James 1:
12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation;
for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of (eternal) life
which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
Wow, this verse covers a lot of ground.
Those who continually endure (pass) the test of being tempted to sin:
-- are blessed
-- will eventually be approved
-- will have proved their love for the Lord
-- will receive the promised crown of eternal life
Matthew 7:
21 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven,
but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name,
cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you (Vine: approved of you);
depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
John 14:
15 If you love Me, keep My commandments.
21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.
And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him …”
23 If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him,
and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words …
John 15:14 “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.”
Jesus and His friends love each other!
1 John 2:
3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.
4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments,
is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him.
By this we know that we are in Him.
This what being “in Christ” is all about.
James 1:
12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation;
for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of (eternal) life
which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”;
for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.
14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin;
and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth (eternal) death.
The Lord doesn’t go around killing sinners with physical death;
no, we’re talking about eternal death here!
After sinning, you are hereby invited to have your sins washed away by Jesus’ blood:
1 John 1:
7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
1 John 2:
1 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin.
And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins,
and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
Please notice (v.9) that you are NOT as righteous as you may think you are!
But, proper confessing of sin, i.e. sincere repentance, will remove your unrighteousness.
This confessing of sins here is referring to sincere REPENTANCE,
which is the sorrow over sins committed and the forsaking of them.
12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation;
for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of (eternal) life
which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
Wow, this verse covers a lot of ground.
Those who continually endure (pass) the test of being tempted to sin:
-- are blessed
-- will eventually be approved
-- will have proved their love for the Lord
-- will receive the promised crown of eternal life
Matthew 7:
21 Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven,
but he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
22 Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name,
cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
23 And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you (Vine: approved of you);
depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!’
John 14:
15 If you love Me, keep My commandments.
21 He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me.
And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him …”
23 If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him,
and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
24 He who does not love Me does not keep My words …
John 15:14 “You are My friends if you do whatever I command you.”
Jesus and His friends love each other!
1 John 2:
3 Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.
4 He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments,
is a liar, and the truth is not in him.
5 But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him.
By this we know that we are in Him.
This what being “in Christ” is all about.
James 1:
12 Blessed is the man who endures temptation;
for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of (eternal) life
which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
13 Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”;
for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.
14 But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.
15 Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin;
and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth (eternal) death.
The Lord doesn’t go around killing sinners with physical death;
no, we’re talking about eternal death here!
After sinning, you are hereby invited to have your sins washed away by Jesus’ blood:
1 John 1:
7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another,
and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins
and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.
10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
1 John 2:
1 My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin.
And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.
2 And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins,
and not for ours only but also for the whole world.
6 He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
Please notice (v.9) that you are NOT as righteous as you may think you are!
But, proper confessing of sin, i.e. sincere repentance, will remove your unrighteousness.
This confessing of sins here is referring to sincere REPENTANCE,
which is the sorrow over sins committed and the forsaking of them.
