A Walk Thru the Book of James (Walk Thru the Bible Discussion Guides): Faith that Endures

By Baker Publishing Group

Christians all over the world trust Walk Thru the Bible to help them deepen their spiritual lives through a greater understanding of God's Word. Now Walk Thru the Bible is launching its own small group Bible study series that will uncover the richness of the Scriptures. Each guide explores a book of the Bible or a prominent Bible character, offering rich insights and practical life application.
These discussion guides are perfect for Bible study groups, Sunday schools, small groups, and individuals who want a deeper understanding of books of the Bible and heroes of the faith.

About the series
Christians all over the world trust Walk Thru the Bible to help them deepen their spiritual lives through a greater understanding of God's Word. Now Walk Thru the Bible is launching a new inductive Bible study series with Baker Books that will uncover the richness of the Scriptures. Each guide explores a book of the Bible or a prominent Bible character, offering rich insights and practical life application. These discussion guides are perfect for Bible study groups, Sunday schools, small groups, and individuals who want a deeper understanding of books of the Bible and heroes of the faith.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Baker Publishing Group
• Release date: Aug 1, 2009
• ISBN: 9781441235114

Book preview

A Walk Thru the Book of

JAMES

Faith That Endures

Walk Thru the Bible

© 2009 by Walk Thru the Bible

Published by Baker Books

a division of Baker Publishing Group

P.O. Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287

www.bakerbooks.com

E-book edition created 2011

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.

ISBN 978-1-4412-3511-4

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

Scripture is taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. www.zondervan.com

Cover image: Mark Goddard / iStock

Contents

Introduction

Session 1  Christ-Driven Controversy

Session 2  Enduring Trials

Session 3  No Respecter of Men

Session 4  To Tame the Tongue

Session 5  Fully Submitted

Session 6  Patient Endurance

Conclusion

Leader’s Notes

Bibliography

Introduction

The audacity of these Gentiles, sighed Manashi, a Pharisee who had converted to the Way. "Have you heard what’s going on in Antioch? Sha’ul and the believers there are welcoming Gentiles into the faith without circumcision—and with absolutely no adherence to the laws of our fathers. This has to stop."

But since Messiah has come . . . , Noach started.

Yes, Messiah has come. So? Does that mean we abandon Moses? Have we forgotten Sinai? That’s what Sha’ul condones, you know. And that’s what brought the wrath of God on us in generations past. Do we really want another Babylon?

Well, no . . . but doesn’t Messiah fulfill the law? Hasn’t his Spirit fallen on Gentiles?

"Are you not circumcised, Noach? Are not all God-fearing individuals to be circumcised as a sign of the covenant? Yes, the Spirit comes upon Gentiles. I do not believe this is the Lord’s endorsement of lawlessness; I believe it’s his mandate to teach them the law."

Noach looked down and drew in the dirt with the toe protruding from his sandal.

Manashi pressed on. Do you understand how important this is? Yes, we believe in Messiah. But how could we ever abandon the rules and regulations of our fathers? And how could we encourage others to ignore them? Yeshua and the law go hand in hand. Those pagan idol worshippers haven’t even begun to get that through their heads. And Sha’ul doesn’t seem to mind.

What do you propose to do about it, sir?

Go to them. Manashi turned, ducked his head out of the tent, and peered up at the night sky.

Go to them? Noach echoed.

Yes, Manashi came back inside. You heard me.

Sir, it’s three hundred miles to Syria.

We’ve traveled farther.

But our leaders here in Jerusalem . . . we have no authority from them. They might. . . .

Tell our friends, Manashi said gruffly. We’re going to the believers in Antioch. We’ll leave tomorrow.

That’s at least a three-week journey, Noach mumbled under his breath. Probably more like four.

And Noach, one more thing, Manashi said, gazing soberly at his young friend. Tell the men this is about more than just circumcision. It’s about the foundations of our faith—the observance of Torah is at stake. We stand at a crucial moment in our history. Tell them we leave at dawn.

Although these are fictitious characters, a faction within the Jerusalem church did indeed travel to the church at Antioch more than three hundred miles away. They wanted to uphold the Torah, the sacred law given through Moses. God would not violate his own Scripture, they insisted; therefore, salvation through Jesus must include full observance of all rituals and regulations, not usurp them. A Gentile must convert to Judaism before becoming a follower of Jesus.

The controversy prompted a meeting in Jerusalem between the apostles who had seen the Spirit fall upon Gentiles and the leaders of the Jerusalem church. This