Faith in Action

The first part of James 2 is James’ exhortation regarding partiality and our need to guard ourselves from it.  In order to rightfully exhibit the love of God for people and rightfully exhibit His value of people, WE MUST actively put others before ourselves.  Not only is discrimination shown by preferring to greet and/or help those who are cleaner looking or easier to work with, it is also shown by preferring to help myself over someone else.  What’s best for me? The thought “THAT’s not really in my comfort zone” - should be a non-issue!

In verse 8 “If you really fulfill the royal law according to Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” you are doing well.”   The royal law is a king’s law; our king - God’s law.  Verse 13 reminds us mercy triumphs over judgement.  Mercy to others refrains from partiality.  

There are so many good analogies for LIVING faith; ACTIVE faith; faith in action.  

Titus 3:8 “The saying is trustworthy, and I want you to insist on these things, so that those who have believed in God may be careful to devote themselves to good works.  These things are excellent and profitable for people.”  This means ALL people, including the unbeliever, who is watching us all the time.  

And Ephesians 2:10 “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”  

We have opportunities to demonstrate our faith presented to us all the time.  Of course, we cannot act on every single one of them, however, nor can we NOT act on any of them! So let me ask a few questions:

1. How do I demonstrate my love for my spouse? My family? My friends? My Lord?

2. What does my attitude and actions of sacrifice and giving (time or other) reveal about Jesus?

3. Why do I respond the way that I do? 

4. What is my obedience fueled by? Faith? Pride? Fear?

5. Do I have an abundant mind set? Or a scarcity mind set? (if I give from my supply, I won’t have enough for myself)

6. Again, how does my lifestyle point to Jesus? How does my speech point to Jesus?

These are all actionables rooted in my faith that Jesus Christ has redeemed me from my sin nature and imparted to me His Holy Spirit in its place and I am most grateful and cannot bear to NOT work that gratefulness into doing good works and in everything I do, glorify Him.

Count it All Joy

James 1:2-3 "Count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience." 

HIGHER MATH - Mathematical formulas work well with numbers, but not with people. That's why this equation in James 1 sounds unworkable: 

FAITH + TRIALS = PATIENCE 

One might better try to mix oil and water. But what makes this formula work is confidence in God's unfailing love, which allows for all the human emotions that come with life's trials. 

Shirley and her husband Roy proved that this equation is still up-to-date. Here's their story: Roy was told that in 6 months the plant where he worked would close but he would receive severance pay. 

Shirley wrote, "Praise the Lord for that -- but also praise the Lord that He loves us so much He's given us yet another trial in our lives. (This will be the fourth time we're starting over in the 13 years we've been married.) At first I panicked and questioned God's love. But I kept reading my Bible, stopped feeling sorry for myself, and started to pray for others. As long as God gives us this roof over our heads (and even if we lost it), I'll thank Him." 

So when you face trials, you can "count it all joy" if you add faith, knowing that God's love will never fail. As you do, you will develop an attitude of patient expectation, confident that God will do what is best.-- Dennis De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved) 

Afflictions may test me, They cannot destroy; One glimpse of Thy love Turns them all into joy.- Willett 

The first lesson in patience is learning to count our trials as joy. 

When You Don’t Have the Words…

I know you know this feeling… you sit down to pray over or for a situation and… the words just don’t come. You’re at a complete loss. The situation feels too big. The pain is too deep. The emotions are too tangled. It all feels utterly overwhelming.

But, it is in those moments, where we have access to something so powerful, so incredible, we can’t even possibly fully wrap our minds around it. That is the power of the Holy Spirit who intercedes for us.

Romans 8:26 says: “The Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.”

Here’s the thing, the Holy Spirit doesn’t just dwell in us — He actually prays for us. That means you are never truly silent before God. Even when you feel weak, unsure, empty, powerless, speechless… the Spirit is lifting your needs to the Father with perfect clarity.

So how do we walk in this incredibly powerful truth?

1. Pause in your weakness. Instead of forcing the words, simply sit quietly before God. This is where TRUST plays a powerful role in our walk with the Lord. TRUST that the Spirit is already speaking on your behalf. He already knew exactly what you needed to pray!

2. Offer simple prayers. A sigh, a “Lord, help me, I need You,” or even tears are enough. The Holy Spirit fills in the blanks.

3. Stay attentive. Sometimes the Spirit nudges us with a particular verse of Scripture, a name to pray for, or simply a sense of peace. Pay attention to those gentle prompts.

4. Rest in confidence. Walking with the Spirit means you don’t have to “get prayer right.” Your Father hears you because His Spirit is already interceding for you.

SO, the next time you feel stuck or overwhelmed in prayer, remember: you are not alone. Walking with the Holy Spirit means trusting Him to carry your heart to the Father — even when you can’t find the words yourself.

What Does the Holy Spirit Do?

Have you ever stopped to really consider what having Jesus in your life really means? And what He can do for you if you would allow Him to?

For in him (Christ) the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.      Col. 2:9-10

The fullness of God dwelt in Christ. Let that sink in. Then stop and think and realize, if you are a Christ follower YOU have the fullness of God in Christ living in you! The resources of God are WITHIN YOU. All you need to do is tap into them and allow Him to do the work in you that He needs to do in order to create that new creation that we are all promised. 

As followers of Christ and lovers of Jesus we are members of the Kingdom of God. We are his adopted children and heirs of all He has promised!

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 

John 1:12-13

For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. Romans 8:15-17

Brothers and sisters, how can this be? Read carefully the words of Paul the Apostle that he wrote to the Ephesians. Words that also apply to us and our lives. Praise God!!!! 

In him we have obtained an inheritance, having been predestined according to the purpose of him who works all things according to the counsel of his will, so that we who were the first to hope in Christ might be to the praise of his glory. In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.

For this reason, because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers, that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of him, having the eyes of your hearts enlightened, that you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us who believe, according to the working of his great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.   Ephesians 1:11-21

 We are sealed with the Holy Spirit. Our inheritance is guaranteed.

Let our prayer be the same that Paul prayed for the Ephesians so long ago that it still echoes even today:

That we may be given the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him (Jesus).
That the eyes of our hearts be enlightened.
That we may KNOW the hope to which we have been called.
That we may KNOW what the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints are.
That we may KNOW what the unmeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe is.

And all this according to the great might that he worked in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand. At the hand of power in the heavenly places. 

We have all this available to us, right now, through the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. But we have to want it, to let go of ourselves and let him do His work in our lives to bring us to that place of peace in Jesus, that peace that passes all understanding that he promised.

But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.    John 14:26-27

When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.   John 16:13-15

Amen and amen!

He Lives in You

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you

John 14:16-18

During Jesus’ earthly ministry, He had guided, guarded and taught His disciples. He knew that He was going to leave them but He did not abandon them as orphans. The Spirit of God would come to them and dwell in them, taking the place of their Lord and Master.

That word “advocate” is translated in the Greek as: paráklētos. It means “called alongside to assist.” The Holy Spirit does not work instead of us, or in spite of us, but in us and through us.

Because of Jesus, believers are not alone. The Holy Spirit abides in the believer. He is a gift from the Father in answer to the prayer of the Son. This means that after Jesus's physical departure, his followers would still have a constant, divine presence in their lives. This presence is a source of guidance, comfort, and strength. The passage emphasizes that the world cannot receive the Spirit because it neither sees nor knows him, highlighting a unique, intimate relationship between the Spirit and those who believe. 

Through the Holy Spirit, believers are brought into a deeper relationship with the Father and the Son. The Holy Spirit inspired the Word of God and also illuminates the Word so that we can understand it. The Spirit of Truth uses the Word of Truth to guide us into the will and the work of God. Apart from the help of the Holy Spirit, we cannot live the Christian life that God would have us live.

True Friendship

A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother. Proverbs 18:24

No one likes to feel alone and without a friend. We all recognize the importance of friendship and the priceless gift that a true friend can be. Deep friendship—the kind marked by consistency, honesty, and sensitivity—is the standard which the Bible holds up to us.

Solomon says that a true friend is always loyal, regardless of circumstances: “A friend loves at all times” (Proverbs 17:17). We see our friends exactly as they are, and we still remain consistent in our loyalty to them. Furthermore, sincere friends are prepared to wound in order that their friends might become all that God intends them to be: “Faithful are the wounds of a friend” (27:6). We may not particularly like it, but each of us is in need of friends who will hold us accountable when we err—and each of us is called to be that kind of friend, too.

We must also consider our use of language: as Paul says, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up … that it may give grace” (Ephesians 4:29). You can break a heart with just a word, and it can take a lifetime to repair it.

Men and women who take these principles seriously may find themselves asking, “Is there really any friend who embodies such characteristics? Is there anyone that I know who is always constant, who rebukes me in love, who will show grace and sensitivity in all of their dealings with me?” And the answer to those questions is found, ultimately, in the person of Christ. The scope of the Lord Jesus’ friendship is amazing! He befriended the strangest individuals—stopping under a tree to speak with a tax collector, asking for water from an immoral woman, reaching out to a leper. He was consistent in His love; He was prepared to speak words of truth, however challenging; He built others up. Supremely, He is the one who loved His friends enough to lay down His life for them (John 15:13). He is the friend of sinners: What a friend we have in Jesus, All our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry, Everything to God in prayer!

Jesus’ friendship is the golden standard for ours. As friends of Christ, we are called to love and befriend others as He did. In fact, Jesus said, “You are my friends if you do what I command” (John 15:14). We are to seize every opportunity to share the extent of His friendship with those who are friendless and forlorn.

We live in a world where acquaintances are often countless and “Facebook friends” are many. But that is not true friendship. Do you have friends who are constant, close, and Christlike? If you do, cherish them. If you do not, pray for some. And today, be that kind of friend to others. You may just be the answer to someone’s loneliness or the protection from someone’s ruin.

Zealous for the Lord

For to us a child is born,

    to us a son is given;

and the government shall be upon his shoulder,

    and his name shall be called

Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,

    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Of the increase of his government and of peace

    there will be no end,

on the throne of David and over his kingdom,

    to establish it and to uphold it

with justice and with righteousness

    from this time forth and forevermore.

The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.     Isaiah 9:6-7  ESV

We were discussing this passage in our Life Group the other day, mostly concentrating on the names attributed to Jesus (Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace) when we landed on “the zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.”  It refers to Jesus establishing His kingdom and that it will exist for now and forever, but that it is the zeal of the Lord that will do it. He will rule in his sovereignty now and forevermore. But what is zeal according to the Bible? It’s not a word we really use all that much in this modern era.

Here is a definition of zeal:

In the Bible, zeal signifies a fervent passion, devotion, and enthusiasm for God, His will, and His purposes. It can also refer to a strong desire to defend God's honor or advance His cause.

So, in the verse above God is seen as fervently passionate about establishing His kingdom through His Son Jesus Christ in the work through the cross and all that it does and means for us, His followers. His work will not fail!

When Jesus overturned the tables of the money changers in the temple, John noted when he wrote his Gospel that the disciples remembered that “Zeal for your house will consume me.”   John 2:13-17 And Psalm 69:8-9 Again, that fervent, passionate, devotion to defend God’s honor and to advance His cause. We can see Jesus’ zeal for God and His mission on earth leading up to and through his crucifixion. He never wavered in following God’s will.

And this is not just what God does, but it is also for us to exercise in our lives. There are many examples of various people in the Bible acting according to their zeal for the Lord:  Num. 25:6-13;  2 Sam 21:1-6;  2 Kings 10:15-17;  Psalm 119:137-144.  We do, however, must ensure that our zeal is in line with the will of God. Some of the characters in the listed verses didn’t always act according to God’s will and sometimes reaped what they sowed. But God will bless our zeal when we truly follow Him and his Word.

My question to all of us is this: are we walking in that fervent passion, devotion, and enthusiasm for God, His will, and His purposes in our daily lives, not just when we show up for Sunday services or help in our volunteering? Are we doing all we can to advance God’s kingdom in this world while we await His return and entering the New Heavens and New Earth when he restores everything to what it is supposed to be? I know for myself that there are days when my zeal seems to be somewhat lacking, but I pray that I continue to pursue Jesus and walk according to His will and way for my life. I don’t want to do this halfway but to be all in for the kingdom of God.  How about you?

 Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” Mark 12:29-31 (Deut. 6:5)

The idea of loving God with our ALL requires a certain amount of zeal for the Lord in order to accomplish, with His help of course. Amen!

God’s Not My Genie

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
and your ways are not my ways.”
This is the Lord’s declaration.
“For as heaven is higher than earth,
so my ways are higher than your ways,
and my thoughts than your thoughts.” - Isaiah 55:8-9 CSB

The Prophet Isaiah really likes to punch me in the gut every now and then. In this passage, Isaiah is calling Israel (in the midst of trial and suffering) to return to the Lord, reminding them that God’s mercy and plans go far beyond their finite human imaginations. But his reminder is both comforting and challenging. Comforting, because it means God sees what I can’t.

Challenging, because it means I don’t always get to understand why things happen the way they do.

When life doesn’t unfold the way I wanted it to, frustration rises.I get disappointed, and yes, sometimes even angry with God. Why didn’t He fix this situation? Why didn’t He answer my prayer the way I imagined. 

But here’s the reality check: do I want God, or do I just want a genie who grants my wishes? A genie serves my desires, but God — our faithful Father — calls me to trust Him, even when His plans don’t match “mine.”

The truth is, God refuses to be my genie because He is infinitely wiser and more loving than I could ever comprehend. His ways and purposes are far better than anything I could dream up.

Trusting Him on His terms means surrendering my expectations and resting in His faithfulness. It means believing He is good even when I don’t understand.

When I look back on the more challenging times of my life, I realize I didn’t need a genie after all. I needed a God who was bigger than my imagination, stronger than my doubts, and faithful enough to lead me where I wouldn’t have gone on my own.

Question for reflection: Where in your life are you frustrated with God because He isn’t working on your terms, and how can you release that situation to trust His faithful character today?