05.04.07
Posted in James at 12:25 pm by dowboy
There is an expression – “Talk is cheap, but actions count”. In a sense this is true, but in another sense it is not – because according to James, talk can cost us our very souls. During the Second World War, in an attempt to keep national security, the government started a “Careless talk costs lives” poster campaign. In this passage, James uses the idea of words - the way we speak and the way God speaks - to show us the true path to blessing in the Christian life and to keep us from careless talk. In vs. 19-25 he lays down the principles and then in vs. 26-27 he gives us two examples of what he is teaching - in vs. 26 an example of how not to use our words; and in vs. 27 an example of how to use God’s Word. Remember, James was a Jewish Christian steeped in the Old Testament Scriptures and so what he is teaching here reminds us a great deal of the Book of Proverbs - the book which is often called Wisdom for Living. Here, then, in James 1:19-27 we have God’s Wisdom for our use of both our words, and our use of His Word. Read the rest of this entry »
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14.02.07
Posted in James at 11:53 pm by dowboy
How much do you love God? That is the question which James is asking us in 1:12-19a. In our good times and our bad, are we learning to love Him more? In particular, does the testing of our faith add to or take away from our love for Him? Read the rest of this entry »
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Posted in James at 11:51 pm by dowboy
I hope this admission doesn’t age me too much, but when I was hitting my early twenties, my ambition was to wear a suit to work every day, drive a jazzed up Vauxhall Cavalier (because they were the standard company car of the day) and have a job with loads of foreign travel. Yuppyville was where I wanted to live and work – that was the target I was aiming at so that if I ever reached it, I would have felt as if I’d made it. But the question James wants to ask us tonight is this – is yuppyville everything? Have you truly made it when you get there? Read the rest of this entry »
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31.01.07
Posted in James at 5:52 pm by dowboy
Why does God cause the righteous to suffer? That is the question which has haunted God’s people for thousands of years – right back to the days of Job and to Psalm 73. Is that the question which is haunting you tonight as you look at the sufferings of God’s people, or perhaps even the difficulties you are going through at the moment – why does God allow the righteous to suffer? Tonight, I want to look, from James 1:2-8, at, at least, part of the answer to that question. Read the rest of this entry »
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10.01.07
Posted in James at 5:45 pm by dowboy
Read: James 1:1
Having now finished our series of studies on what the Shorter Catechism has to say about Prayer, I thought I would change tack slightly and begin a study in a particular book of the Bible. But, knowing that on a Wednesday night we are all tired and we are here primarily to pray, I didn’t want to burden you with long sermons and heavy thought. So I decided that together we would study the Book of James. I reckon we can get through this book in 15 short studies; in fact, I’ve set myself the target of 15 15 minute studies through this exciting and challenging book. Read the rest of this entry »
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