Author Archive for: meiling

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is James 4:1-10.  Let’s go!

James 4:1-2 (ESV) 
1  What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 
2  You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.
 
On verses 1-2:  James is saying that often times the reason why we slander, hurt and argue with the people around us is because there is something unhealthy going on inside of us. When we lust after things that don’t belong to us, when we envy what other people have, that unhealthy inside of us causes us to treat the people outside of us in unhealthy and hurtful ways.  Instead of looking to God for what we lack, we sit there, sulk and give others a hard time.

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is James 3:13-18.  Let’s go!

James 3:13a (NIV) 
13  Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life…

On verse 13a:  Earlier James told his readers to ask God for wisdom (James 1:5).  Now James addresses the question: How do you know if a person is truly wise or not?  Here in verse 13 we learn that wisdom is not so much shown in what facts and figures a person can recite.   Rather, how much wisdom a person has is shown by the way that person lives and by the decisions that person makes.  Wisdom and being book smart are not the same thing.  Some people are book smart and can tell you all sorts of facts and figures, but when it comes to making life decisions, or handling relationships, time or money, they live very foolishly.  God calls us to be wise and understanding in practical ways that matter the most.

James 3:13b (NIV) 
13  …by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is James 3:1-12.  Let’s go!

James 3:1 (NIV) 
1  Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.

On verse 1:  Some love the limelight that comes with being a teacher of God’s Word, but with the power of the podium comes great responsibility.  Teachers of God’s Word are often looked to as examples of how Christians should act and live.  That’s why if you want to teach God’s Word with effectiveness and longevity, your character in private needs to exceed your charisma on stage.

James 3:2 (NIV) 
2  We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check.

On verse 2:  This verse teaches us two important truths.  First, none of us is perfect – “we all stumble in many ways”.   Second, when you are careful with your words, you keep yourself from getting into unnecessary trouble (or, in James’ words, you keep your body in check).  As Proverbs 13:3 says, “He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin.”

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is James 2:14-26.  Let’s go!

On verses 14-26:  What a powerful and hard-hitting passage.  How do you reconcile this passage with other famous passages in the Bible like Ephesians 2:8 which clearly teach that “it is by grace you have been saved, through faith…not by works so that no one can boast”?  Is James saying here that you can earn your way to heaven by your own good works?  No.  Is he questioning whether faith in Jesus can really save you?  No.  Rather, here James is defining what real saving faith in Christ looks like.  If someone has real saving faith in Christ, that faith will express itself through action.  Anyone can say, “Jesus is my Saviour”, but whether or not that person truly believes that Jesus is their Saviour will become evident in how that person lives. 

James is not saying that you need to live a perfect Christian life before it can be concluded that you have true saving faith. (As James will later write in chapter 3, “we all stumble in many ways” (James 3:2)).  

Hi GAMErs,

Today’s passage is James 2:1-13.  Let’s go!

James 2:1 (NIV) 
1  My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don’t show favoritism. 

On verses 1-4:  James rebukes his readers for showing favoritism to rich people when they would walk into church while treating the poorer attendees poorly.  How about you?  Do you show favoritism?  Do you treat people whom you meet well or poorly based on how rich, beautiful or well-connected they appear to be, or based on what we think they can do for us?  

Many of us today have the tendency to “size people up” when we first meet them, to favour certain people over others based on external, superficial differences we see.    Yet the Bible calls showing favoritism sin.  Why?  It’s because showing favoritism falls short of the way God loves us.  God does not show favoritism (see Romans 2:11).  Jesus did not die only for those in the highest tax bracket, or only for those whom he thought could advance His cause. Jesus died for everyone.  Likewise, God calls us to love people regardless of how they “size up” in our eyes.