"Unto the Coming of the Lord"

While studying and reading through the commentaries that Study Light offers on James 5:7-11, I came across this quote from Barnes Notes on the New Testament concerning the phrase, "unto the coming of the Lord."

Unto the coming of the Lord. The coming of the Lord Jesus--either to remove you by death, or to destroy the city of Jerusalem and bring to an end the Jewish institutions, or to judge the world and receive his people to himself. The "coming of the Lord" in any way was an event which Christians were taught to expect, and which would be connected with their deliverance from troubles. As the time of his appearing was not revealed, it was not improper to refer to that as an event that might possibly be near; and as the removal of Christians by death is denoted by the phrase "the coming of the Lord"--that is, his coming to each one of us--it was not improper to speak of death in that view.

It is a good thing to understand that all of the New Testament writers weren't confused about the return of the Lord.  I have heard people say that before, that those authors were expecting Christ's final return to be within their lifetimes. Whether or not they did, I felt that this quote brought a little more clarity to the instances in the N.T. that refer to Christ's return.

Sermons

Two comments about the messages at Edgewood.

First, we started, through the efforts of my sister, a CD ministry at the church.  There is an older gentleman who attends very faithfully, and has been a great encouragement to me, who requested some sermons to take home to his wife, who is no longer able to leave the house.  After discussing it for a couple of weeks, my sister finally took the initiative to get it started.  Now we are rolling!

We will make the sermons available individually or in a set.  Then the sermons will be available to borrow from the church or purchase for $1 a CD.

Second, I get excited about little things like this which leads me to want to promote it.  The only problem with promoting this is that is feels like self-promotion!  No matter how I say it, it just sounds like I am saying, "Hey buy some CDs of ME!  Cause I'm just that awesome!"  So, I don't want to say anything, because I don't want to come across like that... but at the same time I want to promote the things that I am talking about!

For example, this last week I started tackling James 2:14-26.  A passage of scripture that has either been misunderstood or ignored so many times.  It is so potent in what it says that Martin Luther, the Great Reformer, didn't include the Book of James in his Bible!  We can't do that!  We can't be picking and selecting the parts of the Bible that make us feel good!  No!  I believe that Martin Luther eventually put his Bible back together, but we don't want to spend anytime away from the fullness of the Word!

So, if you would like hear a bit of the first part of the passage of scripture that changed my life  when I first read it back in February 1992, then I invite you to take a few minutes to listen to these words.

Living Faith: Part 1 from James 2:14-17

This week's Edgewood Update

Every week... well, almost every week... I try to send out an e-mail update to the members of Edgewood that have signed up to be a part of the list.  I would like to share this week's update with you.

I have seen God's hand of providence as He steered us towards the Book of James.  Many at Edgewood have been enduring trials these last few weeks and that is the exact topic that James begins with.  The original recipients of that letter were also enduring trials.  But, as we learned last week from verse 12, enduring in our faith holds great promise for today, tomorrow, and for eternity!

In 1967 Joni Eareckson Tada was in a diving accident that left her as a quadriplegic in a wheelchair.  You may have heard her on the radio, as the host of her own show, which I believe is called Joni and Friends.  If you didn't know, she is also a singer, an artist, an author, and an advocate for disabled persons.  (Go to http://www.joniearecksontadastory.com/ for her full story and the struggles she has had.)  I am mentioning Joni Eareckson Tada because of her amazing example of endurance in trials, but I also wanted to share a quote.  You see, she was recently diagnosed with cancer, and even though she is hopeful in what the doctors are going to do, I wanted you to hear the bigger hope in her response:  “I’ve often said that our afflictions come from the hand of our all-wise and sovereign God, who loves us and wants what is best for us. So, although cancer is something new, I am content to receive from God whatever He deems fit for me,” she said. “Yes, it’s alarming, but rest assured that Ken (her husband) and I are utterly convinced that God is going to use this to stretch our faith, brighten our hope and strengthen our witness to others.”

Amazing.

I am looking forward to seeing all of you this coming Sunday!

Keeping at it,

Matt Harmless

What I allude to in that update are the trials that many of the individuals in our church have been facing.  We have many in our little church that are facing the loss of loved ones, cancer in the family, marriage challenges, the imminent loss of loved ones, broken cars, surgery, finances, the need for employment, family members who are without Christ, you name it!  But I see God building endurance in these people, and it is exciting!

Keep At It!

Keep at it!

Don't stop!

Keep going!

Stay strong in your faith!

Persevere!

Remaining steadfast in your faith is the call of James 1:12.  His reason to remain steadfast, given in the second half of this verse, will be reassuring and encouraging for some but alarming for others.  You see, perseverance holds promise, not only for today and tomorrow, but also for eternity!  So, keep at it.

Right click here and choose save to listen to this sermon.  (You can find the entire series on James by clicking here.)

Transitory Wealth

Just posted the next in the series on the Book of James.  This week's title, Living Faith: with transitory wealth.

Wisdom

Last Sunday I preached on Wisdom.  It was fun.

That might sound weird, but I just had a good time preaching on this topic from the Epistle of James.  God brought some challenges into my life this week to help me learn, and those experiences flowed into this message.  I would go into more detail, but I don't want to spoil it!

Give this message a listen and let me know what you think.

Right click here to download.