Church knowledge James 1:19-25

Just got home from church, I learned A LOT, gotta write it out so I don't forget. 

James 1:19-25

Cycle of blessing: a pattern in our lives that we hopefully go through over and over again, and am blessed by being connected to The Lord. 

1. Clean out the crud--- take out all the known sin in our lives. For the more we hold onto sin, the less The Lord will be apart of our lives. 

Romans 1:18-32, proverbs 4:18--as I further read into this, I don't know if they are exactly saying that God works like a dimmer switch in our lives. Gotta pray about that one. 

2. Humbly receive Gods word

*** BIG LEARNING HERE***

James 1:21 " therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you" 

--when we read the bible and we disagree with it, believe that we "are special" and it doesn't apply to us, we are not humbly accepting it. Pastor Larry gave the example of Apple maps. It's normally accurate, but every once in a while it gives us a direction that is really stupid, and we go out and make our own route. Which is good because Apple maps isn't our God. But when God who is our God, tells us to do something really stupid, and we turn and go our own way, we are disobeying God by our arrangance of who we is. It's easy to follow when it's easy, but the paths that looks to be a stupid way to go, is when we show we humbly accept Gods word--complete reminder for me with skip... Having this new girl in his life is really hard for me, but I need to remain on this path, even though it seems so unrealistic at this time. 

Examples pastor Larry gave of this:

•our generosity, waiting to be debt-free, to make more, to have the savings account 

•our honesty, telling the truth even if it hurts/hard

•our bitterness towards that one person we cannot forgive

•flirting with temptation, and not fleeing from it

3. Do what it says, living a life obedient and acting the way the bible says

Bible study myths that royally screw us up: 

1. The more you know the more you grow

Reality: the more we obey God's word, the more we grow. 

2. A bible scholar is a God expert

Reality: we learn more as we be obedient

3. If you are a poor reader, you can't be a close Christian to The Lord.

Reality: it's not about reading it's about doing what God's word says. Living it out matters more than being a reading expert. ---"blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it" Luke 11:28

3. Take your obedience to a deeper level

V23-25 tells us that a fool forgets immediate after seeing, but if we look intently at the perfect law that gives freedom, not forgetting it, and doing it, he will be blessed for what he does. (Not just knows) 

I learned a lot from this. A lot! I have many things I need to work on. The main thing my pride, and growing in the obedience to The Lord's word and doing as it says always, not just when it leads me on a path that I want to go on.