Wayside Bible Chapel

The Bible places a major emphasis on the power of words both to help and to destroy. James tells us our words should be holy, but he also tells us no man can tame the tongue. We will be judged by every word we have spoken. That is the dilemma. What are we to do about it?

John is caught up into the throne room of heaven. What he saw there was the culmination of the history of mankind. What is life all about? Why is there so much suffering? Will it ever end? Will there ever be justice? It all depends on if someone is worthy to open the scroll with seven seals.

Can a person be born-again and their life not change? Is it possible to be a new creation in Christ but not have something in our lives that shows that change? And if we have not changed, are we deceiving ourselves about our faith? This passage in James addresses these questions.

King Jesus gave us a royal law, one of two that sum up all God's laws and the prophets: Love your neighbor as yourself. But what does that mean? Thankfully Jesus explained. James brought this up because it addressed the churches' tendency to favor the rich. It gets to the very heart of God.

James tells the Lord of Glory is impartial. He loves the world. He died for any person of any race, condition, status, or nationality. The Bible shows people of faith are from every walk of life. So how can we treat some individuals with preference over others? Are we sure that we have the heart of God for all people we meet?

When we say we are religious people, are we fooling ourselves? James gives us some indicators. While Home Depot says its stores help doers get things done, James says it is those who look into the perfect law of liberty and persevere who actually get eternal things done and are blessed in the process.

James tells us we must hear this. Be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to become angry! Our old nature struggles with these three issues. To master them by the aid of the Holy Spirit, we grow in the righteousness of God. The sermon helps us get the right mindset to do so.

James describes temptation like a fishing lure. It is all shiny and bright and so attractive, promising a satisfaction that will thrill us. What we cannot see are the hooks and line that will drag us to destruction. He tells us it is our desires that conceive sin and sin gives birth to death. Instead, we need to see that good and perfect gifts come from God.

God will generously give wisdom to those who ask. Wisdom is how to live rightly, which God longs for us to do. That wisdom helps us to see what is truly valuable and eternal. That means that we see the trials we face in a different light. Instead of temporary frustration and disappointment, we can see by faith what God is producing in our lives that is eternal.

James addressed a church undergoing persecution and told them to welcome trials with joy. He explains that we can be joyful in suffering because we know that God is refining our faith resulting in a steadfast spirit. The result is our perfection and lacking in nothing. It is what we long to attain. Therefore, we should have joy in the process knowing the end results.