Bible Study June 3, 2020

Well, then you want to get into James here? Well, we'll start talking about James, and certainly, you know, I invite anyone as we go through the chapter here. We're going to be looking at Chapter 5 today, and I'll be up front with you. There is so much in Chapter 5 that I just don't know if we're going to be able to get through it all, you know, this afternoon. So we might have another study, and I don't think it would be bad for us to wrap up James too with our recap, you know, of everything we've talked about in here, because again, James is, you know, it's such a deep book, and it speaks to the scattered tribes of Israel, but he speaks to those of us who have been around a while, and to those who have been around a short while in the church as well, to remind us, you know, you may think you've got things done, but think about this.

Are you where Jesus Christ wants you to be? And we always have to be pressing toward that goal that God has for us, and also be looking at measuring, you know, measuring ourselves against the stature of Jesus Christ. Not better than the world, and not comparing ourselves to others, but comparing ourselves to Christ, and looking at these things that James talks about, you know, we talked about partiality, we talked about the tongue, you know, I think that's, you know, James has stepped over all of our feet in some of those areas that we've talked about at the end of chapter four, you know, he goes into covetousness, and how when we have fights, and we have warring among us, speaking from nations, and speaking of individual people, when we have these disagreements, and we, you know, put our foot down and say it's got to be our way, it has to be what we want, we may not understand and have looked into ourselves enough to see, wow, it's our pride, it's our desire, not what God wills, but, you know, what our will is, is that's coming to the fore in this.

And we've got to be on lookout for that, that it is God's will that's done, and not always be looking to plead our case, and insist on our case, you know, we read in Peter about submitting yourselves to one another.

It is God's church, you know, and all of us are in his church, and he's working with us, we all have things that we still have to work on in our lives. We have to be aware all the time of, of the things that we do, and how we're doing it, and letting God perfect us. It's, it's a process that goes on through the rest of our lives. Yeah, I mentioned on Pentecost about, you know, numbering our years, and Moses says in Psalm 90, you know, teach us to number our years.

Let us, let us kind of know where we are, what's the progress we're doing. And James is a good book to be looking at in reference to that. Where are we? Where are we really, personally, and, and, and ask God to, to help us do that. So, you know, so last week we, we covered chapter four, at the end of chapter four, excuse me, the end of chapter four, you know, verse 17 starts with a therefore.

So James is wrapping up that section of what he's talking about before he goes on in his letter to the next section. And there he has some, you know, things at the end of it. We talked about lamenting and mourning and weeping, you know, just as, as we see ourselves, and as we, we live a sober life, you know, a sober life as we look, as we look at God and not lend ourselves to the cares and the carousing and the laughter of the world and give ourselves to that, but to realize where we are, what we need to be doing.

Not that we should never have fun, not that we should never celebrate, but that can't and shouldn't be what our, our major thing is. It's doing God's will, being where he wants us to be, doing what he wants us to do, and keeping that in mind. And so, you know, we'll go down to chapter five, and James introduces a new, you know, a different section here. He's kind of talked about it, you know, we, we, you know, as we go through James, we see the sections where, you know, now he's going to talk about the rich, and in verse one, come now you rich, he says, and literally he means those who are physically rich, those who have money, those who have wealth.

Now, back in chapter one, we saw him talk about, you know, we saw him talk about those who are rich, you know, and back in verses nine, and in chapter one, where he talks about, you know, the rich that need to be humble, and God's going to work with all of us, right? And sometimes it's the rich who are going to have to be humbled so that they understand the things of God, and the the ones who are humble and have very little, who may find themselves in a time where they, where they receive a lot, and then have to learn what the trials of that is, because if you learn there's a trial during good times that we stay close to God.

Verse one, he's going to introduce a section here that, you know, as I've gone through, that it's thrown a lot of light, you know, I think we're all going to be able to relate to this because no matter how little we think we have, you know, we live in a very rich nation, and we're all very blessed to live here, but let's look at verse one. He says, come now you rich, weep, and howl for your miseries that are coming on you. And so, you know, as we begin chapter five, you look at that, and you remember James, you know, he's back in chapter one of verse 26, he says, if any of you think you are religious, you know, so he's talking to us, and all of us live in a time here, and some of us have more than others, and you know, our lives are comfortable, and he says, come you, come now you rich, weep, and howl for your miseries that are coming on you. Well, again, what he's saying is, you know, God is going to see what's in our hearts. We have, you know, we might have much. Life is very good. We might be able to buy what we want to be. We never miss a meal. We drive nice cars. We live in nice homes. We're able to do the things that we want to do, and, and, you know, we might think that that's all okay, but God, but, but he's also looking to see what's in our heart. How, you know, how are we? What are we doing with those good things that we have, that bounty that we have? Because he gives us riches, and he gives us wealth for a reason, and as we're going to learn, it's not just to consume on ourselves. You know, let's, let's keep your finger there and change, but let's go back to Luke for a second, because, as you know, we, we talk about the things that as James will take us through some of these verses, we go back to Christ's words, and then the Beatitudes, you know, we often turn to, to Matthew 5 to read the Beatitudes, but in, in Luke 6, you know, he, he phrases the same sentiments that Matthew does in Matthew 5 when we turn there, but let's look at Matthew, I'm sorry, Luke 6, and verse 24. You know, he says, woe, woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. You know, you, you've had your good times. You've had your good times. Woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation. Woe to you who are full, for you shall hunger. Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep. You know, so you, you read verses like that. You read what the Bible says. You see what Jesus Christ says, and he's going to learn, you know, what are we like in good times and what are we like in bad times. And, you know, many of us have been able to live to, you know, in, in, in wonderful times and, and, and enjoyed life. And, you know, and had plenty.

God is looking to see how we deal with that. And in James, you know, verse one, it says, weep and howl. Weep and howl for your miseries. Now, we know there's nothing wrong with wealth.

Nothing wrong with it all. God gives blessings. You know, Abraham was a very wealthy man. Isaac was a very wealthy man. Jacob became a very wealthy man. There's nothing wrong with it.

But there is a way we handle it. There is a way our attitude is. And that's what God is talking about, though, the rich, the rich. And as we get into the next few verses of chapter five, we begin to see that. And we're going to see where Christ had some things to say about the very same attitude that James is saying here in a different way. He says at the end of verse one there, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you, that are coming upon you. You know, as I was researching that scripture and looking at some of the commentaries and wondering, well, you know, James wrote his book, you know, they say some say it's one of the earliest letters that were out there, one of the earliest letters, probably after Acts, maybe after Galatians.

You know, how much of that pertained to the Jews back then, as opposed to, you know, for us today? And let me read what Barnes notes says about that verse, about the miseries that are coming upon you. Let me just read what he says. He says, many expositors suppose that this refers to the approaching destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans and to the miseries which would be brought in the siege upon the Jewish people in which the rich would be the peculiar objects of vengeance. They refer to passages in Josephus which describe particularly the sufferings to which the rich were exposed, the searching of their houses by the zealots, and the heavy calamities which came upon them and their families.

But he says, but there is no reason to suppose that the apostle referred particularly to those events, the poor as well as the rich suffered in that siege, and there were no special judgments then brought upon the rich as to show that they were the marked objects of the divine displeasure. Sentiments here expressed by the apostle are not applicable merely to the Jews of his time.

If there is any class of men which has special reason to dread the wrath of God at all times, it is just the class of men here referred to. So we know, you know, the Bible and the words in it, they apply to the people that they were written to then, they apply to us today. There's, you know, there's, you know, what we read the verses in the Bible, we have to look at them and say they apply to us and not just the Jews. That this has been totally fulfilled and we're exempt from this.

And I think Mr. Barnes, you know, strikes a good note for those of us in this, you know, in this day and age. Someone's got their, let me find here. Again, if you want to say something, go ahead and click on your mic and you can speak. Otherwise, if we keep those, it'll keep the static down. So, but he, you know, but this applies and certainly the 21st century, when we look at America and we look at the Israelite nations around the world, we see they have been very, very richly blessed.

And we see, you know, we see the rich, you know, we see the rich in the world around us and the Bible has a lot to say about them. But God is talking to you and I. These, these letters that we write in James are about you and me because you want, you know, you and me, as well as the rest of people living around time. We've got to look at ourselves, what James is saying. And he says, you know, look at the attitude. Look at the attitude you have. You might think you're okay, but let's dig deeper into it. In verse two, he says, your riches, your riches are corrupted and your garments are moth eaten.

Well, he's, he's, he's showing there that, you know, these things are material. You know, our riches are corrupted. Our, our garments are moth eaten. If I can speak, you know, about garments for a moment, you know, back in the day of James and back in the day of Jesus Christ and in people throughout history, garments were a very valuable thing. You know, today we, well, I'll speak for myself, I have way too many clothes.

I could get rid of clothes and get down to, you know, two or three suits, five or six shirts, and that would be an ethical, but we probably all have too many clothes. You know, in Orlando, we always have this boutique each year where we bring our used clothing and there's always a surplus in it.

So we live, surplus of us, and we, we know we live in a time where we all have plenty of clothes and they're easy to get. They weren't so easy to get back in the time of Jesus Christ. They weren't so easy to get back in the time of Samson, and remember one of the things that Samson did. I'll do this for 30, you know, 30 gardens and whatever. So for most of the world to have clothes, you know, that was a thing.

It showed wealth. And if you read through, again, some of the commentaries that talk about what went on during that time, the very wealthy would show off their garments. They would have a lot of garments that were displayed there, and it was a show of wealth to have many garments.

Something we all take for granted today. So when James is talking about here, he is again talking about the materialistically rich, materialistically rich, you know, who, who's chore, I might just, is to become spiritually poor even while there are rich, you know, because as we follow Christ's, you know, commands there. But he's talking about that, you know, even as Christ. Remember when he was being, when they were scourging him, they cast lots for his garments.

That's how valuable those things were today. So he's talking about people who have plenty here, but he talks about riches being corrupted. And again, you look at, you look at the word corrupted, and, and, you know, if you look at the Greek word there, it says it's the only time in the New Testament that this Greek word is used. James used it here. It says it means to cause to rot or to destroy. The reference here is to their hoarded treasures, and the idea is that they had accumulated more than they needed for their own use.

Their riches are corrupted. They're kind of, they're just kind of laying around. They're not being used for anything, and you know how it is if we have things and it's like we're not ever using it, we never look at it. They corrupt. They just kind of wear out after times.

Oh, I haven't looked at that thing in 20 years, and now it's all been sitting in my garage. It's, it's useless. You know, maybe someone else could have used it, but I just kind of kept it there because it was a keepsake or whatever.

And he's saying, your riches, that's what's happened. They've just been sitting around. They've been destroyed just by time and lack of use. You know, I, I'm not a mechanic at all, but I remember my dad saying, and, and, and I read periodically, you know, if you have a car that's just sitting around and you never use it, it's going to just kind of become useless.

You can't say it's going to start up right away. It just, it just wears out. You know, so God is, what he's saying is, you know, your, your riches, the things you have too much, it's just laying around. And so it's, it's rotting, it's being destroyed. Same thing with your garbage. You have so many, they're just being moth-eaten because you never put them on.

They're just sort of sitting there. You have a lot. You have a lot that you've accumulated for yourself, is what he's saying here in verse two. He goes on in verse three, and he even takes it another step further. Your gold and your silver are corroded, and their corrosion will be a witness against you.

Gold and silver, right? Those are, those are valuable things. If all of our, if all of our wealth was in gold and silver, you know, we would, we would think we would be good, good, you know, we would be good stead. Gold will never, it always is going to stand the test of time.

It's never going to wear out, but he says, your gold and silver are corroded. Again, here's what Barnes says about this word corroded. He says, the word rendered, and I think in your old King James, it might even say the word cankered there. The word rendered is cankered. It doesn't occur elsewhere in the New Testament. It properly means to cause, to rust, or to rust out. And we might look at that and say, well, gold and silver never rust. They're not metals or the gold will last forever.

Gold lasts the test of time. Well, I think Barnes, you know, he goes on and he says, you know, he quotes some other commentators here who have, you know, talked about the verse. Let me just, let me just read what he writes about that, because again, he seems to have, he seems to be capturing what the verse means here when James says that. He says, it is true that gold and silver do not properly rust or become oxidized, and they will not be corroded like iron and steel.

But by being kept long in a damp place, they will contract a dark color resembling rust in appearance. I have, I don't have any gold. I don't have any gold that's been sitting around, you know, for decades that, that, that I can say this is exactly what goes on. But he references the, the whoever he's been reading here that, that has told him this. By being kept long in a damp place, because back in those days, right, they didn't have air-conditioned, humidity-controlled environments like we have today, by being kept long in a damp place, they will contract a dark color resembling rust in appearance.

This seems to be the idea in the mind of the Apostle. He speaks of gold and silver as they appear after having long been laid up without use. Long been laid up without use.

Here's a person, if Barnes is right, then it seems to follow the context of what James is saying here that has so much gold and so much silver, he can just kind of lay it sit over there, and it's just sitting there for years, not being touched, doesn't have to be dealt with at all, and it's developed this kind of corroded color. It almost looks like rust because it's just been oxidized, it has the weathering effects on it, and it no longer looks like gold and silver.

So as he talks about these things, you see who he's talking about. He's talking about people that have a surplus of things more than they can use. God has richly blessed them, no doubt about that, and there's nothing wrong with that. But James is going to be, he's taking us in a direction here to say, you know what, those of you who are rich, those of you who find your situation that you have more than you can use, if it's just laying around and not being used for anything, you know, that's who he's talking to. That's who he's talking to here. And he closes verse 3. He says, you've heaped up, well, no, before that, he says it will, your corrosion, their their corrosion will be a witness against you. You know what that means? It means, you know what, if Jesus Christ was to walk into my house today and I had this gold sitting over here, he would look at it and say, you know, you've accumulated, Rick, all this gold and silver, look at it. You can tell, you can tell, you can use any excuse you want, you can use any justification you want. It's been sitting there for years and decades. And don't tell me you've been using it, you had to have it, and your life depended on it because it hasn't been used. You just let it sit there, you just let it sit there. It's a witness against you. There's no excuse. God can see what's going on. And he closes that verse, that sentence then, it's a witness against you and it will eat your flesh like fire.

Now, if we just, you know, if we just stop and think about those words for a moment, you know, James, inspired by God, says, you know, this is, this is the way things are, and this is going to eat your flesh like fire. Now that should get our attention.

And James is trying to get our attention. He's saying, you know what, you've got to look a little deeper. Maybe you think you're very religious, maybe you think you've overcome all these things. But what about this? What about if you have all these things here and, and God, you know, what, what does it, how is He getting our attention to pay attention to what He means when He says, this is going to weep and howl. The lamentation that's going to come upon you, you know, go back and look through lamentations as we read a few weeks ago in Sabbath services. Look at what those people said. That's how you're going to be doing. And He's prepping it and addressing a group of people who may well have been doing everything God has done.

God asks, go to, you know, go to Sabbath every week. Do all the holy days. Pay all their ties. Do everything and think that they're doing okay. Serve in the congregations the way we all should be doing and God expects us to do. But He says, well, what about, what about this? You know, if this is you, if this is you, it's going to eat your flesh like fire. It's going to eat your flesh like fire. You're saying, you know, you're going to rue the day. You're going to rue the day when it comes home to roost about what you've done and how you've lived your life and what you've done with it. So if we just pause there for a moment and think about that, you know, I'm going to turn to a couple verses and then if someone wants to make a few comments, we can. But, you know, at the end of verse 3 there, He says, you've heaped up treasure in the last days. You've heaped up treasure in the last days. So again, if we thought He was just reading or just writing to people in the first century A.D., He kind of tells us, you've deeped up treasure in the last days. You know, so the message is clear to those of us who live in a land that has been so richly blessed. And before I pause, just let's look at a couple of verses here. Let's go back to Romans.

Romans 2. Because Paul addresses this, you know, the same thing that James is talking about.

And he also uses some pretty stern language if we pull out that verse in Romans 2 verse 5 and just look at it. We can see how it correlates to the same sentiment and the same admonition that James is using here in James 5. Romans 2 verse 5 says, but in accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart. Man, look at those words. What are you saying? In accordance with your hardness? And he's writing to the church in Rome. He's writing to church people, not to the world. In accordance with your hardness and your impenitent heart, you are treasuring up for yourself wrath in the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God who will render to each one according to his deeds. So he says, pay attention to what you're treasuring up because, you know, if you've got a hardness of heart that may be, you know, the truth of your characters, you've got an impenitent heart. What are you treasuring? What treasure are you laying up in those days? And of course, if we look at Matthew 6, Matthew 6 and verse 19, I'm sure you all remember Christ's words there. So that, you know, Christ's half-brother James, I'm sure, remembered well and had this in mind when he was writing his letter. He says, don't lay up for yourselves treasures on earth. Don't let that be your primary goal. You know, again, nothing wrong with saving, nothing wrong with having reserves, right? The Proverbs is full of that. We lay up for ourselves things for a rainy day. God's not saying that. He isn't saying have no reserves, don't have anything, you know, in case you have a problem, in case you have, you know, a house problem, a car problem, or anything like that. He's saying there's so much that it isn't even reasonable to think you're ever going to need it, and you never need it because there's so much there. The rust carrows, I mean the gold carrows, the silver carrows, your garments are moth-eaten, you have far, far, far more than you need, you know? But so Christ says, don't lay up for yourselves treasures on earth. Don't let that be your mission. Where moth and rust destroy, and we can kind of look at those words in line of what James has said then, look at what he said, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. So when James talks, he says, where is your real heart? What is it you're doing? Are you examining the real motives of what you do? And sometimes they're very difficult to really sink in and assess. And we have to ask God, you know, as David did in Psalm 132, he says, search my heart. Let me know my real motives, because I can mask them, I can make excuses for them, I can justify anything all day long. That's the way our heart does, right? But what are my real motives? So let me pause there. I have a few more things that I want to go to here in light of this section, because I think it's very important, you know, for those of us living in the last days, to to get this concept, and then really to go back at some of the things that Christ said as well, and see maybe a new, for me anyway, it was a new light shining on some of the things that we've read that we all know very well. But let me pause there if anyone has any questions, comments, or anything else. As we kind of just take a breather here and access and contemplate what we've, you know, where James is taking us and what he's talking about. Mr. Shaby? Yes, sir.

Since he brings up the last days right there, could this corrosion of your riches also be referring to a time when they won't buy anything, when people would be throwing it in the street because it's of no value? I think that's a very good thing too, right? Because God is going to bring that about where whatever wealth we have probably is going to be, we're all going to be on an equal base here somewhere along the line. So yeah, could be very good. But I do think, I do think there's an element of where he's telling us and having us look at what we have, assess what you have, and when we get back here to a few verses, maybe we'll see, you know, we'll see that. Okay, anyone else? Anything? Yes, Mr. Baby. Yes. Is that Elaine? Yes, Elaine. I was thinking about in the first verse when you were going over, come now, weep and howl for your miseries that are coming upon you.

Wouldn't we be able to apply the Proverbs 1128 scripture that says, he returns and his riches will fall, but the righteous will flourish like foliage. And then the other scripture, which is Proverbs 1128? 1128. That's in the New King James version. Okay. Proverbs 1128. Elaine read it to us. Yeah, it says, oh, there you go. Yeah, he who trusts in his riches, right, will fall, but the righteous will flourish like foliage. And we could, you know, we can talk about the definition of righteous certainly keeps all the laws, but Jesus Christ shows who the righteous are as well. And some of the examples of some of the things that he does too, maybe a even a wider definition that we've thought of, but maybe not put all together. Very good. Good verse. Anyone else?

Yeah, Mr. Shaby, there is a saying that he who dies with the most toys still dies. Still dies.

We can't take it with you, right? There's a lot of truth in that. But there's something that you said in a couple of your sermons that I've told you, I wrote it down because it meant a lot. And it's where when things are good, people can forget about God because when things are bad, it seems like more people call on God than instead of staying with a constant or a continuity where it's well balanced. But and the other thing that I'll look at it and when you're reading in Scripture, in James 5 verse 2 where it says, riches are corrupted, I'll look at that at a parallel also where your riches are corrupted because they're going somewhere else other than God. We're not looking at the kingdom of God and that's where it's corrupted. We corrupted it by collecting those riches. Yep. Yep. Very good. Yeah, very good. And we do. We corrupt our riches by our attitude exactly what you said. So. Hey, anyone else? Well, let me draw. We don't even need to turn there. I think it's in Matthew 18 or Matthew 19, but I know that you'll all remember the story of the young rich man who came to Jesus Christ, right? And he said, good master, what else do I need to do to obtain eternal life? And Christ said, keep the commandments. The young man answered. He goes, well, which commandments? I kept them all. I'm a religious man. I've done what you have said to do. I keep the Sabbath. I don't take God's name in vain. I haven't committed adultery, you know, right on down in Christ. And he says which ones and Christ lists them for him. Do you remember what else that God asked him to do? He said, knowing he was a very wealthy man, that he had more than he needed, more than he needed for an adequate reserve to find, to fund anything that he needed or any problem in his life. Again, he goes, take what you have and give it to the poor and follow me.

Give what you, give up the riches. Give them up and give them to the poor and follow me, Christ said.

And remember what the rich man, the young rich man said. He said he went away sorrowful. He just couldn't do it. I can't part with it. And he came to realize, you know what? I rely on that too much. I'm not giving up. Even part of my wealth. He didn't even try to bargain with Christ and say, well how about if I give you 50% of it or 25% of it? I can't do it. And you know, as I have been looking at James 5 here and putting this Bible study together, that whole thing, because I used to think about the young rich man, well what's wrong with you? Why, you know, you know, you went away sorrowful because he just couldn't do it. And I think if we look what James says, you know, we're all in different, you know, financial areas and statuses and whatever, you know, what if we were standing in his place? What if we had more than we need and God was requiring of us give some of it up? Give some of it up? Would we be able to do that? I don't know, you know, it makes us realize what it is that young man went through when you read James's words because he couldn't. He couldn't replace. He couldn't say, okay, I'm going to follow you, Christ. That's more important to me than everything I have accumulated. And that's something that's sobering to think about, you know, that we have to, you know, that we have to think about. You know, we go back to James 1, where again, you know, James, you know, says, you know, to the rich, you have plenty. God's going to humble them. And if God works with us, he's going to see what's in our hearts. How are we going to deal with it? And to those who have very little, you know, what happens if he has them inherit the windfall and the right inheritance from something comes along or something happens. What do they do with it when I give them wealth? Do they turn from me? Do they, what are they doing? What are they doing? But let's go back to Luke. If we're not in Luke, let's look at Luke 12. And there's a parable there, you know, that Jesus Christ said that, you know, maybe we've looked at and thought, I'm not sure exactly what Jesus Christ is saying in that. What's wrong with a man in that scripture, right? And as we look at James 5, we get it. We get what God is talking about. Luke 12 and verse 16.

It says, Christ spoke a parable to them, saying, the ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully. He had good crops. He made a lot of money. And he thought within himself, saying, what shall I do since I have no room to store my crops? I have so much. Now I've even gotten more.

My land is just doing wonderfully. Everything I do turns to gold like King Midas, right? Everything I do, God blesses. And my storehouses are full. What do I do with this excess I have? I have so much. What shall I do since I have no room to store my crops? So he said, I'll do this.

I'll pull down my barns and I'll build greater. And there I will store all my crops and my goods.

You know what? God's given me more. I'm going to keep it all. And you know what? I've got to just, I've got to open up more bank accounts. I've got to make more investments. I've got to have more things my way. In this case, I'm going to just build bigger barns. And I'm just going to keep storing it. I've got more than what I need. More than I ever thought I'd have. But I'm going to build bigger barns and saying it and keeping it. And I will say to my soul, soul, you have many goods laid up for many years. Take your ease. You know what? Life is good. Nothing can touch you now. I am on easy streets. I don't have to worry about it anymore. No matter what, you can almost see the attitude. Nothing can touch me. I've got goods. I've got wealth. And everything is good. So he says, eat, drink, and be merry. Just go out and have a good time and take it easy. But God said to him, who? This night your soul will be required of you. Then whose will those things be which you have provided? You know, we might look at that and say, well, what's wrong? What's wrong with that? Isn't that what God will want us to do? If he blesses us, shouldn't we just build bigger store barns? Shouldn't we just build bigger storehouses? Shouldn't we just keep it? But God calls him a fool, and he goes, you know what? You haven't handled it right. You're not paying attention. In verse 21, he says, so is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.

And that's all he explains. You know, we might look at that and say, what did Christ mean by that? But James helps us take that to the next level. James helps us to see where these things are and what God means when he says, so he who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.

So let's go back to James 5 with all that in mind. And there may be other verses, and certainly if there's one you want to share here, please, you know, please chime in. As we look at this, with all that in mind, as we look what James is writing here, we can keep the rich young man in mind. We can keep that man who's building bigger barns and storehouses in mind as James is talking about us. And then in verse 4 of James 5, he begins to talk about some of these people and what, you know, what they've done. Doesn't mean that every single person has done this, but some of the people who have plenty, maybe they've exploited people, he says, in verse 4. You know, and maybe that was the case back in the days where there were, excuse me, there were farm workers and people like that who would exploit laborers. You know, we hear about that today, right? I mean, even today, people say they're exploited by their bosses and everything like that. That's kind of a common issue in the world today, too. And as the world talks about increasing minimum wages and sharing the wealth a little bit, maybe this is part of where we're going. They see corporations and they see CEOs that are making so much money that it boggles the mind no one needs that much money to live on, that you would make hundreds of millions of dollars a year. Hey, share the wealth a little bit. You know, you can kind of understand this is the last days they were having the problem back. In James's time, we've got the same thing here today because there are corporations and there are CEOs and there are things out there that will tell us the same thing, right? Some are making just too much money. It's all about accumulating what they can get when there's enough. Not saying anything against capitalism or anything like that has been the best thing that's happened to the world that has allowed people to be inventive and to develop their potential in everything, but capitalism can go astray, right? And maybe we see that going on today. So in verse 4 it says, indeed, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out.

You know what? You know, you were working on their backs. You made all this money. You made all this, well, on their backs. I mean, yes, maybe you had the ideas. Maybe you did the infrastructure, but you needed those laborers. They needed to be out there. You, those who mowed your fields, you kept back their wages. You, you, you, instead of just being very happy that they were there doing the work that you did, it's like, I'm gonna nickel and dime you to death. You know what? You didn't do this. I'm not gonna pay for this and whatever. I mean, you know, maybe we've been involved with, with, with people who have handled things that way. Indeed, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out. And the cries of the reapers have reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. They've reached God. You haven't traded them fairly. I blessed you, God said, have you been a blessing to those people who work for you? To those who did the things that you hired them to do, have you been a blessing to them? Or did you just keep all that blessing for yourself and forget that just as God told Abraham, in you, all nations of the earth shall be blessed, then he expects the same from us. When God gives us blessings, we should be a blessing to those around us. By the attitude that we display, by the honesty that we have, by the, by following Christ's example of what we do, and even, even being a blessing if we have the opportunity in terms of what we may provide for others. Again, not being silly about it, not being outlandish, but certainly not being selfish, but realizing if God blesses us, our job is to be a blessing to others as well. But let's pause there and let's, let's go back to a couple of Old Testament scriptures here and look and see that James isn't talking about anything new here. Isn't something an idea that he's come up with? You, we can go through some proverbs as we will. The fact that Leviticus 19 and verse 13 as, as God is instructing Israel, who he brought out of Egypt, at a time when they will be employing people and, you know, working with each other, he says this in Leviticus 19 and verse 13, he says, you shall not cheat your neighbor nor rob him. The wages of him who is hired shall not remain with you all night until morning. If he's worked for you, pay him. Don't withhold. Don't do his chooses. Don't think, is there some way I can keep some of it back for me? Pay him. He's done the work, do it, God is saying. Be fair.

Be fair with him and be honest in what you're doing. Over in Deuteronomy 24, as Moses is working with the people that are about to cross over into the Promised Land and they'll be finding themselves doing these things, you know, they'll be employing people. They'll be employing each other as they, as they build homes and all the, all the stuff that'll happen as they go into the Promised Land and begin to inhabit it. In Deuteronomy 24 and verse 14, says, you shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy. You know, don't hold him down. If you're going to give him, if you're going to give him a job, don't press down on him. Be a blessing to him. You shall not oppress a hired servant who is poor and needy. And I ain't glad, nor one that isn't poor and needy, right? If you hire him, don't oppress him. Whether one of your brethren or one of the aliens who is in your land within your gates, treat them equally, treat them with respect. Hey, apply the golden rule, right? As James said earlier in the book, follow the golden rule due to others that you would have, as you would have them do to you. Each day you shall give him his wages and not let the sun go down on it, for he is poor and has set his heart on it. Lest he cry out against you to the Lord and it be sin to you. You know, we've had a few times in James where he said, you know what? If partiality is still in your heart, it's sin. If you know to do good and don't do it, it's sin. Here we're told, you know what? If you told someone you're going to pay him, you arbitrarily withhold that money for him, saying, you might be I can get away without paying him, or he really needs it, and I'm not going to give it to him today. God says, if he cries out to me, or God's watching what our heart is, you know, that's sin. I'm looking at that as sin to you. You're supposed to honor your commitments. Watch out for him. He's working for you, and if he needs the money, make sure, make sure, well, make sure if you say you've got it, you do, and pay him. And over in Malachi, you know, you see that reference there in Deuteronomy, over in Malachi, the last book of the New Testament, or Old Testament, I mean, Malachi 3. Again, as Malachi talks about, here's the way you've departed from God, right? You haven't paid attention to him. You've kind of gotten lax in the things you do. You think you're okay. You think you're obeying God, but Malachi do take some, you know, Israel and God's people to task a little bit as we read through the book. And here in Malachi 3 and verse 5, it says, I will come near you, speaking to God's people, I will come near you for judgment. I will be a swift witness against sorcerers, against adulterers, against perjurers.

You know, I mean, we know what adulterers are, right? Even in the spiritual sense, we know what perjurers are. Now, that word, sorcerers, that applies to the last days and something we need to kind of look at and understand more when God says sorcerers. I know none of us in the church are, you know, looking out at porescopes and sorcery and wizardry for direction, but there's a reason that word is there. Against perjurers, against those who exploit wagearners and widows and orphans.

Isn't it interesting that he throws that in with clear sins, right? Looking to someone other than God, you know, looking to, you know, committing, you know, adultery, lying, and against those who exploit wagearners and widows and orphans, and against those who turn away an alien because they don't fear me, says the Lord of hosts. Now, God is very clear.

He is very clear, and you know, I mentioned on Pentecost when we were reading about Peter in Galatians 2.11 that he, you know, when he decided he wasn't going to eat with the Gentiles anymore, and Paul had to call his attention to that. And if you remember in verse 10, you know, as Paul and the apostles compared notes as to what Jesus Christ led them to believe, they found out the doctrine of what they believed is exactly the same thing, and Paul said there was nothing they could add to me, except that this reminded me to be mindful of the poor and needy.

He goes, which is one thing we were going to do anyway. And I what I didn't say on Pentecost is if you look at Leviticus 23, as you go down past the two lows, you know, as you look at verse 21 in Leviticus 23, you know, God says when you come to that 50th day, when you count 50, and you come to Pentecost, don't work on it, keep it as a holy day.

And in verse 22, before he goes into the Feast of Trumpets, he makes the comment, you know, now when you're harvesting, don't, you know, leave something for someone else. Don't go to the very edges. Don't try to get every single last morsel. Leave some for the poor and needy.

And whenever God is talking to us, and he talks about to us about keeping his law, he says, don't forget. Don't forget the poor and needy, you know, and that's what he's saying here. Look at this. He throws that in with what these other clear sins in verse 5, those who exploit wage earners, those who exploit widows and orphans, against those who turn away an alien.

They're not paying attention to people. And why do they do that? Because they don't fear me. They don't get what I'm telling them to do. They don't fear me. They think it's okay. They've forgotten. That's part of the obedience to God as well. It shouldn't be something that we forget, and it is something that we need to keep in mind as we go about our daily lives. We talk about agape, we talk about watching each other's needs, we talk about bonding together as a congregation within Jacksonville, within Orlando, within the greater community that we've all been experiencing. Between the two churches now, we are kind of getting to know each other.

You see each other's names and faces on these Bible studies, and you can see God making us one congregation, even though we'll go back to meeting independently, but we are one group that's here, part of the bigger group and bigger family in Florida and the United States and around the world, who says, don't forget them. Don't forget the poor and needy. You know, do everything right, but don't forget that. Now, I'm going to pause here for a moment, but let's go back to Proverbs 22 and just look at a couple other scriptures along this line. Among many that I could turn to, but I won't do that.

You can use that as a Bible study to go back and look at how many times and how many different contexts God reminds us of these things, even to Judah as you go through Jeremiah's prophecies. He keeps reminding him, Judah was doing so many things wrong, but God, you're not even paying attention and paying attention to the needs of people.

Proverbs 22 and verse 9, you know, he who has a generous eye will be blessed. Well, you know, God is looking at that. You know, look at how much God has given us. He is generous. He provides for us. Not one of us can say God hasn't been good to us, you know, no matter how little we might think we have. God has allowed us to live in a land where, you know, and I'm not aware, and I hope there's no one out there that's hungry or missing meals or anything, because I hope you would always raise your hand if you need help in that, because all of us are willing to help, right?

Don't ever do that. We're all here to help one another. He who has a generous eye will be blessed. We're to be a blessing to other people, for he gives of his bread to the poor.

He's willing to do that. If we see a brother in need, we're willing to do that. We don't wait for someone else to do it, or if we can't do it, we raise our hand and say, there's someone out here who needs some help, and you know what? We're going to hop to the thing, right? We're going to hop to the opportunity to help those who have need. Over in Ecclesiastes 11, it's one of...you know, I've got a lot of favorite verses, but I like the way Solomon puts it in Ecclesiastes 11 in verse one. You know, it's the same concept here. But he says in 11 verse one, cast your bread upon the waters, right? You got bread? Throw it out there. Throw it out there on the waters, for you will find it after many days. You know, be generous with it. Don't hold it back. Just throw it out there. Don't worry about it. You know what? Give it. Give it when you have the opportunity to give when someone has need. Cast your bread upon the waters. God is glad to see us. Now, again, I'm talking to...I always learn to to couch this a little bit. It doesn't mean that every street corner we pass, and there's someone on the street corner with their little signs, you know, that we have to drop something in their basket or open our windows and give it to them, right? We have to be judicious in what it is. He's talking here about the people in God's church. And it's not wrong. It's not wrong to help people, but we understand that there are many out there, you know, who are using it for the wrong purposes or whatever. And I don't want to get into all of that. You know, we are all supposed to judge righteous judgment. And, you know, not every single person we pass on the street is God saying you need to do that too. Don't think we need to. We just need to be judicious in this. But He's talking about our brothers here, our brothers here, maybe our neighbors, even in our neighborhood who we know, cast your bread upon the waters where you will find it after many days. God has a way of getting us back more than we ever give. You know, I heard...well, you've all heard it said somewhere, you can't out give God. And when God sees us what we're doing, He gives us more. He blesses us, and He expects us to be a blessing to others. So, you know, we can... there's many more verses you can think of, but let's pause for a moment again. Remember who James is talking about here. Remember who's talking about the last days. Remember that, what he's talking about in verse 4. And, you know, I know the very...none of us who are online today have probably ever exploited people who have worked for us or any things like that. But look at the attitude this year, and maybe as we go back into our lives and see ourselves in the past, we can think, wow, I did do that person wrong. What is my attitude here? How do I handle these things? And let me just pause and see if there's...again, if anyone has any comments, questions, other verses that have come to mind. Yes, Elaine. Elaine, again.

When you were going over the Old Testament scriptures, one of them that I have found was Jeremiah 22 verse 13. Woe to him who built his house by unrighteousness and his chamber by injustice, uses his neighbor's services without wages, and gives him nothing for his work.

Wow. Yep. That's Jeremiah 22-13. That's exactly what James is talking about. Very good.

Over and over, probably, and if we looked at every book in the Bible, we might see that admonition, be fair, pay attention to others' needs, and not just your own. And don't be looking to accumulate yourself, because when we do those things, what are we doing? We're saying, I want to keep more for self. I want to keep more for self. I don't want to share it with others, or I want to give away only what I have to and not a penny more, and if I can get away with that, you know, that's the attitude that God doesn't want us to have. So, okay? Very good.

Yeah, Jody.

Yeah, the last word of verse 4, the same as Saba'ath.

Yeah, Saba'ath, actually what James does there, he reverts to a Hebrew word, the Lord of Saba'ath.

The Lord of Hosts is what it technically means. You remember seeing the Lord of Hosts in the Old Testament. So what he's doing there is he's going back to a Hebrew word that the people would have been very familiar with. Thank you.

Anyone else? Any other thoughts? Okay, let's go back to James 5, then. Again, this is a long lead-up. That's why I said at the beginning, I don't think we're going to get through James 5 today unless we rush through it, but there's an awfully lot as James raps up his letter, you know, that we need to, you know, it's good to finish a chapter, but it's also good to not skip over anything that we can learn from. So, okay, James 5 and verse 5. He goes, you again, remember who he's talking to, okay? You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury. You've had everything your heart desired, right? You got everything. You really, you live better than the kings of old time. You've got more than than anyone even imagined, you know, even from 50 years ago in this country. You have lived on the earth in pleasure and luxury. You have fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter.

Now, that's a verse again, you know, he's again, he's kind of recounting what he says there in verse 3, right? You've had plenty all of your life. You've lived your life in one way. Now, what you're doing, because you're not paying attention to how you're living that life, you, nothing wrong with the riches you've got, nothing wrong with the advantages and blessings God has given you. But are you looking at it deeply? Are you really looking at your hearts and what you're doing? You lived on the earth. You fattened your hearts as in a day of slaughter. You know, verse 3, he said, you know, all that corroded, rusted, tarnished, bold and silver that's been laying there that could have been used, maybe in some cases for good, you know, you, you, it's going to eat your flesh like fire. In verse 5, he says, you're fattening your hearts as in a day of slaughter.

Now, what do, you know, what do people do when they're, they're ready to take their cattle to slaughter, right? They fatten them up. They want top dollar. Get those cattle, let them weigh as much as they can so I can get the money out of them when they're slaughtered. I get top dollar. And God is saying, you know, God is saying, that's what you're doing, you know, when you don't pay attention to what you're doing, how you're living your life. If you're not looking past, I'm comfortable like that, that man who's going to build new barns and build new storehouses. If you're living like that and thinking, life is good, it is so easy, I don't have to think about anything more, I'm just going to coast.

I'm going to coast from here on out. God says, there's never a time to rest, you know, it'd be about my business, my work, and it's more than just what we may think it is. Because you're fattening, your hearts is in a day of slaughter. Boy, when that day comes, James 5 says, we may be among those who we've talked about recently, you know, than Matthew, that we will be weeping.

There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. We haven't assessed who it is we are. We haven't delved into the depth of what James is telling us, you know, in these books. That we may think that we're, you know, patting ourselves on the back, and while we're great people, because you're fattening yourselves up. The day of reckoning is coming. The day of judgment is coming. And he says, pay attention, you know, you want to be lean, you want to be working, you want to be ready to work for God, and not fatten yourself up, that we're just taking our life in ease, and just coasting in, and thinking all I've got to do is sit back and wait for God to come.

I don't have to do anything else. It's kind of the picture that he's painting for us here. And he talks about the rich, you know, the haughtiness that some of them have. You know, maybe some of them that James, as he was looking around the churches he was writing to, maybe they did these things.

Maybe some of us, right? Certainly if we look at the greater world around us, and those who have billions, right? Billions of dollars, you know, no one needs billions of dollars to live. But he goes, you, you rich, you rich, you have more than you possibly could ever use. You've condemned, you know, you sat there in judgment of other people. You've condemned, you've murdered the just. Look what you've done, you know? You, you are going to be the ones who, who, who lorded over people. And we look at the end times, you know, we look at even some of the times that we live in now.

And we look at some of the people who, they have their idea of how the world should be. They have their idea of how the world should go from here on out. And hey, because I've got billions, I'm going to do this foundation and that foundation, and I've got the ideas, and it's going to be my way. It's I, these are the ideas I have. Look, look how much I've earned. I have to have better ideas than everyone else, and I'm going to see that it comes about. And we can kind of see that a little bit in the world around us today among those who have so much that they think that they can lord it over everyone else, and they're looking out, you know.

Again, there's the pride. I know more than anyone else. You've murdered the just, and what do we know about the end time when that government comes upon the earth? They know more than everyone else. They glorify self. It's the kingdom, and it's all about the leader at that time, and all about the church leader at that time.

Not the true church leader, but the church that rides, the little beast that rides the big beast during that time. It's all about me. I'm the one who has all the answers, and what does that beast do? It murders the just.

It murders the righteous. And you know, we know from Christ's words that as we look at our lives between now and the time of Jesus Christ's return, you know, Christ said, if they hated me, I'll hate you.

They murdered him, the just. And he goes, you know what? Watch out, because they're going to turn on you as well. They're going to turn on you as well. And then James finishes verse seven or verse six there with, he, speaking of the just, right? He does not resist you.

He does not resist you. And we can, you know, that's an interesting thing when we just pause for a moment, and I will entertain anyone that wants to comment on that. As I look at that, I think of that, and I think about, you know, how Jesus Christ lived his life, right? He, he was just. I mean, he is the just one. None of us measure up to what he did. He was the perfect man living in an environment where people claimed they were waiting for the Messiah.

They didn't see him, and they wanted to put him to death. You know, when he was arrested, he didn't resist. He didn't resist. It was God's will. That was the, that was the plan of God. That was the path to the kingdom. Now, what James is saying here is he watched his brother and, you know, thought back over how he lived his life and what he did. He's telling us, I think, you know, what?

You're going to find yourself up against magistrates and kings. You might find yourself up against people who want to murder you and who say, you know, you're, you're, you're fools to follow that Bible. You're fools to say, you've got to keep the Sabbath day. You're fools to do this and that and whatever. Understand it's God's will. Don't resist. Don't go out and protest. Don't go out and organize mass marches. Let it be God's will. Pray for what God's will is and submit yourself to him.

Submit yourself to him and don't have that battle mentality. Don't have that protest mentality. Don't war against God. Don't fight against God. Stand up for your rights. You know, be ready to give an answer. Don't be a doormat, but in those cases, you know, he doesn't, he doesn't resist you, it says. Let me, you know, let's um, now let's go back to James 2 for a moment, then I'll pause here for a moment.

James 2, you know, again, remember James? He'll touch on the subject and later on in the book, you know, we read more about it as he hits it. In James 2 verse 5, he says, listen, listen, my beloved brethren, hasn't God chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the which he promised to those who love him? What he says, you've dishonored the poor man. There's a concept we've been talking about here in James man, you've dishonored the poor man.

And then he says about the rich, don't the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts? Don't they blaspheme that noble name by which you are called? You know, don't be like the rich of the world. That's what they do. And they blaspheme that noble name by which we were called.

So he's talking about this to the same people here as he gets into James, James 5, and he tells us, you know what, these people are going to rise up. They're going to rise up among you. It might even be among the church. You have much, much, much. You think that they have all the answers. You know, we don't know where these the trials and where the people come from. He says, you know what, when it comes to the right time, I'm going to bring you to verse 7. He goes, you endure to the end. Just follow God's will and trust that he is leading you to the kingdom. So let me pause. Let me pause there for anyone that wants to make a comment or, you know, have maybe a insight into that verse. You would like to share whatever you'd like to say. So, Mr. Shavey. Yes, Jeannie.

I know when I was reading through this last night, I was looking through, you know, verse 6 is through verse 8. And I know while we're doing God's will, it looks like, you know, he really does want us to resist resentment and retaliation. But also while we stand up for our beliefs, right? Doing it God's will. Hard to do, hard to stay out of the news and looking at all what's going on. But that's what I was, you know, getting out of what I was reading. Yeah, we never, you know, we don't, we don't back down from what we believe. It's perfectly fine to say, I believe it, and this is what I'm sticking to. I believe God in the Bible, you know, but, and we should. There needs to be people standing in the gap, as we talked about in Ezekiel. But we don't resist, you know, and no retaliation. And right, because this really seems to be what everybody wants to talk about. Hi, how are you? In the street, and hey, guess what? You know? Yep. Yeah. But don't resist, you know, they're gonna call us names. Don't fire back. Don't say, I'm still better than you, or whatever some of the reports we hear on the news these days. It's like, you know, okay, fine, just be quiet as Christ was fired. Quiet. Yeah, so.

Back. Very good.

Anyone else? Yes. Yes, Elaine again.

This is just a short one on Oh, yeah.

Yeah, here it is. June 21, 13.

They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment, go down to the grave.

I mean, I would think that would be somebody that does nothing, but what you see today, they spend their every waking moment thinking about how to get rich.

And then the next thing you know, they're gone.

Yep, yep, that's exactly again. Where is our heart? What is the most important thing to us? Exactly. They, let me read that again. June 21, 13. They spend their days in wealth, and in a moment, go down to the grave. It catches up to them, and life is over as they know it, so.

Time to shield. Okay.

Anyone else? Okay.

Okay.

Okay, well, as we move in, again, you know, he does not resist you. Again, we may be rich, rich materially, but God wants us to be poor in spirit, right?

There's, it is not incongruous to have, you know, wealth and to be poor in spirit. The only way we can do that is with God's Holy Spirit, right? Never think more highly of ourselves. Don't pat ourselves on our backs and say, man, what a really good businessman I am. Why would I really, whatever, how smart I am, all these ideas I had. Be thankful to God, and remember from whom the wealth came, right? Because it's Him who gives us, as it says in Deuteronomy, it's Him who gives us the power to give wealth, to get wealth. It's not us. It's never us, it's God. And for different things that He wants us to learn. So, you know, the poor doesn't resist, right? The poor in heart doesn't resist. And He follows that comment up in verse 7 with what you and I need to do as we approach the days of the end and the time approaching to the return of Jesus Christ. It says, therefore, again, He's wrapping up a thought here. He's talked in the first six verses about the rich and what we need to do and our attitudes. Therefore, brethren, be patient until the coming of the Lord. Be patient. Wait. Do the things, you know? Times are going to come hard. You're not going to argue against those who would say, you know, you're a fool, you're an idiot, you don't need to do that, you know, whatever, I'm going to threaten you with this or threaten you with that if you want to do it my way, you know? Do it God's way. Be patient. Endure. And we can talk about any number of places that, you know, that talks about Jesus Christ said in Matthew 24 verses 13 and 14, He said, you know, He who endures to the end, He will be saved.

Now, same thing that James is saying here, be patient. Just kind of wait for God. Understand this is what it's going to be. He's been patient with us. Be patient. It's going to come, you know, the end will come, you know, in 1 Peter or maybe 2 Peter 3. He says, you know, God's not slack concerning His promise, as some men count slackness, but He's not willing that any should perish. He's giving us all time. He's giving His people time and the world time to see if they will repent, which, you know, He knows they won't, but He's giving us time to get ready and get these things. Therefore, be patient, brethren, until the coming of the day of the Lord. You know, so just kind of wait. See how, and He gives an example, see how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. You don't plant a seed in the ground and literally overnight, you know, it's not jack of the beanstalk, plant the seed in the ground, and then the golden whatever, whatever that story is, pops up the next day. You've got to work with it. You've got to go through that entire growing season. You've got to rely on God for the rain that waters that plant. You've got to be out there keeping the weeds away. You've got a lot of work to do, but you know what? You wait through the summer. You do the things right. You cultivate that seed that's there, and eventually it's going to produce the fruit.

You know, that you want and that God wants. The farmer has to wait. We wait. We wait. We endure through our growing season however long that is. You know, from the time we're baptized and received God's Holy Spirit until the day we die or the day Jesus Christ returns, whichever comes first. Ever growing, ever, you know, getting closer and closer to God, ever exploring the depths of what He wants us to be and having Him look at our hearts so that we become the pure. Remember, the wisdom from above is first pure. You know, become the pure people He wants us to become.

So He says in verse 8, you also, you also be patient. You also be patient. Wait.

Let me pause there and let's go back and look at Psalm 37, right? Because David, you know, David displayed that patience. You know, God had him anointed to be king when he was still a teenager and it wasn't for years later that he became king. And, you know, we might wonder, why did God do that? Why did God anoint David king? And then literally, what was it, 13 years later or whatever it was, how many years later before he actually became king? Well, God wanted to see what's in David's, you know, what's in David's heart? Would he wait? Would he trust that the promise that God gave him would come about? Or would he get anxious? Would he take matters into his own hands? Would he give up? Would he get mad at God? Would he shake his fists at him and say, you know, who are you? What did you do? What are you waiting for? You know, maybe some of the things that we have thought, then maybe some people that we've known in the past who said, you know what, I, you know, I've heard this all. I don't know if Jesus Christ said, I'm tired of waiting. I'm tired of waiting. I'm going to go back to the way things were before. But let's just read through Psalm 37 here and see, because James is, you know, he's talking about the same attitude that, you know, he says in one or two verses, be patient. But David says it in many verses, Psalm 37 verse one. He says, don't fret because of evildoers. Don't be envious of the workers of iniquity. Well, James is talking about that, you know, these rich who oppress you, these rich who are even want to murder the just.

Don't fret. Don't lose any sleep. Put your care, throw your care on God and trust in him. He says, don't be, don't fret. Don't be envious of the workers of iniquity, for they shall soon be cut down like the grass and wither as the green herb. Trust in the eternal. Do good. Dwell in the land and feed on his faithfulness. Delight yourself in God and he shall give you the desires of your heart.

Be mindful of who you serve. Keep him first in all you do. Remember all aspects of righteousness and what it means and how, you know, we all are the bond is one. Watch out for each other and keeping agape, you know, as part of what we have keep in mind and how we look out for one another and pay attention to one another. Commit your way to the eternal. Trust in him and he will bring it to pass. He will bring forth your righteousness as the light. He will bring forth your justice as the new day. All these injustices that we may experience, all the things that we will go through between now and the return of Jesus Christ, he goes, I'll bring justice. Just patiently wait for me.

Believe it. Rest in the Lord. Wait patiently for him. Don't fret. David goes and says it again, don't fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. Cease from anger and forsake wrath. Don't get mad about it. Don't get yourself all on a frenzy. Don't become all like the people of the world. You know, I don't like what this guy's doing. I'm agitated. It's keeping me asleep. I hate him. I don't like this. I don't like what they're doing.

I don't like what they're doing. Don't fret. It's part of God's plan. He's bringing things about.

Cease from anger. Don't let that mark you.

Forsake wrath. Don't get mad about it. Understand it. Work with it. Give your opinion. Stand in the gap for what you believe. But don't let anger and don't let wrath consume you. And don't fret. It only causes harm, God says. For evildoers will be cut off, but those who wait on the Lord, you know, you and me, those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.

Maybe not tomorrow. Maybe not as soon as we want. But just like David, you know, who had to wait, that eventually God gave him the kingdom. He saw what was in his heart, and David learned a lot during those years of patience and waiting, just like we learn a lot about patience and waiting. He inherited what God promised him, so will we. For yet a little while the wicked shall be no more. Indeed, you'll look carefully for his place, but it will be no more. But the meek, that's, you know, a fruit of the Holy Spirit, right? Meekness, remember, strength under the control of the master, not weak, but meek, strength under the control of God. But the meek shall inherit the earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. Only going to come when Jesus Christ returns and he establishes his kingdom on earth. Not going to come before then, but that's what we're waiting for, and then we will delight when we see the effect of it. The wicked plots against the just, just as James says in chapter 5. The wicked gnashes at him with his teeth. The Lord laughs at him, for he sees that his day is coming. Just wait patiently, God says. The wicked have drawn the sword and bent their bow to cast down the poor and needy, to slay those who are of upright conduct.

They will turn against those who are of upright conduct, to slay those who are of upright conduct. Their sword shall enter their own hearts, God says. Should bring to mind Haman, right? He set up that gallows to have Mordecai, but the shables were turned as God took care of that, and Haman, you know, was hung on the old gallows that he wished for Mordecai. Their sword shall enter their own heart, their bows will be broken. Verse 16, a little that a righteous man has is better than the riches of many wicked. Be thankful to what God has or how much God has given you.

Think about it. Use it. Think about what God, that we're supposed to be blessings to others, is better than the riches of many wicked, for the arms of the wicked will be broken, but the Lord upholds the righteous. God knows the days of the upright. He knows what we're about. You know, we have to learn to number our days, but God is numbering our days. He's watching what's going on, and their inheritance will be forever. They won't be ashamed in the evil time, and in the days of famine, they will be satisfied. God says, I'll take care of you. Just trust in me. But the wicked will perish, and the enemies of the Lord, like the splendor of the meadows, shall vanish into smoke. They shall vanish away. Wicked borrows and doesn't repay. No, that's the, you know, if I can get away with something or have something for myself, but the righteous shall mercy and gives. They have generous hearts, so when they see the needs, they do it. For those blessed by him, those blessed by him, shall inherit the earth, but those first by him will be cut off.

Let me just finish with verse 23. You can read the rest of the chapter here. Something I've, you know, it's been on my mind a lot lately that I keep bringing up in sermons here. The steps of a good man are ordered by the eternal, and he delights in his way. When we look to God's, just order my steps. Let me just do what you want. Let me get out of the way. My opinions get out of the way. You tell me what needs to be done. Leave me where I need to go. Give me the words you need me to say. Help me in these situations. That's what needs to happen. And when the steps of a good man, when God orders his way, God delights in us. And you know what? We find ourselves in a very satisfied and joyful and peaceful situation. So anyway, let me, actually we didn't get as far as I wanted to, but I see that it's, wow, it's already 2 30. Let me, um, let's go back to James and, uh, you know, but I'm gonna, I'm gonna pause there for James. We'll finish it up next week because there's an awfully lot more in James 5 that we need to talk about that we don't want to rush through.

Um, and, and then, um, you know, verse 8 is a good, a good breaking place here. James 5 8, he says, again, we just, you also be patient. Let me just briefly mention, establish your hearts, right?

Recently I gave a sermon on, on preparing your hearts, purposing in our hearts. You can go back and listen to that online. You know, Daniel, remember, he purposed his hearts when he went into his heart. When you think, when they went into Babylon, I'm not going to eat the king's delicacies. I'm not going to partake of that, you know, in that environment and that society. We have to purpose in our hearts to follow him. Jesus, Jesus Christ tells us, deny self, follow him. Take up, he says, his cross and follow him. And so we have to purpose in our hearts to do that. And we've got to do that all the time, not just at the time that we think, whoops, it's the time the bridegroom is calling, it's time to enter the door. No, that's the foolish virgins who wait. We need to be purposing in our hearts now that no matter what comes, we're going to follow God, we're going to seek his will. And no matter how painful it is to apply some of these things we're learning, we're going to do that because it's the only way to the kingdom. It's the only way to what, you know, you and I have been called to and what we say we want. So, you know, he says, establish your hearts, why? For the coming of the Lord is at hand. Or another translation is has drawn near. And then he takes up another section that I've got several things, you know, in my notes here, beginning in verse nine. So let me pause there, let me, again, comments, observations, anything anyone wants to say. Mr. Shady? Yes, ma'am? I just wanted to go back to when you read Psalm 37. I really like all of that. What I've recently discovered also is 1 Peter 5 verses 7 through 10. For me, that kind of goes, we don't have to really go through all that, but I was just saying, that actually really goes well with Psalm 37 for me. That's when I was reading this morning, and it's just another way of us, you know, being patient and reserving ourself and waiting.

You know what I mean? Does that make sense? Oh, it makes absolutely sense. Just, you know, for anyone, you know, 1 Peter 5 says, cast your care upon God for He cares for you. And then he goes right into, watch out, because Satan's going to use any of these things he can to kind of take us off track. But just be patient. Keep yourself close to God. Cast your cares upon Him. Don't get yourself angry, frustrated, or whatever. Just trust in Him. And that's hard to do. We learn that as we go through it and train ourselves as God trains us, right? So, very good.