James 5

Don’t live in luxury when Jesus is coming back so soon

Listen closely: if you’re rich, you should be sobbing and wailing about the misery that you have coming to you. Your wealth has rotted, and your clothes have been eaten by moths. Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will incriminate you and consume your flesh like fire. The final days are upon us, and here you are accumulating wealth for yourself! You withheld wages from the workers who mowed your fields, and now those wages are screaming against you. The cries of your hired hands have reached the ears of the Master and his army. You’ve lived an unrestrained life of luxury on the earth, fattening your hearts just in time for the slaughter. You sentenced the good man to death, and he didn’t even put up a fight.

So be patient, my fellow believers, and wait for the master to come. You need to be patient like a farmer waiting on the rain and soil to produce his valuable crops. Anchor your hearts, because the master is coming soon.

Don’t gripe about other Christians, because you’re not the judge

My fellow Christians, don’t groan about each other, so that you yourselves don’t get put on trial. Notice how the real judge is standing in front of the door.

Wait patiently for Jesus like the prophets

Fellow believers, think about the prophets who spoke on behalf of the master, and consider them as an example of patience and suffering. They patiently endured, and now we view them as blessed. You’re familiar with the way Job endured, and you’ve seen the way that the Master’s compassion and mercy affect the outcome of his verdicts.

Be a man of your word

But above all, my fellow believers, do not swear by heaven or by earth, or by any other kind of oath. Let your “yes” be “yes”, and let your “no” be “no” so that you don’t get put on trial.

Praying with upright people can accomplish a lot

Are any of you afflicted? Then he needs to pray. Are any of you cheerful? Then he should sing in celebration. Are any of you sick? Then he should have the old men of the church pray for him and anoint him with oil to associate him with the master. The prayer offered in dependence on God will rejuvenate the sick person, and the master will pull him up. If that person has defied God, he’ll be forgiven. So confess your infringements to each other, and pray for each other so you’ll be healed. When a righteous person’s prayer is at work, it has the capability to accomplish a lot. Elijah was a human being with the same tendencies as us, and when he prayed that the rain would stop, it stopped for 3.5 years. Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain, and fruit sprouted up from the ground.

Keep each other from wandering

My fellow Christians, if one of you is wandering from the truth and someone turns him back from going down the wrong path, that person is saving the other person’s soul from death and prevents an abundance of infractions.