Dear God, as I look up into the sky this night and ponder the meaning of it all…I am reminded that my life is destined by a hand much greater than my own and that I am a part of something far larger than myself. God I know that I am not what I should be: I struggle sometimes, too much with things. But I know you forgive and you give strength to the weary. Lord right now the weary need you! Help me be a conduit for you grace. In the blessed name of Jesus. Amen.
18 And when they came to him, he said to them:
“You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, 19 serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews; 20 how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house, 21 testifying both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus Christ. 22 And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, constrained by the Spirit, not knowing what will happen to me there, 23 except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. 24 But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
5 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days. 4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. 5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.
“You have fattened your hearts” (James 5:5)
In today’s Scripture lesson, James upbraids his readers for storing up treasure for their own personal gain – but his concern goes far beyond their individual actions. He is concerned for the state of their hearts, as well as for the eternal consequences this will have on them. Instead of keeping their hearts “lean” by putting love into action, James tells them that they have “fattened” their hearts by focusing on themselves. Evidently, some of them were withholding wages from their farm-workers so that they themselves could live in luxury. James calls this a kind of “murder” because it keeps people locked in poverty and hopelessness (James 5:6).
James knew that where there is no kindness or justice, there is no love. He knew that people who have been touched by the Lord know better than to practice abuses like this. And so he reproaches then not only for what they have done but also for the way they have let their hearts become hardened.
James understood that our actions reveal the state of our hearts. When we are moved by the love of God, we naturally look for ways we can share that love with the people around us. We begin to think and act like Jesus, not because we are trying to put on a show, but because our hearts are being formed by his Holy Spirit.
At the same time, James is telling us that there are ways that we can make our hearts more “lean.” We need to cooperate with the promptings of the Holy Spirit. We can condition our hearts by putting His thoughts and impulses into action. Every time we choose to act in love and faithful obedience to the will of God, the Holy Spirit takes our efforts and transforms them with his power.
So stretch yourself today. Try to be a little more patient. Try to endure someone’s faults with a smile. Take that extra step to be generous to someone you might ordinarily walk past. If you exercise charity, charity will exercise you. God’s love will replace the fears and selfish tendencies that drag you down. It’s a gradual conversion process that has eternal merit!
Father, teach me how to put love into action. I want to enrich my heart by imitating your merciful love. Amen.
Andy
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