ASSASSIN
08-01-2008, 07:38 PM
Sunday School lesson for August 3, 2008
DOERS OF THE WORD -
James 1:17-27
BACKGROUND:
For the past several weeks we have been studying a few of the many positive attributes of our Lord and Savior. In retrospect, we must admit that He did it all for us. He set examples and raised standards for the world to see. Now, it’s our turn. After all that Jesus has done for us – culminating in the greatest Act of Salvation the world has ever known – it is clear that it is now our turn...
But the question arises, how do we “thank” Jesus for all He has done? We will see in the lessons during the coming weeks that the answer lies beyond mere human capabilities. Of course, human response is necessary, but so is prayer to God for His help in our reaching lofty goals we must all reach if we would gain Eternal Life...
James is known as a brother of Jesus (Galatians 1:19 ) and is a somewhat disjointed collection of practical directives. But despite this fact, the work as a whole is remarkable. It is aimed at Jews, but applies very well to us today...
GIFTS FROM GOD (James 1:17 , 18)
James gets right to the point: EVERY GOOD GIFT comes from God. So that man might not mistake the meaning, James goes on to describe the Giver of those good gifts as the “Father of lights”. That is, the Giver is the one who spoke light into existence. And just as is true of the light, the Maker is unchanging, and with no “shadow”...
This is all done for a purpose. The overview is that God, through His Son, set the stage for a new age and a new generation of men. The works of Jesus begat a new nation, of which, says James, the disciples of his day were the firstfruits. The question for us today is, are we continuing to beget?
TRUE RELIGION (James 1:19 -27)
James now sets out to list the qualities of this new generation of mankind. First, this people will be swift to hear, slow to speak and slow to human anger. Why? Because God’s saving justice is never served by human anger. Of course, in order to stave off human anger, one must do away with all remnants of evil. Once that is done, one can receive with meekness the Word of God, which can save your soul. Of course, one may receive the Word with arrogance, but such a reception would effectively stunt the growth of the Word in our lives. In other words, God’s people should not be arrogant...
Once received, the word will do little good if not put into action. It is never enough to be able to recite the word; it is also necessary to put that word into action. Don’t just HEAR the Word – put it to work in your life. In fact, each time one hears the Word, he obligates himself to DO he word. And when one goes to church, he usually hears the Word in one form or another, and is thereby obligated to respond. James makes it clear that the DOERS of the world are not unnoticed by God (although man may not show much respect); he is blessed by God for the deed...
James now turns to another area of concern for Christians. Be careful of those who SEEM religious, but has little control of his tongue. James is direct on this subject: if one cannot bridle his tongue, “…this man’s religion is vain”. In other words, true religion gives a person the power of self control, otherwise, his religion is faulty...
So just what IS “real” religion? James says it that which compels people to do certain things – among them being to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself “unspotted” before the world. During James’ day, these were important acts, since there was no state welfare system. This meant that the fatherless and widows had no one to depend on for their well being. Indeed, this became a major function of the new church, giving rise to the actions of church leaders in Acts 6...
Finally, God’s people should seek to remain “unspotted” from the world. That is, the Christian should not be influenced by the world, but rather the Christian should do his part to influence the world...
A
DOERS OF THE WORD -
James 1:17-27
BACKGROUND:
For the past several weeks we have been studying a few of the many positive attributes of our Lord and Savior. In retrospect, we must admit that He did it all for us. He set examples and raised standards for the world to see. Now, it’s our turn. After all that Jesus has done for us – culminating in the greatest Act of Salvation the world has ever known – it is clear that it is now our turn...
But the question arises, how do we “thank” Jesus for all He has done? We will see in the lessons during the coming weeks that the answer lies beyond mere human capabilities. Of course, human response is necessary, but so is prayer to God for His help in our reaching lofty goals we must all reach if we would gain Eternal Life...
James is known as a brother of Jesus (Galatians 1:19 ) and is a somewhat disjointed collection of practical directives. But despite this fact, the work as a whole is remarkable. It is aimed at Jews, but applies very well to us today...
GIFTS FROM GOD (James 1:17 , 18)
James gets right to the point: EVERY GOOD GIFT comes from God. So that man might not mistake the meaning, James goes on to describe the Giver of those good gifts as the “Father of lights”. That is, the Giver is the one who spoke light into existence. And just as is true of the light, the Maker is unchanging, and with no “shadow”...
This is all done for a purpose. The overview is that God, through His Son, set the stage for a new age and a new generation of men. The works of Jesus begat a new nation, of which, says James, the disciples of his day were the firstfruits. The question for us today is, are we continuing to beget?
TRUE RELIGION (James 1:19 -27)
James now sets out to list the qualities of this new generation of mankind. First, this people will be swift to hear, slow to speak and slow to human anger. Why? Because God’s saving justice is never served by human anger. Of course, in order to stave off human anger, one must do away with all remnants of evil. Once that is done, one can receive with meekness the Word of God, which can save your soul. Of course, one may receive the Word with arrogance, but such a reception would effectively stunt the growth of the Word in our lives. In other words, God’s people should not be arrogant...
Once received, the word will do little good if not put into action. It is never enough to be able to recite the word; it is also necessary to put that word into action. Don’t just HEAR the Word – put it to work in your life. In fact, each time one hears the Word, he obligates himself to DO he word. And when one goes to church, he usually hears the Word in one form or another, and is thereby obligated to respond. James makes it clear that the DOERS of the world are not unnoticed by God (although man may not show much respect); he is blessed by God for the deed...
James now turns to another area of concern for Christians. Be careful of those who SEEM religious, but has little control of his tongue. James is direct on this subject: if one cannot bridle his tongue, “…this man’s religion is vain”. In other words, true religion gives a person the power of self control, otherwise, his religion is faulty...
So just what IS “real” religion? James says it that which compels people to do certain things – among them being to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself “unspotted” before the world. During James’ day, these were important acts, since there was no state welfare system. This meant that the fatherless and widows had no one to depend on for their well being. Indeed, this became a major function of the new church, giving rise to the actions of church leaders in Acts 6...
Finally, God’s people should seek to remain “unspotted” from the world. That is, the Christian should not be influenced by the world, but rather the Christian should do his part to influence the world...
A