James, a bondservant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ. Often times, the best place to look for answers is right at the beginning of the book. It looks at cultural issues like what were the common practices and beliefs of people in that time and place that this book was written to? Let’s answer some of these questions. It asks historical questions like what challenges were they facing and what questions were they asking. This asks who wrote the book, who it was written to. Let’s look at the historical/cultural context first. We need to get the complete historical, cultural and grammatical context of the passage in order to understand it. But James 2:14-26 requires much more than just the 20 verses on either side. Look at the 20 verses before and the 20 verses after. Some call it studying the Bible with 20/20 vision. Have you heard the three rules of proper Bible interpretation? Number 1, context. We will see that with a careful and contextual study of this passage, there is no problem in reconciling what James writes with what Paul and Jesus taught. He was so insistent on justification by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, that he had trouble reconciling these truths with the teachings of James.
#Into the dead 2 chapter 2 16 how to
Martin Luther, for example, that great reformer who battled the Catholic church over the issue of how to receive eternal life, called the book of James, “a right strawy epistle” meaning that there was nothing in it but wood, hay and stubble. This passage has caused so much confusion and controversy over the years, that some have even tried to remove it from Scripture. We have said that we are justified by faith alone, but James 2 clearly says that a man is justified by works, and not by faith alone. We have said that faith without works gives eternal life, but James 2 says that faith without works is dead. In this message, we come to a passage in James 2 that on first glance, seems to say exactly the opposite. We all know that the Bible teaches that God gives eternal life to anyone who simply and only believes in Jesus Christ for it (John 3:16 5:24 6:47 etc). What can be more astonishing than this?” Shree Krishna explains in this verse that life is inescapably a dead end, and so a wise person does not lament over the inevitable.Note: I have also written a summary post of this sermon on James 2:14-26. Those who are alive are witnessing this phenomenon, and yet they do not think that one day they will also have to die. Śheṣhāḥ sthiratvam ichchhanti kimāśhcharyamataḥ param (Mahabharat) One of these questions was: kim āśhcharyaṁ? “What is the most surprising thing in this world?” Yudhisthir replied:Īhany ahani bhūtāni gachchhantīha yamālayam He asked sixty questions, each of which was answered perfectly by Yudhishthir. The yakṣha was actually the celestial God of death, Yamraj, in disguise. Once again, the yakṣha said, “Answer my questions if you want to drink water from the well, or I will pull you in, just as I have done to your four brothers.” Yudhisthir agreed to answer the questions. Finally, Yudhishthir himself came to the well. The other brothers, Nakul and Sahadev, followed him, but met with the same fate. Do not attempt to draw the water unless you can answer all my questions correctly.” Arjun also paid no heed, and the yakṣha pulled him into the well. When Arjun reached the well, the yakṣha asked him too, “I have already seized your brother. After some time when Bheem did not return, a concerned Yudhishthir sent Arjun to see what was happening and fetch water. When Bheem reached the well, a yakṣha (semi-celestial being) began speaking from inside the well, “I will only let you take the water if you first answer my questions.” Bheem paid no heed and proceeded to draw water. Yudhishthir asked Bheem to go and fetch water for all of them. During the period of their exile in the forest, one day while wandering the five Pandavas were thirsty and came across a well. The Mahabharat relates an incident regarding this. So when something is inevitable, why lament over it? But for one who has taken birth, death is inevitable. In Patanjali’s Yog Darśhan too, abhiniveśh, or the instinctive urge to survive at all costs, is mentioned as a trait of the material intellect. Psychologists categorize the fear of death as the biggest fear in life. In English language, there is a popular idiom, “as sure as death.” Benjamin Franklin said: “The only things certain in life are death and taxes.” The most certain thing in life is that we will meet with death one day.