Listening, Doing, and Favoritism

Welcome back! I hope you enjoyed your week and are all set to continue our study of James. Today we'll break our discussion up into two parts. We'll start by finishing the first Chapter of James and then we'll move on to the first part of Chapter two.


Part One: Listen And Then Do

We all do it. While someone else is talking, we're thinking about what we're going to say next instead of considering what is being said to us. We know others are worth more care and attention. But the habit is hard to break. God wants us to slow down and listen too. But even when we've really listened to him, we're still not done.

Which bests describes your temper: short fuse, big bomb? long fuse, little fizz? Other?

Read James 1:29-27

Did any thing jump out of the scripture to you? Did you find anything interesting or odd?

Answer the following questions:

• When was a time you wish you had been "quick to listen" and "slow to speak"? 
• What is "the word planted in you" and how can it "save you"?
• How does the term "Sunday Christian" illustrate James' point in verses 22-24? Conversely, what does the life of someone described in verse 25 look like?

• In what area of your life could you do a better job at applying God's Word rather than merely listening to it?
• What can you do to protect yourself from being "polluted by the world" in the coming week?

Part Two: Favoritism
 
1. What kinds of things make you favor one person more than another?
2. For what event would you buy the "best seats": The World Series? Carnegie Hall?
3. What third world country, or low-income area, have you spent time in?

Read James 2:1-13

Did any thing jump out of the scripture to you? Did you find anything interesting or odd?

Answer the following questions:

• In general, what are some ways people show favoritism?
• How does God look on favoritism? When has favoritism hurt you?
• What is the lesson in this passage for how we are to relate to others- rich and poor?
• Why do many people give preferential treatment to those who have money?
• What two gifts does God give the poor? Why would the poor be rich in faith?
• From a practical standpoint, why was it foolish for early Christians to favor the rich over the poor?
• To what extent is James' description of the rich valid today?
• What grade would you give yourself for living by the "royal law"?
• In what sense is violating one law as serious as breaking every law?
• What is one practical way you can "love your neighbor as yourself" this week?

• Who are the "rich" in our churches and communities?
• Who are the "poor"?
• How does the love and mercy commanded here relate to God's love and mercy towards you?

Some interesting questions brought up by students this week:

• What is Morality? 
• What is Ethics? 
• How are they different? 
• How can you differentiate from right and wrong?
• Is the Bible really how God wants us to act or is it just how these people perceived God? Did all of these people have a God sighting?  In other words, is the Bible God's inerrant word, or is it Divinely inspired, or is it a mixture of both? (A good example of how to think of this can be found in 1 Corinthians 7)
• Is technology, like the ability to text people, helping us in our ability to be slow to speak or is the ability to hide behind the technology make it harder?
• What is the perfect law? (James 1:25) Is it the same as the word? Is it the Jewish law? Is it something else?