James wants to show us that how we handle our money directly ties to what is going on in our hearts. Christians in James' day had tragically started abusing their fellow believers in the name of easy cash.

Money is one of the clearest windows into our lives as to what is really going on inside.

James continues his theme of humility and pride in chapter 4 with how we speak and how we plan. But as we dig deeper into the chapter we come to find that the real problem is not how we interact or schedule. The real problem is in how we see other people and how we see ourselves.

James does a deep dive to start chapter 4 of his letter. He shows us about our souls. He shows us how we work to show that we have faith. And he shows us that helping our church means looking in the mirror first.

In these strange and stressful times, God is still on His throne. While we wait and serve Jesus, there are ways we can continue to spread His life and light to a panicked world.

What is wisdom? James reminds us here that wisdom is not summed up just in our knowledge, it is more about our actions. Do we live lives of humble repentance? Or are we selfish, only caring about ourselves?

James tells us that a key to the Church thriving and surviving in any age is the ability to control what we say and how we say it. We walk through 5 ways to do this. Most importantly James reminds us that ultimately we do not need a new process, we need a new heart.

(Note: Any time Ryan says James 2 it is actually James 3)

In James 3:1 - 8 we learn about not only the power of our words, but about the power of the One who can change our words. Taming the tongue is an impossible task. But James knows someone who can help.

Faith makes us work the same way that wind moves the trees. James takes the final part of chapter 2 to remind us all that faith is not just an outward thing we experience, but something that we do. Faith works.

James comes to us with a message as relevant and necessary for today just as much as it was 2,000 years ago: the Church will only survive and flourish if we love our neighbor as ourself. If we do not do this, we break the entire law of God.

James 2:1-7 is about much more than just how to treat the rich and the poor. James is asking the Church: "Who do you really trust in to grow: money and influence, or the sacrifice of Jesus Christ?"