Expository & Systematic Bible Study – James Series 05/02/2024

Study 5 - THE PRESENT, PERMANENT AND PERPETUAL EXALTATION OF

TRULY, CONSECRATED BELIEVERS
James 1:9-12

“Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: But the rich, in that
he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. For the
sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the
flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall
the rich man fade away in his ways. Blessed is the man that endureth
temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the
Lord hath promised to them that love him.” (James 1:9-12). Believers are those
who are saved, given their lives and hearts unto the Lord, unreservedly and completely
surrendered unto the Lord, have repented from all their sins, and not practising any
secret or public sins. They are living for the Lord and leaning on His grace every time.
They are so committed and consecrated unto the Lord wholeheartedly. That they will
do whatever He has for them to do, not living a double-standard life. They are
consistent, committed, and consecrated believers. And they have the present,
permanent and perpetual exaltation from the Lord.

1. THE PRESENT PLACEMENT OF TEMPORAL BLESSINGS IN THESE END

TIMES
James 1:9-11; 1 Timothy 4:1-2

“Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: But the rich, in that
he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. For the
sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the
flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall
the rich man fade away in his ways.” (James 1:9-11). “Now the Spirit speaketh
expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed
to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having
their conscience seared with a hot iron;” (1 Timothy 4:1-2). They will no longer
be earnestly contending for the Faith; they will be distracted and depart from the Faith.
There are believers who are standing and steadfast in the Lord, but there are other
believers who have departed from the Faith, that they will fade away.

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(i) The Wealth and Promotion of the Godly - James 1:9; 2:5-6; 2 Corinthians 6:10;
Romans 8:14-17. If you are godly, that means the grace of God has come upon your
life, that you are a brother or sister in the Lord. “For as many as are led by the
Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of
bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we
cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are
the children of God: And if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs
with Christ; if so be that we suffer with him, that we may be also glorified
together.” (Romans 8:14-17). The godly has the Spirit of God guiding and leading
him, what a great privilege we have. He has not received the spirit of the world that
binds the ungodly to the things and pleasure of this world. The lowly child of God is
exalted that he has the Spirit of God in him. And as children of God we can seek, ask,
and pray unto the Lord for whatever we need, we may not have this on hand now, but
we have it in the bank of Heaven so that we can come to the Lord with the confidence
and assurance to ask and receive from the Lord. But we must seek the kingdom of
God first with its righteousness, and then all these other things shall be added unto
us. All the things of this world, that the moth of this world can destroy, we leave them
behind, but we come to seek for that heavenly treasure that the moth of this world
cannot destroy. Herein lies the promotion and wealth of the godly.

(ii) The Withering and Passing Away of the Grass - James 1:10; 1 Peter 1:24;
Psalms 103:15-16; 1 John 2:15-17. “But the rich, in that he is made low: because
as the flower of the grass he shall pass away.” (James 1:10). The rich who are
without grace, righteousness, and godliness, are the ones that will fade away like the
flower. “As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he
flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof
shall know it no more.” (Psalms 103:15-16). Here the Lord gives us light and
enlightenment that man’s life is so brief like the grass of the field. But the people who
do not have the light do not have this understanding that man’s life is so brief. This
is why we come to the Lord and do not only concentrate on the things of this world.
“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love
the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the
lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the
Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof:
but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” (1 John 2:15-17). Don’t love
the world, nor give yourself to the mortal or mundane things of this world. What makes
the world proud; is the certificates, wealth, physical strength, position, and human
authority, and they don’t have Heaven, salvation, and the witness of the Spirit, we
must beware of all these. Like the grass, the goodliness of the things of this world,
and the possessions of the world will pass away. You will abide forever when all the
things of this world are all gone. When a man dies, they will not bury anything with
you, but if you have salvation and faith in the Lord, then you will go and rejoice and
abide forever with the Lord.

(iii) The Wastage and Perishing of their Goodliness - James 1:11; Isaiah 40:6-8;
Luke 12:16-21; 1 Corinthians 7:29-31. How many people waste their lives, beauty, time,
talents, efforts, abilities, and all that they have in this world? “For the sun is no
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sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower
thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the
rich man fade away in his ways.” (James 1:11). How many people laid so much
wealth for themselves, and suddenly death comes, and they lose all this wealth? The
rich man has a position on Earth but does not have a place in Heaven. “And he spake
a parable unto them, saying, The ground of a certain rich man brought forth
plentifully: And he thought within himself, saying, What shall I do, because I
have no room where to bestow my fruits? And he said, This will I do: I will pull
down my barns, and build greater; and there will I bestow all my fruits and my
goods. And I will say to my soul, Soul, thou hast much goods laid up for many
years; take thine ease, eat, drink, and be merry. But God said unto him, Thou
fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things
be, which thou hast provided? So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and
is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16-21). This is what hinders many people from
studying the Bible with us once a week because of the increase in their wealth,
certificates, accumulation of knowledge, and businesses. And they have no time to
read the one single Book that will determine their destiny. They work tirelessly in the
world and have no time to do the work of the Lord. He is a man of planning and has
no plan for Heaven, but planning for his riches. Are you thinking about Heaven,
holiness and the grace of God that should increase in your life? The rich man knew
that he had a soul, but he did not make any salvation, cleansing, or preparation for
that soul to be with God in eternity. But God has the final say! The rich man was
thinking of so many years to live because of his health plan, exercises to keep fit, and
yearly medical assessment, but God has the final say. All that money you are stashing
in the bank, not using it to propagate the gospel of Christ and to help your fellow men,
all that money will be wasted and used by the antichrist if you ever make the Rapture.

2. THE PROFITABLE PERSEVERANCE OF THE BELIEVERS WHILE ENDURING

TEMPTATIONS
James 1:12a; 1 Peter 1:6

“Blessed is the man that endureth temptation:” (James 1:12a). Blessed is the
man that resisted and refused the temptations, and he still stands firm despite the
temptations.

(i) Resisting the Tempter with the Sword of the Word - Matthew 4:3-11; Proverbs
1:10-15; Genesis 39:7-12; 1 Peter 5:8-9. The devil is the tempter, and he was so
audacious to come and tempt Christ when He was on earth. Who are you as a believer
that you think that you cannot be tempted? You will be tempted but God gives you
the grace to say ‘NO’. He tempted Adam and Eve, and if the devil was so daring to do
this. How do you think he cannot tempt? The devil has no respect for any man. He
brings the temptation to all man. He has a thousand and one ways that he brings
temptations. “And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of
God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It
is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth
out of the mouth of God. Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and
setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son
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of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge
concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time
thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again,
Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Again, the devil taketh him up into an
exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and
the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou
wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence,
Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only
shalt thou serve. Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and
ministered unto him.” (Matthew 4:3-11). The devil will bring temptation for what
you are hungry for. If you are hungry for position, power, the flesh, knowledge, money,
women, and riches, the devil will bring temptation that way as he did for Christ. If you
know the word of power, promise, prophecy, and proclamation, then you live by that
word, and you can easily use that word and throw it at the tempter, then he will flee
from you in Jesus Name. Satan knows the Bible too, but he will twist the word of God.
We have the tempter and the followers of the tempter who will try to twist the Bible
and misquote it to tempt you. Jesus is the Light of the Word, and He quotes the Bible
from the angle of the Light, while Satan as the prince and power of darkness, quotes
the Bible from the angle of darkness. The devil will come again and again from another
angle to bring his temptation, so we need to beware. Jesus Christ is the King of kings,
and He will have all the kingdoms given to Him by the Father, but the devil wanted
Him to take the kingdoms from him. What God intends to give; you must not get from
the devil. If you are looking for prosperity, money, children, property, and a wife at
any cost, you may pay the prize with your soul and destiny. Let us leave this in the
hands of God, and let God give at His appropriate time. Jesus always had the written
word, and He knew that it would be accomplished as it is written. Resist the devil and
he will flee from you.

(ii) Refusing Appealing Temptations in Supplication, with Willingness - Matthew

26:41; 1 Corinthians 10:1-13; 1 Chronicles 21:1-15; Jeremiah 35:1-6,12-19.
Supplication is prayer, and the willingness is that you don’t want to fall into that
temptation. If you are praying and there is no willingness in you, then God knows that
you are wasting His time. “Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation:
the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.” (Matthew 26:41). The spirit
is willing because he knows the consequences of falling into temptation. But the flesh
is weak, not at the same level as the spirit. The spirit is for heaven, but the flesh is
what is obtainable in this world. It is the prayer that brings the flesh to the level of
spirit, and then you will overcome. When you refuse and resist those appealing
temptations, you will overcome in Jesus Name.

(iii) Rejecting Attractive Temptations with the Steadfastness of the Warrior -

Luke 8:13-14; 1 Timothy 6:9-12; 2 Peter 2:9; Revelations 3:10-11. “They on the rock
are they, which, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no
root, which for a while believe, and in time of temptation fall away. And that
which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and
are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit
to perfection.” (Luke 8:13-14). Those jolly and merry-go-round believers do not have
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the grace to overcome those temptations because they do not take time to pray and
seek the grace of God. The people who do not get grounded in the word of God, because
of the cares of this life, and the deceitfulness of riches, fall into temptation and even
gamble with their souls to get these riches. The people who say that they are born
again, and yet still have the pleasures of alcohol, smoking, and pornography in their
hearts, will bear no fruit to perfection. “But they that will be rich fall into
temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown
men in destruction and perdition. For the love of money is the root of all evil:
which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced
themselves through with many sorrows. But thou, O man of God, flee these
things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience,
meekness. Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto
thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many
witnesses.” (1 Timothy 6:9-12). The people who want to be rich by all means will
fall into divers temptations, and their lives will be given to the devil. Even people on
the pulpit who wanted a large congregation and a bigger ministry sold their lives to
the devil and were drawn into perdition and destruction. It will not happen to you. As
you are on your way to heaven, don’t be side-tracked by the mundane things of this
world, and you will not perish by the wayside.

3. THE PROMISED PRIZE FOR TRIED BENEFICIARIES IN ENDLESS TRIUMPH

James 1:12b; 1 Peter 1:7

“Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall
receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.”
(James 1:12). We will not miss this crown of life in Jesus Name.

(i) Reversing the Cravings of Thoughtless and Trampled Beasts - Jude 1:10-13;
Proverbs 7:21-27; Philippians 3:18-21; 2 Peter 2:18-22. There are beasts, though men,
but their passions, drives and desires are that of the beast. We need to reverse that
by the grace of God. “But these speak evil of those things which they know not:
but what they know naturally, as brute beasts, in those things they corrupt
themselves. Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran
greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying
of Core. These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you,
feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about
of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by
the roots; Raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering
stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever.” (Jude 10-13).
There are believers who have contact with the world, and the things that they have,
make them corrupted. They mingled in our midst but they have another heart, and
when they have the chance, they speak evil of leadership and dignitaries in the Church.
There are so-called believers, that when they start talking, without control and caution,
they foam out all the corruption inside their hearts. Twice dead, no fruits, no joy, and
no evidence of salvation. Grace is gone completely in their lives. You should not have
religious, and spiritual epilepsy that when you foam out all the corruptions in your
heart, you become so ashamed.
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(ii) Renewing the Consecration of Tested and Trusted Believers - Genesis 22:1-
3,12,16-18; 2 Samuel 24:24-25; Acts 20:24-27; Philippians 3:7-14. “But what things
were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all
things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for
whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that
I may win Christ, And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness,
which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the
righteousness which is of God by faith: That I may know him, and the power
of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being made
conformable unto his death; If by any means I might attain unto the
resurrection of the dead. Not as though I had already attained, either were
already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also
I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have
apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind,
and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark
for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:7-14).
The things that were gained to me; I count them as losses for Christ. This is why we
don’t fall into temptation as believers, that we count all the things gain to us
deliberately we count them a loss for Christ. This is our consecration now. Saved, you
want to know more about sanctification. Sanctified, you want to know as the Baptiser
in the Holy Ghost. You want to know Him more as the Giver of the Gifts, and the One
that makes you steadfast even in the dangerous condition. We are renewing our
consecration and reversing the cravings of the flesh, and we are committed unto Him.

(iii) Receiving the Crown of the Tried and Triumphant Bride - 1 Corinthians 9:25-
27; 2 Timothy 4:5-8; Revelations 3:11-13; 19:7-9,14. You will wear a crown on that day.
But at this time now, we need to endure temptation and engage in the service of the
Lord. “But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an
evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. For I am now ready to be offered,
and the time of my departure is at hand. I have fought a good fight, I have
finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a
crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at
that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.”
(2 Timothy 4:5-8). Watch over your life, thoughts, situations, hearts, challenges, and
whatever crisis in life. Look before you leap! Endure all things and afflictions for the
soul winners. Pray that you will be ready at all times when your time comes. Make
your way right before God at all times so that you will be ready when He comes. Here
was a man living in the Light of Christ at all times, so there was no shady deal nor
secret sin in his life, so he could say that he was ready to meet the Lord at the end of
his life. Fighting the flesh, falsehood, and for the faith was a good fight that the Lord
is calling us into. When you come to the end of the journey and the race, that you
contended and defended the faith, and abiding consistently and constantly in the faith,
then you can say there is laid for you up in heaven that crown of righteousness. A
crown of life and righteousness is waiting for you as an overcomer in Heaven.

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 Quotable Quotes from Pastor (Dr) W.F Kumuyi.

Believers are those who are saved, given their lives and hearts unto the Lord,
unreservedly and completely surrendered unto the Lord, have repented from all their
sins, and not practising any secret or public sins. They are living for the Lord and
leaning on His grace every time.

The lowly child of God is exalted that he has the Spirit of God in him.

All the things of this world, that the moth of this world can destroy, we leave them
behind, but we come to seek for that heavenly treasure that the moth of this world
cannot destroy.

The rich who are without grace, righteousness, and godliness, are the ones that will
fade away like the flower.

Like the grass, the goodliness of the things of this world, and the possessions of the
world will pass away.

How many people waste their lives, beauty, time, talents, efforts, abilities, and all that
they have in this world?

Are you thinking about Heaven, holiness and the grace of God that should increase in
your life?

God has the final say!

The devil is the tempter, and he was so audacious to come and tempt Christ when He
was on earth. Who are you as a believer that you think that you cannot be tempted?
You will be tempted but God gives you the grace to say ‘NO’.

The devil will bring temptation for what you are hungry for.

If you know the word of power, promise, prophecy, and proclamation, then you live by
that word, and you can easily use that word and throw it at the tempter, then he will
flee from you in Jesus Name

What God intends to give; you must not get from the devil.

The people who say that they are born again, and yet still have the pleasures of alcohol,
smoking, and pornography in their hearts, will bear no fruit to perfection.

Pray that you will be ready at all times when your time comes. Make your way right
before God at all times so that you will be ready when He comes.

Note:

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This is an outline from the message preached by Pastor (Dr) W.F Kumuyi, the General Superintendent of the
Deeper Christian Life Ministry Worldwide at the Monday Bible Study in Lagos HQ Church, Nigeria, West Africa
on Monday 5th February 2024.

Watch the GS Message Video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtX5WxajJ_4