James: Take-home lessons of Sukkot, Shmini Atzeret

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During this year’s celebration of Sukkot (festival of Tabernacles) and Shmini Atzeret (convocation of the Eighth Day), we’ve been learning from each other and from God’s word and trying to put them together in our hearts. Every feast gives us something a little different. We have to be at first with God before we can be at peace with others. God gives us this שלום shalom.

Texts: James 1:1-4, 12-14; 4:10-13; 5:7, 19-20

The letter by apostle Ya’akov (James) was not written to the gentile world but to the 12 tribes of Israel. He was writing to his own culture. Yeshua sent His disciples to the 12 tribes while He was alive on earth (Matt. 10:6). 

When Ya’akov tells his readers, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials…” (Jas. 1:4), the word translated as trials in the New American Standard Bible (from πειρασμοῖς peirasmos, Strong’s G3986), is more accurately translated as temptation. We need to look at ourselves and ask, “Where does this temptation come from?” Our trust in God will be tried. Yeshua told us to “pray not to be led into temptation.” But we are going to be tested, because we are weak and need to learn to totally depend on God. 

When our faith is tested, it is working. Ya’akov tells us that when faith is tested, that patience that develops it gives us endurance and completes us to the point that we no longer want the thing that use to tempt us with desire (Jas. 1:3–4). Our mind becomes more pure. 

Does patience come at the blink of an eye? No, it takes a long time to become patient people. If you grow in grace and knowledge, you’ll understand that the temptations are always there to test us to see if we really love God. The goal is to cast out that temptation and close the door to it for good. 

When we go back home, we can allow ourselves to get upset about the things of the world: politics, banks, Wall Street, etc. 

Ya’akov said faith without works is dead but works without faith are also dead. We need both in tandem to walk more closely with God. 

The reason you want nothing is because you are trusting in God. God will deliver you out of temptations. We are called to cast out temptation out of our mind as fast as possible but sometimes we find ourselves angry about something and we hold onto it for far too long. We ask God to cast it out but God reminds us that we let it into us in the first place. If we make a mistake and open the door to some temptation, we have to do the hard work of closing that door over and over again until it’s closed for good. 

For example, we are called to be a blessing and blessing should come out of our mouths, not curses or anger. 

James 1:12 tells us that when we are tried and successfully resisted it, exercise patience and restraint, God says, He’ll reward you with the crown of life. 

Different people have different tests. For example, some people may be tempted not to report all their income on their tax returns. You can save money if you don’t declare it, but the law says otherwise. Are you going to open the door like Cain did and let sin in or not? We have to make a judgement on the temptation but then God will make a judgement on how well we dealt with the temptation. 

Once you accept doing the right thing, the temptation no longer controls you but you are in control of it. That is when patience can do its work in you and bless you. 

Later in James, we are told, “Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you” (Jas. 4:10). Immediately after that, Ya’akov wrote not to speak evil of one another or we become their judge and God is their judge. The word that is translated as speak evil in some translations is the Greek word καταλαλέω katalaleo (Strong’s G2635) which is more closely translated as slander. When we judge our fellow believer slanderously, we set ourselves as a judge of the law, rather than a doer of the law. We aren’t just judging the person but the law itself and that is not our place. 

The world will take your job, your money, your house but it can’t take away what God gives you. If you let go of the cares of this world, than no one can take them from you because you have already given them up. 

We live in a world where we don’t have to wait for much. We buy our fruits and veggies from the store. We are called to look at the farmer’s life as an example of patience and perseverance. The righteous will not be hungry. We may not have the beautiful steaks, onions and leeks but we will not be hungry. 

As we go back where we came from before we came for the feast,  we need to remember that God did not call us here to stay here but to teach us and then send us back to apply the lessons we learned while we were here. 

James concludes that if we reach out to a straying brother and bring him back from the errors of their ways, God will save that person’s soul from death and that person’s sins will be covered over. 

Speaker: Richard Agee. Summary: Tammy.