I remember as a child my mother saying, “…no man is an island.” What she was saying is that everyone needs help sometimes.
If you think about it, you seldom see anyone successful that is not surrounded by others to help them. The band has its road crew, the surgeon has their attendants, executives have their staff. In all cases, success is based upon help. The list could go on and on…
Likewise, I have seen others fail or struggle when they simply refuse to ask for or allow others to help. For some reason we buy into the lie that asking for help is weakness. However, that is far from being accurate.
Jesus is an ever-present help in our time of need. If we are struggling with challenges in life, sometimes we need to swallow our pride, lift up our hands, and ask for His Divine help or openness to accept help from others. Because “…no one is an island…”
Psalms 46:1 NIV. God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
Patience (7–12). If you have sown the right seed, you will eventually reap a harvest of blessing, so be patient. If others have exploited you, be patient; the Judge is at the door. If you are going through trials, be patient; God is still on the throne.
James 5:7-12 NIV7 Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. 8 You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near.
Ephesians 4:2 NIV Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love.
9 Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
James 4:1-2 NIV 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.
10 Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
Jeremiah certainly stands out as one who endured mistreatment with patience. He was put in the stocks (Jer 20:2), thrown into prison (32:2), and lowered into a miry dungeon (38:6); yet he persisted in his ministry without bitterness or recrimination. Such men constitute an “example” for believers who are oppressed and mistreated.
James 1:12 NIV Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.
12 Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple “Yes” or “No.” Otherwise you will be condemned.
Christians should let their “ ‘Yes’ be yes,” and their “ ‘No,’ no.” That is, they should be honest in all their speech so that when they make an affirmation or denial, people will know it is unquestionably the truth. In the careless use of oaths people are in danger of taking God’s name in vain, for which they will come under judgment (cf. Ex 20:7).
Isaiah 40:28-31 NIV Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
Micah 7:7 NIV But as for me, I watch in hope for the Lord , I wait for God my Savior; my God will hear me.
Very seldom have I met someone who did not like new things. I can remember as a child watching The Price is Right, and seeing the couple jumping up-and-down in a frenzy as Bob Barker would say “…and here is a new car!”
Likewise, God is always into doing new things in our lives. We often rob ourselves by wanting to see the same things happening in our lives uninterrupted. The most we “may” ask is to make the same things better – a kind of “upgrade”.
However, God is always into doing something new! He likes new things.
Isaiah 43:19 NIV See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.
I remember as a little boy going next door to cousin Milton’s shop and watching him build. I can still see the fresh saw chips all over the floor and would ask, “…what are you building?”
You see, you never enter into the craftman’s shop giving orders in regards to what you want built. You always enter intrigued, and asking him what he is building.
The same holds true with God. Too often we are the ones giving directions and frustrated when we don’t see results. However, we should remember that we are His workmanship created to do good works in Christ Jesus.
Maybe we should wake up more often asking Him what He is doing in our lives versus our trying to direct Him. He is the Master Craftsman…
Ephesians 2:10 NIV For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
Priorities (1–6). To live only to get wealth is to rob yourself of true riches (1 Tim. 6:6–10, 17–19). It is to worry instead of worship (Matt. 6:19–34). God knows you have needs, and He will meet them if you practice Matthew 6:33.
James 5:1-6 NIV1 Now listen, you rich people, weep and wail because of the misery that is coming on you. 2 Your wealth has rotted, and moths have eaten your clothes. 3 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.
Note There are significant differences between 5:1–6 and the rest of the letter. These individuals are not addressed as “brothers” . Furthermore, they are not called on to repent and change their ways but only to “weep and wail” because of the judgment they are going to undergo
However Believers:
Matthew 6:2 NIV “So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full.
Matthew 6:19-21 NIV “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Matthew 6:25-27 NIV “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life ?
4 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. 5 You have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.
Matthew 6:33 NIV But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
Philippians 3:10-11 NIV I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead.
Selfishness (1–3). The wars among us are caused by the wars within us. We want to please ourselves, even if it hurts somebody else. If we are not careful, even our prayers can become selfish!
Worldliness (4). Because Abraham was separated from sin, he was the friend of God (2:23); but Lot was the friend of the world (Gen. 13:1–13). Ponder 1 John 2:15–17.
Pride (5–10). Satan knows how to use pride to defeat you as he defeated Eve (Gen. 3:1–6). Are you laughing when you should be weeping over your sins? Are you resisting the devil or resisting the Lord?
Boasting (13–17). Life is short and the future unknown, so do the will of God today. When you make plans, always say, “If the Lord wills” (Prov. 27:1).
“It is right for the church to be in the world; it is wrong for the world to be in the church. A boat in water is good; that is what boats are for. However, water inside the boat causes it to sink.” Harold Lindsell “
A whole new generation of Christians has come up believing that it is possible to “accept’ Christ without forsaking the world.” A. W. Tozer
James 4:13-17 13 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.” 14 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.
The plan:
(1) “go to this or that city,” (2) “spend a year there,” (3) “carry on business,” and (4) “make money.” The starting time is arranged (“today or tomorrow”); the city has been selected; but God has no place in the plans.
Proverbs 3:5-7 NIV Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight. Do not be wise in your own eyes; fear the Lord and shun evil.
” In the morning it covers the countryside; before noon it is gone. But some of James’s readers had been planning as if they were going to be here forever!
Jeremiah 29:11 NIV For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord , “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
15 Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. 17 If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.
Luke 12:35-36 NIV “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, like servants waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him.
This morning’s devotion evolved around the awareness that Jesus is “always” with us! He is Immanuel (God with us).
Specifically, I was reminded of the promise that Jesus is always with us. Think about it. In both the good times and the bad times, He is with us. He is not just with us on holidays such as Christmas or Easter, but “always”.
You see, that is what makes it Good News, that brings Great Joy, to All People! (Luke 2:10)
In reflection, the name Immanuel came to mind, and I was reminded of a scripture we often only reference during Christmas (the Birth) or Easter (the Resurrection) as an example. (Matthew 1:23).
However, it is a promise that continues – always – for every hour, of every day, of our entire lives!
So, I guess while we say “…Merry Christmas…” once a year, we could also say “…Merry Christ Day…” each and every day!
Of the early church, it was said, “Behold how they love one another!” Today, people might say, “Behold how they compete with one another!” Why is it sometimes so difficult for God’s people to get along?
Selfishness (1–3). The wars among us are caused by the wars within us. We want to please ourselves, even if it hurts somebody else. If we are not careful, even our prayers can become selfish! Worldliness (4). Because Abraham was separated from sin, he was the friend of God (2:23); but Lot was the friend of the world (Gen. 13:1–13). Ponder 1 John 2:15–17. Pride (5–10). Satan knows how to use pride to defeat you as he defeated Eve (Gen. 3:1–6). Are you laughing when you should be weeping over your sins? Are you resisting the devil or resisting the Lord?
James 4:7-10 NIV7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
It was the burning desire for pleasures that led James to issue this powerful call to all-out repentance.
Hebrews 11:6 NIV And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
9 Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.
1 Peter 5:6-7 NIV Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
Example from Numbers 10The people of Israel were to set out for their God-appointed inheritance. They would go through an unknown land that was dangerous, but God gave them the help they needed.
Seven Rebellions Once the people leave Mt. Sinai in Number 10, thing start to go down hill fast…
“And the people complained about their hardships.” (11:1) “And the rabble among them had greedy desires… and said ‘Who will give us meat?!’” (11:4)
“And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses.” (12:1)
“And all the community raised their voice… and grumbled against Moses and Aaron.” (14:1-2)
“And Korah… with Nathan and Abiram… with two hundred and fifty leaders of the community… rose up against Moses.” (16:1-3)
“And the entire community grumbled against Moses and Aaron.” (16:41)
“And the people quarreled with Moses.” (20:3)
“And the people spoke against God and Moses.” (21:5)
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Of the early church, it was said, “Behold how they love one another!” Today, people might say, “Behold how they compete with one another!” Why is it sometimes so difficult for God’s people to get along?
Selfishness (1–3). The wars among us are caused by the wars within us. We want to please ourselves, even if it hurts somebody else. If we are not careful
Worldliness (4). Because Abraham was separated from sin, he was the friend of God (2:23); but Lot was the friend of the world (Gen. 13:1–13). Ponder 1 John 2:15–17.
1 John 2:16 NIV For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world.
James 4:1-6 NIVp1 What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 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. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures. The word for “desires” is the source of the English word “hedonism,” the designation of the philosophy that views pleasure as the chief goal of life.
James 3:14-16 NIV 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. His readers were not able to obtain what they wanted, because they were going after it in the wrong way. They did “not ask God” for it. They were lusting and fighting rather than praying.
4 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. 5 Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us ? 6 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” James uses “world” (GK 3180) to refer to the system of evil controlled by Satan. It includes all that is wicked and opposed to God on this earth
1 Peter 5:6-7 NIV Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.
Are you speaking from God’s wisdom or the wisdom of the world?
Are you a peacemaker or a troublemaker?
If your heart is right before God (Heb. 4:12), He will use your words to produce the right kind of fruit.
James 1:5 NIV If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.
James 3:13-18 NIV13 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. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.
James 1:22 NIV Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.
James 1:19-20 NIV My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires.
15 Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.
17 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. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.
Galatians 5:22-23 NIV But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Matthew 5:9 NIV Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
