A Place of Discovery

BE WISE AS HEARERS AS WELL AS DOERS (James 1:21-27; 2:14-16—Ps Paw Liang) The issues in this text: the people failed to listen and to learn from God’s word therefore there was no connection between their belief and the way they lived. Three things involved from hearing God’s word to living our God’s word: 1.   Good listening (v.19) We listen for various reasons: to obtain information/knowledge, to kill time, for enjoyment, for learning or to listen for life? The Lord requires us to listen to His Word for life, to let the word of God shape and nourish us, to be the bedrock of our life! To save you ...The challenge is how to listen well? The ancient Chinese character “ 聽” ( ting) reminds us: to listen with our ears as well as our eyes, and heart, with an undivided attention as if we’re listening to a king.   Second challenge, to listen with a clear purpose, ... and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. To listen for “life”, for the abundant life as pro

BE WISE IN HANDLING YOUR ANGER (James 1:19-20; 4:1-2)   What is your view about anger? What are some bad experiences you have had for failing to control your anger? Anger is a normal human emotional experience. Anger by itself may not be dysfunctional, but the way we express it can be worrying. The Bible never say anger is a sin, but Paul reminds us, “In your anger do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry.” (Eph 4:26). Anger is God-given energy intended to help us to solve problems. Anger will alarm us when something is not right. Expressing anger can be God-pleasing and constructive when our underlying motivation is to restore relationship, fight injustice, or battle evil. For example: Moses was in rage when he found the Israelites were worshipping the golden calf. Jesus was angry when the Jews defiled God’s temple in Jerusalem (John 2:12-18). Anger is destructive when it estrange our relationship with God and with other people and split the com