Contrasting Worship

 A Contrast of Worship

 Book of 1 Kings Chapters 12, 14, 15

 What is worship? Worship is homage rendered to Jehovah which is idolatry to render to any created being.

 Exo 34:14 For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:

 Isa 2:8 Their land also is full of idols; “they worship the work of their own hands, that which their own fingers have made”:

 It is sin to worship any created being!

 It is sin to worship an angel, who is also created beings!

 We are to worship only the Living God!

 Jer_10:10 But the LORD is the true God, he is the living God, and an everlasting king: at his wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to abide his indignation.

 We know that Israel was now a divided nation. Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, was king of Judah, which included the tribe of Benjamin.

 Jeroboam was now the King Israel which included only the ten tribes now called Ephraim.

 From this point forward the Books of 1 and 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles will record the histories of the different kings of the divided nation of Israel.

 What is idolatry?

 Idolatry is image worship or divine honor paid to a created object, including mankind and angels.

 Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

Rom 1:22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,

Rom 1:23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

Rom 1:24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:

Rom 1:25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

 How can we best describe those who are lost, keeping in mind that we were once lost?

 Rom 1:28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;

Rom 1:29 Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers,

Rom 1:30 Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents,

Rom 1:31 Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful:

Rom 1:32 Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.

 The forms of idolatry are,

(1.) Fetishism, or the worship of trees, rivers, hills, stones, etc.(created objects on earth)

(2.) Nature worship, the worship of the sun, moon, and stars, as the supposed powers of nature.(created objects in the heavens)

(3.) Hero worship, the worship of deceased ancestors, or heroes.(all created objects)

 Idolatry in Christian doctrine is anything that interferes between the soul and our Creator is idolatrous and is to be shunned!

 1Jn 5:19 And we know that we are of God, and the whole world lieth in wickedness.

1Jn 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

1Jn 5:21 Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.

 Jeroboam turned the northern tribes of Israel to idolatry.

 Idolatry is the religion of Satan! Remember Lucifer was just an angel created by Jehovah.

 *****1Ki 12:26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:

1Ki 12:27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.

1Ki 12:28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

 Jeroboam was face to face with the greatest opportunity of his life.

 Should he have determined to serve the Lord he might have easily been the mightiest monarch in the history of Israel.

 God would have certainly been with him.

 But if he disregarded the Word of God his kingdom would have come to nothing which it did.

 It was a Prophet of God Ahijah that had told him of these things.

 The only safe path of any ruler is the right path!

 We could ask ourselves does God truly have any rulers on His side?

 We know that the heart is the center of mankind's personal activities.

 Gen 6:5 And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.

 The world created by God before the flood was destroyed because of idolatry which led to wickedness!

 Gen 8:21 And the LORD smelled a sweet savour; and the LORD said in his heart, I will not again curse the ground any more for man's sake; "for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth"; neither will I again smite any more every thing living, as I have done.

 We get a firsthand look at how false religions get started. They are conceived in the mind of some man or some woman!

 Jehovah had already told Jeroboam how to get His blessings.

 Jehovah has told us all how to get His blessings!

 1Ki 11:38 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.

 Jeroboam made Shechem his capital city and then Jeroboam does something very foolish.

 The apostasy of Jeroboam was willful, it was designed, and it was done deliberately!

 He consulted with himself instead of consulting with Jehovah who had made him King of Israel.

 The Lord Jesus Christ makes this thing simple to understand.

 Luk 6:45 A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.

 Our hearts must be fixed upon the Lord!

 Psa 112:7 He shall not be afraid of evil tidings: his heart is fixed, trusting in the LORD.

 The fact of the divided kingdom did not mean that the Northern Tribes were exempt from their covenant obligations to Jehovah!

 They were still to observe the Books of Moses as much as the Southern Tribes.

 All the tribes of Israel had the same Book of Moses!

 These things caused stress upon Jeroboam, and he even became afraid for his life.

 Jeroboam forgot the promises of God!

 We tend to look at the world and forget the promises of God when we know that God has proven to us that He will never break a promise.

 We do not need advice on how to do evil, we are born that way!

 Jeroboam wanted advice on how to do a bad thing in the best way. He did not consult with God and God would not have answered such a request!

 So many churchgoers today go to a place of worship that is convenient rather than seek a "Bible Believing" House of worship.

 It is a fact that we will take the easy way out when it is available!

 Just as a certain political party did in the days of Covid 19 when it made it a law to abandon the Church for fear of catching the disease forgetting the power of God.

 Jeroboam shaped a new religion for his own purpose.

 This is the way of radical Islam and other such religions. They rewrite their literature to adapt to changes they see in the world.

 The Holy Scriptures never have to change because they were written by Jehovah and are perfect in any age!

 Jeroboam even framed his words by the Word of God during the Exodus.

 Exo 32:4 And he received them at their hand, and fashioned it with a graving tool, after he had made it a molten calf: and they said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.

Exo 32:5 And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, To morrow is a feast to the LORD.

Exo 32:6 And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play.

 Jeroboam proposed a perversion of the proper worship of Jehovah God.

 “Calf is not a good translation of the Hebrew egel. A young bull in his first strength is meant: for instance, the word can describe a three-year-old animal.

 Gen 15:9 And he said unto him, Take me an heifer “of three years old”, and a she goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon.

 A three-year-old bull would be a bull closer to his prime than a calf.

 Jeroboam placed these idols of Baal in two separate locations.

 *****1Ki 12:29 And he set the one in Bethel, and the other put he in Dan.

1Ki 12:30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.

 The name Bethel means "house of God" and this city was ten miles from Jerusalem.

 This is the same place where Jacob had his vision of the angels of God ascending and descending on a ladder whose top reached into Heaven.

 Gen 28:12 And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.

Gen 28:13 And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;

Gen 28:14 And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.

 Gen 28:20 And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,

Gen 28:21 So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God:

 Dan, which means (a judge) on the other hand is located at the foot of Mount Hermon.

 This is the same place where the Danites stole the shrine of Micah and set up false worship.

 Jdg 18:29 And they called the name of the city Dan, after the name of Dan their father, who was born unto Israel: howbeit the name of the city was Laish at the first.

Jdg 18:30 And the children of Dan set up the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land.

Jdg 18:31 And they set them up Micah's graven image, which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh.

 Jeroboam took advantage of this situation as he felt they would have no problem accepting his idols of Baal.

 Jeroboam then installed false priests and false worship.

 *****1Ki 12:31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.

1Ki 12:32 And Jeroboam ordained a feast in the eighth month, on the fifteenth day of the month, like unto the feast that is in Judah, and he offered upon the altar. So did he in Bethel, sacrificing unto the calves that he had made: and he placed in Bethel the priests of the high places which he had made.

1Ki 12:33 So he offered upon the altar which he had made in Bethel the fifteenth day of the eighth month, even in the month which he had devised of his own heart; and ordained a feast unto the children of Israel: and he offered upon the altar, and burnt incense.

 We should be very clear. Once we are aware of our Creator, we then must worship Him!

 This is why the Bible begins with the Book of Genesis.

 This is why the world clings to the lies of evolution.

 Evolution has proven to be wrong so many times it is pathetic that the world clings to it because they have no other theory except now where they use the word aliens so often.

 We have only one duty as created beings!

 Ecc_12:13 Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

 Jeroboam decided that his idols would also need temples as a place to worship and priests.

 He was not about to use priests from the tribe of Levi because they might teach the truth of God.

 Deu_10:8 At that time the LORD separated the tribe of Levi, to bear the ark of the covenant of the LORD, to stand before the LORD to minister unto him, and to bless in his name, unto this day.

 Jeroboam chose priests from every tribe but the Levites, going against the Word of God in any way that he could think of.

 This is the way of almost all false man-made religions. They always will change the rules if people start leaving for the truth.

 There are a few false religions that have some truth in them, but Christianity is all or nothing and based upon the truth of Jesus Christ and the true Word of God.

 Jeroboam chose the eighth month and the fifteenth day to be as close to The Feast of the Tabernacles as he thought would work.

 The Feast of the Tabernacles was on the fifteenth day of the seventh month.

 Jeroboam did not consult with anyone else to create this false religion!

 The people already understood that Jeroboam was chosen by God to lead this new nation, and Jeroboam kept it that way.

 The Prophet Amos had confronted one of Jeroboam's false priests with the truth:

 Amo 7:10 Then Amaziah the priest of Bethel sent to Jeroboam king of Israel, saying, Amos hath conspired against thee in the midst of the house of Israel: the land is not able to bear all his words.

Amo 7:11 For thus Amos saith, Jeroboam shall die by the sword, and Israel shall surely be led away captive out of their own land.

Amo 7:12 Also Amaziah said unto Amos, O thou seer, go, flee thee away into the land of Judah, and there eat bread, and prophesy there:

Amo 7:13 But prophesy not again any more at Bethel: for it is the king's chapel, and it is the king's court.

Amo 7:14 Then answered Amos, and said to Amaziah, I was no prophet, neither was I a prophet's son; but I was an herdman, and a gatherer of sycomore fruit:

Amo 7:15 And the LORD took me as I followed the flock, and the LORD said unto me, Go, prophesy unto my people Israel.

 It may have been the king's chapel and the king's court but he was the wrong king.

 Our Lord Jesus had some things to say about man-made religion:

 Mat 15:7 Ye hypocrites, well did Esaias prophesy of you, saying,

Mat 15:8 This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth, and honoureth me with their lips; but their heart is far from me.

Mat 15:9 But in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

 The Holy Spirit says: Heb 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.

 Those who serve false religion have to understand the judgment of God will come upon them.

 *****1Ki 14:15 For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger.

1Ki 14:16 And he shall give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, who did sin, and who made Israel to sin.

 Jehovah had placed Jeroboam on the throne of Ephraim, but it was Jeroboam who had turned against Him.

 Jeroboam could have been a mighty king of Israel, but he rebelled against the truth of God.

 Jeroboam is still suffering the judgment of God today and he will throughout eternity!

 Now comes judgment upon the people who knew better.

 Moses had warned these people:

 Deu 4:27 And the LORD shall scatter you among the nations, and ye shall be left few in number among the heathen, whither the LORD shall lead you.

Deu 4:28 And there ye shall serve gods, the work of men's hands, wood and stone, which neither see, nor hear, nor eat, nor smell.

Deu 4:29 But if from thence thou shalt seek the LORD thy God, thou shalt find him, if thou seek him with all thy heart and with all thy soul.

 Now judgment would come to Israel, and they would be scattered on the other side of the Euphrates River.

 Politics had caused the people of God to sin!

 During Covid 19 many of God's people were directed to sin by our government and many of those who left the Church have never returned.

 The Holy Spirit has also warned the Church of the coming judgment of God:

 Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

Rom 1:19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them.

Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:

Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

 There will be no more warnings and judgment could come at any time because the "Rapture of the Church is the next thing on God's timetable.

 Once the Church is removed this world will rely on wickedness and idolatry just as those before the flood.

 King Rehoboam and his son had also turned against Jehovah and God began his judgment upon Judah beginning with the King of Egypt.

 1Ki 14:23 For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree.

1Ki 14:24 And there were also sodomites in the land: and they did according to all the abominations of the nations which the LORD cast out before the children of Israel.

1Ki 14:25 And it came to pass in the fifth year of king Rehoboam, that Shishak king of Egypt came up against Jerusalem:

 No doubt that Jeroboam had stirred up this king against Judah, and Shishak broke his peace agreement with King Solomon.

 1Ki 14:26 And he took away the treasures of the house of the LORD, and the treasures of the king's house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.

 We know that King David had placed all his treasures in the Temple and so had many others.

 We know that those golden shields would be valued at over thirty-three million dollars today.

 There is a record of these events in Egypt.

 With Judah humbled at the hand of this Egyptian King, Jeroboam had free reign to attack Judah at any time and he did so.

 It was in the time of King Asa that change came to Judah.

 *****1Ki 15:9 And in the twentieth year of Jeroboam king of Israel reigned Asa over Judah.

1Ki 15:10 And forty and one years reigned he in Jerusalem. And his mother's name was Maachah, the daughter of Abishalom.

1Ki 15:11 And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father.

1Ki 15:12 And he took away the sodomites out of the land, and removed all the idols that his fathers had made.

1Ki 15:13 And also Maachah his mother, even her he removed from being queen, because she had made an idol in a grove; and Asa destroyed her idol, and burnt it by the brook Kidron.

 Finally, a king who was faithful to the Lord.

 We should notice that Jehovah is still keeping his promises to King David and He will continue because the prophecy of Kings of Judah will last until King Jesus sits upon the throne of David.

 King Asa reigned for forty-one years, and we can see that he had not been influenced by his grandmother Maacah's false worship.

 This Maacah was the daughter of Tamar the daughter of Absolom.

 Asa removed his father's idols.

Asa removed his wicked mother as Queen and her idols burning them in the Brook Kidron.

Asa removed the Sodomites from the land of Judah.

Asa did not remove all the high places of worship, and we do not have an explanation, but we can imagine politics were still involved.

 Asa gave his treasures to the House of the Lord.

 Amen

Disorderly Worship

The Problem Of Disorderly Worship

1 Corinthians 10:16-11:34


That word disorderly means, confused, lawless, contrary to the law.

The Bible says:

2Th 3:6  Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which he received of us.

Again we know that the Apostle Paul was addressing questions that had been sent to him in a letter from this Church at Corinth.

For the most part, the disorderly of any Church are all those who claim to be Christian but the way they live outside the Church says otherwise!

Let's begin:

*****1Co 10:16  The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?
1Co 10:17  For we being many are one bread, and one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.

Throughout this epistle, Paul has stated that the wise are all those who know the Lord Jesus Christ as their Savior!

In other words you cannot be very wise until your name is written in the Lamb's Book Of Life!

It is a fact that we can never substitute the wisdom of this world for the wisdom that is in Christ Jesus!

The Jewish Passover included 4 cups, the cup of thanks giving, the cup of plagues, the cup of praise, and the cup of redemption.

It was the cup of redemption that held the blood of the sacrificial lamb.

It was the cup of redemption that the Apostle Paul was making reference to as the "cup of blessing"!

It is this cup that symbolized what Jesus Christ has done for all believers!

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. "For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:"

John the Baptist said this when he first saw the Lord Jesus:

Joh 1:29  The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world".

If we remember the last meal the Lord had with the Apostles, He had these words:

Mat 26:27  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, "Drink ye all of it;
Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins".

Communion means, a gathering of like minded people that participate in something that is real important to all those that are gathered!

The Apostle Paul is saying that it is in the "Blood of Jesus" that we realize our Christian benefits.

The "life" of Christ gives us our example of how to walk with Him!

It was the "death" of Christ that has given us the ability to share in His Divine Life!

Jesus explains these things Himself!

Joh 6:53  Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
Joh 6:54  Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
Joh 6:55  For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
Joh 6:56  He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.
Joh 6:57  As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me.
Joh 6:58  This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever.

It is the Church that is to be the "Body of Christ" still walking as the example that Christ gave us in His own walk.

The Church is the one body and Christ Jesus is to remain the Head of that body and the Church is to walk as Jesus walked until He returns to take us all home to be with Him!

The Church is to have communion with Christ Jesus.

In Jewish worship there is only communion with the altar, where the sacrifices were made.

*****1Co 10:18  Behold Israel after the flesh: are not they which eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?
1Co 10:19  What say I then? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing?
1Co 10:20  But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.
1Co 10:21  Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils.

The Jews were directly connected to the Temple altar, the sacrificial animals and all that they symbolized.

The Apostle Paul said the same thing is true of all those who partook of sacrifices to idols!

Though an idol is nothing, then sacrificing to a nothing is meaningless!

BUT, if you have it in your mind that the idol represents a deity then your actions are sinful!

Any worship offered to anything other than Jehovah God is the same as sacrificing to the Devil!

The truth is, that God will not allow us to worship false deities and then take part in holy communion without consequences!

This would be an offence to the God we say you serve!

*****1Co 10:22  Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?
1Co 10:23  All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.

What is the truth?

Exo 34:14  For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God:
Exo 34:15  Lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and they go a whoring after their gods, and do sacrifice unto their gods, and one call thee, and thou eat of his sacrifice;

Why would we even think we would not be offending God and we certainly can never be as strong as God!

Who has ever stood up to God and prospered? God has already condemned all who do not accept His Son!

Joh 3:18  He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

It is true that if you know that an idol is a nothing and a false god is nothing then you could take part in eating of meat that was sacrificed to an idol without sin.

The fact remains that a "babe in Christ" who observed you may not have those same feelings and it could then be a stumbling block to him.

It is also just as true that the one who offered you that meat is a believer in his falseness and he will believe you have sinned against your own God!

The truth is Christian Liberty must always be modified to insure that our testimony is not blemished!

The love of our brothers and sisters must always be considered in all our actions!

*****1Co 10:24  Let no man seek his own, but every man another's wealth.

We must remember the commandments of Christ Jesus!

Mat 22:37  Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.
Mat 22:38  This is the first and great commandment.
Mat 22:39  And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Mat 22:40  On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.

These are the commandments that we are to observe throughout our days as Christians!

Paul offers some examples:

*****1Co 10:25  Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no question for conscience sake:
1Co 10:26  For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.
1Co 10:27  If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go; whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no question for conscience sake.
1Co 10:28  But if any man say unto you, This is offered in sacrifice unto idols, eat not for his sake that shewed it, and for conscience sake: for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof:
1Co 10:29  Conscience, I say, not thine own, but of the other: for why is my liberty judged of another man's conscience?

Paul is saying to just use common sense!

The "shambles" were to open air markets that lined the streets at that time.

If a Christian just bought his meat in such a place then why would anyone think he was showing favor to some particular idol or show any favoritism at all.

It would be a foolish thing to investigate the source of that meat if it was good meat.

Every creature of God is good and nothing to be refused, this is why it is so important to always pray before consuming our food!

1Ti 4:4  For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:
1Ti 4:5  For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.

Verse 27-28 make reference to a friend who is a non-believer, who has invited you to a meal at his home and these verses explain themselves.

We must always remember that when we are obedient to the commandments of Jesus we will always have more concern for those that are around us, than for ourselves!

*****1Co 10:30  For if I by grace be a partaker, why am I evil spoken of for that for which I give thanks?

When we have received the "Grace" of God, then we are to show the "Grace" of God to those around us!

We must remember what "Grace" is!

Grace is the unmerited favor of God!

We did not deserve God's "Grace" but we received it because of God's love!

Those around us may not deserve our own grace but if we have the love that we should have, then we will extend God's "Grace" through us to them because we are to love them as much as we love ourselves!

Anything that we receive of God and then thank Him for it, is never forbidden in the eyes of God!

Rom 14:7  For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself.
Rom 14:8  For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord's.
Rom 14:9  For to this end Christ both died, and rose, and revived, that he might be Lord both of the dead and living.

*****1Co 10:31  Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.
1Co 10:32  Give none offence, neither to the Jews, nor to the Gentiles, nor to the church of God:
1Co 10:33  Even as I please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of many, that they may be saved.

What is the most important object of our walk in this life after salvation?

1Pe 4:11  If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen.

It should be obvious that God considers that there are only three groups of people spoken of in the Scriptures.

The Jew.

The Gentile.

The Church which consist of Jews and Gentiles who have accepted that Jesus Christ is our One and Only Savior.

To give "no offence" means to never give an occasion of stumbling to any other person, no matter who they are or where they came from!

Explained in Scripture this way:

Act 24:16  And herein do I exercise myself, to have always a conscience void of offence toward God, and toward men.

Once we have received the profits of God through our own salvation, it is our only job to be a testimony for Jesus Christ, witness to those who do not know the Lord, and disciple those who are weak in the "Faith"!

We are to follow those that we know are following Christ Jesus!

*****1Co 11:1  Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.
1Co 11:2  Now I praise you, brethren, that ye remember me in all things, and keep the ordinances, as I delivered them to you.
1Co 11:3  But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.

It is our job to be a follower of Christ just as was the Apostle Paul!

A follower, according to the Greek word used here is an imitator.

Our walk after salvation should resemble the way Christ Jesus walked.

A follower of Christ, would use the doctrine of Christ Jesus as their guide in this life!

A follower would use the opinions of Christ as their example.

A follower of Christ Jesus, would obey His Word, worship Him only, and honor the One who sent Him!

Eph 5:1  Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children;
Eph 5:2  And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour

God has placed a certain order of things in this life.

The "head" in this verse refers to the principle person.

The head of man must be Christ Jesus.

In the family, the head of the woman is to be the man, "if they have allowed their head to be Christ"!

Remember the distinction of the sexes is done away with in all those that are in Christ Jesus and this is only an earthly application!

The Head of Christ is Jehovah God and we know Christ came to this earth to do the will of His Father!

Joh 5:30  I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father which hath sent me.

Christ is only inferior to His Father in His earthly manhood!

In the Godhead the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost are all coequal in all things!

The Father is God!

1Co 8:6  But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.

The Son is God!

Heb 1:8  But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
Heb 1:9  Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
Heb 1:10  And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:

The Holy Spirit is God!

Act 5:3  But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
Act 5:4  Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.

Yet there is but One God!

Deu 6:4  Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD:

The Bible states that God is a Trinity!

Mat 28:19  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Mat 28:20  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

As these things are all true, we then proceed:

*****1Co 11:4  Every man praying or prophesying, having his head covered, dishonoureth his head.
1Co 11:5  But every woman that prayeth or prophesieth with her head uncovered dishonoureth her head: for that is even all one as if she were shaven.
1Co 11:6  For if the woman be not covered, let her also be shorn: but if it be a shame for a woman to be shorn or shaven, let her be covered.
1Co 11:7  For a man indeed ought not to cover his head, forasmuch as he is the image and glory of God: but the woman is the glory of the man.
1Co 11:8  For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man.
1Co 11:9  Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man.
1Co 11:10  For this cause ought the woman to have power on her head because of the angels.
1Co 11:11  Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord.
1Co 11:12  For as the woman is of the man, even so is the man also by the woman; but all things of God.
1Co 11:13  Judge in yourselves: is it comely that a woman pray unto God uncovered?

Verses 1-3 have explained the relationship that we should have in our earthly life!

God the Head of Christ.

Christ the Head of man.

Man the head of woman.

Verses 4-13 concern a covering or a veil worn by men and women.

In that day men and women would wear what we would call a shawl to protect them from the harsh conditions.

It is true that all men and women stand on equal ground at the cross but it is also true that the family was established before the Church!

Among the Greeks it was custom for the women to appear in public with her head covered. The shawl could be both head covering and veil.

It was in the rite of marriage that she assumed the veil in token of how her husband was her head.

These things do not speak of authority but of order!

Men also wore a shawl!

When a man began to pray or preach in public when that shawl should not be covering his head because it would show that he was in subjection to someone of this earth and not Christ and this would dishonor Christ his true Head!

On the other hand if a woman appeared in public without her covering it would show that she was not in subjection to her husband who was to be her head in that marriage and she would dishonor her marriage vows.

This woman would put herself on the same level as a woman with a shaven head which was a sign of disgrace.

Man is the glory of God because man was made in His image!

Gen 1:27  So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

Man is to directly fulfill the purposes of God!

Woman then indirectly fulfills the purpose of God. Woman is God's glory by being man's glory!

Gen 2:21  And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof;
Gen 2:22  And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man.
Gen 2:23  And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man.

Woman was God's gift to man to make man a complete person but they are both equal in the eyes of God!

Gen 5:2  Male and female created he them; and blessed them, "and called their name Adam", in the day when they were created.

No doubt that women possess all the gifts fitted for their role here on earth!

Of all the beautiful things of a woman she is still a woman even when she becomes a Christian and we know that each subject must honor their king.

Christ the Head of man, and man the head of woman and it is our duty to accept our place in the order of God!

As the angels are in relation to God, so the woman is in relation to the man.

God's face is uncovered but the angels on the other hand are covered!

Isa 6:2  Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; "with twain he covered his face", and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.

But the truth remains that neither sex is insulated and independent to the other in Christian life!

Each one needs the other to be complete just as Christ Jesus and the "Bride of Christ"(the Church) will be joined in completeness!

As woman was formed out of man, even so men are born out of woman but all things have God as their source!

Paul said if you just look at the Word of God, then these things just make good sense.

When the Word of God does not make sense to you then you need to pray more and study harder, God is not the author of confusion!

*****1Co 11:14  Doth not even nature itself teach you, that, if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him?
1Co 11:15  But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.

Men who were Greeks or Jews cut their hair and did not allow it to grow long!

The women on the other hand, shows her beauty and she looks like herself as long hair becomes her!

But still, what is the truth of the New Testament Church!

*****1Co 11:16  But if any man seem to be contentious, we have no such custom, neither the churches of God.

It should be obvious that Paul was addressing a question that had been asked of him by this church!

Paul is saying, that if you must, by using common sense, work out these trivial details that have nothing to do with salvation.

Christianity is not intended to change the customs of any nation beyond those that go against the Word of God.

The use of a veil or head covering of any female in Christian worship is indifferent to God because God only looks at the condition of the heart but anything that causes contentions in the gathering of God's people is wrong, and it is sin.

Remember to be contentious is to be argumentative!

Church worship must not be disorderly because it defeats the purpose of gathering to worship!

Joh 4:23  But the hour cometh, and now is, when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth: for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
Joh 4:24  God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

It is a foolish thing to burden the church down with ceremonies, the church is to be full of those that the Lord has set free, the Church is free!

It is a sinful thing to argue over trivial matters just for the sake of winning an argument!

The truth is the Apostles had not given any such custom!

The truth is the established churches in Jerusalem and Antioch also had no such custom!

In the church, the decency of apparel is all that is necessary!

1Pe 3:1  Likewise, ye wives, be in subjection to your own husbands; that, if any obey not the word, they also may without the word be won by the conversation of the wives;
1Pe 3:2  While they behold your chaste conversation coupled with fear.
1Pe 3:3  Whose adorning let it not be that outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing of gold, or of putting on of apparel;
1Pe 3:4  But let it be the hidden man of the heart, in that which is not corruptible, even the ornament of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.
1Pe 3:5  For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted in God, adorned themselves, being in subjection unto their own husbands:

*****1Co 11:17  Now in this that I declare unto you I praise you not, that ye come together not for the better, but for the worse.
1Co 11:18  For first of all, when ye come together in the church, I hear that there be divisions among you; and I partly believe it.

There are many things in the church that can cause some disagreement and they should be settled according to the Word of God and by using common sense.

The partaking of the Lord's Supper is something that should never cause a disagreement!

1) The Church must gather together to come to maturity!

Eph 4:13  Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ:

There must be teaching, there must be fellowship, and most of all there must be worship!

Worship is to be the reason for our gathering!

Eph 5:19  Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
Eph 5:20  Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
Eph 5:21  Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.

2) The Church must gather to promote Evangelism!

The work of the Church is to make disciples, baptize them, teach them and send them out into the world!

Mat 28:19  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
Mat 28:20  Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

3) If there is a third thing, then only after these first two things are set in motion are we to do good to all others!

Gal 6:10  As we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith.

All these things are based on the One truth of the Gospel!

The life, the death, the burial, and the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ!

1Co 15:1  Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand;
1Co 15:2  By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain.
1Co 15:3  For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures;
1Co 15:4  And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:

These Corinthians had failed in all these things.

This church was still a divided church!

*****1Co 11:19  For there must be also heresies among you, that they which are approved may be made manifest among you.

Heresies are fundamental errors in true doctrine not just differences of opinions!

In our world today the church has gotten away from the fundamentals of the Word of God!

This church in Corinth had chosen their own way, in a deliberate fashion, of partaking in the Lord's Supper against what had been taught them by the Apostles.

There were still some in this church that would go out of their way, inspite of instructions in doctrine, to cause divisions in this church!

It is most probable that God had allowed these things to take place so that we could see that there is a certain way we are to observe the Lord's Supper!

These Scriptures to the church in Corinth are here for the modern day church to learn from their mistakes!

We now have a written record that has been passed down since the beginning of the early church!

*****1Co 11:20  When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper.
1Co 11:21  For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken.

We should be clear, it was Jesus Christ that instituted the Lord's Supper on the eve of His crucifixion!

Jesus then "commanded" that all His followers observe it until He returns!

The Lord's Supper signifies the New Covenant in contrast with the old Mosaic Covenant.

To enact this New Covenant Christ death was necessary because His death provided the means for forgiveness of sins!

Heb 9:16  For where a testament is, there must also of necessity be the death of the testator.

And Jesus said:

Luk 22:19  And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: "this do in remembrance of me".

The Lord's Supper emphasizes that those who participate in it, demonstrate "faith" in the death of Christ Jesus!

Jesus said: "remember what I have done for you"!

The Bread symbolized Christ perfect sinless body offered in a sin-bearing sacrifice for all our sin.

The juice symbolized His blood, shed for the forgiveness of sin.

Heb 9:22  And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission.

The Lord's Supper involves a looking back to that historical event of the cross and anticipating His return in the near future!

Mat 26:29  But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.

The Lord's Supper is to be a "communion" of believers with each other, and focusing on their "common" faith in Christ Jesus!

A divided church should never partake of communion, it destroys what Christ has done for His Church!

This church at Corinth had substituted a feast for the Lord's Supper.

It is true that Jesus and His disciples ate the Passover Feast but they did this before the Lord took the time to explain the New Covenant which was the last meal before He was crucified!

But even in a feast this church could not show love for one another.

Everyone brought their own food and no one shared. Those that had, feasted while those that had not, went hungry.

There is nothing wrong with church fellowship but if they gathered in fellowship they did not show it in love for one another!

Just as He should have, Paul was harsh in chastising this church!

*****1Co 11:22  What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you in this? I praise you not.

Paul said you have houses where you can eat until you are satisfied and drink until you are full.

That is the place to satisfy your appetite and not when you assemble with your brother and sisters in Christ!

No doubt as is normal in every church, there were many who were poor and those that had were showing contempt for those who had not.

Jas 2:5  Hearken, my beloved brethren, Hath not God chosen the poor of this world rich in faith, and heirs of the kingdom which he hath promised to them that love him?
Jas 2:6  But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats?

There is no praise of God when we do such things!

The Lord's Supper must be done in complete reverence!

Fellowship should also be done in complete unity and love for one another!

Paul was not an eyewitness to this last meal with the Apostles but Paul explains these things just as he received them from the Lord!

*****1Co 11:23  For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread:
1Co 11:24  And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.

Paul said these things did not come from himself but from the Lord!

We know that Paul spent 3 years in the wilderness with the Lord just as the other Apostles had spent 3 years.

It is a fact that Christianity had it's beginning that night previous to the Lord's crucifixion!

The ordinance of the Lord Supper began at that time and has continued throughout all these years as the Lord has directed, but it must be done in the correct manner to have it's real meaning!

These Corinthians ate and drank unworthily!

The are certainly words of no priests over the bread and the juice that can then make these things become the actual body and blood of Christ.

There is not nor can there be a change in substance of these things!

These things should also never be done so often that they become mechanical, the Lord's Supper is not some mere ceremony!

And most important, we each must examine ourselves to see if we are truly worthy!

The truth is, the Lord's Supper shows us the death of Christ and must be a solemn observance!

*****1Co 11:26  For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, "ye do shew the Lord's death till he come".
1Co 11:27  Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
1Co 11:28  But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
1Co 11:29  For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
1Co 11:30  For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep.

The Lord's Supper was instituted by God Himself and not from any man as so many others do!

The truth is, that Christ will certainly return to get His Church and then after this, His promised wrath!

We are all unworthy of the "Grace of God" but when we partake of the Lord's Supper in a care-less, irreverent, or a defiant spirit, we are certainly unworthy and actually guilty of His death, putting the death of Christ in open shame!

We must test our own feelings!

We must prove our own selves!

We must be sure of our sincerity!

We must be clean when we come to God's altar!

What are the facts?

Anyone that partakes of the Lord's Supper unworthily can bring the judgment of God upon themselves!

Paul said look around at your congregation.

Many are weak in body and in faith and spiritually weak.

Many are sickly, weak in mind, stumbling in their faith.

Many, God has already called home who were useless in the work of God.

When God places us flat on our backs, He wants us to look toward Him for our answers!

The truth is, if we would judge our selves by the Word of God, we would not be judged by others and when we repent God will not chastise us without mercy!

*****1Co 11:31  For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
1Co 11:32  But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

When we can truly discern between the spiritual and the common carnal things, we would not be seeing God's displeasure!

1Jn 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
1Jn 1:10  If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.

We must remember God chastises only those He loves!

Heb 12:6  For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.

This Church at Corinth was being chastised because God loves His Church!

It is those who are never chastised that should rethink their salvation!

It is those who never chastised, unless they repent that will be condemned with the world!

*****1Co 11:33  Wherefore, my brethren, when ye come together to eat, tarry one for another.
1Co 11:34  And if any man hunger, let him eat at home; that ye come not together unto condemnation. And the rest will I set in order when I come.

Notice Paul still addresses this church as his brethren.

The truth is, we of the church need our toes stepped on from time to time to remind us that it is only by God's "Grace" that we are saved and God's "Grace" can come only because of God's great love for us!

The Church is the called out group whom God has called as a special group of His own!

The Church is the great mystery of the Old Testament that has been revealed to the entire world in the New Testament!

Eph 3:4  Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ)
Eph 3:5  Which in other ages was not made known unto the sons of men, as it is now revealed unto his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit;
Eph 3:6  That the Gentiles should be fellowheirs, and of the same body, and partakers of his promise in Christ by the gospel:

It's time for the Church to take a stand in this world we live in!

The Lord will certainly set things straight when He returns!

Questions?

Let's Pray!

Praying

Praying Devotedly

James 5

We have found that James has been teaching us things that we should all practise as Christians.

To be a Christian is still to be like Jesus Christ.

How did this name come about?

A handful of Jews from Jerusalem had gone to Antioch of Syria and preached the "Gospel" to the Gentiles.

Act 11:26 And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.
It is the "Gospel" of the Lord Jesus Christ that makes Christians.

If we are not like Jesus Christ then we are not Christians!

James has been preaching to Christians, who were scattered because of persecution, and this lesson continues today in chapter 5.

We ended last weeks lesson with this verse:

Jas 4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.

When we know how to do good by the Word of God, and reject God's Word then we are living in sin!

Let's Begin:

*****Jas 5:1 Go to now, ye rich men, weep and howl for your miseries that shall come upon you.

The Church is a mixed blend of people from all parts of society and from all cultures in this world. We should not be surprised when we find some in the Church who are rich.

It is not sin to become rich!

If those riches come from your own sweat and the work of your own hands then you need to thank God for what he has done.

But when those riches come at the expense of others then it was gained in a fraudulent manner.

James begins to condemn this type of rich man.

Happiness can never come from the riches in this world!

The quicker we find this out the better off we will be!

A comedian once said "money talks but all it says to me is goodbye"

Most of us find this to be true.

To "weep" is to be in misery and is a sure sign of grief.

To "howl" is to be in overwhelming distress as this misery has taken over your life.

Where does this misery come from?

*****Jas 5:2 Your riches are corrupted, and your garments are motheaten.

That word riches means "all possessions".

That word "corrupted" means all those possessions have perished or will perish.

Many of the early Christians had been robbed of all their possessions simply because they had become disciples of Jesus Christ.

A moth breeds in yarn and garments and will eat the material thus destroying that garment.

That word "motheaten" means "the ways" of the rich will be destroyed!

*****Jas 5:3 Your gold and silver is cankered; and the rust of them shall be a witness against you, and shall eat your flesh as it were fire. Ye have heaped treasure together for the last days.

That word "cankered" means that the best your riches will ever do for you, is to provide corruption.

That word "rust" is what happens to metals such as steel or iron, but the same Greek word used here can also mean the poisonous venom that is emitted by a serpent.

It is hard to have a good testimony and be very rich, if you have not used those riches to further the "Gospel" of Jesus Christ.

It is even harder to have a good testimony if you have lost those riches but still have a great desire for them!

It is that "lust for those riches" that will eat at your flesh and gnaw at your conscience until you have been consumed in your own misery.

Communism began when a certain group of the rich, took advantage of the hopeless poor. And on the backs of these poor they built themselves great riches and in some cases large nations.

By the means of slavery, many men have become rich and prosperous and human trafficking is still prevalent in our world today and it is still about riches.

Even today in what is called democracy and democratic governments, the reality is, that wealth and political influence have concentrated the wealth of the world into the hands of only a small number of multinational power brokers.

It is these men that have more control over the things of this world than we realize!

Even in America, even in an administration that says they are taking from the rich to give to the poor, the super rich have gotten even richer.

The intent of our governments today is not to take away from the rich to help the poor, it is to take away from what is called the middle-class, and make them all poor, while the rich just get richer.

The proof is in the results and not what the politicians say!

These things have always taken place and these things will increase until the time of Christ, when He will put an end to them!

Mar 14:7 "For ye have the poor with you always", and whensoever ye will ye may do them good: but me ye have not always.

But when our Lord returns we also have this promise:

Rev 18:2 And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.
Rev 18:3 For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and "the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies".

Rev 18:11 And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; "for no man buyeth their merchandise any more":

Rev 18:17 For in one hour "so great riches is come to nought". And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off,

Rev 18:20 Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; "for God hath avenged you on her".

There is the sinful Babylon of false religion.

There is the sinful Babylon of those rich who have gotten rich off the backs of innocent people.

Both will fall at the return of Jesus Christ!

*****Jas 5:4 Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth.

That word "behold" means that the things written in the Book of Revelation will come to be true, "as sure as all the Word of God"!

God will avenge all the wrong that has been done to His people!

God will avenge all the wrong that has been done to His creation!

Jesus had these words:

Luk 18:7 And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?

Our God is a righteous God!

God came down from Heaven in the flesh to become our Savior!

Our Savior will return again as Judge and what we look for in a true Judge is "equity".

Psa 94:20 Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?
Psa 94:21 They gather themselves together against the soul of the righteous, and condemn the innocent blood.
Psa 94:22 But the LORD is my defence; and my God is the rock of my refuge.
Psa 94:23 And he shall bring upon them their own iniquity, and shall cut them off in their own wickedness; yea, the LORD our God shall cut them off.

Our God is righteous in all His ways!

2Th 1:6 Seeing it is a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you;
2Th 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,

That Lord of the Sabaoth is in fact the Lord of Hosts!

The Lord Jesus shall be revealed coming from Heaven with His mighty angels and that day gets closer every tick of the clock!

Those that have oppressed the people of God's creation, will be judged!

*****Jas 5:5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter.
Jas 5:6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.

That judgment will come to all who have lived and gained their wealth off the backs of others and ignored the Word of God.

They have lived in luxury on this Earth but there is no luxury in Hell.

They have indulged in wantonness or have made a sport of the way they live.

In other words they take great pleasure in all the evil things they have done!

They have fed off their desires, like beast eat their prey until they can eat no more.

Like sharks, they love the "feeding frenzy" over those less fortunate than themselves!

There are sometimes another reasons for the great wars that we see.

Most all wars have no real winners except for those that financed them and who are the underwriters of those wars.

In our past there have been those that have financed both sides at the same time, not choosing sides but only choosing riches over the death of the masses of people.

This still happens today, there are great riches to be made in every war!

In some wars the truly guilty are those that supply the weapons that have condemned those that are innocent and cannot resist!

God's answer is patience!

*****Jas 5:7 Be patient therefore, brethren, unto the coming of the Lord. Behold, the husbandman waiteth for the precious fruit of the earth, and hath long patience for it, until he receive the early and latter rain.

Just as the farmer must be patient until his crop comes to harvest, the Lord is very patient waiting on His precious fruit!

This is something that we all need to understand!

There are somethings that are just worth waiting for and the Lord sees every "Born Again" child of God as "one worth waiting for"!

There is great joy in the presence of angels in Heaven at every salvation!

It has now been over 2000 years since the Lord Jesus went to prepare our place.

He knows exactly how many places to prepare and He is truly waiting on those to fill those mansions.

Not one home in Heaven will be unoccupied!

Not one home will ever be sold or up for rent!

Someday soon the last part of the Body of Christ will be saved and the Church will be complete and we will all go to our new home in Heaven!

As the Lord is patient until this time we need also to be patient!

*****Jas 5:8 Be ye also patient; stablish your hearts: for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh.

We are living in sin, "if we do not live expecting the Lord to come at any time"!

We should know that the Lord Himself prays for each of us and this is one of His prayers as He prayed for Peter!

Luk 22:32 But I have prayed for thee, "that thy faith fail not": and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.

Our time to go home draws closer every moment that passes!

The Lord will make all things right when He comes in "judgment"!

*****Jas 5:9 Grudge not one against another, brethren, lest ye be condemned: behold, the judge standeth before the door.

What are the signs of impatience? To "grudge", is to murmur, and groan and express your feelings against those that oppress the Church.

When we do these things it will affect our testimony and if one soul is lost because of our actions we will face that judgment also, at the judgment seat of Christ!

The eyes of the Lord are on every thing that has been done to us and is being done to His Church but His eyes are also on us in any wrongdoing!

If we study the Word of God and listen to it's truth, and see the things that are going on in our world, we should have no doubt that our "Judge is standing before the door", prepared to come to us at any time!

We are not the only ones who have seen hard times!

*****Jas 5:10 Take, my brethren, the prophets, who have spoken in the name of the Lord, for an example of suffering affliction, and of patience.

"My Brethren", means all God's people, and we should know that all those that have spoken in the name of the Lord are our examples of others who have suffered.

Heb 11:36 And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:
Heb 11:37 They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;
Heb 11:38 (Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
Heb 11:39 And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
Heb 11:40 God having provided some better thing for us, that they without us should not be made perfect.

Though some may be able, not many of us can say we have suffered as these mentioned in the Book of Hebrews.

These are our examples for suffering affliction.

The Bible never says that God's people will never suffer!

These that gone before, are our example in suffering and also our example in patience!

And God says those that do not believe, those that trust the world, are not even worthy of one child of God left behind to tell them about Jesus.

We are all a part of God's "Grace" to the unbeliever when we follow in the ways of Jesus Christ!

*****Jas 5:11 Behold, we count them happy which endure. Ye have heard of the patience of Job, and have seen the end of the Lord; that the Lord is very pitiful, and of tender mercy.

God saved each of us for a specific purpose and God knows what is best for each of us to fulfill that purpose!

Not many will ever prosper and be much help to others if they have had an easy life!

We will never realize what a good day is all about, until we have actually had a bad day.

True happiness comes from enduring what "has to be" endured!

To be a Christian is to be like Jesus Christ and Christ "had to endure" all the things that happened to Him in order to bring joy, first to Himself, and then for us.

Heb 12:2 Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; "who for the joy that was set before him" endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.

What does endurance look like?

Act 8:32 The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, "so opened he not his mouth":

All things were created by the Lord Jesus and we know that "God spoke" our world into existence.

But when He could have stopped His own death, He endured all these things and "opened not His mouth" and He did this for you and I.

We read many things in the Bible, such as the patience of Job, to encourage us in our bad times but we seem to forget the perfect example of our Lord as He endured death so that we can live and live forever!

Job was a real person and the story of Job is a real story and Job did have much to endure but after these things, then Job had real joy.

The Lord Jesus had much to endure and then came His joy for our Salvation!

When we endure the things of this world we should remember the absolute "joy" that is soon coming for all those that love the Lord.

And there are other things we need to do.

*****Jas 5:12 But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.

We must remember that as Christ Jesus endured the all the things that led Him to the cross, He also opened not His mouth!

We should remember there are no victories in Jesus until there are battles!

Blessings can come while we are in our trials but the greater blessings will come after we have endured that trial!

When we become impatient in our trials and temptations, it first noticed in our speech and then in our ways.

It is easy to say things that we do not mean, when we are suffering!

The Jews would swear often to back up the statements they had made but they were very careful not to blaspheme God in their swearing.

They would swear by heaven or by earth or even Jerusalem, but James teaches us all that all these things were created by the Lord and "it is impossible" to avoid swearing by God in any oath.

It is always better to just say yes when the answer is yes and no when the answer is no!

Even Jesus said to speak more than these things, is sin!

Mat 5:37 But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: "for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil".

So what is the best way to use our tongues? Prayer!

We may think that we are nourished by the food we eat and it is important.

But the absolute best use of our mouths are in prayer!

*****Jas 5:13 Is any among you afflicted? let him pray. Is any merry? let him sing psalms.

When we find ourselves in the furnace, the most important thing we can do is pray!

Heb 4:14 Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
Heb 4:15 For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.
Heb 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

It was the cross of Jesus that tore down the barrier that was between us and God.

There is not any part of the day that we cannot go to the Lord in prayer!

We have no set times as some do, that we can reach out to the Lord. Our God is available 24 hours a day and 7 days a week.

To be afflicted is to suffer from some difficult things in our life.

These are things that come not by our own sin, but by the things that we must go through in this life.

We are not to grumble and complain!

We are not to blame the Lord or anyone else!

"We are" to go to the only One who can help and that is our God in prayer!

This is the time to pray and not put it off!

Even Paul prayed that God would change his circumstances but God just gave Paul more "grace".

The Lord Jesus prayed, if there could be another way than to be separated from His Father for even one moment but God gave Jesus more strength.

And while you are going through your troubles there will always be others who are not!

If we are not down in the valley of transgression and are on the mountain top then we need to be singing Psalms of praise!

BUT, it is the "mature" Christian who can sing Psalms of praise and pray "while he is yet suffering those afflictions"!

Anyone can sing after their troubles are over!

It is through our prayers and our songs that we can worship our Lord!

This is what true worship is all about!

What songs should we sing?

Col 3:16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in "psalms and hymns and spiritual songs", singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.

The Bible teaches us much about prayer and when we sing we need to be singing?

We need to be singing, Psalms, Hymns, and Spiritual Songs!

*****Jas 5:14 Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord:
Jas 5:15 And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

It would be a rare thing to find a congregation that gathered that did not have someone who was sick in some way among them.

The Greek word "astheneo" is used here and it means to be feeble, diseased, sick, or weak.

No doubt that this person should also be praying for themselves in closet prayer!

Mat 6:6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Today this person would also ask to be put on a prayer list at his place of worship.

But James says to also call on those that have been Christians for a long time, the elders in the Church, and not so much the novices, who are new converts.

1Ti 3:5 (For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God?)
1Ti 3:6 "Not a novice", lest being lifted up with pride he fall into the condemnation of the devil.

These would be men who have been through many trials and temptations and would have experienced many blessings of the Lord and had followed and lived by the Word of God!

Pro 4:10 Hear, O my son, and "receive my sayings; and the years of thy life shall be many".

These would be men who had "the gift and the grace of prayer" but they could also offer a word of counsel and advice.

It is true that in the time of the Apostles that they and some few others, had the gift of healing but James is not saying this in this passage.

When the Lord healed and the Apostles healed the results were instantaneous, the were complete, and they were permanent.

They were also unconditional and each one had a purpose!

And these healings were always secondary to the Word of God!

Luk 9:6 And they departed, and went through the towns, "preaching the gospel, and healing every where".

The preaching came before the healing!

The "gift of healing" terminated once the New Testament was written!

There was no further need for the "gift of healing" and there are no more Apostles.

God now responds to the prayers of His children "at His own will and for His own purpose" but He will still respond!

We should also remember that even in the day of James and Paul, God chose not to heal everyone.

Timothy was a preacher of the Gospel but Timothy was not healed:

1Ti 5:23 Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities.

The Apostle Paul prayed to be healed 3 times but God would not heal Paul:

2Co 12:8 For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me.
2Co 12:9 And he said unto me, "My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness". Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

This is the same answer that is given the most today!

God's "Grace" must be sufficient enough for us to get through the trials of life!

In the day of James, oil was one of the few medicines that existed, and to be anointed with oil and the laying on of the hands are symbolic of the "healing power of God" and a sign of seeking the divine "Grace of God".

In other words "let them use oil who can by their prayers obtain recovery for the sick".

All healing then and now, are by the hand of God!

No human possesses the gift and the power to heal!

How do we know this?

*****Jas 5:15 And "the prayer of faith shall save the sick", and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him.

It is not the oil, it is not the laying on of the hands, nor is it any medicine that heals and saves, It Is The Prayer Of Faith!

And it is by the will of God and and the purpose of God that all prayers are answered!

The sick cannot be raised up unless the Lord raises them up!

The lost cannot be saved unless they are saved by the Lord!

Sins cannot be forgiven unless they are forgiven by the Lord!

Sin is the greatest sickness in this world we live and God sent His Son to solve that problem!

1Jn 4:10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

And this is also why a prayer of faith is required!

Act 16:30 And brought them out, and said, Sirs, what must I do to be saved?
Act 16:31 And they said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved", and thy house.

Prayer is the key to life on this Earth!

And without Prayer in the name of Jesus, you will never make it to Heaven!

*****Jas 5:16 Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much.

To confess means a full, a frank, and an open confession!

If we have sinned against any person, then we need also to forgive them!

Mat 6:14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

We must pray for each other, and not to some priest as Rome insists!

Pro 28:13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: "but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy".

We must intercede for one another because we have a Savior who intercedes for us all!

Jesus Christ's intercession restores us to fellowship with God when that fellowship is broken through sin!

1Jn 2:1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
1Jn 2:2 And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.

To pray for one another is also some of the "good works" that come from a "saving faith"!

That word "availeth" means "the profit of"!

The effectual fervent prayer is a prayer that profits!

This is not just a prayer from someone.

This is the prayer of someone who is justified by the righteousness of Jesus Christ, and has the truth of God's "Grace" within him.

Tit 2:11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
Tit 2:12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
Tit 2:13 "Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ";
Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

This is the "Grace" that saves and also the "Grace" that heals!

If you are not looking for that blessed hope, the appearing of the great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, then do not expect much from your prayers nor your prayer life!

It is this one thing that can energize our prayers above all other things!

It is this one thing that makes for fervent prayers!

Elijah was such a man.

*****Jas 5:17 Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months.
Jas 5:18 And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.

When the rain stopped it was because Elijah prayed, and it was by the hand of God!

The systems that make rain, put in place by the creating hand of God,were still in place but all God's creation is still under His direct control.

Luk 8:25 And he said unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to another, What manner of man is this! "for he commandeth even the winds and water, and they obey him".

Pro 30:4 Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? "who hath established all the ends of the earth"? what is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou canst tell?
Pro 30:5 Every word of God is pure: he is a shield unto them that put their trust in him.

There are many great wonders of nature but "they are all" under the absolute control of our supernatural God!

God can answer any prayer at any time because it is He who sits on the throne of His Own Creation!

All prayers that meet God's conditions will be answered!

*****Jas 5:19 Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him;
Jas 5:20 Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and "shall hide a multitude of sins".

What is one good reason for "soul winning"?

There will be at that point in time, less sin in our world!

The more souls saved, the less sin in our world!

What is the truth?

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Too many churches have erred from this truth!

Jesus Christ is the "only way" to our Father in Heaven!

Jesus Christ is "the truth" of what we will find in the Father when we get to Heaven!

Col 2:9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

Jesus Christ is all the life that can be given to us from our Father in Heaven!

1Jn 5:20 And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know him that is true, and we are in him that is true, even in his Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and eternal life.

When we can incite others to come to the Lord Jesus Christ for all their needs, we are completing the Will of God in our lives that we live for Jesus!

Every soul that is saved is one less soul that will never see spiritual death!

This will complete our study in the Book of James.

Next week we will look at some things in the Book of 1 Thessalonians.

Questions?

Let's Pray!