SHIELD 240725 James 5

ACCOUNTABILITY FOLLOW UP 07/11/24

Lonnie: James 4:17 “Therefore, to one who knows to do the right thing and does not do it, to him it is sin.”

Action: Putting things off | Change: Pray for right desires | Consequence: Repeating the cycle | Teach: Lauren

Stephen: James 4:10 “Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.”

Action: Be humble for God | Change: Pray in God’s will | Consequence: Doing things for others as opposed to God | Teach: Emrys

Mark: James 4:14 “Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.”

Action: Keep eternal perspective on my own mortality | Change: Keep end in view | Consequence: Fritter away opportunities/no rewards | Teach: Gunner

Christopher: James 4:8 “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”

Action: Draw nearer to God | Change: Wrestle with God | Consequence: Old me will return | Teach: Open ended

CONTEXT James 4

Drawing near to God James 4:1-12

Life is a vapor James 4:13-16.

Do what you know is right James 4:17

TEXT ANALYSIS

I. Miseries of the Rich (v1-6)

James 5:1 Come now, you rich, cry, howling over your miseries which are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and your silver have rusted, and their corrosion will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. You have stored up such treasure in the last days! 4 Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields—that which has been withheld by you—cries out against you; and the outcries of those who did the harvesting have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. 5 You have lived luxuriously on the earth and lived in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous man; he does not resist you.

Takeaway: The rich are cast as antagonists that are proud and hinder and hurt James 2:6 “But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and they themselves drag you into court?” The riches that they are hoarding up are transitory and will fail.

II. Patience and Perseverance (v7-11)

James 5:7 Therefore be patient, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. Behold, the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the soil, being patient about it, until it receives the early and late rains. 8 You too be patient; strengthen your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. 9 Do not groan, brothers, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be judged. Behold, the Judge is standing right at the door. 10 As an example, brothers, of suffering and patience, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Behold, we count those blessed who persevere. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and have seen the outcome of the Lord’s dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful.

Takeaway: Don’t worry about whether you will see the precious fruit, entrust to God the One who creates life simply be patient and wait (Day 3) Genesis 1:11ff . Don’t misjudge James 4:11“Do not slander one another, brothers. He who slanders a brother or judges his brother, slanders the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it.” No explanation given to Job, in faith he persevered

III. Being Careful Not To Blaspheme (v12)

James 5:12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath. But let your yes be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.

Takeaway: When we make minced oaths or casually mishandle the name of the Lord we put ourselves at risk of judgment Exodus 20:7 ““You shall not take the name of Yahweh your God in vain, for Yahweh will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.” Matthew 12:36““But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment.”

IV. The Prayer of the Righteous Man (v13-18)

James 5:13 Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray. Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer offered in faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much. 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 earth for three years and six months. 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky gave rain and the earth produced its fruit.

Takeaway: Prayer, turning in faith to God, is paired with action in James James 2:15–17“If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead by itself.”

V. Confronting the Erring

James 5:19 My brothers, if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back, 20 let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

Takeaway: There is an opportunity to correct in love with a merciful attitude those who are straying. Jude 21–23“keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And on some, who are doubting, have mercy; and for others, save, snatching them out of the fire; and on others have mercy with fear, hating even the tunic polluted by the flesh.” James 4:17 “Therefore, to one who knows to do the right thing and does not do it, to him it is sin.”

IF ALL WE HAD WAS THIS ONE TEXT WHAT WOULD WE KNOW ABOUT

The Father, Son, Spirit

Believers/Unbelievers

How does this text address my attitude or behavior?

What is one change that I can make

What is a consequence of not making the change

Who can I teach?

Mark: -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Stephen:-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Lonnie:---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tom: ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Others:---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------