perfect

last night was the first bible study of the year. since i'm a newcomer to the study group, and i've been feeling pretty emotionally fragile these last couple of days, i made a big effort to stay focused and involved, to be confident about my ideas and my opinions, and to attempt to articulate myself well. we're studying the book of james for the next few weeks, and though i had intended to read and make notes on the book in its entirety before the first study, it didn't happen. i did, however, go through the first chapter last wednesday, just before the crazy badness went down (check out my sad white chick homie lingo, hehe).

james was most probably written by james, eldest brother of jesus. the apostle james was martyred years before the letter's composition, and neither of the other two jameses (hehe) mentioned in the new testament were well-known or influential enough to have introduced themself simply as "a servant of god and of the lord jesus christ." it was probably written to christian jews scattered from jerusalem in about 47/48 AD, so about ten years after jesus' resurrection. in contrast to paul's letters, which were generally addressed to the gentiles, james presents issues from a jewish perspective.

as we covered last night, james 1:1-11 presents three main ideas: perseverence, wisdom from god, and humility.

1.) perseverence (vs 2-4):

consider it pure joy, my brothers,

whenever you face trials of many kinds,

because you know that the testing of your faith

develops perseverence.

perseverence must finish its work so that you

may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

we should look on trials with 'pure joy'--not enjoying them as such, but recognising them as god-given opportunities to develop perseverence (in faith, in trusting god and his 'big plan'). perseverence in turn creates 'maturity' and 'completeness', which translates into godliness, that is, a state of becoming what god desires for our lives. trials can thus be used as a tool for becoming more godly. this doubles back: the more godly a person is, the more able they shall be to cope with trials and tribulations.

matthew 5:11-12: (jesus said:) "blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

romans 5:3: not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverence; perseverence, character; and character, hope.

1 peter 1:6: in this (the promise of heaven) you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while you may have had to suffer grief in all kinds of trials.

2.) wisdom from god (vs 5-8):

if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask god

who gives generously to all without finding fault,

and it will be given to him.
but when he asks, he must believe and not doubt,
because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea,
blown and tossed by the wind.

that man should not think he will recieve

anything from the lord;

he is a double-minded man,

unstable in all he does.

james turns to the man who is under trial, and has not the wisdom to deal with it or comprehend god's working amidst such hardship. he calls for us to ask god for wisdom, to pray to god that he will grant us wisdom for attaining godliness in heart, thought and deed. the focus of the struggling believer's prayer is a desire to live in accordance with god's wishes. the 'doubter' james speaks of is 'double-minded' and 'unstable', tossed around and uncertain in his belief. but there is no middle ground. you either believe, or you don't. you are commited, or you're not. this doesn't mean that if you believe you won't doubt, or fail to live up to god's perfect standards--because both are inevitable. but it does mean that a 'double-minded' man, whose moral focus is split and whose butt aches from fence-sitting, cannot expect anything from god, because if you are not for him, you are against him. so one could almost translate verse six to read: 'but when he asks, he must believe and not not believe.'

3.) humility (vs. 9-11):

the brother in humble circumstances

ought to take pride in his high position.

but the one who is rich should take pride in his low position,

because he will pass away like a wild flower.

for the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant;

its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed.

in the same way, the rich man will fade away

even while he goes about his business.

these few verses are pretty complicated, and at first glance fairly jarring to rich westerners like myself. suffice to say that riches are meaningless, and the pursuit of wisdom for godliness, through perseverence, is all-important. james doesn't talk about the rich in a positive light due to situational issues--he is, after all, writing to a predominately poor sector of society, and, at least generally, condemning rich non-christians. the message for us is not that all rich people are going to hell, because god has blessed us with those riches andand he himself placed us in our privileged position in australia. inherent in these verses is a stark warning against the temptation of wealth and a plea for us to avoid having a heart for riches.

with a view to eternity: when jesus returns, the poor will no longer be poor, but the rich will lose their wealth. wealth and earthly possessions are temporary, and ultimately insignificant.

sounds gracing my eardrums: missy higgins, katie