The Community of Christians Saving One-Another

"My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins." - James 5:19-20

Today, I was looking through some of my yearbooks from high-school. It brought back some memories of friends who helped me keep the Christian faith as I walked through the pleasantries and difficulties of high-school. As I now look into these peoples lives who once followed the faith, many of them have fallen away.

So let's bring these people back. Many times, we like to help people accept Jesus but then we won't help them follow Jesus. We need to remain in these peoples lives so that when they fall, there is someone there to help them get back up.

We all know these people who used to be Christians and (often times) because of a lack of Christian support behind them, they gave up on Christ all-together. Let's do our part and lift one-another up today and every day.

Here are some ways to do this.

1. Schedule to meet someone for coffee who is struggling in their faith and take that time to listen to them and encourage them.

2. Be friendly. You would be amazed how many people you cross every day that you make or break their day. Decide to make it and invest time in everyone.

3. Listen. Listening is important because it shows people that you care. Listen to someone today and forget about your own agenda.

Let's Run this Race Together

"Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayers of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit." - James 5:13-18

Ah, so we have come to some of my favorite scripture in James. Lets discover together what rich application is within these verses.

Isn't it so much more simple than many of us make it? If we are suffering, we should pray; if we are cheerful, we should sing praises; if we are sick, we should have church family pray over us and....anoint us with oil?

Let's first explain this anointing with oil business. Interestingly, anointing with oil back in the time of Jesus (as we like to refer to it) was a symbol of love and respect (see Jesus' anointing in Luke 7:36-40). Thus why church family would practice this during a person's time of weakness (the Greek word translated "sick" literally means "weak"); to show their support.

This scripture testifies to the power and importance of prayer, but most importantly, to the importance of union, love, and support within the body of Christ. By confessing our sins to one another, praying for one another, rejoicing together, anointing one another, we save each-other. This community of love is truly what makes this Christian life livable. Persecution, addiction, and pain is hard to go through, but together we can bare it. If we all pick up our crosses and follow Jesus, we might be surprised to find that this walk together truly is the easy yoke.

1. Start or join a group. If your not part of a church, join one (or start one!). And if you are part of a church, get more involved, start an accountability group, a ministry group, or a Bible study group. Don't like leading? Than join one that already exists!

2. Make Christian friends. If you don't have Christian friends, you are in a bad spot to be in. Sure, you can hold relationships with non-Christians, but the deep relationships that are as family need to be Christ-centered.

3. Start praying for the Christian body. We need to be praying for each-other. Seriously. In Acts, Peter is released from prison because of the Church's prayers lifted up to God (Acts 12:5-19). Find a friend in need (or anyone at anytime because we are needy people) and pray for him/her earnestly.

Blessings.

Being a Reliable Christian

"But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your 'yes' be yes and your 'no' be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation." - James 5:12

Christians need to be reliable people. If we tell someone we are going to be somewhere at sometime, we need to be there. If we tell someone we are going to pay them back, we need to pay them back. A Christian's word should be reliable and trustworthy.

Granted that James also tells us that rather than telling people we will do something, we should make known to them the contingency that the in order for us to do it, the Lord must will it (James 4:13-17).

I know this isn't a whole lot but it really is a simple principle and I don't want to over-complicate things. Here are three practical ways to live reliably.

1. Don't say yes so much. Many of us, including myself, say yes to everyone because there is a certain level of guilt created when we say no. But the reality is that in order to be reliable as James says, we must say no sometimes. So get off your yes-man horse and start saying no (lovingly).

2. Mark things on a calendar. It's easy to forget about an appointment or agreement you made to someone so mark it on your calendar or put an alarm in your phone right when the agreement is made.

3. Stay focused. A lot of times we fill our lives up with things that we aren't actually passionate about simply because the opportunity provided itself. Say no to opportunities that you aren't passionate about and say yes to those you are.

Blessings.