Living on the Edge A Study in James Lesson 6 Outline of Schedule Opening Prayer Reading the Epistle Review Background Material Discussion Questions Application Closing Prayer Opening Prayer Psalm 97 1 The LORD is Sovereign; let the earth rejoice; * let the multitude of the isles be glad. 2 Clouds and darkness are round about you, * righteousness and justice are the foundations of your throne. 3 A fire goes before you * and burns up your enemies on every side. 4 Your lightnings light up the world; * the earth sees it and is afraid. 5 The mountains melt like wax at the presence of the LORD, * at the presence of the Lord of the whole earth. 6 The heavens declare your righteousness, O LORD, * and all the peoples see your glory. 7 Confounded be all who worship carved images and delight in false gods! * Bow down before the LORD, all you gods. 8 Zion hears and is glad, and the cities of Judah rejoice, * because of your judgments, O LORD. 9 For you are the LORD, most high over all the earth; * you are exalted far above all gods. 10 The LORD loves those who hate evil; * the LORD preserves the lives of the faithful and delivers them from the hand of the wicked. 11 Light has sprung up for the righteous, * and joyful gladness for those who are truehearted. 12 Rejoice in the LORD, you righteous, * and to the holy name of the LORD give your praise. O God, Lesson 6 James: Living on the Edge 1
you clothe the sky with light, and ocean depths with darkness. You work your mighty wonders among us. Claim us for your purposes, that we may be among those who see your glory and give you praise, for you live and reign, now and forever. Amen. Book of Common Worship, 721 Note: PSALM PRAYERS Psalm prayers are provided for each of the psalms in this book. These prayers are used in daily prayer, where praying the psalms is central. Each psalm prayer captures some theme or image from the psalm and often adds Christian implications drawn from the psalm. The prayer helps us to pray the psalm and to see Christ in the psalm as we pray. Psalm prayers may also be composed that capture images in the psalms that address the immediate needs of the worshipers. The psalm prayer is spoken by the leader after the psalm is sung or read. Ordinarily, the leader upon completion of the singing or reading of the psalm will say, Let us pray. Silence follows for silent prayer and reflection on the psalm. After the silence, the leader offers the prayer. Book of Common Worship, 600. Focus: Throughout this session concentrate on thoughts like theses: How can I show the connection between wisdom and humility more genuinely in my life? How can we do this in church? James 3:13-18 NRS James 3:13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom. 14 But if you have bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not be boastful and false to the truth. 15 Such wisdom does not come down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, devilish. 16 For where there is envy and selfish ambition, there will also be disorder and wickedness of every kind. 17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without a trace of partiality or hypocrisy. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace for those who make peace. Lesson 6 James: Living on the Edge 2
Background James Composition We are not certain of the circumstances surrounding the writing of the epistle. For example, in Paul s first letter to the church at Corinth, he is writing to a church that he had planted and had since moved on. Paul is admonishing the congregation to behave better quit fighting, practicing immoral behavior, and for goodness sake, quit eating food offered to idols and visiting pagan temples. Not so with James. There is little clue as to the intended audience. If taken literally, the twelve trines in the dispersion in the greeting would refer to the Jewish Christians outside of Palestine; or metaphorically as those who are spiritual heirs. Regardless, we know nothing about the specific circumstances of the intended audience (he makes so many references to the poor particularly in relation to being mistreated by the rich that perhaps the poor is his target audience, my speculation shared by some other scholars). There are at least 3 ways that James speaks to every generation of Christians with unparalleled clarity and conviction : 1. It is uncompromising in its demand to reject the world s standards because true reality (the truth) is from God and is measured according to God s measures. 2. Because it deals less with the issue of Christology and more so with theology, it is the most ecumenical writings in the New Testament, therefore it speaks clearly to Christians and those whom claim Abraham as their forefather. 3. It is the New Testament writing that clearly yields a social ethic grounded in the perception of the world as created by God and is a gift to humanity. Sources Cited The New Interpreter s Bible, Vol. XII, Luke Timothy Johnson Interpretation: First and Seond Peter, James, and Jude. Pheme Perkins Calvin Commentary Vol. XXII Hebrews, 1 Peter, 1 John, James, II Peter, Jude. Translated The Rev. John Owen Johnson, L.T., The Letters of James Lesson 6 James: Living on the Edge 3
Calvin, John, Calvin: Institutes of the Christian Religion, John T. McNeil, editor. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1960. 3:13 -In James 1:5-6 we have a message about how to get wisdom (ask God for it). Here James is talking about someone who is considered wise. Wisdom is not something merely intellectual, something we can have only in our minds. We will only be considered wise if we show wisdom in day to day living. 3:14 The word for envy here is the same word that is often translated elsewhere as zeal. It s a quality Jesus had when he ran the money changers out of the temple: Zeal for your house will consume me (John 2:17). We should all be zealous for the Lord and his work (in 1 Cor. 12:31 the very for eagerly desire derives from the same root as the word for zeal). Note that James qualifies the zeal hear as bitter zeal, or bitter envy, so that we understand it as the consuming bitterness that comes when we don t get what we want and when we see what someone else has. The Greek word is (eritheia : NRSV) which is used very rarely. Aristotle used it to refer to selfseeking pursuit of political office by unfair means (Politics 5.3). Obviously such an attitude is nothing to boast about (though we do hear boasting about it, especially in the world of commerce, where we label it a drive. ). 3:18 Here James picks up on another of Jesus beatitudes Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God (Matt. 5:9). They raise a harvest to righteousness, says James. (Other beatitudes in James 1:12, 25). 1 Our Constitution (Book of Order and Book of Confessions) G-1.0304 Truth and Goodness (4) That truth is in order to goodness; and the great touchstone of truth, its tendency to promote holiness, according to our Savior s rule, By their fruits ye shall know them. And that no opinion can be either more pernicious or more absurd than that which brings truth and falsehood upon a level, and represents it as of no consequence what a man s opinions are. On the contrary, we 1 DeVries, 55. Lesson 6 James: Living on the Edge 4
are persuaded that there is an inseparable connection between faith and practice, truth and duty. Otherwise, it would be of no consequence either to discover truth or to embrace it. The Larger Catechism 7.302 Q. 192. What do we pray for in the third petition? A. In the third petition (which is, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven ),1 acknowledging that by nature we and all men are not only utterly unable and unwilling to know and do the will of God,2 but prone to rebel against his Word,3 to repine and murmur against his providence,4 and wholly inclined to do the will of the flesh, and of the devil:5 we pray that God would by his Spirit take away from ourselves and others all blindness,6 weakness,7 indisposedness,8 and perverseness of heart,9 and by his grace make us able and willing to know, do, and submit to his will in all things,10 with the like humility,11 cheerfulness,12 faithfulness,13 diligence,14 zeal,15 sincerity,16 and constancy,17 as the angels do in heaven.18 Biblical References in the Larger Catechism for question 192: 1. Matt. 6:10. 2. I Cor. 2:14; Rom. 8:5, 8. 3. Rom. 8:7. 4. Matt. 20:11, 12; Ps. 73:3. 5. Titus 3:3; Eph. 2:2, 3. See Q. 191 under figure 2. 6. Eph. 1:17, 18. 7. Eph. 3:16. 8. Matt. 26:40, 41; Rom. 7:24, 25. 9. Ezek. 11:19; Jer. 31:18. 10. Ps. 119:35; Acts 21:14; I Sam. 3:18. 11. Ps. 123:2; Ps. 131:2; Micah 6:8. 12. Ps. 100:2. 13. Isa. 38:3; Eph. 6:6. 14. Ps. 119:4. 15. Rom. 12:11. 16. II Cor. 1:12. 17. Ps. 119:112; Rom. 2:7. 18. Ps. 103:20 22; Dan. 7:10. Application Try working on one of these goals this week: Lesson 6 James: Living on the Edge 5
1. Search the PC (USA) website and look for peace making opportunities. http://www.pcusa.org/ (caution: so of these will challenge you and stretch you and make you mad and that is a good thing, maybe God is at work in you). 2. Continue to explore the Book of Common Worship: Daily Prayers. Pray the Psalm everyday. 3. Memorize this prayer attributed to St. Benedict of Nursia (480 547) Almighty God, give us wisdom to perceive you, intellect to understand you, diligence to seek you, patience to wait for you, eyes to behold you, a heart to meditate upon you and in life to proclaim you, through the power of the Spirit of our Lord Jesus Christ. Closing Prayer Lord, let me practice humility that leads to wisdom. Up hold me that I might up lift thee. Amen. Lesson 6 James: Living on the Edge 6