Dive into the initial chapter of the Book of James with us as we discover how faith is intertwined with action, wisdom, and trial. Host Alan J. Huth dissects the chapter through the lens of his personal Bible study experiences, paired with a compelling reading by Denise Washington Blomberg. Learn about the transformative power of steadfastness, the value of asking God for wisdom, and the call to be more than just hearers of the word. This episode challenges us to reflect on our faith walk and prompts us to take actionable steps toward a spiritually enriched life.
00:00:08 Introduction to Add Bible and the Book of James
00:02:52 Denise Washington Blomberg Reads James Chapter 1
00:06:51 Reflections on James and Personal Bible Journals
SPEAKER 03 :
Welcome to Add Bible, an audio daily devotion from the Ezra Project. Allen J. Huth shares a Bible passage with comments from over 35 years of his personal Bible reading journals and applies the Word of God to our daily lives.
SPEAKER 01 :
Today we begin the book of James. I’ll use my English Standard Version Study Bible book introduction to help us understand the book we’re about to read. The title of this book derives from its author, James the Just, and the leader of the Jerusalem church. The name James appears 42 times in the New Testament, mostly referring to the brother of John. This James is not that James. It is the half-brother of Jesus. James died in 62 A.D., and the Apostolic Council in Jerusalem was in 48 to 49 A.D., and it’s not mentioned in this book, so the letter was most likely written in the mid-40s. Think about that. Jesus died at 33, so this letter may have been circulated within 10 years of his death. The theme of James is living out one’s faith, being a doer and not just a hearer of the word. James rebukes his readers for their worldliness and challenges them to seek divine wisdom. His audience is probably Jewish Christians, so he uses Jewish reasoning and reflections on the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. They could have lived outside of Palestine, thus suffering persecution and poverty, leading to conflicts in the house churches and fighting factions, double-minded between a worldly lifestyle and God. Does that sound familiar? There are over 50 imperatives in the book’s 108 verses. Commands, not suggestions. Seeking to move the readers to action, Martin Luther called James a rightly strawy epistle because of its strong emphasis on producing good works. Woodrow Kroll, former president of Back to the Bible says, Let the book of James persuade you to turn what you believe into what you do. Let it help you convert your talk into your walk. Well, what are we going to find in the book of James? We’re going to see when you don’t know what to do, we seek wisdom. The chapter on the tongue and how to handle sickness. I’m excited to go through the book of James. I hope you are too. There are five chapters in this short book and we’ll take them one a day. Our guest reader for the Book of James is Denise Washington Blomberg. Denise has been on Christian radio in Denver since 1997, over 20-some years. She is currently co-host of the morning show on 91AM KPOF, The Point of Faith. Denise also narrates books for Amazon.audible and various authors. I have been a guest each year on the morning show at KPOF for over a decade. As I shared about the Ezra Project and daily Bible reading, Denise got convicted. Now, each visit on the air, I ask her, have you read your Bible today? Denise has shared her Ezra Project testimony at our annual banquet and is a good friend and strong supporter of the Ezra Project. Let’s listen in to Denise Washington Blomberg on James chapter 1.
SPEAKER 02 :
James chapter 1 James, a servant of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes in the dispersion, greetings. Countered all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. let the lowly brother boast in his exultation and the rich in his humiliation because like a flower of the grass he will pass away for the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass its flower falls and its beauty perishes so also the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial for when he has stood the test he will receive the crown of life which god has promised to those who love him let no one say when he is tempted I am being tempted by God. For God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above. coming down from the father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth that we should be a kind and first fruits his creatures know this my beloved brothers let every person be quick to hear slow to speak slow to anger for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of god Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls. But be doers of the word, not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he’s like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. but the one who looks into the perfect law the law of liberty and perseveres being no hearer who forgets about a doer who acts he will be blessed in his doing If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue, but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this, to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
SPEAKER 01 :
To help us through the various books of the Bible and AdBible, I used a couple of my personal Bible reading journals. On James, we’re going to use a journal from 1990, 2000, and 2015. In 1990, I was 35 years old when I read James, and it looks like I read James chapter 1 almost through an entire week, really breaking it down into various verses. On a Monday, I read chapter 1, verses 1 through 8, and I wrote, Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. Testing results in perfection and completeness. Wisdom comes from God, according to verse 5. Ask without doubt. Don’t be double-minded. On Tuesday, I read verses 9 through 18, and I wrote, Life goes on. Pursue things of eternal value. Persevere under trials, for approval comes from God. Temptation is caused by our own lusts, but gives way to sin and sin to death. And then I wrote, we fall into sin on our own. God is the giver of good gifts always. On Wednesday, I read verses 19 through the end and I wrote, for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God and keep unstained by the world. In the year 2000, 10 years later, I was 45 years old and I also broke up James chapter 1 into two readings. On the first day, I read verses 1 through 18 and I wrote, Count it all joy. I wish I could learn this. Then I wrote, Buddhist monks are not happy. They don’t smile much. They try to go beyond happiness. I would just like to reach happiness and experience joy on a daily basis. It has been a goal, crusade, a purpose of mine for years, but it eludes me. The next day I finished the chapter, 19 through the end, and I wrote, i need to live verse nineteen swift to hear slow to speak slow to wrath for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of god i need to listen more speak less be less judgmental and try to exhibit the righteousness of god not of me Then I finish with the word is able to save souls, verse 21. I do try to keep myself unspotted from the world, verse 27. I have more trouble internally than externally. In 2015, at 60 years old, I read James chapters 1 and 2 on the same day. Concerning this chapter, I wrote in my journal, Testing produces steadfastness. We mature our faith through testing. Oh, I lack wisdom, and ask God continually for it, referring to verse 5. Temptation comes from the flesh, not God, referring to verse 14. On the other hand, all good gifts come from the Father, according to verse 17. Then I wrote, Listen first, speak less. Be doers of the word, not hearers only. And what should we be doing? Works, according to chapter 2, verses 18 and 26. I finished with Christians as part of our testimony for Christ need to bridle the tongue. What a great chapter as we begin the book of James. Look at the practical applications we get right off the bat. Verse 2, I mentioned in my journal, I’m not very good at that. I don’t count everything as joy, especially trials or temptations. But when I realize these trials, these temptations are testing my faith, and that if I can pass those tests, it will produce steadfastness, then I can be a bit more joyful. I, like you, have been tested, and I believe it does produce steadfastness in our relationship with Jesus. The next practical application is in verse 5. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God. I said again in one of my journals, oh, I lack wisdom. I seek wisdom from the Lord constantly. How about you? I pray almost daily for wisdom, knowledge, and understanding. I have for years. And I am so thankful that God says right here that he gives it out generously to all who seek it. The next practical application is in the following few verses. We are not to be double-minded or unstable in our ways. What do you think we’re referring to here with double-minded? Do we walk by faith or do we walk by sight? Do we trust God or trust our own instincts? As we live life back and forth, it’s what I call yo-yo. That is instability. So we learn in the scriptures to walk by faith and trust the Lord. The next few verses remind us to treat people equally, regardless of their economic status. In every place there are poor and there are rich. May we treat all people with Christian love. And when we face these trials, these temptations, where do they come from? Verse 13 makes it clear, But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. So we are never tempted toward sin from God. Temptation bubbles up from our own desires. Those desires of the flesh are not good, verse 15. Then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin, and sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death. Most of us have seen that kind of progression in our own lives. So in verse 16, James tells us, don’t be deceived by that. Rather, as we’ve said before, have faith and trust in God for every good gift and every perfect gift is from above coming down from the Father of lights. Praise God for the good gifts that He gives us. Terry and I have experienced so many good gifts from the Lord. I hope that’s your testimony as well. And then there’s some more practical applications right here in verse 19 and verse 22. Let every person be quick to hear and slow to speak, slow to anger. Yes, we’re supposed to listen first and then speak. Most of us are not very good at that, are we? Stephen Covey made the principle famous in his book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. The first one is, seek first to understand, then be understood. Thus, we listen first before we speak. And verse 22, that famous verse, be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Yes, we have just listened to chapter 1 of the book of James. Are we going to be hearers or doers of what we’ve just heard? We’ve seen many practical applications to our lives right here in this first chapter. Think about one as we close James chapter 1 today. Will you count it all joy? Will you seek God if you need an answer and you don’t have wisdom? Will you treat people in Christian love? Will you be quick to listen and slow to speak? Will you be a doer, not just a hearer, of what we’ve heard today? Father, we thank you for the beginning of the wonderful book of James today. We thank you that he’s so practical. The things he said thousands of years ago ring in our ears today. Thanks for the reminder that when you test us, as we go through the test, you produce steadfastness. Thank you for the promise to give us wisdom. Thank you for the promise to give wisdom to us generously. Thank you so much for the good gifts that come from your hands. And thank you for the reminder, even in our relationship with you, to be slow to speak and quick to listen. Speak to us, that we may be doers of the word, not hearers only. In Jesus’ name we pray it. Amen.
