 By Charlie Lacey | James 3:13-18Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.James 3:13-18New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Weekly Talks

Two Kinds of Wisdom

By Charlie Lacey | James 3:1-12Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.James 3:1-12New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Taming the Tongue

By Charlie Lacey | James 2:14-26What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.James 2: 14-26New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

The God Who Changes Lives

James 2:1-13 | Bev Bell & FionaMy brothers and sisters, believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ must not show favoritism. Suppose a man comes into your meeting wearing a gold ring and fine clothes, and a poor man in filthy old clothes also comes in. If you show special attention to the man wearing fine clothes and say, “Here’s a good seat for you,” but say to the poor man, “You stand there” or “Sit on the floor by my feet,” have you not discriminated among yourselves and become judges with evil thoughts?Listen, my dear brothers and sisters: Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? But you have dishonored the poor. Is it not the rich who are exploiting you? Are they not the ones who are dragging you into court? Are they not the ones who are blaspheming the noble name of him to whom you belong?If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right. But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. For he who said, “You shall not commit adultery,” also said, “You shall not murder.” If you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a lawbreaker.Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment.New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Christian Snobbery

James 1:19-25 | by Erika Williams My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 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.Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.James 1: 19-25New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Listening and Doing

James 1: 13-18 | by Trevor AdamsWhen tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.James 1: 13-18New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Counterfeit Gifts

By Charlie Lacey | James 1:1-12James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ,To the twelve tribes scattered among the nations:Greetings.Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.Believers in humble circumstances ought to take pride in their high position. But the rich should take pride in their humiliation—since they will pass away like a wild flower. For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich will fade away even while they go about their business.Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial because, having stood the test, that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.James 1:1-12New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Preserving Through the Trials

By Charlie Lacey | Micah 6: 1-8 and Matthew 25: 31-40The Lord’s Case Against IsraelListen to what the Lord says:“Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;    let the hills hear what you have to say.“Hear, you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;    listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.For the Lord has a case against his people;    he is lodging a charge against Israel.“My people, what have I done to you?    How have I burdened you? Answer me.I brought you up out of Egypt    and redeemed you from the land of slavery.I sent Moses to lead you,    also Aaron and Miriam.My people, remember    what Balak king of Moab plotted    and what Balaam son of Beor answered.Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,    that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.”With what shall I come before the Lord    and bow down before the exalted God?Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,    with calves a year old?Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,    with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,    the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.    And what does the Lord require of you?To act justly and to love mercy    and to walk humbly with your God.Micah 6:1-8New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.The Sheep and the Goats“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’Matthew 25: 31-40New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.</cite></blockquote>

By Charlie Lacey | Micah 6: 1-8 and Matthew 25: 31-40The Lord’s Case Against IsraelListen to what the Lord says:“Stand up, plead my case before the mountains;    let the hills hear what you have to say.“Hear, you mountains, the Lord’s accusation;    listen, you everlasting foundations of the earth.For the Lord has a case against his people;    he is lodging a charge against Israel.“My people, what have I done to you?    How have I burdened you? Answer me.I brought you up out of Egypt    and redeemed you from the land of slavery.I sent Moses to lead you,    also Aaron and Miriam.My people, remember    what Balak king of Moab plotted    and what Balaam son of Beor answered.Remember your journey from Shittim to Gilgal,    that you may know the righteous acts of the Lord.”With what shall I come before the Lord    and bow down before the exalted God?Shall I come before him with burnt offerings,    with calves a year old?Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams,    with ten thousand rivers of olive oil?Shall I offer my firstborn for my transgression,    the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.    And what does the Lord require of you?To act justly and to love mercy    and to walk humbly with your God.Micah 6:1-8New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.The Sheep and the Goats“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left.“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’“Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’Matthew 25: 31-40New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

What Does The Lord Require? (Outdoor Service)

By Charlie Lacey | Jonah 1:1-3, 3:1-5, 3:10–4:3Jonah Flees From the LordThe word of the Lord came to Jonah son of Amittai: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its wickedness has come up before me.”But Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he found a ship bound for that port. After paying the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish to flee from the Lord.Jonah Goes to NinevehThen the word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time: “Go to the great city of Nineveh and proclaim to it the message I give you.”Jonah obeyed the word of the Lord and went to Nineveh. Now Nineveh was a very large city; it took three days to go through it. Jonah began by going a day’s journey into the city, proclaiming, “Forty more days and Nineveh will be overthrown.” The Ninevites believed God. A fast was proclaimed, and all of them, from the greatest to the least, put on sackcloth.When God saw what they did and how they turned from their evil ways, he relented and did not bring on them the destruction he had threatened.Jonah’s Anger at the Lord’s CompassionBut to Jonah this seemed very wrong, and he became angry. He prayed to the Lord, “Isn’t this what I said, Lord, when I was still at home? That is what I tried to forestall by fleeing to Tarshish. I knew that you are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abounding in love, a God who relents from sending calamity. Now, Lord, take away my life, for it is better for me to die than to live.”Jonah 1:1-3, 3:1-5, 3:10–4:3New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Running From God

By Charlie Lacey | Obadiah 1:1-4 ; 10-15Obadiah’s VisionThe vision of Obadiah.This is what the Sovereign Lord says about Edom—We have heard a message from the Lord:    An envoy was sent to the nations to say,“Rise, let us go against her for battle”—“See, I will make you small among the nations;    you will be utterly despised.The pride of your heart has deceived you,    you who live in the clefts of the rocks    and make your home on the heights,you who say to yourself,    ‘Who can bring me down to the ground?’Though you soar like the eagle    and make your nest among the stars,    from there I will bring you down,”declares the Lord.Because of the violence against your brother Jacob,    you will be covered with shame;    you will be destroyed forever.On the day you stood aloof    while strangers carried off his wealthand foreigners entered his gates    and cast lots for Jerusalem,    you were like one of them.You should not gloat over your brother    in the day of his misfortune,nor rejoice over the people of Judah    in the day of their destruction,nor boast so much    in the day of their trouble.You should not march through the gates of my people    in the day of their disaster,nor gloat over them in their calamity    in the day of their disaster,nor seize their wealth    in the day of their disaster.You should not wait at the crossroads    to cut down their fugitives,nor hand over their survivors    in the day of their trouble.“The day of the Lord is near    for all nations.As you have done, it will be done to you;    your deeds will return upon your own head.Obadiah 1:1-4;10-15New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Pride Goes Before a Fall

By Charlie Lacey | Amos 5:18-27The Day of the LordWoe to you who long    for the day of the Lord!Why do you long for the day of the Lord?    That day will be darkness, not light.It will be as though a man fled from a lion    only to meet a bear,as though he entered his house    and rested his hand on the wall    only to have a snake bite him.Will not the day of the Lord be darkness, not light—    pitch-dark, without a ray of brightness?“I hate, I despise your religious festivals;    your assemblies are a stench to me.Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings,    I will not accept them.Though you bring choice fellowship offerings,    I will have no regard for them.Away with the noise of your songs!    I will not listen to the music of your harps.But let justice roll on like a river,    righteousness like a never-failing stream!“Did you bring me sacrifices and offerings    forty years in the wilderness, people of Israel?You have lifted up the shrine of your king,    the pedestal of your idols,    the star of your god—    which you made for yourselves.Therefore I will send you into exile beyond Damascus,”    says the Lord, whose name is God Almighty.Amos 5:18-27New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Going Through the Motions

By Charlie Lacey | Joel 2:11b-18Rend Your Heart“Even now,” declares the Lord,    “return to me with all your heart,    with fasting and weeping and mourning.”Rend your heart    and not your garments.Return to the Lord your God,    for he is gracious and compassionate,slow to anger and abounding in love,    and he relents from sending calamity.Who knows? He may turn and relent    and leave behind a blessing—grain offerings and drink offerings    for the Lord your God.Blow the trumpet in Zion,    declare a holy fast,    call a sacred assembly.Gather the people,    consecrate the assembly;bring together the elders,    gather the children,    those nursing at the breast.Let the bridegroom leave his room    and the bride her chamber.Let the priests, who minister before the Lord,    weep between the portico and the altar.Let them say, “Spare your people, Lord.    Do not make your inheritance an object of scorn,    a byword among the nations.Why should they say among the peoples,    ‘Where is their God?’”The Lord’s AnswerThen the Lord was jealous for his land    and took pity on his people.Joel 2:11b-18New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Rend Your Hearts

By Charlie Lacey | Hosea 3: 1-5Hosea’s Reconciliation With His WifeThe Lord said to me, “Go, show your love to your wife again, though she is loved by another man and is an adulteress. Love her as the Lord loves the Israelites, though they turn to other gods and love the sacred raisin cakes.”So I bought her for fifteen shekels of silver and about a homer and a lethek of barley. Then I told her, “You are to live with me many days; you must not be a prostitute or be intimate with any man, and I will behave the same way toward you.”For the Israelites will live many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred stones, without ephod or household gods. Afterward the Israelites will return and seek the Lord their God and David their king. They will come trembling to the Lord and to his blessings in the last days.Hosea 3: 1-5New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Relentless Love

By Charlie Lacey | Deuteronomy 18:14-22The ProphetThe nations you will dispossess listen to those who practice sorcery or divination. But as for you, the Lord your God has not permitted you to do so. The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him. For this is what you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the Lord our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.”The Lord said to me: “What they say is good. I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name. But a prophet who presumes to speak in my name anything I have not commanded, or a prophet who speaks in the name of other gods, is to be put to death.”You may say to yourselves, “How can we know when a message has not been spoken by the Lord?” If what a prophet proclaims in the name of the Lord does not take place or come true, that is a message the Lord has not spoken. That prophet has spoken presumptuously, so do not be alarmed.Deuteronomy 18:14-22New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Understanding the Prophets

By Charlie Lacey | Acts 9:1-19aSaul’s ConversionMeanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord’s disciples. He went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”“Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, “Ananias!”“Yes, Lord,” he answered.The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight.”“Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people in Jerusalem. And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name.”But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument to proclaim my name to the Gentiles and their kings and to the people of Israel. I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.” Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength.Acts 9:1-19aNew International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

The Redemptive Power of Christ

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