HOW TO LIVE CONSISTENTLY (3 OF 13)
by Scott Maze
Scripture: James 1:18-27
This content is part of a series.
How to Live Consistently (3 of 13)
Series: Balance: A Study of the Book of James
Scott Maze
James 1:18-27
James is the half brother of Jesus, one of the children Joseph and Mary had after Jesus was born (John 7:1-5). Remember that Mary was a virgin prior to Jesus' birth (Luke 1:27). James writes this letter before 62 AD. He cautions us not to be live consistently by doing what we already know to do.
Imagine a young physician who, having just graduated medical school, practices medicine dismissing all that he has learned in medical school. Imagine a judge who rules cases without any regard to legal precedence. Think of a pharmacist who knows that a patient is taking multiple drugs but doesn't pay any attention to how the drugs might interact with one another. Or imagine a cook who doesn't follow recipes, instead he adds ingredients as they come to him. Each person must follow guidelines established as best practices in his or her profession. Whether one is an architect or electrician, heeding the established codes and regulation averts disaster. Would you want your taxes prepared by a person who doesn't follow the IRS guidelines? Or would you hire an electrician who wires your home without any heed to electrical codes?
Christians throughout history have been guided three different options when it comes to choosing what will be authoritative in matters of their faith. This may be an oversimplification, but I see only three choices confront each of us as to what is our bedrock of belief.
1. Tradition
Many people choose to establish the bedrock of their belief on tradition. One group within Christianity says that the right approach to discerning spiritual realties is to listen to the leader of the church. When this leader speaks on matters of religion, he can't go wrong. But various leaders often contradict themselves. So which do you believe? Others believe in the tradition of their parents. Whatever their father or mother believed, they believe ...
Series: Balance: A Study of the Book of James
Scott Maze
James 1:18-27
James is the half brother of Jesus, one of the children Joseph and Mary had after Jesus was born (John 7:1-5). Remember that Mary was a virgin prior to Jesus' birth (Luke 1:27). James writes this letter before 62 AD. He cautions us not to be live consistently by doing what we already know to do.
Imagine a young physician who, having just graduated medical school, practices medicine dismissing all that he has learned in medical school. Imagine a judge who rules cases without any regard to legal precedence. Think of a pharmacist who knows that a patient is taking multiple drugs but doesn't pay any attention to how the drugs might interact with one another. Or imagine a cook who doesn't follow recipes, instead he adds ingredients as they come to him. Each person must follow guidelines established as best practices in his or her profession. Whether one is an architect or electrician, heeding the established codes and regulation averts disaster. Would you want your taxes prepared by a person who doesn't follow the IRS guidelines? Or would you hire an electrician who wires your home without any heed to electrical codes?
Christians throughout history have been guided three different options when it comes to choosing what will be authoritative in matters of their faith. This may be an oversimplification, but I see only three choices confront each of us as to what is our bedrock of belief.
1. Tradition
Many people choose to establish the bedrock of their belief on tradition. One group within Christianity says that the right approach to discerning spiritual realties is to listen to the leader of the church. When this leader speaks on matters of religion, he can't go wrong. But various leaders often contradict themselves. So which do you believe? Others believe in the tradition of their parents. Whatever their father or mother believed, they believe ...
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