Great Gift Series

James 1:18-Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of His creatures.

In verse 17, James talked about (every good gift and every perfect gift is from above) and now he is going to tell about this greatest gift that is offered.

This new birth that places into the family of God.

John 1:12-13- But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

God loves us the way we are, but he loves us too much to leave us that way.

"He Brought Us Forth With The "Word of Truth"

It is God himself who brings the word of truth to men and women, in a sermon, or a friend, neighbor, coworker who speaks to them, or in a tract, or a book, or in a song.

It is God who uses these tools, these avenues to reach people.

1 Peter 11:22-25-Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart,

having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,

because “All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away,

But the word of the Lord endures forever.” Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you.

A wise old professor of biology stood before his class of eager students. The Professor held a little brown seed in his hand. Quietly he spoke to his class.

"I know just the composition of this seed, "It has nitrogen, hydrogen, and carbon. I know the exact proportions. I can make a seed that will look exactly like this one.

But if I plant the seed that I have made it will come to naught; its elements will simply be absorbed into the soil.

But if I plant the seed, which God has made, it will become a living plant, because it contains the mysterious life Principle.

That We Might Be A Kind Of First Fruits Of His Creatures.

God's intention in the new birth is now given, the word of God is the seed that brings forth fruits.

Leviticus 23:9-11-And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land which I give to you, and reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. He shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted on your behalf;

The First fruits were sacred and belonged to God, and us believers are a special possession to God.

The First Fruits were also indicative of a greater harvest, which would follow among His creatures -- This may be a reference to all those who will come to believe after these first century.

The believers, to whom James wrote, were just the beginning of a great multitude who would come to believe

Carl was a quiet man. He didn't talk much. He would always greet you with a big smile and a firm handshake. Even after living in our neighborhood for over 50 years, no one could really say they knew him very well.

Before his retirement, he took the bus to work each morning. The lone sight of him walking down the street often worried us. He had a slight limp from a bullet wound received in World War II. Watching him, we worried that although he had survived the war, he may not make it through our changing uptown neighborhood with its ever-increasing random violence, gangs, and drug activity.

When he saw the flier at our local church asking for volunteers for caring for the gardens behind the minister's residence, he responded in his characteristically unassuming manner. Without fanfare, he just signed up.

He was well into his 87th year when the very thing we had always feared finally happened. He was just finishing his watering for the day when three gang members approached him. Ignoring their attempt to intimidate him, he simply asked, "Would you like a drink from the hose?" The tallest and toughest-looking of the three said, "Yeah, sure," with a malevolent little smile. As Carl offered the hose to him, the other two grabbed Carl's arm, throwing him down. As the hose snaked crazily over the ground, dousing everything in its way, Carl's assailants stole his retirement watch and his wallet, and then fled.