Scripture
Greetings from James
1This letter is from James, a slave of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ.
I am writing to the “twelve tribes”—Jewish believers scattered abroad.
Greetings!
Faith and Endurance
2Dear brothers and sisters,[1] when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. 3For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. 4So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
5If you need wisdom, ask our generous God, and he will give it to you. He will not rebuke you for asking. 6But when you ask him, be sure that your faith is in God alone. Do not waver, for a person with divided loyalty is as unsettled as a wave of the sea that is blown and tossed by the wind. 7Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, and they are unstable in everything they do.
9Believers who are[2] poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them. 10And those who are rich should boast that God has humbled them. They will fade away like a little flower in the field. 11The hot sun rises and the grass withers; the little flower droops and falls, and its beauty fades away. In the same way, the rich will fade away with all of their achievements.
12God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. 13And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong,[3] and he never tempts anyone else. 14Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.
16So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. 17Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.[4] He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.[5] 18He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.[6]
Listening and Doing
19Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. 20Human anger[7] does not produce the righteousness[8] God desires. 21So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls.
22But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.
26If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. 27Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you.
Translation notes (8)
- 1:2 Greek brothers; also in 1:16, 19.
- 1:9 Greek The brother who is.
- 1:13 Or God should not be put to a test by evil people.
- 1:17a Greek from above, from the Father of lights.
- 1:17b Some manuscripts read He never changes, as a shifting shadow does.
- 1:18 Greek we became a kind of firstfruit of his creatures.
- 1:20a Greek A man’s anger.
- 1:20b Or the justice.
The Healing of Naaman
1The king of Aram had great admiration for Naaman, the commander of his army, because through him the Lord had given Aram great victories. But though Naaman was a mighty warrior, he suffered from leprosy.
My 6-year-old nephew just learned to climb the monkey bars. He is so good at it and very proud of himself. As a result, my 3-year-old niece, Collins, has naturally wanted to try her hands at the monkey bars, too. Unfortunately, she is not quite ready for the monkey bars yet, so she needs help. Because she needs help, one of her parents will hold her as she makes her way through the monkey bars. As she finishes each time, she proudly exclaims, “I did it!” She seems to forget each time that she had someone helping her through it the entire time. We laugh when a child does this, but we, as adults, can find ourselves doing this as well. We take all of the credit for good things that have happened and forget that everything we have is a gift from God, who has walked with us and helped us each step of the way.
2 Kings 5 tells us about a man named Naaman who had a lot of wealth, success, and accomplishments. He was the commander of the king of Aram’s army. He was well-liked by the king and had direct access to him. What was the secret to his success? It was not his ability, knowledge, charm, or anything else. Verse one tells us that God had allowed Naaman to be victorious. Any skill, talent, or ability that made Naaman successful was straight from God. His success and any victory were because of God working through Him.
What was true about Naaman is true about you and me as well: every success, every accomplishment, and every good thing in our lives is a gift from God that we cannot take credit for. James says it this way in James 1:17 “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens.” Friends, the good things in our lives are gifts straight from God. Taking credit for any of these things is like following my niece’s example, taking credit for making it through the monkey bars when someone has been holding us up the entire time. What good gifts has God given you? Will you praise Him for His good gifts today?
Moving toward action
The truth is everything we have is because of what God has done. On our own, we can accomplish nothing. This understanding calls for humility. Take a few minutes to think about the things in your life that you have done or accomplished that you are proud of. Next, think about how God helped you through each of those things. Spend time praying, recognize the help and gifts He has given you, and thank Him. Thank Him for being with you and for these gifts that He has given you.
Going Deeper
James 1:1-27 (NLT)
Loading saved progress…
Your place is saved in this browser. It will not follow you to another device, and clearing browser data removes it.