January 18, 2015

Today we continue the sermon series, “Practicing the Presence of God.” Hopefully you have had an opportunity to read the book of James or will be able to do so this week. It is a highly practical book, whose authorship is commonly attributed to James, the brother of Jesus. In this view, James would have been written earlier than the gospels, a point that is substantiated by the early form of the sayings of Jesus alluded to therein. James is also a highly ethical book of wisdom by which to live a Godly life. Last week we explored how James encourages us to practice the presence of God in the inevitable trials of live which affect Christians and non Christians alike. James encourages us to have endurance and to approach trials with faith and courage rather than doubt. In such a position, with a focus on God rather than our trials, we will persevere. As we begin chapter 2 today, we will be skipping over a few verses that I want to mention… because I need to hear them over and over. James 1:19-25 states: You must understand this, my beloved: let everyone be quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger; for your anger does not produce God's righteousness. Therefore rid yourselves of all sordidness and rank growth of wickedness, and welcome with meekness the implanted word that has the power to save your souls. But be doers of the word, and not merely hearers who deceive themselves. For if any are hearers of the word and not doers, they are like those who look at themselves in a mirror; for they look at themselves and, on going away, immediately forget what they were like. But those who look into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and persevere, being not hearers who forget but doers who act—they will be blessed in their doing. These verses remind me of Jesus’ parable of the wise and foolish builder which concludes the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7:24-27: "Everyone then who hears these words of mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on rock. And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not act on them will be like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell—and great was its fall!" The bottom line: We are saved by grace… yet called to be hearers and doers of the word. When we hear Jesus’ words and act on them, we build our house (read lives, church) on a rock where the rain, floods and winds of life will not prevail against us. May we truly be “quick to listen, slow to speak, slow to anger,” even as we build on the foundation of Christ. Blessings, Tim