“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” [James 4:7 NIV]

In chapter 3, James introduced the idea of how our inner lives effect the words we speak. In Chapter 4, this idea is further explored, by addressing how our inner lives effect our relationships with God and others.

A prideful heart cannot submit to God. This is the principle that James is exploring in verses one through three. When the evil desires that live inside of us come out, we experience fights and quarrels among each other. Our desire to have what is not rightfully ours leads us to covet, quarrel, fight and kill. It is our sin nature that drives these actions.

God will have none of it. We may ask god to supply us with our wants, but answering ‘YES!’ to these prayers would only lead us further away from Him. And as we will see, God‘s greatest desire for us is to draw near to him

“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.” [James 3:13 NIV]

The Book of James has emphasized that real authentic faith produces good deeds. In this confusing world it can be hard to know which good deeds to put our hands to. Knowing what to do when you are following Jesus, James argues, requires wisdom; which is the subject of this week's sermon.

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For more information about Connection Church Dublin and other resources please visit: www.connectiondublin.com

“...Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.” [James 3:2 NIV]

In this week's message Pastor Stanely Lane dives deep into James 3:1-12. In the first two chapters of James, he emphasizes and argues for the importance of works in the life of the follower of Jesus. This, however, begs the question: which works? Chapter 3 begins to answer this question by focusing on one of the most basic: the way we use our words.

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For more information about Connection Church Dublin and other resources please visit: www.connectiondublin.com

“As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead..” [James 2:26 NIV]

After rebuking his audience for their failure to put their faith into action, James continues his explanation of the relationship between faith and works in 2:14-26. His main point is that the actions you take display what you truly believe. Many of us have spiritual life, yet we’re spiritually sick. We attend church to hear what the Great Physician has to say and leave feeling good about his prescription. We remain spiritually unhealthy, though, because we don’t swallow the medicine. Once we hear God’s Word, we must act on it to be transformed by it. Essentially, what we do is an embodiment of what we truly believe.

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For more information about Connection Church Dublin and other resources please visit: www.connectiondublin.com

“Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.” [James 2:12-13 NIV]

The book of James is letter written to Jewish people (12 tribes of Israel) that had been scattered because of persecution. These were people that were new Christians coming out of a life lived under religious law and were now learning what it meant to live in relationship with Jesus. The letter is written because many were struggling with the suffering of persecution as well as sin in the church, specifically pride and gossip. 

In today's message we will diver deeper into James 1: 1-18.

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For more information about Connection Church Dublin and other resources please visit: www.connectiondublin.com

“While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.’ So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hand son them and sent them off.” [‭‭Acts 13:2-3 NIV‬‬]

Barnabas and Saul were not called into intense full-time mission work straight from the bench, they were already in the game. Immediately after Saul’s conversion, we see Paul begin preaching and sharing his testimony (Acts 9:19-30). And when Barnabas was sent to Antioch to assist them in preaching to the gentiles, he grabbed Saul to come along side him (Acts 11:19-30). This call by the Holy Spirit was not calling them into something foreign, but into a deeper more focused expression of what they were already doing.

God has called us to be faithful, not famous. If we want to be used by God to do great things (or even the RIGHT things), He will often guide us into places to serve and obey small.

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For more information about Connection Church Dublin and other resources please visit: www.connectiondublin.com

“Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs, but rather tries to please his commanding officer.” [‭‭2 Timothy‬ ‭2:3-4‬ ‭NIV‬‬]

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He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. [Revelation 21:4]

The sinful fallen world we live in is only temporary. We as Christians, those who have faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and savior only face pain, sickness, troubles and death in the temporary. After the return of Jesus and His reign on the earth, death, and the devil himself will be destroyed. God will then create a new heaven and a new earth. God will then once again dwell with us, His people as He did with Adam and Eve in the Garden before sin entered the world. He promises through His word that there will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain.

Remember it’s only temporary. Overcome because you don’t hope for the temporary. Persevere because your faith in Jesus Christ has guaranteed you a perfect eternity. For the joy set before Him he endured the cross. Jesus lived holy and righteous.

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For more information about Connection Church Dublin and other resources please visit: www.connectiondublin.com

Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength. [Acts 9:17-19]

The conversion of Saul, a “pharisee of pharisees” on the Damascus Road is amazing. Jesus Christ took a man who was condemning Christ Followers and turned him into a fellow believer who would be a herald of the Gospel and make up a large part of the New Testament scripture that we read today. Saul was going along that road full of self-righteousness and religion. Being highly educated in his time he was still spiritually blind. Saul believed in his own righteousness through upholding religious tradition. When Saul encountered Jesus that day, he knew that He was alive. Knowing that Jesus is alive changed everything. Saul knew that Jesus followers were preaching that he was the Messiah, the son of God. Knowing that Jesus had risen and was alive meant that Saul finally saw Jesus for who He is. The son of God, the risen savior, Holy, perfect, and righteous. This led Saul to repentance and reliance on Jesus alone, not his own self-righteous acts.

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For more information about Connection Church Dublin and other resources please visit: www.connectiondublin.com