Good morning,
James 5 has five themes, riches, patience, prayer, faith, and restoration. This week we will explore each of these and make pertinent application.
RICHES, PATIENCE, PRAYER, FAITH, AND RESTORATION
JAMES 5
Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh. (James 5:8)
INTRODUCTTION:
When we are patient, we are persevering. We will have confidence and hope in life whatever we face because who we are in Christ.
I. Money Problems: 5:1-6
A. What Their Riches Will Bring (5:1-4)
5:1 Woes to the rich and to corruption (Luke 6:24)
5:2-4 Wealth in time is all worthless (Matt. 6:19-20))
5:5-6 Self indulgence is sin and is of no benefit (Luke 16:19-20, 25)
Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.4 Behold, the hire of the laborers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.
B. The Way The Rich Used Their Wealth (5: 5)
“Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.”
C. The Way They Got Their Wealth (5:4, 6)
4 Behold, the hire of the laborers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth. 6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.
James is explaining that riches used to profit oneself causes sorrow. He uses words like miseries, corrupted, and moth-eaten clothes. He alludes to the idea that hording was taking place and that laborers were not being paid.
So what is the right use of riches? Riches should be used to further the cause of Christ. What might that look like? Christmas is just around the corner. We are celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ. When was the last time that you gave Jesus a gift? There are missionaries, church members, Pastors, Evangelists, and people that have blessed you spiritually. Give them a gift for Jesus sake. Thank them for what they mean to you. What about the homeless and down and out? Jesus ministered to these people. How about giving to a soup kitchen or going to work at a holiday meal.
The possibilities are endless. Also each of us need to remember who provided our riches. God Himself. God gave us the ability to work and earn a living. So when we give a gift to in Jesus name, we are really just giving back for what He has given us.
So how are you going to use our riches?
II. Patient Endurance 5:7-11
5:7 Be patient
5: 8-9 Watch because Jesus will return (Matt. 24:33; Mark 13:35-39)
5:10 The Prophets are our example (Matt. 5:10-12)
7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.10 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.
James challenges us to be patient. In today’s culture we are not accustomed to being patient. We have fast food, stores with all kinds of products, fast internet, and on demand TV. So when the Bible commands us to be patient, we do not know what to do.
Slow down might be a good first step. Find a quiet place in your home, get your Bible, and read. Turn off the TV, cell phones, laptops, and other electronic devices and just relax.
James points out we are to be patiently waiting for the Lord’s return. We are to be patiently enduring and suffering affliction. We are to follow the example of the prophets and Job.
Be patient!
III. Oaths and Christians 5:12
But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.
First, we are never to take the Lord’s name in vain. Second, the oaths taken in secret societies are also prohibited. Third, the oath we take in court or for the “oath of office” is an expression of agreement and is acceptable. Many of us have served in the military. When we were inducted we took an oath to “serve and defend the Constitution of the United States.”
IV. The Prayer Of The Saints: 5:13-20
A. Prayer for the Afflicted (5:13)
Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.
We are to pray for those who are afflicted. Who are the afflicted? Believers persecuted for their faith. Why are they being persecuted, beaten, and killed, because they will not renounce their faith in Jesus Christ. Although this is the extreme, there are believers at work or in a local church that may be afflicted for their faith.
Pray for these believers. Ask God to put His hedge of protection round about them. Pray that they would stand firm under the affliction.
B. Prayer for the Sick (5:14-16)
14 Is any sick among you? 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:15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.
It is the privilege and responsibility for every Believer to pray for the sick. We should have the faith to believe that God can heal anyone, of any sickness or disease, at any time. BUT, we must also understand that God is not bound to bend to our desires. There are reasons unbeknownst to us, God may choose to allow a person to suffer or die. Our part is to pray and accept God’s perfect will in each situation.
C. Prayer for the Nation (5:17-18) (Israel)
17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
James takes us back to 1 Kings 17 and 18. King Ahab was a wicked Baal worshipper. He set up pagan shrines called groves to his god. God was not pleased. He sent Elijah to proclaim that no rain would fall for a period of time. (1 Kings 17:1) Then 3 ½ years later the word of the Lord came to Elijah and God caused it to rain. (1 Kings 18:1) The nation of Israel was being punished for failure to follow God. Their wicked leaders drew the nation to idol worship. God sent Elijah with judgment. Only God could withhold rain and then produce it. It was a sign to Israel that the God of creation, the Almighty God, was more powerful than Baal and the other false gods. Prayer changes things.
Effective prayer comes from knowing God. So we must be Believers in God. We must be saved. Then we must understand the way God thinks. To understand how God thinks we must understand His word. We must be willing to read it, study it, and apply God’s word into our lives.
D. Prayer for the Backslidden (5:19-20) (Restoration)
5:19-21 Our call to help restore the stray sheep (Matt. 18:15)
19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.
CONCLUSION
- Beware how you deal with money
- Be patient, the Lord is coming soon
- Do not swear an oath
- Pray for the afflicted, sick, nation, and the backslidden
Tom Stearns, WASI Chaplain, 907 715-4001 chaplain@alaskaseniors.com
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