The Book of James – Week 1
Tonight during our small group prayer time at 7:30PM, we will begin a 12 week series studying the book of James. The outline we will be using can be found in a book written by Greg Gilbert and can be purchased online for your personal use.
James is an intensely practical book, filled with exhortations to Christians about the way they should live their lives now that they have been given new life in Jesus. It is filled with allusions to and quotations of the teaching of Jesus, and it includes more imperatives (commands) per word than any other New Testament book. For these reasons, James has been called “the Proverbs1 of the New Testament.”
James is therefore highly relevant to the Christian life. Unlike many of the other books of the New Testament, James’s aim is not to give a theological pre- sentation of the gospel. Rather, he writes his book to those who already believe the gospel, and his goal is to help them live faithfully as followers of Jesus. There are many different and seemingly disconnected themes in James—per- severance under trial, riches and poverty, wisdom, the danger of the tongue, prayer, and faith and works. But what ties them all together is James’s desire to take the teaching of Jesus and apply it to the Christian’s personal life.
We pray that God will use this study to make a difference in our lives. Below is a link to tonight’s notes
The meeting went well for the parts I was able to listen to. I had problems with my internet. Very happy to hear about the financial aspect. Thank God for our financial discipline. Look forward to next month to see how that will go.