The book of James - Chapter 4
Readings for this week November 7 - 17
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Day 1 – Motives for Prayer
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – James 4:1-3
We might expect James to direct these very strong words to the Roman society around him. But as harsh as they are, he is directing them at followers of Jesus – at those followers of Jesus who are fighting and arguing with each other because they cannot control the selfish desires within them. Desire for more possessions, more money, enhanced status, greater recognition from those around them. When we let these desires control our words and actions, it is only natural that we will start to fight to get what we want – what we believe we rightly deserve. And bringing God into the equation, asking him to give us the things we want, still leaves us empty-handed because we’re asking with the wrong motives.
James highlights several problems that we can encounter in prayer, problems of our own making. We can ask for the wrong thing, whether cluelessly or selfishly. We can ask for the wrong reasons, letting our belief we know best dictate our approach to God. In fact, sometimes it is simply a case of too much asking, an ATM view of God as an endless dispenser of whatever we want, rather than seeing him as our Father who loves us and wants a relationship with us. Where is the worship, the reverence, the praise? Where is spending time in his presence, sharing all of our self with him and listening to that still, quiet voice that tells us who we are and reminds us of who we now are in Christ? Doing so will let God change our desires into his desires so that we can be in alignment with his will for us.
Question to Consider
How do we pray humbly? What helps you keep your desires in check when you approach God?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, shine your light on my motives. Help me truthfully face up to my desires and motives so I can spot when they cut loose from your will so I can seek forgiveness and realign myself with you. Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
Day 2 – Friendship with the World
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – James 4:4-6
This is one of those phrases that can go both ways, that has two equally valid meanings, both perfectly legitimate but also utterly dependent on context. “Loving the world” was something Jesus did so much he died for it and everyone in it. But James says we are not to love the world. Confused? What does it mean to be a friend to the world and why is it a bad thing, something believers should avoid at all costs for fear of being labelled an enemy of God? Aren’t we supposed to love the world with the same sacrificial love Jesus did?
Yes, we are. That is not what James is warning against here. For James, the phrase ‘friendship with the world’ means ‘following the way the world behaves,’ adhering to the world’s story and the world’s pattern of life, a pattern that encourages the pursuit of my desires and my wants, and that prizes arrogance and assertiveness over humility. Jesus loved the world enough to die for it because he wanted to change it and to change us; he wanted all of creation to enjoy the close, loving, unfettered relationship with God that he had always intended – and that our own selfish desires had damaged, desires that so frequently follow the way of the world rather than the way of God. We cannot be ‘friends’ with a world that scorns God and pulls us away from him and squeezes us into a destructive shape that prizes selfishness over sacrificial love. But we can – and must – love the world enough to want to share the good news of the transformational, redemptive change that Jesus has made for us.
Question to Consider
What does Christ-like friendship with the world look like for you?
Prayer
Lord God, help me love but not be seduced; show me what to uphold and what to change; help me see the world through your eyes and love it with your heart. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
Day 3 – The Importance of Humility
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – James 4:7-10
Humility is not popular today. It doesn’t really fit with a society that pushes us to make our voices heard, to shamelessly promote ourselves, to make sure we always get what is our due. Humility is significantly absent from our world, and yet it is the keystone of our attitude towards God, and therefore our attitude to life and the world. James includes a couple of incredible promises for those who will humbly submit themselves to God. If we will resist the devil – he who discourages humility in others to match its absence in himself – he will flee from us! We need not be afraid of the devil; if we resist him, he will run away.
In tandem with this, James promises that if we draw near to God, he will draw near to us. God is not distant, unconcerned or apathetic towards us. He is wanting to draw near to us, to come close to us in deeper friendship and love, if only we will stop chasing after the comforts of this world rather than seeking him above all things. Part of being humble is to realise that nothing else can satisfy us the way God can; it is arrogance to think that we know better than God what is needed for human flourishing and how best to achieve it. God knows better, universally, communally and individually. Being humble in all we do opens up so many new pathways in our lives for God to act. God is doing so much to transform his world and his people. We need to be receptive to him. We need to adopt an attitude of humility and self-effacement. His promise is definite, concrete – our response needs to be too.
Question to Consider
How do you cultivate humility? How do you remain humble in every situation every day?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, teach me humility, teach me modesty. Purify me of all arrogance and selfishness so that when people see me they see you and see all that you want us to become. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
Day 4 – God’s Future, Our Plans
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – James 4:11-16
It may sometimes be difficult to do, but it is absolutely crucial that we constantly remind ourselves that we are not God and we are not meant to be. We are not in charge. James has already highlighted the importance of humility and the benefits of humbly submitting to God. Doing so also allows us to take each day as a gift and gives us clearer vision to see what God is doing and how we fit in to his work. If we are not rushing around, if we are not listening to the world’s demands for fame, fortune, comfort, and status – basically, if we are not trying to be God – then we will more easily find our place, and will more easily be able to accept that God is in charge and that all our plans, however well laid, are ultimately in his hands.
And because the future is in God’s hands – because everything is in God’s hands – it is the height of ridiculousness to make plans for the future as if God does not exist, and as if his kingdom is not a coming reality. Planning as if God is not a part of the picture is a recipe for disaster – just look around at the world right now to see what human endeavour pursued without thought for God’s plans and without God’s love looks like. We can make all the plans we like, lay out as many grand visions of our futures, our goals and intentions – and they can be good goals and intentions – but if these plans are made without God, then they are useless. Our passion will go to waste if we do not give God his due.
Question to Consider
When you look to the future, what place does God have in your plans? How do you ensure that God is at the centre of your life and your plans?
Prayer
Lord God, you are sovereign, not me. The future is yours – my future is yours. May your kingdom love be the motivating force when I plan for the future. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
Day 5 – What We Fail To Do
Silence, Stillness and Centering before God (2 minutes)
Scripture Reading – James 4:17
We often view sin as doing the wrong thing, a wrong, incorrect action. “Thou shalt not.” This is what society remembers, the bits where God says not to do something, where limits are placed, where some actions are deemed wrong. Murder, stealing, lying, coveting – some see sin as a list of things that we are not to do. But while true to a certain extent, James reminds us that it is more than this: it is also a sin to know what is right and to not do it, so-called sins of omission. We know we should seek God in all we do, and all we plan to do. To plan for the future but not give God his rightful place as sovereign over all our plans and dreams – to not have his kingdom first in our lives – is to badly miss the mark. What we do and what we fail to do are both crucial in this regard.
But once we have learned the humility James has been talking about and come to accept God’s ‘royal law’ – and not only accept it but live it – and to live within the divine ordering of our lives that is God’s will, then we will start to see all the positive things that God is calling us to do. We’ll learn more of what his will is and train ourselves to hear his voice guiding us and prompting us. To do this and then to not obey his voice and his guidance and not do what he is telling us, is to cast off humility and put ourselves back under the authority of the pride that thinks that we know best what to do – better even than God himself.
Question to Consider
What are things you know you should do but struggle to do? Why? How have you moved past this barrier in the past? How did God help?
Prayer
Gracious God, you enable me to be so much more than I can imagine; through you I can do so much more for your kingdom than I think I am capable of. Help me do the things that you want me to; help me listen to your voice and follow where you lead. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)