MESSAGE NOTES
Passage – James 3:1–12
3 main points to take away from in this message today:
1-Your Influence has Responsibility:
Certain positions require a particular amount of responsibility and come with a large amount of influence such as teachers, mentors, and any kind of supervisor role. Along with being a parent.
2-Communication:
Communication is the way in which human beings thrive, grow, and make progress in the world and relationships.
A prayerless believer and follower of Christ is powerless.
Living a prayerful life will give you the strength you need to yield to the Spirit and let the Spirit lead your tongue to what is spoken from it.
3-The Tongue:
Biblically, the word tongue has two main meanings: it represents spoken words and character, or it refers to human languages and dialects.
The tongue in the NT: The Greek word for tongue (glossa) is frequently translated as “languages” or “dialects.
Proverbs 18:21 This is talking about the Power of Life and Death
The tongue communicates what’s in our heart and in our mind.
Matt 15;10-11
The tongue cannot be tamed by sinful human beings. Only God can do this by His Power. You can see this in Acts 2;1-11.
Cursing in the Biblical context means wishing, invoking, or speaking evil, harm, or destruction upon a fellow human being.
Hypocrisy: Meaning in a biblical context to playing a part or wearing a mask. It is someone who intentionally hides their true, unrepentant character behind a mask of fake goodness to protect their image.
Psalm 103:1–5
Genuine believers of Christ will not contradict their profession of faith by the regular use of their unwholesome words.
The Power of the Tongue is a restless and destructive evil that cannot be easily tamed by human will alone, serving as a reflection of what is inside a person’s heart.
Would you like to pray with someone today??
Share your decision or prayer need today by clicking on the Next Step button/link or the prayer button/link.
NEXT WEEK: The Book of James, Part 5
You can share what God is saying to you today by telling Pastor Blake about it on your Next Step form. Click this link to share your spiritual step with Pastor Blake.
Watch our Livestream each week HERE
Passage – James 2:1-13
Memory Verse:
“In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” (James 2:17, NIV)
James begins by showing how:
- ______________ Undermines Our Faith (James 2:1-4)
- We all judge people based on their outward appearance.
- Christ-followers must not show favoritism.
- Are you hiding some personal prejudices in your heart?
Once we recognize our prejudices, we must have our:
- _______________ Aligned with God’s Heart (James 2:5-7)
- God has different priorities in how he shows favor to people.
- God’s love does not measure us the way the world does.
- Who do you prioritize in your life and sphere of influence?
James finishes this example by teaching:
- The _____________ of the Royal Law (James 2:8-13)
- No one can love their “neighbor as themselves” and show favoritism with people at the same time!
- Any level of bigotry is equal to the worse kind of sin imaginable.
- How do you see the people that cross your path?
Conclusion:
Favoritism has no place in the life of a Christ-follower because it shows a real misunderstanding of God’s character. James’s example contrasts human tendencies to show preference based on outward appearances with the divine love that sees the person’s heart. He challenges us to live out our faith in alignment with God’s character of mercy and justice, expressed by equally loving all people.
We must examine the prejudices and preferences that interfere with our ability to love and connect with others like Jesus did.
We must be willing to step out of our comfort zone and demonstrate the love and concern of Jesus to those that are different from us in the same way we would want people to care for us.
Not only is favoritism hurtful to people, but it is also offensive and counterproductive to the gospel. As followers of Jesus, we are called to reflect God’s love and compassion as we interact with all people that cross our paths, not just the ones we judge to be deserving.
What step is the Spirit calling you to take today? Are you hiding prejudices and excluding people because they don’t measure up to your standards adopted from this world system?
Or do you feel like an outsider and looking for a place to call home? Your journey home begins with a relationship with Jesus!
Would you like to pray with someone today??
Share your decision or prayer need today by clicking on the Next Step button/link or the prayer button/link.
NEXT WEEK: The Book of James, Part 4
Answer Key:
Prejudice
Priorities
Principle
You can share what God is saying to you today by telling Pastor Blake about it on your Next Step form. Click this link to share your spiritual step with Pastor Blake.
Watch our Livestream each week HERE
Our main text for today is found in James 1;12-25
4 Points of our message:
1-Endurance: This word Endurance means here in the Biblical context: The steadfast power to remain under pressure, trials, or suffering without giving up.
The New Testament translates endurance from the Greek word hypomonē.
Romans 5;3-5
We endure Point number 2 that James is teaching us is:
2-Temptation: Temptation means an enticement or pull to act in disobedience to God’s Will.
Did you know that Temptation is the beginning of the sin process that leads to destruction?
A sinful action doesn’t “just happen,” but is actually the repercussion of unchecked fleshly desires.
This may happen when your prayer life and Bible reading are lacking.
Did you know that sin according to Scripture leads to death?
Romans 6:23 and Romans 5;12
There are 3 Source of Temptation:
1-The World
2-The Flesh
3-The Devil
How do we overcome Temptation?
1 Corinthians 10:13
Point number 3 that James is teaching us is:
3-Flesh and Spirit
Point number 4 that James is teaching us is:
4-Perseverance: James 1;22-25
This is what and how Perseverance looks like by being doers of the Word and living it out standing on the firm foundation of Christ Jesus.
What step will you take today?
Do you have a prayer need today?
NEXT WEEK: The Book of James, Part 3
You can share what God is saying to you today by telling Pastor Blake about it on your Next Step form. Click this link to share your spiritual step with Pastor Blake.
Watch our Livestream each week HERE
Passage – James 1:1-8
Memory Verse:
“In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” (James 2:17, NIV)
James tells us that we must adjust:
- Our ______________ on Trials (James 1:2-4)
- We should be joyful.
- The result is spiritual maturity and wholeness.
- What’s your perspective on your trials and hardships?
Then we can:
- Pray for _______________ (James 1:5)
- God wants to give us wisdom for our trial.
- Wisdom helps us understand how our trial helps us grow in our faith.
- How is your prayer life? Are you asking for wisdom?
Our prayer life must be built on:
- A _____________ Foundation (James 1:6-8)
- Unwavering faith is needed for answered prayer!
- Our faith in God stabilizes our chaotic trial and empowers us with joy in the trial.
- Do you wholeheartedly believe that God will give you wisdom for your trial?
Conclusion:
Since enduring trials and hardships is expected in this life, as followers of Jesus, we must decide how we are going to face them. Are we going to ignore the reality that we still live in a broken world with a spiritual enemy that wants to destroy us and choose the perspective of this world: God loves me so life should be easy or only bad things happen to bad people?
Or are we going to align our perspective with God’s Word, pray for direction, and establish a foundation of faith in God?
We have all faced trials in the past and are either facing some now or will be very soon. So today we must make a decision on how we are going to face them.
- Are you going to align your perspective with God’s Word? Are you going to pray for direction? Are you going to see your hardships as a way for you to strengthen your faith in the Savior who loves you and will do what is best to grow you in your spiritual journey?
- Are you facing your trials alone without the comfort of a Savior who loves you and will walk with you through the trials of this life? By giving your life to Christ, you can experience that comfort internally by His Holy Spirit and externally from the spiritual family He gives us!
What step will you take today?
Do you have a prayer need today?
NEXT WEEK: The Book of James, Part 2
Answer Key:
Perspective
Direction
Faith
You can share what God is saying to you today by telling Pastor Blake about it on your Next Step form. Click this link to share your spiritual step with Pastor Blake.
Watch our Livestream each week HERE
