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Necessarily, but we're going to 
cover portions of it at a time. 

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We're not going to go through 
necessarily 100% verse by verse.

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That's why I'm taking a little 
bit more time to go through the 

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the pretty detailed overview. 
But the book of James is really 

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unique and so let's let's review
a little bit who wrote the book 

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of James. 
Obviously it was James, but 

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which one? 
James, the brother of Jesus, 

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right. 
So then last week and I'm going 

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to this is where I'm going to 
pick up with our review. 

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I talked about the theme of the 
book of James and I told you I 

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find a specific theme and then a
general theme. 

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Do you remember what I said the 
specific theme of the book would

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be James 122, if that will jog 
your memory. 

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Riley. 
Oh, I thought you raised your 

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hand, Andrew. 
Active faith. 

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Active faith. 
Very good. 

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Not just a professing faith. 
That's the specific theme of the

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book. 
And then I gave you the main 

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theme, and I covered a lot of 
things that fit under this main 

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theme. 
But do you remember what the 

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main theme of the book is? 
You really could sum it up into 

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into one word, I guess. 
Bringing Christians into what? 

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Maturity. 
Somebody, somebody whispered it 

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back there. 
Christians into maturity, right?

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And so individual believers and 
churches into spiritual maturity

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and and that word perfect is the
one that we focused on last 

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week. 
That word perfect we find 6 

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times in the book of James. 
Perfect doesn't mean sinless or 

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without fault, it means what? 
Complete or mature, right. 

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So that's what that's what the 
whole book is about. 

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So just just to review real 
quick and Brother Josh, if you 

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could jump through these pretty 
quickly with me, but but there's

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a lot of different themes, if 
you can call them themes, but a 

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lot of different themes that fit
under this theme of bringing us 

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as Christians into maturity as 
believers. 

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And so we talked about the 
character of God, and we we saw 

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references in the book of James 
that deal with the character of 

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God. 
The more you are in tune, if you

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will, with the character of God,
the more you're going to be 

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mature as a Christian, The more 
you understand who God really 

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is, right? 
The more you understand who God 

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is, the more you're going to 
understand who you really are. 

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And the more we understand that,
the more we're going to see the 

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the majesty and the holiness and
the righteousness of God. 

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Right. 
But if we could see ourselves 

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for what we really are, and if 
we could see God for who he 

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really is, it would change our 
perspective on a whole lot of 

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things that we do in our 
Christian life and that would 

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bring us into that maturity. 
So we we saw the character of 

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God, very much a focus in the 
book of James. 

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But then also that true faith is
evidenced by good work. 

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Saw that in James Shepherd we 
saw patience in trials that 

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bring maturity, living by faith 
that brings us toward maturity. 

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The importance in the power of 
the word of God that brings us 

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to maturity, separation from the
world that brings us toward that

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maturity. 
Brotherly love, effectual 

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prayer, the imminent return of 
Jesus Christ, the ministry of 

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the body, the church, right. 
All of those things bring us 

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individually and as a church 
into spiritual maturity or that 

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that perfection as James says, 
or that completeness. 

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So what I want to what I want to
give you tonight, I this is just

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kind of I wouldn't say 
leftovers, but this is this is 

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some things that don't 
necessarily deal with the theme 

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but some things that we find in 
the book of James that really is

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unique to the book of James. 
So I just want to give you some 

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characteristics here of the book
and maybe what you can kind of 

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do if you have a habit of 
underlining in your Bible. 

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I think this will help you. 
I hope you'll focus on the book 

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of James as as we go through 
this over the next couple weeks 

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and maybe even next couple 
months probably will be a couple

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months by the time we get all 
the way through the end of the 

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book. 
And so I I hope you'll, you'll 

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kind of study through some of 
these things at home on your own

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as well. 
But a couple of things that I'll

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point out and then there are 
some things in the book of 

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James, lots of things in the 
book of James that we don't find

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anywhere else in the Bible, let 
alone in the rest of the New 

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Testament. 
But the first thing I'll point 

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out as a characteristic of the 
book of James is that the 

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epistle of James is is kind but 
it's very plainspoken and it's 

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reproof and its exhortation and 
we kind of kind of spoke a 

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little bit about that before. 
But James's doctrine is very 

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practical and that's why we 
mentioned the canonicity of the 

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book. 
There's a lot of a lot of the 

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the a lot of different people, I
guess you could say questioned 

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whether the book of James 
belonged in the Canon early on 

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because it didn't have a lot of 
doctrine in. 

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It's very practical in its 
doctrine and of course we're 

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talking we talked a lot about 
that and we will talk a lot 

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about that when it comes to are 
showing our faith by our works, 

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right. 
Works is not necessarily a 

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doctrine that we would focus on 
but we see a lot of that. 

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And so the term my beloved 
brethren, we see that twice in 

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James chapter one and verse 16 
and a James chapter 2 and verse 

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#5. 
He says in verse 16, do not air 

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my beloved brethren, chapter 2 
and verse #5, Harkin, my beloved

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brethren, somebody that cares 
about the people that he's 

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writing to, right. 
So he's kind in the way that he 

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approaches it, but he doesn't 
pull any punches with what he 

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says. 
In fact, look at a few examples.

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His proof is very direct to turn
out. 

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Look at, look at and just just 
cover these quickly with me, all

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right. 
Try to try to be quick and 

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you're turning. 
And I know it's not necessarily 

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easy for you to write and turn 
and look at all these things at 

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the same time. 
If I, if I slowed down to be 

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able to do that, then it would 
be here all night. 

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So maybe if you want to go back 
and listen to this later on, 

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that would be helpful for you as
well. 

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But he warns about double 
mindedness. 

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We see that in James chapter one
in verse #8, a double minded man

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is unstable in all his ways. 
Now remember what we're talking 

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about is a directory proof. 
James is he's not beating around

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the Bush, he's getting directly 
to the point. 

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You're double minded and you're 
unstable. 

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He also talks about in verse 
#23, hearing the word but not 

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doing it. 
For if any man be a hear of the 

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word, not a doer, he's liking to
a man be holding his natural 

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face in a glass verse 26 seeming
to be religious, but then not 

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bridling your tongue, right. 
If any man among you seem to be 

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religious, and bridal is not his
tongue, but to see with his own 

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heart this man's religion is 
vain. 

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Chapter 2, verse one through 3 
and verse #9. 

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And for the sake of time I'm not
going to read it, but he talked 

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about them being a respecter of 
persons, and he he reproves 

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them. 
Don't be a respecter person. 

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Doesn't matter who they are, if 
they're poor or or rich, don't 

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be a respecter of persons. 
He talks about blessings and 

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cursings coming out of the same 
mouth in James chapter 3 and 

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verse #10. 
Out of the same mouth preceded 

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blessing and cursing. 
My brethren, these things ought 

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not to be so bitter. 
Envying and strife in verse #14 

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of chapter 3. 
If you have bitter envying and 

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strife in your hearts, glory not
line out against the truth. 

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James chapter 4 and verse #3 
talks about adulterers and 

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adulteresses being a friend of 
the world and how that isn't as 

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being enmity with God. 
To be a friend of the world is 

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to be the enemy of God. 
That's pointed, That's direct 

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speaking evil of one another. 
He talks about in chapter 4 and 

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verse #11 boasting about 
tomorrow, he talks about that in

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verse #13, keeping back the hire
of laborers, even something as 

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simple as that. 
But James, chapter 5, verse 

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three and four, he talks about 
living in a wanton pleasure. 

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The way that he says you have 
lived in pleasure on the earth 

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and been wanton, you have 
nourished your hearts as in a 

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day of slaughter. 
That's in chapter 5 and verse 

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#5, holding a grudge against 
others. 

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He talks about that in chapter 
5, verse #9, but but then he 

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uses a lot of different. 
I mentioned a few of these 

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already, but a lot of different,
very pointed terms that if 

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somebody called you that today, 
you would know, how can you say 

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that about me, right? 
But that's what James does. 

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Look, he calls in in chapter 2 
and verse #20 he says, oh, vain 

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man calls them vain. 
Chapter four. 

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We just mentioned verse #4. 
You adulterers and adulteresses.

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No, you're not the friendship of
the world, but he calls them 

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adulterers and adulteresses. 
In chapter 4 and verse #8, draw 

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an eye to God and he will draw 
an eye to you. 

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Cleanse your hands, ye sinners, 
and purify your hearts. 

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Ye double minded verse #16 of 
chapter 4. 

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But now you rejoice in your 
boastings. 

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All such rejoicing is evil. 
So he's he's getting straight to

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the point. 
And I think you'll agree with me

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that when I listen to a message,
I want somebody to get straight 

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to the point, right? 
Don't beat it on the Bush. 

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Get specific about things, 
right? 

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Those things. 
That's what's helpful for us. 

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If somebody's not specific in 
the way that they preach a 

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message, then what happens is 
everybody is thinking of 

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everything else that everybody 
else is doing instead of 

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thinking about their own sin, 
right? 

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And we need the message to be 
pointed. 

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And that's exactly what James 
does here. 

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So, James, The epistle of James 
is kind, but it's plain, spoken 

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in every proof and then its 
exhortation. 

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The second thing, as a 
characteristic of the book of 

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James, is that James presents a 
dogmatic Christianity with firm 

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leadership. 
In James, we don't see the 

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believers sitting around sharing
various opinions about what they

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think is right, or what they 
think is not right, or what they

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think you know they ought to be 
doing or what they ought not to 

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be doing right. 
James teaches that there's one 

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body of doctrinal truth that was
delivered by the apostles, and 

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this is it. 
There is no middle ground. 

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There's either right or wrong. 
There's no Gray area when it 

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comes to Christianity. 
And and and you know, I think 

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about the, the emerging church 
as it's called, and, you know, a

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lot of these contemporary 
churches that are out there 

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today are, are, are are making 
no bones about the fact that 

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they're trying to be the middle 
of the road. 

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They don't want to offend 
anybody, so they don't preach 

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the truth. 
In fact, here's a description of

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the emerging church this comes 
from. 

194
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It's a magazine called 
Christianity Today. 

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The article was called 5 Streams
of Emerging Church and and this 

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is what what one of the guys 
said in there, we don't believe 

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anyone. 
Theology gets it absolutely 

198
00:10:19,260 --> 00:10:21,620
right. 
No systematic theology can be 

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final. 
It turns its chasing to 

200
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epistemology against itself, 
saying this is what I believe, 

201
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but I could be wrong. 
What do you think? 

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Let's talk that's that that that
sounds like somebody that's 

203
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double minded, sounds like 
somebody that's moved by every 

204
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wind of doctrine, right? 
That's not what James said. 

205
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James says this is right. 
This is the way that it is. 

206
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This is what you need to do, 
right? 

207
00:10:43,440 --> 00:10:47,160
And when you're waiting for the 
next wave of doctrine to come 

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around so you can see what you 
should be believing, then you're

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not trusting in the word of God.
You're trusting in this emerging

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church. 
You're trusting in whatever the 

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next, you know, theological 
point is to come around. 

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And James James is correcting 
that error. 

213
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Here's another one. 
This is called a book called A 

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Generous Orthodoxy. 
Brian McLaren says the emerging 

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church he's talking about 
himself doesn't claim too much. 

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It admits that it walks with a 
limp, he said. 

217
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To be a Christian in a 
generously orthodox way is not 

218
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to claim to have the truth 
captured, stuffed and mounted on

219
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the wall. 
Then what do you believe? 

220
00:11:22,780 --> 00:11:23,860
Right. 
If you don't have the truth 

221
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captured, stuffed and mounted on
the wall, then you're going to 

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be moved by any other wind of 
doctrine that comes around. 

223
00:11:29,780 --> 00:11:31,420
And that's exactly what James is
doing. 

224
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He's presenting A dogmatic 
Christianity with firm 

225
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leadership. 
This is what the Bible says. 

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This is what we're going to do. 
And that's that's the way that 

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it needs to be. 
Now here's, here's a pretty 

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interesting thing. 
I love this, and I want you to 

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look at as many of these 
passages in the book of James 

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with me as you can. 
Because the third thing about 

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James is that his epistle is 
filled with a lot of metaphors 

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and similes. 
And I know those, you know those

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words, but it's in the fact that
he is is doing a lot of his 

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teaching, if you will, but even 
preaching in metaphors and 

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similes, he's very much like the
Old Testament and he's very much

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like Jesus Christ. 
In other words, James really 

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teaches in a in a Hebrew 
language style rather than a 

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Greek language style. 
Now almost all of the rest of 

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the books and even and even the 
book of James was written in 

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Greek, but the style that he's 
and remember we said that James 

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was very much Jewish and he was 
writing to a very Jewish 

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audience. 
He was the pastor of the church 

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in Jerusalem. 
So. 

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So you would naturally think, 
especially being that it was 

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written early on in the early 
church that it would have the 

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flavor of everything that they 
that we read in the Old 

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Testament. 
And so James's style is very 

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much in the style of the Old 
Testament. 

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But just look at some of these 
things. 

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Because of that style, it makes 
his teaching very dynamic and 

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energetic and very vivid. 
And maybe you've never thought 

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about this as you've gone 
through it before, but in Jet, 

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in James chapter one, in verse 
number six, he says. 

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But let him ask in faith. 
Nothing, nothing wavering. 

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For he that wavereth is like a 
wave of the sea, driven with the

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wind and tossed. 
Now, we don't find phrases like 

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this or similes like this in 
most of the rest of the New 

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Testament. 
Every once in a while, Paul did 

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it right, a runner in a race. 
Some of the different things 

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like that. 
Matthew talks about being the 

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salt of the earth, things like 
that. 

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00:13:24,780 --> 00:13:26,620
But he's, I mean, he gives you 
an idea. 

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He's like a wave of the sea 
that's just tossed back and 

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forth. 
Right now. 

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You're up now you're down. 
Now you're on this side and now 

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you're on that side. 
It's just just a very vivid 

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picture that he gives us. 
Here's another one. 

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Look at verse #10. 
He does this a lot, but the rich

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in that he is made low, because 
as the flower of the grass he 

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shall pass away. 
But the sun is no soon arisen 

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with a burning heat. 
But it wither the grass and the 

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flower thereof falleth, and the 
grace of the fashion of it 

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perishes. 
So also shall the rich man fade 

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away in his ways. 
I mean, it's a very vivid 

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00:13:55,920 --> 00:13:59,120
picture, right? 
Never seen a flower get scorched

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00:13:59,120 --> 00:14:01,960
in the sun and wilt and die. 
That's what he's saying, is 

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exactly what happens with the 
rich man. 

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00:14:03,640 --> 00:14:07,350
Here's another one. 
Let's look at verse 23 for if he

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be a hearer of the word and not 
a doer, he's like a man like him

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to a man be holding his natural 
face in a glass looking in a 

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00:14:14,790 --> 00:14:16,990
mirror, right? 
For he beholded himself and go 

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with his way and straight way. 
Forget it. 

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00:14:19,230 --> 00:14:24,070
What man or a man he was, so 
he's he, he he likens these. 

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00:14:24,110 --> 00:14:27,550
Essentially the individual that 
hears the word and doesn't do it

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00:14:27,550 --> 00:14:30,710
to somebody who is a man holding
his natural face in the glass. 

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00:14:30,830 --> 00:14:33,070
Here's another one, chapter 3 
and verse #2. 

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00:14:33,630 --> 00:14:38,730
For in many ways think for many 
things we offend all, if any man

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00:14:38,730 --> 00:14:42,010
offend not in Word the same as a
perfect man, and able also to 

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00:14:42,010 --> 00:14:45,890
bridle the whole body. 
Behold, we put bits in the 

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00:14:45,890 --> 00:14:49,170
horse's mouths, and they that 
they must obey us, or that they 

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00:14:49,170 --> 00:14:51,250
may obey us, and we turn about 
their whole body. 

292
00:14:51,490 --> 00:14:54,570
Behold also the ships which, 
though they be so great, are 

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00:14:54,570 --> 00:14:57,650
driven of fierce winds, yet are 
they turned about with a very 

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00:14:57,650 --> 00:14:59,770
small helm, whethersoever the 
governor listed. 

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00:14:59,770 --> 00:15:01,850
So you think about that idea, 
right? 

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00:15:01,850 --> 00:15:07,760
How easy it is for a little, a 
little bridal to to turn a whole

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00:15:07,760 --> 00:15:12,560
horse or a little rudder to turn
a whole ship. 

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00:15:12,800 --> 00:15:16,040
And the same is true with your 
little tongue that can turn a 

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00:15:16,040 --> 00:15:19,040
whole body right? 
And he uses that as a very, very

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00:15:19,040 --> 00:15:21,960
descriptive metaphor. 
Same thing in version 6. 

301
00:15:21,960 --> 00:15:24,320
The tongue is a fire, a world of
iniquity. 

302
00:15:24,720 --> 00:15:27,160
So is the tongue among our 
members that it defiles the 

303
00:15:27,160 --> 00:15:28,880
whole body. 
I mean, what does a fire do? 

304
00:15:30,060 --> 00:15:32,140
And set it on fire? 
The course of nature and it's 

305
00:15:32,140 --> 00:15:35,500
set on fire of hell, right? 
I mean a fire that's burning out

306
00:15:35,500 --> 00:15:38,260
of control. 
And a tongue that control does 

307
00:15:38,260 --> 00:15:40,580
the exact same thing. 
It just causes a lot of 

308
00:15:40,580 --> 00:15:42,620
destruction. 
What a great metaphor. 

309
00:15:42,620 --> 00:15:45,980
What a great picture that we see
there of the tongue. 

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00:15:46,380 --> 00:15:49,380
Here's another one. 
Verse #10 of chapter 3. 

311
00:15:49,660 --> 00:15:52,740
Out of the same mouth Proceed as
blessing and cursing, my 

312
00:15:52,740 --> 00:15:54,340
brethren. 
These things ought not to be. 

313
00:15:54,340 --> 00:15:59,140
So doth a fountain send forth at
the same place Sweetwater and 

314
00:15:59,140 --> 00:16:01,460
bitter? 
Can the muff. 

315
00:16:01,500 --> 00:16:05,220
Can the fig tree my brethren 
bear olive berries either A vine

316
00:16:05,220 --> 00:16:06,740
figs. 
So can no fountain. 

317
00:16:06,740 --> 00:16:10,420
Both yield salt water and fresh.
So he's giving you that picture.

318
00:16:10,500 --> 00:16:12,700
You're not going to see a 
fountain that has both. 

319
00:16:13,020 --> 00:16:17,220
So as a Christian then he's 
saying, can can can the same 

320
00:16:17,220 --> 00:16:22,180
mouth from a Christian give out 
blessings and cursings, right. 

321
00:16:22,340 --> 00:16:24,420
It's a it's another great 
metaphor that he uses. 

322
00:16:24,540 --> 00:16:29,900
Now here's another thing. 
He uses very vivid narrative, if

323
00:16:29,900 --> 00:16:31,540
you will, to illustrate his 
points. 

324
00:16:31,660 --> 00:16:34,060
Let's go back to chapter two. 
Look at verse #2. 

325
00:16:34,060 --> 00:16:37,580
For if they're come unto your 
assembly, a man with a gold ring

326
00:16:37,580 --> 00:16:40,780
and goodly apparel, and they're 
come in also a poor man in vile 

327
00:16:40,780 --> 00:16:43,540
raiment, and you have respect to
him that wears the gay clothing.

328
00:16:43,540 --> 00:16:46,260
And say unto him, sit down here 
in a good place and say to the 

329
00:16:46,260 --> 00:16:49,340
poor, stand out there or sit 
here under my footstool. 

330
00:16:49,500 --> 00:16:51,260
Are you not then partial in 
yourselves? 

331
00:16:51,260 --> 00:16:52,860
And I become judges of evil 
thoughts. 

332
00:16:53,740 --> 00:16:56,380
But he describes a rich man. 
You can see this rich man coming

333
00:16:56,380 --> 00:16:58,220
in and you can just picture him 
right? 

334
00:16:58,460 --> 00:17:00,460
Then you can picture this poor 
man coming in. 

335
00:17:00,620 --> 00:17:02,300
It's a great picture. 
Here's another one. 

336
00:17:02,540 --> 00:17:08,380
Verse #13 of chapter 4, he's 
describing A boaster. 

337
00:17:08,859 --> 00:17:11,579
Go to now you that say today or 
tomorrow. 

338
00:17:11,579 --> 00:17:14,980
We'll go such a city and 
continue there a year and buy 

339
00:17:14,980 --> 00:17:18,420
and sell and get gain, right. 
What a what a great description 

340
00:17:18,420 --> 00:17:21,020
of somebody who is a boaster and
talking about the things that 

341
00:17:21,020 --> 00:17:24,849
they're going to do. 
James Shepherd 5 verse #1. 

342
00:17:25,170 --> 00:17:29,290
Go to now you rich men weep and 
howl for your miseries that 

343
00:17:29,290 --> 00:17:31,650
shall come upon you. 
Your riches are corrupted, and 

344
00:17:31,650 --> 00:17:33,290
your garments are mothy and 
yours. 

345
00:17:33,290 --> 00:17:35,130
Your gold and silver is 
cankered. 

346
00:17:35,290 --> 00:17:37,650
The rest of them shall be a 
witness against you and shall 

347
00:17:37,650 --> 00:17:39,130
eat your flesh as it were. 
Fire. 

348
00:17:39,290 --> 00:17:41,730
You have heaped treasures 
together for the last days. 

349
00:17:42,130 --> 00:17:44,570
You hold the hire of the 
laborers who have reaped down 

350
00:17:44,570 --> 00:17:48,930
your fields, which is of you 
kept back by fraud crieth, and 

351
00:17:48,930 --> 00:17:51,370
the cries of them which have 
reaped are entered into the ears

352
00:17:51,370 --> 00:17:54,050
of the Lord of Sabbath. 
You have lived in pleasure on 

353
00:17:54,050 --> 00:17:56,570
the earth and been a wanton. 
You have nourished your hearts 

354
00:17:56,570 --> 00:17:59,790
as in a day of slaughter, have 
condemned and killed the just, 

355
00:17:59,790 --> 00:18:03,310
and he does not resist you. 
What a great description, right?

356
00:18:03,550 --> 00:18:05,430
And he uses others in there as 
well. 

357
00:18:05,990 --> 00:18:07,790
Chapter 5, verse #7. 
Be patient. 

358
00:18:07,790 --> 00:18:09,630
Therefore, brethren, under the 
coming of the Lord, behold, the 

359
00:18:09,630 --> 00:18:12,630
husband then waited for the 
precious fruit of the earth. 

360
00:18:13,150 --> 00:18:14,590
Now here's, here's pretty 
interesting. 

361
00:18:14,590 --> 00:18:17,590
And this is where if you if you 
do underline this, be a great 

362
00:18:18,230 --> 00:18:21,110
little section to underline here
in your Bible because James is 

363
00:18:21,110 --> 00:18:24,750
actually filled with with unique
words and phrases that we don't 

364
00:18:24,750 --> 00:18:28,230
find anywhere else in the Bible.
And there's a whole pile of of 

365
00:18:28,230 --> 00:18:31,150
these that James actually uses 
that nobody else does. 

366
00:18:31,670 --> 00:18:35,750
But let's go back to chapter one
and verse #8. 

367
00:18:35,750 --> 00:18:39,230
We also see it in chapter 4. 
In verse #8, the same word, but 

368
00:18:39,230 --> 00:18:43,310
he says a double minded man is 
unstable in all his ways. 

369
00:18:43,510 --> 00:18:45,670
Double minded is not used 
anywhere else in the Bible. 

370
00:18:47,310 --> 00:18:50,150
Here's another one in verse #17 
underlying these if you want to.

371
00:18:50,150 --> 00:18:52,910
As we go through this, every 
good gift and every perfect gift

372
00:18:52,910 --> 00:18:56,030
is from above and cometh down 
from the Father of Lights. 

373
00:18:56,440 --> 00:18:58,920
That's another phrase that's not
used anywhere else in the Bible.

374
00:18:59,120 --> 00:19:01,280
Father of lights, Here's one 
that you can probably 

375
00:19:01,280 --> 00:19:03,920
automatically guess is not used 
anywhere else in the Bible. 

376
00:19:04,080 --> 00:19:07,040
Verse 21, wherefore lay apart 
all filthiness. 

377
00:19:07,040 --> 00:19:09,600
And here it is superfluity of 
naughtiness. 

378
00:19:10,040 --> 00:19:12,080
Boy, I guess it wouldn't be 
anywhere else in the Bible. 

379
00:19:12,080 --> 00:19:13,600
Nobody else knew how to say it 
right? 

380
00:19:14,600 --> 00:19:15,880
Or nobody else knew what it 
meant? 

381
00:19:16,240 --> 00:19:18,240
No. 
What is superfluity, by the way,

382
00:19:20,480 --> 00:19:24,840
Does anybody know? 
Well, naughtiness is, But what 

383
00:19:24,840 --> 00:19:29,130
about superfluity? 
Excess. 

384
00:19:29,130 --> 00:19:31,330
Yeah, like an excess. 
A lot of it, right? 

385
00:19:31,330 --> 00:19:35,810
Superfluity is like an like an 
abundance of naughtiness or an 

386
00:19:35,810 --> 00:19:38,530
excess of naughtiness. 
But yeah, that's definitely one.

387
00:19:38,650 --> 00:19:41,770
And here's another one in the 
same same verse and receive with

388
00:19:41,770 --> 00:19:45,130
meekness the engrafted word. 
That's another phrase that we 

389
00:19:45,130 --> 00:19:46,530
don't find anywhere else in the 
Bible. 

390
00:19:46,890 --> 00:19:49,850
The engrafted word. 
Here's one in verse #12. 

391
00:19:50,850 --> 00:19:54,130
I jumped in verse #12 of chapter
one. 

392
00:19:54,910 --> 00:19:57,030
Blessed is the man that endureth
temptation, for when he has 

393
00:19:57,030 --> 00:20:01,390
tried, he shall receive Here it 
is a crown of life. 

394
00:20:01,390 --> 00:20:04,310
Is not mentioned anywhere else 
in the Bible other than here in 

395
00:20:04,310 --> 00:20:08,350
the book of James, verse 27 of 
James chapter one. 

396
00:20:08,750 --> 00:20:11,550
Pure religion. 
That's another one that's not 

397
00:20:11,550 --> 00:20:14,430
mentioned anywhere else in the 
Bible, Pure religion and 

398
00:20:14,430 --> 00:20:15,870
undefiled before God and the 
Father. 

399
00:20:15,870 --> 00:20:18,710
Is this to visit the fatherless 
and widows in their infliction 

400
00:20:18,910 --> 00:20:21,430
and to keep himself unspotted 
from the world. 

401
00:20:21,830 --> 00:20:27,220
To chapter 2, verse #8. 
If you fulfill the royal law, 

402
00:20:27,220 --> 00:20:30,100
that royal law is not mentioned 
anywhere else in the Bible. 

403
00:20:30,980 --> 00:20:34,460
Verse 12. 
So speak ye and and so do as 

404
00:20:34,460 --> 00:20:35,860
they that shall be judged by 
that. 

405
00:20:35,860 --> 00:20:39,020
Here's another one. 
The law of liberty, that's not 

406
00:20:39,020 --> 00:20:40,340
mentioned anywhere else in the 
Bible. 

407
00:20:40,740 --> 00:20:44,100
Interesting, interesting phrases
and we'll we'll discuss these as

408
00:20:44,100 --> 00:20:46,620
we get through this. 
Here's another one of verse #26.

409
00:20:46,620 --> 00:20:50,300
This is more of a phrase than a 
than a word or two, but you see 

410
00:20:50,300 --> 00:20:53,740
then how that by works. 
A man is justified and not by 

411
00:20:53,740 --> 00:20:57,770
faith only. 
But faith without works is dead 

412
00:20:57,770 --> 00:21:00,890
in verse #26. 
For as the body without the 

413
00:21:00,890 --> 00:21:03,810
spirit is dead, so faith without
works is dead. 

414
00:21:03,810 --> 00:21:07,130
Also that phrase faith without 
works is dead is not found 

415
00:21:07,130 --> 00:21:09,850
anywhere else in the Bible. 
Here's another one. 

416
00:21:10,010 --> 00:21:11,850
James chapter 3 and verse number
six. 

417
00:21:12,010 --> 00:21:15,770
And the tongue is a fire. 
That's a phrase that's not found

418
00:21:15,810 --> 00:21:18,610
anywhere. 
Else, verse 17 of chapter 3. 

419
00:21:19,480 --> 00:21:23,040
The wisdom that is from above is
first pure, then peaceable, 

420
00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:26,000
gentle and easy to be entreated,
full of mercy and good fruits, 

421
00:21:26,200 --> 00:21:28,760
without partiality and without 
hypocrisy. 

422
00:21:29,080 --> 00:21:32,320
But wisdom that is from above is
a phrase that's not found 

423
00:21:32,320 --> 00:21:35,600
anywhere else. 
James chapter 4 and verse #4, 

424
00:21:36,160 --> 00:21:39,280
The adulterers and adulteresses 
know you not that here it is the

425
00:21:39,280 --> 00:21:42,600
friendship of the world. 
That's a phrase that's not found

426
00:21:42,600 --> 00:21:44,440
anywhere else. 
Verse 7. 

427
00:21:45,140 --> 00:21:46,700
Submit yourselves, therefore to 
God. 

428
00:21:46,980 --> 00:21:49,020
Here it is. 
Resist the devil and he will 

429
00:21:49,020 --> 00:21:51,380
flee from you. 
That's a phrase that's not found

430
00:21:51,380 --> 00:21:53,100
anywhere else. 
Verse 8. 

431
00:21:53,740 --> 00:21:55,820
Draw a night to God and he will 
draw a night to you. 

432
00:21:55,820 --> 00:22:00,380
We don't see that anywhere else.
Verse 14 For what is your life? 

433
00:22:00,500 --> 00:22:02,900
It is even a vapor. 
That's a phrase that we don't 

434
00:22:02,900 --> 00:22:06,660
find anywhere else. 
We find that also in chapter 4 

435
00:22:06,660 --> 00:22:10,040
and verse 17. 
Therefore to him that knows to 

436
00:22:10,040 --> 00:22:11,880
do good and do with it, not to 
him it is sin. 

437
00:22:12,040 --> 00:22:14,360
That's a phrase. 
That's that Nothing even like 

438
00:22:14,360 --> 00:22:16,240
that is found anywhere else in 
the rest of the Bible. 

439
00:22:16,600 --> 00:22:19,320
Couple more in verse in chapter 
5 and verse #11. 

440
00:22:20,200 --> 00:22:22,400
Behold, we count them happy 
which endure. 

441
00:22:22,600 --> 00:22:25,640
You have heard of the patience 
of Job, and you have seen here 

442
00:22:25,640 --> 00:22:29,680
it is the end of the Lord. 
That phrase is not found 

443
00:22:29,680 --> 00:22:34,920
anywhere else. 
Verse 15 of chapter 5 The prayer

444
00:22:35,080 --> 00:22:37,760
and the prayer of faith shall 
save the sick, and the Lord 

445
00:22:37,760 --> 00:22:40,340
shall raise him up. 
And if you and if he have 

446
00:22:40,340 --> 00:22:42,620
committed sins, they shall be 
forgiven him. 

447
00:22:42,900 --> 00:22:46,820
But the prayer of faith is not 
mentioned anywhere else in the 

448
00:22:46,820 --> 00:22:50,060
Bible. 
And then verse 16, Confess your 

449
00:22:50,060 --> 00:22:52,620
faults 1 to another and pray one
for another that you may be 

450
00:22:52,620 --> 00:22:56,460
healed. 
Effectual fervent prayer of a 

451
00:22:56,460 --> 00:22:59,380
righteous man availeth. 
Much effectual fervent prayer is

452
00:22:59,380 --> 00:23:01,220
not found anywhere else in the 
Bible. 

453
00:23:01,620 --> 00:23:03,780
So let's let's just take a 
minute then. 

454
00:23:03,780 --> 00:23:10,140
And and as we conclude here with
talking about these things, why,

455
00:23:10,140 --> 00:23:12,340
why do we need this epistle 
today, right. 

456
00:23:12,340 --> 00:23:16,500
The book James was written to a 
Jewish audience, to a bunch of 

457
00:23:16,500 --> 00:23:20,700
Jewish Christians if you will, 
that lived in Jerusalem, that 

458
00:23:20,700 --> 00:23:24,500
were very Old Testament in their
ideology and everything else 

459
00:23:24,900 --> 00:23:28,140
James was, was written in the 
early days of the church, but 

460
00:23:28,140 --> 00:23:30,380
it's needed more now than it 
ever has been. 

461
00:23:30,860 --> 00:23:33,690
And there's a few reasons for 
that #1. 

462
00:23:33,690 --> 00:23:37,250
Persecution and affliction is 
widespread among Christians in 

463
00:23:37,250 --> 00:23:40,730
these last days. 
Persecution and affliction, 

464
00:23:40,770 --> 00:23:44,170
believe it or not, As much as 
we've read books like Fox's Book

465
00:23:44,170 --> 00:23:47,570
of Martyrs and, you know, heard 
about all the apostles that were

466
00:23:47,570 --> 00:23:49,890
killed and everything else, do 
you know that more Christians 

467
00:23:49,890 --> 00:23:55,010
were killed in the 20th century?
That at any point, any point in 

468
00:23:55,010 --> 00:23:57,610
history? 
And more Christians are being 

469
00:23:57,610 --> 00:24:01,370
killed today at a greater rate 
than any at any point in our 

470
00:24:01,370 --> 00:24:03,630
history. 
Not just American history, the 

471
00:24:03,630 --> 00:24:05,590
world. 
And most of the persecution is 

472
00:24:05,590 --> 00:24:09,550
taking place in in other places,
not in American per se, but 

473
00:24:09,550 --> 00:24:12,390
this, this affliction, from 
living in a wicked world and 

474
00:24:12,390 --> 00:24:16,110
being opposed by the devil. 
But there's persecution of 

475
00:24:16,110 --> 00:24:19,750
Christians all over the place, 
from from cultists, from 

476
00:24:19,750 --> 00:24:23,390
Muslims, from Hindus, from 
communists, from the homosexual 

477
00:24:23,390 --> 00:24:26,030
activists, from atheists, from 
evolutionists all all over the 

478
00:24:26,030 --> 00:24:28,600
place. 
And James addresses this matter 

479
00:24:28,600 --> 00:24:33,480
of persecution in his theme of 
patience in trials. 

480
00:24:33,920 --> 00:24:34,840
Right. 
Why does he? 

481
00:24:34,840 --> 00:24:36,720
I mean, obviously they needed it
then. 

482
00:24:36,720 --> 00:24:39,560
They were being persecuted then.
But this very relevant to today,

483
00:24:40,240 --> 00:24:43,240
especially when we see our 
persecution, is not necessarily 

484
00:24:43,240 --> 00:24:46,120
physical persecution that we 
have the same way that it was, 

485
00:24:46,120 --> 00:24:47,880
you know, when you get burned at
the stake. 

486
00:24:47,880 --> 00:24:50,280
But there's a lot of persecution
going on in America today 

487
00:24:50,280 --> 00:24:53,120
against Christianity. 
And how do you handle that? 

488
00:24:53,120 --> 00:24:56,000
You handle it with patience. 
The second reason is because 

489
00:24:56,000 --> 00:24:59,880
spiritual immaturity is rampant 
among professing Christians 

490
00:24:59,880 --> 00:25:02,280
today. 
There's a there's a lot of 

491
00:25:02,280 --> 00:25:07,240
people who profess Christ, but 
they they just they their babies

492
00:25:07,240 --> 00:25:11,160
in their knowledge of Christ, 
their babies in their knowledge 

493
00:25:11,160 --> 00:25:14,520
of the scriptures, and in their 
knowledge of of spiritual 

494
00:25:14,520 --> 00:25:17,280
maturity. 
But James James addressed that 

495
00:25:17,280 --> 00:25:19,990
in this epistle. 
They they they doubt God during 

496
00:25:19,990 --> 00:25:22,110
trials. 
They're not strong in God's 

497
00:25:22,110 --> 00:25:24,270
word. 
They have carnal divisions and 

498
00:25:24,270 --> 00:25:26,230
carnal strife. 
They they love the world. 

499
00:25:26,230 --> 00:25:29,110
They they only pray to satisfy 
their own lust. 

500
00:25:29,270 --> 00:25:33,830
That's that's the that's a 
that's a hallmark of a 

501
00:25:33,830 --> 00:25:38,270
spiritually immature Christian. 
But most Christians today, if 

502
00:25:38,270 --> 00:25:41,110
they're even Christians, live 
their lives that way. 

503
00:25:41,430 --> 00:25:45,310
They never get to a level 
spiritually above a baby. 

504
00:25:46,090 --> 00:25:47,130
Right? 
And we and we see this 

505
00:25:47,130 --> 00:25:48,650
throughout the rest of the New 
Testament. 

506
00:25:49,690 --> 00:25:52,530
He's Paul said, I I want to I 
want to give you meat. 

507
00:25:52,530 --> 00:25:56,250
But you're so weak and so 
immature that all I can do is 

508
00:25:56,250 --> 00:26:00,130
give you milk. 
And it's fine for a baby to 

509
00:26:00,130 --> 00:26:03,410
drink milk, but it's not fine 
for a a Christian that's been a 

510
00:26:03,410 --> 00:26:08,090
Christian for 10/15/20 years to 
still be drinking milk, right. 

511
00:26:08,410 --> 00:26:11,450
It's not it's not cute anymore. 
It's weird, right? 

512
00:26:11,450 --> 00:26:13,170
It's cute for a baby to drink 
milk. 

513
00:26:13,170 --> 00:26:16,260
It's not cute for a 10 year old 
to do it right, and that's what 

514
00:26:16,260 --> 00:26:18,220
Paul is saying. 
I want to give you the meat you 

515
00:26:18,260 --> 00:26:20,580
need to be to the point where 
you can handle the meat, but all

516
00:26:20,580 --> 00:26:24,740
you can handle is milk. 
And that's James addresses that 

517
00:26:25,780 --> 00:26:28,820
when he talks about going on to 
spiritual perfection. 

518
00:26:29,020 --> 00:26:36,220
Here's another reason why this 
epistle of James is very 

519
00:26:36,220 --> 00:26:39,020
relevant today. 
It's because easy belivism is 

520
00:26:39,020 --> 00:26:42,780
rampant today. 
And I I prefer to call it quick 

521
00:26:42,780 --> 00:26:47,420
prayerism because the gospel is 
easy to believe a child and the 

522
00:26:47,420 --> 00:26:49,060
gospel and be saved. 
Right. 

523
00:26:50,060 --> 00:26:54,740
But this is the evangelistic 
methodology that's that's it's 

524
00:26:54,740 --> 00:26:58,380
just very quick to get people to
receive the gospel, pray this 

525
00:26:58,380 --> 00:27:01,340
prayer, you know and and all 
right, you're saved. 

526
00:27:01,340 --> 00:27:03,780
You're going to heaven when you 
die and they have no idea what 

527
00:27:03,780 --> 00:27:06,100
they just did. 
They repeated a prayer after 

528
00:27:06,100 --> 00:27:08,520
somebody because, hey, do you 
want to go to heaven? 

529
00:27:08,560 --> 00:27:09,720
Oh, yeah, I want to go to 
heaven. 

530
00:27:09,720 --> 00:27:11,800
All right, well, what you got to
do is pray this prayer and 

531
00:27:11,800 --> 00:27:13,400
accept Jesus Christ as your 
savior. 

532
00:27:13,560 --> 00:27:15,360
OK, I'll pray that prayer. 
I want to go to heaven. 

533
00:27:15,360 --> 00:27:16,920
I have no idea what they just 
did. 

534
00:27:17,720 --> 00:27:19,720
That's the idea of easy 
belivism. 

535
00:27:19,720 --> 00:27:21,840
It's what it's called. 
But I don't like the term 

536
00:27:21,840 --> 00:27:25,560
because it is easy to believe, 
but it's quick prayerism. 

537
00:27:25,720 --> 00:27:28,520
Hey, say this prayer. 
Which is why you could have, you

538
00:27:28,520 --> 00:27:32,410
know, I'm not going to mention 
any names, but I get a I get a 

539
00:27:32,410 --> 00:27:34,370
prayer letter. 
I have no idea how I got in this

540
00:27:34,370 --> 00:27:37,410
guy's prayer letter list, but he
sends me a prayer letter every 

541
00:27:37,410 --> 00:27:40,210
month and every. 
I don't know why I keep reading 

542
00:27:40,210 --> 00:27:41,730
it, but he's a missionary in 
Mexico. 

543
00:27:42,050 --> 00:27:47,530
And every time, literally 
345-6000 people saved every 

544
00:27:47,530 --> 00:27:50,370
month. 
Oh, we did a meeting and we had 

545
00:27:50,370 --> 00:27:53,650
this, you know, this big meeting
in the center of big city. 

546
00:27:53,650 --> 00:27:57,610
And 5000 people came out and we 
gave the gospel and the majority

547
00:27:57,610 --> 00:27:59,730
of them raised their hand to say
they were accepting Christ. 

548
00:27:59,730 --> 00:28:02,730
At the end of the service, 5000 
people got saved. 

549
00:28:02,970 --> 00:28:06,090
Then why isn't the whole country
of Mexico Christian, right? 

550
00:28:06,090 --> 00:28:09,770
If if you're leading 6810 
thousand people to Christ every 

551
00:28:09,770 --> 00:28:13,010
month by yourself and then 
everybody else is doing that 

552
00:28:13,010 --> 00:28:15,490
same thing, then the whole 
country ought to be saved by 

553
00:28:15,490 --> 00:28:17,930
now, right? 
It's because it's this idea of 

554
00:28:17,930 --> 00:28:19,970
quick prayerism. 
All right, pray this prayer 

555
00:28:19,970 --> 00:28:22,050
after me. 
If you pray that prayer, raise 

556
00:28:22,050 --> 00:28:26,840
your hand. 
Oh wow, We had 95% of the people

557
00:28:26,840 --> 00:28:28,840
in the service today accepted 
Christ, and there had to have 

558
00:28:28,840 --> 00:28:31,200
been at least 5000 people there,
right? 

559
00:28:31,440 --> 00:28:34,960
I mean, that's why when 3000 
people got saved at Pentecost, 

560
00:28:34,960 --> 00:28:38,720
it was an amazing thing. 
So I got mentioned it because 

561
00:28:38,720 --> 00:28:42,280
3000 people getting saved is a 
rarity, right? 

562
00:28:42,280 --> 00:28:46,520
And it's sad in our world today 
that that's the case, but that's

563
00:28:46,520 --> 00:28:51,010
the way that it is, right? 
And this idea of quick prayerism

564
00:28:51,010 --> 00:28:53,770
James addresses that. 
Your works ought to back up the 

565
00:28:53,770 --> 00:28:56,730
fact that you've been saved. 
There ought to be fruit in your 

566
00:28:56,730 --> 00:28:57,970
life. 
There ought to be an evidence of

567
00:28:57,970 --> 00:29:01,570
the fact that you've been saved.
So he addresses that idea with 

568
00:29:01,570 --> 00:29:02,890
the theme that we already talked
about. 

569
00:29:02,890 --> 00:29:05,890
The true faith is evidenced by 
good works. 

570
00:29:06,170 --> 00:29:07,930
Here's another reason why it's 
still relevant. 

571
00:29:07,930 --> 00:29:11,610
Biblical ignorance and 
shallowness is widespread among 

572
00:29:11,610 --> 00:29:15,770
Christians professing Christians
today and and honestly even in. 

573
00:29:16,550 --> 00:29:19,390
And This is why I'm putting so 
much of an emphasis on having a 

574
00:29:19,390 --> 00:29:22,910
Bible institute and teaching you
on Wednesday nights and trying 

575
00:29:22,910 --> 00:29:25,830
to teach on Sunday nights and 
and then having the preaching at

576
00:29:25,830 --> 00:29:30,630
other times during the week and 
everything else even in. 

577
00:29:30,630 --> 00:29:34,150
Even in some of the strongest 
quote UN quote strongest Bible 

578
00:29:34,150 --> 00:29:37,990
believing churches the average 
church member knows very little 

579
00:29:37,990 --> 00:29:43,040
about the Bible knows very 
little about about what the 

580
00:29:43,040 --> 00:29:46,080
scripture has to say and they 
don't have an effectual 

581
00:29:46,240 --> 00:29:51,120
consistent daily Bible time with
the Lord and and and I'll be 

582
00:29:51,120 --> 00:29:53,080
honest with the average 
Christian knows more about 

583
00:29:53,080 --> 00:29:56,680
sports and video games and pop 
songs and Hollywood and this 

584
00:29:56,680 --> 00:29:59,200
actor and that actor then they 
know about the Bible. 

585
00:29:59,840 --> 00:30:02,360
You know, it's sad that that 
that I can guarantee you that 

586
00:30:02,360 --> 00:30:05,200
that in the average church, and 
I hope it's not that way in in 

587
00:30:05,200 --> 00:30:07,200
this church. 
But, you know, you read a you 

588
00:30:07,200 --> 00:30:10,580
read a book of Bible trivia 
questions and see how many 

589
00:30:10,580 --> 00:30:13,220
people get those answers right. 
And then you start reading pop 

590
00:30:13,220 --> 00:30:15,220
culture questions. 
And I guarantee a lot more 

591
00:30:15,220 --> 00:30:17,620
people can answer those 
questions than they can answer 

592
00:30:17,620 --> 00:30:20,980
the questions about the Bible. 
And that not at all not to be 

593
00:30:21,420 --> 00:30:22,900
right. 
That means we're more focused on

594
00:30:22,900 --> 00:30:24,620
the world than we are focused on
Christ. 

595
00:30:24,620 --> 00:30:28,100
So James addresses that by 
emphasizing the power and the 

596
00:30:28,100 --> 00:30:30,460
necessity of God's word. 
Here's another reason it's 

597
00:30:30,580 --> 00:30:33,300
relevant. 
Worldliness is widespread among 

598
00:30:33,300 --> 00:30:35,540
professing Christians today, 
right? 

599
00:30:35,780 --> 00:30:37,940
Christians rock out like the 
world. 

600
00:30:38,860 --> 00:30:40,700
They dress immodestly like the 
world. 

601
00:30:41,820 --> 00:30:45,300
They have the same love of of 
professional sports and other 

602
00:30:45,300 --> 00:30:47,780
vanities as the world. 
They're addicted to Hollywood, 

603
00:30:47,780 --> 00:30:52,060
like the world is. 
I mean and and listen, you know,

604
00:30:52,060 --> 00:30:55,060
don't don't take this the wrong 
way, but if you've seen any of 

605
00:30:55,060 --> 00:30:57,620
these movies that have come out 
recently because you went to the

606
00:30:57,620 --> 00:31:00,860
movie theater and saw him, then 
I hope you're spending the same 

607
00:31:00,860 --> 00:31:04,060
amount of time focusing on the 
Bible as you are focusing on all

608
00:31:04,060 --> 00:31:05,620
these other things. 
Right. 

609
00:31:05,620 --> 00:31:07,820
All these popular movies that 
are going around out there 

610
00:31:07,820 --> 00:31:11,550
today, It's junk. 
It's, it's Hollywood junk and 

611
00:31:11,550 --> 00:31:15,270
it's all propaganda to try to 
get you to to change from what 

612
00:31:15,270 --> 00:31:18,230
you believe now or or continue 
believing in a certain 

613
00:31:18,230 --> 00:31:20,910
direction, right. 
Everything that Hollywood is 

614
00:31:20,910 --> 00:31:25,550
producing, it's not, especially 
today is not being produced for 

615
00:31:25,550 --> 00:31:28,510
entertainment purposes only. 
Now there might be a little 

616
00:31:28,510 --> 00:31:32,670
entertainment value in it if if 
that's what your idea of 

617
00:31:32,670 --> 00:31:35,390
entertainment is. 
But they're they they are on a 

618
00:31:35,430 --> 00:31:39,510
propaganda mission to try to get
you to to turn away from 

619
00:31:39,510 --> 00:31:43,070
everything that the Bible says 
is good and to make you think 

620
00:31:43,070 --> 00:31:45,830
that what you believe that's 
good is bad and what's bad is 

621
00:31:45,830 --> 00:31:47,350
good. 
And the Bible says that that's 

622
00:31:47,350 --> 00:31:49,310
exactly what's going to happen, 
right? 

623
00:31:49,310 --> 00:31:51,790
They're going to call evil good 
and good evil. 

624
00:31:51,790 --> 00:31:54,590
And that's what that's what 
these Hollywood propaganda 

625
00:31:54,590 --> 00:31:57,150
movies are doing. 
And that's exactly what it is. 

626
00:31:57,150 --> 00:31:59,990
And if you're if you're no, no, 
it's just a good story, it's a 

627
00:31:59,990 --> 00:32:03,310
great you missed the point and 
you're one of the you. 

628
00:32:03,550 --> 00:32:06,690
You're one of the ones that's 
being duped by those things, and

629
00:32:06,850 --> 00:32:09,210
James addresses that by 
emphasizing the fact that 

630
00:32:09,210 --> 00:32:13,410
worldliness is a great sin. 
Here's another one, the judge 

631
00:32:13,410 --> 00:32:15,490
not philosophy. 
That's widespread today. 

632
00:32:15,490 --> 00:32:19,490
You can't judge me, right? 
It's corrected by James's 

633
00:32:19,490 --> 00:32:23,010
clarity and the and the 
dogmatism and the authoritative 

634
00:32:23,010 --> 00:32:24,930
stance that he takes on all of 
that stuff. 

635
00:32:25,250 --> 00:32:27,570
You have to be a judge. 
How can you? 

636
00:32:27,610 --> 00:32:31,330
How can you decide what what a 
false teacher is if you're not 

637
00:32:31,330 --> 00:32:33,970
judging what that false teacher 
is teaching? 

638
00:32:34,750 --> 00:32:37,550
How can you? 
How can you decide what's good 

639
00:32:37,550 --> 00:32:40,150
and what's evil if you're not 
judging what's good and what's 

640
00:32:40,150 --> 00:32:42,870
evil? 
So what the Bible is talking 

641
00:32:42,870 --> 00:32:45,550
about is don't be a hypocrite in
the way that you judge. 

642
00:32:45,710 --> 00:32:48,550
Don't be pulling the Moat out of
somebody else's eye when you got

643
00:32:48,550 --> 00:32:51,470
a beam in your own. 
But you better judge, and that's

644
00:32:51,470 --> 00:32:53,990
what James tells us. 
You better judge what's good and

645
00:32:53,990 --> 00:32:56,150
what's right. 
You better judge what's bad and 

646
00:32:56,150 --> 00:32:58,870
what's wrong. 
Go toward the good. 

647
00:32:58,870 --> 00:33:01,610
Stay away from the bad, all 
right, Here's another one. 

648
00:33:01,650 --> 00:33:05,570
Unwholesome speech is rampant 
among profession Christians in 

649
00:33:05,570 --> 00:33:07,850
our day, boy. 
And you want to talk about 

650
00:33:07,850 --> 00:33:10,570
unwholesome speech that 
Christianity Today? 

651
00:33:10,570 --> 00:33:12,970
This magazine that I mentioned 
is. 

652
00:33:15,730 --> 00:33:18,890
They wrote an article a little 
while back about the way that 

653
00:33:18,890 --> 00:33:21,450
Christians use curse words, 
right? 

654
00:33:21,450 --> 00:33:25,250
And there's a lot of curse words
that Christians use that may not

655
00:33:25,250 --> 00:33:27,810
necessarily be considered curse 
words, but a lot of contemporary

656
00:33:27,810 --> 00:33:30,170
Christian musicians use those 
same kind of words. 

657
00:33:30,370 --> 00:33:32,610
Mark Driscoll, I don't even 
heard of his name or not, but 

658
00:33:32,610 --> 00:33:34,530
he's in Seattle. 
He was called the cussing 

659
00:33:34,530 --> 00:33:36,770
pastor. 
You know, it was a book called 

660
00:33:36,850 --> 00:33:39,810
Blue like jazz. 
But a lot of a lot of Christians

661
00:33:39,810 --> 00:33:42,330
today even use God's name in 
vain. 

662
00:33:42,890 --> 00:33:45,330
You know, they they they. 
Well, Lordy, Can you believe 

663
00:33:45,330 --> 00:33:47,690
that that's using the Lord's 
name in vain. 

664
00:33:48,370 --> 00:33:50,450
Right. 
Oh, God, would you look at that?

665
00:33:50,570 --> 00:33:52,330
My God, I can't believe that. 
Jesus. 

666
00:33:52,330 --> 00:33:53,970
That's amazing. 
Lord have mercy. 

667
00:33:54,400 --> 00:33:57,840
Isn't that something? 
Those are all ways that we I say

668
00:33:57,840 --> 00:34:02,920
we I don't, But that Christians 
use God's name in vain, right? 

669
00:34:04,440 --> 00:34:07,200
It's Christian curse words that 
we use, right? 

670
00:34:07,520 --> 00:34:11,760
People say OMG, what are you 
saying when you're saying that, 

671
00:34:12,480 --> 00:34:14,159
right? 
Even if you're not saying the 

672
00:34:14,159 --> 00:34:16,920
whole phrase, you're taking the 
Lord's name in vain because of 

673
00:34:16,920 --> 00:34:19,250
what it means. 
We've got to be very careful 

674
00:34:19,250 --> 00:34:22,090
about the words that we use, and
James addresses that. 

675
00:34:22,330 --> 00:34:25,409
And almost a whole chapter of of
chapter 3 in the book of James 

676
00:34:25,409 --> 00:34:28,250
about bridling your tongue, 
right? 

677
00:34:28,370 --> 00:34:30,850
Matthew talks about the fact in 
Matthew, chapter 12 and verse 

678
00:34:30,850 --> 00:34:34,770
#26 that we're going to give 
account to God for every idol 

679
00:34:34,770 --> 00:34:40,610
word that we speak. 
At the very least, whether you 

680
00:34:40,610 --> 00:34:43,449
can argue that those are curse 
words or not, at the very least,

681
00:34:43,449 --> 00:34:46,489
they're idol words that we're 
going to give account for when 

682
00:34:46,489 --> 00:34:49,080
we stand before God. 
There's another reason why it's 

683
00:34:49,239 --> 00:34:51,239
relevant today. 
It's because Christians today 

684
00:34:51,239 --> 00:34:55,239
are caught up in too much in the
business of this present life. 

685
00:34:55,239 --> 00:34:58,160
They're wrapped up in making 
money, wrapped up in seeking 

686
00:34:58,160 --> 00:35:01,840
comfort, wrapped up in being 
enraptured by entertainment and 

687
00:35:01,840 --> 00:35:05,120
and we need to lift up our eyes 
and get into the spiritual 

688
00:35:05,120 --> 00:35:08,200
battle in a whole lot more 
earnest way than most Christians

689
00:35:08,200 --> 00:35:10,880
are today. 
Be fruitful for Christ and be 

690
00:35:10,880 --> 00:35:13,760
ready for his return. 
We, the Bible tells us that we 

691
00:35:13,760 --> 00:35:18,300
should be living as pilgrims in 
a foreign land, right? 

692
00:35:18,460 --> 00:35:22,180
If you go to visit a country for
a year, you can't wait to get 

693
00:35:22,180 --> 00:35:24,980
back home, right? 
And that's exactly the way 

694
00:35:24,980 --> 00:35:27,700
Christians ought to live in this
world, not to settle down. 

695
00:35:27,820 --> 00:35:29,940
I mean, if you, if you were 
going to live in China for a 

696
00:35:29,940 --> 00:35:34,260
year, would you go buy a house 
and buy a car and and and settle

697
00:35:34,260 --> 00:35:37,420
down and have a retirement home 
and all those other things? 

698
00:35:37,420 --> 00:35:38,940
Are you saying, you know what, 
I'm just going to get an 

699
00:35:38,940 --> 00:35:40,540
apartment? 
I'm just going to be here for a 

700
00:35:40,540 --> 00:35:42,620
little while and I'm going back 
home, right. 

701
00:35:42,620 --> 00:35:45,180
That's what you would do. 
And that's exactly how we are 

702
00:35:45,180 --> 00:35:49,650
expected to live in this world. 
I'm just passing through. 

703
00:35:50,250 --> 00:35:51,850
I'm not going to be here for 
very long. 

704
00:35:51,850 --> 00:35:54,490
I'm not going to get settled in.
I'm not going to make this world

705
00:35:54,490 --> 00:35:56,210
my home. 
I've got a different place that 

706
00:35:56,210 --> 00:35:58,210
I'm going. 
And James addresses that by the 

707
00:35:58,210 --> 00:36:01,170
fact that was we talked about 
last week that the the that 

708
00:36:01,170 --> 00:36:03,930
Christ return is imminent. 
He's coming back. 

709
00:36:05,170 --> 00:36:07,330
I don't have time to get into 
all of these so I'm not going 

710
00:36:07,330 --> 00:36:09,690
to, but I will mention this that
there's a lot of references to 

711
00:36:09,690 --> 00:36:14,460
the Old Testament in James and 
you can write these references 

712
00:36:14,460 --> 00:36:17,260
down if you want to. 
James chapter 2 and verse 8 

713
00:36:17,500 --> 00:36:21,660
directly quotes Leviticus 19. 
Verse 18 in fact that there you 

714
00:36:21,660 --> 00:36:23,460
go. 
James chapter 2 and verse 11 

715
00:36:23,460 --> 00:36:26,380
directly quotes Exodus 2013 and 
14. 

716
00:36:26,380 --> 00:36:30,460
James 223 directly quotes 
Genesis 15-6 and Isaiah 41 

717
00:36:30,460 --> 00:36:34,460
eight. 
James 4/6 and Proverbs 34 quotes

718
00:36:34,460 --> 00:36:38,140
directly from the Old Testament.
And not just the fact that he 

719
00:36:38,140 --> 00:36:39,620
quotes directly from the Old 
Testament. 

720
00:36:39,820 --> 00:36:42,940
But there are at least 54 other 
references to Old Testament 

721
00:36:42,940 --> 00:36:47,420
passages that James mentions in 
his book in five chapters, 54 

722
00:36:47,420 --> 00:36:50,780
references to the Old Testament.
Four of them direct quotations. 

723
00:36:51,100 --> 00:36:54,700
But but 54 other references. 
You know what that tells me? 

724
00:36:54,700 --> 00:36:57,540
It tells me that the mind of 
James was so saturated with the 

725
00:36:57,540 --> 00:37:00,220
Scriptures that he couldn't help
in that it couldn't help it 

726
00:37:00,220 --> 00:37:03,060
coming out in the way that he 
wrote and in the things that he 

727
00:37:03,060 --> 00:37:05,690
wrote. 
And of course it was so 

728
00:37:05,690 --> 00:37:09,090
completely saturated in that 
that everything just came out. 

729
00:37:09,250 --> 00:37:11,730
Graham Scroggy wrote a book 
called The Unfolding Drama of 

730
00:37:11,730 --> 00:37:15,370
Redemption, but he's written 
other books and study helps and 

731
00:37:15,370 --> 00:37:16,650
things like that. 
He said this. 

732
00:37:16,850 --> 00:37:20,490
His references are traceable to 
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, 

733
00:37:20,690 --> 00:37:23,370
Deuteronomy, Joshua First, 
Kings, First Chronicles, Second 

734
00:37:23,370 --> 00:37:26,930
Chronicles, Job, Psalms, 
Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Isaiah, 

735
00:37:26,930 --> 00:37:29,610
Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Joel, Amos, 
Zechariah. 

736
00:37:29,730 --> 00:37:32,250
And there may be references to 
other Old Testament books. 

737
00:37:32,850 --> 00:37:36,210
That's a that's a guy that knew 
his Bible, he knew the 

738
00:37:36,210 --> 00:37:38,450
Scriptures, and it came out in 
the way that he did it. 

739
00:37:38,450 --> 00:37:40,130
Now, let me mention this and 
we're done. 

740
00:37:40,130 --> 00:37:44,050
A couple statements about the 
epistle of James and I'm just 

741
00:37:44,050 --> 00:37:45,930
going to read these to you and 
we're going to be done because I

742
00:37:45,930 --> 00:37:49,250
think this is very interesting. 
Graham Scroggy, as I mentioned, 

743
00:37:49,250 --> 00:37:51,010
wrote the unfolding drama of 
redemption. 

744
00:37:51,010 --> 00:37:53,650
But he said this. 
It might be described as the 

745
00:37:53,650 --> 00:37:57,410
Christian book of Proverbs. 
It is strikingly fresh and 

746
00:37:57,410 --> 00:37:59,170
vivid. 
The writer is rich in 

747
00:37:59,170 --> 00:38:02,470
illustration, which are always 
appropriate and impressive. 

748
00:38:02,710 --> 00:38:06,310
A vein of poetry pervades it so 
that it may almost be considered

749
00:38:06,310 --> 00:38:09,230
as a prose poem. 
Here's another one. 

750
00:38:09,950 --> 00:38:12,430
This is this comes from the 
Bible Knowledge commentary. 

751
00:38:12,790 --> 00:38:15,030
It's well known that Martin 
Luther had problems with this 

752
00:38:15,030 --> 00:38:17,390
book. 
He called it a right strawy 

753
00:38:17,390 --> 00:38:20,750
epistle, but it's only strawy to
the degree it's Stickley. 

754
00:38:21,430 --> 00:38:24,150
There are enough needles in this
haystack to prick the conscience

755
00:38:24,150 --> 00:38:27,190
of every dole defeated and a 
degenerated Christian in the 

756
00:38:27,190 --> 00:38:29,720
world. 
Here's a right stirring epistle 

757
00:38:29,920 --> 00:38:32,480
designed to exhort and 
encourage, to challenge and 

758
00:38:32,480 --> 00:38:35,880
convict, to rebuke and revive, 
to describe practical holiness 

759
00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:39,000
and Dr. Believers toward the 
goal of a faith that works. 

760
00:38:39,240 --> 00:38:42,480
James is severely ethical and 
refreshingly practical. 

761
00:38:43,120 --> 00:38:46,240
This comes from J Vernon McGee. 
Due to its practical nature, 

762
00:38:46,240 --> 00:38:49,880
this epistle has been compared 
to the Book of Proverbs as well 

763
00:38:49,880 --> 00:38:52,890
as to the Sermon on the Mount. 
James argues that justification 

764
00:38:52,890 --> 00:38:54,610
by faith is demonstrated by 
works. 

765
00:38:54,810 --> 00:38:58,490
It must be poured into the test 
tube of works, of words, of 

766
00:38:58,490 --> 00:39:01,050
worldliness, and of a warning to
the rich. 

767
00:39:01,450 --> 00:39:04,690
And the last one we find in the 
Believers Bible commentary, 

768
00:39:04,770 --> 00:39:07,690
which I think is very what he 
says is very, very good. 

769
00:39:07,690 --> 00:39:11,490
In some ways, the letter of 
James is the most authoritarian 

770
00:39:11,490 --> 00:39:14,210
in the New Testament. 
That is, James issues 

771
00:39:14,210 --> 00:39:17,450
instructions more profusely than
any of the other writers. 

772
00:39:17,830 --> 00:39:22,470
In the short space of 108 
verses, there are 54 commands. 

773
00:39:23,150 --> 00:39:25,550
And as we talked about, that's 
in the imperative form. 

774
00:39:25,550 --> 00:39:27,150
And imperative form is a 
command. 

775
00:39:27,150 --> 00:39:33,110
You do this and you continue to 
do this. 54 in 108 verses, 

776
00:39:33,310 --> 00:39:36,670
that's somebody who's pointed 
about this is truth and this is 

777
00:39:36,670 --> 00:39:38,750
what you need to do to live it, 
right. 

778
00:39:38,990 --> 00:39:42,580
So next week we're going to get 
into James, chapter one and 

779
00:39:42,580 --> 00:39:45,020
start talking about what James 
has to talk about. 

780
00:39:45,380 --> 00:39:49,100
And like I said this, this has 
been a lot more detailed because

781
00:39:49,580 --> 00:39:52,180
I want to give you a really good
detailed overview of it. 

782
00:39:52,180 --> 00:39:54,740
And then we'll start looking at 
the individual passages and what

783
00:39:54,740 --> 00:39:57,260
do they mean as a whole rather 
than just individual phrases or 

784
00:39:57,260 --> 00:40:00,260
words or something like that. 
So hopefully it's a help. 

785
00:40:00,260 --> 00:40:02,540
You might have to go back and 
listen to some of this again in 

786
00:40:02,540 --> 00:40:05,700
order to get it and kind of 
write some more things down and 

787
00:40:05,700 --> 00:40:07,620
and help you as you go through 
the study of that. 

788
00:40:07,620 --> 00:40:10,180
But it's a great study, great 
study in the book of James. 

789
00:40:10,570 --> 00:40:13,770
And very practical, but very 
helpful for exactly what we need

790
00:40:13,770 --> 00:40:15,370
today. 
All right. 

791
00:40:15,370 --> 00:40:18,090
Let's pray and then we'll go 
move a shed. 

792
00:40:19,050 --> 00:40:20,010
Father, we love you. 
Give me. 

793
00:40:20,010 --> 00:40:21,450
Thank you so much for your 
goodness to us. 

794
00:40:21,450 --> 00:40:23,770
So thank you for an opportunity 
we have to study that your word.

795
00:40:23,770 --> 00:40:25,610
God, I pray that you'd help us 
to take it seriously. 

796
00:40:25,610 --> 00:40:27,210
I pray that you'd help us to 
love your word. 

797
00:40:27,210 --> 00:40:31,170
I pray that you'd help us to to 
to to want to get as much from 

798
00:40:31,170 --> 00:40:34,130
it and and know as much of it as
we possibly can. 

799
00:40:34,730 --> 00:40:36,970
And God, that we might love the 
author of it even more. 

800
00:40:37,450 --> 00:40:39,490
Thank you for all that you do 
for us in Jesus name. 

801
00:40:39,770 --> 00:40:40,620
Amen, yes.
