James 3 - 2 Wisdoms! Series

Series: James – Let’s do it!

Thesis of Book: The message of the book is “Let’s do it – live the faith – put it into action! The half-brother of Jesus is speaking to the scattered Jewish Christians across the nations – they were scattered right after Stephen was killed. James tells these Christians and us today “You have to do more than just talk about your faith - you have to put your faith to work for the glory of the Kingdom of Heaven.” In other words, what you do with your faith matters in the here and now and in eternity so put it into action! Faith with no deeds is dead!

Key verse of book: James 1:22 “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.”

Summary of lessons from Chapter 1- We put faith into action when:

…We persevere through the trials and grief of life and in the midst of it get His inner joy and peace.

…We control the pressure moments of life with faith and not anger and in the process find freedom in the Spirit.

…We listen and do to be what God has called us to be and do.

Summary of lessons from Chapter 2 – We put faith into action when:

…We put our faith into motion when we choose to fight against favoritism, prejudice mindsets and discrimination.

…We put faith into action when we love, accept and forgive others. Cook states, “When love, acceptance and forgiveness prevail, the church of Jesus Christ becomes what Jesus was in the world: a center of love designed for the healing of broken people and a force for God” When faith is released to action it impacts people’s lives, transformation happens and people are set free! It releases revival!

Summary of lesson from Chapter 3:1-12 – We put faith into action when:

…James wants us to understand that our tongues wield supernatural power and if we do not keep them tamed-bridled and under control they will lead our lives right into a firestorm.

…Therefore, we need the Holy Spirit to help lead us into the Wisdom from above that will help us bring it under control!

The Two Wisdoms – James 3:13-18

Thesis: James tells us that there are two different wisdoms trying to influence and even control our lives – one originates from Heaven above and the other is an earthly unspiritual wisdom with its roots from below.

Texts: James 3: 13-18 (NIV)

13Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. 16For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. 17But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness.

James 3:13-18 (The Message)

Do you want to be counted wise, to build a reputation for wisdom? Here’s what you do: Live well, live wisely, live humbly. It’s the way you live, not the way you talk, that counts. Mean-spirited ambition isn’t wisdom. Boasting that you are wise isn’t wisdom. Twisting the truth to make yourselves sound wise isn’t wisdom. It’s the furthest thing from wisdom—it’s animal cunning, devilish conniving. Whenever you’re trying to look better than others or get the better of others, things fall apart and everyone ends up at the others’ throats. Real wisdom, God’s wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others. It is gentle and reasonable, overflowing with mercy and blessings, not hot one day and cold the next, not two-faced. You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor.

Introduction:

Many today are in the pursuit of knowledge and they think that is wisdom. They desire to be able to make right decisions that will affect their lives in a positive manner but lack the wisdom to do so. They understand it is a key ingredient to have in their lives but fail to attain the right kind of wisdom. Wisdom is the ability to look at a situation and pick the correct way to handle it and therefore be in the position to reap the rewards of that wise decision. Wisdom is the ability to use knowledge rightly and correctly. But wisdom from above comes from God not from this world.