Title: What is True Religion?
What is true godliness!
about 1:1-8
From today, I would like to receive grace through the book of James and pray. The reason I want to share the book of James is because we can learn the true godly life that we should truly pursue. There is no book in the Bible that speaks more deeply about godliness than the book of James.
Until we fully understand the book of James, we misunderstand the book of James. Some people mistakenly believe that the Gospel of James does not exist. Some people misunderstand the book of James as saying that it ignores faith and is superior to works.
Reformer Martin Luther also called James “the epistle of straw.” This misunderstanding occurred because Luther concentrated on finding and restoring faith during the Reformation. This can happen when a person is preoccupied with one thing. So Luther temporarily misunderstood the book of James as a Bible that contradicted the books of Romans and Galatians.
The Bible does not contradict each other. Which book is superior and which book is not inferior. It's the same. However, the situation in which the word of God came was different. For example, the book of James emphasizes works, but does not despise faith, and says that only works are necessary for complete faith. On the other hand, Romans and Galatians emphasize faith, but do not ignore works. It just points out the inability of legal works without faith. Therefore, faith and works are not separate, but become one.
These problems will be completely resolved when we read the text of James together and unravel the Word. The book of James speaks at a very high level of faith. But it is by no means too far-fetched for us to approach. If you say you truly believe in Jesus, you have no choice but to know and acknowledge the value of the book of James. I, too, will provoke the decision to live with this belief.
There are a few things to think about before entering the text.
Everyone! What is godliness? What comes to mind when you think of reverence? Religion is, in one word, “living on your knees before God.” Two things are important. The first is to kneel before God (prayer). The second is to walk and live before God (action). When I was studying at Chongshin Graduate School (1993), an exchange professor from Princeton Theological Seminary in the United States came to teach me “spirituality”. (3 weeks intensive course) I was shocked when I took this course. This person taught Dr. David-Watkins spirituality, covering a wide range of topics including politics, economy, society, and culture. What shocked me was how spirituality has to do with politics, economy, society and culture. Because I only knew that spirituality is the spiritual power that can be obtained through the Word, prayer, and praise. It happened because I had misunderstood about spirituality. Spirituality can only be said to be spirituality when it is put into practice in the fields of life, such as politics, economy, society, and culture, with faith gained through the Word, prayer, and praise.
In this sense, the book of James is a book that correctly tells us what godliness or true spirituality is. I sincerely pray that you and I will learn the godliness of James through the book of James and that we too will enjoy the same high level of godly life (spiritual life) as James.
Today's first hour, we first look at who James is and what godliness he suggests. When we think of James in the New Testament, we can think of three people. The first is James, the son of Zebedee (John's brother). He became the first Christian martyr. Therefore, he is not the author of the book of James. The second is James the son of Alphaeus. The third is James, the brother of Jesus. Among the three, the one who wrote the book of James is James, the brother of Jesus.
◇James' deeds cannot be known well until the Lord's resurrection. The only thing we can know is 1) John 7:5, which says, “Even his brothers did not believe in Jesus.” After all, James had been with Jesus as his brother for a long time, but he wasn't quite sure who Jesus really was.
2) Then, after seeing the death of the Lord, I met the risen Lord. In 1 Corinthians 15:7, the resurrected Lord met James 1:1. Since then, James has been transformed into a sure disciple of the Lord and a great leader of the Church.
3) Became the supreme leader of the Jerusalem church. (Acts 15, the world's first church council, and the chairperson of the Jerusalem Council - James, not Peter)
◇ James was a man of special prayer. He prayed so much that his knee became like a camel's knee. So, in the book of James, the emphasis on prayer appears in several places. This is the counsel of a great spiritual leader who has experienced and knew prayer.
◇ In today's text, James speaks of two things.
The first is about exams. Read verse 2 together.
“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you meet various trials.” Exams are the biggest problems we face in our lives. For anyone, this is an unavoidable matter. James tells us to rejoice when we face this temptation (verse 2-trial, verse 3-testing, the test of the Lord's Prayer is a temptation, and here is a trial from God). If you overcome this well, three blessings will come in verse 4 . “To be perfect and complete, so that there is nothing lacking.”
◇ James, who was talking about temptation, suddenly talks about prayer in verses 5-8. These two things, temptation and prayer, are very closely related. When we are tempted, we must immediately pray. Because we cannot overcome the temptation without prayer. The test is beyond our strength. Tests can only be endured in prayer.
◇ James speaks of prayer, but he recommends two things. Read verses 5-6 together. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But ask in faith, with no doubting, whoever doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind.”
First, we emphasize what we are praying for. The God who is the object of our prayer is “a God who gives generously and without reproach.” Here, God's fatherhood is emphasized. (Psalm 103:13, as a father has pity on his children...) If you think too difficult about the object of prayer, you cannot pray. The object of our prayers is our Father in heaven. (A merciful Father who does not rebuke me for anything I lack!)
Second, we pray, but we say, “Do not doubt, ask in faith.” This is the thing God is most displeased with toward us. As children of God, we doubt, worry, and worry (these three are always one, doubt-worry-worry). To such people, James warns. Read verses 7-8 together. “Let no such man think that he will receive anything from the Lord, for he is a double-minded and undecided in all things.” Those who pray, doubt, worry, and worry should give up receiving answers to their prayers. Therefore, we should avoid these things when we pray.
1 John 5:14-15, “This is the boldness we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. .”
◇ How can we lead a powerful prayer life like James? Here's a simple trick. It is to understand the heart (heart) of God. It is knowing how to pray and how God hears and answers. That is to pray with confidence.
Today, I heard the first words of James' devout life.
It is a message to pray when you are tempted. He gives us wisdom to avoid temptation and does not rebuke us. A godly person does not solve problems alone. It does not respond artificially. Like James, we deal with problems through prayer.
Are there people who are constantly being tempted and suffering? You did well this evening.
I pray with the word of the Lord that you and I will be blessed with double blessings like Job, who pray like James, overcome trials, and have more mature faith.