Tomball Bible Church

October 25, 2026

Selfish! Unfair! Waste! Cruel! These are the cries that flow from James’ quill as he described the wicked rich in James 5:1-6. This is a passage that condemns those who worship money and serves as a warning for believers to not allow our possessions to possess our hearts.

October 18, 2026

Our lives are not our own. But, we can definitely live as if the opposite is true. James calls this “boasting in our arrogance.” Wow! We will not hold to a single-minded devotion to Jesus if we live as if we command our destiny and allow greed to drive our lives. James 4:13-17 provides the warning and reality we need to guard the mindset we need every day: a mind that is set on God’s will and purpose.

October 11, 2026

Are believers to judge one another? The question is a bit of a trap because the meaning or the circumstance of judgment is crucial to know if the answer is yes or no. In James 4:11-12, we will look at the kind of sinful judgment that we must avoid in the Church and between one another. If we get this wrong, then unity, safety, and belonging will be undone and will disrupt our mission of glorifying Jesus Christ by making mature disciples to reach the nations.

James 4:11-12

October 4, 2026

God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. This principle contains a serious warning and a sweet promise from the Lord. The determining factor is a Christian’s posture of humility. Our God desires to draw near to us and lift us up, yet our proud practices disrupt our nearness to Him. James 4:6b-10 tells us how we can put our pride to death and live in humility.

James 4:6-10

September 27, 2026

James harshly scolded his Christian readers for making friends with “the world”, i.e., all the people on earth who are in active rebellion against God (AKA “The World Club”). This friendship made God their hostile enemy. James called them “Adulterous people” because they, like Israel in the OT, had turned their affection away from God to chase after another lover (in this case The World Club), which aroused God’s jealousy and wrath. Big problem. But all was not lost. James said God’s grace, a free blessing we don’t deserve, is greater than God’s hostility, jealousy, and wrath. In this way, God initiates reconciliation with the drifting, disobedient Christians. (The offending Christians also have a role to play in reconciliation; that will be covered in James 4:6b-10 next week)

James 4:4-6a

September 20, 2026

When was the last time you took stock in what was coming out
of you emotionally and spiritually? Taking stock of what is coming out of us
also requires us to evaluate what we are putting into ourselves too. If we
put junk in then junk is what will come out. If we only feed our own passions
and pleasures within us then what will come out of us is when we feel those
passions and pleasures threatened. Your spouse, child, or co-worker did
not cause your angry outburst, sure they may have offended you or sinned
in their own way, but your response is your responsibility, your mouth
showed what was in your heart. Wisdom is seeking that which is from
above and living in a way that is approved from above. This only comes
when we actually own our responses and then make the daily effort, by the
power of the Spirit, to uproot our sinful pleasures and replace them with
Godly pleasures, namely God himself.

James 4:1-3

September 13, 2026

Often, we envision wisdom as something gained through knowledge or experience, but James teaches that true wisdom is measured not merely by what we know or say, but by the kind of life it produces. Earthly wisdom grows from selfish ambition and leaves disorder in its wake, while wisdom from above is pure, bearing the unmistakable fruit of humility, mercy, righteousness, and peace. Wisdom always has a tell, and our lives reveal where ours comes from.

James 3:13-18

9/6/2026

Truth: Every believer must work out his or her own salvation. We don’t work for our salvation, but the Bible is clear that we must all act upon saving faith. Yet, there is a pernicious and devious lie that lurks close by all well-intentioned believers. This subtle deception is this: “You’re not the Christian you’re supposed to be, and you know it; so, do better.” Our enemy would love nothing more than for the Church to be filled with tired, disheartened, and defeated Christians. We pause in our study of James to focus on Philippians 2:12-18 and see the incredibly freeing truth that we work out our salvation through the power of God, not personal effort. 

Philippians 2:12-18

August 30, 2026

Having explained that true faith loves God and lives by His standard, James returns to the subject of a believer’s speech. How we use our words really matters, especially for those set apart as teachers. Our words can either be a fountain of life that blesses God and others or a poisoned well that dishonors Him and harms all who draw from it.

James 3:1-12

August 23, 2026

James 2:14-26 unmasks false expressions of faith and reveals the face of true, saving faith in Christ. By clarifying often-misunderstood terms, we will discover how genuine faith expresses itself through love for Christ and obedience to His Word.

James 2:14-26