James 1 - Lesson

THE BOOK OF JAMES

Today we begin our study of the book of James. 

More than anything else, James is a book about faith.

It is comprised of five chapters and covers important topics such as:

• The purpose of tests,
• The source of our temptations,
• Being doers of the word,
• Faith leading to works,
• Not discriminating,
• And controlling our tongues.

WISDOM 

We will begin our study today by asking the following question:

“Have you ever had a major decision that you were struggling with?"

Maybe it was a situation where you were struggling between two options and did not know which one to choose. 

That can be stressful, especially when the decision that we are faced with will have a significant impact on our future or the future of somebody that we love.

In times like this, we need to think about the following scripture, and apply it:

• “But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.  But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.  For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” – James 1:5-8.

GODLY WISDOM COMPELS US TO ACT

As we think about the above scripture, we will notice several things:

1. God gives wisdom generously to those who ask,
2. When we ask God for wisdom, we must act on the wisdom that He provides,
3. We need to trust the wisdom that God provides us with.  If we do not trust it, we should expect to receive nothing.

The message of James 1:5-8 is that we are toprayfor wisdom and then trust it. 

If we are wishy-washy about the decision, even after praying for wisdom, we will receive nothing.

If we pray for wisdom and trust God, we will receive all the wisdom that we need for any decision. The key is to trust God to provide the wisdom that we pray for. When we do that, remarkable things can be accomplished!

TRUSTING GOD’S WISDOM

If we trust ourselves or others more than God, we are making a huge mistake!  The Book of Proverbs tells us that when it comes to trusting God, we are to trust Him with every ounce of our being! 

• “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” – Proverbs 3:5-6.

If we want to stay on the straight and narrow path that leads to salvation (Mathew 7:13-14), we need to trust God with all our heart. 

BIBLE VERSES ABOUT WISDOM

The Bible has a lot to say about wisdom. For today’s lesson, we have highlighted the following three verses:

1. “Blessed is a person who finds wisdom, and one who obtains understanding.  For her profit is better than the profit of silver, and her produce better than gold.” - Proverbs 3:13-14,
2. “Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise,making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” - Ephesians 5:15-17,
3. “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.” - James 3:17.

CONCLUSION

There was once a teacher in a children’s Bible class that said to his students:

“What is the one thing that the Bible says we can have all that we want if we ask God for it and trust Him? Here is a hint, it is not money, fame, health, or success.  Here is another hint, it has nothing to do with physical things, and everything to do with spiritual things. So what is this one thing that God will give to us in abundance if we ask Him for it? Wisdom.”

The teacher then went on to give a lesson on James 1:5-8.  It was an important lesson.

When we are faced with tough decisions, we need to believe that God will give us the wisdom that we need to make the decision that God would want us to make.

We will end today’s lesson with the following two scriptures.  

They remind us that God has a plan for us and that we need to trust it:

1. “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.” – Jeremiah 29:11,
2. “Delight yourself in the Lord; And He will give you the desires of your heart.  Commit your way to the Lord, trustalso in Him, and He will do it.  He will bring out your righteousness as the light, and your judgment as the noonday.” - Psalm 37:4-6.