you rich people

James 5 

1 Look here, you rich people: 

Weep and groan with anguish 

because of all the terrible troubles ahead of you. 

2 Your wealth is rotting away, 

and your fine clothes are moth-eaten rags. 

3 Your gold and silver are corroded. 

The very wealth you were counting on 

will eat away your flesh like fire. 

This corroded treasure you have hoarded 

will testify against you on the day of judgment. 

4 For listen! 

Hear the cries of the field workers whom you have cheated of their pay. 

The cries of those who harvest your fields 

have reached the ears of the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.

5 You have spent your years on earth in luxury, 

satisfying your every desire. 

You have fattened yourselves for the day of slaughter. 

6 You have condemned and killed innocent people, who do not resist you.

********

Hmmmm... should we send these verses to some of our favorite billionaires?

word

James 4 

7 So humble yourselves before God. 

Resist the devil, 

and he will flee from you. 

8 Come close to God, 

and God will come close to you. 

Wash your hands, you sinners; 

purify your hearts, 

for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. 

9 Let there be tears for what you have done. 

Let there be sorrow and deep grief. 

Let there be sadness instead of laughter, 

and gloom instead of joy. 

10 Humble yourselves before the Lord, 

and he will lift you up in honor.

11 Don’t speak evil against each other, dear brothers and sisters. 

If you criticize and judge each other, 

then you are criticizing and judging God’s law. 

But your job is to obey the law, 

not to judge whether it applies to you. 

12 God alone, who gave the law, is the Judge. 

He alone has the power to save 

or to destroy. 

So what right do you have to judge your neighbor?

13 Look here, you who say, 

“Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. 

We will do business there and make a profit.” 

14 How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? 

Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. 

15 What you ought to say is, 

“If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that.” 

16 Otherwise you are boasting about your own pretentious plans, 

and all such boasting is evil.

17 Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it.

LGLO

Matthew 22 

34 But when the Pharisees heard that (Jesus) had silenced the Sadducees with his reply, 

they met together to question him again. 

35 One of them, an expert in religious law, tried to trap him with this question: 

36 “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the law of Moses?”

37 Jesus replied, 

“‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, 

all your soul, 

and all your mind.’ 

38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 

39 A second is equally important: 

‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 

40 The entire law and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.”

********

If we boil down what Jesus said, it sums up to this:

Love God, love others.

LGLO

prejudice

James 2 

1 My dear brothers and sisters, 

how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ 

if you favor some people over others?

2 For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. 3 If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well, 4 doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives?

5 Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him? 6 But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? 7 Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?

8 Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” 9 But if you favor some people over others, you are committing a sin. You are guilty of breaking the law.

10 For the person who keeps all of the laws except one is as guilty as a person who has broken all of God’s laws. 11 For the same God who said, “You must not commit adultery,” also said, “You must not murder.” So if you murder someone but do not commit adultery, you have still broken the law.

12 So whatever you say or whatever you do, remember that you will be judged by the law that sets you free. 13 There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others. But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when he judges you.

faith & endurance

James 1 

2 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, 

consider it an opportunity for great joy. 

3 For you know that when your faith is tested, 

your endurance has a chance to grow. 

4 So let it grow, 

for when your endurance is fully developed, 

you will be perfect and complete, 

needing nothing.

5 If you need wisdom, 

ask our generous God, 

and he will give it to you. 

He will not rebuke you for asking. 

6 But 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. 

7 Such people should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 

8 Their loyalty is divided between God and the world, 

and they are unstable in everything they do.

9 Believers who are poor have something to boast about, 

for God has honored them. 

10 And those who are rich should boast that God has humbled them. 

They will fade away like a little flower in the field. 

11 The 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.

12 God 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. 

13 And remember, 

when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” 

God is never tempted to do wrong, 

and he never tempts anyone else. 

14 Temptation comes from our own desires, 

which entice us and drag us away. 

15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. 

And when sin is allowed to grow, 

it gives birth to death.

16 So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. 

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. 

He never changes 

or casts a shifting shadow. 

18 He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. 

And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.

27

Psalm 27

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
    so why should I be afraid?
The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger,
    so why should I tremble?
2 When evil people come to devour me,
    when my enemies and foes attack me,
    they will stumble and fall.
3 Though a mighty army surrounds me,
    my heart will not be afraid.
Even if I am attacked,
    I will remain confident.

4 The one thing I ask of the Lord—
    the thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
    delighting in the Lord’s perfections
    and meditating in his Temple.
5 For he will conceal me there when troubles come;
    he will hide me in his sanctuary.
    He will place me out of reach on a high rock.
6 Then I will hold my head high
    above my enemies who surround me.
At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy,
    singing and praising the Lord with music.

7 Hear me as I pray, O Lord.
    Be merciful and answer me!
8 My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”
    And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”
9 Do not turn your back on me.
    Do not reject your servant in anger.
    You have always been my helper.
Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me,
    O God of my salvation!
10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
    the Lord will hold me close.

11 Teach me how to live, O Lord.
    Lead me along the right path,
    for my enemies are waiting for me.
12 Do not let me fall into their hands.
    For they accuse me of things I’ve never done;
    with every breath they threaten me with violence.
13 Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness
    while I am here in the land of the living.

14 Wait patiently for the Lord.
    Be brave and courageous.
    Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

4 verses

Hebrews 12 

1 Therefore, 

since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, 

let us strip off every weight that slows us down, 

especially the sin that so easily trips us up. 

And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 

2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, 

the champion who initiates 

and perfects 

our faith.

********

12 So take a new grip with your tired hands 

and strengthen your weak knees. 

13 Mark out a straight path for your feet 

so that those who are weak and lame 

will not fall 

but become strong.