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What God Has Done

Explore the blessings and constancy of God revealed in James 1:17-18. Reflect on the special love and gifts He bestows on His children, underscoring His unchanging nature and desire for our salvation.

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What God Has Done

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  1. What God Has Done James 1:17-18

  2. What God Has Done • We continue our journey through the book of James this week • Last week we studied temptations and we noticed that God was not behind the temptations we face • James tells us that God cannot be tempted, nor can He tempt (v. 13)

  3. What God Has Done • Interestingly enough, James moves on in the next couple of verses to tell us what God can do • We realize that there is so much that God can do • James chooses to concentrate on what God has done for us

  4. What God Has Done • What all has God done for you? • Do you spend time daily thinking of everything that God has done for you? • There are some very important things that God does that James notes here • We will look at those things together tonight…

  5. What God Has Done • 1. God gives all good & perfect gifts • God is a generous God! • He loves to give good gifts to His children (Matt. 7:7-11) • God has promised to bless us richly in this life (Lk. 6:38) • God even blesses those who do evil(Matt. 5:45)

  6. What God Has Done • 1. God gives all good & perfect gifts • Certainly we think of blessings and the physical comes to our minds most of the time • God has blessed us with good gifts in other ways as well • There is the greatest blessing God has given us, His Son Jesus Christ (Jn. 3:16)

  7. What God Has Done • 1. God gives all good & perfect gifts • God has also blessed us with spiritual blessings, found in Christ (Eph. 1:3) • This includes the salvation that we find in Christ (Eph. 1:7; I Jn. 5:11-12) • Prayer is a blessing that God gives us as well (Heb. 4:16)

  8. What God Has Done • 2. God does not change • Perhaps we often overlook this very important part of verse 17 • We focus on the part of the verse that talks about the good gifts that God gives • How often do we focus on the fact that our God is not going to change

  9. What God Has Done • 2. God does not change • Most writers compare God here with the sun • The sun moves about, doesn’t stay in one place • There are times when the sun itself is even eclipsed • Not so with our God, who does not change

  10. What God Has Done • 2. God does not change • What if God changed? • What if we never knew from day to day what God wanted or expected of us? • What if we didn’t know from day to day whether God still loved us, or would keep His promises still?

  11. What God Has Done • 2. God does not change • “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever” (Heb. 13:8) • “For I am the Lord, I do not change; therefore you are not consumed, O sons of Jacob” (Mal. 3:6) • God’s unchanging nature means He will keep His promises and we can count on Him!

  12. What God Has Done • 3. God wants us • “Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth…” • It was God’s will that we be saved • That shows His tremendous love for each one of us! • God does not want anyone to perish(II Pet. 3:9)

  13. What God Has Done • 3. God wants us • “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name; who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (Jn. 1:12-13) • God did not have to save us

  14. What God Has Done • 3. God wants us • Just knowing that God wants you should be one of the most encouraging things you will ever discover • It’s the ultimate acceptance • This should be a motivator for you and I to go out and be who He wants us to be!

  15. What God Has Done • 4. God has made us special • It’s certainly encouraging and reassuring to know that God wants us • James wants us to know that we are more than just a choice to God • James tells us that we are both special and of the utmost importance to God

  16. What God Has Done • 4. God has made us special • James calls us the “firstfruits of His creatures” • This term dates all the way back to an idea that we find in the Old Testament • The idea is the first that was taken from anything and offered as a portion to God • God always desired what was first

  17. What God Has Done • 4. God has made us special • What was first was special because it was reserved for God • “…His own special people…” (Titus 2:14) • “…a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people…”(I Pet. 2:9)

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