You may not quite understand why I continue to have you reread verses in James. But I know that you are aware of the dangers in taking any sort of communication out of context. We hear it all the time when a public figure claims to have been misunderstood. The truth is that anything out of context is in danger of being interpreted wrongly. If there were ever a book that we want to be careful to understand correctly, it is God’s word. So I will continue asking you to reread portions of the book before we move into new sections. In fact, I would suggest that the more you read James in its entirely, the better!
Read James 1:17-20.
1. What has God done for believers according to 1:17-18? What three commands are we to follow in response to that truth of what God has done (1:19)?
2. How do we show that we truly love Jesus according to His words in John 14:15? Write down Jesus’ exact words.
3. Responding to God: Take time to reflect upon the goodness and mercy of God. Consider that the correct response to such love is to love Him back. Write a prayer or poem asking God to speak to you personally about ways to love Him. Ask Him to show you at least one specific way to obey Him out of love as you study this week.
Stronger Jeans (optional): Look for other verses about your love for God. There will be many in your exhaustive concordance under the word “love” so you may want to look at the cross-references in the margin of your Bible or a topical Bible. When you have a word that doesn’t have so many references, you can use the NET Bible at bible.org. Type in your word under “search for”.
4. Look at the other verses below and write down how they relate to the first and second commands of James 1:19:
a. Prov. 17:28
b. Prov. 10:19
c. Prov. 11:12-13
d. Prov. 13:3
e. Ecc. 5:2-3
5. Summarize the teaching of the previous verses in Proverbs and James in your own words. How would you explain it to someone else who tends to rush into saying what she thinks?
6. Sharing Question: Share the story of a time when you spoke too quickly instead of listening, with disastrous, or at least negative, results.
7. Responding to God: Spend time asking God for the grace to listen more and speak less. Think of one particular person with whom you are impatient and want to jump in and speak. Write a prayer asking God to remind you to keep your mouth shut when you interact with her or him. You may want to draw a picture of your mouth with God’s “hand” over it as a way to remember this lesson better.
Week 3 - Day 1
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4 comments:
A few years ago, we had a Christian family rent our home for a few months while they were repairing their home.
The wife made certain promises to us that we didn't include in the contract.
Suffice to say, it was not done when they left. I was upset about it because my husband had to fly back to that state and work on the things they neglected as well as other things to get the house ready to sell.
This is where I was wrong. I called the wife and pretty much just asked her what happened, why they didn't do it.
On hindsight, I should have just let it go, because she became defensive and I became more mad. The relationship was broken.
I think even if I felt I was being wronged, I should have followed in thought, the consequences through. I think God would have blessed me instead for covering that sin with prayer instead of opening my mouth and confronting her. I think the verse love covers a multitude of sin applies here, too.
When I worked, I would get involved in the 'Rumor Mill'. I never initiated gossip or was involved in hateful talk but I did pass along information (who was getting fired, who was cheating on who, etc). It 'seemed' harmless but deep down I knew it wasn't right. When I decided to stop, I found it difficult to tell a co-worker not to gossip to me so instead I would listen and TRY not to pass it on. A lot more difficult than it seems.
I sometimes try to do good stuff for people I love without considering God's will. On one occasion I gave a promise and later realize that what I promised went against God's plan. I later had to humble myself and say that I could not follow through with the arrangement and I gave some lame excuse. Now I try to consider things before I give a promise. I try to pray about it before I wind up eating my words.
This happens all the time with my son. Something crashes, and I immediately assume that he was touching something he wasn't supposed to, that he was intentionally being disobedient. I will pray about, and work towards, being quick to listen to him, and slow down my advice, and more importantly my anger.
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