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ANSWERS:
- James, the brother of Jesus wrote the book of James. (Mark 6:3)
John 7:2-5
Jesus' brothers told Him to go to the town and show Himself to the world so that they can believe in Him. As we see in verse 5, even His brothers didn't believe in Him so they probably told Him to do this for several reason: to mock Him, they were jealous of Him, they couldn't believe that He really is the Son of God because to them, Jesus was just like they were--brothers and no one special.
1 Corinthians 15:1-8
James' heart changed after Jesus appeared to Him in His resurrection.
Acts 12:6-17 / Gal. 2:19 / Acts 15:13-21
In verse 17, Peter told his brothers to tell the story of his escape to "James and to the brothers." It was important for James to know because he was one of the important pillars/leaders of the church in Jerusalem. He played a big leadership role in bringing the gospel to the lost.
Acts 1:4-14
Jesus ascended into heaven after His resurrection, but before doing so, He told His disciples to wait for the "promise of the Father." This promise was the Holy Spirit. This was important because if Jesus didn't leave, then His followers could really experience the power of God working through them since Jesus, while 100% God was also 100% human which means He couldn't be in more than one place at a time. But since He went back to heaven, He can now still be with His disciples (and us) in the form of the Holy Spirit who empowers us, guides us, and strengthens us to do His work for our lives.
ADD IT ALL UP.
Although James initially refused to believe that Jesus was the Son of God, his heart changed after Jesus appeared to him after His resurrection. And because of that change, God was able to use James as a very important leader in the Jerusalem church. Without him, there would be no book of James. Without his leadership, the gospel would not have spread the way it has. He taught against hypocrisy within the church and encouraged believers to live out their faith--that the result of genuine religion, genuine faith, and genuine worship should be evidenced by the way they live their lives. Christians are either for God or against Him. They can't be in the middle. God wants our all, not 50%, or our leftovers. Our all. Our entire heart and life.
WHAT DOES THAT TELL YOU ABOUT GOD AND HIS CHARACTER and WHY SHOULD THAT MATTER TO YOU?
It tells us that God is really just one AWESOME God and that nothing and no one could ever compare to that. He's relentless. He'll NEVER stop loving us, NEVER stop forgiving us, NEVER stop chasing us. He loves us and there is NOTHING that can ever take that love away from us. All He asks is that we simply receive that love and allow Him to change our life. It'd be foolish not to. Because without Him, we can never realize just how beautiful His love really is and just how far He will go to the ends of the earth in order to prove to us that He loves us by the overflowing of the blessings that He'll pour upon us.
So don't wait any longer. Come to Him now. Return to Him. It's not too late. He's waiting for you. He says "Come."
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Reading for the week: JAMES 1.
All it takes is 10-15 minutes a day. The more you read it, the more you understand it and the more the Holy Spirit can really speak to you. You can either read the entire thing at once or break it down a few verses a day. Then on Tuesday, be prepared to discuss this chapter with the group. If you have any questions, write it down so we can help each other answer your questions. If God uses a verse to speak to you in a special way, write that down too so we can all partake in the awesome ways that God speaks to His daughters.
I'm excited to see God work in you girls through this book. Hope you are too! Spread the word! And invite girls you know to come to GBS with us!
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