Repairing the World - Part 11

Recap from Last Time

Faith that Works Part 10: Here Comes the Judge - James 5:1-11

1) Wealth in the Roman world was acquired mainly by:

a. Merchants

b. Landowners

Clark County Median Income 37,704 USD (2020) You are in the richest 2.9% of the global population. Your income is more than 13.4 times the global median.

2) The problem is not with wealth, but with how it is gained, and where our heart allegiance is

3) There are two questions when it comes to material wealth:

a. How was it gained? Through honest work or exploitation of others?

b. Are you trusting in riches, more than in the living God?

4) We need to always remember that material wealth is temporal

5) What is temporal wealth?

a. Anything that can devalue over time or disappear from one moment to the next

6) God has a way of tipping the balances, taking what man has hoarded and giving it to His faithful people

7) The Parable of the Rich Fool - Luke 12:15-21

8) Rich toward God is our ultimate goal

9) Paying in a timely fashion - Deut. 24:14-15, Lev. 19:13

10) The cry of the righteous

1. The murder of Abel - Genesis 4:10

2. The destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah - Genesis 19:13

3. Deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt - Exodus 2:23

11) God cares about injustice

The Lord Sabaoth

12) Sabaoth is a transliteration of the Hebrew Tzevaot = Hosts or Armies

a. The LORD of Heaven’s Armies

13) The idea of fattening the calf speaks to the amassing or hoarding of wealth

14) Some landowners had developed killing gangs in order to deal with “problematic” tenants

15) Acquiring wealth in an unjust manner becomes an all consuming obsession

16) How should we deal with difficult situations? Wait on the Lord

17) The Greek word for Patience is MACROTHYMEO and it means to be long-tempered or ready for the long haul

18) The farmer is an excellent example of hard work and great reward

19) Great things happen to those who hang on

20) “While you wait, don’t grumble and complain...” Paraphrase of James 5:9

21) The easiest thing to do when we are waiting is to complain

22) Complaining is what we do outwardly, but grumbling is what we do internally

23) Instead, of complaining/grumbling we should be grateful (internal) and thankful (external)

24) James singles out one specific example, Job

a. Job was accused by satan of loving God only because of the provision and protection He provided - Job 1:9–11

b. Job worshipped God in the midst of his circumstances, and God met him there - Job 2:9–10

c. God restored to Job all and double what he had before - Job 42:10

Applications

1. The problem is not with wealth but with how it is gained, and where our heart allegiance is at. Our devotion needs to be first and foremost to the Lord.

2. God will rectify injustice and oppression. He will vindicate you!

3. Let’s learn to be patient, long-tempered, and ready for the long haul. This faith walk is not a sprint but a marathon.

4. We need to do our part and then let God do the rest.

5. Instead of grumbling (internal) and complaining (external), let’s be grateful (internal) and thankful (external).

6. The Judge is coming to make all things right. Let’s live like court is now in session.

Let’s open to James 5:12

Faith that Works Part 11: Repairing the World - James 5:12-18

James 5:12 NKJV

12 But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your “Yes” be “Yes,” and your “No,” “No,” lest you fall into judgment.

Believers should be people of such utmost integrity. We should not have to make elaborate promises in order to keep our word.

Matthew 5:34–37 NKJV

34 But I say to you, do not swear at all: neither by heaven, for it is God’s throne; 35 nor by the earth, for it is His footstool; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. 36 Nor shall you swear by your head, because you cannot make one hair white or black. 37 But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.

Our simple “yes” or “no” should be trusted

Numbers 30:2 NKJV

2 If a man makes a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind himself by some agreement, he shall not break his word; he shall do according to all that proceeds out of his mouth.

1) Don’t be a flake

A flake is someone who is unreliable. They won’t commit to anything. This breaks the second greatest commandment, to love our neighbor as our self.

2) We are called to be imitators of Christ

Ephesians 5:1–2 NKJV

1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.

3) Reliability is the only proof of faith

Psalm 33:4 NKJV

4 For the word of the Lord is right, And all His work is done in truth.

Psalm 138:2 NKJV

2 I will worship toward Your holy temple, And praise Your name For Your lovingkindness and Your truth; For You have magnified Your word above all Your name.

Psalm 138:2 NLT

2 I bow before your holy Temple as I worship. I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness; for your promises are backed by all the honor of your name.

4) We know that God’s promises are good because of His reliability

We need to be a reliable source for all those around us.

James 5:13 NKJV

13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.

As James draws to a close, he goes back to the theme of trials.

5) Do not open the door to despair, but instead pray - Vs. 13

a. Prayer changes the way you see things

b. And more importantly, prayer changes you!

8927 Prayer is not flight; prayer is power. Prayer does not deliver a man from some terrible situation; prayer enables a man to face and to master the situation.

William Barclay

John 16:33 NKJV

33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”

6) Be a prayer warrior

James 5:13 NKJV

13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms.

7) The term “cheerful” speaks of courage in the Greek

8) “If you are feeling courageous give thanks”

9) Singing Psalms/Giving thanks:

a. Will keep you strong and focused

b. Will lead through to the victory

Prayer is watering, but praise is the harvest.—17.717

Charles Spurgeon

10) No matter what, we need to look to the Lord for our strength!

James 5:14 NKJV

14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.

Sick enough that they cannot come to the Elders.

11) Sick = Astheneo, Weak, Feeble, Ill, also can include emotional or spiritual weakness

James, 1 & 2 Peter, and Jude Interpretive Insights

For modern Westerners, the word “sick” usually conjures up images of germ-induced illness or physical problems with natural causes. But James is working from a worldview in which sickness can be mental, physical, emotional, or spiritual and is often viewed as the result of satanic power.

Acts 20:35 NKJV

35 I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

12) Calling the Elders is an act of faith on the part of the sick person

Shows a tangible expression of faith

13) We need a community that stands with each other during hard times

14) The significance of oil:

a. Oil represents deliverance

b. Is associated with joy and the Holy Spirit

c. Represents something being set apart for God/holy

Mark 6:13 NKJV

13 And they cast out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick, and healed them.

Psalm 45:7 NKJV

7 You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.

Isaiah 61:3 NKJV

3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the Lord, that He may be glorified.”

1 Samuel 16:13 NKJV

13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers; and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel arose and went to Ramah.

Exodus 29:21 NKJV

21 And you shall take some of the blood that is on the altar, and some of the anointing oil, and sprinkle it on Aaron and on his garments, on his sons and on the garments of his sons with him; and he and his garments shall be hallowed, and his sons and his sons’ garments with him.

Visiting the Sick:

Matthew 25:36 NKJV

36 I was naked and you clothed Me; I was sick and you visited Me; I was in prison and you came to Me.’

James 5:15 NKJV

15 And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.

15) Sin can be a gateway for sickness, although not every time

John 5:14 NKJV

14 Afterward Jesus found him in the temple, and said to him, “See, you have been made well. Sin no more, lest a worse thing come upon you.”

16) The power of confession, it brings healing - Vs.16

James 5:16 NKJV

16 Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much.

17) Be a reliable part of a community that needs your gifts

18) Confession and reconciliation release healing, both emotional and physical

Acts 19:17–18 NKJV

17 This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified. 18 And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds.

Acts 19:20 NKJV

20 So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.

19) True fervent prayer, moves God and moves mountains

James 5:17–18 NKJV

17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. 18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.

20) The Example of Elijah:

1 Kings 18

a. Elijah was just like us, and God used him to perform supernatural miracles. He wants to use us!

B. Just like Elijah’s prayers healed the earth, so likewise God wants to use our prayers to heal the sick.

21) Tikkun Olam = Repairing the World

The world is running on four flats. We are called to breathe some fresh air into this system which is falling apart.

The Jewish concept of repairing the world. We are called to heal!

AMEN!