Friday, November 6, 2009
Now for the meat of the chapter - the actual verses. This particular day's notes were taken on scrap paper I found in my purse, because I did not have the foresight to bring a notepad with me to the Bible Study. I may get things wrong, or have incomplete thoughts as a consequence, but I will do my best.
It should not be a surprise, that given the information in the brief introduction to this chapter, that James' letter differs greatly from Paul's letters. Even the first verse is different. The greeting in James uses the word "chairein" which is a secular greeting in Greek, whereas Paul used a greeting which said "Grace and Peace." This verse is one of only two places where Jesus' name is mentioned, and James uses the word doula, or servant to describe his relationship to Christ. (I personally attribute the word 'doula' to childbirth, but the root meaning remains the same).
The next bit of notetaking is jumled, but I wrote down information about dispersal. The Jews (to whom James was presumably writing) had been dispersed through many means, including but not limited to being captured by the Assyrians, Babylonian captivity and Pompei conquering the Jews and bringing them to Rome. In my study Bible introduction it says,
"it has been plausibly suggested that there were believers from the early Jerusalem church, who, after Stephan's death, were scattered as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Syrian Antioch. This would account for James' references to trials and oppression, his intimate knowledge of the readers and the authoritative nature of the letter."
The next bit, verses 2 - 4, hit so close to home that I made them my blog byline. James talks here about testing, trials and temptations. This doesn't mean seduction into sin, but trials which purify your heart and desires. They make your walk with the Lord constant and steadfast. Speaking from my own experience, I feel that my trials have taught me to trust that God will take care of me and also that material possessions, while nice to own, really are more an ebb and flow. You get something, you loose something. Tom's bike gets stolen, we find two for free on Craigslist.org. (Though I know these things, it is incredibly difficult to live. For me, it's like knowing that the amusement park drop tower won't crash into the ground, but still being terrified by the fall.) It's basically a Temptation --> Trying -->Patience --> Perfection, although our version of perfection is pretty weak compared to Christ's example.
James tell us in verses 5 - 8 that wisdom is a gift from God. It keeps you from living a life of sin, and you can receive wisdom by honestly and doubtlessly (I'm not sure that's a word) asking the Lord for wisdom. If you ask sincerely and are not "double-minded" (Greek dipsuchos), God will give generously.
1 comments:
so I'm late in coming to James, but it's my NT reading this week...
James is an oh-so-practical book- 54 commands in 108 verses.
on v.2-4 and patience- I am thankful for that promise that God gives fruit from trials (even when they are due to succumbing to our own temptations and bad choices!), that the end result of endurance is that we "lack nothing."
on v. 5-8 and prayer- I believe that Scripture shows us that the key here is wisdom, and praying for God's will to be done. In his commentary on this section, Matthew Henry writes,
"A mind that has single and prevailing regard to its spiritual and eternal interest, and that keeps steady in its purposes for God, will grow wise by affliction, will continue in fervent devotion, and rise above trials and oppositions. When our faith and spirits rise and fall with second causes, there will be unsteadiness in our words and actions. This may not always expose men to contempt in the world, but such ways cannot please God..."
Isn't the challenge to constantly acknowledge that His ways are not our own? Spiritual and eternal interest is His, not necessarily our present earthly comforts.
"consider it all joy..." :-)
Did you finish up the rest of the book?
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