1 Peter 1 - Be Holy

To whom does Peter write - to believers who are being persecuted.  "God's elect", who are "exiles scattered throughout" much of the known world.  Peter reminds them, and those who would follow centuries later, that those who are in Christ have been chosen by God.  The Father's foreknowledge, the Spirit's sanctifying work in us, and the blood of Jesus, God's Son, work in concert to make us who we were created to be.

Peter reminds his readers to begin with praise, modeling that for us in verse 3.  When are hearts are positioned to praise God first in the midst of any troubles, our problems and circumstances, no matter how dire, even life and death, can be seen for what they are.  God is working in us and in His world to build His Kingdom and build our faith (v. 5-7).

In verses 13-16, we are charged with being holy.  No human being other than Jesus has ever or will ever achieve sinlessness, but we can absolutely live lives of holiness.  Holiness requires a heart turned toward God.  Holiness says, "God is bigger than my troubles".  Holiness rejoices in the midst of suffering because we understand there is a bigger picture than what we can see and touch in the moment.  When my attitude is one of praise, trust and perspective, turning away from the "evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance" becomes more than a bunch of words that sound nice, but actually becomes our reality.  Sin loses its appeal when we are God-focused.  Understand, you and I are not going to do this perfectly.  Hopefully that's been made clear.  Perfection isn't the goal.  Holiness, a heart that seeks God and praises God at all times in all things, is the goal.  This is absolutely attainable.

Finally, understand that holiness and obedience enhance our ability to love each other "deeply, from the heart".  Let's do that.  Let's make that our goal.

James 5 - A Warning and a Call to Prayer

If you are a wealthy person who mistreats your employees, failing to pay what you owe, you'd better watch out.  The "misery that is coming upon you" is cause to "weep and wail".  Yikes.

In verses 7-12 we see a couple concluding instructions: be patient, don't grumble against each other, and don't go overboard swearing either by heaven or by earth.  The phrase "I swear to God" isn't one of holiness, but probably something to be avoided.

James finishes his letter by telling us to pray.  Pray when in trouble, when happy, when sick, etc.   In verse 16, "the prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective".  Prayer very rarely feels effective, especially in the moment.  It can feel like a poor use of our time.  James (and others throughout the Bible) make it clear that prayer is a fantastic use of our time.  It's hard for our finite minds to grasp how or why this is so, but that's OK.  Prayer is a great evidence of faith.  Prayer is about engaging in relationship with our unseen Creator and Savior in a way that might not make sense to us.  Am I willing to trust Him and pray, or do I need to understand how everything works?

James 4 - Resist, Come Near and Humble Yourselves

The later part of this chapter, about how we arrogantly make plans, assuming that God will allow our plans to come to fruition, flows from the charge found in verse 10: "Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up."

A view of the world that is entirely void of self-interest is rare (impossible?) among human beings, but that's the standard.  And it's still somewhat counter intuitive that the way to gain peace and freedom from the pressures of life is to let go of self-interest.  The best thing I can do for me is not worry about me.

Easier said than done?  Certainly at first.  But also progressively easier as we learn to submit to God, recognize the spiritual battle and resist the devil, come near to God, and watch Him come near to us (v. 7-8).  He has defeated this enemy.  The same God who has delivered a nation through the Red Sea, put a rock through the forehead of a menacing giant, and close the lions' mouths, can quite readily handle whatever situation we might find ourselves in, no matter how daunting or impossible they might seem.

James 3 - Taming Tongues and Gaining Wisdom

It's not a good idea to always boil things down to a bottom line.  There are truths to mine and depths to search in pursuit of wisdom.  Having said that, James chapter 3 seems like it can be summed up in a couple sentences:

Use words carefully to build people up, not to tear down.

Wisdom is contrary to selfishness.  Those who are wise live humbly, in peaceful service to others.