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19 RESOLUTIONS FROM JAMES
READ: James 5 | HABIT: Character Formation
Since his death in 1758, Jonathan Edwards has become recognized as one of America’ s greatest pastors, theologians and thinkers. But there was a time, says church historian Sean Lucas, when Jonathan Edwards wasn’ t the Jonathan Edwards we know. 6
At 19, Edwards began writing a list of 70 resolutions. His goal in making and keeping resolutions, notes Stephen Nichols, wasn’ t self- fulfillment but the glory of God. Edwards would later write,“ I felt in me a burning desire to be in everything a complete Christian.”
In a list similar to the one created by Edwards, Scottish theologian Sinclair Ferguson compiled 19 suggested resolutions from the book of James that can help shape our own lives: 7
1. Ask God for wisdom to speak and with a single mind( see 1:5) 2. Boast only in exaltation in Christ( see 1:9 – 10) 3. Set a watch over your mouth( see 1:13) 4. Be constantly quick to hear, slow to speak( see 1:19) 5. Learn the gospel way of speaking to the poor and the rich( see 2:1 – 4) 6. Speak always in the consciousness of the final judgment( see 2:12) 7. Never claim as reality something you do not experience( see 3:14) 8. Resist quarrelsome words( see 4:1) 9. Never speak evil of another( see 4:11) 10. Never boast in what you will accomplish( see 4:13) 11. Always speak as one subject to the providences of God( see 4:15) 12. Never grumble( see 5:9) 13. Never allow anything but total integrity in your speech( see 5:12) 14. Speak to God in prayer whenever you suffer( see 5:13) 15. Sing praises to God whenever you are cheerful( see 5:13) 16. Ask for the prayers of others when you are sick( see 5:14) 17. Confess it freely whenever you have failed( see 5:15)
Want a tip for how to apply these resolutions to your own life? Over the next five to six weeks, highlight three or four of these resolutions and add them to your daily routine.