James 1:19-21 (AD 48) [This and the next devotional are out of synch – for some reason I skipped James 1:19-27 as I went through the letter, so I’m returning only now to those verses.] Before my time, it was common for parents to literally wash their children’s mouths out with soap as punishment for … More Day 180: Potty Mouth
James 5:13-20, part 2 (AD 48) “My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring that person back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of their way will save them from death an cover over a multitude of sins.” (v.19) Wandering has stages, and … More Day 179: Be the Fellow-Traveller You Want to Have in the World
James 5:13-20 (AD 48) Twelve years ago I was in bed, counting the specks of dust on the ceiling for about a week, after a very bad back spasm due to inflamed disks between my vertebrae, touching the nerve. Half-way through that hideous week a young man from the church turned up in my bedroom, … More Day 178: The Prayer of Faith, Part 1
James 5:7-12 (AD 48) God didn’t command patience because it seemed, in an abstract way, like a holy thing to be. Verse 7 says, “Be patient, then…” [emphasis mine]. James’s train of logic was, ‘given what I’ve just said, you should be patient’. Christians were being oppressed by selfish and corrupt rich people, and there … More Day 177: Be patient
James 5:1-6 (AD 48) “There is a special place in hell reserved for…” Ever used that phrase? Ever heard it? It’s saying that there are terrible people who deserve hell, but the kind of person who deserves the worst kind of hell is… Some people think there is a special place in hell reserved for … More Day 176: “There is a special place in hell reserved for…”
James 4 (AD 48) Some Christians claim that their decision-making, attitudes and opinions are always correct and always good because they have the Holy Spirit living in them. God – via James – disagrees. Other Christians become despondent when they feel a weight of ungodly desires and attitudes. They imagine that if they were better, … More Day 175: Desires that Battle Within
Paul T Reynolds 