James lesson 19 draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to you

19
3/16/10

8 draw nigh to God and He will draw nigh to you
vv 4: 5-10

viii “the test of worldly indulgence”(part two)

In v5 we come upon another intriguing term: “pneuma” (spirit), which has resulted in much discussion down through the centuries 5Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy?
Spirit:
G4151
ðíå™ìá


From G4154; a current of air, that is, breath (blast) or a breeze; by analogy
or figuratively a spirit, that is, (human) the rational soul, (by implication) vital
principle, mental disposition, etc., or (superhuman) an angel, daemon, or (divine)
God, Christ’s spirit, the Holy spirit:—ghost, life, spirit (-ual, -ually), mind.
Compare G5590.
[brief discussion “western” ,orthodox Christianity:
1. Trinity
o I AM Exodus, John, etc
o Nicea
o One God
o Non-orthodox
2. Two natures of Christ
3. Brief discussion of typical heresies
4. Paraclete
5. Father]
Solution for conflicts
• James began this letter with 1: 1James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, where he recognizes the existence of God (the Father) and the Deity of Christ. Now, Does James complete the Trinity; does he mean the Holy Spirit here in v5? If so, this is the only time he makes any allusion to any doctrine of, or any reference to, Pneumatology – or does he mean the spirit of life God breathed into us described in Gen. 2: 7? The church was in its infancy; there is no evidence of any serious consideration of the interaction of the “Trinity”, particularly as to the function of the Holy Ghost; the development of the doctrine of Pneumatology began several years later. as quoted above, James started the letter recognizing the Deity of Christ (vv1:1) and of our having been “begat” by “the word of truth” (vv1: 18) with no allusion to the Trinity; the interaction, relationship of the Holy Ghost, “Pneumatology” with mankind is apparently not a significant factor in James thinking. We have to keep in mind that this is the first book of the canon, written before any of the others; in James we are studying the embryonic church. James must mean “Scripture” overall as this quotation does not correspond to any specific OT.
• V6 , unlike a couple of the preceding verses, is very clear: “God resisteth the proud”, whereas He gives grace to the humble. The requirement is that we submit humbly to God’s will; the solution to the bitter infighting among believers is a humble spirit which is rewarded by god’s grace.

Resisteth:
G498
PíôéôÜóóïìáé


From G473 and the middle of G5021; to range oneself against, that is,
oppose:—oppose themselves, resist.
“Resisteth” as used here has a military sense “to battle against”. Counterpoised against this is “giveth grace unto the humble: a humble spirit is the cure for conflict and is rewarded by God’s grace. Either way, human spirit or Holy Spirit, the message is to humble ones self, to shun pride, and submit to God’s will. A humble spirit erases conflict and is rewarded by God.
From judgment to justice
James now shows how God requires a humble spirit - we are not judges - God is the only judge! The recipients of his letter must have been having problems with conflict and jealousy, which led to them judging and condemning one another. God requires justice, not judgment and only He can administer it. In vv 7 – 9 James gives a list of commands, exercises, which if followed, will lead to repentance and peace, both corporate and personal; without this true repentance, conversion will be stillborn.
• V7 calls for us to line up under, “submit”. This is another military term used to describe soldiers under the authority of their superiors. It’s used in the NT describing Jesus submission to his parents authority (Luke 2: 51), and as slaves submission to their masters (Titus 2: 9 etc) James is describing a willing commitment, complete surrender, to God’s influence in ones life. Although there were apparently conflicts within the community that had to be dealt with, James called for his readers to first and continually submit to God. The second part of this verse tells his readers to resist the Devil. Without “He who lives in us” this is a deadly dangerous thing to do. Satan is described as the highest angel…”resist means “to take a stand against; we are either “standing with” Christ or with Satan (John 8:44; Eph 2: 2;1 John 3: 8; 5: 19; etc). If our allegiance is with God. Satan will flee from us.
• V8, if we will draw nigh to god He will draw nigh to us, however, this drawing nigh demands “cleansing.” In the Judaic tradition and Law there is many specific ritual washings required, all of James readers would have grasped the full spiritual import of this statement, it isn’t like a literal washing your hands before you eat for sanitary or ceremonial reasons but a spiritual cleansing, as you must be “clean” to approach God; in this case humble, repentant, and in complete submission. (Ex 30: 19-20). where washing ones hands symbolizes external cleanliness, “purify your hearts”, applies to the inward “lusts”, thoughts desires (Ps 24: 3, 4;Jer.4:4; etc)
• The recognition of the need for cleansing removes all inclination towards merriment; grieve, mourn, wail. A complete acknowledgement of one’s true nature will not bring anything other than mourning. God will not reject or turn away from a truly humble, contrite over sin, broken heart. (Ps. 51: 17; 2Cor, 7: 10 ) the word “laughter” is used only here in the NT, it signifies the cynical, flippant arrogant, laughter of foolish rebellious people, indulging in worldly pleasures. (Luke 18: 13,14)
• V10 gives us our Hope: humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up!

My utmost for his Highest:

• March 15
The Discipline of Dismay
“As they followed they were afraid” (Mark 10:32).
At the beginning of our life with Jesus Christ, we were sure we knew all there was to know about following Him. It was a delight to forsake everything else and to throw ourselves before Him in a fearless statement of love. But now we are not quite so sure. Jesus is far ahead of us and is beginning to seem different and unfamiliar—“Jesus was going before them; and they were amazed” (10:32).
There is an aspect of Jesus that chills even a disciple’s heart to its depth and makes his entire spiritual life gasp for air. This unusual Person with His face set “like a flint” (Isaiah 50:7) is walking with great determination ahead of me, and He strikes terror right through me. He no longer seems to be my Counselor and Friend and has a point of view about which I know nothing. All I can do is stand and stare at Him in amazement. At first I was confident that I understood Him, but now I am not so sure. I begin to realize that there is a distance between Jesus and me and I can no longer be intimate with Him. I have no idea where He is going, and the goal has become strangely distant.
Jesus Christ had to understand fully every sin and sorrow that human beings could experience, and that is what makes Him seem unfamiliar. When we see this aspect of Him, we realize we really don’t know Him. We don’t recognize even one characteristic of His life, and we don’t know how to begin to follow Him. He is far ahead of us, a Leader who seems totally unfamiliar, and we have no friendship with Him.
The discipline of dismay is an essential lesson which a disciple must learn. The danger is that we tend to look back on our times of obedience and on our past sacrifices to God in an effort to keep our enthusiasm for Him strong (see Isaiah 50:10–11). But when the darkness of dismay comes, endure until it is over, because out of it will come the ability to follow Jesus truly, which brings inexpressibly wonderful joy. (Oswald)








DISCUSSION

• What does James mean with his use of “spirit”?
• What is God’s attitude towards “pride”?
• What does James mean by “humble”?
• Why should we weep and mourn?
• What promise are we given in this section?
•







20