DISTINCTIONS

"Have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?" (James 2:4).

 

"Distinctions" here means "differences" or "divisions".  The idea is that the church is noting their differences (i.e. rich vs poor).  These differences are distinctions that God himself does not make and thus they are futile.  At Grace River, we have learned to read "good" as "beneficial" and "evil" as "detrimental".  In this verse, then, we find that difference-finding or judging based on externals is detrimental.  It is the result of faulty reasoning.  We are not capable on our own of determining a person's present and future value especially by simply looking at externals like the way that they are dressed.  God judges the heart!

 

Today, let's continue to practice looking past what we see to find what God sees.

APPEARANCE

"and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, 'You sit here in a good place,' and you say to the poor man, 'You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,'" (James 2:3).

 

We make big mistakes when we make judgements based on appearance.  We are not able to discern the full potential of people and thus it is foolish to make judgements based on looks.  We don't know if people potentially are going to do us harm or do us good.  I am always excited to see new people come through the doors of Grace River.  I can only imagine the value that their gifts and their friendship will bring into our church.  Let's learn to see everyone that God brings to us as a gift and let's treat them as such.

 

Today, let's look past appearance and discover the amazing people that God is bringing into our lives.

VALUE

"For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes" (James 2:2)

 

James is setting up a situation where the church might show personal favoritism (receiving the face).  Two men show up for worship--a rich man and a poor man.  Which man receives the better welcome?  I once served on staff with a pastor who encouraged the evangelistic pursuit of the rich over the poor. Though he would never admit this, it was clear to me (a young youth pastor) that he believed practically that the rich were of more value to the church than were the poor.  What we do says more about what we believe than what we say.

 

Today, you will likely encounter both the rich and the poor.  How will you value them?

JUDGING

"My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism" (James 2:1)

 

"Personal favoritism" in the Greek could be translated literally, "to receive one's face".  In other words, it is to take something at face value.  It is to look at someone's face--someone's appearance, and to make a judgement based upon what you see.  James tells us that faith in Jesus does not allow us to just "receive one's face".  We are not to judge based on what we see (the external) but rather we are to judge based upon faith in what God is doing (the present internal work and the future potential fruit).  "For there is no partiality (face-receiving) with God" (Romans 2:11).

 

Today, let me encourage us all to resist the easy way of judging appearances, and rather, to prayerfully consider the value of all that God may be up to in someone's life.

RELIGION

"Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world" (James 1:27).

 

James told us in verse 26, that a person who talks too much with an unbridled tongue is not religious (spiritual).  In verse 27, he tells us what God is really looking for in religious activity.  The religious acts that God considers to be pure is to visit (implies helping and caring) orphans and widows.  In James' day, widows and orphans were the most vulnerable of all people--they had no way to provide for themselves.  They shared a common loneliness and a common place in a society that prevented them from making a livable wage.  The truly spiritual person's heart is moved to action by those who are suffering helplessly.

 

A second measure of spirituality is also included in verse 27--keeping oneself from the influence of the world's values.

 

So today, let us adopt two agendas: #1--accomplishing God's agenda in the world by caring for the broken and the helpless; and #2--accomplishing God's agenda in the world by guarding our hearts from all that the world would have us become.

LISTENING

"If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is worthless" (James 1:26).

 

If we talk more than we listen, then it's a sure sign that we are deceiving ourselves.  James says that those of us who think we are religious (spiritual) can actually disprove our religion by talking too much.  James has been addressing listening vs speaking since verse 19. This is the eighth day in a row that we've addressed the importance of hearing vs speaking.  I'm thinking that it must be important!  James uses the imagery today of riding a horse.  Our tongues, he says, should be bridled--controlled.  Please understand it's not the horse who controls the bridle--it's the rider.  In our case, God is the one who should be bridling our tongue--directing the direction of our words--or pulling back strongly and shouting "Whoa!"  Bottomline: if you think that you are spiritual, and yet you talk more than you listen, then you are fooling yourself--God isn't really in control of your tongue--or anything else for that matter.  By the way, "worthless" in the Greek means "vain, empty, useless, and dead".

 

Today, practice listening more than you speak.  Start by letting God have the bigger part of your prayer-time.  Listen to Him...and then listen to everyone else that he brings your way today.

BLESSED

"But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetul hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does" (James 1:25).

I love these kinds of verses!  We have a promise today!  "This man will be blessed in what he does"!  How would you like to be blessed in everything that you do today?  Sign me up--I'm ready!  There is a condition, however.  Back up one phrase from the blessing and we see that the one who will be blessed is characterized by being "an effectual doer" not "a forgetful hearer".  "Effectual doing" is effective activity--in other words, doing the things that work--the things that God is already doing around you.  "Effectual doing" is working at the things that God has already determined to bless--the very things that he is revealing to you.  There is one more thing that is revealed in today's verse in regards to having everything you do blessed by God.  We must look "intently" or very carefully at the "perfect law" (the Bible), which James further describes as "the law of liberty".  God has already set you up to succeed today and He is giving you strong hints about what to do and how to do it.  You need only take a long enough pause to listen carefully to what he is revealing in His Word--the very Word that frees you today.

Crack open your Bible today, read a paragraph or two, and affirm what it says to you and about you.  Then, walk forward in blessing!

STUDY

" . . . for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was" (James 1:24).

 

"Looked" means to study.  It means to look really close into the mirror and to examine all of the imperfections that one might see.  It would, of course, be futile to do so unless one intended to do something about the imperfections.

 

Maybe today, we can read the Bible in this way--ask yourself this question--"What about me needs improving?"  Then, open your Bible and read a paragraph or two.  Find a promise, a revelation, a correction, or an affirmation.  Partner with God to work on it today.

SEEING

"For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror . . ." (James 1:23).

 

James now illustrates the futility of hearing without doing by pointing out the absurdity of looking in a mirror and then not correcting the faults that one might see.  The whole point of looking in the mirror is so that we can see how we look--and then make changes if they are needed.  I like to take a nap on Sunday afternoon.  I am very careful after my nap to go and look in the mirror to see if my hair is sticking up.  You see, I have a cow lick that sticks straight up--especially after a nap.  Over time my cow lick has been replaced by a bald spot and so it's not as bad as it once was.  Nevertheless, I still look in the mirror to make sure that my hair isn't sticking up.

 

Let the Bible be your mirror today.  Read a paragraph and then respond as needed.  Don't read and ignore--rather read and improve!

DOING

"But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves" (James 1:22).

 

There is a big difference between hearing truth when someone shares it and actually doing something about it.  We are all capable of deceiving ourselves and ignoring the truth (especially if it contradicts what we want).  Of course, the greatest truth that any of us will ever hear comes through the Holy Spirit as we read the the Bible.  My habit is to look for one of four things every time that I read the scriptures: 1. Is there a promise?  2. Is there a revelation about who God is or what He does? 3. Is there something that I need to start doing?  4. Is there something that I need to stop doing?  I'm in the habit of reading one paragraph at a time, searching all the time, for some word or some insight that the Father might want to share with me.  It's deeply personal for me and I always expect that God has something to say about my day.  I have a journal where I write down the verses that God illuminates for me and I write down a few sentences about what I sense He is saying and how I will respond obediently.

 

Today, listen for words of promise, words of direction, correction, or revelation.  Hear them!  Adjust to them!  God is speaking--will you listen?

RECEIVING

"Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls" (James 1:21).

 

Whenever you see a "therefore", find out what it's there for!  In this case, "therefore" points back to the two previous verses. Because we are to be quick to hear and slow to speak and slow to get angry; and because our anger rarely lines up with God's perfect purposes; we are to do verse 21.

 

"Putting aside all filthiness" literally means in the Greek, "take off your dirty clothes".  "All that remains of wickedness" carries the idea of an overabundance--an excess of evil (detrimental characteristics and behavior).  So, while listening rather than speaking and hearing (and being impacted by it) rather than getting angry, since our anger doesn't line up with God's activity in our lives--we choose to take off our dirty clothes (our excess negative attitudes, behaviors, and justifications).  And when we take something off--we need to replace it with something better.  We take off our dirty clothes and we humbly receive the good gift given to us through the word grafted into our lives.  James says that to receive the word will eternally save our life!

 

Here's the bottom line.  When someone offends you today (when--not if...lol), rather than getting upset and getting defensive and getting angry--take a step back.  Receive whatever portion of the message may be true--you can reject the rest.  It takes humility to say, "I can see that you are spot on and I want to thank you for pointing it out to me so that I can work on improving".  When you do this, you are humbly receiving the word.  You are taking off your dirty clothes (and your detrimental attitudes, etc.) and you are allowing yourself to be saved--to be rescued. 

 

So today, don't get mad!  Rather . . . Listen . . . Learn . . . and . . . Live!

ANGER

"For the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God" (James 1:20).

 

Remember from yesterday that James equated anger with speaking when we should be listening.  If you ever argue (maybe I should put "when you argue") then you know what James is talking about.  The nature of an argument is to speak loudly over the other person rather than listening to them.  You want to win! (and of course you always lose).  In an argument, God's righteousness is not accomplished and no one is being heard.  "Righteousness of God" here should be understood as right living or doing the right thing as God defines "right".  There is such a thing as "righteous anger".  Jesus displayed it when he cleared the temple.  Here's the thing though--most of us rarely experience that kind of anger.  Ours is usually filled with a selfish defense of our rights.  Here's how you can check yourself when you are starting to get angry.  Evaluate your anger in the context of the Spirit's fruits: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  If your anger displays these virtues--go for it!  Otherwise, "be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger" (James 1:19).

 

Today, practice letting God be in control of your emotions. If you are wronged--just tell your Daddy--He will take care of it.

LISTEN

"This you know, my beloved brethren.  But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger" (James 1:19).

 

It's been said, "God gave us two ears and one mouth, so we can hear twice as much as we say".  I have had to learn the art of listening.  In the past, I've been slow to listen and quick to speak...lol.  I did it so often that I had a reputation for not really listening when people were speaking to me--now that's embarrassing!  It's something that I am still working on.  Let me share with you a truth that I've learned about listening vs speaking.  It has everything to do with love.  As I've learned to be present in a room and as I've learned to value people--as I've learned how to love, it's become much easier to listen.  To listen is to love someone--to value their words, their thoughts, and their perspective.  It's worthy of note that James, in our verse today, seems to be equating anger with speaking and that he is setting both of these in opposition to the desired virtue of hearing.

 

Today, practice hearing.  Value others words, and resist the urge to add your own.  Like Job's friends did for seven days--just listen!

GIFTS

"In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures" (James 1:18). 

• "In the exercise of His will" - God thought about it and then made a perfect decision. He decided what He wanted to do!
• "He brought us forth" - God's decision was that you would be born into this world on the day that you were born in the place where you were born.  A literal translation would be, "God gave birth to you".
•  "by the word of truth" - God gave birth to you (brought you into existance) through the Word of Truth (Jesus - see John 1:1-3).
•  "so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures" - The firstfruits (the tithe) belongs to God.  You and I are a tithe belonging to God.

 You are not an accident and you are certainly not a mistake.  You are a well-thought-out creation of God.  You were born on purpose as an act of God's will and God has a purpose for the rest of your life.

James 1:17 says that "Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above..."  You are literally a gift of God to the world--a good and perfect gift.

 

Today, you will encounter someone who needs the gift of God.  They will need you--your presence, your gifts, and your love.  God is sending you today as their miracle!  GO!

ASKING

"Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow" (James 1:17).

 

There is never a need for us to chase a lure or to desire fake food.  EVERY good (beneficial) thing that can be given is given by God alone.  What we desire in our inner being--what we often cannot fully describe--is given by the Father.  It is a perfect gift--a complete gift--lacking nothing.  It is fully satisfying!  God is the Father of the heavenly lights (sun, moon, and stars), and His light is never darkened or shadowed.  Just as His light is never eclipsed--so His gifts are never delayed or held back.  Everyday is Christmas! 

 

Spurgeon said, “Whether we like it or not, asking is the rule of the Kingdom. If you may have everything by asking in His Name, and nothing without asking, I beg you to see how absolutely vital prayer is.”

 

Give it a try today.  Just as surely as the sun is shining (whether you can see it or not), the gifts of God are being released to your prayer.  If you need a little more encouragement, check out what Jesus says in Matthew 7:7-11.

DECEIT

"Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren" (James 1:16).

 

"Deceived" is the idea of being led astray.  It's giving in to the hunger that makes the fishing lure look really tasty to the fish.  It's fake food--don't fall for it!

 

"Beloved brethren" is a term of endearment.  It's like saying sweetheart or baby--it expresses love.  I often give terms of endearment to my close friends--perhaps it's just a twist on their name--but it's a special term just for them.  It communicates (at least that's what I intend) love and care.  James is expressing his motivation of love for his friends when he tells them not to be deceived.

 

My translation of the verse would be, "You must not allow yourselves to be led astray!--I love you too much, my dear friends"

 

Now here is something that I have found to be true: I don't mind receiving correction and instruction from those that I know love me.  However, I usually dismiss the advice of those who are not investing in my life.  Perhaps that is why Ephesians 4:15 tells us that we should be, "speaking the truth in love".  As humans we may not be capable of hearing the truth about ourselves--except in the language of love.

 

Today, you will likely need to point out the truth to someone.  You may need to tell them that they are chasing a deadly lure.  Invest in them--love them--and they just might hear you.

DESIRE

"Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death" (James 1:15).

 

I don't remember exactly how he says it, but I have a friend that has taught me to ask something like, "What is the logical conclusion of the matter?", whenever I am tempted to sin.  In other words, what is likely to happen?  I tend to make a better decision if I act as if the worst scenario will happen (and the truth is--it might).

 

James 1:15 lays out for us the logical progression of sin.  It only takes a very small amount of lust (desire) to become pregnant.  Then the thought (lust, desire) grows within you until it is actually born (i.e. you act on it).  The sin itself, then becomes full grown as you feed it and exercise it.  Eventually, it dies--and you die with it.  "The wages (logical conclusion) of sin is death" (Romans 6:23).

 

The best time to deal with sin is early, when it is still just a desire.  It's not a matter of focusing on the desire--whatever it is--it's a matter of focusing on God--the one who can satisfy every desire.  If you are full, then you aren't hungry.  You don't avoid sin by starving your desires or by pretending that they don't exist.  You avoid sin by allowing your desires to be met by the only one who can truly satisfy them--Jesus.

 

Today, as you become aware of unmet desires, speak them out loud to your Father in Heaven.  Tell Him how hungry you are.  Allow God to feed you.

TEMPTED

"But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust" (James 1:14).

 

God says through James that He is not the one tempting us.  Rather we are tempted by our own lusts--our own desires. 

 

"Carried away" means to be lured away.  The really rotten thing about a fishing lure is that it looks great to a fish--it's the most delicious looking little thing that the fish has seen all day--and yet it's deadly to him.  It looks delicious and so he turns to follow it.  The fish is being lured away and is now in great danger of being caught.  The lure looks great, but if the fish bites--then he is headed for somebody's dinner table.

 

"Enticed" is a different word that carries a similar meaning.  It means, "to catch with bait".  A good fisherman knows what kind of bait to put on the hook--he knows what the fish is hungry for.  If a fish is not hungry, then it doesn't matter what kind of bait you put on the hook--he will not be caught because he isn't going to bite anything--he's not hungry.

 

You and I are tempted by our own appetites--our own desires.  If we pursue them, in opposition to God's wisdom, then we are being lured away--we are being enticed and baited.  It won't end well.  The problem is that we are hungry and consequently we are more than willing to chase fake food.  The better course would be to fill yourself at God's endless buffet.  Jesus said, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again" (John 6:35, NLT).  The only thing that will satisfy our cravings is Jesus!  If you don't fill up on Jesus--then you will be hungry all day--and the odds are that you will foolishly chase a lure.

 

Today, let me encourage you to do three things:  #1--Read a paragraph from the Bible. Reread it over and over again several times.  You're looking for a promise, a correction, a direction, or a revelation of who God is.  #2--Invite Jesus to feed you with Himself throughout the day when you get hungry.  #3--Share your lunch with someone who may be hungry--you just might save their life.