James Bible Study Week 2

James 2:1–4 (ESV)

My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. For if a man wearing a gold ring and fine clothing comes into your assembly, and a poor man in shabby clothing also comes in, and if you pay attention to the one who wears the fine clothing and say, “You sit here in a good place,” while you say to the poor man, “You stand over there,” or, “Sit down at my feet,” have you not then made distinctions among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?

Partiality

Why is it bad for us to be a judge?

1 Corinthians 4:3 (ESV)

But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by any human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself.

We cannot know everything about a situation and our sin will blind us

God is the only just judge

Acts 10:34 (ESV)

So Peter opened his mouth and said: “Truly I understand that God shows no partiality,

We cannot fill the shoes of God

James 2:5–7 (ESV)

Listen, my beloved brothers, has not God chosen those who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom, which he has promised to those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Are not the rich the ones who oppress you, and the ones who drag you into court? Are they not the ones who blaspheme the honorable name by which you were called?

Why has God chosen the poor in the world to be rich in faith?

Matthew 19:24 (ESV)

Again I tell you, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”

Matthew 6:24 (ESV)

“No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.

Money can very easily blind us from the truth

Money isn't bad, but it can be dangerous and takes extra faith

James 2:8–13 (ESV)

If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” also said, “Do not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged under the law of liberty. For judgment is without mercy to one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.

Obedience

One verse at a time for jews who didn't think they were sinners

V8 We are not complete failures, we're doing good

V9 Partiality or favoritism is a sin, if you do it you are a sinner

V10 if you've committed one sin you're entire life you're still guilty and deserve death

V11 talks about selective obedience, we don't get to choose what laws we follow and don't follow

when it comes to His laws it doesn't matter what we think or want if God says it our job as His followers and His servants is to obey

Mercy

V12 we need to recognize ourselves as sinners and not dissociate in our minds with people we deem as too sinful

V13 same thing as Matthew 7 judge and you will be judged by the same measure

James 2:14–17 (ESV)

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Faith Without Works

This is not a new gospel

we are saved by our faith and our faith alone

These verses distinguish genuine faith from superficial faith

Define works

Works is not necessarily just doing good things

Its obeying His word and His law

In this story does the person truly want the poor one to be fed and warmed

or does he pretty much pretend to care about him to make him happy

In the same way if we say we believe in God, but we don't truly strive for obedience to Him do we really have faith?

A real question we need to ask ourselves is do we have genuine faith?

Do I really care enough about God to follow His rules or am I just christian to make Him happy?

Do I have a real relationship with God or do I use him as a get out of sin free card

Jude 1:4 talks about a group of people that were condemned to hell he says

"They are ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ "

Do you justify your sin by saying it doesn't matter I'm forgiven?

Do you think that is genuine faith?

Verse 18

We are not saved by our obedience to God

But a true faith that can save us always produces works

Our works prove the genuineness of our faith

Demons

Verse 19 "You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder."

If the demons believe God exists why aren't they saved?

Obviously their faith is not genuine because they work against God

They're not willing to follow God

It's not enough to just believe God exists

Salvation is through genuine obedient faith

James 2:20–22 (ESV)

Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works;

Abraham

If you don't know the story of Abraham, God asked Him to sacrifice His son and he was going to do it, but God stopped him because it was a test of his faith.

God knew Abraham's heart and his faith but God gave him the opportunity to prove his faith true through His willingness to trust God

The bible says that Abraham believed God, but it was proved genuine because of his works

So when we are tested with temptation and we consistently choose sin over God will we be saved?

James 2:23–26 (ESV)

and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.

Rahab

Rahab was a woman who lived in Jericho

She helped the Israelites escape by deterring the people looking for them

She had faith in God and that faith caused her to help His people

Her and her families lives were spared because of it