PREPARING FOR THE SERMON

June 16, 2024

James 5:12-18

Context:

            James appears to reference Jesus’ teaching on the Sermon on the Mount found in Matthew 5:33-37. Jesus told His followers not to swear at all. The idea of swearing is not saying “bad” words. (though those should be avoid). Swearing here is taking an oath. It is tying the validity of words to some binding agent. To take an oath would be against everything James said previously. His faith demonstrated by authenticity as seen by works devalues idle talk. The simplicity of ‘yes’ or ‘no’ should be consistent with action. The paragraph discussing prayer and confession places the Christian reader in a position of seeking righteousness that leads cooperatively seeking righteousness that will eventually lead to ministry to others found in the close of the book.

           

Structure:

Verse 12 stands alone as both a paragraph and an independent thought. Verses 13-18 ties a few themes from throughout the letter together. Instead of primarily telling the reader to have actions match words, they describe how to act rightly.

  • 12 “your yes is to be yes, and your no, no” (v 12)
  • 13-18 “confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another” (v 16)

Theology:    righteousness, repentance, salvation, prayer

 

Some things to think about:

  • How do your words match up to your actions?
  • When do you pray? When do you praise?
  • Why is it difficult to confess sins to one another?