Author: Good Life

Scripture:

1 Corinthians 4:16-17

16 I urge you, then, be imitators of me. 17 That is why I sent you Timothy, my beloved and faithful child in the Lord, to remind you of my ways in Christ, as I teach them everywhere in every church.”

Observation:

Paul is challenging the church in Corinth to not only be hearers but doers. Paul is so confident in the gospel message and gospel power in his life that he doesn’t just say “consider looking at my life as a guide” he urges them to become copycats. One person who did this was Timothy. Timothy not only listened and sat at the feet of Paul, learning all he could, he put it into action. How do we know this? Because Paul is sending Timothy on his behalf. Timothy has spent so much time around Paul that he can represent Paul when Paul’s not there.

Application:

This is discipleship. Discipleship isn’t a 3 credit class you graduate from. Discipleship looks like a lifetime of deciding to sit at the feet of a Paul-like person.

2 intentional moves this week:

1. Find a Paul
2. Be a Paul

If you don’t have someone pouring into your life and challenging you to know Christ, find that Paul-like person. Call the church, do whatever it takes! Sitting at the feet of a Paul takes intentionality, time and commitment but it’s how God’s wired us to know Him.

Also, don’t just find a Paul, be ready to be a Paul to someone. Paul sent Timothy, maybe you need to find someone this week to be a Paul to. A gospel centered life that is moving towards the goal of Christ likeness will always include this cycle of being discipled and doing discipleship.

Community is crucial. Let’s fight this fight together.

Prayer:

God forgive us for being so easily distracted and so easily conformed to the patterns of this world. Transform our heart. Give us a taste of the treasure that you are. Keep us from running to all the broken cisterns this world offers. Guide us to the everlasting, all satisfying water so that we may never thirst again. Amen

Scripture:  

“But I, brothers, could not address you as spiritual people but as people of the flesh—as infants in Christ.  I fed you with milk (not solid food) for you were not ready for it. 

And even now you are not yet ready for you are still of the flesh… (1 Cor 3:1-2) 

Observation:  

I am constantly noticing that almost all of the Epistles (especially from Paul) addresses in some way growing (not accumulating) Christians. 

Application:  

I think God has intentionally structured the Scriptures so that I shouldn’t be able to say “I got this.”

I mean, really, have I ever come across a verse that I could say “This doesn’t apply to me in any way, shape or form?”  Maybe the ones including the Enemy—but could I be exhibiting or (gasp) treasuring a similar attitude as the Enemy?  Makes me think…

Staying the above subject for just a second more: It is beneficial to understand what makes Lucifer so evil is the fact that he thinks he is just as good as God, in essence: A traitor.  That is what is the genesis of evil is in Man—“I am INDEPENDENT, not obligated to or to be obedient to God, I exercise my choice to do what I will and not reflect or pay attention to the One who has my life in His hands.”  That attitude got Adam and Eve kicked out of Eden and will subject countless millions to encounter God’s Wrath towards Sin. 

I have to look at the Milk reference and think: “Am I ready for more than milk?”  My pride says “Yes I am, pass me over some of that steak, the rarer the better.  The facts are that there are days that I have an appetite for more than milk and other days not.  

The process (I have to remind myself) is called “Progressive Sanctification” for a reason: it is progressive, doesn’t happen all at once; there is a lifetime of becoming a Disciple.  Progression is a process, a change from one point of being to another (if I am talking about the Man in the Mirror).

I don’t want to be a milk drinker all my life.  I just don’t.  Good food is not just good because it isn’t milk, good food, strong food is meant to build a body up; need good food to exercise, to build critical thinking skills, to be able to converse about the Majesty of God and His Gospel, etc., etc.

Point is that no matter what stage where my walk in Jesus is I can read 1 Cor 3:1-2 and cringe—for I instantly recognize those places where I am an infant, clutching my sippy cup with all my meager strength.

Prayer:  

Father, help me not to disparage or to ignore the value of milk.  I ask that You keep me dissatisfied with ONLY milk.  I don’t want to go after strange things and to places in the Bible that are good for nothing.  There is so so much in the stuff You DO want me in that it would be a multiple of lifetimes to explore.  AMEN.

Scripture:

“My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on human wisdom, but on God’s power.” v. 4-5

Observation:

Paul recognizes that it is not by human power or wisdom that the gospel is spoken in a way that draws people near and brings them to faith. He knows this truth and boldly proclaims it to the Corinthian Church so they understand it is not in their power that people know Jesus but in the power of the Holy Spirit and God. Paul confidently knows it is ONLY through the power of the Holy Spirit and God that people may come to faith, not by his wisdom or persuasion.

Application:

In evangelizing and reaching out to people so that they know the gospel and may believe in Christ, it is SO EASY to get caught up in our own self-evaluation of spreading the good news. Often I find myself asking questions like did I say enough? Did I overstep? Or, I catch myself thinking I didn’t do a good enough job. I tell myself “they won’t know Jesus now because I could’ve done better”. Here’s the truth that overcomes those self-responsible lies: We. Are. Not. God.

We aren’t.

It is only through the Holy Spirit and God himself that can truly lead people to faith. We as a church are called to love, we aren’t called to save – that’s what Jesus did through the cross. So rest. Rest in knowing that we have no control over others faith. But we do have control in how we love them and invite them in and proclaim him boldly. So keep pressing in, keep inviting, keep loving for the sake of the gospel being shown through your actions but always humbly know it will never be in YOUR power to bring them to Jesus. He has all control and all authority. Thank God for that truth.

Prayer:

Father, thank you for this truth today. Thank you that we don’t have to rely on ourselves to bring people to know Christ but that you have all control and authority over your people. God, let that bring us rest and an easy heart today. There are no words, no wisdom, no art of persuasion that we can use to bring others to faith and that in itself is a gift. May we trust you completely in your plans and always remember how much you love us even in the hard seasons. May we go into today and everyday with eyes on you and hearts ready to love like you love. Thank you for your grace and mercy every day. Amen.

Scripture:

Vs 1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus …

Vs 2 To the church of God that is in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ …

Vs 7 … you are not lacking in any gift …

Vs 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Vs 10 … be united in the same mind and the same judgment.

Vs 22 For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom,²³ but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, ²⁴ but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

Vs 26 For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. ²⁷ But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong.

Observation:

Paul is imploring the church to not be divided in their thinking about the Gospel.
While the people in the church are disagreeing about who their true leader is, Paul keeps his focus on Jesus.
Over and over again he refocuses their mind on Jesus and the power of the cross.

16 times he mentions Jesus Christ, and 20 times he mentions God in this chapter alone.
He does this by reminding them that they have everything they could need in Jesus …

“you are not lacking in any gift”!

And Paul also gets the church to have a unity of thinking by getting them to focus on higher things.
Over and over again Paul also mentions “calling” … six different times!

Paul, “called by the will of God”.
The church, “called to be saints”.
You were “called into the fellowship of Jesus Christ”.
“Called, both Jews and Greeks”.

What am I to do in response to this call? I call back to Him and keep my mind on it!
“Call upon the name of the Lord” …. And “consider your calling”.

Application:

Is Jesus enough for me? This is the question I must always find contentment in.
If I do not have the utmost faith that Jesus is enough, then I will do what non-Christians do.

I will do what everyone in the world does … make “demands” and “seek elsewhere”.
Paul states it that the Jews “demand signs” and the Greeks “seek wisdom”.

What is it that they really want? “Signs” is just another word for Power and “Wisdom” is just another word for Superior Knowledge.

If Jesus is not enough for me, then I will just want to be stronger and smarter than everyone else. In other words, I will want to make myself … “better”.

If Jesus is not enough for me, then I will always have a sense of “lacking” … And I will go on a never-ending quest of “demanding” and “seeking” to be … better.

But Jesus is more than enough. He is everything. And in God’s grace, He called me to be a saint, and called me into His fellowship. This is the calling I must consider! It is in this this calling that I have power and wisdom!

It is in the call of Christ that I lack nothing!

Prayer:

Thank you, God, for calling me
Help me focus my mind on it
Help me stay united in fellowship with you an others
Help our unity

Help me know that in you I lack nothing

In Jesus name

Amen

Scripture:

[1] Give the king your justice, O God,
and your righteousness to the royal son!
[2] May he judge your people with righteousness,
and your poor with justice!
[3] Let the mountains bear prosperity for the people,
and the hills, in righteousness!
[4] May he defend the cause of the poor of the people,
give deliverance to the children of the needy,
and crush the oppressor!
[5] May they fear you while the sun endures,
and as long as the moon, throughout all generations!

Observation:

This psalm is written by David for his son Solomon as he succeeds David as an earthly king. But it is also written directly referring to the coming Messiah.

David knows that Solomon needs God just as he did. This first part is prayer calling out for God to bless Solomon as a righteous ruler; a defender of the poor; a protector of the needy; and to have the power to crush any persecutors.

More importantly though, the prayer asks God to bless his Son, the King of kings, to be a righteous ruler; to defend the poor and needy; to have the power to crush any oppressors, and to rule forever – as long as the moon, throughout all generations!

Application:

While it may seem that our personal domains – our families, our work environments, our church – are much smaller than Solomon’s kingdom, they are no less important to God’s kingdom and it is no less important how we act. In our daily lives we all have opportunity to “rule righteously” by acting honorably in a holy way, or to act in dishonest or unjust ways. We are often confronted with opportunity to help those who have needs we may be able to help fulfill. Do we treat them with disdain because we feel it was their bad decisions that got them where they are, or do we treat them with respect, defend and protect them with a portion of provision or gifts God has provided for us? Let that sink in for a minute. None of us are immune from Satan’s temptation to fall on the irreverent side of a decision.

So, as we pray to God with our own versions of David’s prayer, we should pray this for ourselves and our own families as David did for Solomon. To make our daily decisions in God’s righteousness, to defend and protect the poor and needy, treating them with respect, and to stand firm as Satan tries to attack us. Pray we be more like Jesus.

Prayer:

Lord thank for your holy word to guide us. Thank you for the blessings you pour out on me daily. I don’t deserve them. Lord I know I’m not perfect so help me to always act and make decisions that you find holy and righteous. Help me not greedily withhold the worldly stuff you have provided me, or my spiritual gifts from helping the needy. In Jesus holy name I pray, Amen.

Scripture:  

“May all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You!  May those who love Your salvation say evermore ‘God is Great!’
But…I am poor and needy; hasten to me O God!  You are my help and deliverer; O Lord do not delay!

For you are my hope, my trust, O Lord, from my youth.  Upon you I have leaned from before my birth; You are He who took me from my mother’s womb….Do not cast me off in the time of my old age; forsake me not when my strength is spent…those who watch for my life consult together and say ‘God has forsaken him—pursue and seize him for there is none to deliver him…”  (Excerpts from Ps 70:4-5 and Ps 71:5-11)

“My mouth is filled with your praise and with your glory all the day.  (Ps 71:8)

Observation:  

Christians are faced with a dichotomy every day: Remembering that God is Good but our days can be not so good to downright bad.  Are the bad things to be ignored in some sort of “positive thinking” exercise?

Application:  

Quickly now and read: the above question is a resounding NO if I want to be a card carrying Disciple of Christ.

Why is that?  God is Good, isn’t He?  God is love and He loves me, right?  Romans 8:28 says that “..all things work together for good…”, right?  Shouldn’t I expect good all my days?

It all depends on how “Good” is defined from God’s POV.  So what is Good from His POV?

Good from my POV is peace.  Also lack of conflict, leisure, comfortableness, freedom to do what I want to do without challenge, and financial stability.  There is also satisfaction of (fill in the blank here as many things as can be thought of), being thought very well of, having the Rays win the World Series…and so many more things.  Oh, yeah: I don’t want to forget having God as a genie providing all my wants—oops, my needs (although I get to define my needs, right?)…

Good from God’s POV?  Scripture is succinct and clear: “For those He foreknew He predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son…” (Ro 8:29)

To be conformed is describing a process of change—and it is something both to experience AND to long for.

David is writing about two things in these Psalms: 1) He is keeping his head on straight about who deserves all the adulations I can generate in my mind, heart, and most importantly, my mouth.  David also recognizes that bad things happen and need to be shouted out to God—without diminishing or lowering any volume of praise because of the bad things.

What is the summary here?  God should be and deserves all adoration because of who He is and what He has done at the Cross.  Heaven knows I didn’t and don’t deserve it. Besides, because He didn’t buy me a Mercedes Benz, should I tone down my praise until He does?

Prayer:  

Almighty God: Forgive me every moment I diminish You in my sight.  I continually construct a favorable outcome of what my next steps ought to be and what the results of any effort of mine would be satisfactory in my sight.

What a knucklehead I can be—thinking that any plans I have or can concoct for my life would be better than any plan You have.  Help me to surrender to You.  AMEN.

Scripture:

Psalm 68:19-20 – Blessed be the Lord, who daily bears us up; God is our salvation.  Our God is a God of salvation, and to God, the Lord, belong deliverances from death.

Observation:

The Lord is to be honored in worship.  The Lord gives us strength and sustains us every day.  Our God is our savior and He has delivered us from death.  

Application:

God is our savior and through His grace, He sent Jesus to pay for our sins.  So instead of the death we deserve, we can place our faith and trust in Jesus to repent from our sin, be reconciled and have a relationship with the Father God.  God does not only work in us during our salvation, He is with us daily to carry the weight of what we can’t do on our own. Out of response to the love of Christ, I need to praise God and honor Him with my life.

Prayer:

Father,

Thank you for being our savior and protector.  Help me to realize how you sustain and provide for me daily.  Let me love you and others in response to your love.

Scripture:

66:5-6
5 Come and see what God has done:
he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man.
6 He turned the sea into dry land;
they passed through the river on foot.
There did we rejoice in him

Observation:

-David is not only inviting his audience to remember the works of the Lord, he’s urging his very own soul.
-Exodus 14:10 says “And when Pharaoh drew near, the children of Israel lifted their eyes, and behold, the Egyptians marched after them. So they were very afraid, and the children of Israel cried out to the Lord.”
This was it. I can imagine grown men looking at their wives and children without any hope to give them, weeping as they realized they have minutes left with one another. As Pharaoh pinned the people of God along the shores of the Red Sea, death seemed inevitable.

But God.

Listen to the words of Moses:
Exodus 14:13 “And Moses said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord, which He will accomplish for you today.”

This is what David wants himself and God’s people to remember. The salvation work of the Lord their God. That HE will bring it about, He will be faithful to complete it.

Application:

Command your soul to “come and see” the saving work of God through Jesus Christ. How amazingly powerful and intense was the saving work of Yahweh departing the Red Sea? I would argue only a fraction of the saving work on the cross.

David had a rough life, what was his practical action step by coping with the struggles of life? To urge his soul to remember the goodness of God.

As we step into another hectic week, incline your soul to remember God’s faithfulness to His children. Thank Him for the salvation that He accomplished for us!

Prayer:

Lord thank you for the saving work of the cross. God as we step into another week let us be intentional on reminding ourselves of your faithfulness. Help us to see you as the treasure that you are.
Amen.


Scripture:  

“O God, you are my God—earnestly I seek You; my soul thirsts for you, my flesh yearns for You as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.  (Ps 63:1) 

Hear my voice, O God… (Ps 64:1a)

Blessed is the one You choose and bring near to dwell in your courts!  We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house, the holiness of Your temple. (Ps 65:4)

Observation:  

What do these references have in common?  They are intense and earnest cries to God; they are modeling EARNEST prayer.

Application:  

There is an unexplored region of communication concerning God that I fail at (and perhaps most of these readers do as well) and that is that murky area between Praise and Asking/Supplication (asking for stuff to happen).

When was the last moment I spent time in this “murky area” of prayer—acknowledging Him and His magnificence, His majesty, His Mercy, Grace, Omniscience, etc.—all of His Attributes and how they affect me?  How much time do I give in prayer about how merciful He is to me, an undeserving wretch of a person compared to Him? 

A lot of folks get offended when I speak like this.  I don’t know why.  If I read the Scriptures it is pretty clear the extent of His Mercy and Grace is given to Man (who is undeserved of his Mercy and Grace).  I have a value before God because He chose to value me, not that I have inherent value—after all, I am a traitor, from a long line of traitors beginning with GGG’dad Adam.

So why wouldn’t I earnestly seek Him with emphasis on the earnestly?  Why wouldn’t I call blessed the One who chose to bring me near?  Why wouldn’t I call on God to hear my voice when He, because He is Almighty God, doesn’t have to unless He chose to hear me?

Why wouldn’t I hang my head in shame when I consider that the God of all Creation, the One who is Holy and Perfect, no fault in Him whatsoever, was humiliated, beaten, disrespected, and gave His life for me—a guy who doubtless would have been in the crowd calling for His death?  And I probably act like that every day in multiple ways even today.

So what do I need to change?  Candidly I need these changes (no in any particular order): 

I need to cultivate a frank honesty about myself before God.  How do I do that?  I could give a number of “christian” or “religious” words but here is a suggestion: figure out how shameful I am towards God and humbly give thanks—if approaching God like this doesn’t prompt me to shed a tear or two at times, is my heart becoming hard?  I think so…

Earnest prayer also needs to be cultivated.  “Earnest” isn’t something I usually exhibit.  Lackadaisical, lazy, superficial has been more my style lately. 

Paul told Timothy to let folks see his progress in the faith.  Fair enough.  But if my prayers in public are more demonstrative and intense than my prayers in private something is wrong, very wrong.  Be aware.

By the way: avoid fakey.  Doesn’t do anyone good.

Prayer:  

Considering all the turmoil that has been happening lately, Lord, I am surprised I could even write this.  When either protecting myself by drawing inward or lashing out in any degree of anger being transparent is a difficult exercise to do.  I appreciate the grace You give to open me up like a can of worms.  Have mercy on me O God.  Have mercy on the situation that You are well aware of.  AMEN

Scripture:

For God alone my soul waits in silence from him comes my salvation. 62:1

Observation:

God alone.
God alone.

Alone.

There is nothing else that his soul waits for or hopes in. That is the place we all need to be in, that I want to be in. The place where I look to nothing else but God alone to give me hope. Complete trust. Complete hope in nothing else, but God.

Application:

Give up hoping in anything else. We need to remember this, we need to realize that the only true hope we have, the only thing to rest in, the only thing we can trust in is our God in Jesus.

Give up on all the other hopes.

Prayer:

Lord, do this in me! Do this in us. We need you and only you!

Scripture:

[7] Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. [8] You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.

Observation:

Using the illustration of a farmer patiently waiting for proper rain to plow his fields and then again for rain to grow his crops, James writes that a person must have patience.  Patience for the coming of the Lord and the judgement to follow.  While ACTIVELY waiting patiently, they were told to establish their hearts.

Application:

Good things don’t normally come to us without some action on our part, nor do they come to us immediately, so we need patience.  The ultimate “good thing” we are expecting is the coming of Christ Jesus.  What a glorious day that will be!

We know that “..the coming of the Lord is at hand.” and just as they felt in James’ day that the glorious day may be very soon, we believe the same.  It may be today, it may be next year, it may be in 100 years.  In any event, while we wait expectantly there are actions we should be taking.  We cannot waste that time.  We should be allowing the Lord to use us to accomplish his work and most of all, we should be focused on Jesus, getting our hearts right with Him.

Prayer:

Lord I love You.  I look forward to the day You come and how glorious it will be.  Until that day comes or I am called to You, Lord, use me as you will.  Help me prepare for that day, keeping my heart right with You and my focus on You.  In Jesus mighty name I pray, Amen.

Scripture:  

“What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you?  Is it not this: that your passions are at war within you?

• You desire and do not have so you murder.
• You covet and cannot obtain so you fight and quarrel.
• You do not have because you do not ask.
• You ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly—to spend it on your passions.

…He yearns jealously over the spirit that He has made to dwell in us…But He gives more grace.  Therefore it says: “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble…”” (Excerpts from James 4:1-3, vs. 5b-6)

Observation:  

Conflict is necessary, even beneficial.  Conflict also sucks.  It can bring out the best in me and the worst in me.  A lot of the time it is because I am so conflicted in what to do.  Should I be bold?  Should I be meek?  What does being wise look like?  What does humility look like?

How do I keep from being a double minded man, unstable in all his ways? (James 1:8)

Application:  

Reader: I can candidly say I have a very large problem right here.  If I had a list of all the faults in my Walk, resolving conflict would be right towards the top most days.

Why is that?  Hanging out my heart for all to see the first word that comes to mind is: Chicken.

I would like to wallow in self-righteousness by saying I am “searching my heart”, “confessing selfishness or covetousness”, “wanting to be found humble instead of prideful.”  Facts are that I could legitimately be doing all of the above—except most times it winds up for me being the easiest thing—doing nothing.

The bluntness of James is right here: Quarrels?  Fights?  Why: Because my passions (desires) are at war within me.  I want and do not have; this lights the fire of quarrels and a quarreling heart.

But is wanting or having desires a bad thing?  Nope.  But the scripture here is clear: If I want something I should make sure that I am asking for something God wants to give me.  That would be a Yes!  Something I am not sure about?  That would be a Maybe.  Something that my pride is dictating to want?  That would be a No.

If I want to be a disciple then when I seek God and get an answer I am uncomfortable with, I can’t send it back for a second opinion.  Boldness starts at the house of God surrounded by folks we know, not by strangers out in the world.

I don’t want to end this posting with anyone thinking I have it all together with some so spiritual sentence.  I don’t have it all together; I am struggling with a particular situation and relationship that is causing turbulence in my soul—and it is mostly because I am chicken and cannot see a favorable outcome.  Doesn’t matter: As a disciple I am called to obedience to do what He would have me do—not to obtain a particular outcome.  Outcomes, good or bad, belong to our God alone. 

Prayer:  

Father, my heart is quivering within my chest.  If it were up to me I would kick the conflict to the side of the road and wait it out.  I still don’t know if that is the right thing to do only because it would suit my sensibilities first and foremost—is it your direction to do that?  My chicken fear rings in my ears too loudly for me to hear.  Therefore, I must be obedient to Your Word and in faith step out in confidence.  Have mercy on me O God.  AMEN.

Scripture:

James 3:16 – 18 –   For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.  But, the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.  And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Observation:

After teaching about the dangers of the tongue, James is counseling the believers about true wisdom.  James compares and contrasts wisdom from above with our own ambition/desires. Jealousy, selfishness, boasting are all traits of our own wants desires which lead chaos and evil.  Humility, peaceful, gentleness full or mercy are from the Spirit which lead to a harvest of righteousness.

Application:

As important as it is to guard my tongue, I must equally be sure of where my thoughts and intentions are derived.  In order to do this, I must be in the word and in prayer asking God for wisdom and discernment in my actions, decisions.  My motives should not be boastful or point to me otherwise this is from the flesh. Rather, I need to be humble, gentle, seek God in my actions and have the Spirit guide me to make sure the glory belongs to Him.  This is timely as we embark on a venture that is bigger than anyone or anything with the ultimate goal to make Him known among the nations.

Prayer:

Father,

Thank you for your love, grace and mercy.  May I seek you in word and prayer to have the power of the Holy Spirit guide me in wisdom and discernment that honors you.  Don’t let me rely on my own selfish ambition of the flesh.

Scripture:

James 2:26 “For just as the body dead without breath so also faith is dead without works”

Observation:

James is addressing the issue on true vs counterfeit faith. This chapter should be a call to do, but that doing is not good works, it is examining. We must examine our lives, test ourselves, is my faith true faith? Am I becoming any more like Christ? If faith is the body and breath is the works, we can’t tell the dead body to try harder to breathe. We must place all of our hope in the one that can make a dead body alive. In the one that can place breathe back into a dead corpse.

Application:

We are not saved by faith + works, we are saved by faith in Christ alone. James wants us to examine ourselves, be real and honest with yourself. Forget what works you did or didn’t do over the weekend, while there is physical breathe in your lungs Christ is able to make you alive spiritually.

When we pursue good works we don’t pursue them so we can gain eternal security, we pursue works because we want others to see the one, and only one, who can give us eternal security.

Matthew 5:16 says “Let your light shine before men, that. they may see your good works, and. glorify your Father which is in heaven.”

That is why we pursue good works. Make Jesus known in your life this week.

Prayer:

Lord thank you for your grace and mercy. Father help us rest on the promise that you whole began a good work in us will be faithful to complete it. May we rest in that. May we show others, through our good works, the promise of your son as a free gift!

Amen.