"Be Ready," A Study on Preparation

This past week was one that was especially difficult for many people because of the pain and loss brought on by the sudden death of loved ones. I am taking this week to address the issue of "being ready" for the Lord's call. Death never announces when it will come. It can come suddenly, at any moment. It can come after a long, drawn out illness. Even with an illness, we never know when death shall take hold. Many a family has sat at the bedside of a loved one for days, weeks and even months, knowing the end shall come but not knowing when it will happen. We think it will be today and it isn't. We think this breath will be the last but it is followed by another. Yet at the same time, there is the person who is in the middle of every day actions who dies suddenly in an accident, from a heart attack or from some unknown event that takes their life. So what do we do?

We turn our attention to what we do as we live each day.

Mark 13:32 But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.

1. Jesus is here talking about the return of the Son of Man on the Last Day. We do not know when that will take place. At the same time, we can apply this to the day of death. We do not know when that day will take place. What concerns do this raise for you? Why does not knowing cause you such concern?




Mark 13:33 Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when the time will come. 34 It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his servants in charge, each with his work and commands the doorkeeper to stay awake. 35 Therefore stay awake - for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or when the rooster crows, or in the morning - 36 lest he come suddenly and find you asleep. 37 And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.


2. When you read this section, what do you think about? Do you think about the Last Day? Or do you think about the moment when each one of us will die?





3. What does it mean to "be on guard" or "keep awake"?





4. We are talking about living in the faith each day. What do you find the hardest thing about living in that faith?




1 Corinthians 16:13 Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong.

5. Here Paul is giving guidance to us as to how we should go about our lives. What does Paul say that we should stand firm in? Why does he not just say "stand firm"?




Philippians 1:27 Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel.

Philippians 4:1 Therefore, my brothers, whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord, my beloved.

6. Notice what Paul is saying to do: stand firm in the gospel, in the Lord, in the One that saves. He says to live the life of the Christian but that is not what saves us. Only faith saves. Now, here is where it gets to be a challenge. If you die while at work, will you be saved? If you die in a car accident, will you be saved? If you die at home, sleeping, will you be saved? If you die while you are doing something wrong, will you be saved? If you die from having drunk to much or misused a drug, will you be saved? If you die while eating, will you be saved?





7. Having said all this, the question remains, "How are you ready for that moment?" How do you answer that question?




Philippians 1:21 For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. 22 If I am to live in the flesh, this means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall chose I cannot tell. 23 I am hard pressed between the two.

8. I bring this to you as we close as a way of showing the challenge of the Christian life. We live in the tension between the "here and now" and the "there and then." We live here and now in faith. We live each day, doing the daily things: work, play, mundane things, wonderful and unusual things. As we do those, we live in faith. Yet, we know that at any moment, death can come. The call from the Lord may happen. We are ready as we live in Christ each day.


9. Are you ready? If you were to die today, are you ready?





____________________________________________
1A. This is a very personal issue. One person is greatly concerned over the fact that they don't know when the end will come. Another finds it great comfort in not knowing. There is no right or wrong with this issue. Often we are most concerned about this because we are not in control. We like to be in control of what happens to our lives. When things are out of our control, when we cannot plan for what is going to happen, that causes us to become upset. Control - we want it and yet, when it comes to the moment of death, we have no real control.

2A. Jesus is not just talking about the day when He will come again on the clouds, with the trumpet call, with the voice of the archangel. He is also talking to us about being ready for the day when the call comes to each one personally, the day when we face death. We don't like to talk about death. It scares us. It overwhelms us. It is the most "unknown" of all things. We cannot control it or predict it. Here, Jesus is talking to us about both the Last Day and our last day (when we die).

3A. "To be on guard" and "keep awake" or meaning the same thing. What Jesus is saying to us is that in all that we do, we are to remain in faith. To "remain in faith" means that your faith in Jesus Christ is a part of who you are each day. It does NOT mean that you need to be in church all the time nor does it mean that you need to be reading the Bible all the time. It means that the faith implanted in your through the waters of Baptism, nourished through Word and Sacrament, is in your heart and guides your life.

4A. Often times, the hardest thing about living in the faith is that we try to prove that we are Christian. We make the "being ready" about how good we act or what sinful things we avoid. At that moment, what we are doing is placing the burden on our actions. The problem with that is that our actions are never good enough. We can never be sure that we have done enough good or avoided enough sin to be ready. At that moment, we are making our salvation based upon our works or to put it another way, based upon the Law. The issue with that is that the Law never saves. It only condemns. We are not ready by doing good or avoiding evil. We are ready ONLY as we are in the grace and mercy of God, living in the Gospel based entirely upon our Savior Jesus Christ, His life, death and resurrection. "Being ready" is not a work that we do, but that which the Holy Spirit does with in us.

5A. We stand firm in the faith. This means that we stand in Christ, not in ourselves. It is only faith in Jesus Christ that saves, not the actions which we do as Christians. Yes, those actions are important to do. (as James points out in James 2:18  But someone will say, "You have faith and I have works." Show me your faith apart from works, and I will show you my faith by my works. We will get to this later as we continue our study of James.) We stand in Christ. We rely upon Christ. We trust in Christ. We believe in Christ. It is all about Christ, the salvation He brings to us. We stand firm in Christ, in faith not in ourselves.

6A. The answer to this is not found in that which you are doing - be it good or bad. The answer is found in the question, "Do you believe in Jesus as your Savior?" Only faith in Christ saves, not the actions we are doing at the moment of death. "Being ready" means that we are living in faith in all that we do, period. Faith in Christ saves. 

7A. I am ready through faith in Jesus Christ. I do not make faith a work. It is a gift given to me by the Holy Spirit. Each day I believe in Jesus. Through faith in Christ I am ready for the moment of my death. 

9A. In this question, I am not asking if you want to die right now. I am asking if you believe in Jesus as your Lord and Savior. Through faith in Christ, empowered by the Spirit, you are ready.

Lessons for Life from James 1:19-27 Doer or Hearer?

James

Lessons for Life

James little letter is a great one to help us as we try to live our lives as Christians. Many people will ask, “Now that I am a Christian, how do I go about living my life?” James answers many of those questions by giving us guidance on how to live out that faith that we have been given. It is for that reason that this series of studies is entitled “Lessons for Life.”

Come along and join us as we learn some of these lessons. Do you have questions? Do you have comments? Be sure to post them so that we can discuss them. This is by no means the end to all the questions that we have in our lives of faith.

James 1:19 “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.”

1.      James is address you as a Christian (beloved brother). He gives 3 things that a Christian is called upon to do here. What are those three things?

a.        

b.       

c.        

2.      In those three things, which do you find easier to do? Which is most difficult? Why do you think that is?

3.      In Romans 7, Paul talks about how we live our lives as Christians. Romans 7:15  For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Why do you think Paul says this? Do you think that it applies to you and the way you live your life?

4.      “Put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness…” What filthiness do you have in your life that you need to put away? What wickedness do you think he is talking about? How might be a part of your life?

5.      What is the “implanted word” that James writes about in vs. 21? How does it become implanted in you?

James 1:22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 25 But the one who looks into the perfect law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.

6.      James gets personal here. Have you ever found that your life is just like this: you hear the Word of God, know how He wants you to live, but you go about not doing it? Where do you have the greatest struggle in being a “doer” and not just a “hearer” of the Word?

7.      Being blessed in our lives comes not because we deserve it, but because of the new life that Christ gives to us through the Word. What blessings do you find yourself receiving because you live in the Word, being a “doer” of the Word?

James 1:26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. 27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

8.      James like to make the connection between faith and action. Here he connects the “unbridled tongue” and faith-filled religion. How do you see this connection? How do you put the two together?

9.      James uses orphans and widows here because they are ones that are in great need. He is encouraging the reader to consider his/her heart and faith in conjunction with the actions of life. Do they match? Do yours?

1A. We are to be 1) quick to hear, 2) slow to speak, and 3) slow to anger.

2A. The answer to this is something you must struggle with in your life.  Each of them is difficult. Listening to others is a challenge. We go through workshops and classes that teach us how to be an “active listener.” Imagine that! We have to be taught to listen. Too often, we open our mouths and begin talking even before we know what the situation is or what is going on. Anger? In today’s world, anger runs rampant. Look at the news. When did you ever hear about a fight breaking out in an airport because flights are cancelled? How often do you hear about “road rage”? Quick to become angry. Why? SIN. Our fallen nature makes it easier to do that which is wrong rather than that which is right.

3A. Remember, he is not writing to unbelievers but to believers. He is not writing about himself before he became a Christian, but after he became a Christian.

4A. When James writes about “filthiness and wickedness,” he is talking about immoral actions and lifestyles. The Christian in today’s world is challenged to be morally pure in an immoral world. Living together outside of marriage, accepted by society, stands in opposition to the will of God for the life of a man and a woman. Gender identity issues which is not only accepted in society today but is also encouraged and supported, stand opposed to the sexual identity which God has bestowed upon each person. The Christian is challenged by this each day as he/she tries to live as Christ wants them to live. Not only is he/she challenged by society, he/she is challenged by his/her own sinful nature. Paul writes, “For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.” Romans 7:18b

5A. The implanted word is that which comes to us form outside of ourselves, most notably the Word of God. It isn’t that we plant that into ourselves but it is implanted in us by the Holy Spirit. Here we can look at the Parable of the Sower (Mark 4:1-9, 14-20) Jesus says, “The sower sows the word…” As the seed does not sow itself, so the Word do not sow itself but the Holy Spirit sows it as we read, mark, learn and take the Word to heart within our lives. That Word is implanted in us and then grows in our lives as it is nourished regularly.

6A. I think about the mirror analogy that James uses. I get dressed in the morning. I know what I put on but then I don’t think about it. Later in the day, I see my reflection in the mirror and I am like “Wow. I forgot I had that on.” Is that how I live my Christian life? Do I hear the Word of God, have it “implanted” in my heart and life, and then go through the day not “doing” that Word? How many times do I let society, friends, or myself lead to me live another way than that which the Word says? Am I a “doer” or a “hearer.” James is challenging the Christian to be a doer in their lives. Today, I get the feeling that we would prefer to remain “hearers” more than “doers” because it is just easier to live our lives.

7A. Here again, the answer is something that you must look for in your life. It is different for each of us as we live out our lives in Christ.

8A. The unbridled tongue is like a horse given its head and allowed to run without any guidance at all. It would be difficult at best and impossible at worst to ride that horse. So a religion that does not show itself in action, James would say is not a living religion. He will revisit this issue again in the next chapter.

9A. Faith and life are to mesh. Here is an opportunity to take a good look at how you are living your life of faith. James will keep doing that to you. These “lessons for life” are often very challenging. 

Lessons for Life from James 1:9-12

James

Lessons for Life

James little letter is a great one to help us as we try to live our lives as Christians. Many people will ask, “Now that I am a Christian, how do I go about living my life?” James answers many of those questions by giving us guidance on how to live out that faith that we have been given. It is for that reason that this series of studies is entitled “Lessons for Life.”

Come along and join us as we learn some of these lessons. Do you have questions? Do you have comments? Be sure to post them so that we can discuss them. This is by no means the end to all the questions that we have in our lives of faith.

James 1:9 “Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, 10. and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. 11. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits.

1. The lowly are in a high position and the high are in a lowly position. Sound really crazy until you put that with the words of Jesus in Luke 6:20-22.  When you read this, what do you think James is trying to say?

2. How does that challenge you in the way that you live your life?  What do you boast about in your life? Do you let the things or actions of your life guide you, exalt you?

3. What is the challenge that “poor” people have in their lives? What is the challenge that “rich” people have in their lives?

James 1:12 “Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial, for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.”

4.      Here I would ask you to turn to Psalm 1. There we read: “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous; for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.” What does it mean to be “blessed”?

5.      What does it mean to stand the “test”? What is James pointing out to the Christian?

6.      Will the life of the Christian be an “easy” life? What “trials” do you face as you go through each day? Are those unique to you? What are some that are the same for all believers? What are some that would be unique for different people?

1A. James seems to be talking about the same thing that Jesus spoke of in Luke. There Jesus points out that it isn’t the things of this world that makes us before the Father in heaven. It is the faith that we have in Jesus Christ that places us in a position of honor before the Father. This is not the same as the “honor” that we see here on earth. That honor is as the grass of the field, it is here today and gone tomorrow. The heat of this life (the sun beating down) causes such honor to wither and fade. The only true honor is that which is found in humbling oneself before the Lord Jesus Christ.

2A. Here it is personal. At times I can boast about being a pastor, and yet when I do that, I find that the focus is no longer on my Lord Jesus Christ. All that I do, all that I say, is to point others to my Lord and not to me. Like John the Baptist, I say, “I must decrease so that He can increase.” I need to stand out of the way of the message of the Gospel.

3A. There are times when the “poor” wear it as a badge of honor. They point to it and say to the Christian, “You HAVE to help me because I am poor. God says so.” In doing so, the focus is upon the self and not upon the message, the life in Christ or the Savior Himself. At other times, the rich get caught up in their riches and lose sight of their Savior because they have all that they need in this life. Both poor and rich are challenged by their position in life. Which is better? Neither. The best position is the one that lives in Christ Jesus and not in self (rich or poor).

4A. To be “blessed” can mean a variety of things within different contexts. As James is writing, he is making the connection with being “content, serene and confident that God is in control of the world.”  This is a blessing that comes to the believer through faith in Jesus Christ. The next words of the verse show that it is a challenge to live in that way in a fallen, sinful world.

5A. “Test” means that your faith is refined as gold in fire. Faith is challenged at each turn. It is challenged by the devil tempting you in a variety of ways. It is also tested when the world around you brings those temptations and challenges to your faith. But probably one of the most challenging tests comes from your sinful nature which tries to find ways around the life of Christ. The Christian struggles with temptation in his life. He might point out that pornography is wrong for people, that it degrades both men and women and destroys the gift of sexuality that God has given to men and women. Then he opens his copy of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition. The woman might say how wrong it is for women to get involved in an adulterous affair and then open the romance novel in order to immerse herself in that which she is missing in her marriage. The sinful self tests each of us at just about any turn.

James is bringing forward that which John the evangelist will write about in the Revelation. There, in that last book of the Bible, the Christian sees what it means to stand the “test” for he/she will find that there are many ways to be challenged and how important it is to stand firm. John will write: “Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to throw some of into prison, that you may be tested, and for ten days you will have tribulation. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life.” Revelation 2:10

6A. Here this is quite up to you to figure out an answer. What I face might not be what you face. As a man, you and I will face some similar challenges. As a man, I will not face the same challenges that you will face as a woman. As a father, I will face some of the same challenges that others fathers face but not what mothers face. You can apply this into all the difference vocations that we have in our lives.