Philip Dampier's Blog

The First Servant Song Isaiah 42:3 “…a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice.” The first four verses of Isaiah 42 make up the first of the four servant songs of Isaiah. This truth of the…

Chapter 4, Verse 17 “So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” We appreciate James’ ability to cut right to the heart of the matter. Whether it’s in making plans for the future or participating in an action of the present…

Chapter 4, Verse 16 “As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” What makes their boasting so arrogant? Their ignorance of the future is a good place to start. Arrogance and ignorance are not a good combination. When we humans start planning the future we have…

Ignoring the Wonderful Story One thing that has not changed a great deal over the ages is the proclivity of mankind to ignore the love of God and its subsequent grace. Again and again the Bible relates the unwillingness of the human race to obey God and receive His blessings.…

Chapter 4, Verse 15 “Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’” Instead of saying what we are going to do, we need to say what we want to do and will do if God permits. Notice that James not only includes…

Chapter 4, Verse 13 “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’” James appears to be addressing the well to do, the up-and-coming business class and not necessarily the rich. He…