November 17: Groups Guide
About This Guide
The online groups guide is designed as a teaching series companion to foster discussion, study, and prayer, especially in a group setting.
Join a weekly group for a meaningful way to connect to our community.
pdf download
Download this PDF to help you make a plan to follow Jesus in your everyday life, including diagnostic questions to help get you started.
Pickup a print version at our weekly in-person Sunday gatherings.
more Resources
Explore a curated online collection of recommended practices and resources to pursue presence, formation, and love in your life.
Questions about the series or looking for a way to get involved? Contact us.
Love
Teaching Text: James 4:13-5:6
Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.
Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes.Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.
Themes
Consider these themes and ask your group what else they see in the passage:
The Crown of Life: Meditations on the Book of James
God Will Set Things Right
Formation
Thoughts and notes you can use for discussion:
What areas of your life is it easy for you to be a control freak?
James is New Testament Wisdom literature.
It is direct. At times, it feels abrupt. It is meant to lead to practical action.
This is our 8th week moving through this relatively short letter. And we have been saying that James is like New Testament wisdom literature.
This letter is a cousin to the Proverbs or parts of the Psalms, and Ecclesiastes.
It is trying to grapple with how people who have trusted in Christ’s life, death, and resurrection should live.
In this text James is pressing in on something that he has been addressing at several points in the letter and here as well.
Watch out, you are in very perilous place when you start trying to play God. When you see all the gifts of your life as something you have just gotten for yourself, or you imagine that because your ability and resources you can steer you life wherever you want it to go.
He says “Now, Listen” and here is some of what I think he is saying to us.
Fire yourself from the role of God
Take on fully the role of image-bearing human being
There are inescapable time limits for injustice
We have to fire ourselves from trying to do God’s job in the world - this is humility that needs to show up in how we pray and how we plan
But there are still certain things we absolutely can do. We shouldn’t imagine that because we aren’t God, there aren’t meaningful choices we need to make and actions we need to take. - this is humility of doing what we can with what we have
And then look where we are going to give an account for our lives. James keeps reminding us of this. Even the moist ingrained and established injustice has a time limit. God will set thing right. This is the humility to acknowledge that and look towards that day with our lives.
Fire yourself from the role of God
“Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil.”
– James 4: 13-17
Is God against you making plans? Is God against your vision board? Is God against a sound strategy?
Of course not. There are plenty of other places in the Proverbs and in Jesus’ teaching that show the wisdom and fruitfulness of planning ahead.
The trouble here is that God is an afterthought if anything
James is not against praying and planning. He is saying the essence of friendship with the system of this world, the essence of sin, the essence of us living with the illusion of control like we are God
“Don’t you realize what your life is like? Think of the mist you see out of the window on an autumn morning. It hangs there in the valley, above the little stream. It is beautiful, evocative, mysterious; yes, just like a human being can be. Then the sun comes up a bit further, and … the mist simply disappears. That’s what your life is like. You have no idea what today will bring, let alone tomorrow... Learn to take each day as a gift from God, and to do such planning as is necessary in the light of that.”
– N.T. Wright
Take on fully the role of image-bearing human beings
At the end of this paragraph James almost seems to change directions. He says …
“If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them. “
– James 4: 17
A prayer:
God, I don’t want to make plans without you, but I also don’t want to skip this wonderful adventure of life you have called me to.I want to walk in the humility of Jesus and the authority of Jesus. The Lion and the Lamb.
Amen.
There are inescapable time limits for injustice (or money sometimes tells a great lie)
“Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you. Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. Your gold and silver are corroded. Their corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have hoarded wealth in the last days. Look! The wages you failed to pay the workers who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. u 6 You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.”
– James 5: 1-6
Parents:
Ask your kids where they recognize current injustice.
Help them understand that God has a limit on the timeline of injustice.
Pray together for the people they recognize as victims of injustice.
November 17: God Will Set Things Right
November 10: Groups Guide
About This Guide
The online groups guide is designed as a teaching series companion to foster discussion, study, and prayer, especially in a group setting.
Join a weekly group for a meaningful way to connect to our community.
pdf download
Download this PDF to help you make a plan to follow Jesus in your everyday life, including diagnostic questions to help get you started.
Pickup a print version at our weekly in-person Sunday gatherings.
more Resources
Explore a curated online collection of recommended practices and resources to pursue presence, formation, and love in your life.
Questions about the series or looking for a way to get involved? Contact us.
Love
Teaching Text: James 4: 1-12
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive,because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.
You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us? But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:
“God opposes the proud
but shows favor to the humble.”
Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
Brothers and sisters, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against a brother or sister or judges them speaks against the law and judges it. When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you—who are you to judge your neighbor?
Themes
Consider these themes and ask your group what else they see in the passage:
The Crown of Life: Meditations on the Book of James
Humble Yourself Before God
Formation
Thoughts and notes you can use for discussion:
How do you think pride is defined in our culture?
What does it look like in the world you engage with?
James is New Testament Wisdom literature.
It is direct. At times, it feels abrupt. It is meant to lead to practical action.
James knows it's hard to be a person.
And maybe for you this week, in particular, it has felt hard to be a person.
If you were thrilled with the election results, I want you to know that you are fully welcome at this church. We celebrate your presence.
If you were devastated by the election results I want you to know you are fully welcomed at this church. We celebrate your presence.
If you’re somewhere in between those two: apathetic, numb, resigned, relieved, looking for explanations, whatever. You are fully welcome here. We celebrate your presence.
We really believe you are made in God's image no matter what.
If you are a follower of Jesus, you have been given the Holy Spirit. Each one of you carries the potential to show us more of God than what we have known before.
James knows it’s hard to be a peacemaker who walks in God's wisdom and controls their speech, puts action to their trust and love and endures challenging times with a vision for what patience and perseverance offers a vision of wholeness
He shows us that he knows being a person is hard. That’s what verse 4 starts with….
When desires that are false advertisers get rooted in our hearts, they then get expressed in our lives, choices, and relationships. They tear at the fabric of our love and connections.
James is saying Pride will kill you and keep you alone and make you think it had to be that way.
James is saying – you're tearing each other apart because some desires that are totally disconnected from God are running rampant in your souls. They cannot actually bring you real satisfaction, but for the sake of them you are breaking apart your lives and loves.
James is saying We have to be so careful because we can want to play the role of God in our lives, sometimes in the world, so much. But it always does damage. There is only one who is loving, wise, and sacrificial enough to be God.
Recognize the source of your conflict and its damage to our soul
Your desires are like road signs and even if they are lying to you, they show a type of journey you are on.
They show your allegiance, your friendship, your love.
As James K. A. Smith restated for us across the ages.. “You are what you love”
A desire points to an allegiance, and friendship.
And what is that allegiance? What is that ethos of life in opposition to or disregarding God?
It’s pride.
You see one of the big western myths is that of autonomous self determination. You are who you decide you be.
As if it’s that simple and your self-expression as you see it is the paramount thing to you being fully alive and joyful.
But most older cultures and even most of our social scientists know that your immediate community shares who you are and what you want tremendously.
Your childhood attachments, your friendships, your community now. Shape you deeply.
You are way more than just what you decide to be.
And James says God opposes the proud.
It’s another way of saying God cannot cooperate with you trying to take His job.
6 Markers of Spiritual Pride - Keller summarizing a Christian Author from the middle of 1800s
Pride makes you more aware of others’ faults than you are aware of your own. But humility causes you to be far more aware of your own faults. - "if you spot it you go it"
Pride leads you when you speak of others’ faults to have an air of contempt and disdain, but humility leads you to speak of others faults with some understanding, grief, and mercy
Pride leads you to quickly separate from those you have criticized or have criticized you, but humility means you stick with people even through difficult relationships
Pride makes you dogmatic and sure about every point of belief. Proud people cannot distinguish between minor and major points of belief because everything is major.
A Proud person either loves to confront to be proven right or they refuse to confront out of apathy or fear, but a humble person will gently confront when necessary
A Proud person is often unhappy and sorry for themselves. They are filled with self-pity.
When can we start to get a picture of the life of Biblical humility.
C.S. Lewis - “Humility is not thinking less of yourself. It is thinking of yourself less.”
Entering the bliss of self-forgetfulness out of our worrying self-obsession
Humble yourself
“God opposes the proud
but shows favor to the humble.”
“Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and He will come near to you.
– James 4: 6-8
One of the scariest and most difficult parts of being a person is realizing that your character formation up to this point in your life has not left you with enough maturity to make it through this season of life.
Trust God will be near and God will lift you up.
Corrie Ten Boom said “When a train goes through a dark tunnel, you don’t tear up your ticket and jump off; you sit still and trust the driver.”
More like Corrie Eleven Boom there.
Parents:
How can you talk to your children about what pride is?
What does it mean to be a peacemaker?
November 10: Humble Yourself Before God
November 3: Groups Guide
About This Guide
The online groups guide is designed as a teaching series companion to foster discussion, study, and prayer, especially in a group setting.
Join a weekly group for a meaningful way to connect to our community.
pdf download
Download this PDF to help you make a plan to follow Jesus in your everyday life, including diagnostic questions to help get you started.
Pickup a print version at our weekly in-person Sunday gatherings.
more Resources
Explore a curated online collection of recommended practices and resources to pursue presence, formation, and love in your life.
Questions about the series or looking for a way to get involved? Contact us.
Love
Teaching Text: James 3: 1-18
Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.
When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.
Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
But 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.Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.
Themes
Consider these themes and ask your group what else they see in the passage:
The Crown of Life: Meditations on the Book of James
Speaking Peace
Formation
Thoughts and notes you can use for discussion:
Think of words that someone spoke over you that have stuck with you for years. (positive or negative)
Share this with your group.
James is New Testament wisdom literature.
It is direct. At times, it feels abrupt. It is meant to lead to practical action.
James is giving us something of a litmus test for living the Jesus way
He provides this like a thesis early on and then expands on each one. Living in the way of Jesus must impact…
How you speak
How you treat the poor and the vulnerable
How you adopt or resist the systems of this world.
In this text, he is showing us ….
Words have tremendous power
Words reveal our hearts and shape our lives
What to do when words have torn us apart
Words have tremendous power
Our words have the power to create reality.
There’s a quote from Mark Twain in one of the english classes here in this school that says “the difference between the right word and the wrong word is difference between Lightening and Lightening Bug.”
Our words have the power to describe reality
Words reveal our hearts and shape our lives
Jesus said out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks.
James says if we could somehow control our speech, we could control our entire lives.
So, we need self-control or do we need a change of heart?
The answer is Yes.
Our words reveal what is going on in our hearts.
When you use words to harm it almost always lives past that moment.
Many of us have deep wounds from how words have been used in our lives. Our use and others.
What to do when words have torn us apart
Listen to how serious this is…
“Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
But 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. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.”
– James 3: 13-18
James has already told us that if we lack wisdom, we should ask God and God will give it freely to us.
So that is where we begin. If we find ourselves participating in damaging speech, we ask God for help and we expect God’s help!!!
Ask God for a change of heart
Pay attention to what shows up in your words
Consistent negativity or do you see encouragement?
Do you catch cynicism or is hope spring out?
Do those around expect words of anger or words of peace?
Do you use sarcasm to protect you from vulnerability?
Do you vilify and run down those who you disagree with?
Do you work to recognize where someone else may be coming from?
Pay attention to what shows up in your words
And then…with God’s help….
Use your words to sow seeds of Peace (Shalom)
Consider how GOD MAY HAVE EQUIPPED YOU TO BE A PEACEMAKER.
Pay attention to what shows up in your words.
Ask God for help and a change of heart
Sow seeds of peace.
Parents:
How do you talk to your kids about the power of their words?
Consider the affirmation your children need and make some plans to speak life and peace over them.
Ask your children how they can use their words at school to be peacemakers rather than bring harm.
