Welcome to week ten of our study on the Epistle of James! Today we will continue to examine some verses that often cause confusion among Christians as far as how our works or actions justify our faith.
Contents
Week One – An Expository Study of James
Week Two – Joy in Our Trials
Week Three – Giving Birth to Sin Part One
Week Four – Giving Birth to Sin Part Two
Week Five – Receiving the Word
Week Six – Receiving the Word Part Two
Week Seven – The Royal Law
Week Eight – The Royal Law Part Two
Week Nine – A Living Faith
Outline
- Opening prayer
- Introduction
- Read James 2:22-26
- Read the study notes from ESV.org
- Answer questions 6-9 on page 7 of Workbook on the Epistle of James
- Closing prayer
Opening Prayer
Heavenly Father, thank you for the opportunity to study your Word tonight. Thank you for leaving instructions for us to follow, and please be with us tonight as we learn how to apply those instructions to our lives. Lord, we want people to see through our actions that we are your children as the love of Christ shines throughout our lives. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.
Previous Highlights
- Last week, we learned that James does not contradict Paul in Ephesians 2:8, however the two men are using different understandings of “justification.”
- Paul is speaking of a “judicial declaration, an acquittal and declaration that a person is to be regarded as righteous” while James means “a public presentation of a person as being righteous (e.g., Matt. 11:19; Luke 7:29; Rom. 3:4).” (See Week 6: Faith Without Works is Dead on ESV.org)
Application
Read James 2:22-26 and answer questions 6-9 on page 7 of the workbook.
Closing Prayer
Dear Heavenly Father, we repent of the ways we have heard Your word, Your law of liberty, and failed to act on it, or acted indifferent towards it. Please forgive us. Give us a fresh filling of Your Holy Spirit, and give us a desire to not only meditate on Your word, not only hunger for Your word, but to act on it and to live it out. And help us to share this law of liberty, this hope that we have in following God’s perfect Word, the gospel, with our communities and around the world. We ask this in Jesus’ Name, Amen.[1]
Next Week
Next week, we will be looking at James 3:1-2 and answering questions 1-4 on page 8 of the workbook. Have a wonderful week, ladies!
Featured image is from James – Faith in Action November 1 2020.