What desires do you fight against? Is confession and asking for forgiveness a regular part of your prayer time? We can resist temptation by knowing His Word and choose to obey it with guidance and conviction of the Holy Spirit. Our fallen nature is something we will always have to fight against. We can’t give Satan all the credit for our sins… our own desires draw us away from God. We need to take responsibility for our actions, confess them, and ask for forgiveness. God would never try to entice us to sin! That comes from Satan, who prowls around waiting to attack us in our weaknesses.Įveryone faces temptation that leads to sin. Temptations work just the opposite- they draw you away from Him. What is the difference between a test and temptation? Testing is designed to help you understand your dependence on God and bring you closer to Him. James wants us to know God never tempts us- Tested, yes tempted, no.
“When tempted, no one should say, ‘God is tempting me.’ For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.” vv 13-14.
BOOK OF JAMES BIBLE STUDY TRIAL
What steps do you take when faced with a trial or storm? What gets in your way of receiving His wisdom? Resisting Temptation The building blocks of a strong faith are in Scripture. When our faith is strong, we can have all we need. Jesus promises, “everything is possible for one who believes.” Mark 9:23 NIV. Stand strong through your trials by focusing on what you know and believe. James says if we need help in making wise decisions, ask Him- He knows best. Biblical wisdom is knowledge with the perspective of discerning what God wants you to do. Wisdom is not just facts and information. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt…” 1:5-6a. “If any of you lack wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. He doesn’t want us stumbling through our trials.
Understanding our trials and sufferings of life is hard! But James tells us we can ask God all our questions. What is your usual response to trials? What gets in your way of seeing trials as opportunities for growth? God’s Wisdom It’s also the joy of comfort that God is present with us in all our trials and that we are never alone. The “pure joy” James mentions is not happiness in our trial, but the perseverance and wisdom we learn through our hardship. But instead of asking God “ Why is this happening” we need the strength and faith to say, “ What am I supposed to learn from this?” This turns us away from the worry and stress and towards His peace. We all experience trials- we live in an imperfect world with imperfect people.
BOOK OF JAMES BIBLE STUDY HOW TO
Therefore, we should expect them, and know how to deal with them in a positive way. Notice James says “when” you face trials, not “if” you do. James’ words could not be more relevant to us today!
BOOK OF JAMES BIBLE STUDY FULL
I don’t know about you, but this year has been chock full of trials. “Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance.” 1:2-3. He gets right to the heart of their issues- Trials and Temptations James wanted to encourage them in their faith during their difficult church times (and this year, perhaps?) He was writing to support the scattered and persecuted early believers. James wastes no time getting down to business. Some call it the “how-to” book on Christian living. James tells us we can’t just talk about our Christian faith- we have to show it with our actions. It focuses on practical actions and answers to life’s problems that we will encounter. He was writing to First Century Jewish Christians and the same principles apply to Christians today. James leads us on a journey of how to live out our Christian life. Paul wrote upon his first visit to Jerusalem as a Christian – “I saw none of the other apostles- only James, the Lord’s brother.” Gal 1:19 NIV. But he later believed and became an important leader in the Jerusalem church. Jesus’ brother James was not a follower of Jesus when He was alive.
We see James, the brother of Jesus, however, mentioned significantly in the New Testament. The Romans killed one, and the other has little written about him. Seems like a trick question, right? There is some debate because Jesus had two apostles named James, but neither one is a strong candidate as the author. Even though this book has only 5 chapters, I’m going to break it into a two-part study. Since writing that post, God’s been bombarding me with verses from the Book of James! James focuses on the interaction of our faith and works and gives practical ways to live as Christians. We recently learned about the power of one person’s faith lived out in our world.
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