TRUST

"And because he did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man" (John 2:25).

 

Jesus did not need anyone to tell Him how untrustworthy people really are.  He knew because He had watched human history play out from the very beginning.  He had seen every sin, every act of betrayal, every disappointing failure.  Now this should actually be encouraging to you--it should take some of the pressure to perform away.  You see, if Jesus knows that you are going to blow it, and yet He still chooses to call you, to choose you, and to love you--then you can afford to just be you--a work in progress.  Jesus isn't holding His breath, hoping that you will get it right this time.  He knows you.  He is pulling for you and yet He understands that you will strike out, maybe as often as you get a big hit.

 

Today, understand that God loves you.  It's not based on your performance.  He just loves you--plain and simple!

TRUST

"Now Jesus, on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men" (John 2:24).

 

The word translated "entrusting" is the Greek word "pisteuo" which comes from the root "pistis". It's the same word that is translated as "faith" or "belief" in other New Testament passages.  Jesus did not trust (put his faith in) men because he knew the hearts of men.

 

If you think about it, most of our relational conflicts, come out of a sense of disappointment.  We trust someone and they fail us.  People (friends, family, coworkers, churches) don't live up to our expectations and we feel let down.  Our faith in them is destroyed.  We might do better to follow Jesus example and to just love each other expecting that failure will eventually happen.  That way, love is not conditioned on performance--but rather it is an expression of value.

 

Today, let's practice loving simply because because people are valuable.  And when they fail us (and they will)--let's practice grace.

SIGNS

"Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing" (John 2:23).

 

"Many believed in His name..."  His name is "Jesus" which literally means "God saves".  They believed that Jesus was, in fact, who His name said He was--the Savior, the Rescuer, The Deliverer, The Restorer, The Answer to their questions, and the Solution to their problems.  He is Jesus!  They believed because they could clearly see His actions, His miracles, and the difference that He was making.

 

Today, do you believe in His name?  If so, why?  Will others today see the difference that He is making in your life?

INFLUENCE

"Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment" (James 3:1).

 

At first glance, you might say, "whew, glad I'm not a teacher".  "Teachers" face a greater judgment than others because they profess to have a clear and full knowledge of whatever it is that they might be teaching.  In other words, a teacher should know what they are teaching and should practice their words (like faith and actions).  To teach someone something that we are not ourselves doing brings us into judgment.  We have become hypocrites--actors.

 

Now before you dismiss this teaching as not relevant to you, consider the possibility that all of us are teachers.  We teach our kids, we teach our friends, we teach our co-workers, we teach our neighbors.  Everyday we are teaching our values and our beliefs through our actions.  Yes, we are teachers--all of us!

 

What will you teaching those whom you influence today? 

BELIEF

"For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead" (James 2:26).

 

Do you feel like James just keeps hammering the same point over and over again?  It must be important!   Here it is again: Our faith is demonstrated by our actions and our actions demonstrate what we really believe.  Expressed faith without corresponding action is like a corpse--no life, no breath, no action, no ability to do anything.

 

What we do says more about what we believe than what we say!

 

If you don't read your Bible--then you don't believe that God will talk to you.

If you don't give--then you don't believe that God will take care of you.

If you don't pray--then you don't believe that God listens.

If you don't come to church--then you don't believe that God gathers with His people.

If you don't forgive--then you don't believe that God forgives you.

If you don't share your faith--then you don't believe that faith makes a difference.

 

What do you believe?  What do you do?

UNLIKELY

"In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?" (James 2:25).

 

I'll not recap the whole story of Rahab for you.  Rather I'll let you do a little reading for yourself: Joshua 2:1-24; 6:22-25; Hebrews 11:31; and best of all--Matthew 1:5.

 

It's amazing that God would use the faith/action of a prostitute to begin His conquest of the promised land for the children of Israel.  It's really amazing that Rahab's faith/action is worthy of mention in the Bible's "Hall of Faith" in Hebrews 11.  It's absolutely unbelievable that God would so ordain the generations that the faith/action of a prostitute would be chosen for the ancestry of Jesus.

 

If God can use Rahab . . . what can He do with you?

CONSISTENCY

"You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone" (James 2:24).

 

"Faith" and "works" go together.  In baseball, a pitcher needs a catcher and a catcher needs a pitcher.  Neither can accomplish their purpose without the other.  In the same way, faith produces actions and those actions produce more faith.  Both are essential.  We do what we believe and we believe whatever it is that we do.  God is calling us to consistently live out our beliefs--to do what we say that we believe.

 

What is one area of your life where you need consistency between belief and action?  Practice it today...