Get Real -- James

Good Morning! What a wonderful day to be in God’s house! I hope that you are excited about being here! Earlier Ricka did a fantastic job introducing the Annie Armstrong Easter offering. Our goal as a church this year is to give $1000.00. This offering is great because every dollar given is directed directly towards supporting missionaries, church planters, and support groups around this country and even in places like Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, and Even the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands! I am talking about Church planters Like i used to be in Saipan! Saipan is a US commonwealth island and falls under NAMB to provide church planters, so in years past, you directly funding my family as we planted churches by giving to the Annie Armstrong Easter offering! So this year, let’s do what we can to further support Church planting among North America and all associated territories. Let’s try to reach or even surpass our goal!

James - Intro

James was the brother of Jesus

James was not a believer

James choose to not follow Christ

Jesus Appeared to James and Changed everything I Corinthians 15:7

James became a leader in the church

Paul and Peter went to James as their pastor

James made major decisions about the church, her doctrine, and her future

The Book of James was one of the first books of the new testament written

James was martyred for his belief in Jesus

James 1:1-18

Get Real

A Study in James

Through the Storms (James 1:1-18)

Today we are starting a new series called “Get Real.” For the next several weeks, we are going to take a close look at the very controversial book of James.

Before we get into this study this morning, I would like to ask you if you would make a commitment with me. The book of James is only 5 chapters and only takes up 3-4 pages in most Bibles. Will you commit to reading the entire book of James once a day until we finish this series? I believe it could change your life. Do you want to be a Real Christian? Would you like to experience Real Growth? Would you like to have a Real effect on people around you? Make this commitment with me to read through the entire book of James each day until we finish this series. Make a copy of it and staple it together to carry with you on your lunch break. Read it at breakfast, or during a break at work. I believe it can change your life.

The Book of James is an often overlooked and forgotten book of the Bible. Recently, however, it has been getting more press as it address many social issues that we face today like, materialism, and poverty. The book of James is actually the book that split the catholic and protestant churches hundreds of years ago. We are going to look into that in a few weeks.

Today we are going to look at how to get through the storms of life. In the next few weeks we are going to look at things like, favoritism, having authentic faith, having a provocative faith, knowledge, wisdom, how to plan out our lives, prayer, suffering, materialism, and much more. It is going to be a great series, I hope that you will plan on NOT missing a Sunday!

In society today I think that you would agree that most people want what is real. You don’t want a Walmart Cola, if you had your choice you get a real Coke or Pepsi! You don’t want a fake friend, you want a real friend. Most people today want to experience what is real, not what is fake. People want to experience real community. People want to experience real, vibrant faith.

Ever met a fake person? Always has that fake person smile on? You knew that if you turned your back they would turn on you in an instant? IF you know anyone like that, or if you are like that! Then you know who this book was written too. It was written to Jewish Christians were for the most part, “Faking It” They were not living out their lives as Christ had instructed, so James wrote a letter to give them a wake up call. A historian put it this way, “James was a simple, homespun preacher who was perturbed at people who were not living right.” He wrote this letter to Christians who should have known better, Jewish Christians who knew the law, who had left Jerusalem and lived in modern day Iraq and Iran.

James wrote to these Christians to address several problems. Like, divisiveness, intolerance, favoritism, and the overpowering desire for wealth and power.

Really if you were to sum up the book of James it would be “stop sitting around and do something!” There are two parts of this book. First, roadblocks that keep you from living out your faith. Second, ways to live out that kind of faith. Today we are going to focus on a topic that falls into that roadblock category.

Turn to the book of James and chapter one. James was one of the first books written in the new testament, but was one of the last to be included in the Bible as we know it today. It was recognized as inspired in the 4th century. It was written somewhere between 45 and 50 AD. This means that it was written 10-15 years after Christ ascended. It was written by James, the brother of Jesus Christ! Imagine, this book was written by a man who grew up with Jesus. He probably knew him better than Peter and John!

James was stoned to death in 62 AD by Jewish leaders. James was a church leader in Jerusalem. Many of the people that he is writing to in this letter are facing major persecution just like what ended his life. They didn’t know how to face it, so he addressed it in this letter.

James 1:1–4 (ESV)

James 1:1–4 ESV

1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings. 2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

How is it possible to rejoice and face trials at the same time? Most of us really don’t have any idea do we? When we face hard times, when we have a bad day, we get mad! We blame people, we blame God, we wonder what we did to deserve this bad day! So how is it possible to take James’ advice and rejoice? How is it possible to say thank you for the trials that we face? That is what Count it all Joy means!

Right now, all of us are facing trials. Maybe it is a financial need, you don’t know how that next bill will be paid. You feel that no matter what you do, you will never catch up financially. Maybe it is a trial with a family member. A child, a spouse or parent. Maybe you are that couple that is saying “we struggle to connect with each other.” Maybe it is relationally, spiritually, emotionally. You are thinking, is there an end in sight? Things used to be better than this.

Maybe it is a child, you just can’t get through to him or her, this child will not listen to anything you say. There are days that you are in so much pain that you just sit and cry, no you scream, I don’t know how to get through to them!

Parents? There are many of you here dealing with hurt that you’re received from parents. Things you have held onto for years. Broken promises, hurtful things that they said, maybe something you said to them. You would give anything to hear those words, “Way to go, I am so proud of you.”

Maybe it is a job, you are so frustrated with yours. Or maybe you can’t seem to find a job. IT is always out of reach. Maybe you have a boss that adds on the work but shows no gratitude.

How is it possible to consider it all joy when we meet trials? I think, We must focus on eternity.

We must focus on eternity.

When you first became a Christian that is probably what drew you to God, the idea of spending eternity somewhere. Not only that you could spend your life here on earth better but you could better the way you spent your eternity. The problem is that after we are saved, we often forget about eternity. We start living like eternity is just a big fairy tale. It becomes one of the last things on our minds. Eternity is actually a huge topic in James! James keeps pointing us to eternity, he keeps saying you can make it through this because of eternity, or you need to change the way you live because of eternity.

James 1:3–4 ESV

3 for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

These versus tell us what will happen if we approach trials in this way. They will build us, strengthen us, and prepare us for eternity. Instead of looking for the easy way out of a problem, We need to focus on what God is doing.

We need to focus on what God is doing.

We need to look at what God wants to do through that problem. How is it going to improve me. Maybe he wants me to grow in that area. Maybe he wants us to know him better and is using a problem to get our attention. They still hurt, they aren’t fun, but we are better because of them.

James 1:5–8 ESV

5 If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. 6 But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. 7 For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

Jesus said similar things in Gospels about asking God for things. Have you ever had a time when you asked God for something and nothing happened? In school, in college, you asked for an A, or like me, you asked for Date? You promised God that you would go to the deepest regions of China or Africa, if He would just give you an A, or a date to the prom, or BOTH. But you still got a D, and you still stayed home from prom. What went wrong? You asked for it, why didn’t you get it? Ever think those verses were just a license to want, and then ask, then get? In fact a lot of books on prayer use these verses to say just that. Just ask God for whatever and believe with all your heart and He will give it to you. Health and Wealth and Prosperity Gospel… Is that what it is saying though?

Let us take a closer look. The first part talks about wisdom. Since God is willing and able to give us wisdom, any lack of wisdom must be our fault. Often though, when we are facing trials and storms, we don’t ask for wisdom. What do we ask for? Just to get though them! James is saying, We must change our perspective

We must change our perspective

Ask for wisdom instead. Ask so that you will know why you are going through that storm. Don’t just ask to get out of it, ask to figure out why it is happening. Ask to know what God wants you to learn as you go through it. That is the most important, God, what do you want me to learn?

In America we are obsessed with eliminating discomfort. Look in your medicine cabinet. Look at your sofa! James tells us to change our viewpoint and our thought patterns that make us think in this way. And instead of asking for the elimination of discomfort, to ask for wisdom to understand God’s purpose behind a trial. He is saying, “In the middle of your storm, you really only need 2 things. Wisdom, and Prayer.” In a Trial you need two things: Wisdom and Prayer.

In a Trial you need two things: Wisdom and Prayer.

What about asking in faith? We need to understand this verse in context of what is going on in this letter. I have heard this verse used to tell us that if we just asked for a new car it would be there in the morning. But James Is talking about wisdom. He isn’t talking about anything else. He is saying ask God for wisdom in trials and He will give it to you. Ask God to help you see His perspective and you will get it.

The problem is not with God, He wants us to have wisdom, but we often don’t ask.

What about doubt? This is the contrast in this passage. Doubt causes us to waffle back and forth. The result of doubt is inaction.

The result of doubt is inaction.

The one who doubts and wavers is tossed around like a small boat in a hurricane. This word doubt means to withdraw or to desert. The idea is of a person facing a storm and heeding Job’s Wife’s advise of “Cursing God” Or denying God. Turning their back on God during a storm.

This doubt is not just the every day average human doubt. That kind of doubt is addressed by David in the Psalms. In Psalm 96 David voiced his doubts about the character and trustworthiness of God. In Psalm 6 He wonders if God has rejected Him, He even tries to bribe God into action! But in the middle of this very human and honest doubt, David is reminded of all God has done for him in the past, and he gains hope for tomorrow.

James 1:9–11 ESV

9 Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10 and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. 11 For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

In Vs 9 James switches topics for a minute. He talks about the poor, and our relationship to money and how we are to view it. with all the early Christians were facing while enduring the persecution of the Roman empire, these verses deserve special treatment and a sermon all to their own. So we will come back to them at a later date.

James continues in Vs 12 by going back to his main point on how we are to deal with trials and temptations. The Storms of our lives.

James 1:12–15 ESV

12 Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him. 13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. 14 But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15 Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.

He begins to discuss the difference between trials and temptations. Trials are the things that come into our lives which may come from God that has a purpose of making us grow. Temptations though come from us or Satan. Never from God. Sometimes though it is hard to know the difference.

He tells us that if we make it through the trials there will be a reward. Something on the other side of the storm to look forward too. Again, He is telling us to focus. We must focus on eternity.

We must focus on eternity.

There is the sun on the other side of the Storm. James reminds the readers of this letter to keep eternity in view.

We are told through the Bible that God often tests His children, but he never tempts them.

So what about temptations? How do we handle those? We Must Find and Identify the Source

We Must Find and Identify the Source

First we have to recognize where they come from so that we can understand how to deal with them. Temptations come from Satan and from us. They come from Satan because that is what he does. He tries to destroy what God has built.

Temptations come from us because we are sinners. We have a sinful nature. Even after we become a Christian we still have this sinful nature. This is not a popular idea these days. Our culture does not like the fact that humans have a tremendous capacity for evil. Our society believes that humans are essentially good and that the universe is a place of safety and support. All one has to do is look at a person like Vladimir Putin and see the folly in this kind of thought.

One author puts it this way, “James teaches us this: There are forces in us and around us that are opposed to God, and within us exists a bent to oppose God, to hide from God, to disobey. We may not like the fact that we have the capacity to sin. We may not like bearing the responsibility for our action. But however much we may wish it were not so, our wishing cannot change what is. And so James discusses this capacity for sin within us, because he does not want us to fool ourselves.” — anonymous

So how do you handle temptation? First you need to know what tempts you! This is different for everyone! You cannot defend against an enemy you can’t see.

A lot of Christians go to I Cor. 10:13 when discussing temptations.

1 Corinthians 10:13 ESV

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.

Is that really helpful to you though when you are facing your temptation. The one that seems to own you. The alcohol, the tobacco, the lust, the addiction, the television, the movies. Does this verse help you?

I have been in ministry a long time. Even before I went to college I was in ministry teaching children’s church and hosting Bible clubs. In college we had prayer groups that would meet, and we would share prayer requests and share our struggles and ask for prayer. I would often hear stories of guys who had, “gone too far” with a girl. They would say that this verse didn’t make any sense to them. They were in a dark basement with a girl watching a movie and it just happened. They say, “where was my way out?” The key here is this. There were numerous ways out, they just failed to see them. For starters, they could have stayed home, they could have chosen to not watch a movie in a dark basement at 2 in the morning when no one else was around!

To not give in to temptation takes work. Everyone is different. We each have different temptations and different ways of avoiding them. Some temptations are more dangerous than others. Some hurt only you and others can hurt your entire family or even your entire community. Maybe you are tempted to sacrifice your family time or your God time or your morals for an advancement at work, for some overtime pay. Maybe you are tempted to look at things that you shouldn’t, maybe you are tempted with things that could destroy your family and your life, maybe it is something smaller. Maybe you are tempted with food. If you are tempted by sweets, don’t have them in the house! Whatever the temptation, the best way to over come it is to remove it. Remove Temptation from your life.

Remove Temptation from your life.

I used to have a terrible soda addiction! I was addicted to Mountain Dew. I would drink between 8-12 cans of mountain dew a day! It was not until I got rid of all the soda in my house and stopped buying it, that I actually kicked the habit and got rid of the addiction. After a while, once I had beaten it, Mountain Dew took on a new flavor to me, I actually dislike the flavor, the thought of it makes me a little sick!

That is how all sin should be to us, what we once love and desire, we should ask God to allow us to see it, smell it, taste it, hear it, as He does. O Lord make that which is detestable to you, also detestable to me!

You need to know what your buttons are. You need to know when you are most likely to give in to temptation. Know your weaknesses and make provisions to avoid them.

Know your weaknesses and make provisions to avoid them.

Flee from them.

One more thing about temptation. Just because you are tempted to do something doesn’t mean you have sinned. The mall is a terrible place. Everywhere you look, you will find pictures of people not wearing anything. They are trying to sell wallets, watches, deodorant, cologne. Why naked people make people want to buy things is beyond me, but just because you have seen that accidentally, doesn’t mean that you have sinned. It is sin when you choose to act on what you have seen.

James 1:16–17 ESV

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

James closes this part of his letter by saying that every good and perfect gift comes from a God who loves you. He puts eternity back in perspective by saying, here is the point, here is what I am saying, this is where good things come from. When we go through storms, it is important to remember eternity, to keep the big picture in mind. To ask the questions, what is God trying to show me?

Right now everyone in this room is dealing with some kind of temptation. Maybe it is gossip, cheating, (financially or relationally), food, doubt, working to much, whatever! Maybe you are fighting those temptations on your own. You are being owned by those temptations because you can’t let go of them and will not allow God to work in your life to bring you out of them.

There is a way out. It might be very hard for you to choose. It might mean saying no to money, you might have to confront a friend that makes it easy to sin, you might have to confess for not being honest about something. What ever it is , you need to confess it to God and ask for God’s help to break free of that sin. The other side of making that tough decision is something better. The Sun on the other side of the storms are the gifts that God wants us to have. The life that he wants us to experience. So Let’s be Real with ourselves, Real with God, and Real with each other. God wants authentic followers.

We are going to celebrate Communion or the Lord’s Supper this morning. And I think it is important to read what Paul wrote to the Corinthians about Communion.

1 Corinthians 11:27–32 ESV

Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself. That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died. But if we judged ourselves truly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged by the Lord, we are disciplined so that we may not be condemned along with the world.

Paul and James, while their letters seem to be in disagreement about certain things, we will dive more into that in weeks to come, they are actually in complete agreement and are complimentary to each other.

I this, I know Paul and James are walking side by side in agreement. Before we take communion, before we remember the broken body and split blood of Jesus that was offered as a sacrifice for our sins, we need to take a moment and, as Paul says, examine ourselves. What sin and temptation are you struggling with? Choose to acknowledge it and confess it to God today! Why wait? Please do not eat and drink condemnation onto yourself this morning!

Let us take a moment right now to look inward. What in your life do you need to make right? What relationship should you, right now, get up and go make right? What person should you call and seek restoration? Let us go to the table of communion with a pure heart and a clear conscience. Let us enter the throne room of God and eat at his table with boldness, not because of anything we have done, but because of what Jesus has accomplished for us and what we have proclaimed boldly in faith. Let us take just a few moments right now to seek Him and His forgiveness and restoration.

Pause for silent prayer and reflection.

1 Corinthians 11:23–26 ESV

For I received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.