Live Together, Die Alone

"My brothers and sisters, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring them back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the way of error will save them from death and cover over a multitude of sins."
~James 5:19-20 (TNIV)

Last Sunday at Missio Dei we wrapped up our study on James which ends with the above words. What struck me about this passage is that while initially salvation is entirely the work of Christ, we as Christians have a huge part to play in helping each other continue in our walk with God.

The fact is that we don't live out our faith in isolation - we live it in community. The sins of one, even sins thought to be private and that seem to not hurt anyone else, eat at the entire community, just as the successes of one benefit the entire community. Allow me to give an example to flesh this out a bit:

I unashamedly admit that I'm a "Lost" fanatic. The show has me totally captivated every week and I'm currently mourning the fact that they're on hiatus until February. One of the mantras of the castaways on Lost has been, "Live together, die alone." It's their way of saying that they know they're in trouble, they're stuck on an island full of deadly hazards, and the only way they will survive is if they rely on each other. Going it alone is a sure recipe for death.

This could me our motto as well. We have not been designed to live in isolation. In Genesis 2:18 God said that it is not good for man to be alone. Instead, we are designed for community, and God's plan for community is the church. As individual Christians succeed, the church succeeds, and as individual Christians fail, the church fails. And when individuals are failing, it is the church's job to try and bring them back.

Of the many functions and benefits of the church, perhaps one of the most important is being there for Christians who need help. We learned on Sunday about two examples of this: 1) praying for those who are in trouble, have a praise, or need healing, and 2) bringing a fellow-believer back to God who has wandered from the truth. What an amazing and yet frightening responsibility that God has trusted each and every one of us to help care for his bride, the church! Together we can accomplish this task - alone we're destined to fail.

So now it's time for you to share your thoughts and your stories. How can God use us to care for the church? What examples do you have of believers helping other believers that might encourage the rest of Missio Dei? Please feel free to share your thoughts.

-Steve

Can your words be trusted?

"Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple "Yes" or "No." Otherwise you will be condemned."
~James 5:12 (TNIV)

This past Sunday in Missio Dei as we discussed the above verse, we honed in on the question "Can your words be trusted?" Do you ever feel like you have to add "I swear" after a statement because you don't think saying a simple "yes" or "no" will do? If that's the case, what do you need to do to add integrity to your speech?

We also discussed the flip side of that issue. How should we respond when other people fail to keep their promises to us? How can we show forgiveness to that person without setting ourselves up for getting let down again and again?

We had a lot of good feedback on Sunday, but I'm sure there was much left unsaid. Go ahead and reply with your thoughts on this topic.

-Steve

humility.

Last week we heard James’ charge to humility: “submit to God; resist the devil and he will flee from you.” God talked to us about the massive blessing (James’ words, “greater grace”) that comes from laying our gifts at His feet instead of insisting on our own way. We heard about the importance of starving sinful desires and about the wholeness that comes from indulging in good ones.

This week James continues with the theme of humility, but this time he gets even more specific. Fill in this little chart below as you walk through James 4:11-17:

Fill: “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.” (James 4:10)

Overflow: Check your spiritual pulse with these two questions: Do you walk around as a slanderer or judge in your heart? Using James’ definition from 4:13-17, are you arrogant?