instance, wrote that we are actors on a stage, with no script, director, or audience, and courage is to face life as it is. Postmodernists say that truth is relative, and there is no overriding purpose to life. So, does God have a plan for us, or is life a random coincidence? In the words of Shakespeare, are we “sound and fury, signifying nothing”?

•In Jeremiah’s letter God claims, “I know the plans I have for you, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (v. 11).

oHe has a plan for where and how they should live: “Build houses and settle down; plant gardens and eat what they produce” (v. 5).

oHe has a plan for the families they should have: “Marry and have sons and daughters” (v. 6).

oHe even has a plan for the country which has enslaved them: “Seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper” (v. 7).

A plan for where and how we live, the families we raise, and the country we inhabit—what is left out? God has a plan for every part of our lives, according to our text.

•God has a plan for Adam and Eve—where and what to live. A plan for Noah—how to build his ark, right down to the exact specifications and building materials he should use. A plan for Abraham, including where he should live, how old he would be when he had his son, and even that son’s name. A plan for Joseph, using his slavery and imprisonment to save the entire nation. A plan for Moses, encompassing the very words he should say to Pharoah. A plan for Joshua, showing him where and how to take the land. A plan for David and Solomon, for their kingdom and the temple they would build for him. A plan for Daniel, even in the lion’s den.

Jesus had plans for his first disciples—plans they could not have begun to understand. He had a plan for Saul of Tarsus as he left to persecute the Christians in Damascus. He had a plan for John on Patmos. Does he have a plan for you?

Why do we presume on the future?

•”Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth” (Proverbs 27:1).

•”So I saw that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?” (Ecclesiastes 3:22).

•”No man knows when his hour will come: As fish are caught in a cruel net, or birds are taken in a snare, so men are trapped by evil times that fall unexpectedly upon them” (Ecclesiastes 9:12).

•”If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into” (Matthew 24:43).

•”And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there” (Acts 20:22).

How does God speak to us?

•Intuitive

•Pragmatic

•Rational

How can we know his will for our lives? (Romans 12:1-2)

•Transfer ownership of your life to God (v. 1)–total, daily, sacrificial

•Withdraw from the world’s account (v. 2a)

oPossessions over people

oPopularity over principle

oPresent over eternal

•Invest in your daily relationship with your Father (v. 2b)

Is there a sin of omission in your life? Consider these commands from Jesus:

•”All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).

•”He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead” (Acts 10:42).

•”Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments” (Matthew 22:37-40).

•”A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35).

Ignatius of Loyola founded the Jesuits, and made this prayer theirs:

Teach us, Lord, to serve you as you deserve,

To give and not to count the cost,

To fight and not to heed the wounds,

To toil and not to seek for rest,

To labor and not to ask any reward,

Save that of knowing that we do your will. Amen.

And amen.

Conclusion

Are you in his will today?

A great violinist was due in a particular city. The newspaper reports written in advance of his concert, however, devoted most of their attention to the original Strativarius violin he would play. The morning of the concert, the local paper even carried a picture of the great instrument. That night the concert hall filled with people, and the musician played at his best. When he concluded, applause thundered.

Then the violinist raised his instrument over his head, and smashed it across his chair. It splintered into a thousand pieces. The audience gasped in shock. The violinist explained: “I read in this morning’s paper how great my violin was. So I walked down the street and found a pawn shop. For ten dollars I bought this violin. I put some new strings on it, and used it this evening. I wanted to demonstrate to you that it’s not the violin that counts most. It’s the hands that hold the violin.”

No matter how smashed your violin may be, the hands that hold it count most. Hold onto those hands, for they are holding onto you.

Faith at Work

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Are your ambitions pure?

Dr. Jim Denison

James 3:13-18

Verse 13. Who is wise and knowing among you? Let him show by the good behavior his works in meekness of wisdom.

Who returns us to the teachers of 3:1, as speech and wisdom are both liable to abuse (Robertson 45). While “who” may point specifically to teachers, church members at large are included. The problem is that some people who believe they were endowed with superior wisdom and understanding have divided the church because of their teaching; such is a sin of the tongue (Martin 128).

Wise in the Jewish context does not point to a speculative philosopher but a person who possesses practical, moral wisdom (Rienecker 388). Knowing is to possess expert or professional knowledge (Rienecker 388). Good behavior points to the entire manner of life (Johnson 270). Good in this context connotes not only excellence and beauty, but moral purity.

Meekness is submission to God, the opposite of arrogance. Paul warned that “knowledge puffs up, but love builds up” (1 Corinthians 8:1). Wisdom produces works, and is characterized by meekness (Martin 129). Jesus called himself “meek” (Matthew 11:29), and exhorts his followers to display the same character (Matthew 5:5). Wisdom is a desirable quality in the community (Romans 16:19; 1 Corinthians 3:10; 6:5; Ephesians 5:15; Johnson 270), and so requires the model of leaders.

Verse 14. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not exult over and lie against the truth.

Jealousy is “zeal, ” a fierce desire to promote our opinion or agenda to the exclusion or detriment of others (cf. Rienecker 388-9). It can be good: “His disciples remembered that it is written: ‘Zeal for your house will consume me'” (John 2:17); or bad: “the high priest and all his associates, who were members of the part of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy” (Acts 5:17). Aristotle defines the word as the sorrow one experiences because someone else is in possession of what one is not. The word denotes the desire to acquire by taking something from another (Johnson 271).

Selfish ambition is the vice of a leader who creates a party for his own pride (Rienecker 389). This was the very problem in Corinth: “I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought. My brothers, some from Chloe’s household have informed me that there are quarrels among you. What I mean is this: One of you says, ‘I follow Paul’; another, ‘I follow Apollos’; another, ‘I follow Cephas’; still another, ‘I follow Christ'” (1 Corinthians 1:10-12).

The term is found only in Aristotle before its appearance in the NT; to him it means “a self-seeking pursuit of political office by unfair means” (Martin 130).

Do not exult could be translated, “stop exulting.” To exult over is to put ourselves over others, to claim that we are superior. James’ opponents could not exalt themselves unless they lie against the truth, for the truth would condemn their “wisdom” and attitudes. Jeremiah gives the lie to all such attitudes: “This is what the Lord says: ‘Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me'” (9:23-24).

Verse 15. This is not the wisdom from above coming down, but earthly, beastly, devilish.

What follows is a negative progression (Johnson 272), proceeding from the natural to the demonic.

Earthly contrasts with heavenly, that which is spiritual; “sensual” (NEB) may be the best translation (Adamson 152). James is not rejecting the flesh, but dealing with the “unspiritual” (RSV). Paul contrasts the “spiritual” and “unspiritual” (1 Corinthians 2:14-15); Jesus makes the same contrast: “I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?” (John 3:12)

Beastly could be translated “natural,” that which is unspiritual since it is of our lower nature. Devilish calls to mind Paul’s warning: “The Spirit clearly says that in later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons” (1 Timothy 4:1). It is instigated by the demons themselves (Martin 132).

Verse 16. For where jealousy and contention, there is confusion and every foul deed.

Confusion is disorder, disturbance, trouble. The word often carries political connotations such as “anarchy”; here it relates to the dissention created by those who demand their own rights and exercise a party spirit (Rienecker 389).

Foul deed could be translated “mean practice,’ and could have a lawsuit in mind (cf. James 2:6; Johnson 273). However, James seems to leave the phrase deliberately ambiguous, so that all sins are included: “The wrong kind of wisdom brings about just about every kind of evil practice that one could name” (Moo 174).

Verse 17. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, forbearing, yielding, full of mercy and good fruits, not partial and not pretended.

James is writing well before Paul, and before a theology of the Holy Spirit had been worked out by the church. Nonetheless, the similarity between his list and Paul’s “fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-23) is noteworthy.

First points to “pure” as “first in rank and time” (Robertson 47) or most important. Without it, nothing else James lists can follow.

Pure implies integrity of character, that which is sincere, moral, and spiritual (Rienecker 389). Peaceable or “peace-giving” is admirable only when it is conditioned by purity; peace at any price is not worthwhile. The word means not just freedom from strife, but wholeness and health, “shalom.” It describes God’s gentle and kind disposition as King (Burdick 191), and suggests the ability to get along with others (Johnson 274).

Forbearing translates epiekes, considered by Barclay (95-6) to be the “most untranslatable” word in the Greek NT. He describes this person as “the man who knows when it is actually wrong to apply the strict letter of the law. He knows how to forgive when strict justice gives him a perfect right to condemn. When knows how to make allowances, when not to stand upon his rights, how to temper justice with mercy, always remembers that there are greater things in the world than rules and regulations.” This person manifests “humble patience, steadfastness which is able to submit to injustice, disgrace, and maltreatment without hatred and malice, trusting in God in spite of all of it” (Rienecker 389); Adamson renders the word “humane” (155).

Yielding means to be compliant, the opposite of disobedience. The term was often used for submission to military or legal leadership or standards (Rienecker 389). Full of mercy reminds us of James’ definition of “mercy” as love for neighbor showing itself in action (2:8-13); thus the connection with “good fruit” here (Moo 176).

Not partial means “not divided,” to be single rather than double in purpose. Not pretended is to be without hypocrisy; it could be rendered “undivided in mind” (Adamson 156

Verse 18. And the fruit of righteousness in peace is sown for those making peace.

Fruit of righteousness could be the fruit which righteousness produces, or which is equivalent to righteousness. Adamson (156) quotes Hort: “St. James cannot too often reiterate his warning, founded on our Lord’s, against anything that bears no fruit, an unfruitful religion, and unfruitful faith, and now an unfruitful wisdom.”

Sown for those or “sown by those.” Making peace shows that only those who sow peace are entitled to reap it (cf. Robertson 48). The phrases together could be translated, “the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace” (Adamson 157).

Theological applications

How can we develop “the humility that comes from wisdom” (v. 13)?

Understand what humility is. The Greek word is tapeinos, meaning “base, cast down, humble, of low degree, lowly.” As a verb, it means to place oneself under or behind others, to put them ahead of ourselves.

Andrew Murray: humility is “simply the sense of entire nothingness, which comes when we see how truly God is all, and in which we make way for God to be all” (Humility 12).

Humility is the opposite of pride and power, the root sins of human nature (cf. Genesis 3:5, “you will be like God”). It is putting God and others before ourselves.

Understand why humility is so important. . C. S. Lewis: “If you want to find out how proud you are the easiest way is to ask yourself, ‘How much do I dislike it when other people snub me, or refuse to take any notice of me, or shove their oar in, or patronize me, or show off?’ The point is that each person’s pride is in competition with every one else’s pride. It is because I wanted to be the big noise at the party that I am so annoyed at someone else being the big noise. . . . Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man. We say that people are proud of being rich, or clever, or good-looking, but they are not. They are proud of being richer, or cleverer, or better-looking than others. If every one else became equally rich, or clever, or good-looking there would be nothing to be proud about. It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition is gone, pride is gone” (Mere Christianity 109-110).

Humility removes this element of competition, defeating pride.

Admit your need for humility, the fact that we “harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in our hearts” (vs. 14, 16).

Pride keeps us from 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” (Mere Christianity).

Pride infects our spiritual lives: “Whenever we find that our religious life is making us feel that we are good–above all, that we are better than someone else–I think we may be sure that we are being acted on, not by God, but by the devil. The real test of being in the presence of God is that you either forget about yourself altogether or see yourself as a small, dirty object. It is better to forget about yourself altogether” (Mere Christianity).

Pride hurts our relationships with others: “Pride is spiritual cancer; it eats up the very possibility of love, or contentment, or even common sense” (Mere Christianity).

Humility frees us for joy: God “wants you to know him: wants to give you himself. And he and you are two things of such a kind that if you really get into any kind of touch with him you will, in fact, be humble–delightfully humble, feeling the infinite relief of having for once got rid of all the silly nonsense about your own dignity which has made you restless and unhappy all your life. He is trying to make you humble in order to make this moment possible: trying to take off a lot of silly, ugly, fancy-dress in which we have all got ourselves up and are strutting about like the little idiots we are. I wish I had got a bit further with humility myself: if I had, I could probably tell you more about the relief, the comfort, of taking the fancy-dress off–getting rid of the false self, with all its ‘Look at me’ and ‘Aren’t I a good boy?’ and all its posing and posturing. To even get near it, even for a moment, is like a drink of cold water to a man in a desert” (Mere Christianity).

Humility helps us be the men we want to be: “Do not imagine that if you meet a really humble man he will be what most people call ‘humble’ nowadays: he will not be a sort of greasy, smarmy person, who is always telling you that, of course, he is nobody. Probably all you will think about him is that he seemed a cheerful, intelligent chap who took a real interest in what you said to him. If you do dislike him it will be because you feel a little envious of anyone who seems to enjoy life so easily. He will not be thinking about humility: he will not be thinking about himself at all.

“If anyone would like to acquire humility, I can, I think, tell him the first step. The first step is to realize that one is proud. And a biggish step, too. At least, nothing whatever can be done before it. If you think you are not conceited, it means you are very conceited indeed” (Mere Christianity).

Affirm humility as God does:

•”Better to be lowly in spirit and among the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud” (Proverbs 16:19).

•”A man’s pride brings him low, but a man of lowly spirit gains honor” (Proverbs 29:23).

•”This is what the high and holy One says–he who loves forever, whose name is holy: ‘I live in a high and holy place, but also with him who is contrite and lowly in spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of the contrite'” (Isaiah 57:15).

•”Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 18:4).

Admit that you can do nothing of spiritual or eternal significance without God. Note Jesus’ example (Murray, Humility 22):

•”The Son can do nothing of himself” (John 5:19).

•”I can of my own self do nothing” (John 5:30).

•”I came down from heaven, not to do my own will” (John 6:38).

•”My doctrine is not mine” (John 7:16).

•”I have not come of myself” (John 7:28).

•”I do nothing of myself” (John 8:28).

•”Neither came I of myself, but he sent me” (John 8:42).

•”I seek not my own glory’ (John 8:50).

•”The words that I speak unto you, I speak not from myself” (John 14:10).

•”The word which you hear is not mine” (John 14:24).

Choose to humble yourself before God each day:

•”Humility and the fear of the Lord bring wealth and honor and life” (Proverbs 22:4).

•”What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8).

•”Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up” (James 4:10).

•”Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Matthew 11:29).

Is the next hour of your life yielded to the Holy Spirit of God? Ask of every decision in this day, How can this glorify God?

Choose to humble yourself before others:

•”When you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests” (Luke 14:10).

•”The greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves” (Luke 22:26).

•”By the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you” (Romans 12:3).

•”All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because ‘God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble'” (1 Peter 5:5).

•”A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:34-35).

Remember that God will judge you, not by your title but your towel. Whose feet will you wash today?

Conclusion

When was the last time you humbled yourself before the Lord? The last time you put him in charge of your day, your decisions, your ambitions? The last time you obeyed his will and word, even though your pride and standing were injured?

When last did you humble yourself before another person? Put their needs, success, or standing before your own? Pay a price to see them succeed?

Pride keeps God from using us. Humility positions us to be used by God. And so humility is the key to spiritual significance.

The three greatest preachers of the last three generations are probably Charles Spurgeon, Dwight Moody, and Billy Graham. What do they have in common?

Here is what Spurgeon said of himself, recorded in the preface to his collected sermons: “Recollect who I am, and what I am—a child, having little education, little learning, ability, or talent . . . Without the Spirit of God I feel I am utterly unable to speak to you. I have not those gifts and talents which qualify me to speak; I need an afflatus from on high; otherwise, I stand like other men, and have naught to say. May that be given me, for without it I am dumb!” And God used him to preach to 10 million across his ministry.

D. L. Moody was the son of an alcoholic who died when Moody was four years old. He completed seven grades of school. He said of himself: “I know that other men can preach better than I can. All I can say is that when I preach, God uses me.” And he did—more than a million came to Christ through him.

Here is what Billy Graham says of himself: “I have often said that the first thing I am going to do when I get to Heaven is to ask, ‘Why me, Lord? Why did You choose a farmboy from North Carolina to preach to so many people, to have such a wonderful team of associates, and to have a part in what You were doing in the latter half of the twentieth century?’ I have thought about that question a great deal, but I know also that only God knows the answer.” And he has preached to more people than anyone in Christian history.

Why did God use them so? Because they gave their best in humility. They let God be God through them. Who will be next?

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Is your tongue tamed?

Dr. Jim Denison

James 3:1-12

What is the most hateful or hurtful thing anyone has said to you? How long ago did they say it? Why do the words still hurt? Has anyone hurt you more than with their words?

I was in elementary school, probably the second or third grade. For some reason I cannot remember, I was angry with my parents. It was raining outside, a common occurrence in Houston. Friends of my parents were at our house for some reason. I wanted to punish my parents, so I went outside and stood in the rain. I have no idea why this seemed a good idea, but it did. My father went outside to find me. For the first and only time in my life, he spoke a hateful word to me: “Son, are you stupid? Don’t you have enough sense to come in out of the rain?” I knew then and know now that he didn’t mean his words. I know that he was simply embarrassed before his friends. He never said such a thing to me again. But though his words were spoken more than 35 year sago, I can still remember how deeply they hurt.

Now think about words you wish you could take back. A statement made in anger, or pain, or deception. Have you made greater, more hurtful mistakes than with your words?

Our secular materialism measures success and failure in quantifiable ways. Words are a means to our ends. “White lies” are acceptable and common. Say whatever you must to get ahead. I worked as a graphic artist while completing my masters degree at the seminary. One day, one of my customers showed me his “lie book,” a little green spiral-bound book he kept in his shirt pocket. He explained proudly that whenever he lied to one of his clients, he wrote it down so he could remember it for the next time he saw the person. I wondered how many of his words to me were in that book.

You may not be keeping a book recording your lies, but the people you know are. And the Judge of the universe is. Despite the conventional wisdom of our materialistic culture, you do not control your life until you control your tongue. Your words matter, more than you can measure. You cannot unring a bell, or a soul. So let’s learn how and why to make our words holy this week.

We’ll look at what James says, then find ways to apply his words to our own.

Verse 1. Become not many teachers, my brothers, knowing that we will receive greater judgment.

Become shows that we grow into the ministry of teaching the word of God; this is not just a position, but a ministry. Become not could be rendered, “stop becoming many teachers,” a clear complaint that many were attempting to teach what they did not yet understand (Robertson 39). Not is placed at the beginning of the verse for emphasis (Martin 107). Probably some not qualified by natural ability or spiritual gift coveted this office and ministry (Burdick 186).

Teachers means those who teach the word of God. In the Jewish context it pointed to rabbis, those who had studied the law and its application to life and now taught others (Rienecker 385). The “teacher” in Christian context also transmitted to the faith community the growing Christian tradition: “the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Tim 2:2; Moo 149).

This was a significant position of spiritual leadership (Ephesians 4:11), counting in its number Paul and Barnabas (Ac 13:1). In the early church, the office carried high status and responsibility: “Whosoever then comes and teaches you all these things aforesaid, receive him. But if the teacher himself be perverted and teach another doctrine to destroy these things, do not listen to him, but if his teaching be for the increase of righteousness and knowledge of the Lord, receive him as the Lord” (Didache 11:1-2).

Knowing is a common Pauline word used to denote a piece of agreed traditional teaching, suggesting that the heavy responsibility associated with teaching was known already to James’ readers (Martin 108). We is in the first person because James is himself a teacher of God’s word, and thus includes himself in those who are accountable for their calling.

Greater judgment in that teachers know the word and will of God and so are accountable for their knowledge. The phrase means that teachers will receive the “greater sentence” (Robertson 39) or that they are exposed to the greater danger of judgment (Moo 149-50). Adamson (139-40) speculates that this may be because God expects more of those who teach his word, or because the damage done to others by our sins is greater. The OT denounces evil speech against God (Numbers 21:5) and man (Psalm 49:20) more often than any other offense (Adamson 176). And Jesus was plain; “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked” (Luke 12:48).

The problem of unfit teachers was acute in the early church, as the following references make clear (Martin 108):

•”There were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them–bringing swift destruction on themselves” (2 Peter 2:1).

•”If anyone teaches false doctrines and does not agree to the sound instruction of our Lord Jesus Christ and to godly teaching, he is conceited and understands nothing. He has an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words (1 Timothy 6:3-4).

•”The time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

Verse 2. For in many ways we all stumble. If anyone does not stumble in word, this is a mature man, able to bridle also the whole body.

For explains the previous statement. Many may indicate that teachers particularly stumble (Adamson 140), but the phrase more likely refers to all people.

We all includes us all (1 John 1:8, 10), even James the Just. Here James probably transitions from concern only about teachers to a larger discussion involving us all (Moo (148). Stumble in the present tense indicates continued action and even lifestyle. The word points to mistakes, sins, defeats, failures; in this context it may point to inadvertent sin (Moo 150-1).

If anyone does not stumble uses syntax which indicates that this proposition could be true in fact (Martin 109). In word or “in tongue” connects verse 2 with verse 1, since the principal tools of teachers are their tongues. Mature is teleios, complete and entire, a person who fulfills his God-given purpose. Only when we do not “stumble in word” is this true.

Able to bridle the whole body shows that our “bodies” or “lives” are led and determined by our words. Whole body used repeatedly in the text shows that James has in mind not only our personal lives but also the “body of Christ,” the larger congregation meeting in public assembly (Martin 104), for “an unrestrained teacher can adversely affect the entire community of faith” (Martin 110). Our moral actions are in view, not just our physical attributes (cf. Johnson 257).

Verse 3. Behold, we put the bits in the mouths of the horses, for them to obey us, and their whole body we turn about.

Bits in the mouths of horses echoes Sophocles (fifth century BC): “I know that spirited horses are broken by the use of a small bit” (Antigone 477, in Moo 152).

Their whole body we turn about connects the horse to us (v. 2)–the mouth leads the body and the life. Thus James has in mind both our physical movement and moral actions (Johnson 256-7). Horses and ships (v. 4) are “the sum total of what men steered in those days” (Davids, in Martin 104).

Verse 4. Behold also the ships being so great, and by hard winds being driven, directed by a very little rudder, where the impulse of the one steering purposes.

Ships being so great were not uncommon in James’s day; the ship on which Paul went to Malta carried 276 persons (Acts 27:37; Robertson 40-1).

Hard winds being driven points to harsh and strong, gale force or even hurricanes. James makes the contrast clear between the force of the huge storm and the power of the tiny rudder. Ships in the ancient world had no recourse in storms except the guidance of the captain–no storm warning systems or mechanical means of turning and saving the ship. They were “driven” or “buffeted” in such winds (Johnson 257). In a harsh storm, the rudder was the only hope for the passengers.

The rudder was an oar with a broad blade, placed at the side of the stern; larger ships had two, both controlled by the same steersman (Rienecker 386). It is an even clearer metaphor for the mouth of a church leader, as the rudder steers a large ship on which many are present. Martin (105) cites Lucian’s amazement at the size of the Isis, a vessel capable of holding 1,000 passengers plus cargo. Aristotle commented on the contrast between the small size of a rudder, turned by one man, and the “huge mass” of the ship it controls (Quaestiones Mechanica 5, in Moo 154). Impulse is either the “touch” or the “decision” of the steersman (Rienecker 386-7).

The analogy is clear: guiding desire (the steersman), means of control (rudder), and that which is controlled (the ship; Johnson 258). All relate to the tongue, as ancient moralists often noted. Philo referenced a charioteer and helmsman in this regard, and Plutarch used the imagery of a runaway ship and a fire to illustrate the destructive and uncontrollable nature of the tongue (Moo 154). The descriptions are so graphic that they indicate James’ personal observation of that which he now discusses (Oesterley 451).

Verse 5. So also the tongue is a little member, and boasts great things. Behold, how little a fire kindles how great a forest.

The tongue is here taken by James to stand for the use to which it is put by sinful humans. It was typical for Hebrew thought to associate a body part with the sin committed by it, so that Isaiah could lament about the “unclean lips” which he and his people tragically possessed (Isaiah 6:5).

Little is micron, “micro.” Boasts is part of a phrase which indicates not an empty boast, but a justified, though haughty, sense of importance (Rienecker 387).

How little a fire points to the fact that forest fires then, as now, are often caused by tiny sparks (Robertson 42). In that very dry climate, brush fires are even more common a danger than in our setting (Martin 106). Jewish tradition consistently likens the tongue to a flame or fire (Psalm 10:7; 39:1-3; 83:14; 120:2-4; Proverbs 16:27; 26:21; Is 30:27; Martin 113; Moo 156). Forest relates to the brush which covered Palestinian hills and which, in their dry climate, could easily burst into flame (Moo 155).

Verse 6. And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity; so the tongue is set among our members, spotting all the body, and inflaming the course of nature, and being inflamed by Gehenna.

The tongue is a fire, a common biblical analogy: “A scoundrel plots evil, and his speech is like a scorching fire” (Proverbs 16:27); “Like a madman shooting firebrands or deadly arrows is a man who deceives his neighbor and says, ‘I was only joking!’ Without wood a fire goes out; without gossip a quarrel dies down. As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife” (Proverbs 26:18-21).

Course of nature could point to the cycle of life, or all that time brings to birth (Rienecker 387). J. B. Phillips translates, “all that is included in nature”; at the end of an extended excursus, Adamson renders the phrase awkwardly, “the successions of our generations which run like wheels” (164).

Gehenna was the trash heap outside Jerusalem, used often as a picture for the place of punishment to which the wicked are destined. Jesus spoke of the “fire of hell” (Matthew 5:22). Gehenna was regarded as the location of cosmic evil attributed to Satan, so that James indicates that the devil lies behind the poison emitted by an ungodly tongue (Martin 116). Only Jesus (11 times) and James use the word in the NT (Moo 160).

Verse 7. For every nature both of beasts and of birds, of both reptiles and of sea animals, is tamed and has been tamed by the human species;

Beasts is used in the NT only of undomesticated animals (Adamson 145) which must be tamed by the human species. Such work is part of our Genesis commission to “rule” over God’s creation (Genesis 1:26).

Verse 8. but the tongue no one of mankind is able to tame; an unrestrainable evil, full of poison, death-dealing.

No one of mankind, with no exceptions. This is one sin we all commit. Unrestrainable could also be rendered “restless” (NIV); it is the same word translated “unstable” in 1:8 (Moo 162). Unrestrainable evil could be rendered a “monster of evil” (Adamson 144).

Full of poison points to the deadly asp or a venomous snake; James may recall the serpent in Eden. Psalm 140:3 warns, “They [evil men] make their tongues as sharp as a serpent’s; the poison of vipers is on their lips.”

Verse 9. By this we bless God and Father, and by this we curse men having been made in the image of God.

We bless God and Father points to the typical Jewish prayers of blessing. The Eighteen Benedictions contained liturgical formulas to be recited daily. Each concludes each of its parts with the blessing of God: “Blessed art Thou, O God.” The rabbis often used the phrase, “the Holy One, blessed is he” (Martin 118). The phrase indicates that James may intend a worship setting as his context. The syntax indicates present tense, continuing action occurring at that time.

We curse men is also in the present tense, indicating an ongoing problem for his readers and their churches (Martin 118). Curses are typical in the OT (Genesis 9:25; 49:7; Judges 5:23; 9:20; Proverbs 11:26; 24:24; 26:2; Ecclesiastes 7:21; Martin 119). James’ point is not to prohibit all such curses, for some indict ungodly behavior; rather, he contrasts them with blessings made in the same worship service. His readers are blessing God and cursing his creation at the same time.

Verse 10. Out of the same mouth comes forth blessing and cursing. It is not fitting, my brothers, these things to be.

It is not fitting is the strongest possible Greek, with the indignant sense of “It’s not right!” (Adamson 146-7), “this should not be” (NIV), or “these things ought not to be this way” (NASB).

Verse 11. Does a fountain out of the same hole send forth the sweet and the bitter?

The syntax expects the negative. Fountains in dry Palestine are vital to the survival of the people.

The same hole send forth the sweet and the bitter points to a rare but natural phenomenon. Different streams could mix together in a confluence to form a pool of water which is unfit for human use (Martin 120). When this happens, the spring is useless. Fresh water does not transform salty; salt water corrupts fresh. Send forth points to an Artesian well, water under pressure. It is typically the best water, as opposed to the flush pump wells which bring brackish, still water to the surface.

Verse 12. My brothers, is a fig tree able to produce olives, or a vine figs? So neither can a fountain produce salt water and sweet.

Fountain produce points to that which comes naturally forth from a fountain, that which “gushes forth” (Rienecker 388). Vine is the grape vine. Olives, figs, and grapes are especially prevalent in Palestine, and would be known to James and his scattered readers (Rienecker 388).

Applications

Why must James emphasize the destructiveness of the tongue (v. 5)?

A New York Times article reported that 91% of Americans say they regularly don’t tell the truth (are the other 9% lying on the survey?). 20% admit they can’t get through a day without conscious, premeditated “white lies.”

Raise your hand if you’ve never lied. Be careful–don’t lie. The psalmist lamented, “Help, Lord, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men. Everyone lies to his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception” (Psalm 12:1-2).

The Bible says, “Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward and speak lies” (Psalm 58:3). Why are spoken sins so common?

Spiritual vs. secular: words outside the church don’t matter, only those spoken in a “spiritual” context. Re: Sunday vs. Monday speech.

Words have their own life. When Jacob stole Esau’s first-born blessing from Isaac, there was nothing the father could do to take his words back: “I have made him lord over you and have made all his relatives his servants, and I have sustained him with grain and new wine” (Genesis 27:37).

Satan uses words to attack the unity of God’s people and movement. The first sin in human history was a lie told by the serpent in the Garden. Paul warned Titus, “There are many rebellious people, mere talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision group. They must be silenced, because they are ruining whole households by teaching things they ought not to teach–and that for the sake of dishonest gain” (Titus 1:10-11).

We live in a post-modern culture, where there are no absolutes and all ethics are relative and subjective. But words destroy us just as much today as in the Garden of Eden.

What words does God condemn?

•Lies: “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor” (Exodus 20:16).

•False appearances: “They take delight in lies. With their mouths they bless, but in their hearts they curse” (Psalm 62:4).

•Withholding the truth: “If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible” (Leviticus 5:1). The sin of silence is as real as the sin of speech.

•Slander (Webster: “the utterance in the presence of another person of a false statement or statements, damaging to a third person’s character or reputation”) and gossip: “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice” (Ephesians 4:31); “Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, and to show true humility toward all men” (Titus. 3:1-2); “rid yourselves of all malice and all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and slander of every kind” (1 Peter 2:1).

In a Peanuts cartoon, Charlie Brown says to Linus, “We’re supposed to write home to our parents and tell them what a great time we’re having here at camp.” Linus answers, “Even if we’re not? Isn’t that a lie?” Charlie Brown explains, “Well, it’s sort of a white lie.” To which Linus asks, “Lies come in colors?” No, they do not.

Why are spoken sins so wrong?

God says they are wrong. Listen to Psalm 101.7: “No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence.” And listen to Ephesians 5.25: “Each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor.”

Spoken sins offend the character of God. Jesus is truth (John 14.6). The Bible calls our Lord “a faithful God who does no wrong, upright and just is he” (Deuteronomy 32.4). Thus lying runs counter to his very nature.

Listen to Proverbs 6.16-19: “There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers.” See how God feels about deceit?

Spoken sins sacrifice trust. Do you remember the last time someone lied to you—perhaps a national politician or leader, or a personal relationship? Have you been able to trust them since?

Spoken sins destroy people. Once a lie has been told about someone, it can never be taken back.

The rabbis used to tell about a man who repeated gossip and slander about his rabbi. Finally he came to him and apologized, and asked what he could do to make things right. The rabbi gave him a bag filled with feathers, and told him to empty it into the wind at the top of a nearby hill. He did, and brought back the empty bag. Then the rabbi told him to go back and pick up all the feathers, which by now had blown across the town and the countryside. Of course he could not. The man then understood the damage he had caused. Do we?

In short, spoken sins destroy. Never underestimate their power or the damage they can do.

Who do you think said these words: “The broad mass of a nation will more easily fall victim to a big lie than to a small one. . . . If you repeat a lie often enough, people will believe it to be the truth”? It was Adolf Hitler. And six million Jews died from his lies.

Why do we sin with our words? They compensate for our own failures. We have some sense of the way things should be, of life as God intended it. But we know that we are not living this way, that we have sinned, fallen, failed. So we compensate. We create a false self, an “idealized self,” the person we wish we were. And we spend the rest of our lives trying to live up to this person. But no one can do it for very long. So, when we fall short of the perfectionism which drives us, we deceive ourselves and others. We lie.

Cain lied to cover up his murder. David lied about Bathsheba to cover up his sin. Any sin they committed, or you commit, I can commit. There is no sin we cannot commit. If they lied to compensate for their own failures, so can I. So can you.

We want to hurt those who hurt us. If someone lies to us, we lie to them. To hurt those who hurt us. We lie to get revenge. We repeat half-truths and rumors, we gossip and slander, to hurt people we think we have a right to hurt. After all, they did it to us, right? Saul was convinced David was a threat to him, so he became a threat to David. He lied about him to his son, his family, his nation. If he lied to hurt his enemy, so can I. So can you.

We want to get ahead. We lie to get the account, to close the deal. To impress the girl or the boy. To please our parents. To further our own agenda. Ananias and Sapphira lied about the money they brought to the church, so they could keep some of it for themselves. If they lied to get ahead, so can I. So can you.

We are tempted by Satan himself. Jesus called him “the father of lies” (John 8.44). He helps us along, encouraging us to be less than honest with God, others, and ourselves.

What will God do to punish our sinful words?

Silence them: “Whoever slanders his neighbor in secret, him will I put to silence; whoever has haughty eyes and a proud heart, him will I not endure” (Psalm 101:5).

Expose them: “There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known. What you have said in the dark will be heard in the daylight, and what you have whispered in the ear in the inner rooms will be proclaimed from the roofs” (Luke 12:2-3).

Hold us accountable for them: “we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive what is due him for the things done while in the body, whether good or bad” (2 Corinthians 5:10).

How do we get control of our tongues?

Expect to be tempted. Satan’s strategies still work, because human nature doesn’t change.

Speak to people, not about them: “If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you” (Matthew 18:15).

Say only that which is to God’s glory and our good: “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things” (Philippians 4:8).

Live with consistent integrity. Be the same person when you talk to someone as when you talk about them. Be the same in private as in public. Be one person, always. Will Rogers once advised, “So live that you would not be ashamed to sell the family parrot to the town gossip.” That’s good advice.

When you sin with speech, confront the issue as soon as possible. Don’t let the malignancy grow. Confess your sin to God. Admit it to those you’ve hurt. This will hurt you, and make it far harder to sin in the same way again.

Don’t listen to the sins of others. Know that if someone will lie about me to you, they’ll probably lie about you to me. Be the one who stops the cycle of lies and rumors and gossip.

Last, stay close to God. Jesus always told the truth. In fact, he was the Truth. Ask his Spirit to fill and control you, to stay right with him as the source of your life. Then all which comes from your heart and lips will be right.

Conclusion

“The ageless question ‘What is Man?’ permits many answers, some frivolous (as Dr. Samuel Johnson discovered when he quoted an ancient philosopher’s definition as a ‘two-legged animal without feathers’ and his rival had a cock plucked bare), some facetious (like Johnson’s own attempt: an animal that cooks its food), some serious. Among the most thoughtful is the description of Man as a speaking animal (homo loquens). Among the species, Man stands alone in commanding the power to use words to communicate ideas, to express personality, and to enter into dialogue. The power of the tongue is a distinctive feature of our race and carries with it all manner of effects, good and ill alike” (Martin 122).

The writer of Proverbs was wise enough to pray, “Keep falsehood and lies far from me” (Proverbs 30:8). Are we that wise today?

Our church in Midland helped a number of villages in the north of Mexico. Their greatest need was always for clean water. The people would typically dig their water well at the lowest spot in the village, because it was easier. But when it rained, refuse from the stables and the houses flowed into the well, contaminating the water.

We learned to drill wells at the highest spot in the village, above every place else, if we wanted the water from those wells to be pure.

Faith In A Time Of War

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Faith in a Time of War

John 20:1-9

Dr. Jim Denison

Last Monday evening, President Bush told the world that diplomatic efforts in Iraq had ended, giving Saddam Hussein 48 hours to leave or face military conflict. That period has ended, and the conflict has begun.

This morning we face a confusing mixture of feelings and fears. We hope for quick victory in this conflict, and fear loss of life. We hope for protection against terrorist reprisals, and fear further attacks. We hope for our friends and family engaged directly in this conflict, and fear for their lives and futures. We need faith in a time of war.

This week I’ve asked God for a word to give to you. I believe I have that word, for my heart and ours. John has been my guide to faith. Now he stands ready to guide us all.

Meet our guide

You may remember that John, the “beloved disciple” of Jesus Christ, grew up in Capernaum, a fishing village on the northern coast of the Sea of Galilee. His brother was John, his father Zebedee. Theirs was a thriving fishing business in partnership with Simon and his brother Andrew.

John and Andrew were followers of John the Baptist, until the day he identified Jesus of Nazareth as the Messiah, the “Lamb of God” (John 1.36). John was Jesus’ cousin. Now he immediately became his first disciple. Jesus called John and James, Andrew and Simon to leave their fishing business to follow him. And they did.

But now the movement John was the first to join is over. The cause to which he has dedicated his life has failed. The One he had believed would be the Messiah, God’s ruler on earth, the General who would overthrow the cursed Romans and reign over Israel, is dead. Their army is dissolved, in retreat and chaos and failure. Their lives have no purpose, no direction, no destiny, no hope.

And his own life is in peril.

John is known to the High Priest, and was seen standing in the house of Caiaphas during Jesus’ trial there.

He was the only disciple at the cross, clearly visible to the authorities.

He cannot flee easily, for he has charge of Mary, Jesus’ mother.

He was Jesus’ best friend; verse 2 calls him the disciple “whom Jesus loved.” He is Jesus’ cousin, his relative, the most visible and famous follower in his band. If the Roman and Jewish authorities decide to destroy Jesus’ movement as they destroyed him, John knows the one they’ll come after first.

If Jeb Bush were to visit in Baghdad today, he’d be in no less danger than John the beloved disciple in Jerusalem.

Join him at the empty tomb

Now it is Sunday morning. John, Mary, and Jesus’ band of followers have passed the Sabbath of Friday night and Saturday in mourning.

Early this morning, some of the women return to Jesus’ tomb to finish burying his body. But they find that “the stone had been removed from the entrance” (v. 1)—the Greek states that it had been removed from the groove in which it had rested, and thrown to the side.

We know what happened: the burial stone was but a pebble compared with the Rock of Ages inside. We know that the God of the universe tossed it aside so much as trash as he raised his Son to life. We know this, but Mary doesn’t.

F. B. Meyer describes Mary’s mind well: she came with aromatic spices that her money had bought and her hands prepared; she did not know that his garments were already smelling of aloes and grace, of the perfume of heaven with which his Father had dressed him. She thought she came to a victim who had fallen beneath the knife of his foes as a lamb led to slaughter; she was not aware that he was a Priest who had entered the Most Holy Place willingly for her. She came for the vanquished, but failed to understand that he was the victor over the principalities and powers of hell, that the keys of Hades and the grave now hung on his belt, with the serpent bruised beneath his feet. She thought she had come to put the final touch on his life and death, and had no conception that on that morning a career had been inaugurated which was endless, unassailable, destined to change the course of human history forever.

She doesn’t know. We find her running back to Peter and John, telling them that his body is gone: “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we don’t know where they have put him!” (John 20:2).

So John and Peter run to the tomb.

It’s interesting that the only two times in the New Testament we find someone actually “running” are here and in Matthew 28:8, where the women ran to bring the disciples the news of his resurrection. They ran in joy, these men in bitter anger. Not only is their beloved leader dead, but now his grave has been desecrated. How would you feel to learn that someone had robbed the grave of the one you love?

John arrives first, and looks in. He sees the linen strips which Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea had used to wrap the body. Then Peter arrives, and the two enter the tomb.

What they discover is astounding. The robes are lying empty on the burial slab. Not unwrapped, but collapsed on themselves as though the body which had been inside has simply vanished. The cloth which had been wrapped around Jesus’ head like a turban is also folded on itself, not unwrapped. The head inside has disappeared (John 20:7).

This was a physical impossibility. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus had previously coated the burial clothes with 75 pounds of myrrh and aloes (John 19:39) to preserve the body as best they could. Myrrh binds fabric to the flesh of the corpse as surely as glue. The only way to get the burial clothes off the body would have been to rip them off, tearing them to shreds. Not only was it impossible for someone to remove the clothes without unwrapping them, it was even more impossible for them to be in one piece. But here they are, wrapped around themselves and intact.

When Jesus’ best friend sees these burial robes, instinctively he knows the truth: this body has come back to life! He “saw and believed” (v. 8). In that moment John could have refuted every explanation for the empty tomb given by skeptics across 20 centuries.

He knew the body has not merely revived, the so-called “swoon theory.” John had been there. He watched Jesus die on that horrible cross—the nails, the spear, the blood, the lifeless body. He heard the medical examiner pronounce the body dead.

He knew they are not at the wrong tomb. Joseph knew his own tomb, and the women had watched him bury Jesus.

He knew the authorities have not stolen the body. They posted guards to protect the body from theft, not to steal it themselves. And they would have taken the body as it was, not leaving the grave clothes behind.

He knew that robbers have not stolen the body. They could not have overpowered the Roman military guard placed at the tomb. They would not have left the burial clothes, the only thing in the tomb of material value.

And he knew that Jesus’ followers have not taken the body. There was no way the women or disciples could have overpowered the Roman guards posted there, or would have wanted to. They had not expected the body to be risen. Mary’s explanation for the open grave had been that someone had stolen the body (v. 3). John admits (v. 9) that they had not yet understood from Scripture that the Christ had to rise from the dead. They had no idea that Jesus would rise, and no ability to steal his body to give the appearance that he had.

There is only one explanation: Jesus Christ has risen from the dead.

Embrace his faith

John “saw and believed.” With astounding results in his life and ministry, despite the fears he faced on this day, the perils which stood before him, the threats against his future and his life. No one watching the perplexed fisherman, in peril for his life, standing beside the tomb of his fallen hero, could have guessed what would become of him.

He would write more of the New Testament than any other disciple. He would meet this risen Christ again, 40 years later on the prison island of Patmos, the Alcatraz of the ancient world. Like this day, it was a Sunday morning when he received the Revelation of Jesus Christ.

On that prison island John would found a church among his fellow prisoners and prison guards, a church which still meets in the cave where John received his Revelation, now 20 centuries ago. My first trip to Patmos was a Sunday morning. Our group entered the cave, and found John’s church at worship.

Then he would return to Ephesus where he would continue his pastoral ministry until the Lord took him home. His grave is still on display there.

At the end of his life and work, when he was too elderly to stand and preach, he would sit in a chair. Church leaders would carry him to the front of the congregation. He would lift his finger toward the heavens and say, “Little children, love one another.”

He planted trees he’ll never sit under. His was a life and legacy which shall endure until the world ends and time is no more.

Who would have guessed it? No person on the first Easter Sunday faced a future more filled with fear and uncertainty than this man. Now, in the face of perilous times and an uncertain future, the risen Lord stands ready to do for us what he did for him. He stands ready to heal our hearts, to redeem our troubled times, to guide and direct our steps, to calm our fears.

Isaac was in a land war with his neighbors when the Lord said to him, “Fear not, for I am with you” (Genesis 26:24).

A widow was facing famine and starvation when the Lord said through his prophet, “Fear not” (1 Kings 17:13).

Elisha’s servant was terrified by the enemy armies surrounding them when the prophet said, “Fear not. Those who are with us are more than those who are with them” (2 Kings 6:16).

Israel was enslaved in Babylon, ancient Iraq, when the Lord said, “Fear not, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and help you” (Isaiah 41:10).

Later he said to these enslaved captives, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine” (Isaiah 43:2).

Jesus said to frightened disciples sent forth on their first mission, “Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. So fear not” (Matthew 10:30-31).

The risen Lord said to this frightened disciple on Patmos, “Fear not. I am the First and the Last. I am the Living One; I was dead, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and Hades” (Revelation 1:17-18).

Conclusion

So, what is your greatest fear this morning? Ask the risen Christ to do for you what he did for John. Ask him to place his hand of power, hope, and help on your worried heart, to raise you from knees of fear to feet of faith. Ask him to transform your circumstances as he made a prison island into a lighthouse for all of history. Ask him to give you faith in a time of war. And he will.

We will close this morning in prayer. We will pray for our president and leaders, our military, our friends and our enemies. We will pray for our own hearts and souls. We will seek faith in the midst of war. And we will find it.

Come to the empty tomb and the risen Christ, right now.

Fake Faith

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Fake Faith

Colossians 2:16-23

Dr. Jim Denison

Some criminals need to be in jail for their own protection.

For instance, I read this week about a man who attempted to siphon gasoline from a motor home parked on a Seattle street. However, the confused criminal plugged his hose into the motor home’s sewage tank by mistake. The owner declined to press charges, as the man had already been punished enough.

45-year-old Amy Brasher was arrested recently in San Antonio, Texas, after a mechanic found 18 packages of marijuana in the engine compartment of her car. She had brought the car in for an oil change, and didn’t realize the mechanic would have to raise the hood to change the oil.

Then there were the counterfeiters who sent their jammed printer for service. Trouble was, they left in place the counterfeit bills which jammed the press. They’re now awaiting trial as well.

With the new scanners and printers, counterfeit money is more a problem than ever before. And fakes exist in other areas of life as well. Fake antiques; knock-off watches and jewelry; pirated DVDs and identity theft abound. But the earliest counterfeit operation in history is still the deadliest: fake faith.

Satan wants you to reject God and his word entirely. If you won’t do that, he’ll try to get you to substitute a fake for the genuine article. If he can’t make you bad by refusing the right things, he’ll make you busy about the wrong things.

He doesn’t mind if you are passionate about the wrong faith. In fact, he’s rather amused by such deception. This week we’ll encounter one of the most practical issues in all of Christianity: the difference between full and fake faith, and why it all matters so much to you.

Religious activity (vs. 16-17)

There are three ways we know everything we know–the pragmatic, the intuitive, and the rational. Most of us are pragmatic about most of life. We use cell phones and drive cars, not because we understand them, but because they work.

One way to counterfeit Jesus is purely pragmatic: “Do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day” (v. 16).

“What you eat or drink” refers to acts of worship in their culture. The Lord’s Supper and all-church fellowships come the closest in ours.

“Or with regard to a religious festival”–Jewish celebrations like Passover and Pentecost, Christmas and Easter to us.

“Or a Sabbath day”–the synagogue worship on the Sabbath, or its equivalent to the Gnostics. Sunday church to us. “Stop letting people judge you” by these things.

But why? It just makes practical sense that activity proves relationship.

You prove that you’re a member of the Dallas Women’s Club by attending events and supporting programs. You prove you’re a Republican or Democrat by how you vote, not what you say.

Years ago, Chrysler Chairman Lee Iacocca stepped onto an elevator. A man gushed, “I love your commercials.” Iacocca snapped, “I don’t care what you think about my commercials. What kind of car do you drive?” Activity proves relationship.

Except that it doesn’t. As Paul warns, “These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ” (v. 17).

Every real thing casts its shadow. Love for my wife casts its shadow in the things I do because I love her. But I can do them for someone I hate as well. Love for my church motivates me to preach, teach, and write. But I can do these things for my sake rather than God’s or yours.

Religious activity is but a shadow, and a shadow can be cast by anything, good or bad.

How does this counterfeit Jesus tempt us today? Church services, Sunday school attendance, singing in the choir, serving on committees, all the usual things. If they are an end rather than a means to an end, they’re counterfeit. If you think you are right with God just because you came to church, you’re mistaken.

Standing in a bank lobby doesn’t prove that I know the bank president, or that I even have a relationship with that bank. Augustine said that the church has some that God hasn’t, and God has some that the church hasn’t. Religious activity is no guarantee of real Christianity. Our culture is convinced that going to church makes us Christians. Don’t be fooled.

Religious experience (vs. 18-19)

Others of us are more intuitive than pragmatic. We discover truth by how it feels to us, how we experience it personally. Satan has a counterfeit Jesus for this person as well.

“Do not let anyone who delights in false humility and the worship of angels disqualify you for the prize” (v. 18a). “False humility” in their spiritual lives and activities related to fasting, prayer, and other spiritual disciplines. “The worship of angels”–the worship angels give and invite us to join, “angelic worship.” Worship in its highest expression.

Feeling equals relationship. Except that such experience can “puff us up with idle notions,” making us think we are closer to God than we are. If I’m so moved by worship, I must be right with the Lord. If I have been moved by prayer, I must be right with the One to whom we pray.

Such fake faith disconnects the body from the head, focusing on what we experience rather than the One we experience.

So don’t base your faith on your feelings. I questioned my salvation for more than a year because I didn’t feel anything when I trusted Christ. Only later did I realize that the Bible nowhere tells us how it feels to become a Christian, or to worship, or to witness, or to be obedient to God’s will. Feelings are the caboose at the end of the train, not the engine driving it.

And don’t base your worship on your feelings. If you came to church for feelings you came for the wrong reason. If you came to be inspired or uplifted, you came for the result rather than the Cause. When you focus on the experience rather than the God who gives it, you lose both.

The way to be happy personally is to make others happy, not to seek happiness as an end in itself. If you focus on joy rather than Jesus, you miss both.

Religious morality (vs. 20-23)

Some of us are pragmatic, tempted to base our faith on religious activity. Others of us are more intuitive, tempted to base our faith on our feelings. Still others of us are rational by nature. We like our truth to be logical, non-contradictory, systematic. We like rules and regulations, charts and diagrams, moral systems for every question and issue.

And the enemy is happy to oblige.

“Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” Do not handle, or taste, or even touch the physical world. As you know, the Gnostics separated the spiritual from the secular, the soul from the body. Some therefore taught that we can do anything we like with our bodies, since they don’t matter.

Others were the Gnostic legalists–they taught that since our bodies are bad, they must be disciplined and punished severely. This phrase comes from that school of thought. Keep the rules! Obey the regulations! Learn the right thing to do, and do it.

What’s wrong with religious legalism? Such rules “are all destined to perish with use, because they are based on human commands and teachings” (v. 22b). You can’t keep it up. You can’t keep all the rules, all the time.

And such rules have an appearance of wisdom but “they lack any value in restraining sensual indulgence” (v. 23). They don’t change your heart. You’re always trying not to do what you really want to do. And that’s misery defined.

The simple fact is, we can keep the rules without ever having a relationship.

At a large university, you can enroll in freshman English, attend every class, make an A on every test, and never know the professor. At a large corporation, you can be on time for work every day for ten years and never meet the company president.

You can attend worship and Bible study, read your Bible and pray, and live by the Ten Commandments, all in your own initiative and ability. The rich young ruler told Jesus he had kept all of them, and he meant it.

I have seen Muslims worship with such fervency on their prayer rugs that their foreheads were bleeding. I have seen Buddhists burn money at the grave of their ancestors. I have seen Hindus live in abject conditions to obey their caste system. The rules do not guarantee a relationship.

Conclusion

Tellers and cashiers are trained to examine the portrait, seals, border, and paper of the money they handle. They use pens which stain normal paper but leave no mark on real currency. But the most effective strategy is the simplest: in training, they are made to spend hours and hours with the real thing. They handle, feel, and see real money for so long that they can tell a fake the moment they find it.

The solution to fake faith is full faith. Religious activity, experience, and morality not as ends but as means. Not as the gods we worship, but as ways to worship our God. We get involved in the activities, experiences, and moral standards of our faith because God loves us, not so he will. Because he has forgiven and accepted us, not so he might. Because we have received his mercy, not so we can.

This is an issue of deep and enormous importance. The power of ancient religions was always the power to curse. People went to their temples and made their sacrifices in order to appease the gods and escape their wrath. This is because such an impulse is basic to the human condition.

We all know that we are not what we should be. We know that we deserve to be punished for our sins by the omniscient God of the universe. Guilt over our failures and the fear of failing again motivates us to do better and try harder.

All the while, our Father is waiting to bless his children. He is waiting to forgive and forget our past, and guide and bless our future. He is waiting to give his nature, power, and victory to all who will open his gifts. He is waiting to bless all who will live for his glory, in his fear, radically and completely surrendered to him. Not so he will love us, but because he already does.

Why did you come to worship today? So God would love you, or because he does? So he would forgive you, or because he has? So he would accept you, or because he already loves and likes you as you are? Henri Nouwen, the great Catholic theologian and spiritual writer, puts all this better than I can. May I read to you from his wisdom?

“Aren’t you, like me, hoping that some person, thing or event will come along to give you that final feeling of inner well-being you desire? Don’t you often hope: ‘May this book, idea, course, trip, job, country or relationship fulfill my deepest desire.’ But as long as you are waiting for that mysterious moment you will go on running helter-skelter, always anxious and restless, always lustful and angry, never fully satisfied. You know that this is the compulsiveness that keeps us going and busy, but at the same time makes us wonder whether we are getting anywhere in the long run. This is the way to spiritual exhaustion and burn-out. This is the way to spiritual death.

“Well, you and I don’t have to kill ourselves. We are the Beloved. We are intimately loved long before our parents, teachers, spouses, children and friends loved or wounded us. That’s the truth of our lives. That’s the truth I want you to claim for yourself. That’s the truth spoken by the voice that says, ‘You are my Beloved.’

“Listening to that voice with great inner attentiveness, I hear at my center words that say: ‘I have called you by name, from the very beginning. You are mine and I am yours. You are my Beloved, on you my favor rests. I have molded you in the depths of the earth and knitted you together in your mother’s womb. I have carved you in the palms of my hands and hidden you in the shadow of my embrace. I look at you with infinite tenderness and care for you with a care more intimate than that of a mother for her child. I have counted every hair on your head and guided you at every step. Wherever you go, I go with you, and wherever you rest, I keep watch. I will give you food that will satisfy all your hunger and drink that will quench all your thirst. I will not hide my face from you. You know me as your own as I know you as my own. You belong to me. I am your father, your mother, your brother, your sister, your lover and your spouse…wherever you are I will be. Nothing will ever separate us. We are one'” (Henri Nouwen, Life of the Beloved [New York: Crossroad, 1996] 30-1).

Amen.

Fashions for the Soul

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Fashions for the Soul

Colossians 3:12-17

Dr. Jim Denison

Spring Break has just ended for most of us, so it must indeed be Spring. With the new season comes the new season’s fashions, or so I hear. One website says, “This year’s look is flirty, fun and fabulously feminine. Have it both ways with trim, tailored silhouettes or soft, flowing lines and indulge yourself with a little fresh couture with all the frills.” I don’t even know what any of that means. And I have no idea how to say “couture.”

Not to be deterred, I asked Minni to help me find Janet a new spring wardrobe. She located an Oscar de la Renta beaded dress for $3,800.00; a “turquoise stone tote” for $1,975.00; and “leather espradrille sandals” for $937.00. What is “espradrille”?

By contrast, a website for men’s spring clothing says, “The classics still hold sway when it comes to men’s fashion.” I think that means that nothing changes for us. Since I’m wearing the same kind of suit I’ve worn all my married life, I guess that’s a good thing.

Last week, Paul showed us the winter clothes our souls are supposed to strip off if we want to experience all of God there is. Now he displays the spring fashions we are to put on. How we are to be with others, and with ourselves. This is a crucial conversation, for the health of our souls and the salvation of our society. It’s my privilege to explain why this subject matters, and how it applies to our lives and souls today.

Why relevance is so relevant

You and I no longer live in a world which believes it needs what the church provides. We can be “spiritual” without being religious. I can believe in Christ without going to church. Most non-churched people say that’s exactly their position on the subject.

Only two percent of Americans are afraid of going to hell. So long as I’m sincere in my beliefs and tolerant of others, my spirituality is as good as yours. “The Bible says” is no longer the answer; for many, it’s not even the question. We must show that our faith is relevant, before anyone will consider the fact that it might be right.

This is precisely how it was in first-century Colossae. Paul doesn’t quote much of the Old Testament in his letter to this Greek culture, because they wouldn’t care any more than you care what the Koran or the Book of Mormon says on today’s subject. If the Colossians cannot prove the relevance of their faith in their relationships and their own character, their witness is lost. But if they can, they can reach their world. So can we.

What follows is one of the most complete descriptions of external and internal spirituality to be found in all of God’s word.

At issue is not our salvation. We are already “God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved.” He has already “chosen” or “elected” us to be his children. We are “holy,” set apart for him as his special people. We are “dearly loved” by our Father today. All that was true of Israel in the Old Testament is extended to these Gentiles in Colossae, and to you and me today.

So we are not learning how to merit his favor, but exhibit his grace. Measure yourself by these standards. Then we’ll learn how to put on the spiritual clothing our Father offers us today.

How to be spiritual with us (vs. 12-14)

Here’s what is in style with God this spring: “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (v. 12).

“Compassion” means to “feel with,” to empathize with others, to put ourselves in their position. “Kindness” refers to kind deeds and actions. “Humility” requires that we serve others, not because they are superior to us or we are superior to them, but because we are their brother or sister. “Gentleness” is strength under control, submitted constantly to the Spirit. “Patience” means “long-suffering,” refusing revenge or retaliation.

Now comes the test: “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you” (v. 13).

“Bear with each other” means to endure one’s sins against us. “Forgive whatever grievances” means to pardon whatever has been done to us. We cannot forget it, but we can choose not to punish it. Do this to the same degree that Jesus has forgiven you, without condition.

How? “And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them together in perfect unity.” Love is to be the outer garment which “binds together” all the others, which protects them and keeps them in place. “Agape,” selfless, sacrificial love which puts the other first, is the foundation virtue of all the rest.

There appears to be a progression here in our relationships. Think of the person who last hurt you, or who has hurt you the most. Have that person in mind, and think about what he or she did to you.

Begin your response with “compassion.” Ask God to help you feel what they feel, to see things as they do. Why did he do this to you? What insecurity, false information, or past experiences motivated him to act in this way? Let’s assume that he mistreated you out of his own need to feel secure.

To respond unkindly, returning hurt for hurt, only makes things worse, reinforcing his insecurity. Kindness means that I find ways to help him feel secure. I look for actions which respond to his need in grace.

Humility means that I do so while understanding that I am an insecure person as well, that my needs are no greater than his. There but for the grace of God go I.

Gentleness means that I submit to God, asking him to help me give this person the security and compassion he needs. I seek God’s leading and strength continually.

Patience means that I do this for a long time, whatever the person’s response. I am not responsible for what he does to me, only for what I do to him.

Forbearance means that I do this even when he does not respond in kind, and when the hurt continues.

Forgiveness means that I pardon all that he has done to me, and all that he continues to do to me.

Love means that I do this as a lifestyle and commitment, offering him what Jesus has given to me. This is the way to health and peace in this hurting relationship; the only way to resolution. God’s method works!

Such grace in relationships could not be more counter-cultural today.

“You’re fired!” is Donald Trump’s contribution to our culture. “American Idol” viewers tune in each week to watch Simon lambaste unlucky singers. “Survivor” is all about voting people off the island. Employees are often a means to the end of the bottom line. AT&T’s consolidation will cut another 10,000 jobs, while their stock soars.

Giving grace to those who deserve it least and thus need it most is the fastest way to show the culture that Jesus is real and our faith matters. Who needs such grace from you this week?

How to be spiritual with yourself (vs. 15-17)

Now Paul shifts from the external to the internal, from relating with others to relating with ourselves. If what follows isn’t true, what has gone before won’t work.

“Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts,” he commands (v. 15a). “The peace Christ gives” is the sense here.

How do we get it? “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7). Give God your requests, leave them with him, and you will find his peace.

Let such peace “rule” in your “heart.” “Rule” means to umpire, to call the shots. “Heart” is the center of emotions and will. Seek God’s peace, and put it in charge of all your decisions and problems. Give them so fully to God that you receive his peace in their place. Such serenity will show a stressed world that Jesus lives in your soul.

“Be thankful” (v. 15b): the word indicates thanksgiving for all God has already done for us. Spend time each day considering his blessings, and you’ll “give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Such thanksgiving will show a driven world that Jesus lives in your soul.

“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly” (v. 16a). “Dwell” means to take up residence. Begin the day in God’s word; spend the day in his word; end the day in his word. Be “rich” and extravagant in your study and obedience to his word.

Then you’ll be able to “teach and admonish” others, showing them God’s word and its application to their lives.

Then you’ll be able to “sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.” “Psalms” probably refers to Old Testament songs of praise; “hymns” to such songs of praise found in the New Testament; and “songs” to praise expressed by believers outside the biblical texts. All are to be “spiritual,” centered on God and not the performer.

Then you’ll live “with gratitude in your hearts to God” for all he has done for you. And such a joyful spirit will show a frightened world that Jesus lives in your soul.

Underlying all such internal spirituality is this motive: “Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (v. 17).

“In the name of the Lord Jesus” means in his authority and for his glory. Stay connected with his Spirit and you’ll have his power. In his power you can be gracious with others. And you can be peaceful, thankful, and joyful with your Lord.

All this will glorify your Father, and show a lost and dying world that Jesus lives in your soul.

Conclusion

Where do you need to give God’s grace to someone who has hurt you? Ask God to help you have compassion for that person, understanding something of why he or she did what was done to you.

With his help, look for a practical way to be kind, meeting that need with his love. Stay humble, recognizing that you are no less a sinner. Be “gentle,” submitted to God’s guidance and strength. Be patient and bear with the person, as this may take time. Forgive, choosing not to punish. And your selfless love will show that person and all who observe that Jesus is real in your soul.

Where do you need to experience God’s peace, thanksgiving, and joy in your own soul? Give your problems to his power, and you’ll have peace. Remember his blessings, and you’ll be thankful. Spend some time in his word and worship, and you’ll have joy. And the world will know that Jesus is real in your soul.

Everybody Loves Raymond was one of the most popular sitcoms of all time. The star of the show, Ray Romano, went from being a struggling stand-up comic to one of the highest-paid actors in television. After nine seasons, the show broadcast its final episode in May of last year.

At the conclusion of the last day’s filming, Romano spoke to the studio audience as he reflected on his past and future. He read a note his brothers had stuck in his luggage nine years earlier, when he moved from New York to Hollywood.

A tearful Romano said, “My older brother Richard wrote, ‘What does it profit a man, if he gains the whole world and loses his soul?’ Now I’m going to work on my soul.”

Let’s join him.

Father’s Day Resolution

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Father’s Day Resolutions

Matthew 5:1-12

Dr. Jim Denison

Three boys were bragging about their fathers. The first said, “My dad writes some words on paper and calls it a lawsuit, and they pay him for it.” The second said, “Yeah, well my dad writes some words on paper and calls it a prescription, and they pay him for it.” The third said, “Well, my dad writes some words on a paper and calls it a sermon. And it takes eight guys to collect all the money!”

Dads need respect. Sonora Smart Dodd of Spokane, Washington, knew it was so. Listening to a Mother’s Day sermon in 1909, she thought of her father. He had raised her and her five siblings after their mother died. So she spoke to area ministers and YMCA members, and they began the next year. They selected roses as the flower of the day: red if the father was living, white if he was deceased. Interest grew until President Calvin Coolidge made Father’s Day a national holiday in 1924.

I’m glad there’s a Father’s Day, selfishly and spiritually.

We need to remember what God wants us to give our fathers, on this day and each day. 12,600 miles of ties will be given today. What else do fathers need?

And fathers need to remember why we were blessed by God with this privilege, and how to fulfill it well.

Graduate from Fatherhood 101

Unfortunately, children do not come with owner’s manuals. No Chilton’s car repair books or operating instructions. But their Creator has told us what we need to know to do this job well. Let’s review Fatherhood 101 in the word of God.

Your first responsibility is to lead your family spiritually.

“Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church” (Ephesians 5:25). How did Jesus love us? Unconditionally, selflessly, sacrificially. Love her the same way.

“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ” (Ephesians 5:21). Serve each other, meet each other’s needs.

Live so that your wife can fulfill her spiritual responsibility as well: “Wives, submit to your husbands as to the Lord” (Ephesians 5:22). Be the spiritual leader, example, model in your family and home. Live and lead so that they follow Christ because of you.

A survey conducted by the National Study of Youth and Religion has concluded that adolescents raised in religious households are far more likely to admire their parents and live in healthy families than those who are not. So lead your family spiritually.

Next, provide for your family financially.

We are to meet their physical as well as spiritual needs: “…Children should not have to save up for their parents, but parents for their children” (2 Corinthians 12:14).

Freud said, “I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection.” Provide financial and physical security and stability for your home.

Third, teach your children biblically.

Describing the principles of Scripture, we are commanded to “Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up” (Deut 6:7).

We are further instructed, “Fathers, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4).

Do you have a time in your home for Bible study and prayer? A time to teach your children what you know of God’s word? You are their first pastor, their spiritual guide. The church has your kids one percent of their time, the schools 16%; you have them 83% of their time. So teach them biblically.

Fourth, be what you want your children to become.

A godly father “must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect” (1 Timothy 3:4).

It’s been observed that “Till a boy is fifteen he does what his father says; after that he does what his father does.”

Here is Fatherhood 101: lead your family spiritually, provide for them physically, teach them biblically, be what you want them to become. Now, let’s focus on the last principle. How can we be the people we want our children to become? What does it take to be godly fathers?

You’re familiar with New Year’s resolutions. Today I want to offer some Father’s Day resolutions. Eight, in fact. Eight gifts to give our children, and our souls as well.

Adopt these Father’s Day resolutions

Jesus’ familiar beatitudes begin: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs in the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3).

To be “poor in spirit” means to know our need of God, that we cannot live and succeed without his help. It means to admit that he is the I Am and I am the I Am Not.

Our culture stands on self-sufficiency. We can meet our needs if we just put in enough hours, take enough classes, consult enough experts.

God knows better. He knows that our children are eternal souls entrusted to our care. So here’s the first Father’s Day resolution: “I will seek the help of God daily.” Will you make this commitment now?

The second beatitude states, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted” (Matthew 5:4).

The “mourning” to which Jesus refers is primarily spiritual. Mourning for sin, failures, shortcomings before God. It means to admit that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23), myself among them.

Our culture stands on self-assurance. We’re good fathers if we provide financially for our families. Pete Rose heard that his daughter had told a reporter he was a terrible father. He responded, “That’s not true. I’m a great father. Why, just the other day I bought her a new Mercedes.”

God knows that our children will become what we are, so that we must spend time every day confessing our sins, staying right with God. Here’s the second Father’s Day resolution: “I will confess my sins daily to God.” Will you start today?

Jesus continues: “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth” (Matthew 5:5).

The Greek word translated “meek” meant strength under submission. Biblically it means to be under the control of the Holy Spirit, to obey the command to be “filled [or controlled] by the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18).

Our culture is self-reliant. So long as our finances are healthy, our jobs productive, our health good, our future is secure.

God knows that we do not possess the wisdom, patience, or strength we need, that we must have the Spirit’s power. So here’s our third Father’s Day resolution: “I will submit daily to the control of the Holy Spirit.” Will you make this surrender right now?

The fourth beatitude: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6).

“Righteousness” in Scripture deals with our actions, but also with our motives and our thoughts. God’s word teaches that as we think in our hearts, so we are (Proverbs 23:7, KJV). Moody said your character is what you do when no one is looking.

Our culture judges only our actions. So long as we are righteous in the eyes of our peers, we’re doing all we must.

But God sees our hearts. He knows that our children so often do what we do. So here’s our fourth Father’s Day resolution: “I will think and act by the word of God.” Does anything need to change in your life this morning as a result?

The fifth beatitude: “Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy” (Matthew 5:7).

Grace gives what we don’t deserve; mercy does not give what we do deserve.

Our culture knows little of mercy. We are driven by performance, possessions, and perfection. So we drive our children to succeed as we have. Recent periodicals have documented the problem of sports stress, for instance, as parents live vicariously through their children and push them to succeed at all costs.

But God knows that we fail more than we succeed, and that our children need our forgiveness, unconditional love, and mercy. So here’s our fifth Father’s Day resolution: “I will forgive my children when they fail.” As your Father forgives you.

The sixth beatitude promises, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God” (Matthew 5:8).

To be “pure in heart” means to live by God’s single purpose for your life. What is that purpose? To love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength, and to love others as yourself” (Matthew 22:37, 39).

Our culture defines success by how much we own, God’s by how much we give. Our culture measures us by how many people love us; God measures us by how many people we love.

So here’s our sixth Father’s Day resolution: “I will love my Father, my family, and others unconditionally.”

The seventh beatitude states, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God” (Matthew 5:9).

A “peacemaker” is one who seeks righteous resolution to conflict, not just the absence of conflict but the presence of justice.

Our culture thrives on competition, victory, success. God wants our families to live in harmony and peace with each other in an atmosphere of mutual respect and love.

So here’s our seventh Father’s Day resolution: “I will teach my children to respect and love each other.”

The last beatitude concludes: “Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:10).

Living by these principles will cost us. Humility, confession of sin, submission to God, biblical thinking, forgiveness, unconditional love, and mutual respect are not popular values in our culture.

So here’s our last Father’s Day resolution: “I will pay any price to be a man of God.” Our God, and our families, are worth our sacrifice.

We can give our children no greater gift than to be such men of God.

Conclusion

Is your father committed to such resolutions and values? Then thank him. If he is not, pray for him. And whoever he is, give him the gift he most wants to receive.

Chuck Swindoll said it well: “Dad is not perfect; he would be the first to admit it. Nor is he infallible, much to his own disappointment. Nor altogether fair, nor always right. But there’s one thing he is always—he is your dad, the only one you’ll ever have. Take it from me, there’s only one thing he needs on Father’s Day. Plain and simple, he needs to hear you say, ‘Dad, I love you.'” Will you give him this gift today?

And if you’re a father, will you give your children these resolutions from the word of God? Which will you give to them first, today?

A group of botanists hiking in the Alps found a very rare flower. It was growing on a ledge of rock which could be reached only at great peril and with a lifeline. None were experienced climbers, so they found a local shepherd boy and offered him several gold coins to climb down the rope and retrieve the flower.

The boy wanted the money, but feared that the job was too dangerous. He would have to trust strangers to hold his lifeline. Suddenly he had an idea. He left the group, and returned a moment later holding the hand of a much older man. He ran with excitement to the edge of the cliff and said to the botanists, “You can tie the rope under my arms now. I’ll go into the canyon, as long as you let my father hold the rope.”

Whose rope is in your hand today?