e martë, 19 qershor 2007

James 1:16-18

Passage: Don't be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all He created.

Journal: There are certain absolutes that separate us from God; certain attributes that distinguish the creator of all things from that which He created. God is independent or self-existent, needing nothing to be complete. God is eternal or infinite, with no beginning or end, and yet acting within the time He dictates. God is omnipresent, unlimited with respect to space, and yet acting within the place or places He dictates. God is unchangeable or immutable, not relying on circumstantial emotions for His purposes or actions.

It is this unchangeable character of God that James is emphasizing in today's passage (". . . coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.") His crown of all His creation is man, and the jewels placed in the crown of all creation are His children whom "He chose to give . . . birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all He created." The "firstfruits" are the portion set aside for God to bring glory to God through worship of God. Those called are the firstfruits of God due to the regenerative work of God, where He imparts spiritual life to His children. It is through His "word of truth" that the Holy Spirit of God gives us this new life. It is this word of truth that must be pursued and for which we must be consumed.