Studies in James

1. Studies in James Presentation 09

2. The Structure of the Book Introduction and Trials in the Christian Life (1: 1-8) Happiness in our Circumstances(1: 9-11) Trial, Temptation and Gift (1: 12-18) Hindrances to Fruitfulness(1: 19-21) Doers and Hearers (1: 22-25) True Religion (1: 26-27) Favouritism (2: 1-7) The Royal Law (2: 8-12a) Showing Mercy (2.12b-13] Faith and Works (2:14-26) Teachers and the Tongue (3: 1-12) True and False Wisdom, (3: 13-17) Peacemakers (3: 18) Defeat Through Lack of Submission(4: 1-6) Victory Through Submission(4: 7—10) Judging One Another (4: 11-12) Boasting of Tomorrow (4: 13-17) The Misuse of Wealth(5: 1-6) The Need of Patience (5: 7-12) Appropriate Responses (5:13-16) Restoring the Wanderer (5:17-20) Presentation 09

3. Showing Mercy Chap 2v 12b-13 Presentation 09

4. Introduction In some of our best known fairy tales, the king promises a great reward to the man who can accomplish a seemingly impossible task. The attractive princess is usually on offer to the one who can, slay the dragon, defeat the giant or recover the lost treasure. These stories make sense to children and adults alike, because they offer reward for effort. Unlike these fairy stories, the gospel affirms that the thing man needs most - a way back to God- is something that cannot be earned by great and noble deeds. And that is something that takes a bit of getting used to. Why? Because from our earliest days we have been taught that the best things come through our greatest effort. Presentation 09

5. Introduction God's salvation is THE GREAT EXCEPTION. For neither forgiveness of sin, freedom from guilt, the reintegration of our lives, adoption into God's family, nor the gift of eternal life, are prize carrots that God dangles before a struggling humanity. They are gifts he freely bestows and which we are encouraged to receive by faith. Little wonder the New Testament writers verge on ecstasy as this truth grips their hearts. And those, who have for years struggled to earn God’s salvation, welcome this truth with indescribable relief. Does this mean that there is no place for effort in the life of the Christian? Does God's grace encourage careless living? Does the discovery that peace with God is not gained by doing one’s best but by trusting in Christ not encourage people to live as they please? It is this danger of careless living that James addresses in v12-13 Presentation 09

6. Inevitability of Judgement James begins by reminding his readers of the inevitability of judgement cf. v12. Some believe that by becoming a Christian, they have escaped the judgement throne of God- they haven't! The New Testament speaks of two judgements. The first describes the separation which takes place between the believer and the unbeliever, the sheep and the goats, the wheat and the tares, between those bound for heaven and those who by their obstinate refusal of God’s grace consign themselves to hell [Matt25v32, 13v30]. When the New Testament tells the Christian that he is free of the condemnation of God's holy law, it is not for a moment suggesting that his life has been freed from examination. For this very purpose the Christian appears before Christ’s judgement seat cf. 2 Cor 5.10 “We must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ that each one may receive what is due to him for the things done while in the body whether good or bad”. Presentation 09

7. Inevitability of Judgement On that DAY, we read in 1Cor 3v13-15, that the Christian's work will be "shown for what it is, because the Day [of judgement] will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved but only as one escaping through flames". It is a foolish mistake to think of this day as a kind of glorified school prize giving. And while there will certainly be reward for those things that have pleased God, there will with equal certainty be loss for those who have failed him. Presentation 09

8. Inevitability of Judgement And this is precisely why James urges his readers in v12 to "speak and act as those who are going to be judged" Quite simply, this is a prescription against carelessness. An Anglican Bishop speaking to church candidates on the eve of their ordination said, "Tomorrow I will say to you, 'Will you ...?' Will you...? Will you...?' But always remember the day is coming when Another will say to you, 'Have you...? Have you...? Have you...?' We should always speak and act as those who are going to be judged. Surely the fact that one day God is going to call us to account for our every word and action means that we should take them into account now! Presentation 09

9. Inevitability of Judgement James goes further and argues that right speaking and right acting provide practical evidence that a person is truly a believer. This is clearly seen in our attitudes and actions towards others cfv13 "judgement without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful." Fallen sinful nature is not merciful. It revels in revenge. It looks upon mercy and forgiveness as a sign of weakness. The essence of all wrong-doing is self-centredness. What great masters of disguise sinful men are. When they talk passionately about the ills of society it is often in an attempt to hide failure in their personal relationships. They take pleasure in scoring points at the expense others, in getting their own back? James wants us to understand that mercy is the reverse of such self-centredness. Presentation 09

10. No Double Standards Why is the Christian expected to be merciful? If I have begun to see my spiritual poverty and recognised the enormity of my sin against God and recognise that God has not demanded the rights of his justice concerning me, can I demand my rights when another has wronged me? If I have experienced the mercy of God and stood at the foot of the cross and marvelled at what it cost God to be merciful to me, then I cannot help being merciful to others. A genuine experience of the mercy of God is a heart-melting experience. Mercy is an exclusively Christian characteristic because its source is the mercy of God. God has given the Christian more than an incentive to be merciful he has given him the ability. If Jesus dwells in our hearts by faith then so too does his mercy. We cannot separate the one from the other. Can I then withhold mercy from another? Presentation 09

11. No Double Standards To whom are we to be merciful? To those overcome by disaster like the man to whom the Good Samaritan showed mercy! And to the hungry, the sick and the outcast; to those to whom Jesus himself often took pity! In contrast the merciless man, is a man without love and a man without love is a man without grace and a man without grace is a man without God. John in his epistle asks, "If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need and has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him?“ 1 Jn. 3v17. But consider this, authentic mercy shines brightest when directed towards those who have wronged us, and who are now in our power to harm and humiliate. Mercy opens its heart to such people and generously forgives and determines to do them no harm. The man who is merciless and pitiless has clearly never truly tasted the wonder of God's mercy and cannot claim that Jesus has taken up residence in his life. Presentation 09

12. No Double Standards There are no extenuating circumstances that enable us to excuse ourselves from being merciful. When Peter asked Jesus about the limits of mercy, Jesus told a parable cfMatt18v23-35... The point of the parable is that if I have truly received mercy from God, in all its glorious fullness, then being merciful towards others should prove no problem. However, if I am reluctant to be merciful then I must question whether or not I have truly experienced the lasting mercy of God. We cannot deal with others on the basis of rigorous tight-fisted justice and then turn around and expect to feast on the open-handed mercy of God. The man who shows no mercy to another proves that his heart has never been melted by God’s mercy. And if we close our hearts to God's mercy, which alone can make us merciful, then we are inviting God's judgement without mercy. Presentation 09

13. Mercy Triumphs over Judgement James concludes with the glorious affirmation of v13, "Mercy triumphs over judgement". We can think of it doing so in two different ways. First, James may be thinking of the man who knows in his heart that he has been changed from a merciless creature into the sort of person who genuinely delights to show mercy to others. Such a man in whose heart mercy has triumphed is able to face the coming day of judgement with confidence. He knows that for him, the sting of the final judgement has already been drawn. The transforming power of Jesus enables him to forgive those who have wronged him and as a result he is assured that he is truly a child of God. The man's merciful spirit is not the ground of his confidence rather it is a proof of the greater mercy that has already been shown to him. Presentation 09

14. Mercy Triumphs over Judgement Secondly the phrase, "Mercy triumphs over judgement” can apply to the person who has been upset by James’ teaching. God’s word enables him to see himself in a new light. He does not like what he sees. He recognises that he has been merciless in his dealings with others. He knows that his hopes of receiving God's mercy were false hopes. His hope topples like a house of cards. James’ word to such a man is this; “It is not too late! Mercy can still triumph over judgement in your life. The gospel is still able to transform you”. He asks, ‘How?’ The gospel points to the cross of Christ where mercy triumphed over judgement. God's justice was satisfied and so mercy can be freely bestowed. For such a person it is not too late to experience the generous forgiveness and mercy of God. Having done so his attitude towards others will be changed. He will want to be merciful towards others. Presentation 09

15. Conclusion James has argued that a tight-fisted gracelessness is incompatible with the extravagance of God's love! Do you see the contradiction in holding out our arms, believing that we will receive God's love and mercy, while at the same time closing our hearts to others, and refusing them mercy? Those who behave in this way have never truly experienced the mercy of God. Their hope of heaven is a false hope. There is a day coming for us all, when God will examine our lives to our eternal profit or loss. That is a sobering thought and one that should cause us to cry out to God that we might be so overwhelmed by our experience of his mercy that we are generous in the mercy that we show to others. Presentation 09