September 18 – 22

Day 1 - Introductions

Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)

Scripture Reading – James 1:1

The short letter of James is quite likely the earliest manuscript written in the New Testament, possibly only after Galatians. The author is not James, one of the 12 disciples, for he was martyred by Herod Agrippa in 44AD (Acts 12). This James is held to be the half brother of Jesus; one who took some time to come to believe in him, but whom Paul was to call “a pillar of the church.” In fact, James became the leader of the church in Jerusalem and his counsel and influence can be seen throughout the New Testament letters.

Yet in his introduction to this pastoral letter to the young church, and particularly to those who were suffering persecution and trials, he names himself not as an Apostle, an Elder or the brother of Jesus, but merely calls himself “a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.” The word here for servant ‘doulos’ is really ‘slave’. A slave was the absolute possession of his Master. He had no rights of his own and was bound to unquestioning obedience. Three other aspects of being a slave:

1. Humility – not thinking of privileges but of duty 2. Loyalty – putting his Master first not his own interests 3. Pride – there is honour in serving one who is worthy.

In being identified as a slave James stands in the tradition of many great Old Testament characters who served God wholeheartedly, Moses, Joshua, Abraham and Isaac to name a few.

How do we introduce ourselves? How do we like to think of ourselves and what credentials spring to mind first? Perhaps our job or connections, or positions of responsibility or areas of influence? None of these are necessarily good or bad, but do they define how we think of ourselves? Would we consider our unreserved obedience and loyalty to Jesus as our defining characteristic?

Questions to Consider How might I live differently if I saw myself first and foremost as a slave/servant of God? Is this what others see?

Prayer Heavenly Father, help me examine my heart and show me any areas where I have not truly made you Lord and Master. May I serve you because you are worthy. May I love you because you first loved me, Amen.

Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)

Day 2 - Unnatural Joy

Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)

Scripture Reading – James 1:2-4

We are not far into this first chapter, yet already we stumble over a hard saying. “Consider it pure joy...whenever you face trials of many kinds...” Is James suggesting a ‘don’t worry be happy’ attitude? A ‘just deny the pain and soldier on’ type of stoicism? Not at all. We too easily confuse joy with happiness. Happiness largely depends on circumstances. Joy on the other hand is a ‘state of being...a settled contentment in every situation’ or ‘an unnatural reaction of deep, steady, and unadulterated thankful trust in God.’ Having less to do with emotion and more to do with thinking and perception, James encourages his readers to ‘consider it’ or ‘reckon it’ joy. We have to think harder in difficult times, look harder at what is actually going on, and make choices to align ourselves with what God is accomplishing in us, and in the world.

Trials are not the reason for joy in and of themselves. It is easy to misquote the intent here and say that our faith endures in spite of trials. No, James says that faith endures because of trials. There is a goal in mind, and that is that we become mature and complete; not in the sense of perfect, but in the sense of being made fit for the purpose God intends. The term for testing ‘dokimion’ comes from the process of producing sterling coinage, where all impurities must be purged from the metal, all weaknesses and imperfections removed till nothing is deficient. Joy in trials comes from knowing what God is up to and knowing who he is. It is this focus that produces an ‘unnatural’ joy in us if we stick with the process. Frederick Beuchner speaks of trials pushing us to be good stewards of our pain – opening ourselves to the Spirit so that he might use the most difficult times in our lives to sow seeds of love, joy, peace, patience....

Questions to Consider From what we read in James should trials be expected in the Christian life? “Testing shows something real is happening in us” -NT Wright. Discuss.

Prayer Loving Father, thank you that I can bring my concerns and confusion and my questions to you. I choose to trust in your faithfulness and what you are working out in my life whether I understand the path or not. You are my Lord and Master and I will praise and worship you, Amen.

Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)

Day 3 - Building Faith Muscle

Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)

Scripture Reading – James 1:2-4

Let’s persevere with these verses a little longer! James is writing to the Jewish Christians, many of whom had fled persecution and now lived among unbelieving nations. He urges them to persevere because there is something about holding on that builds us into the people God intends us to be. Perseverance, or patience, is one of the main themes of this book. It is a quality that James urges his readers to allow to work right through their whole system. It isn’t merely a resigned and passive patience that will wait and see what happens. Rather the picture is of being under a heavy load and resolutely determining to stay there rather than seeking to escape. Later Paul will write to the Corinthians about being under great pressure which only pushed him to rely more heavily on God (2 Corinthians 1:8-11). God is in the business of building tough people; people who don’t merely survive, but are supposed to count, and make a difference in the world.

Faith is like muscle tissue. When stressed to the limit it becomes stronger, not weaker. When our faith is threatened, even stretched to the breaking point, if we persevere the result will be an even greater capacity to endure. We don’t really know the depth of our character until we see how we react under pressure. We may feel it is easy to be kind when life is going well, but can we be kind when we feel overlooked or unfairly treated? Exercising faith in everyday small ways builds the ‘muscle memory’ that we rely on for more challenging times.

Questions to Consider Have I seen patience as passive resignation or dogged stick-ability? Read Paul’s reaction to severe trials in 2 Corinthians 1:9-11. What did he feel, what did he do, what was the result? We may think trials are trying to break us when they can be the opportunities to build us. Discuss.

Prayer Almighty God, teach me how to keep my eyes on you during tough times. Thank you that you are building your character into me day by day, Amen.

Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)

Day 4 – Lacking Wisdom?

Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)

Scripture Reading – James 1:5-8 A second great theme in James is wisdom. But he isn’t suddenly changing tack here. After encouragement to preserve in trials which leads to maturity and growth, he nevertheless realises that under pressure people need wisdom – and wisdom beyond their natural ability. James is the New Testament equivalent of Old Testament Wisdom Literature, such as Proverbs and Ecclesiastes. Throughout Israel’s history sages sifted and tested and collected wisdom. More than just acquired information, wisdom is practical insight into how life works.

If the difficulties of life are to produce growth in us, we certainly need the right perspective and response to them. How does this occur? We need wisdom, and we need to ask God for it. The Message puts it, “If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help.” Generosity characterises God’s willingness to grant us what we need. The Greek poet Philemon called God “the lover of gifts” in the sense that, it is his delight to give. Unfortunately we often project on to God a stingy, mean or begrudging attitude that we encounter in the world, perhaps which even hides in our own soul. We fear being judged for difficulties being of our own making or not figuring things out on our own. But God does not find fault; however he does require faith. ‘Will he/wont he’ ‘can he/can’t he’ thinking will get us nowhere. James warns of being double-minded, literally having two souls or two minds. “One mind believes, the other mind disbelieves; and the man is a walking civil war in which trust and distrust of God wage a continual battle” -W Barclay. Learning who God truly is and how he acts is the key to wisdom and success in all circumstances.

Questions to Consider How do I define wisdom? What holds me back from asking and believing for wisdom from God? What examples of God’s generosity can I bring to mind to encourage my faith?

Prayer Heavenly Father, you are the true source of all I need, from the practicalities of daily living to the wisdom to handle the unexpected. May I be humble enough to approach you, and trusting enough to eagerly expect to receive from you, Amen.

Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)

Day 5 – Choose Life

Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)

Scripture Reading – James 1:9-18

The early church did not live in a vacuum, throwing aside all that had come before. While there was exciting new revelation in the life and death of Christ and the presence of the Holy Spirit, they often reflected on present experience in the light of Old Testament revelation. Here James warns his hearers about the snares of wealth and of temptations. His thoughts echo back to the writings of Isaiah 40:7-8. What is permanent? What is of lasting value? The things the world values, such as wealth and prestige, will fade as quickly as the bright wildflowers. The things we can achieve for ourselves do not last. And often our own desires lead only away from what God designed for us; in fact they lead to death. What God offers is life, a crown of life. Again, there are echoes of the Old Testament covenant God made with his people which required a choice between life and death.

What stands firm is God and his word. He does not change in character or in attitude. Every good gift comes from God. Not sometimes good and at other times bad. Circumstances change, our good judgement goes up and down, our fortunes fluctuate, in fact life is perpetual change and motion. Only God remains the one constant.

Looking back again to the Old Testament festivals, the first fruits of the harvest were always to belong to the Lord, and be offered as a sacrifice. Just as he opened his letter with an unequivocal commitment as a slave of God, now James sees the effect of God’s word; producing people who give themselves wholeheartedly as an offering to their heavenly Father.

Questions to Consider Can you identify a time when a seemingly small sin or wrong desire eventually led to a larger harmful circumstance? Am I growing in being less attached to the things of life that don’t last and more attached to God and his ways? What practices promote this process? Read Isaiah 40 - a journey from comfort to strength.

Prayer Holy God, you are the same yesterday, today and forever. The wholly trustworthy one on whom I choose to build my life. I praise you Lord, Amen.

Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)

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