We may agree to do what our bad thoughts tell us to do. When we do that, it becomes a sin. Then, we may not stop doing those bad things. If we continue to live like that, the result of our sins is death.

So stop doing disgusting things. Stay away from the wicked things that are all around you. God has put his message deep inside you, and it can save you. So be careful to accept that message.

If you do that, you are thinking bad thoughts. You have decided that one person among you is better than another person. You must not do that.

But if you are kind to some people and you are not kind to others, then you are doing a bad thing. God's Law shows that you are wrong.

Even if you fail to obey only one rule in God's Law, it means that you are guilty. It is the same as if you fail to obey all God's Law.

For example, God has said in his Law, ‘You must not have sex with anyone who is not your husband or your wife.’ But God has also said, ‘Do not kill another person.’ Perhaps you do not have sex in a wrong way like that. But if you then murder someone, God's Law shows that you are still wrong.

Remember that God will judge you one day. When he does that, he will use a law which makes us free. So remember this in everything that you say and in everything that you do.

How we believe in God is also like that. If our faith does not lead us to do good things, then it is not worth anything. It is dead!

You believe that there is only one God. That is good! But even the demons believe that! And it makes them very afraid.

If our bodies have no spirit, they are dead. In the same way, if our faith does not lead us to do good things, it is dead.

Be careful how you speak

My Christian friends, not many of you should become teachers. We people who teach God's message must be very careful. When God judges everybody, he will demand more from us than from other people.

Also, think about ships that sail on the sea. They are very large. Strong winds push them with great power. But we fix a piece of wood at the back of the ship. With this small piece of wood, the master can cause the ship to go anywhere that he wants it to go.

A person's tongue is like a fire. It has the power of everything in the world that is wrong. It is a small part of the body but it can spoil the whole person. Like a fire, it can destroy all of a person's life. It is a fire that comes from the fire of hell itself.

But no person can rule his tongue. It continues to say bad things. It is like a bad poison that can cause death.

You are not being wise in the way that God wants you to be wise. Instead, you are thinking like people who do not know God. Your thoughts do not come from God's Spirit. They come from demons.

So obey God's authority. Be strong against the Devil and he will run away from you.

Be sorry about your sins and weep. Stop laughing and instead be sad. Do not be happy but be very upset.

My Christian friends, do not say bad things against each other. If you speak against another believer, you are really speaking against God's Law. If you judge another believer, then you are judging the law too. When you do that, you are not obeying the Law. You are giving yourself authority to decide what the Law says.

God is the one who gave his Law to people. Only he has the authority to judge whether people have done what is right. Only he can decide to save people or to destroy them. So you must not judge your friends. You do not have that authority.

But instead, you talk about what you have decided to do. You speak as if you have the power to make it happen. It is wrong to speak like that.

You have stored silver and gold coins to spend for yourselves. But dirt has spoiled those coins. That dirt will show that you are guilty. It will become like fire that is burning your bodies. In the last days of this world you have stored all this money for yourselves.

For example, God's prophet Elijah was an ordinary person, as we are. He prayed to God that it would not rain. He continued to pray and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months.

Understand this: if you turn a person back from their bad ways, you will save them from death. And God will forgive that person for his many sins.