A Friend Of God

James 3:16 - 4:6

Would you like to be a friend of God?  I think that most people, if they believe in God, would like to consider Him their friend.  And I think that this would definitely hold true for those who have accepted His Son, Jesus, as their Savior. Yes, I believe that we all would like to be considered a friend of God’s.  In our Scripture today, as we continue in the Book of James, He speaks of being either a friend or an enemy of God.  He speaks of having wisdom that comes from God, which a friend of God would have, and also of wars and fighting.  Let’s look into this lesson from James.

As our Scripture opens, James speaks of several evil traits that are common among people, including sometimes found in believers.  These are envy and self-seeking or selfish ambition (vs. 16).  These bring about nothing but confusion, disorder, and all sorts of evil.  What causes envy in the hearts of so many people?  It comes when we are filled with greed, selfishness, and pride.  When we see someone else get something, we become discontent with what we have or don’t have, and we develop a covetous desire for what they have, along with a growing bitterness.  Jealousy or envy dishonors God, and one can hardly be a true friend of God if we allow these traits to remain in us.

However, a person who is filled with wisdom that comes from above, from God, will be pure, peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, show mercy, and other fruits of the Spirit (vs. 17-18).  Are you full of peace or full of anger?  Do you show gentleness to others, and show mercy?  Are you willing to yield to others?  Those willing to yield do not cling stubbornly to one’s own opinions, but are open to reason.  When we yield to Him, the Lord will give wisdom and these fruits without partiality.  God does not show favoritism.

James continues on speaking about wars and fighting among people (vs. 1-3).  This would include both actual wars between countries, and “warring” and fighting among individuals or groups.  As we read here, fighting and warring, both individually and in any size group, often comes from our desires for pleasure, wanting what others have, thinking it will bring us happiness, enjoyment or fulfillment.

Sometimes the reason we don’t have what we want is because we don’t ask God (vs. 2).  However, our motives need to be in tune with what God knows is best for us (I John 5:14).  Expectant prayer demonstrates confidence in God’s goodness.  All too often we forget to ask the Lord for specific things we need.  We need to pray in line with God’s commands.  God will not answer prayers for sinful or selfish motives (vs. 3).

Now we come to where our Scripture asks whose friend are we?  Are we a friend of the world or are we a friend of God?  Whose friend do we want to be? (vs. 4).  Usually when the Bible speaks of the “world” it is speaking of the world system, which follows the prince of this world, Satan (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11).  There is nothing wrong with loving and wanting to take care of nature, but it is wrong when we devote ourselves to the philosophies and thinking of the culture of this world.  Being a friend of this world is not compatible with being a friend of God.  Being a friend of this world is thinking, doing, and speaking as the world does, and to value the same things that the world does.  What God wants and what the world expects are diametrically opposed.

Sometimes people find it hard to submit to Jesus because we like to be in charge (vs. 6).  We hold back in fear because we may not like what God chooses for us, or we fear He may ask us to give up something or do something we don’t want to do.  We should have the same attitude as God’s Son, Jesus, who gave Himself to die at Calvary (Philippians 2:5-11).

The Bible speaks of one person, calling him specifically a “friend of God”, and that is the Patriarch Abraham.  We read in II Chronicles 20:7, in Isaiah 41:8; and earlier in James 2:23, where he was called a friend of God.  We all want friends, and what better friend could we have than God!  The world is fickle, and at any moment it will cast you out.  Satan doesn’t care about anyone.  He will use you, chew you up and then spit you out.  God, on the other hand, loves you and wants you to choose Him, and be His friend.

Wrongful Betrayal

Psalm 54

If you are hiding from someone, the last thing you want is for someone to find your hiding place, and especially not to reveal it to the one you’re hiding from.  It’s not such a big deal if it is just a game of hide and seek, though you still don’t want to be found.  However, if you’re hiding to save your life, you certainly don’t want your hiding place revealed to your enemy.  There are a number of cases throughout history of someone who was hiding for their life, and then the wrong person discovered their place and told the enemy, often with disastrous results for the person  Anne Frank would be one famous example.  Our psalm for this week is an example from the Bible of a group of people revealing the hiding place of someone to their sworn enemy.  Let’s take a look.

Psalm 54 was one of many psalms written by King David.  This psalm, like a few others, has a descriptive heading, explaining the background of the psalm.  After David’s great victory over the Philistine army champion Goliath, the young man came to the royal court of King Saul where he served as a personal musician to the king and also fought in the army, gaining more victories over the Philistines.  Rather than being glad over this, these victories stirred the emotionally unstable and insecure king into a rage, and he frequently made attempts to harm or kill David.  The young man had to spend many years on the run for his life.  It was during one of those times that David went to the small village of Ziph in the territory of Judah, and hid from Saul in that area.  However, despite their both being from the tribe of Judah, the residents of Ziph treacherously told King Saul where David was hiding out (I Samuel 23:14-29).

Imagine how David felt when he heard that the residents of the area turned their back against him and told the king where he was hiding!  These were his people, members of the tribe of Judah.  Tribal loyalty meant a lot back then, yet they betrayed him!  David wasn’t a weak man, and he had a number of well trained men who followed with him, so if he wanted to, he was well-equipped to take his revenge on the townsfolk.  What would David do?

If any of us have ever been wrongfully betrayed by another we can imagine how David felt, and known the desire to seek revenge on these enemies.  Instead of gathering his warriors around him, and going back to Ziph and razing it to the ground, David instead turned to the Lord in prayer.  He was hurt.  He was angry.  After all, he nearly lost his life due to their treachery!  However, that is not what David did.  Instead, he went to the Lord in prayer, knowing that vengeance belongs to Him (Deuteronomy 32:35; Romans 12:19).   He prayed to the Lord that He will help him, and that He will repay his enemies for the evil they have done to him (vs. 4-5).

The word “helper” in Hebrew (vs 4) is “ezer”, which gives the idea of rescuing, one who rescues or helps when someone is doomed.  This helper supplies what one lacks when the enemy attacks.  David knew God was his “ezer”.   He knew that the Lord would uphold him in his time of need, that He would sustain and support him like the beams support a building so that it does not fall or collapse.

Because David had a relationship with God, he felt comfortable to be bold and specific in his requests to Him.  Though there is nothing wrong with a general prayer of “Help!”, David knew he could be specific with God.  He knew that as His child, he could ask God to rightly judge them and take care of them according to His righteousness.  David prayed that the evil planned against him would come back on their own head.  David concentrated on doing right rather than in plotting his own revenge.  He surrendered that right to God.  This is something that we should learn, as well, when someone does something unjustly against us.  Rather than coming up with some equally harmful plot, we should leave the vengeance to God as David did.

Jesus also experienced something similar to what David did when He was betrayed by Judas Iscariot, someone who was one of the twelve disciples.  And then strangers arose against Him (vs. 3).  Ruthless men sought to take His life.  They thought that they were serving God, but really they had not set the Lord before them.  If they had they would never have killed the Son of God, their own Messiah.

When we feel the treachery of an enemy, or even from someone we thought we could trust, instead of plotting our own revenge, instead, let’s go to the Lord in prayer, and then leave the matter in His hand.  Let’s trust in the Lord to be our helper, and to uphold us with His love.

Today's Wisdom From Proverbs

Proverbs 22

Some Christians follow a practice of reading one chapter from the Book of Proverbs each day.  Since most months have 31 days, and there are 31 chapters in Proverbs, that provides a chapter for each day of the month.  Today being the 22nd day of the month, let us take a quick look into some verses from the 22nd chapter of Proverbs.

The Book of Proverbs is part of the wisdom literature in the Bible, which includes Psalms, Job, Song of Solomon, and Ecclesiastes.  A large portion of the book are sayings collected from King Solomon, though there are others whose sayings were also included.  The book speaks of how important it is to obtain God’s wisdom and the fear of the Lord.  It also gives instruction in godly values, moral behavior, human life, and right conduct.

Solomon opens this chapter with instructing us in the importance of having a good name (vs. 1).  Solomon was an enormously wealthy king, so rich that he could have anything he ever wanted.  However, when weighed in a balance, the king knew that having a good name was much more valuable. He would rather have a name that he could be proud of than all the riches he had.  How many wealthy people do we know who have all the money they could want, yet their behavior, the way they treat others, is atrocious?  God says it is better to have that good name, one that is held in high regard among others, than to have riches.

When we are doing God’s work and living God’s way, we can count on receiving everything we truly need to keep going (vs. 1-4).   Honor and a good name are more desirable than great riches.  Humble people rely on God’s direction, and thus avoid many dangerous pitfalls in life.

In verse 6 we have a verse that has caused some good and godly parents some puzzlement when their children go off down the wrong path.  They wonder where they went wrong and why God seems to be punishing them.  We need to remember that Proverbs purpose is as a book of wisdom sayings, not a book of promises.  If Proverbs were a book of promises then all godly people would be wealthy, and we would all live long and healthy lives (Proverbs 10:22, 27).  The Bible teaches that we’re responsible to God for how we teach and bring up our children, but we are not responsible for our children’s adult choices (Ezekiel 18:20).   Christian parents need to be the best parent they can be, and take neither credit nor blame for their children’s choices.  Instead, thank God when they choose holiness, and pray when they don’t.

Many parents today want to let their children make their own decisions.  That is definitely not a wise thing to do.  Children will grab at the first flashy thing with ribbons that they see, but then find out too late that it has a hook in it!   Temptations to do the wrong thing come packaged with glitter all over it, and children do not have the wisdom to make the right choice.  Parents need to be laying a Biblical foundation in their life, so that when they are older they will make wise decisions.

In our chapter we see several verses that speak to us about how we should treat the poor - verses 9, 16, 22-23.  The Word of God records that we are supposed to show kindness to the poor who are in need and who dwell among us.  Anyone who gives to the poor will never go unrewarded.  It is a sacrifice that God is well-pleased with at all times.

Like most of the chapters of Proverbs, chapter 22 is filled with many words of godly wisdom.  Let us quickly look at one more line of wisdom that God wishes us to apply to our life in verses 24-25.  Solomon frequently spoke about the dangers of getting angry, and letting our anger flare up.  We may think that we have reasons to justify our anger, but God says it is foolish.  It only stirs up strife, and will lead us to sin.  Keeping company with, and making good friends with someone who is an angry person, who frequently and violently loses his temper, is not wise or advisable.  We tend to become like those we keep frequent company with, and becoming one prone to anger is not the type of person God wants us to be.  God warns us to not even associate with an angry person.

These are just some tidbits of wisdom that we reap from the Book of Proverbs on this 22nd day of the month.  Each day of the month the Lord gives us a handful of wisdom from Proverbs to guide us through the day.

Help Our Unbelief

Mark 9:14-29

Have you ever faced a devastating problem, and you have looked everywhere and to everyone you thought might help, and no one could help you?  The problem is critical, and you are quickly losing all hope that anything will change and get better.  Where or who can you go to for help?  This is a situation that faced a desperate father in our Gospel reading for today.

As our Scripture opens, Jesus had just spent some time with His three closest disciples on top of a mountain, where He was transfigured (Mark 9:2-8).  As Jesus returned back down the mountain, He noticed a commotion going on with the other disciples, the scribes, and other village folk.  Not liking to see His disciples involved in a squabble, He asked what was going on (vs. 14-16).  Then a man approached Jesus, and told Him how his son had a demon since he was a young child, and how he brought the son to His disciples to cast that demon out, but they had been unable to (vs. 17-18).

Jesus then rebuked the crowd for their lack of faith, and requested that the father bring his son to Him.  As the boy was brought, he started to convulse and foam at the mouth, and the father begged Jesus to do something, “if He could” (vs. 19-22).  Jesus spoke directly to the father then, saying that if he could believe, everything was possible.  The father then gained a spark of faith, just a spark, and told Jesus he did believe, but still had some unbelief.  Jesus then cast that demon out, and restored the delivered boy to his father (vs. 23-27).

Why were the disciples unable to cast this demon out when they had done so before, and had seen Jesus cast demons out numerous times?  The boy had been tormented for many years, and there were many unbelieving people present.  Prayer with great faith was needed in this case (vs. 28-29).  Prayer is needed to accomplish work done in and through His power.  Facing the evil one in both seen and unseen realms requires prayer accompanied by great faith.  Jesus has the power for us to successfully overcome all evil.  As the great 19th century evangelist D. L. Moody said, “He who kneels the most, stands the best.”

When the father came to Jesus, he said to Him “if You can do anything” (vs. 22).  The word “if” is in the wrong place!  It is not if Jesus can heal the boy,  it is if the father can believe (vs. 23).  As the Savior spoke to him, the father’s trust was strengthened, and he prayed for an increase in faith.  Jesus spoke the Word of healing and deliverance.  All things are possible to one who believes.  Sometimes when our circumstances feel overwhelming, our prayer can simply be “I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief.”

The saying “seeing is believing” should not be the saying for Christians.  In the spiritual realm that is very seldom true.  If we could see, why would we need to have faith?  We need to walk by faith, not by sight (II Corinthians 5:7).  Do we trust in God’s unseen sovereignty and His personal care for us?  In order to grow stronger spiritually, we must take our eyes off of our circumstances and look to the Lord. By trusting in His character, and believing in His promises, we can overcome anxiety and develop greater faith.

Faith is a trust convinced that God ultimately knows what is best, and that He will do what is right.  Faith is a reliance upon God to do for us what we cannot do for ourselves.

Jesus is greater than any obstacle that we face.  He put the stars in place.  He gave the oceans their boundaries, and set the earth spinning.  Jesus said “Let there be light” and it was, and it has never gone out.  He has healed the blind and lepers.  The devil can’t come up with a problem in our life that God can’t solve.  It is not a question of what God can do, but only of what we believe He can do.  Only we limit what God does through us.

Faith In Action

James 2:1-18

No one likes to feel rejected, especially when one comes to church.  The church is where, of all places, one should feel welcomed.  We all seek to be loved and accepted.  If one is rejected, especially for reasons that one cannot help, it is a terrible feeling.  In our Scripture passage today James talks about two important issues which we will look into.  Rejecting some folks while showing favoritism and partiality to others at church is the first, and in the second James takes a look at the works versus faith debate.  Let’s start with a look at the first issue.

James, the leader of the church in Jerusalem, wrote this epistle to the church, where he gives many practical lessons for believers.  As chapter two begins James has to scold the church for an issue which he has seen, something that needed to be corrected.  This was the practice in many congregations where the local believers were showing favoritism to one group of people, while rejecting or treating in a harsh way another group (vs. 1-4).   James had noticed that in many congregations when a wealthy person, one who was well-dressed in nice, expensive clothing came in, they were warmly greeted and welcomed by the believers.  The church members made much of them, escorting them to the best seats in the house, made sure they were comfortable, and their every need was attended to.  However, if someone who was obviously poor, one who was wearing clothes that looked like they may have been bought in the local second-hand store, came into the church they were told to sit in the back, in the corner, somewhere where they would not be seen in their poor clothes.  Or perhaps they were just completely ignored, like they were invisible.

Was this treatment right?  Was this the way the Lord Jesus wanted His followers to be acting?  James reminded the church that God chose the poor to be rich in faith.  He reminded them that it is the rich who are the first to haul you into court with lawsuits (vs. 5-7).  This certainly is not an issue that occurred only in the days of the early church.  We see this all too often in churches today.   In some churches they will readily welcome someone who looks like they are better off financially.  Their clothes look fashionable and expensive, they drive nicer vehicles, look like they frequently go to the gym, etc.  They are treated like celebrities.  However, someone who is poor, especially if they look poor, are treated with scorn or ignored.  If some world-famous celebrity came to church, should they be treated any better than the young mother who is currently living in the homeless shelter?  Jesus would treat both the same, and so should His followers.  We must not judge people by externals, such as wealth, popularity, looks, or position.

There is a second lesson in this portion of Scripture, and that is the spiritual conflict between the belief in salvation by works and salvation by faith.  There were those in the days of the Apostles, just as there are today, who believe that one gets into heaven by being good and doing good deeds.  The Bible very clearly states that salvation is through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, and not by works (Ephesians 2:8-9).  We do not get to heaven by being a “good person”.  However, as James points out here, a true, genuine salvation will show itself by a change in our actions (vs. 14-18).  If good works don’t follow, then it is questionable whether one truly was saved (Ephesians 2:10).

Some people have criticized the Book of James, saying it promotes a “salvation by works”.  However, this passage is not talking about what saves or doesn’t save us.  It is about how believers should live out their faith.  Faith without good works is worthless and useless.  We are justified by faith alone, but not by a faith that is alone.  Talk is cheap.  Living faith always acts in ways that follow the law of love.

James clearly questions how someone can say that they are a Christian, a believer and follower of the Lord Jesus, and then just speak some pious platitudes to a fellow Christian who needs help, and then walk away without helping them.  Are they really a Christian?  That person may say that they don’t have to do anything to have saving faith.  However James says that their actions, their “works” will show that they do, indeed, have saving faith.

True servants of God are merciful to those who need help.  They care.  They get involved.  They offer more than just pious words.  God promises that they, in turn, will receive mercy (Matthew 5:7).  But those who are disinterested will receive that same type of treatment.  Those who reach out and demonstrate mercy will receive it from others and from God.  It is one thing to hear the Gospel, and it is another to embrace the Gospel fully and be transformed by it.  When we put our faith into action we will reap rewards  Faith must always have an accompanying action.

Keeping Our Vows

Psalm 116

We all know this scenario, we’ve seen it in movies and on TV, read it in novels, and perhaps have even had such a circumstance in our own life or someone we know.  The type of circumstance I’m referring to is when we find ourselves in a very precarious position, our life is literally in danger, we are hanging on by just the thinnest of strings, and we cry out to God.  We make a vow to Him, that if He would only get us out of this terrible spot, we will do this or that for Him.  However, once God rescues us from the trouble, the life-threatening circumstance, we forget all about our vow.  God and our promises are quickly put out of our mind.  That is, until we are in another terrible bind, and we make another faithless vow.  Is that right to do?  Our psalm today speaks of vows, and how important it is to fulfill our vows, especially ones made to the Lord.

There is a difference between a promise and a vow, and we might not think that breaking a promise to someone is a big matter.  A vow is a type of promise, but is one that is a much more serious and solemn promise or pledge.  We may have promised someone that we would do something, but then we weren't able to do it because an emergency happened, or we weren’t feeling well.  However, a vow is much more serious.  When we vow something, nothing, absolutely nothing, should get in our way of fulfilling that vow, which is also why we shouldn’t make vows carelessly, especially if there are chances we might not be able to carry them out.

Psalm 116 begins with the psalmist speaking of his love for the Lord because God heard his cries for help (vs. 1-2).  We don’t know what the circumstance was that the psalmist found himself in, but it was life-threatening (vs. 3).  It might have been when he was in battle and surrounded by the enemy.  Perhaps he was traveling, walking through a hazardous area and he slipped and fell down a ravine, or was attacked by bandits.  Or perhaps he was deathly ill.  Whatever the circumstance, the psalmist cried out to Yahweh (vs. 4), and made a vow, a solemn oath to Him, that he would do something for Him if only He would deliver him from this deadly problem.  God was good to the psalmist, and He delivered him from the deadly circumstance he was in (5-8).  Therefore he remembered his vow to Yahweh, and was determined that he would keep his vows (vs. 12-14, 18-19).

A vow is a solemn promise to which one commits himself before God.  Biblical vows were always voluntary but once made, God made them compulsory.  We may forget our vows, but God never does.  It is better not to vow at all, then to vow and not keep our word (Ecclesiastes 5:2, 4-6).  When we think of the blessings of the Lord, and all that He has given us through Jesus Christ, we, too, should want to give Him our best, to bring Him a sacrifice.  Jesus came not to be served, but to serve.  He came not to get, but to give.  He sacrificed His life for us.

When we are faced with a dire circumstance where we might be tempted to make a vow, and then later when we are deciding whether or not to fulfill our vow to the Lord, we need to remind ourselves of God’s kindness and faithfulness in the past, as it is a practical comfort and help to us in the present (vs. 7).  It is good to remind ourselves of God’s faithfulness and the hope we have in Him.  We will be encouraged.  The same God who has been faithful in the past will continue His love for us in the future.

We love the Lord because, unlike false and pagan gods, He hears and responds to the cries of His people (vs.1-2).  He rescues them from trouble (vs. 3-6, 8-11).  He cares for us (vs. 7).  What shall we give back to the Lord?  We can proclaim all of His benefits to us (vs. 12-13).  We can pay the vows that we made (vs. 14, 18-19).  And we can praise His Name (vs. 15-17).  We can proclaim our testimony of what Jesus has done for us.

Set My Face Like A Flint

Isaiah 50:4-9

When a boss or a parent gives an assignment to their employee or child, they hope that it will be completed in a good, efficient, and well-done manner, even if it was something rather difficult.  The prophet Isaiah was one who was given an assignment or job from the Lord to do, and he readily performed and did what God had asked him to do.  Today’s Scripture comes from the Book of Isaiah, and contains a brief portion of his message to the people of Judah, most of which was prophetic, speaking about the coming Messiah.  Let’s take a look.

As our Scripture opens, Isaiah speaks about the Lord giving him a word to speak, a message to bring to the people (vs. 4).   The prophet readily acknowledges that his message and words are from God, not from his own thoughts or ideas.  When he spoke words of comfort and encouragement to the people, it was the Lord speaking through him.  As a word of prophecy, these words also apply to the Lord Jesus.  His message was from Yahweh, and though Jesus only had the standard education from the local rabbi until about age 12-13 that all working-class boys did in that day, the Lord gave Him the tongue of the learned.  The words of Jesus confounded even the learned Pharisees and Sadducees.  His words were also a comfort and encouragement to those who needed spiritual uplifting.

This is also something that, as believers, we can also do.  The Lord has commissioned each of us to bring His message to others.  As we trust in Him, God will give us the words to speak, words to uplift and comfort those who are hurting or need encouragement, and answers to those who have questions.

As Isaiah continued, he speaks of being obedient to what the Lord asked, and even speaks of persecution and physical attacks (vs. 5-6).  Though the Scriptures don’t specify any specific opposition or persecution that Isaiah endured, such as what Jeremiah did, there are legends from both Judaism and Christianity that evil King Manasseh had the prophet sawed in two when he was hiding from the king and his enemies inside a hollowed out tree.  There is a reference in the Book of Hebrews of unnamed believers enduring persecution and martyrdom, including being sawn in two (Hebrews 11:37), so perhaps that legend was an actual event.

Verses 5 and 6 have prophetic fulfillment in the Lord Jesus.  Jesus came to earth as the incarnate Son of God for a specific reason, that being to give His life on the Cross as sacrificial payment for our sins.  Being scourged by Roman soldiers, and then dying by crucifixion was a brutal and tortuous death.  Being not only fully divine, but also fully human, He had a natural dread in facing that, as we see when He prayed to the Father in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:41-44).  However, as Isaiah says here, Jesus was not rebellious, and did not turn away.  There are several Scriptures in the Old Testament that prophesy about the death of the Messiah, such as in Isaiah 53 and Psalm 22.  Verse 6 in our passage speaks of some of the cruel treatment that the Lord Jesus suffered at the hand of His enemies shortly prior to His crucifixion.  He was scourged and beaten, including having His beard brutally grabbed and ripped from His face, and spat upon.

As Isaiah finishes this Scripture passage, he relates how he determined that he would finish the task the Lord gave him, despite all opposition, no matter how harsh, the enemy gave him (vs. 7-9).  He knows that the Lord God is near and will help and justify him.  His adversaries may come and condemn, but he trusts God.  This also has fulfillment in the Lord Jesus.  The Savior knew what lay ahead for Him at the hands of the religious leaders in Jerusalem, yet He did not shirk or turn away.  As the prophet said, He set his face like a flint (vs. 7).  Jesus was determined to accomplish our salvation no matter how difficult it was.  He continued His mission despite the suffering, opposition, and suffering.  Jesus endured what He had to because He kept His eyes on the joy that was set before Him (Hebrews 12:2).

How about us?  Are we willing to faithfully fulfill the tasks that the Lord has given us?  Most of us aren’t likely to face martyrdom like Isaiah possibly did, we aren’t called to sacrifice our lives like Jesus did, however, if persecution does come our way, will we faithfully stand true, our faces set like flint?  We can trust that the Lord will be near us, and will justify and help us as He did for Isaiah and for the Lord Jesus.