Have you ever thought, “I know I’m saved, but I expected more peace in my life”? Or maybe, “I thought decisions would come easier now that I’m a new creation.” Sometimes it feels like even when we try to do the right thing, the outcome is nothing but difficulty. What’s missing? Surely God didn’t intend for us to live weighed down like this. Join us as we look at James’ letter and uncover the one thing we may be overlooking: the key to avoiding unnecessary strain in our walk with Christ.

The Book of James (week 6) - James 3:13-19

One of the more challenging parts of the Christian life is that there is no real direct feedback as to how we are doing, or at least so it would seem. James, referencing something Jesus said, argues that there is a metric by which we can measure the maturity of our faith. That gauge is closer than you might think, and much smaller than the power it wields. Join us in week 5 of our series, "The Book of James" as we learn what this measuring tool is, and how we can work to tame it.

James 3

Is your faith real—or just words?

It has been said that the most destructive lies are those that are closest to the truth. Because of their proximity to the truth, they are more easily believed while, in fact, remaining untrue. Lots of "Christians" are using the same terms while believing, and in some cases teaching, a version of Christianity that does not save. James, the half-brother of Jesus, saw this happening in the early days of the church and wrote to define a couple of terms that are essential to a saving faith. Without those definitions, one is left with a poor understanding of salvation, and possibly no salvation at all. James cleared it up, and we'll work to do the same in Week four of James - Real Life, Real Faith.

Just about everyone has heard of the Golden Rule. For clarity it is this: "Do for others what you want them to do for you." When we become followers of Christ we are challenged with a new rule, a higher rule, and it is this: "Do for others what God the Father, in Christ, has done for you." That requires us to do two things: learn and understand what God has done for us, and then to operate toward others how God has acted toward us. At the onset of Chapter 2 in James, he tells us how that should work while showing us what stands in the way. We'll unpack the solution in Week 3 of our series in James.

Last week’s message concluded with James telling us that every good and perfect gift comes from above. Today, week 2, we will see that the greatest of those gifts is new life through the Word of truth. That Word is not just a message; it’s a Person: Jesus Christ. Join us this morning as we discover how receiving that Word must lead to transformation. Transforming what we know, how we hear, and what we do.

We invite you to join us as we wrap up our series on the Five Solas with Solus Christus: Christ Alone. The Reformers boldly rejected the idea of “Jesus plus anything,” and we must do the same. Salvation is not found in Jesus and something else; it is found in Jesus alone. As we’ll discover in the book of Romans, the gospel requires: grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, according to Scripture alone, for the glory of God alone.

Every person everywhere operates according to what they believe. Belief is inextricably linked to behavior. For the sinner to take hold of Christ, they must first believe that such a hold will accomplish the desired result. In other words, it is belief, or faith, that is required for Christ's work to be applied. It is no wonder, then, that a synonym for Christians is Believers. Today, we will examine more closely this relationship between belief and claimed hope as we unpack the need for Faith Alone in our series: The Five Solas.

Perhaps there are people in this world that do not enjoy receiving gifts, but if there are they are in an extreme minority. There is something intrinsically satisfying about being given something that you did nothing to earn. (Which by the way is the nature of a gift, if you earned it, it wasn't a gift) What is more remarkable is that every person in every place has been extended the greatest possible gift ever to exist, and that is freedom from the punishment we are owed for our dishonoring of, or flat-out refusal to acknowledge the existence of, the God of the universe. It is by God's gift, and His gift only that we walk in protection from His wrath. Another word for that gift is grace, and today we'll learn together why is it Grace Alone that has produced for us an opportunity for salvation.

That which is true will always expose that which is untrue or corrupt. That is exactly what took place when Martin Luther placed God's Word as a filter over the practices of the Roman Catholic Church in the 16th century. From his efforts, along with others, came the Protestant Reformation. When the Bible is held as the chief authority, all that which is untrue and corrupt crumbles. In our current culture, there are lots of voices declaring themselves as true and authoritative. How do we know who or what to believe? The answer is really quite simple, we do what Luther did. We use God's Word as a filter and see what shakes out. We'll talk about how in week 2 of The 5 Solas.