Nipate
Forum => Controversial => Topic started by: GeeMail on November 21, 2014, 10:06:01 AM
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The Humility of Heavenly Wisdom
Sabbath afternoon
Read for This Week’s Study:
James 3:13–4:10; Deut. 4:6; Gal. 5:17; Jer. 3:6–10, 20; Acts 19:13–16; Ps. 24:3–6.
Memory Text:
“Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and
He will exalt you.” (James 4:10, NASB).
In many midsize and larger companies, a “middle-manager mentality” exists. This attitude happens when workers feel entitled to something they do not yet have: more respect, a higher salary, a more advanced position, and so on. This unhealthy attitude develops over time as the person strives to get ahead. Symptoms may include
flattering remarks served up to decision makers and uncomplimentary
revelations made about coworkers, all seasoned with a spirit of selfish rivalry. When one major television news anchor advanced to the top without destroying others to get there, a colleague admiringly observed: “There were no dead bodies.”
It would be nice to think that selfish rivalry is confined to secular organizations and that the church operates quite differently.
Unfortunately, Scripture indicates that all too often worldly “wisdom”
also operates among believers. This week, let’s see what the Word of God has to say about this unfortunate reality.
* Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, November 22.
http://www.absg.adventist.org/2014/4Q/TE/PDFs/ETQ414_08.pdf
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The Meekness of Wisdom
“Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom” (James 3:13, ESV).
“The meekness of wisdom”? What might that mean?
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Some commentators think that the entire third chapter of James
has to do with what qualifies (or disqualifies) people to be teachers.
Naturally, the “wise and understanding” would seem to be good candidates, but the scope seems to be broader, encompassing the whole congregation. The wisdom James describes here and throughout the epistle is not primarily the intellectual variety so esteemed by the ancient Greeks and many Western countries today. Rather, wisdom
is seen in one’s conduct and lifestyle, as indicated by the Greek word for it,
anastrophe, translated “conduct” (used also in 1 Tim. 4:12, Heb.
13:7, 1 Pet. 1:15, 2:12).
Our actions and conduct testify as to how wise we are. Jesus taught the same, saying that “‘wisdom is justified by her children’” (Matt. 11:19, NKJV).
Interestingly, the only place in the Old Testament where the phrase
translated “wise and understanding” is found is in Moses’ admonition
to Israel to observe all the laws that God had commanded: “Keep them
and do them, for that will be your wisdom and your understanding in
the sight of the peoples, who, when they hear all these statutes, will say,
‘Surely this great nation is a wise and understanding people’ ” (Deut. 4:6, ESV; emphasis added).
In contrast, the “bitter” water spring referred to in James 3:11 produces “envy and selfish ambition” (vs. 14, NIV) in the church. The latter translates from the Greek word
eritheia, which refers to “the exclusive pursuit of one’s own interests.”—Ceslas Spicq, Theological Lexicon of the New Testament (Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers), vol. 2, p. 70. That’s an attitude that sounds more like Satan in heaven than like what Christians should be on earth. Unless we make a conscious choice
to die to self and surrender our wills to the Lord, all of us could be in danger of displaying precisely the attitudes here that James warns about.
Dwell more on the phrase “the meekness of wisdom.” What are some of the situations in which, right now, some of this wisdom on your part would be very helpful?
http://www.absg.adventist.org/2014/4Q/TE/PDFs/ETQ414_08.pdf
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Cause of Conflict and Quarrels
“Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not
come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members?”
(James 4:1, NKJV; compare Gal. 5:17).
What basic conflict do both of these passages describe?
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The opening verses of James 4 describe believers torn asunder by
internal, bitter strife. There is an inward cause of the outward quarrels
in the church: the cravings for pleasure (the word in Greek gives us our
word hedonism). These sinful desires, which Paul metaphorically refers
to as “the flesh,” are actively making war against our higher, spiritual
motivations. The Christian life involves a protracted battle which, if not
governed by the “wisdom from above” (James 3:17),
spills out to the church itself and causes spiritual trauma among believers.
Read James 4:2, 3. What specific sinful desires are mentioned, and
how are they affecting the church?
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These verses contain direct references to the Ten Commandments:
“You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain”
(James 4:2, NKJV).
The repeated references to the problem of envy, coveting, and cravings or passions
(compare James 3:14, 16) reflect a perspective similar to the one expressed by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, in which the inner motivations, not just outward actions, are
in view. Therefore, the reference to murder is probably meant, in this broader sense, to include anger. The earliest congregations probably did not have members killing one another. On the other hand, as we learn from the book of Acts, there were times, particularly in Jerusalem where James was based, when betrayal could easily have led to the arrest and putting to death of church members.
“It is the love of self that brings unrest. When we are born from above, the same mind will be in us that was in Jesus, the mind that led Him to humble Himself that we might be saved. Then we shall not be seeking the highest place. We shall desire to sit at the feet of Jesus, and learn of Him.”—Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, pp. 330, 331
Read more at: http://www.absg.adventist.org/2014/4Q/TE/PDFs/ETQ414_08.pdf