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Sunday, December 26th…James 1:9-11

 

I hope everyone had a blessed Christmas.

We started off the class by reading James 1:9-11. This poor or lowly brother isn’t necessarily discussing the subject of money. When we stay within the context of the verses 1-8, James very well can still be discussing trials…Oh boy we still get to look at trials this week!!

When the poor are walking in trials it is tempting to believe the rick don’t have trials for they have money to fix everything…Is this a true statement? Why or Why not?

Here is another question for you. What exaltation is the poor lowly brother to boast in?

Let’s step back to the rich man for a minute…the rich do have trials. One of the biggest trials for the rich is whether they will trust and rely on their wealth instead of God. These rich can also be tempted into believing that their wealth is some kind of sign of their eternal place or status. THIS IS WRONG!!!

Note in v10 it says, “he will pass away.” Who is this “he” it refers to and what is passing away"?

I would propose James is discussing the rich man who once found his pride in his possessions will have turned his way. This man will now boast that he has turned his spiritual poverty resulting from the pride in his possessions over to God. Everything he has will be acknowledged as belonging to the Lord. He will no longer be fooled into complacency thinking his riches will give him spiritual security. He has learned there is only place to find spiritual security and that is in JESUS CHRIST ALONE!!!

We must come to the full understanding that God allows us to go through trials.

A student asked his teacher: “Doesn’t God intend for us to enjoy life?”

After thought the teacher replied: “It is not so much that God will have us always enjoy life, but MORE that we will enjoy HIM in the midst of life.”

We still see the main theme James is focusing on is “God is God to us in the middle of whatever.”

We will continue our journey next Sunday. Until then Be Blessed!

Strength to Stand Conference 2010…

 

I must admit, I am excited about the conference. Yes, it is even more than the fact that we get to see NeedtoBreathe. My excitement comes from the fact that with all the obstacles we have experienced in the last 24 hours, God has something BIG planned for us.

Please keep praying for those of us (there is 8 of us) who will be in TN this week. We truly appreciate your prayers.

December 19th Sunday School...

The class read the Christmas story in Luke 2 and then discussed what God has given them for this year.
We thank Rebekah for stepping in and teaching while I was out of town.

Have a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year!

Sunday, December 12th Class....Getting Ready for Christmas

We are continuing our journey in preparing for Christmas. This past Sunday we read Matthew 2:12 and answered the following questions:

1. What was Herod's reaction when he heard about the King of the Jews?

2. Who else was frightened?

3. Whom did Herod call together?

4. Has Herod spoken with the Wise Men (Magi) yet? How does he eventually call for them?

5. Why would Herod want to know when the star appeared to the Wise Men (Magi)? What would this tell him about the child?

6. What 5 actions (we actually found more) did the Magi (Wise Men) take?

During Christmas, we give gifts to others but pause for a minute and think about what Jesus desires from you this Christmas season? We wrote on slips of paper provided what would please Jesus (i.e. spending more time with Him in prayer, helping a needy neighbor, more time in His Word, loving a difficult person, etc...). Once we wrote the slips of paper, we folded them and put them in the envelopes provided. We sealed the envelopes and wrote our names on the front. Once this was completed we gave them to the class' teacher.

Reflection for the week:


Less is more. More is not better. So often we add too many things to our list of activities. The problem is when each event arrives, we are truly too tired to enjoy it. We need to learn that less enhances the activities we do choose to participate in during this Christmas season. We must learn the art of saying "No", helps make all the "yeses" more pleasurable.

Response to God:


Dear God, teach me how to number my days. Help me not to waste time on the trivial but instead invest in the eternal. If I need to reorder my priorities, or change my activities, please reveal this to me through Your Word and in prayer. Help me to keep Christ the focus of Christmas. In Jesus Name, Amen.

Seeing Christ in Christmas….

 

As part of our Sunday School classes, we are looking at things in our lives that our parts of Christmas celebrations. The specific purpose for this is to see Christ in all of the things we do for Christmas.

We look at the Holly & Ivy this past week. We that the holly and ivy originally decorated altars, temples and sanctuaries. This was originally done so the early church members would not be easily recognized and persecuted. Over time the holly & ivy became a Christmas symbol.

• The points on the leaves are a remembrance of the crown of thorns
• The green on the leaves are a remembrance of eternal life we have with Jesus as our Savior & Lord
• The red berries are a remembrance of Jesus’ Blood that was shed for us.

I challenge each of us to look at our traditions and celebrations to see where Jesus is in them.

Advent…what is its purpose?

 

As I mentioned last week, our Sunday School is taken a brief break from James and looking at Advent. What is Advent and what is its purpose are the two main topics of discussion.

Advent means “approach” or “coming.”

When we celebrate and participate in Advent, we are remembering and participating in THREE “comings’ of Jesus:

1. Jesus’ coming as the infant King

2. Jesus’ coming into our heart’s as Lord & Savior

3. We stand in anticipation of the coming of Jesus’ triumphant return.

Read Psalm 46:10

Christmas when looked at through the eyes of Advent has been described as “Season of Expectant Waiting” or “Time for Pondering”

WHOA…..WAIT A MINUTE with our December calendars full even before Thanksgiving who has time to “wait” or “ponder.” Of course unless you mean:

• Waiting in traffic
• Waiting for a parking space
• Waiting in Christmas lines at the store

And then this pondering….What does that even mean?

Ponder: to think or consider, especially quietly, soberly and deeply….HOLD ON A SEC….won’t that take time!

IMPORTANT: This is the exact purpose of Advent, for us to ask Jesus (the focus of Advent) to help us slow down, ponder and yes….even wait. However, our wait is with excitement that has a two-fold fulfillment:

1. Christmas Day (The celebration of the first 2 comings we discussed) Jesus’ birth as infant King and Jesus’ coming into our hearts as Savior and Lord
2. The coming fulfillment of Christ’s return.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, I want to be still. I want to sit in Your presence and treasure the “advents” of Jesus in my life. Carve out time during this busy & hectic season for me to immerse myself in You and Your Word. I need to be quiet, wait and ponder. Prepare my heart to understand and share what You reveal to me each and every day. Fill my heart with Your peace. In Jesus Name, AMEN.

James 1:6-8...Sunday, November 28th, 2010

We started this lesson with a question: What does James mean when he discusses "doubting" in these verse?

One of our lesson writers stated, "One doubting is like someone without an anchor rather than one who has an anchor, but is struggling to trust it still works. This person (w/out an anchor) has no discernment and is influenced by everything around him/her." 


In verse 6 where it states "but let him ask in faith" is where the difference is to me. Faith here in the Greek is describing a believer [one who belongs to Jesus].


Go back to what the lesson writer said about doubting and we can concur the following:

JESUS IS THE ANCHOR                                                             

              

Verses 7 & 8: 

Question: How does James describe this person in verse 6 that we have been discussing?

"Double-minded" literally being in two minds

An example would being someone saying they really want God's best in their life, yet they actually have their heart set on something far less. 

Another example: A person saying they know God is in control when they are in trials & tribulations but are equally waiting on someone or something else besides God to get them through.  James says this person should not expect to receive from God. 

Wait a second.....didn't we learn in verse 5 that God gives generously to all...

Yes, we did learn that God gives generously to all.  However, the problem here (the giving not happening as James speaks of) is with the one petitioning God not God. The person is not counting wholly and completely on God; when they are counting on themselves, someone else, or something else. Therefore, they have put a "blocker" between them and God. 

***I want to point something out here...this in no way supports the idea that someone's loved one died because the people didn't have enough faith. Being honest it totally irks me, when a child goes to be with the Lord and someone tells the parent "your child would have lived only if you had enough faith"***

What James is saying is:

"When in a time of trial, no matter the size,  "to ask in faith" is to hand EVERYTHING (even our doubts) to God. We turn wholly to Him, we even ask God to help us turn wholly and completely to Him because we need HIS SPIRIT to work in us." 

Turn to Mark 9:22-27 for an example of handing everything even our doubts over to God.

This father was not looking for another answer while counting on God. His cry, "I do believe, help my unbelief" is exactly what James is talking about. This father is handing EVERYTHING (even his unbelief) wholly and completely over to God.

Another example for ya:

There is a woman in deep trial struggling to trust God. She wants to trust but she also wants God to do what feels most comfortable for her when fixing her trial. She wants her circumstances to change and others around her to change so externally she has fewer problems. 

However, what she needs to realize is for her plan to work isn't truly trusting God! If she refuses God's work in her. She will be shutting herself off [creating that "blocker" we discussed earlier] from seeing what God can and wants to do whether the others cooperate by changing or not!

Next week 12.4.2010 we will take a brief break from James to look at Advent. 

James 1:4-5... (11.28.2010)

The first thing, I want to do today is look back at Colossians 1:9 to briefly refresh our memories concerning what Paul told the Colossians about wisdom (we spent almost a year in Colossians) :-)

"For this cause we also, since the day we heard, do not cease to pray for you and to desire that you might be filled with knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding"

*** Paul and James are both discussing wisdom in the Scriptures we are looking at this week. Here is our first question, "What is the difference between knowledge and wisdom?***

One of the lesson writers this week says, "Wisdom in Scripture always means knowledge of the course of that will please God."

QUESTION: Do you agree with our lesson writer?

I once heard a set of definitions and thought they were really good for Knowledge and Wisdom.

Knowledge is the facts.
Wisdom is seeing God in the facts.

An example is if your child is dying of a serious illness (that is the facts). If you approach your child's illness knowing God has a plan (that is seeing God in the facts).

Verse 5...the Greek tense of the word "ask" is a continual & repeated asking. This is not a "one time ask"

We learn four things about God in verse 5:

1) God is a God who gives. When we are in the midst of trials it is easy to forget God is a God who gives but He is.

2) God gives generously.

3) God gives generously to all. Look at the verse that is exactly what it says. However, when we are in the middle of a trial...we may agree God is a God who gives and He even gives generously but just not to me.

4) God gives without reproach...(to express disappointment in or displeasure with (a person) for conduct that is blameworthy or in need of amendment). God is not like us who wants to make sure our children, spouse, etc...are truly sorry and know how disappointed we are before we forgive them. 

James 1:3 Part 2…November 7th

 

In the last blog, we discussed the different Webster’s definitions for the words, perseverance, endurance, steadfast, and patience. All words used in different translations for James 1:3. However, we come to the conclusion that the best definition is when you researched the original Greek and derived the meaning from there.

As overview here is that definition again:

“THE CHARACTERISTIC OF A MAN WHO IS NOT SWERVED FROM HIS DELIBERATE PURPOSE AND HIS LOYALTY TO FAITH AND PIETY (REVERENCE FOR GOD OR DEVOUT FULFILLMENT OF RELIGIOUS OBLIGATIONS) BY EVEN THE GREATEST TRIALS AND SUFFERINGS.”

Sorry, I just realized in the last blog I left out part of the definition

According to our definition perseverance and patience are a “characteristic”…so what is a characteristic?

Webster defines characteristic as “a distinguishing trait or quality.”

Stay with me for a minute…

How do we get distinguishing traits or qualities?

People like to say “I am stubborn, impatient, etc. because their Mom, Dad (insert person’s name) were that way.

I propose the reason we are like that is because of the time we spend with those people. There is an old saying that goes “We become like the people we hang out with, the music we listen to and the books we read.”

This in my personal opinion is the answer to how and when we start seeing the traits, i.e. characteristics, of God in us is when we spend time with HIM.

Remember we have said from the beginning that James is instructing the scattered in this letter on how to achieve spiritual maturity. Hopefully, as we continue our journey, we will see trials can be faced w/joy because when faith is added perseverance is the result. As perseverance develops the result will then become spiritual maturity.

However, none of this is possible unless you first belong to Jesus (He has been accepted as your personal Savior) and second you have surrendered to His Lordship in your life.

We will continue our journey through James this Sunday, November 21st. Jesus Cave at RBBC at 9:30am. See you there.

James 1:3 Part 1…November 7th

 

We did not have normal class last week (those present got to be with the Jr & Sr High class). I was out of town seeing my brother play in the NAFL Championship Football Tournament. Here are the notes from November 7th’s class.

We started by looking at some of the different words in James 1:3 used for perseverance in different translations of the Bible? This is what we came up with:

1. NIV: perseverance

2. NLT & NASB: Endurance

3. ESV: Steadfastness

4. KJV & NKJV: the dreaded “P” word of Patience

Question: What do these words mean to you?

According to websters.com these are the definitions of each word:

1. Perseverance: The action, condition or instance of persevering: steadfastness

2. Endurance: permanence, duration, the act or an instance of enduring or suffering

3. Steadfastness: firmly fixed in place not subject to change, firm in belief, determination or adherence

4. Patience: the capacity, habit, or fact of being patient

Honestly, all of these definitions from Webster's don’t give the same understanding as when you go back to the original Greek.

I am not going to tell you the Greek word cause frankly, you won’t remember it. Anyway the definition is what we want to remember:

“The characteristic of a man who is NOT swerved from his deliberated purpose and his loyalty to faith and piety (reverence for good or devout fulfillment of religious obligation) by even the greatest trials and sufferings.”

QUESTION: What does that definition say to you…if anything at all?

What that definition tells me is that when my known faith is tested, I want to be known as a servant of Jesus that is NOT swerved from my belief in Jesus. That no matter what test comes my way that I am close enough to God to realize that if He allowed it…then He will in HIS TIMING bring good from it.

Perseverance and patience according to our definition are a “characteristic” so what is a characteristic?

Look for Part 2 of this blog tomorrow.

Shopping for OCC...

Reminder we will be shopping for OCC (Operation Christmas Child) on November 6th. We will leave the church at 12:30.

Bring $5.00 to go towards filling our boxes.

See you there!

James 1:1-2... (10.24.2010)

We started class with the reading of James Chapter 1 verses 1 & 2.

Verse 1: James, who was known as "Pillar" and leader of Jerusalem church knew how important it was to state he was both servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.

James knew the world he lived in and even in the synagogue it was ok and even expected to be a servant of God...but being a servant of Jesus....well that was a different story???

We had previously discussed the letter of James is written to the 12 tribes scattered and it has been suggested these are believers who were forced to leave Jerusalem during the persecution that followed Stephen's death. (See Acts 8:1, Acts 11:19)

James as a leader would feel responsible for "the scattered" and would want to instruct them. 

QUESTION: How are we according to James suppose to respond to trials and temptations?

Do you see trials in your life as punishment?

One of our lesson writers proposed the following: "Most of the time trials bring on groaning and complaints. However, this response doesn't show maturity and will usually only make matters worse."

We should view trials as a test. Think of this....why do teachers give tests? Believe it or not teachers give test to see if students can pass not pass out. When you bring the right attitude...yes, we are back to our attitude...we can have full understanding of the advantage of trials, and where to obtain assistance in our trials so that we will pass the test and not pass out. 

QUESTION: Where should we look for assistance in our trials? 

God and His Word is where we find our assistance.

Let's go back to verse 2 for a minute..."Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials..."

Please notice it states "whenever" not "if". This is an important aspect to grasp for James is letting us know we will face trials not if we face trials. 

There is one more important thing that our lesson writer, Norma Becker, points out:

"I don't believe James is saying being joyful "for" the trials but be joyful "in" the trials."

Our joy is found in Jesus not in our circumstances. We don't have to be happy for the trials but we need to have a positive outlook in the trials. Because when viewed from the proper attitude trials will be productive....which we will see as we continue in our Journey through James.

Reference:

Becker, Norma "Book of James Bible Study"

Introduction to James Part 2….

 

James had a mission in his new faith. He was to the Shepherd of the Jewish-Christians living in and around Jerusalem. James letter is believed to have been to a general audience, not a specific church. An example is if James wrote this letter today it would be like writing it to the editor of a newspaper.

James is considered to be the New Testament Proverbs. James addresses seven different topics in the first 27 verses of Chapter 1.

James letter was intended for the tribes that were scattered.

TIPS FOR READING AND STUDYING JAMES:

1. James speaks with practical wisdom

2. James asks direct questions

3. James speaks with strong, compelling language.

4. James speaks through examples and imagery.

**This materials has come from various sources and is not my own***

Introduction to James… Part 1

 

We had the Introduction to James on October 17th. We combined with the Sr. High Sunday School.

Here are some of the things we discussed:

1. James was the brother of Jesus (Mark 6:3)

2. James and the rest of his family were initially skeptical of Jesus’ ministry.

3. James became a believer when Jesus appeared to him and others after his resurrection.

4. James became an important Christian leader in Jerusalem and was one of the “pillars” of the early church.

There are indications that the book was written early and could be one of the earliest NT writings. The letter was to exhort the early believers to Christian maturity and holiness of life. James told believers many things that still hold true today in 2010. He spoke about how to achieve spiritual maturity through a confident stand, compassionate service, careful speech, contrite submission, and concerned sharing. 

 

***This material is from various sources. I do not claim for this to be mine but borrowed and taught from many different teachers***

Jonah 4: Part 2 (10/10/10)…

 

Question: Do you get angry if God doesn’t do things on your time table?

We finished Jonah this week and we being doing the Introduction to James on Sunday. We will be meeting in the Sr. High Youth Sunday School Room.

We continued our discussion on Jonah and his attitudes and behaviors. We left Jonah last week camping out to see what God would do to Nineveh.

We also continued our discussion on Jonah’s responsibilities as a prophet. We even discussed how all of our technology can hinder our memorization and truly knowing the Word of God.

God prepares a plant for Jonah for shade. Then the next day He prepares a worm to destroy the plant. He also prepares a hot east wind to blow on Jonah. I propose God is trying to both get Jonah’s attention and teach him a lesson.

Jonah’s reaction over the plant dying. He gets angry and states once again “It is better for me to die than live.” I can’t help but think Drama Prophet here.

God is trying to get Jonah to realize how much He cares for the 120,000 people and livestock in Nineveh. God doesn’t want to destroy them (even though eventually it does happen).

We need to see where we are like Jonah and then repent. Everyone always teaches that Jonah is a book of repentance and it is but we decided in our class where the true repentance was exhibited was in the sailors/fisherman who threw Jonah overboard to quiet the storm.

Jonah 4 (10/3)…

 

Jonah 4 Part 1:

Here is an overview of what we discussed:

Vv 1& 2: What is Jonah’s response to God’s mercy on the Ninevites? Why?

It came down to Jonah’s attitude towards the Ninevites had not changed. He still wanted to see them destroyed. All along we have been discussing how Jonah’s repentance in the belly of the great fish had nothing to do with his attitude towards the Ninevites.

How do you think Jonah reacted to God’s mercy to Him?

Do you rejoice or anger when God shows mercy to others with the same struggles or sin as you?  This question will make one really think. How many times have we reacted wrongly when someone is given mercy that we (catch that we there) have determined doesn’t deserve it. HELLO….did we deserve God’s mercy?

Vv 3 & 8: Jonah says in both these verses, “It is better for me to die than to live.” 

V 4: God rightfully questions Jonah’s anger.

V5: It is interesting and also sad to see Jonah camp outside the city to see what shall become of Nineveh. He even built himself a shelter to be able to camp out and see if God destroys them.

The question was brought up whether Jonah sat there for the full 40 days or not. The Scripture doesn’t tell us.

Pray and ask God where are you like Jonah.

Jonah 3:7-10

 

After this blog, we will be caught up to where we are in class. Then you will only receive updates about once a week.

We started this week off with a question:

Why were the animals part of the fast and wearing sackcloth?

The Ninevites had many dieties (gods that they worshipped). They worshipped many animal dieties and even worshipped a fish god named Dagon. Now, before we are hard on them we need to look and see if we have any other gods “little g” in our own lives. 

With this thought in mind, the act of having the animals participate in the fast and wearing sackcloth meant they were subjugating or submitting everything to LORD GOD!

When the King of Nineveh decreed this fast and wearing of sackcloth it basically became law for all of Nineveh. Which means if they did not participate they would be breaking the law set by their King.

Verse 9: The King admits that he does not know “IF” God will spare them from the coming prophesied judgment.

Verse 10: Things GOD SAW:

1. God saw all Nineveh had done both the evil and know their sign of mourning and changing their ways.
2. God had mercy for Nineveh. God is better and kinder than we are to one another. We as a church have the tendency to “shoot our wounded.”
3. God relented for the time being of destroying Nineveh. However, Nineveh as recorded in Nahum and Zephaniah would eventually be destroyed.

QUESTION WE ARE PONDERING: Did Nineveh repent if they were eventually destroyed?

Dealing or Avoiding Sin…

 

When looking at Jonah and the city of Nineveh we need to see people learn sin and how to deal or avoid sin at three different levels:

1. These are people who learn from other’s mistakes. They accept the advice of others and avoid a sin that the person giving advice has dealt with at one time or another.
2. This group disregards advice and examples. They decide they can commit wrong without any repercussions. Until they have that one close call that convinces them to change their ways.
3. This person ignores several close calls and changes their ways ONLY after suffering from the consequences of their actions.

Ok…there is actually four different levels of how people learn and deal with sin in their lives: This last group is the ones who ignore advice, examples, close calls, and the suffering consequences of their actions. After all this they STILL REFUSE to change their ways. Only God can truly know when someone is beyond hope. Our job is to pray for them.

Which group of people would be Nineveh, The King, and what about you…Where do you fall in the group of people?

Jonah Chapter 2:10-3:6…

This will be a summary of the lesson:
Verse 10: We see God speaking to the fish and Jonah ends up on dry land.
Chapter 3:
Verse 1: The Word of the Lord came to Jonah a 2nd time. Praise the Lord we serve a God of second chances.
Verse 2: Did God’s message change?
I propose it was Jonah that changed. We need to see that Jonah’s change was not in his attitude toward the Ninevites though.
***Jonah 1:2 in most translations reads “Cry out against” where in most translations Johan 3:2 reads “Preach to it”
Verses 3 & 4: Notice a couple things here:

• Nineveh was huge. Would take a 3 day journey to cover all of it
• Johan right off the bat starts crying out “Yet, 40 days and Nineveh shall be overthrown.”

QUESTION: What is missing in Jonah’s message?
Where is a message of mercy or a chance to repent?
Verse 5: Take notice Scripture says Ninevites believed God doesn’t say they believed Jonah.
QUESTION: What is the significance of sackcloth without ashes?

Sackcloth only without ashes is a sign of mourning. It is only when there is combination of sackcloth and ashes is their mourning and repentance.
Ashes were figurative of worthlessness.

Verse 6: King put on sackcloth and sat in ashes. This was a representation of mourning, repentance and figurative of King saying he was worthless. He set aside his royalty and robe.
It is an interesting point to consider that normally a prophet would enter a city and go to the King to deliver message from the Lord for the whole area. However, this King had Word of Lord travel to him. The King could have had Jonah brought to him and then disposed of…nice way of saying killed. But instead the King did something entirely different. We will see the Kings response in verses 7-10.
Have a blessed week.

Jonah....Repentant??

One of the questions we have been discussing is Jonah's repentance. It was brought up by one of the students, "Jonah was repentant for his disobedience while sitting in the belly of the big fish. Yet, he was not repentant of his attitude toward the Ninevehites."

This brought up the question, "Do we know if Jonah was ever repentant towards his attitude of this people of Nineveh which God told Jonah to prophesy?"

What are your thoughts?

Hello RBBC College and Career SS...

I am testing a blog on this class. Yes, you are my guniea pigs. :-)

We are going to see if having a blog and me doing my best to type up the lesson each week will help us stay connected. I am setting the blog up so that it will come to each of your individual e-mail boxes when I update the blog.

This blog will not be private like the FB group. This blog will be available for anybody to read the lessons we are studying. As always, the FB group will stay private and each of you who are a part of the group are the only ones with access to see and read the comments left there. However, comments on here will be public after they have been approved by the moderator (me).

This way you will not have to go to the FB page (but you are still welcome to do that) to stay updated.

I have a blogging program on my desktop that will also help me be more diligent in keeping the class updated.

In Christ,
Miss Dawn