Do you know who James is?
Yesterday
We met James in the OVERVIEW discovering the PURPOSE of the book.
This WEEK
We’re going to take a small bite of God’s Word,
focusing on just 1 verse
with a two-fold objective.
We Want To:
1. LOOK at James to answer the LIVE question –
Am I a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ?
2. Become acquainted with GODcha.
Introducing us to certain skills that will open the Word of God to us in a life-changing way!
Today
Let’s see how James introduces himself.
Open GODcha to the Book of James
TIP: Work in Split View
James/Blog GODcha
Readers/Phones: Investigate if your device is capable of multitask functions such as split screen. This will enable you to open the James Discovery in the Blog and the GODcha App simultaneously side by side.
Computers: Open the Blog Discovery in 1 browser (e.g. Safari) and the GODcha App in another browser (e.g. Chrome). Adjust each window size so you can view side by side on your screen.
If your device doesn’t multitask, then Toggle (go back and forth) between the Blog and the App.
NOTE:
If you don’t have GODcha Get It >
Or, you can use your hardbound Bibles and follow along.
You can print off this post and put in a Notebook!
Okay, Let’s Get Started.
Do you remember. . .
Why James Wrote To His Jewish Brethren? 
1. To Instruct: Those of the faith to be doers of the Word of God, not just hearers;
2. To Explain: Faith without works is dead, useless, because it cannot save you;
3. To Turn a Sinner: From the error of his ways so his soul will be saved from death.
Ask the Holy Spirit to bury these 3 points down deep into your head and heart.
You will come to understand many in the church failed to live what they professed to believe.
Always, Begin With Prayer
And Continue With an Attitude of Prayer
APART from the Holy Spirit this is just busy work.
If you get STUCK at any point in your discovery, stop, and pray!
GOD, your Creator, loves you and desires to reveal much to you.
Let’s Ask For Help
Oh Lord, we need You to settle our hearts and help us learn today! Help us learn to read Your Word with a purpose so we see Your Word clearly. And as You introduce us to James, please open our eyes to see and understand his heart, so we may be transformed. Thank you Lord!
Let’s Learn How To Discover Truth
In GODcha‘s Discovery Section.
Find 3 important segments after prayer: LOOK, LEARN, and LIVE.
We are Going To Learn To:
- LOOK. See what God ‘says’;
- LEARN. Understand what God ‘means’; and
- LIVE it out. ‘Apply’ what we LEARN to our lives.
Let’s Go To The LOOK Segment
It is Vital to LEARN to SEE ‘What God SAYS‘
This is the phase most of us skip!
We live in a quick fix, instant society!
All of us are busy, busy, busy, thus, we race to see what God ‘means‘ before we ever take the time to SEE what He ‘says‘.
We are guilty of running to man.
Listening to, or reading the works of others, rather than taking the time to do our own discovery and hear from God for ourselves.
Now, man might be right, but man might be wrong.
How do you sort truth from error?
Well, we need to see ‘what God says‘ for ourselves.
So let me help you become acquainted with a few skills to help you do just that!
Go to GODcha
Open the LOOK Segment.
1. Go to the Discovery Section (rt screen).
2. Go to the LOOK Segment.
3. Tap on the arrow to open.
4. Hover over any Road Sign (Icon) for quick information.
5. Tap on any COLORED Road Sign for directions and information.
6. Let the Road Signs guide you in your discovery.
In the LOOK Segment
What does GODcha suggest to do 1st?
We Want to Always
Begin LOOKING By READING
Read verse 1 by asking the 5W’s and H.
Have you ever read something,
And 5 minutes later you couldn’t remember what you read?
Well, learning to read with a purpose will change that!
Today we want to begin to learn to READ by asking: the who, what, where, when, why, and how questions.
We Always Want to Consider:
Who is speaking; and to whom?
What is happening?
Where is it happening?
When is it happening?
Why is it happening or, why did it happen?
How did it happen?
Reading By Asking Questions Helps You:
See the complete picture; and
See how everything relates to one another; and
Remember what you read.
Let’s Unveil Verse 1
We can read the verse…
But
There is a HUGE Difference Between
Reading…
Versus
Reading With a Purpose
Let me show you?
Read with me asking the who, what, where, when, why and how questions.
v1 WHO are we talking about?
James,
WHAT is James?
a bond-servant
A bond-servant of WHO?
of God
and
A bond-servant of WHO else?
of the Lord Jesus Christ
WHO is James writing a greeting to?
To the twelve tribes
The twelve tribes WHO are WHAT?
who are dispersed
WHERE are the 12 tribes dispersed?
abroad
WHAT does James say? Greetings.
Fantastic!
We slowed down, and
We could clearly see ‘WHAT GOD IS SAYING‘?
Now THINK With Me. . .
About What We Just Read, and Let It Sink In!
What Did We LEARN
We LEARN:
James opens the letter about himself.
James, who DID NOT believe, now introduces himself as a bond-servant.
Now REFLECT with me for just a minute!
~Do you wonder why James introduces himself this way?
~Do you wonder what a bond-servant is?
Don’t try to answer until you have really LOOKED at ‘what God says‘.
Understand: Once we see clearly ‘what God says’,
We won’t have to guess,
We will be able to answer accurately and assuredly!
We LEARN:
James is a bond-servant of both God and the Lord Jesus.
Let’s STOP again, and THINK a bit more!
~Have you thought much about being God’s and also, the Lord Jesus’ bond-servant?
~Did you notice 2 people of the trinity?
~Do you know what ‘God‘ means?
~Do you know what ‘Lord’ means?
~Do you know what ‘Christ’ means?
Stay tuned. I will show you how to see the meaning soon!
We LEARN:
James is writing to the twelve tribes, dispersed abroad.
~Do you know who the twelve tribes are?
~Do you know what ‘dispersed abroad’ means?
~Do you know why they were dispersed abroad?
We will be able to answer all of these questions by the end of the week, so hang in there!
That’s It For Today!
You are off to a great start!
Meditate on what you have LOOKED at and LEARNED.
Consider everything that came to the surface from this one little verse.
For the one who meditates on God’s Word is blessed, (Psalm 1:1-2).
Practice reading with a questioning mindset.
Try slowing down and try reading Chapter 1.
Learning to read with a purpose is absolutely critical in HEARING God and handling His Word accurately!
Let’s Bow Before the Father
FATHER GOD, we offer praise to You today, for Your goodness and greatness. We thank you for Your Word, and for this faithful servant who wrote this letter to encourage and explain Your Truth. How exciting to meet this man James, who was a devout Jew, but did not believe You, Jesus! Yet now, he is telling us he is a servant of You God, and You, Lord Jesus. Help us to pay close attention to what You want us to know and understand about this man, who we know is to be an example to us. Give us ears to hear and eyes to see. Don’t let us miss a thing, Father. Thank you so much. We ask these things in Jesus name. Amen!
Oh, I can’t wait to see you tomorrow.
You will be incredibly blessed when you come to understand what ‘bond-servant‘ is, and how this relates to you!
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