As James draws his letter to a close, he does so by laying the foundation for those who wonder from the truth and the rewards for bringing them back.
If we respond with prayer, praise, and trust in the wonderful promises we can walk in the power of the amazing strength that God provides.
The point to grasp from this passage is straightforward. When we suffer we pray, we praise, and we call on people who can minister to us in our need.
Prayer expresses our dependence upon God in the middle of our suffering. Praise expresses our determination to glorify God in the middle of our suffering.
The bottom line is that we don’t tell the truth because we took an oath. We tell the truth because we have been transformed into a truth telling saint.
Earthly wisdom counts those who are successful, influential, and wealthy as blessed. Wisdom from above counts those who faithfully endure to be blessed.
The issue is our attitude toward wealth. If we love the idea of being wealthy, we are as guilty as the wealthy person who James describes in these verses.
James strikes at the very heart of those who confidently and meticulously plan out their endeavors and life without God.
We do well to remember that God alone is the Judge of the thoughts and intentions of the heart. He is the only One who can render perfect judgments.
Greater grace creates in us the proper attitude toward sin. The more grace we receive the more we are exalted.
I hope you want to know humility, not just for the sake of knowledge, but so that you become a humble vessel into whom God pours greater grace.
The test of honest self-examination has an objective. It is here to humble us and to strip us of all self-confidence, self-assurance, self-righteousness.
James makes a point that must be acknowledged. The seeds which produce the fruit of righteousness will be the seeds of God’s wisdom, the wisdom from above.
James is calling us to be determined, decisive, and driven to become wise and understanding. We must all acknowledge that we really have no other option.
The one who is wise and understanding will display wisdom and understanding through moral and virtuous deeds which are done in the gentleness of wisdom.
The control of the tongue is a valid test of genuine faith. Our words will inevitably reveal the true condition of our hearts.
James’ point is that our words say a lot. Your words are proclaiming a loud message. But what is the message being communicated by your words?
Just as indisputable as the reality that the body without the spirit is dead, so is the faith that never produces any evidence of righteous deeds.
If you do not see the evidence of saving faith in your life, humble yourself before God and cry out to Him for mercy. He will hear your cry.
Mercy is victorious over judgment. The one whose life is characterized as being merciful shows the same kind of mercy he or she has received from God.
The test of impartial love requires of us that we look at how we love others. The second part of the test requires us to look at how we love “all” others.
Prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. Look intently into the perfect law.
The general orientation of our lives as doers of the word will be to show our love to God and our love to others consistently.
We must recognize that the word of God received is able to save our souls. This is the work that the word of God performs.
If you are born again you can win the battle against temptation. If you are consistently losing the battle, perhaps you need to be born again.
If we trust Christ as the One who took our place and endured the wrath of God for us, we will repent of our sins and strive to live a righteous life.
James is teaching us to look above the circumstances, especially the circumstances related to our trials. We need the eternal perspective.
Since we lack wisdom, we must ask of God, and it will be given. This is the promise and God will give this wisdom generously, and without reproach.
When we have become spiritually mature, we will have come to the place where it isn’t about me, it is about Christ being formed in me.
This section of James deals with how the Christian is to respond to the trials in life and the first thing we find is a command to consider trials as joy.
Now that we know who wrote this important book of the New Testament, we find here in verse 1 the identity of those to whom it was written.
If you are a true Christian you are not your own. You belong to Jesus Christ by virtue of His purchase of you. He shed His blood to redeem you.
