Day 10: Patience in Suffering Read James 5:7-12 Context: Why does James return to the theme of patient endurance, and how does this connect with his earlier teaching about trials? There is a flow in what James has been pointing out throughout the letter. The need for godly wisdom, the need for humility, the need […]
Read More WIWO: James Day 10: Patience in SufferingSome things just feel right. Reading and writing words have felt right to me for as long as I can remember. The opportunity that blogging presents to write words and present them is one that I remain grateful for. Reaching 20 years of blogging has not given me the impression that it’s time to stop. […]
Read More Blog Schedule UpdateDay 9: The Danger of Presumptuous Planning Read James 4:13-5:6 Context: What attitude towards the future and material success is James confronting in both the merchants (4:13-17) and the wealthy landowners (5:1-6)? We should get the idea by now that James isn’t plucking random issues out of thin air. He has been making it clear […]
Read More WIWO: James Day 9: The Danger of Presumptuous PlanningDay 7: Two Kinds of Wisdom Read James 3:13-18 Context: How does James’ teaching about two kinds of wisdom connect with his previous discussions about trials, faith, and the tongue? By this stage, we should be very familiar with what James has outlined in terms of distinctions. There is asking in faith vs wavering. There […]
Read More WIWO: James Day 7: Two Kinds of WisdomDay 6: Taming the Tongue Read James 3:1-12 Context: Why does James specifically warn about the responsibility of those who teach, and how does this introduce his broader discussion about speech? You might get the impression that James is changing the topic from what he’s previously talked about, but there is continuity. That continuity follows […]
Read More WIWO: James Day 6: Taming the TongueDay 5: Faith That Works Read James 2:14-26 Context: Why does James feel compelled to address the relationship between faith and works so emphatically in this section? In a way, he’s been building up to this. He’s had to tell the listeners to ask for wisdom to get through trials and ask for it properly, […]
Read More WIWO: James Day 5: Faith That WorksDay 4: The Sin of Favouritism Read James 2:1-13 Context: What social and economic tensions within the early church might have prompted James to address favouritism so directly? From what James writes both before, in terms of various trials, and here, in terms of the treatment of the poor by the rich, it appears that […]
Read More WIWO: James Day 4: The Sin of FavouritismDay 3: Temptation vs Pure Religion Read James 1:12-27 Context: How does James’ teaching about temptation (verses 12-18) connect with his earlier discussion of trials? James is all about the distinctions. Trials are an opportunity to practice the steadfast nature of God. As we ask God for wisdom to endure those trials, we gotta be […]
Read More WIWO: James Day 3: Temptation vs Pure ReligionDay 2: Trials and Divine Wisdom Read James 1:1-11 Context: Why might James immediately address the topic of trials to believers who are “scattered among the nations”? Being scattered, they are not at home and so do not enjoy the security that home offers for one’s identity and religious expression. Add to that the aspect […]
Read More WIWO: James Day 2: Trials and Divine WisdomDay 1: Setting the Foundation Read James straight through Background Focus: James, the half-brother of Jesus and leader of the Jerusalem church, writes to Jewish Christians scattered throughout the Roman Empire. His letter reads more like a sermon than typical apostolic correspondence, filled with practical wisdom reminiscent of Old Testament wisdom literature and Jesus’ Sermon […]
Read More WIWO: James First Day: Setting the Foundation
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