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Category: James

  • Our Quest – A holy calling

    Our Quest – A holy calling

    Northern lights - aurora Borealis -they brought to mind tour quest, a holy calling

    Our old friend, the sun, is experiencing a massive  gravitational/magnetic storm. That means the Aurora Borealis, also known as the Northern Lights, are putting on brilliant displays.

    Yesterday evening, my social media pages were awash with pictures of the lights. That included people from Northern Canada, where the borealis is a common sight, to Northern Florida, where they have never been seen before. Today’s image is from a friend in Colorado.

    Many of the lights were pink. Pink is an uncommon color that is only visible during periods of highly intense activity. I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve seen pink, where I have seen the blues and greens perhaps thousands of times.

    Kathy and I spontaneously got out of our comfy evening spots, jumped in the car, and went on a quest to see them. Unfortunately, between the urban light pollution and cloud cover, we struck out. Still, it was nice to take a nighttime drive.

    Non-believers are on a quest to find something to fill the void in their lives. They try many things, including material goods, power, substance abuse, sex, and other religions. All of those will fail them. Their only hope is to turn to Jesus.

    Believers are on a quest as well. It is a two-fronted quest. We strive to be more like Jesus, and we take the gospel into a world of lost and hurting people. We will never fully fulfill either in our lifetime, but God is on the throne. He will bring all that are His to himself. We will have finished our journey to become all He created us to be once we reach glory.

    That doesn’t mean that our quest is futile. Every person who comes to Christ causes a celebration in heaven.

    In the same way, I tell you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents. Luke 15:10

    Similarly, God is pleased and glorified when we grow more like the Son.

    “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” – James 1:22

    “In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome.” – 1 John 5:3

    “If you love me, keep my commands.” – John 14:15

    Our quest is challenging. We may have disappointments along the way, but through Him we have the victory.

    Press on, dear friends, press on.

    Hallelu Yah (Praise God)

    Be blessed, 

    Kevin

    Gleanings From The Word – Experience an extraordinary God in ordinary life. 


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    All contents, “Gleanings From The Word” and “Experience an Extraordinary God in Ordinary Life,” are © 2001, 2025 K.F. “Kevin” Corbin, Gleanings From The Word. 

    Unless otherwise noted, “Scripture quotations are from The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

    From Gleanings From The Word (Kevin Corbin, 2001– ), a Scripture-based devotional work.


  • Who Is James?

    Who Is James?

    Icon of James the brother of Jesus

    Yesterday morning, I was reading in the Epistle of James. As  Kathy and I discussed what I had been reading, the question of “who was James?” arose.

    What does the Bible say?

    James is identified as one of Jesus’ brothers. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon, and Judas? (Matthew 13:55, see also Mark 6:3)

    Jesus’s brothers did not believe. After this Jesus went about in Galilee. He would not go about in Judea, because the Jewswere seeking to kill him. Now the Jews’ Feast of Booths was at hand. So his brothers said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. For no one works in secret if he seeks to be known openly. If you do these things, show yourself to the world.” For not even his brothers believed in him.  (John 6:1-5)

    Jesus appeared personally to James after His resurrection. “Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles.” (1 Corinthians 15:7)

    He was a key player in the Jerusalem council when the issue of rules for gentile believers was debated. (Acts 15)

    Paul calls James an Apostle.  “Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother.” Galatians 1:18-19

    Paul also refers to him as a pillar in the early church. “…James and Cephas and John, who seemed to be pillars, perceived the grace that was given to me; they gave the right hand of fellowship to Barnabas and me, that we should go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised.” Galatians 2:10

    James himself only identifies as a servant of Jesus. “James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: (James 1:1)

    Church history tells us that James was the first leader of the church in Jerusalem, effectively its first pastor. That comes through in the pastoral concern for his flock that shows in his letter.

    Church history tells us that he was most likely stoned to death by the Jews in the early 60s AD, a fate shared by Stephen and other martyrs.

    For me, James is a marvelous example of the grace of Jesus. The Lord took a hardcore unbeliever and transformed him into a willing servant and leader. The Apostle Paul gets mentioned often for being a hardcore Christian hater who was converted, but let’s not forget that Paul was not the only one.

    I pray for all the hardcore disbelievers (of which I was one) to come to Christ and that their zeal for the enemy might be converted into zeal for the Lord.

    Praise the Lord that He can soften the hardest heart.

    Hallelu Yah (Praise God)

    Be blessed, 

    Kevin