Revelation from the Epistle of James

James 1

v(1-5) Know that if you are a true born again believer in Christ Jesus, several attack and difficulties will rise up against you. Some of these attacks will be very strange and intense even making you doubt in the existence of GOD and your election in Christ Jesus. Consecrated christian life is filled with insurmountable challenges and adversities as long as you live in this fallen world. And when hit with these challenges and adversities, our first tendency is to lose all hope in GOD, give up on Him and go back to the old carnal ways of the flesh. So the question is when encountered with these difficult circumstances, would you still walk in faith, obeying what GOD has revealed? or will you resort back to your old fleshly ways as a sign of your giving up on GOD where you shun GOD and His truths? The exhortation is not to get dismayed or give up when facing adversities instead continue to walk in faith. There will be several fiery adversitites thrown your way to knock you off from your walk of faith in GOD. Everything around you wants to desensitize you from the awareness of GOD and His presence. There are times when you won't feel GOD. There are times when GOD or His ways makes no sense to you. There are times when GOD seems so far from you. In the midst of all these strange trials and experiences, GOD wants you to stay steadfast in faith and not shrink back from faith or His precepts. Even when it doesn't make sense, just go ahead and obey His revealed Will. HE wants us to be patient in the midst of these challenges and let patience have its perfect work in you so that you may be entire and complete wanting nothing. However, most of us when faced with such trials shrink back in faith and walk away from GOD. That is not how it ought to be. When you encounter such adverse events in life, from now on count it as a blessing in disguise knowing that what the enemy has designed for evil, GOD will turn it for good. Despite your feelings and emotions during the trials of life, when you continue to walk in faith, walking in obedience to what GOD has revealed, it will help your faith in GOD grow even more stronger and develop perfect character and maturity that GOD desires from every child that HE has chosen. Turn these tough times to your advantage by remaining steadfast in faith as they will help you grow more rooted in GOD and in close fellowship with Him. Know that GOD has called you and chose you by His mercy. All these adversitites, all these strange events and feelings that you go through are all known by GOD. Nothing happens in your life by accident anymore. GOD has made a covenant with you and HE will be always with you as long as you remain in Him. The adversities posed by a fallen world, satan and sin will only propel the roots of your faith in GOD even more deeper if you just won't shrink back in faith instead let the process take its complete course. Let your patiently waiting upon GOD take full course.The result of your willing patience, trusting GOD, waiting upon HIS time to move on your behalf, will result in a character formation in you that GOD desires to form in every single believer where one reaches the full stature of Christ, with the mind of Christ fully developed in them, which is very necessary if you want to enter into eternal glory. Meantime, if you want much grace and wisdom to wade through the current adversity, ask GOD for it and HE will help you effectively handle the current challenge in a godly fashion by giving you counsel and grace. GOD reveals His counsel to all who willingly wants to grow into the full mental and moral character through this process. True christian walk was never promised to be easy, but GOD promised that HE will be with us through it all as we embark on this challenging journey. Amen.

v(6-8) Be not double minded wanting to serve the LORD and also wanting to serve the flesh. You cannot serve two masters. If you want to build confidence in your relationship with GOD and possess the mental assurance that HE is always with you, you then ought to be single minded focusing on GOD and His righteousness, shunning all that is revealed as evil and dark. However, if you want to serve GOD and also serve your fallen fleshly propensities, your mind will never reach a place where you find true refuge in GOD. Instead your conscience will be marred, always doubting whether GOD will hear you because your mind is not yet healed from the contaminating effects of sin. Therefore shun all double mindedness and trust the Almighty GOD and His revealed truths so that you may live with a pure conscience, a sincere heart and an unfeigned faith.

v(9-11) The life of a human being on earth is short. Whether you are rich or poor, you will soon go back to dust through death. So really, your money or your financial status has not much weight over your destiny. You will die sooner or later. However, what is of real value is your eternal destiny. In other words, where will you find yourself after death?, in eternal heaven or eternal hell. Did you acknowledge GOD while you were alive and did you live by HIS statutes and commandments whether you were rich or poor? Know that very soon every one will stand in front of the judgment seat of GOD and every man will be recompensed according to His deeds done in the flesh. So knowing that the life on earth is short, and the life after death is eternal, let the poor man who is born again rejoice knowing that his brief span of life will soon get over, his earthly life of sufferings and poverty is short lived and that he will soon be exalted to a place of blessedness forever, living in uninhibited communion in the presence of the Almighty GOD where there are no more tears, no more fears, no more poverty where he will soon be ushered into the eternal kingdom of GOD.  Therefore a man's financial status has no implication on their new found spiritual status. The spiritual status of being a child of GOD has nothing to do with economics. In fact your new found spiritual life has elevated you to the privilege of being an inheritor of the life to come, the eternal life. And now let the rich man who has been found in Christ also rejoice in the fact that he has received a revelation regarding the futility of earthly riches and its inability to save him from the judgment to come. Even though the carnal man thinks highly of riches and measures others by wealth, GOD laughs at such fools. For such men doesn't understand the fragility of his life nor ponders about how short lived his life really is. But GOD sees man's life like the flower of the grass that buds up today and soon dead by the sun's scorching heat. Life on earth is too short and that short life in this fallen world ought to be spent in holy fear of GOD and adherence to the revealed truths of the Scriptures.

v(12) Blessed is the person who hangs on to GOD  in the midst of adversities and challenges posed against his spiritual life here on earth. Once the trials are over and after enduring through it without shrinking back in faith, he will not only be blessed here on earth but also soon be ushered into heaven, the crown of life that GOD has promised to all that love Him and trust Him until the end. Glory!

v(13-16) Do not carry a faulty fallen perspective about GOD. Most people think GOD made humans the way they are, fallen, wretched, sinful. However that is wrong. Man's current conditions are product of his own actions. The original sin committed by Adam has left us all with a seed called lust in us. Lust is an inordinate, unregulated desire that always lean towards crossing the boundaries placed by GOD in all spheres of life. This desire when left unchecked in one's heart, propels him or her to act violating the boundaries placed by GOD, resulting in sin. The act of sin results in a marred conscience, broken fellowship and if left unrepented will result eventually in eternal hell.

v(17-21) You will never find a shadow of turning with GOD. For HE is the same yesterday, today and forever more. GOD always remains true to His name, holy, just and merciful. GOD has always been merciful and loving toward mankind. Despite our unfaithfulness, GOD is faithful by showering us with mercy and love, that we may get back in track and restore fellowship with Him. The most amazing thing GOD does is that HE has recreated some of us into a new lively being through His blood and His Word by which we became a new creation. Therefore, considering this awesome and real work of grace that GOD performed in us, we now need to start seeking things that are in step with the expectations for the new creature that we are. We were once appointed for wrath, but now appointed to inherit salvation. Therefore, the old man with his carnal, ungodly ways are to be put off, and now we need to start to act and think in line with GOD's Word and His righteousness. And that righteousness prescribes that every new man be swift to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger. Haste in speech, anger and similar traits are products of a fallen man and does not promote the righteousness of GOD. In addition to this, the new man need to lay apart all filthiness and overflowing wickedness that constantly tries to pop its ugly head and defile us. Instead , walk in a meek and sober spirit at all times, continually receiving and taking in, the truth that is contained in the Word of GOD and thinking and acting like a renewed man, thus saving our souls from the destruction to come.

v(22) Stop deceiving yourselfves thinking that you can enter eternal life by continuing with the current lifestyle of taking it easy and being a casual hearer of the Word. The Bible exhorts us to shun all careless ways of walking with GOD and focus on diligently applying the way of life revealed in the Scriptures so that we may save our souls from the judgment to come and from the eternal fires of hell which will be the end of every wayward and disobedient person.

v(23-25) If you are a mere hearer of the Word, making no diligent efforts daily to incorporate the revealed truths into your life, you are like a man beholding his face in a mirror who sees himself or his condition at the time of gazing in the mirror, but soon after forgets what he looked like. Similarly, at the time of hearing the Word you were convinced of your pitiable sinful condition that needs to be fixed. But soon after the preaching was over, you got back into your regular lifestyle and forgot all about what GOD revealed to you regarding the areas that need to be fixed in your life. Where as, if you belong to the category of people who looks into the New Testament and sees the glorious liberty that GOD has brought you into as sons of GOD redeeming you from all curse of the law and the wrath to come, and now with a grateful heart you not only hear the Word, but makes all diligent and focused efforts to change your lifestyle in alignment with the Word of GOD. Such people will be immensely blessed by GOD in all they do.

v(26,27) You call yourself a believer, taking great joy and pride in your christian heritage, but when it comes to controlling your tongue or speech you know no restraints, then your so called profession of faith is a total abomination in the sight of GOD. You may define it as faith in GOD, but GOD doesn't accept or approve your flawed view and definition of faith. Faith that is pure and acceptable before GOD is a humble and meek walk with GOD continually rejecting all faulty worldviews from this fallen world, and adopting a lifestyle seeking and saving the genuinely lost, needy and oppressed. As we read in Micah, "To act justly, to love mercy and to walk humbly with your GOD."

James 2

v(1-16) Do you not practice the truth delivered by the Lord Jesus Christ and His apostles? If you profess to be a christian and practice the true faith, why is then a discrepancy in the way you treat others? You show great respect to the rich people, but you look down on the poor. You have great regard for the financially rich, but you have no regard for the financially poor, dealing with them like scum. Doesn't that character of yours expose how corrupt your heart is even though you profess to be an ardent man or woman of GOD? Listen friends, GOD doesn't give you any more importance just because you have lot of money. In fact if you look around, you will see that GOD has called more of the poor in this world to His eternal glory because they respond readily to the gospel and place their faith in Christ unlike some of the rich who puts their foolish trust in riches and money that perishes in no time. Even though you show partiality between rich and poor, GOD is impartial for HE doesn't measure the worth of a person based on perishable riches. To GOD all earthly wealth and possessions are things that moth and rust destroy, instead a character that is righteous and true is what GOD desires. GOD desires for us to change our carnal view of life and get excited about the kingdom to come which HE has prepared for all those who would love HIM and His truths. Always walk in the truth, fulfilling the royal law of love according to the scripture and showing no partiality to anyone due to financial status. You ought to love everyone the same and do the best for others to fulfill the royal law of love. But when you show partiality to persons, you violate the law of love, loving the rich but despising the poor, and thus committing sin. Becoming obedient to GOD when it comes to obeying the commandment "do not kill" but failing when it comes to obeying the commandment "do not commit adultery" is still trangression of the law of love. So in other words, you will have to perfect your walk in love or you will be judged at the end by the extent and sincerity of love that you walked with toward your neighbor and toward GOD. If you showed no mercy while you were here on earth, expect no mercy when you go up to meet GOD one day. Saying you have faith, but have no sincere concern or love for others around you shows a self centered and contaminated existence and such faith is useless and will not be able to save you from the fires of hell. If all you care about is looking pretty on sunday mornings at church, putting together a show in the flesh in front of others, living selfishly, being of no worth to the kingdom of GOD, you are just getting ripe for the fires to come where there is pain and gnashing of teeth.

v17-20: Your mere 'faith' on paper will not save you. Yes there is a verse that reads 'the just shall live by faith'. However, what most people miss is the silent element in that verse, which is the connection of faith and obedience. Faith doesn't stand alone. True faith stands with obedience. In other words, true faith calls for works that proceeds as a result of being obedient to GOD. Along with your faith in Christ, GOD calls you to a lifestyle change in alignment to the truth that is revealed in Scriptures, without which you will not enter into eternal life. Yes, you will have to reorganize your life in line with the Word of GOD and bring forth actions that are required by GOD. And that is the unique trait of the true children of GOD. They walk with true heart and pure conscience and will prove the worth of their precious faith, by producing fruits that are in line with the Word of GOD. If you dont' see any fruit or work according to the righteousness found in the scriptures, then realize that faith is self centered, ignorant and deceiving.

v 21-26: Positive examples of active faith can be seen in the scriptures with men like Abraham who not only believed in GOD, but demonstrated his confidence in GOD by happily laying his son Isaac on the altar when GOD required Him to do so. Thus his act of bold confidence in GOD justified the faith that he was professing to have. Another person noted for their active faith is Rahab. For she just merely did not profess she has faith in GOD, but when situations arrived, she stepped in boldness and did what is right by protecting the messengers of GOD from harms way. The precious faith that GOD has birthed in us is not to be left sitting idle and wasted, instead we need to be actively building on our faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, goldiness, brotherly kindness and love. Just as a body without the spirit is dead, so is faith that is void of good works. Such faith is dead and the person ready to be thrown into fires of hell.

James 3

v1. Our natural tendency as human beings is to fix everyone else around us while there is much work that need to be done in our own lives. Lead a quiet life, master your own selves, overcome the wickedness in you before you try to fix others. Don't jump into the profession of teaching others the Word of GOD when you yourselves don't follow what you teach. Sit under the Word for a period of time, develop character and maturity and then set out to teach the oracles of GOD. Very often we see preachers and teachers who are little learned in the Word of GOD, trying to direct people in the Word. However, without proper character and sound understanding of the New testament and its essence, if you embark on teaching it, you will end up misdirecting and misleading lot of people from the true paths of GOD and eventually their blood will be upon your hands. 

v2-8. The fallen man's tongue is full of deadly poison. It is defiled with sin. Now GOD requires us to tame the tongue. It is a major duty of every born again believer. On a daily basis, we cause offense to others in variety of ways. And most of the time, the offense is caused through words. Therefore we ought to watch our words before we speak. If a man is able to watch what he says, and is able to stop offending others through speech, it is a sign that he or she is mature and self controlled. Even though tongue might seem to be a small object in our body, this small object can cause great damage to oneself and others as well. Tongue should be controlled and sanctified. If left unruly, tongue is a world of sin and it defiles the whole being of a person affecting spirit, soul and body. Any believer who is serious about the race that GOD has called him to should realize that the self control that GOD requires you to practice should start with your tongue. If you can bridle your tongue, you will be able to bridle your whole body.

v9- How can we be so hypocritical? We worship GOD with all passion using our mouth, and few minutes later using the same mouth we produce foul language? Isn't this messed up? Even in our natural surroundings, we dont' see such contradictions. Take an example of our natural surroundings, where we never see a fig tree producing olive berries or a chicken hatching a dog. However, the natural man is so messed up beyond what words can explain that he professes to be a follower of GOD, but his actions are of the devil.  Oh what a hypocrisy! what a mess!The extent of our hypocrisy is unbelievable and we ought to have a sober understanding of the extent of wickedness we still can produce in our flesh. And that knowledge should keep us humble and continually depending on GOD. If you profess to be a child of GOD, then strive to walk like one. True and sincere walk with GOD is one of humility, meekness, gentleness, mercy and without hypocrisy which is renewed after the image of GOD. Where as when most average christians walk in earthly and devilish behavior filled with bitter envying, strifes and dissensions, they demonstrate the deeds of the old fallen man.

James 4

v1-4 Take a good look at our so called christian lives. Isn't it filled with so much carnality and fleshly behavior? Strifes, dissensions, ego clashes, jealousy, fightings and the list goes on. Where are all these coming from? The answer is, it is popping up from your fallen self, the old man which has not been renewed. You have desires to become successful and powerful, but you don't want to do it GOD's way where one will have to to humble themselves, submit to God's precepts and wait for GOD's timing to exalt them. Instead you resort to your fleshly ways to success by trying shortcuts and deceptive methods. You fight, you kill, you do all things in your flesh to attain your fleshly desires, but you are never able to obtain in. Because first of all you never asked GOD for it, instead you resorted to the arm of your flesh. Then you finally prayed to GOD, but you prayed for the wrong things, things that are not in alignment with the Word of GOD. And such prayers GOD won't listen because it is a carnal prayer and all you care is to fulfill your fleshly wordly desires through the answer to your prayers. Listen, my friends, even though you profess to have faith in Christ Jesus, but while continuing in the fashions of the fallen world that operates in selfishness, greed, immorality, you show that you are still friends with the the world. The ways of the world are in total rebellion against GOD. They ignore what GOD has revealed about the brevity of life and the judgement to come. Instead the world indulges in the lusts of the flesh, lusts of the eyes and pride of life. And such way of life is contradicting what GOD has revealed about life. For the ways of GOD are radically opposite to the ways of the world. The Kingdom of GOD operates in a pilgrim mindset looking for the eternal life that is to be revealed and meanwhile the true sons of GOD on earth operate in meekness, gentleness, humility, honour, selflessness and peace while waiting for the revealing of the unshakeable kingdom to come.

v5-10 - The fact of the matter is even though we are born again of the Spirit of GOD, we still live in the old man's flesh which has been tainted by sin. The flesh has a mind of its own conditioned by the patterns that have been learned in the past. The old flesh is also ever easily susceptible to the whisperings and suggestions of the devil, for the fallen flesh naturally leans toward sin. But however we have an advantage today because of the Spirit of GOD that dwells in us, that which can supercede the rebellious patterns of the flesh, if we choose to walk in the Spirit. In addition to the new Spirit in us, GOD's supernatural grace and power is available to all who recognizes this fallen desires in them and wants to sincerely be free from all the darkness that wars inside them. But again GOD's grace is available only to those who are broken and contrite about their sinfulness and wants a way out of it. GOD resists the proud who don't acknowledge their sinfulness nor want to surrender their flesh. It is the mind of the fallen flesh or the old man in us that intensely propels us to walk in darkness. This propensity to lust or entertain inordinate desires and to walk in darknesss works powerfully in our members. However, we cannot use that as an excuse and keep sinning. It is true that these evil tendencies are wrought in us powerfully to propel us to sin, but better news is that GOD giveth more grace to overcome it. But HE only gives that more grace to the humble. Humble are those who submit their minds and bodies quickly to what GOD has revealed as the right action. Instead of jumping into the direction and propensities of the flesh that ever solicits to sin, the humble man or woman of GOD, takes a moment to pause and ask 'what does GOD's Word say about this matter' and then humbles themselves and submits to what GOD has revealed in His Word. To such GOD gives even more grace to resist every evil desire and evil propensity that pops in the mind and body. To such comes the blessing and exaltation from GOD. However, most people are proud in the sense that they reject what GOD has revealed to be true. When the lusts of the flesh hits, they actively choose to reject GOD instead of taking a minute to reflect on what GOD has said and then align themselves to the Word. Instead they run to gratify the immediate desires of the fallen flesh, thus deliberately choosing not to walk in the light and in line with the love of Christ that one is supposed to exhibit or walk in. GOD resists such proud individuals who doesn't submit to His Word instead resorts to the gratification of the dark desires of the fallen man. However, if you belong to the category of saints who is humbled by seeing one's own wretchedness and depravity, now wanting to have a way out of all the evil tendencies trying to ever rise in your system, GOD will give you sufficient grace to subdue your flesh and help you walk in the Spirit, in love. Therefore it is written, submit to GOD, submit with a heart that knows that our feelings and instincts cannot be trusted because it has been tainted and fallen to sin. Then pay attention to GOD's revealed Will and Word, and obey it. Then it gets easy to resist the devil who will now have nothing in you to take advantage of. Your mind, your soul and your being now committed to obedience and to the truths of GOD. Thus draw near to GOD by humbling yourselves in His sight, accepting that you know nothing and is like a child in need of help. GOD will then draw near to you. GOD is calling us to walk humbly before Him, where we have a sober opinion about ourselves, where we realize that the tendency to do evil is ever present with in us and if we don't walk humbly before GOD and continually stick on to Him, we can fall away and end up in destruction.

Cleanse your hand ye sinners and purify your hearts you double minded is a warning to the christians who profess to be believers in Jesus Christ. While many professing to be Christ followers, they still entertain sin and love committing it as in the past days of ignorance. GOD is warning us to cleanse our hands by stop committing sin and then purify our hearts by making up our mind to serve GOD and walk in the paths of righteousness. Even after being regenerate, the average believer is double minded for most cases, wanting to worship GOD and worship sin. Such heart needs to be purified and repaired. All double mindedness has to be ejected out of us and be replaced with single mindedness toward GOD and His precepts. To cleanse your hands and to purify your hearts from double mindedness is no suggestion, instead it is a command. Realize that you have been living a life of folly deceiving yourself and then repent and regret of the ways that was in rebellion against GOD. Humble yourselves in the sight of GOD with a broken and contrite heart and HE will restore you back in His grace and righteousness.

So here are the steps to freedom if you sincerely desire and hunger for righteousness in your life.

a) Submit yourselves to GOD. Acknowledge your helplessness and wretchedness. Tell GOD that you are broken and contrite about your sinfulness and your tendency to always lean toward evil. Tell our heavenly Father that you want to come out of it. Commit yourselves to obedience to the Word. In other words, exhibit your desires and determination not to walk in the lusts of the flesh but according to the Spirit. Tell GOD that you want to walk in faith even all hell breaks loose.

b) Resist the devil. The next step after you have submitted to GOD is getting ready to resist the devil. For he will definitely fight you when you make a decision to walk in obedience to GOD's precepts. Therefore be prepared to resist him after having submitted your spirit, soul and body to GOD and the devil will flee from you.

c) Draw near to GOD. Now comes the maintenance part. Continue to draw closer to GOD with a renewed spirit. Thank Him for His grace and continue to grow closer with Him through learning of His Word and applying it in your lives. 

d) Continue to cleanse yourselves from all the filth of the flesh and the spirit and all double mindedness. The best way prescribed for ongoing maintenance and cleansing of ourselves is fasting. Fast regularly with mourning and weeping. In other words, fast with a broken and contrite heart, broken about our sinfulness, grateful about our redemption despite it all. When you fast with such attitude, you inturn humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord ever ready to acknowledge your sinfulness and tendency to stray away from GOD. And to such who fasts in the right attitude, HE will lift you up and heal you completely.

v11-12 - It is the tendency of the fallen man to find fault with everyone except himself. He is quick to find fault with others, quick to condemn and speak evil without realizing that he himself is vulnerable to the same temptations and faults. When a person behaves such, he or she violates the royal law of love where GOD commands us to love our fellow human beings as we love ourselves. And love covers all sins. True love will pray for the fellow being and not speak evil of them. When you choose to speak evil of another, you break away from walking in love instead choose to walk in hate and self righteousness. GOD commands us to turn our mindset from hate to love. To love your fellow human being, in other words consider the best interests of the other person and do what is best for them. In that way, you choose to walk in the light of your heavenly Father who is perfect and showers mercy on both good and evil. Then you may ask the question. So who will take care of the bad people around me. the answer is GOD will take care of the matter. If someone has wronged you or you feel someone is evil, leave the judgment to GOD who alone knows their hearts and motives. And whey you humble yoursleves like that and defer judgmnet to GOD, HE is well pleased with your humble disposition that acknowledges one's own limitations and lack of knowledge about things. Such person will say "i am no better than him. Even when I were evil, GOD showed mercy unto me. Likewise, I extend mercy upon all my offenders and leave all judgment to GOD who alone is the lawgiver and who alone is able to save and destroy."

v13-16 - It is very important to maintain a sober opinion about oneself and life. Life is short and it is in the hands of GOD. Every person ought to walk in the grave knowledge of the brevity of life here on earth and also in the knowledge of GOD's great grace in providing salvation for us that we may not perish but has eternal life. So there is a mix of alertness and sobriety and at the same time gratefulness for what GOD has provided inspite of our sinfulness. Therefore let all your dealings here on earth be with utmost humility. Do not be running around prideful and arrogant acting as if you are invincible and above all things. Remember always that your life is in GOD's hands and when you converse say "if the LORD permits, I shall live and do this or that for the glory of GOD." All other rejoicing and boasting is evil and sinful where one flaunts around the pride of life acting as if it is all about enjoying and having a good time here on earth, while ignoring GOD and what HE has revealed.

James 5

v(1-6) Look at the financially wealthy people around you. Most of the rich men and women don't acknowledge GOD nor pay regard to His existence. Most of the rich and famous lead a very wanton lifestyle where their closets are filled with clothes, apparel, shoes and other luxury items that sit their and catch dust and rust. They have fattened their hearts with so much luxury, and foods and drinks that have rendered them incapable of feeling. They can’t even think straight like a drunk person who is no longer in their senses. They indulge in excesses and riots as if there is no tomorrow or no end. They totally shun GOD and what HE has revealed about the end. They have indulged in selfish pleasures without paying any regard to the poor and the less fortunate around them. All they care about is their own pleasure. They live a life disregarding GOD and His precepts. Along with that they turn a deaf ear to the sufferings around them because they are so full of themselves. To such warns James that they will surely face the vengeance of eternal fire for the indifferent lifestyle they lived here on earth disregarding GOD and disregarding man. They neither had love for GOD nor they loved their neighbor. Instead as Ap.Paul puts it in 2 Tim 3: 2For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,  3Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good,  4Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God;  5Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. An extreme example today is the Hollywood stars and their lifestyle. Closets full of clothes that they barely use, thousands of pairs of shoes, tones of jewelry and the list goes on. They are living their life here on earth with wantonness and luxury. However, they have heaped the wrath of GOD for the last days unless they repent and change their lifestyle. Now these rich have not only lived in self indulgence and wanton pleasure, they also insult and mock the righteous. They are puffed up with the wealth and fame they have and exploit the less fortunate to their advantage. They are not kind nor considerate. To such GOD gives a stern warning through His apostles. These people live a life of illusion and half drugged not in their proper senses but always looking to fulfill the lusts of their flesh.  For them it is all about their money and pleasure. They live a life ignoring GOD and His precepts. But the days of vanity and pleasure are short numbered for those who worship the world and wealth. The miseries that are going to come upon the haughty and the arrogant rich people are unimaginable. For they will pay a price in eternal hell for every act of haughtiness and pride they exhiibited on earth by paying no regard to the most High GOD. They have heaped treasures of eternal fire in the days to come. For while the rich while here on earth, in addition to their excessive haughtiness and pride, they mistreated the poor and the less privileged. They lived a selfish lifestyle, disregarding others, indulging in excesses and gratifying every desire of the flesh. These rich also are set against the saints of GOD, condemning them, mocking them and making false allegations and insults against them.

v(7-11) However, the saints of GOD need not fret or fume seeing the prosperity of these fools who disregard GOD. Instead, the saints of GOD need to wait patiently, grounded in the love of GOD and established in GOD, for the judgment of their enemies will come soon. Meanwhile, as a saint, you should not engage in any ungodly trait by grudging or taking revenge over them, lest you also fall under condemnation from the Lord for losing patience and behaving in an ungodly fashion. So hold fast to your faith, be patient, continue to overcome evil with good, be gentle and meek and let the LORD take care of the judgment part. Console and strengthen yourself by remembering the examples of the prophets who went before you. For they suffered affliction and persecution from the hands of the unrighteous, but patiently endured without making even an ungodly sigh, instead choosing to conduct in a manner that is fitting the true sons of GOD with nobility and civility, leaving all judgment to GOD to execute vengeance as HE sees fit. A perfect example is Job who patiently endured and walked in faith despite all suffering. And we see how GOD immensely blessed him. Know this for a fact that if you are born of the righteous Spirit of Christ, the unrighteous world will hate you, even to the point of murder. Matt 5:10 -Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Patiently wait for the LORD and His kingdom just like the farmer who patiently waits in expectation after sowing the seed. He patiently waits while the seasons are passing and the rains to pour so that his crop is produced and he can reap the harvest. Likewise run the race with patience through all seasons in life and very soon you will receive the harvest of eternal life. Be ye also patient for the coming of the Lord is near. The natural tendency for man is to shrink back in faith and give up when he doesn’t get immediate results. However, our result is not immediate but the reward is for the ones who endure, trusting in GOD in the meantime and then be ushered in glory. To such is the kingdom of heaven, to those who endure and not to those who easily give up.

The saints who live in the midst of this world filled with debauchery and excessive lusts, need to be patient and remain steadfast in faith. The tendency is always to sit miserably at this end wondering why you can’t enjoy the same pleasures and indulgence of fleshly lusts that the world enjoys. However, the Scriptures warn that these people are on a slippery slope and their destruction is nearer than you think. Don’t sit and fret and fume over how the world enjoys the lusts and how you sit their miserably with nothing. If you do that, you too will fall under the judgment of the LORD. Instead wait patiently and run the race with patience, with patience of hope to the revealing of the life eternal and soon the LORD will appear. As Ap. Peter stated, 9The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. The LORD like a farmer is patiently waiting for the many to inherit salvation and mature into perfect sons of GOD. Likewise, we are exhorted to remain patient and develop the fruit of the Holy Spirit in us and shines as sons of GOD in the midst of this depraved generation. The end of the Lord or the reward for those who endure patiently in this world and not shrink back in faith in the midst of all the affliction and pain from the world and satan is tremendous. Truly blessed are they who endure, for they will receive soon the great blessed inheritance of the sons of GOD. Glory. Groan not; grumble not; do not murmur through impatience meanwhile for your reward will be forfeited if you don’t endure cheerfully and with godliness.

V12 – Do not swear or make oaths to get people convinced – Get to a point in your character both internally and externally that you will only deal in the highest of integrity, having no hint of darkness in you. For the LORD Jesus has called us to be perfect as the Father in heaven is perfect. There should be no shadow of turning in us. Our yes should be good enough to convince people of our integrity without having to make any promises or oaths. GOD is calling us to the highest form of integrity and righteousness that has ever been. HE is calling us to be imitators of Himself with whom there is no shadow of turning. GOD is light and in Him there is no darkness at all. If you are not striving to reach the highest standards of character as seen in GOD, it is very likely that you will fall short of GOD’s glory and fall into condemnation on the day of judgment. If you are still harboring lewdness, filthiness and sin in your life despite being born again, you will very definitely fall into the judgment of GOD.

V13 The life of the saint has various seasons; seasons of afflictions, trials, joy, excitement, vision, impartation. And all seasons in a saints life work together for his good. The chief thing is that the saint should know how to react to each season that GOD sends his way so that he can become perfect and entire wanting nothing. Are you go through a season of affliction or pain where there is several uncertainties, then pray to the LORD of hosts who knows every hair on your head. Prayer is the right way to react during the season of affliction and trial. Likewise, when there is occasion for joy in your life, offer the sacrifice of thanksgiving to the GOD who is the author of all good things and even your joyous occasions. All things begin and consummate in Him, the Father of lights who showers manifold blessings and mercy in our lives.

V 14-15 If you are facing bodily ailments or sicknesses, immediately call for the elders of the church who have a deeper, tested relationship with GOD. The elders of the early church  would not be ordained in the first place without a proven and tested relationship with GOD. Today it is a different scenario where any tom, dick and harry will be ordained in the leadership of the church and you can sense no power or no truth in such men. Don’t run to such. Instead discern and recognize the truly spiritually deep people in your church, who bears fruits and walk in the truths of GOD, call such and have them pray for your healing. For these true elders in any church has taken time to build up their faith and relationship with GOD. They have endured and have received a good testimony. And their confidence and communion with GOD is way greater than the average believer. And their prayer of faith will move GOD on your behalf and not only you will be healed of your sickness but also your sins be forgiven. For majority of sicknesses find its root in sin. It is some sin or the other that results in the pitiable state of sickness. And if the sinner do not have enough confidence to draw near to GOD, he needs to gather to himself, folks who have enough confidence in GOD and avail their prayer for him so that he can be healed and restored. There is no sin that is too big for GOD to forgive, no sickness to difficult for GOD to heal. HE has covered it all by the blood of His son Jesus Christ. Glory! HE is the healer of all diseases.

V16.