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JAMES CHAPTER 3 KJV WEB See previous page Jm 3,1-18 (92e) Thy kingdom come >> The narrow way >> Trail of good works >> You cannot walk two trails (239l) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Pursuing the knowledge of the kingdom >> Teachers >> Let not many of you become teachers >> Teachers incur a stricter judgment – Earlier, in Jm 1-26, he rebuked our speech, and now he is set to deliver a short dissertation regarding the same subject. Since he already wrote about this, why is he reiterating it? He's not. He writes again about our speech in a different context. A teacher of Scripture is the primary context of this chapter, though it is not the only one. He strongly cautions us to be careful about even wanting to be a teacher of God’s word, as Paul said in 1Tim 4-16, “Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.” The adage, “Actions speak louder than words,” seems untrue standing against James chapter three, but there is a difference in what this adage says and what James says. The adage refers to the moment a person crosses our path and notices that our words do not match what we do, whereas James is speaking over the course of our lives: the words we say do more than what we do with our hands to determine the direction of our lives. Our words both restrict us and allow us to accomplish goals. Jm 3,1-14 (85c) Thy kingdom come >> Your words can lead to your own demise >> Your mouth defiles the rest of your body – The rudder is the tongue and the ship is our body. If we are able to control the detrimental verbiage that leaks from our facial orifice, then there is potential to build healthy relationships with both God and man, but if we can’t control what we say, our own words will tear down what we try to build. Jm 3,1-12 (96o) Thy kingdom come >> Having a negative attitude about sin >> Having an abusive attitude – We forget we don’t know everything about people and speak course words that hurt them in ways we don’t understand, which is why it is better not to say anything in most cases. We constantly struggle with something, and there are things people could say that would hurt us in ways they don't understand. We try to please God; we try to understand Him and ourselves. We always have four or five goals we are striving to achieve. We have problems coming against us from every direction, and we try to deal with them at the same time. We are called to tolerate our fellow brother, because he is going through many of own experiences. God tolerates us, and that to our salvation (2Pet 3-15). God is patient with us because He knows we are but dust (Psalm 103-14). He knows our struggles and our heart, how hard we try to please Him and usually fail, and we take it worse than He does. He is a God of the heart; He is not like our employer who cares only about results, though results matter to Him too. Jm 3,1-4 (92c) Thy kingdom come >> The narrow way >> Trail of good works >> Practice walking a straight line (99a) Thy kingdom come >> Endurance (Thorn in the flesh) >> Enduring the will of God >> Enduring the word of God >> Endure obeying the word of God (233i) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Seeking the glory of God >> Seek His glory without wavering >> Seek His glory through obedience (249g) Priorities >> God’ s preeminence >> Wealth >> True perception of wealth >> The infinite and eternal wealth of God >> God’s perception of wealth >> Our hope in this life -- These verses go with verse 13 Jm 3-1 (4c) Responsibility >> Advocate God’s cause >> Being accountable to the word of God (45h) Judgment >> Judged believer’s sin >> God will judge us if we don’t heed His word (238g) Teachers (Key verse) KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3,2-8 (188a) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Separation from the old man >> Die to the flesh >> Dying to self takes discipline Jm 3,2-4 (119f) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Freedom >> Fences of freedom >> Being a slave to freedom (134a) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Your body >> Mediator between the natural and the spiritual realms >> Manifesting the Kingdom of God through obedience (151a) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Works of the Church bear witness of Jesus >> Speak the word >> Speak the logos (156j) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of salvation >> You will know them by their words -- These verses go with verse 13 Jm 3-2 (43h) Judgment >> Satan destroyed >> Perfect (mature) (137i) Temple >> Building the temple (with hands) >> Maturity >> Maturing in Jesus is hard work >> Maturity is a training process Jm 3,3-6 (22h) Sin >> Lust (craving pleasure) >> Boasting in the flesh – The fact that James used the word “boast” in verse 5 is significant. He could have used any word to describe the evils of our fleshly nature, but he chose to elucidate pride as the main proponent of our undoing. We don’t understand the truth primarily because of pride. The truth of God’s word, which revolves around the fruits of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, etc., is humiliating to the fleshly ego; we have no interest in it. We want the truth to be about us, thus we are unwilling to submit to it, instead devise doctrines based on our narcissistic interests, bending God's word to suit our purposes to avoid serving the truth. All false doctrine leads back to self and is created by the flesh for the flesh. (173c) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Catholicism >> Scripture that contradicts the catholic faith >> Catholic doctrine versus the Bible – “How great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire.” Some of the ways we tweak the meaning of Scripture seem innocent, but our amendments often have huge consequences. For example, as we look at the Church throughout the ages, how Catholicism came to have inquisitions after Jesus taught us to turn the other cheek, the papistry had people tortured and killed, whom they presumed were dangerous to their Christian faith. How did they drift so far from the truth? These inquisitions, burning heretics at the stake and so many other abuses came after much Christian persecution. Leaders of the Church finally decided they couldn't take any more abuse and capitulated to the pagan forces of Rome, who made the Church an entity of the state, calling their new religion Catholicism and became one of the great influences of the world. Once it gained strength and affluence over its adversaries, it turned against itself and persecuted the saints, who defied church authority, who criticized the religious establishment for integrating pagan practices into Christianity. These changes came about by miniscule changes in biblical doctrine that they introduced to the minds of the people, such as the belief that God wanted them to establish a physical kingdom on the earth instead of a spiritual one, now called Post-Millennial Dominion theology, which is still strong today and is gaining influence among so-called believers. See also: History of Catholicism; Rev 17,1-5; 21m (177b) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> False doctrine >> Distorting Scripture to avoid the truth – There is a duel context here: stumbling over our doctrines, and stumbling over our tongues. If we do not stumble in our understanding of the Scriptures, we will have the potential to become perfect in all other areas of life, able to bridle the whole body as well. This implies that if our doctrines are wrong, we will forfeit any potential to perfect a vital relationship with God or line up our bodies with His will. Jm 3-4 (76i) Thy kingdom come >> Desires of your heart >> Your interests (240g) Kingdom of God >> Opposition toward the Kingdom of God >> Hindering the kingdom >> Natural disadvantage >> Natural disadvantage of the flesh >> The sinful flesh -- This verse goes with verses 7&8 KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3,5-18 (178e) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Hypocrisy >> Hypocrisy of the Church is rebuked >> The Church is rebuked for rebellion Jm 3,5-16 (160e) Works of the devil >> Led by the devil into sin – If man were suddenly unable to speak, James says that the world of iniquity would cease to exist. Our tongue leads us astray and defiles our entire body. Demons are also involved, in that our lives are set on fire by the forces of hell. The demon world is involved in our lives to the degree that we give them power, and we empower them by the words we speak and by submitting to their temptations. Jm 3,5-12 (16d) Sin >> Man’s nature is instinctively evil >> Disobedient to the will of God – One of the main reasons people don’t become Christians is that they know there is an evil in them that can’t be contained, and they don’t want God holding them accountable in this life, but would rather defer the problem until final judgment, but this is a bad choice. The question every believer must ask himself is, ‘Am I ready to make a commitment to Christ with my tongue?’ Making the rest of our body serve the Lord is easy, compared to the tongue (though there are other challenging body parts). (20k) Sin >> Disobedience >> Rejecting the word (26g) Sin >> Consequences of sin >> Death is Satan’s nature (26l) Sin >> Consequences of sin >> Curse >> Deeds that return to the doer >> Words of your mouth – We love to control things; it’s what we do. We have found a way to control every animal known to man; they become our subjects and they serve us. That’s all well and good, but since we like to control things so much, why don’t we try harder to control what we say? James says it is not even possible! The tongue is absolutely untamable. It is like the proverbial acid so strong that it eats through anything we use to contain it. There is no prison cell or counsel designed to improve our speech habits, suggesting not even James tamed his own tongue. Nevertheless, God holds us all accountable for the words we say, though it is impossible to become perfect in speech, meaning no one will pass through the judgment unscathed. (166j) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Carnality/Secularism (mindset of the world) >> The carnal mind cannot discern between good and evil >> The carnal mind agrees with the devil (167j) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Do not conform to the world >> The world of sin (180j) Works of the devil >> Practicing witchcraft >> Rebellion >> Rebelling against God’s narrow way >> Rebelling against the ways of God (181g) Works of the devil >> Practicing witchcraft >> Lawlessness >> Having no regard for the law >> Being without law Jm 3,5-10 (163g) Works of the devil >> Being a slave to the devil (Addictions) >> Used by Satan to destroy the word of God >> Used to Suppress the truth Jm 3-5,6 (134b) Temple >> Your body is the temple of God >> Mediator between the natural and the spiritual realms >> Manifesting the kingdom of darkness through disobedience KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3,6-16 (185e) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Mystery of lawlessness >> The mystery of sin – There is a wild beast on the loose and no one can put a leash on it. All we can do is corner it and keep it from ransacking the neighborhood. We wave our finger at it saying, ‘naughty, naughty,’ but when we attempt to incarcerate it, it overpowers us and trots away, looking over its shoulder, smiling and laughing at us. Here is the mystery of the tongue: how can it be more powerful than us? It is powered by the mind; how could the tongue be more powerful than the mind? Isn’t the problem that we really can’t control the mind? The mystery of lawlessness is at work; demons get involved in what we say; the rebellion shared between them and us is uncanny, like rats and mice that have followed mankind since the beginning of time, forming the underworld below us. The tongue can explain why the world will continue being evil, but it cannot explain why it will never be harnessed or corralled, because it is a mystery. Jm 3,6-12 (163k) Works of the devil >> Being a slave to the devil (Addictions) >> Entertaining demons >> Disciplined by the devil as a son – The tongue is not like any creature. Name just about any animal and man has tamed it. The method of taming an animal is befriending it. This is why dogs are so easy to train; they are our friends; they love us and want to please us and we love them. When we train them to do something, they consider it attention and are happy to oblige us, but the tongue is not like that. Although it is part of the body, is an entity by itself. For example, we say things we don’t mean; that is, the tongue speaks for itself. We say things to people we don’t mean to tell them. The tongue is not our friend, and it regularly gets us in trouble. Although we discipline our body to obey us, the tongue does not receive discipline. The tongue is free to say what it wants, gets us in trouble, and then skips away consequences-free, making us pay for the crimes it has committed. For this reason we make some effort to corral it or bridle it or somehow keep it in restraint, but James says hard as we try, no one can tame the tongue. (164c) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world system >> Satan rules the world >> The world is his kingdom – We can’t talk to the tongue and tell it to behave; we can’t explain to it the kind of trouble it can make for us, any more than we can talk to the devil and make him understand. In fact, that is one of James’ points: the tongue is much like the devil, part of us yet separate. Our bodies are made from the dust of the ground that is cursed, making our flesh related to the devil. Our flesh understands things that the devil understands, and it agrees with him; consequently, the tongue often acts as his spokesman for our flesh. The tongue makes decrees and sets wars in motion and whole events, though we were created in the image of God. The tongue stands at the crossroads between the cursed natural realm and the blessed spiritual realm and chooses to identify with one or the other, and often tries to identify with both realms. God is working to turn our voice box into an instrument of righteousness so we can be a blessing instead of a curse. The devil cannot do anything apart from man’s flesh, and God will not do anything apart from man’s will; these work for and against us on opposite sides, and we are in the middle deciding which side gets its way, and the tongue is the deciding factor in the battle. See also: Spiritual warfare (God is at war with the devil and man is in the middle); 2Jn-7; 136e Jm 3,6-9 (163i) Works of the devil >> Being a slave to the devil (Addictions) >> Used by Satan to destroy the Church Jm 3-6 (45j) Judgment >> Of believer’s sin >> God will judge us for the words we speak – Heinrich Himmler was the coordinator of all the concentration camps and was most directly responsible for the holocaust during World War II. All the wickedness and evil that occurred in those places will be charged against him in the judgment, yet Jesus could condemn him to hell based on his words alone. Once his words condemned Him, God will look at all the things he did and make a final judgment as to what level of hell he should occupy. A person can do great evil with the appendages of his body, but the tongue can do more damage than all of them combined. Jesus said, “By your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Mat 12-37). (47c) Judgment >> Hell is a place of sorrow >> Hell is to be avoided at any cost (145f) Witness >> Validity of Jesus Christ >> Jesus’ works bear witness of Himself >> Deliverance from demon possession >> Human state >> Filthiness >> Being defiled (191c) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Separation from the old man >> Extract the leaven of hypocrisy -- This verse goes with verses 13-17 KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3,7-9 (55c) Paradox >> Opposites >> Blessing God and cursing men who are made in His image – James said it ought not to be this way, but he did not give any solution, meaning that he too was a victim of his own tongue. James, the writer of this epistle, the brother of Jesus struggled with the words of his mouth, hurting people with his tongue, using it like a dagger, saying things that are not true, speaking the truth with an evil motive. It ought not to be this way but these are our present circumstances, and the best we can do is minimize the damage, but the problem of the tongue is not in our power to solve. We can keep our mouth from speaking evil to a point, but hard as we try we will continue to sin. Jm 3-7,8 (240g) Kingdom of God >> Opposition toward the Kingdom of God >> Hindering the kingdom >> Natural disadvantage >> Natural disadvantage of the flesh >> The sinful flesh -- These verses go with verse 12 Jm 3,8-12 (174i) Works of the devil >> The religion of witchcraft >> Form of godliness >> Form of a servant but denying God your loyalty (195e) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Idolatry >> Serving two masters >> Being double minded – This whole chapter is about the words we speak, and it started with verse one, "Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment." This sets the tone for the rest of the chapter. Verse 9 says, “With [the tongue] we bless our Lord and Father and with it we curse men who have been made in the likeness of God.” If we do not bless men, neither do they bless God. James is saying that we should not be heterogeneous, rather make up our mind to be either a blessing or a curse. There is no solution to the problem with the tongue beyond walking in the Spirit. No other method is effective, but James never mentioned the Holy Spirit. He was a results oriented teacher, whereas Paul taught the process of victory, "by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live" (Rom 8-13). We can take water from the salt by evaporation, but we cannot take salt from the water. In the same way, we cannot take the tongue from the body, but we can die to the sinful passions and desires of the flesh. Evaporation represents the resurrection that results from dying to self. Jm 3,9-12 (158e) Works of the devil >> Essential characteristics >> Divide and conquer >> Strife >> Bitterness Jm 3-9,10 (172e) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Tares among the wheat >> Communion between the world and the Church >> The Church in the world Jm 3-11 (225n) Kingdom of God >> Illustrating the kingdom >> Parables >> Parables about water Jm 3-12 (76h) Thy kingdom come >> Motives >> Living by a double standard (128n) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Bearing fruit >> Evidence of your fruit >> Bad fruit is proof that God is not working in you (240g) Kingdom of God >> Opposition toward the Kingdom of God >> Hindering the kingdom >> Natural disadvantage >> Natural disadvantage of the flesh >> The sinful flesh -- This verse goes with verse 4 KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3,13-18 (36f) Gift of God >> Gifts from the Holy Spirit >> The gift of wisdom (57d) Paradox >> Opposites >> World’s wisdom versus God’s wisdom (69h) Authority >> Righteous judgment >> Meditate on discernment >> Judging what is pure (87a) Thy kingdom come >> Obedience >> Be doers of the word from the heart >> God blesses us for doing His word, not for knowing it – James is talking about people who claim to be wise. That is a scary claim. Those of us who love God bypass the claim of wisdom and simply live according to His will. Anybody who seeks the wisdom of God in this age is asking for hardship, difficulties and rejection, but the alternative is to be a fool. “Who among you is wise and understanding…” This statement is continuing to draw from the context of verse one that says, “Let not many of you become teachers.” Who is wise? Hopefully our teachers are wise, yet James says to them, “Let him show,” not just espouse but demonstrate, “by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom.” (89f) Thy kingdom come >> Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom >> Deeds of wisdom (106n) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Hearing from God >> Purpose of hearing from God >> God gives us instruction (154f) Witness >> Validity of the Father >> God bears witness against the world >> Witness that the world is godless >> Witness that the world is of the devil – These are earthly and natural problems, and who controls the world but demons, and what comes naturally to our flesh but sin? James is calling us from our hypocrisy, which is the subject of the entire epistle of James, who wanted to see people living out their faith. Obviously jealousy and selfish ambition are common ways of the world, but they also originate from demons. It doesn’t matter how things look on the outside, once we delve into the internal workings of a person’s life and discover what they really think and believe, we realize their hypocrisy wreaks havoc in their lives. (158f) Works of the devil >> Essential characteristics >> Divide and conquer >> Division (Cliques) >> Jealously seeking prominence in the body – In 2The 2-10 Paul coined the phrase “love of the truth.” Determining whether a pastor is in love with the truth is an accurate indicator of his motives for being a pastor. Does he really love Jesus, or did he become a pastor as a mere career choice? God deals differently with each person, but there are some things that remain constant among all the saints, and one of them is that God zealously desires His people to love the truth. Therefore, show me a pastor who is not driven to know God, and I will show you a charlatan with ulterior motives. He will jealously defend his position as spiritual leader of the congregation, so when those join the Church who love the truth, who are more learned in the Scriptures, more committed to faith and love, the pastor will consider them a threat and persecute them until they leave the church. The pastor with selfish ambitions will become hostile with those who actually love the Lord with all their hearts, for such people can potentially expose his wolf-like motivations. He will find a way to make them leave, and his first arm of defense is turning the congregation against them and driving them from the assembly. People with bitter jealousy and selfish ambitions are devious, and they know how to get their way. A pastor of this caliber cannot speak the word of God in truth, because his teaching does not “come down from above,” but its origins are “earthly, natural, demonic.” Earthly and natural are “worldly,” but demonic refers to the spirit behind those who are driven by bitter jealousy and selfish ambition. See also: Spiritual abuse; 2Cor 11-4; 177e (191c) Die to self (Process of substitution) >> Separation from the old man >> Extract the leaven of hypocrisy -- These verses go with verse 6. James advises that if we want to be a teacher of God’s word, but our life does not correspond with the Scriptures, then we are not to lie about it. He said that the wisdom of hypocrisy, whose life is amiss while teaching others to live under restraint (Rom 2,17-24), should resign from the ministry. We need to keep our eye on our teachers, including our pastors (Rom 16-17,18), making sure their lives match their teaching, and if they don't, we can know for certain that they are teaching doctrines of demons (1Tim 4-1,2). (198g) Denying Christ >> Man exercises his will against God >> Ordained by man >> Having evil motives for seeking leadership positions >> In the ministry for personal gain – There is no jealousy or selfish ambition on the path of truth, and the truth will never lead us in this way, yet many use the Scriptures for selfish purposes, turning their faith into a career, who start with selfish ambition and decide that being a pastor would be a comfortable life, but there are many others who really do love God and believe in Jesus and have all expenses paid so they can devote themselves to the ministry of the word of God and prayer to help others believe in Jesus. (234f) Kingdom of God >> Pursuing the kingdom >> Seeking the glory of God >> Seeking the fruit of the ministry (244i) Kingdom of God >> Spirit realm is imposed on the natural realm >> Literal manifestations >> Literal manifestation of God’s word >> Manifesting the righteousness of His kingdom KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3,13-16 (19b) Sin >> Twisted thinking >> Evil is good >> Darkness of man’s thinking – There is a massive difference between what is from God and what isn't. Like a set of railroad tracks, when the train is on the tracks everything is well, but the moment the train jumps the tracks it crashes. In the same way, the moment we leave the truth and start seeking other sources of knowledge in the world, we crash. Knowledge apart from God leads to dark places; therefore, if we cannot detect a driving zeal behind our pastor’s love for God, we should run fast as we can from his ministry. There are many churches today that teach earthly, natural and demonic doctrines. Darkness cloaks itself in religious rhetoric to make its hidden motives palatable to the inattentive Christian, though week to week nobody is growing and nobody is benefiting from the ministry. (23e) Sin >> Poverty (Oppression) >> Poor are those who are rich in their own minds (24k) Sin >> Poverty (Forms of fear) >> Anger >> Unforgiveness (164d) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world system >> Satan rules the world >> Satan is a tyrant over the world (166e) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Wisdom of the world >> Nature Of Man’s Wisdom >> Man’s wisdom is fixed on gaining personal advantage – If we don't get our wisdom from God and from His people and from the Scriptures, then we will get it from the world, and Satan is god of this world (2Cor 4-3), and to the extent that we accept the world is the extent that we submit to its elementary principles. What complicates Christianity is that we are forced into the world to make a living, yet we are to be separate from the world. The fact that we have rejected the world and its ways is offensive to people, resulting in our persecution. The world often tells us that we feel superior to those who don't believe in Jesus; probably every Christian has heard this at some point. Our answer to them is that God has commanded us to be separate from the world, because it does not accept the blood sacrifice of Jesus Christ as propitiation for their sins. The more Christians set themselves apart from the world, the more the world persecutes them, yet the more the Church grows. The Church became an entity of the state in the third century for the very reason to avoid persecution, and the more the Church expresses the world's values, the more it agrees with its wisdom, which is of the devil. (167d) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Carnality/Secularism (mindset of the world) >> The carnal mind is set on the flesh >> Bound to the earth – When the Church seeks separation from the world, it returns to God, who made the initial separation from man after sin entered the world (Genesis 3-23). Adam and Eve sought separation from God after they sinned, when they ran and hid from the presence of the Lord (Genesis 3-8); then, after God had a talk with Adam and Eve, He removed them from the Garden and introduced them to their new environment of the earth that was already under Satan’s curse before man sinned, which is why the Garden of Eden was necessary. They were introduced to the laws and principles that are at work in the earth, the law of the jungle that comprises the wisdom of Satan, known as the wisdom of the world. In other words, Satan now thinks in terms of the curse that God imposed on him after he sinned. At Satan’s rebellion God stepped away from him and and away from everything that belonged to him, which was the entire universe, and now the creation is at war with itself and with its creator. Satan has adopted the mindset of the curse, and the world lives by its principles: man, the earth, the world and Satan are all one. Jesus bought back man from the curse through His own blood, but only those who receive Him benefit from His sacrifice; they comprise the true Church; unbelievers are still under the eternal consequence of sin. See also: Eve sinned before she conceived her first child; 2The 2,3-12; 185g (168g) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> The world listens to itself >> The world speaks it’s own language (170a) Works of the devil >> Manifestations of the devil >> Seeking the glory of man >> Stepping on people to get to the bottom >> Those who seek glory from men discard others (183e) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Spirit of Error (Anti-Christ / Anti-Semitism) >> Nursery for the spirit of error >> Selfish ambition >> Seeking to control the truth (184f) Works of the devil >> The origin of lawlessness >> Abusing the grace of God >> Spending His grace on your pleasures >> Trying to take advantage of God’s kindness Jm 3-13,14 (22c) Sin >> Greed takes without consideration for others >> Serving self (22k) Sin >> Pride glorifies self >> Being wise in your own eyes KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3-13 (127i) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Goodness >> Rewards for doing good >> Doing good teaches you about the truth -- This verse goes with verse 18. The reward of doing good is that it teaches us about the truth. For example, Corrie ten Boom and her family were kind to the Jews during World War II, but were eventually caught hiding Jews in a small compartment in their house, which led them to concentration camps, where they suffered unimaginable living conditions and ill treatment by the Nazi guards. Through it all she rose above her trials by an anointing that God bestowed on her for the kindness she showed to the Jews. If an unbeliever were kind to Christians in a similar way, it probably wouldn’t be long before they too became Christians. Once we become Christians and the Holy Spirit dwells in our heart, when we do good, the Holy Spirit will reveal His truth to us about what we are doing. This is similar to the account of Jesus washing His disciples’ feet (Jn 13,5-20); afterward, He revealed to them the significance of what He did. Doing good teaches us about the truth, and the opposite is also true; when we sin, it makes learning the truth that much harder. Those who have not dedicated their lives to righteousness, holiness and truth are estranged from the wisdom of God. James says that if we have wisdom, he doesn’t just want to hear our pontifications; he also wants to see us demonstrating that wisdom. Sin builds a wall between God and us, and at salvation we find the door that Jesus made through the sacrifice of His flesh, so we can walk through it to the other side where God is waiting for us. (128e) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Gentleness >> Be gentle in all your ways >> Put gentleness in your character -- This verse goes with verse 17. Wisdom has a certain look, and the words “good” and “gentle” are the face of it. These are two less mentioned of the nine fruits of the Spirit (Galatians chapter 5), suggesting that this may be the reason wisdom is so rare, further suggesting that if the Spirit must produce goodness and gentleness in us, then He must also be responsible for understanding the wisdom of God (Eph 3-10). Of course the greatest fruit and the one most mentioned is love, which acts like a suitcase for the others, since love itself is so elusive by definition, meaning that the other eight fruits come from the one “love”. When we look at these tertiary fruits producing wisdom, a possession more prized than silver and gold (according to Proverbs 3,14-16), imagine what the more popular fruits do. For a complete description of wisdom, refer to the beginning chapters of Proverbs, a book that is devoted to the subject of wisdom. Although the book of Proverbs details an Old Testament version of wisdom, it is the basis upon which God builds His new covenant wisdom in our lives through the Holy Spirit. (Also see: 1Cor 1,18-25;2,6-8.) (156j) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of salvation >> You will know them by their words -- This verse goes with verses 17&18. Wisdom is one of the attributes that all Christians should have as an identifying mark as a way of discerning each other as the true children of God. Rev 9-4 says that God will place His seal (mark) on the foreheads of His people, and that seal is a countenance, and that countenance will reflect their Master's wisdom, reflecting closeness with the Holy Spirit from the hearing ear they have developed over a lifetime of faith and love that has led them to the truth. There is no greater wisdom than God’s Truth. The wisdom of the world, in contrast, has people spewing “truth” in every direction, but God has His Truth, and He will dominate all other forms of truth and wisdom. We Christians can identify an unbeliever by his brand of so-called wisdom he promotes that contradicts the wisdom of the Scriptures, suggesting that wisdom (or the lack of it) is one of the greatest identifying marks of both saint and sinner alike. We can tell if a person knows God by their wisdom alone, which literally defines them; we also use wisdom to discern snakes in the grass. Worldly wisdom does not require goodness and gentleness, but the wisdom of God is built on these things. If we cannot demonstrate that we have a firm foundation established for wisdom to grow, James' big brother tells us that our wisdom is based on sinking sand, and at the first stiff breeze our wisdom will collapse, and or lives will collapse with it in a heap (Mat 7,24-29). (249g) Priorities >> God’ s preeminence >> Wealth >> True perception of wealth >> The infinite and eternal wealth of God >> God’s perception of wealth >> Our hope in this life -- This verse goes with verses 17&18 KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3,14-16 (76a) Thy kingdom come >> Hidden motives >> Based on selfish ambition Jm 3-14 (75a) Motives (Key verse) (186c) Works of the devil >> The result of lawlessness >> Blasphemy >> Cursing the Holy Spirit >> Lying to the Holy Spirit Jm 3-15 (212d) Sovereignty >> God is infinite >> He is the creator >> Evolution (Defaming God) >> The philosophy of evolution (240c) Natural Disadvantage (Key verse) (240h) Kingdom of God >> Opposition toward the Kingdom of God >> Hindering the kingdom >> Natural disadvantage of the world – Note that James did not say “worldly” but earthly; the connotation of “earthly” refers to the physical planet, which is under a curse, whereas the “world” is indicative of human civilizations that live under the principles of the curse. In essence, the world lives under Satan’s power, based on the curse that originated from the earth. If the “world” pertained only to people, it wouldn’t be such a negative term, but according to Scripture Satan rules the world, according to Jesus' words in Jn 14-30, "I will not speak much more with you, for the ruler of the world is coming [Satan], and he has nothing in Me." Satan does his work incognito; everything is subliminal, information we don’t process but just accept, becoming the pathways and inroads of satanic influence in our lives. People don’t have the time or energy to monitor everything they accept as reality. They don’t realize that what they presume true is a potential avenue for the devil to sow his seed of deception into their minds. They say, ‘I don’t believe in the Bible.’ That is part of the deception! It is a thought that Satan has sown into the unbeliever's heart. Jm 3-17,18 (98b) Thy kingdom come >> Endurance (Thorn in the flesh) >> Rooted deeply >> Plant the word deeply in your heart (105b) Thy kingdom come >> Pure in heart >> A pure heart is an unleavened heart (126c) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Peace >> Peacemakers >> Peacemakers are a blessing (126f) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Peace >> Terms of peace (128m) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Bearing fruit >> Evidence of your fruit >> Good fruit is proof that God is working in you – The kind of people in our pulpits teaching the good word of God have pure Christian motives, whose life parallels the Scriptures, whose behavior is under control of the Holy Spirit. The way they live teaches us to incorporate love, joy, peace patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, into our lives, as stated in Gal 5-22,23. Our teachers walk in this way; they set an example and are the standard for the rest of us to follow, making it safe to say that a person who will not submit to such a person is neither a brother nor a friend of our spirit. Only the Holy Spirit can give us the power to rise above the forces of evil that writhe in our flesh, and the number one body part that drives us to the edge of the abyss is our tongue. Good teachers instruct their disciples that mercy and peace should be unwavering and without hypocrisy, and these are the very attributes we should seek in them, and if they do not showcase them, then we should not submit to their tutelage, for they have nothing to offer. (156j) Witness >> Validity of the believer >> Evidence of salvation >> You will know them by their words -- These verses go with verses 2-4 (249g) Priorities >> God’ s preeminence >> Wealth >> True perception of wealth >> The infinite and eternal wealth of God >> God’s perception of wealth >> Our hope in this life -- These verses go with verses 1-4. James’ description of wisdom mentioned two spiritual fruits: peace and gentleness, and commenting on these two referred to them all. Therefore, the wisdom of God is based on the fruits of the Spirit, meaning that anyone who walks by the Spirit is wise. These are the things that pertain to the true wealth of God. James’ epistle had an Old Testament flare to it in that almost everything he said pertained to this life. He was trying to teach us how to live, and one of James’ biggest sticklers was hypocrisy. He hated hypocrisy in those who called themselves Christians, and he no doubt tried to avoid hypocrisy in his own life, and no doubt his contempt for hypocrisy came from his brother, Jesus Christ, who had no hypocrisy in Him at all. There are three things we should all incorporate into our faith; we should walk in the Spirit, avoid hypocrisy and make peace whenever possible in every situation. That would be a good start in realizing the hope that God has given us in this life, and much more in the life to come. (250k) Priorities >> God’s prerequisites >> Lists >> Terms of graduating to the next level >> List of spiritual traits in descending order KJV WEB / Navigation Bar Jm 3-17 (89b) Thy kingdom come >> Fear of God is the beginning of wisdom >> Wisdom corresponds with logical reasoning – Solomon in the books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes was one to turn a phrase. His proverbs told that it was important to well-structure a sentence for the purpose of attracting readers, and then we have Ecclesiastes that turned the book of Proverbs on its head. In it he confessed to have pursued every imaginable pleasure, making the excuse that it was an experiment sort-a-speak to see if seeking fleshly pleasure would actually satisfy him, and in the end he concluded that it didn’t. He said it was all "futility and striving after wind" in Ecclesiastes 2-17, and at the end of the book it said that we would do better to seek God. Yes, Mr. Solomon, alleged wisest man who ever lived, we know that. He talked about hard work being honorable and useful, and at the end of his book he said that the only meaning we will ever get from this life is to serve God, though he personally did not do that. Solomon was one of those “Do as I say and not as I do” sort of teachers. Contrast that with the new covenant wisdom that James says is without hypocrisy. We are not called to perform pretentious experiments to see how much pleasure we can consume. James said that real wisdom wouldn't do this. The vast majority of Solomon’s Proverbs suggested that if we live sensibly, we are heading in the right direction, but if we fill our lives with nonsense, then we are just fooling ourselves, and what we consider the will of God is just phantoms of a wild imagination. Most of our so-called wisdom is meant to profit us in this life; Solomon’s wisdom was geared toward that end too, but the wisdom of the new covenant calls us to store up treasure in heaven, as Jesus advised in Mat 6,19-21. The Old Testament as a whole cared only for this life showing no concern at all for the life to come. Even the mindset of Old Testament prophets focused on this life with few exceptions. The wisdom that James suggested was for this life too; the difference, though, was that James meant his wisdom as evidence of possessing eternal life. See also: Solomon; 1Cor 3-18; 57i (116a) Thy kingdom come >> Faith >> Working the grace of God >> Through Good Works >> Works That God put in your heart (128e) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Gentleness >> Be gentle in all your ways >> Put gentleness in your character -- This verse goes with verse 13 Jm 3-18 (127i) Thy kingdom come >> Manifestations of faith >> Goodness >> Rewards for doing good >> Doing good teaches you about the truth -- This verse goes with verse 13 See next page