Category: James

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James

A faith that pursues

James

The letter of James ends rather abruptly compared to a lot of the letters that you see in the New Testament. But it ends with one of its main themes: a faith that expresses itself in love.

And here we see a love that pursues a fallen brother or sister.

In verses 15-16, it talks about dealing with a brother or sister who is not just physically sick, but spiritually sick. And he encourages us to pray that their whole body, mind, and spirit be healed.

But in the last two verses, he goes further.

My brothers, if one of you should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death and over over a multitude of sins. (James 5:19-20)

Sometimes we see a brother or sister walk away from God. And too often, we just let them go without pursuing them. We may pity them, sometimes we even judge them. But we don’t pursue them.

But love doesn’t just let someone slip away without a fight. It pursues.

Part of that pursuit is confronting them in their sin. Part of that pursuit is entreating them to come back. And part of that pursuit is praying for them. How do we pray for them?

I find it very interesting that just before he talks about bringing a brother or sister back, James talks about the kind of prayer that Elijah prayed.

Elijah lived in a time when much of Israel had walked away from God. And so he prayed. What did he pray? He prayed that it would not rain. And it didn’t, for three and a half years.

And because of his prayer, it got people’s attention. It certainly got king Ahab’s attention. Eventually through his prayer, it brought people back to the worship of the Lord.

Sometimes we need to pray the same way.

Like I said at the very beginning of this book, God brings trials into our lives to make us mature and complete. And sometimes God uses trials to bring us back to himself when we are wandering off. So sometimes we need to pray that way.

“Lord, bring a drought in so-and-so’s life. Help them see the futility of a life apart from you and bring them back to you.”

And I think God will honor that prayer.

It almost seems cruel to pray that kind of thing. But like God, we are to have a heart for people, not one that delights in the fact that they are struggling, but one that longs for their repentance and rejoices when they do.

How about you? When someone walks away from God, do you have a faith and love that pursues them?

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James

A faith that prays

praying faith

As I said before, a lot of James at first glance seems disjointed, but the more that I’ve read this book, the more I’ve come to see the overall flow of it.

And here James comes back to an idea that he started in chapter 1, prayer in the midst of trouble.

In chapter 1, he said that if you are going through trial to ask God for wisdom, but to ask in faith. Faith that God is good. Faith that God’s way is best.

Now he comes returns to this thought, saying,

Is any of you in trouble? He should pray. (James 5:13)

Pray for what? Pray for wisdom and pray for help. But again, we need to pray believing in the essential goodness of God. Because if you doubt that, your prayers will be totally ineffective. (1:5-6)

But we shouldn’t just pray when we’re in trouble. James tells us,

Is anyone happy? Let him sing songs of praise.

It’s easy to remember God in our times of trouble. But do we remember him in the good times as well?

Do we thank him for his goodness? That’s part of faith too. Believing that every good and perfect gift comes from him. (1:17)

James then returns to the idea of praying through trials, saying,

Is any of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.

And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. (James 5:14-15a)

This is no guarantee of healing, no matter what some people may say. Paul himself prayed for people who didn’t get well. (II Timothy 4:20, for example).

But nevertheless, if we are sick, James says to pray and to have the leaders of the church pray for you as well.

The oil was either a symbol of the Holy Spirit’s work in healing, or it was used as an ointment for healing.

Again, though, the idea is that through prayer, we express our faith in God. By praying, we put ourselves in the hands of God to heal…or not, trusting that whatever he chooses to do is best.

There are times, however, when sickness is the result of sin. And so James says,

If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other that you may be healed. (James 5:15-16)

It calls to mind the time Jesus healed the paralytic in Mark 2. Before dealing with his physical ailment, Jesus dealt with his sin.

I’m not saying that all sickness is the result of sin. But there are many people, for example, who have suffered physical ailments because of bitterness and unforgiveness in their hearts. And by dealing with their sin first, their physical ailments were also healed.

That’s another reason James says to pray when you are sick or troubled. Prayer can reveal these kinds of spiritual issues and bring healing to them.

He concludes by saying,

The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective. Elijah was a man like us.

He prayed earnestly that it would not rain and it did not rain on the land for three and a half years. Again he prayed, and the heavens gave rain, and the earth produced its crops. (James 5:16-17)

In short, never think prayer is a waste of time. That it is ineffective.

Even for the “ordinary” person, if we come to God in faith, prayer can accomplish great things. Not because we’re speaking some magic formula or incantation. But because the God we pray to is great.

And when we trust him, he can accomplish great things in us and through us.

How about you? Do you sometimes think prayer is a waste of time? Or do you have the faith to pray in the good times and bad?

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James

How faith responds to suffering

James

James started this letter by talking about how God uses trials to make us mature and complete.

And for the last several chapters, he talked about how true faith should look as it matures. That true faith causes people to grow in love, speech, and in purity.

That is the endgame for God. That we would become more like Christ as we draw near to him.

Now having drawn that picture, he comes back to how we should deal with our trials.

On first glance, the first six verses of chapter 5 look like a continuation of his condemnation of the wealthy Christians that we saw in the last few verses of chapter 4.

But taking a closer look, it seems much more likely that James is echoing the Old Testament prophets who condemned those who persecuted or oppressed God’s people.

There were rich people who hoarded their wealth and failed to pay their workers their wages. Who condemned and murdered innocent men by their greed and self-indulgence.

And James warns, “Your time of judgment is coming.”

But then he turns to the suffering Christian. And he says,

Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming.

See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains?

You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. (James 5:7-8)

In short, part of perseverance is faith. Faith that God will judge the unjust and that justice will ultimately come.

Just as the farmer trusts God to provide the rains he needs so that his crop will grow, so we should trust God to provide the justice that we all long for. And as we wait in faith, we will bear the fruit of righteousness in our lives.

That’s hard, though. And sometimes in our frustration, we not only get angry with God, but we turn on each other. So James says,

Don’t grumble against each other brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door! (9)

If in our impatience and anger at our situation, we turn on each other, God will hold us accountable for that. So James tells us,

Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.

As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy. (11)

When you look at the lives of the prophets, many, if not all, suffered greatly. Yet in the midst of their struggle, they continued to to be faithful, preaching the Word of the Lord, no matter how much they were reviled.

Job too suffered, and though he struggled with understanding the whys, he never gave up on his faith on God either. And in the end, God vindicated them all.

And so James tells us, “Learn from them. In the midst of your trials, be patient.”

It’s easy to say God is good when all is going well. It’s much harder when we’re going through trial.

Finally James says,

Above all, my brothers, do not swear — not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your “Yes” be yes, and your “No”,” no, or you will be condemned. (12)

Here I think James is saying, “No matter how bad things get, hold on to your integrity. Don’t let your trials take that away with you. Always stay unflinchingly honest lest your dishonesty detract from your testimony.”

How do you face your trials? Do you turn against God? Do you turn against those around you? Do you let your trials take away from your integrity?

Or do you stand unflinchingly in the face of it all, believing that God is good and will bring you through?

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James

How true faith expresses itself (Part 8)

James

I think with this passage, James pretty much concludes his speech on how true faith expresses itself. And again, throughout his whole letter, he has focused on love, speech, and purity.

In these last few verses, I think he’s going back to the theme of purity and not becoming polluted by this world.

Part of that pollution is the love that people have for the things of this world. But part of that pollution is the arrogance that comes from having the things of this world.

Here we see Christians who were pretty successful in the world, successful business people and merchants. And because they were so successful, they were starting to forget their need for God. They had forgotten that all that they had ultimately came from him.

And so James says,

Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.”

Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

Instead you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”

As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil. (James 4:13-16)

In a lot of ways, this is connected to verses 10-12.

In those verses, James asked, “Who are you that you think you have the right to judge your neighbor, to despise him by slandering him and treating him like dirt?”

Now he again asks, “Who do you think you are that you boast as you do? You’re nothing. You’re mere mist, here today and gone tomorrow. You don’t even control how much breath you have left in your life.”

So what do we get from all this? Put away your arrogance. Draw near to God and humble yourself before him.

And stop despising others. Rather, get back to what Jesus commanded and start loving your neighbor as yourself.”

James then concludes,

Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do, and doesn’t do it, sins. (17)

And so we come full circle to what James said earlier in chapter 2, that faith without works is dead.

For if you are walking in arrogance, judging others with your mouth, neglecting the needs of those around you, and living in adultery with the world, do you really have faith? Or is your faith mere words, an empty shell.

What kind of faith do you have?

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James

How true faith expresses itself (part 7)

James

Having addressed hearts that had been polluted by their love for the world, James now gets back to the tongue and how polluted hearts can affect it.

James talked earlier about how they were always fighting and quarreling among themselves and how that caused them to hate each other.

Literally he says, “kill,” but I highly doubt they were actually killing each other. Rather, I think they were killing each other in their hearts.

Why do people murder? Because they despise others in their hearts. They treat them as something less than someone created in the image of God. That’s why Jesus said,

You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, “Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.”

But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.

Again, anyone who says to his brother, “Raca” is answerable to the Sanhedrin.

But anyone who says, “You fool!” will be in danger of the fire of hell. (Matthew 5:21-22)

Here you see Jesus equating harboring anger in your hearts toward others, and as a result despising them, with murder.

I think James was doing the same. The people were so in love with the world, they started to envy and despise those who had more than they did. And that led them to say things they shouldn’t. To slander others and call them fools or worse.

So James says,

Brothers, do not slander one another. Anyone who speaks against his brother or judges him speaks against the law and judges it.

When you judge the law, you are not keeping it, but sitting in judgment on it. (James 4:11)

So often when we talk about not judging others, we think of not judging their sins.

But here, I’m not so sure James is talking about judging people’s sins. I think he’s talking about judging them in terms of calling people “fools,” or “no-good,” or the like.

We saw another case of this in chapter two, when people in the church were sitting in judgment on the poor, despising them and giving more honor to others simply because they were rich.

So what James is saying is, “Don’t you dare judge people and see them as anything less than people created in God’s image.

“God’s law says you are to love them as yourself. God law says that you are not to despise or slander them in any way.

“And when you have the gall to judge them and see them as anything less than people created in his image, you speak against the law and judge it. You’re not keeping the law; you’re judging God’s law as not worth keeping.”

James then warns,

There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the one who is able to save and destroy. But you — who are you to judge your neighbor? (James 4:12)

In short, there is only one lawgiver and judge, and that’s not you.

So get off your high horse, and as James said in verse 10, humble yourself before the Lord. Stop acting and speaking as if you’re so much better than others. You’re not.

How about you? How does your faith express itself when it comes to dealing with people?

Do you sit on judgment on others, calling them no good? Calling them stupid? Wishing they were dead?

Or does it express itself with the love, mercy, and grace that God gave you?

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James

How true faith expresses itself (part 6)

James

James here briefly gets away from talking about controlling the tongue (he’ll return to it later), and starts talking about the third way that faith expresses itself: purity.

He said back in James 1:27 that an essential part of true religion or faith is, “…to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.”

Here he goes into more detail as to what he means.

There were more than a few among those James was writing to that had ambitions of becoming a teacher in the church. And as we saw before, James cautioned them, saying not everyone should become teachers because they will be judged more strictly. (James 3:1)

He then says, “Do you really think you’re wise and understanding enough to be a teacher? Look at your hearts!

“Many of you are harboring envy and selfish ambition in your heart. That kind of “wisdom” comes from the devil, not God. And all that kind of wisdom will lead to is evil.” (13-16)

Having said that, he gets to the true root of the problem. These people were being polluted by the world. And it was affecting how they thought and acted.

He says,

“What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it.

You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want. You quarrel and fight.

You do not have, because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on our pleasures. (James 4:1-3)

In short, he’s saying, “Look at you! You’re so in love with this world that you actually hate and envy those who have more than you. And because of that, you’re constantly fighting and quarreling with them.

But not only is your love for the world affecting your relationship with others, it’s affecting your relationship with God. The only reason you talk to God at all is that you hope to get the things of this world. And God won’t honor that.”

James then gets really harsh.

You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God?

Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. (James 4:4)

James echoes here the words of the Old Testament prophets, who compared the people of Israel to whores and adulteresses (Ezekiel 16 and the entire book of Hosea for example).

When we love the world, it incites envy in the heart of God (5).

We often think of envy as a bad thing, but there is a righteous kind of envy. A husband or wife has righteous envy when their spouse cheats on them.

And when we turn our backs on God to whom we rightfully belong in order to pursue this world, he envies intensely.

And yet, if we will return to him, he always shows us grace (6). So James tells us,

Submit yourselves, then, to God.

Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you.

Wash your hands you sinners, and purify our hearts, you double-minded. Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.

Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will lift you up. (James 4:7-9)

What kind of faith do you have? Is it a double-minded faith? One that claims to believe in God, and yet prostitutes itself by seeking the things of this world?

We are called to be priests of God, holy and pure. And as priests washed their hands and purified themselves before approaching God, so we need to wash our spiritual hands which are stained with sin and purify our hearts before God.

We are not to indulge in the “joy” of worldliness. Rather we are to repent of it.

How about you? Are you being polluted by this world? Or does your heart belong to God alone?

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James

How true faith expresses itself (Part 5)

James

I suppose I could have just titled this blog, “The tongue,” or some other such title.

But I wanted to remind myself that this is really part of a longer argument that James is making. That faith expresses itself in love, in purity, and in our speech.

This passage is kind of a revisitation of chapter 1 verse 26 where James wrote,

If anyone considers himself religious and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless.

We pointed out when we first looked at this that the reason for this is that our tongue shows the true state of our heart.

So many times people will say apologize for something they said by saying, “Sorry about that. It just kind of popped out.”

But the question is why? Why did it pop out? It popped out because it was there in your heart. It didn’t just pop out of nowhere. It resided in your heart, and when the time was ripe, it burst out.

And the thing is, because we all have sin in our hearts, there are any number of things there ready to pop out when we least expect it.

That’s why James tells us,

We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to keep his whole body in check. (James 3:2)

Words are much quicker to come out of our mouths then our body is to act on any thought we may have.

And so if our heart ever comes to the point of maturity and completion that nothing bad ever pops out, it would be safe to say that we most likely would never do anything wrong.

But of course, as long as we are on this earth, there will always be sin in our hearts. And that’s why James says,

All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by man, but no man can tame the tongue. (7)

And the thing is, what we say can shape our lives as well as the shape of others. Just as a bit can turn a horse completely around, and a rudder can do the same to a ship, so the tongue can completely turn the life of a person for good or bad.

Unfortunately, too often it turns a person’s life for the worse. James compares it to a spark that can bring down an entire forest.

What you say can destroy your whole life, or the life of another. And because of that, James says that such a tongue is set on fire by hell itself.

Jobs are lost because of our words. Marriages die because of our words. Children are crushed because of our words. Friendships are broken by our words.

And yet so often we speak them so carelessly. Is it no wonder that James calls them a deadly poison? (8)

James says,

With the tongue, we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.

Out of the same mouth comes praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be. (9-10)

Put another way, how can we say we love God when we curse people who are made in his image?

He concludes,

Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. (11-12)

The truth is, while these things should not be, they do happen when it comes to our words because of what’s in our hearts. We have both fresh water and salt water there.

So if you wonder why you struggle so much with your tongue, consider the source of your words?

What is in your heart? What bitterness, anger, or other ugliness is there? Because until you let Jesus deal with what’s there, you will never be able to control your tongue.

So let us pray as David did.

May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)

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James

If you would be a teacher

Spring of water

As I look back on my life, I kind of marvel at how I have gotten to this point in my ministry. I just ask myself, “How did I get here?”

It all started simply enough, I suppose. My brother started working with an organization called Child Evangelism Fellowship (CEF) as a summer missionary when he was in high school and college.

Then a friend of mine also decided join CEF, and one day said words that changed my life. “Are you going to join CEF this summer too?”

He seemed greatly disappointed when I said no. But that started the wheels in motion in my heart, and the next summer I started ministering to children teaching them God’s word. And from there it snowballed.

I went from teaching children to teaching my peers. Then I moved to Japan, and started teaching the Bible to my students.

And then out of the blue, my pastor asked if I would speak at a home church. From there, that opened up opportunities to speak in larger church services. And here I am.

I almost want to say, “I didn’t ask for this.” But perhaps it would be more accurate to say, “I didn’t expect all this.”

But here I am, in the position I’m in, and I face this passage. And it’s a heavy one for me and all who would be teachers in the church.

James said,

Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. (James 3:1)

Why? Two reasons.

First, if we are not careful in our teaching, we can lead people astray from the truth that is in Christ.

Second, when we stand in front of people preaching God’s word, they then pay particular attention to whether we live those words or not.

We are to be examples to God’s flock. And when we fail, we can cause great damage to that flock.

It is the second that I think James is more concerned about here. We’ll talk more about the tongue as it concerns Christians in general tomorrow, but I think it would be good to focus on it from the standpoint of those who preach God’s word first.

James talks about the damage that we can cause to people with our tongues. He calls it a fire that can consume and destroy. (6) He calls it a restless evil filled with deadly poison. (8)

And for teachers that is the ultimate irony. With our speech we can exhort, rebuke, and edify. But with our speech, we can also destroy. And James asks,

Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? (11)

Quite frankly, it shouldn’t. As teachers, our mouths should be instruments of God, but when we tear people down, using biting sarcasm and cutting words, they instead become instruments of Satan. And this shouldn’t be.

James then gets to the root of all this: our hearts.

He asks,

Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. (13)

In other words, a truly wise and understanding teacher proves himself not by his words preached on the pulpit, but by his life off of it.

And a truly wise teacher walks in humility, concerned with nothing but loving God and the people God has given him.

But some teachers are not this way. They are always comparing themselves with others. They compare themselves with other teachers with more successful ministries.

Or they compare themselves with their flock, always looking down on them. And James warns,

But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.

Such “wisdom” does not come from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil.

For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. (14-16)

What is the wisdom that should characterize the teacher? James tells us.

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.

Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness. (17-18)

Teachers, what kind of harvest are you raising in your church? One of chaos and evil? Or one of peace and righteousness?

If you see a lot of the former, before you judge anyone else, look at your own life. Which characterizes your life more? Verses 14-16? Or verses 17-18?

What standard are you living up to?

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James

How true faith expresses itself (Part 4)

James

There was something that I wanted to add in the last blog, but it was getting long as it was, so I decided to put it here.

One thing that I have been trying very carefully to do is to make clear that maturity and completion as a Christian takes time. One does not become a perfect Christian the day he or she is saved.

Abraham certainly wasn’t. I talked yesterday about how his faith was made complete with his putting of Isaac on the altar. But he did struggle with this faith a lot up until that point.

We saw that with his sleeping with his wife’s slave Hagar.

We also see it in Genesis 20 where he lied to a king named Abimelech, saying Sarah was his sister (technically true, she was his half-sister, but not the whole truth) because he was afraid Abimelech would kill him in order to take Sarah.

I say all this to make two points.

First, I have challenged you to think about your faith. And it would be easy for you to focus on your failures, and say, “Maybe I’m not really saved at all. After all, I still don’t see all the fruit of love in my life I should have, and I still fail in so many ways.”

But that’s not my intention nor was it James’.

The people we are challenging are those who claim it is possible to be a Christian, and simply live the way that they want to. The people who say, “I have faith, you have deeds,” as if there were no connection whatsoever between the two.

But as we have seen, there is a connection. True faith in God always leads to a change in life. Because if you truly have seen his love for you in the cross of Christ, and you truly do love him for that, then you will naturally want to do the things that please him.

The question I would ask you if you’re questioning your faith is this: “Do you really love God. Do you have a burning desire to please him?”

If you can say yes, then I wouldn’t worry too much about you, because change will happen. Like I said, it may be hard and it may be painful. But it will happen.

Second, I think we need to be very careful about judging those who we feel are not changing “fast enough.”

People grow at different paces. And while actions often show the state of the heart, you know as well I do that it’s not a perfect measure.

Some people look really good, but in their hearts are not right before God. On the other hand, other people may seem hypocritical, but when they are at home in their room before God, they are crying out, “God why am I this way? Forgive me. Help me.”

The only people whose faith we should be questioning are those people who blatantly don’t seem to care about becoming godly. Who always make excuses when they hear the Word of God and reject any rebuke for their actions on the basis that they are “saved by faith alone.”

These are the people that I’m challenging, and I believe James is too.

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James

How true faith expresses itself (Part 3)

Works vs. Faith

We said yesterday that it’s not simply enough to say, “I believe in God,” in order to be saved.

Nor, for that matter, is it enough to say “I believe that Jesus died for my sin and rose again” in order to be saved.

True faith always leads to a changed life, and that first and foremost expresses itself in love: love for God and love for others.

A “faith” that never grows to express itself in that way is not true faith at all. It’s merely empty words. As empty as saying to a needy person, “I hurt for you. God bless you,” and then walking away without doing anything to help them.

James then says,

But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds and I will show you my faith by what I do. (James 2:18)

It’s difficult to know how to take this verse, especially since we don’t know where the quotation marks should be. (There are no quotation marks in Greek.)

One way this could be read is that the “someone” mentioned is an outsider, a non-Christian, who looks at the so-called Christian who claims he believes in God but shows no love or compassion to those around.

And this someone is saying, “Why should I follow your God? You have your faith, but I’m a much better person than you.”

The other way it could be read is that James is that “someone” and that all those words should be in quotes.

Either way, James is saying, “Do you really have faith? Prove it. Talk’s cheap. You say that you really believe in God, but how do I know? I can’t see your heart. All I can see is your deeds.

“And your deeds, particularly your lack of love for God and others, make me seriously doubt that you really have faith in God at all. Because if you really knew God’s love, it would eventually start to flow out from your life.”

And this, I think, is how we deal with the seeming contradiction between James and Paul.

Paul says we are justified by faith apart from works (Romans 3:28). James says we are justified by faith and works. (2:24)

We are justified by God by faith alone, but we are justified (or “proven”) as true believers before people by what we do. Why? Because God can see the heart. People can’t.

The interesting thing is that James and Paul use the same person and passage to prove their points. James says,

Was not our ancestor Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar?

You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. (21-22)

The question is, who was he considered righteous by? By God?

To an extent, yes. But more importantly, his outward actions proved to the people around him that he truly believed in God. They couldn’t see his heart. For all they knew, he was a total hypocrite.

In fact, his previous actions may have made them think just that.

After all, he had had so little faith earlier that he slept with his wife’s slave (with his wife’s permission) in order to have an heir.

Why? Because he had started having serious doubts that God would give him an heir through Sarah like He had promised.

But when Abraham later was willing to sacrifice Isaac on the altar, even though Isaac was the one through whom God had promised Abraham’s family line would continue, it showed everyone around that Abraham really did have true faith.

He had grown from the man who wavered and sometimes acted hypocritically into a man who truly lived out his faith.

That’s what James meant when he said,

And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness, and he was called God’s friend. (James 2:23)

When did Abraham believe God and have it credited him as righteousness. Before the sacrifice of Isaac? Or after? Well before. In fact, it was before Isaac was even born. (Genesis 15:6)

God knew his heart right then and there. He knew Abraham believed him, and so he justified him on the basis of that faith.

But that faith came to maturity and completion when Abraham put Isaac on that altar.

Like I said yesterday, maturity and completion of faith may take time. It may be a struggle, and it may be painful at times.

But where there is true faith, there will always be progress, and eventually people will be able to see it.

What kind of faith do you have?

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James

How true faith expresses itself (Part 2)

James

I think it’s easy at times to parse the Bible into neat little sections, especially as we do our daily Bible reading.

What I’ve been noticing more and more over the past year, though, is that when we do that, we often miss the flow of what is being said. So often people kind of detach these verses from all that was said before, but really, it is all part of one long argument.

And this specific argument goes back to chapter 1 verses 26-27, where James talks about how true religion, true faith, leads to love, a tongue under control, and a pure life.

More specifically, this passage is continuing James’s thought of faith expressing itself in love. Paul himself talked about this, saying,

For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. (Galatians 5:6)

James has been specifically talking about this in terms of how we treat the poor and lowly, and said that when we mistreat them, we are acting as sinners. We may not be committing murder or adultery, but we are nevertheless lawbreakers in God’s sight.

And so James tells us, don’t judge the poor and lowly as lesser people. Rather show mercy to them. (James 2:8-12)

He then uses this line of thought to reinforce his general point, that true religion and faith should lead to a changed life.

He says,

What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such a faith save him? (2:14)

Again, in the context, he’s talking about deeds of love. Can you claim to have faith if you have no love?

He then illustrates his point.

Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it?

In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action is dead. (2:15-17)

Here, James shows the emptiness of words if it is not backed up by action.

If someone tells a person in need, “Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,” it sounds good. It sounds loving. But if it never leads to action, that lack of action proves that all those words had no real meaning behind them. They’re just empty words, and not love at all.

In the same way, if someone says, “I believe in God,” it sounds pious. It sounds Christian.

But if over the course of time, that person’s life never changes, their life proves those words of faith have no meaning behind them. They’re just empty words, and not faith at all.

James emphasizes the point, saying,

You believe there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that — and shudder. (2:19)

In short, mere mental assent to the truth is not enough to save you. Merely saying, “I believe in God,” is not enough. True faith always leads to a transformed life. In particular, it leads to a life in which you truly love those around you.

Change may take time. It may be a struggle. But if there is true faith, there should always be progress.

If then you look back on your life and you can’t see any changes that God has brought about in your life, making you more mature and complete in him, then it’s time to question, “What kind of faith do I have?”

More on this tomorrow.

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James

How true faith expresses itself

True Faith

One of the things that James really is strong on is that true faith expresses itself in more than just saying, “I believe in God.”

Many people today say, “I believe in God.” But as we will see in later passages, that doesn’t necessarily mean that you have a saving faith.

A saving faith leads to a transformed life. We saw that one reason God allows trials into our lives is so that we might be transformed, that we might be made whole and complete as we learn to trust in him through those trials.

And as we look at the next few chapters, we see three ways we should see our lives changing if we are truly saved. One is in speech. The second is in love. The last is in purity.

(It strikes me that Paul also talks about all these things in 1 Timothy 4:12)

James says first,

If anyone considers himself religious, and yet does not keep a tight rein on his tongue, he deceives himself and his religion is worthless. (James 1:26)

James will get much more into this later, but I will say this. Many people today who struggle with their tongue often take it lightly. They swear, they lie, they slander, they verbally abuse. And it never occurs to them that their words show what is in their hearts.

If there is garbage in your heart, garbage is going to come out. If you think you’re a good Christian and garbage is spewing out of your mouth, James says you’re deceiving yourself and your Christianity is worthless.

It’s worthless because your “faith” has yet to transform your heart. There’s garbage there and you don’t even notice it’s there.

James then says,

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. (1:27)

James will explain later what it means to keep from being polluted by the world. But at this point, he goes into great detail on the third way in which our lives should change if we have true faith: the love we have for others.

If we have true faith, we should have a heart that has mercy on those around us. On the widows and orphans. (1:27)

We should have a heart that does not discriminate showing more honor to those who are rich, while despising the poor.

A heart that judges not by appearance but through the eyes of God who has chosen many that the world despise to be his children and to inherit his kingdom. (2:1-2:7)

And James tells us,

If you are keeping the royal law found in Scripture, “Love your neighbor as yourself,” you are doing right.

But if you show favoritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. (2:8-9)

So many people say, “Yes, I’m a good Christian. I don’t murder, I don’t steal, I don’t commit adultery.”

And yet they fail to love those around them with the love of Christ. Instead they despise them. James says of such people, “You’re not as good as you think. In God’s eyes, you are a law-breaker because you don’t love the people around you.”

The Pharisees in Jesus’ day were much the same. They didn’t love. They kept a lot of other rules, some of which God didn’t even require.

But they discriminated, they judged, and they despised many of the people around them. And Jesus rebuked them for their hypocrisy.

How many people that call themselves Christians would Jesus rebuke today?

So James concludes,

Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom, because judgment will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful.

Mercy triumphs over judgment. (2:12-13)

When we live by the law of love and mercy, we set people free and show ourselves to be God’s children. When we judge and despise people, we show ours faith is not as strong as it should be.

What do your words and actions show about your faith?

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James

Open hearts

James

At times, I must admit this letter James wrote seems a bit disjointed. He just seems to jump from topic to topic. But the more I’ve been reading this letter as a whole, the more united it has become.

In this passage, at first glance, seemingly out of nowhere, James brings up something very similar to what we see in Proverbs. He says,

My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to become angry, for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires. (James 1:19-20)

There is, of course, much truth to this in our relationships. If we would be quicker to listen to people, slower to speak, and slower to get angry, our relationships would be much better.

But I’m not so sure that James is talking here about our relationships with others. I think he’s talking about our relationship with God.

Earlier he talked about how God uses our trials to make us mature and complete. That during these times, he teaches us to trust him and to do things his way.

The problem is that during times in of trials, too many times, we’re not willing to listen. Instead we rage at God, saying, “Why are you letting this happen to me!”

But James told us in verse 18 that through his word of truth, he gave birth to us.

Through the word of the gospel we heard and accepted, he saved us from our sin and made us his children.

And it is that same word that transforms us day by day into Christ’s likeness, making us whole and complete.

So James is saying here, “Be quick to listen to that word. In your times of trial be quick to listen to what God is trying to tell you. Be slow to speak. Be slow to complain. Be slow to rage against God because of your trials.

“For that kind of anger will not bring about the righteous life that God desires to develop in you.”

He then says,

Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. (21)

In short, God is trying to purify you through these trials and his word. So when he speaks, open your heart to what he’s trying to teach you.

His word can save you not only from your trials, but save you from the multiple problems that come when you sin.

So don’t just mentally assent to what God is saying to you. Do it.

James puts it this way,

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.

But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it — he will be blessed in what he does. (22-25)

A lot of people think of God’s law as taking away our freedom. They think his law takes away from the enjoyment of life. But God’s law actually brings us freedom.

It frees us from bitterness and resentment.

It frees us from the chains that destroy our marriages, our relationships, and our lives.

It frees us to have the full life that God intended for us from the very beginning.

And as a result, we find blessing.

How about you? As you go through struggles in your life, are you getting resentful and bitter toward God?

Or do you open your heart to him? God wants to use your trials to make you whole.

When he whispers, do you listen?

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James

For our good

James

“Why is God doing this to me? Does he want me to fall?”

Sometimes, as we go through trials, that’s how we feel. That God actually wants us to fail so that he can punish us.

But nothing could be further from the truth. Yes, God allows trials in our lives, but it is not to punish us or break us. Rather, he allows these trials that we might become “mature and complete, lacking nothing.” (James 1:4)

And so James tells us,

When tempted, no one should say, “God is tempting me.” For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed.

Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death. (James 1:13-15)

The word “tempt” in Greek is actually the verb form of the word “trial.” Because of that, perhaps James’ readers got confused when hearing that God “tests” us. Many people have the same confusion today.

Yes, God tests us. He wants to see what is inside of us, and he wants to use these tests to strengthen our faith in him.

But God never tempts us to do evil. He never says, “Hey why don’t you lust after this girl,” or, “Why don’t you start berating your spouse,” or, “Why don’t you curse me?”

All these temptations, James tells us, come not from God, but from our own sinful selves. Our own sinful desires lure us, and if we take the bait, it gives birth to sin, and eventually leads to death.

But that’s not what God desires for us.

Rather James tells us,

Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers. Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

He chose to give us birth through the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of all he created. (16-18)

In other words, every act of giving from God is good. And every gift that he gives us is perfect. There is no malicious giving on his part. And there is no gift that he gives that is defective.

And that shows in the gift of salvation. God could have left us to die in our sins. But rather, he chose to give us life through his Son.

And God is not like shifting shadows, who one day will seek to bless us, and the other to destroy us.

Rather, again, his goal is that we might become whole and complete. That we would, as the writer of Hebrews puts it, “share in his holiness.” (Hebrews 12:10).

So remember that whatever you’re going through, God is not trying to destroy you. He’s not trying to wreck your life. We do enough of that on our own. Rather, through our trials, he’s trying to teach us to trust him.

And as we learn this, we see God’s goodness and faithfulness, and come out through the fire as pure gold, whole, complete, lacking nothing.

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James

Where we put our trust

James

Who or what do you put your trust in? Trials tend to reveal this clearly.

For many, it’s in worldly wealth. They think that money is the solution to all their problems. And so for those who have wealth, they pour all their money into their problems. And for those without, they waste all their time pining after it.

But in doing so, they become double-minded. While they may be asking God for wisdom to deal with their trials, they’re really looking toward money to solve their problems.

So James says,

The brother in humble circumstances ought to take pride in his high position. But the one who is rich should take pride in his low position—because he will pass away like a wild flower.

For the sun rises with scorching heat and withers the plant; its blossom falls and its beauty is destroyed. In the same way, the rich man will fade away even while he goes about his business. (James 1:9-11) 

In times of trial, it’s easy for those without worldly wealth and status to moan after them as if these things would be the solution to all their problems.

But James says, “It’s not wealth or worldly status that counts, but the heavenly wealth and status that you have in Christ.

“So though you may be struggling through these trials, keep your eyes on the things that are eternal, not the things of this world.

“And be content with what you have, knowing that God is with you and will help you through your trials, whether you have money or not.”

It’s in fact very similar to what the writer of Hebrew said to his readers.

Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.”

So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?” (Hebrews 13:5-6) 

On the other hand, it’s easy for those who are rich and who think they should have it all together to be humbled by their trials and to wonder what’s going on. To wonder if God has abandoned them.

But James tells the rich, “Take a lesson from the low position you are now in. All your wealth is not saving you from your trials. All your riches, all your possessions will pass away. You will pass away.

“So let your trials refocus you on the things that really matter. And stop relying on the things of this world to save you. Put your faith in God.”

Then he says to both rich and poor,

Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. (12)

In short, don’t waver under trial. Don’t waver by seeking the things of this earth and putting your trust in them.

This earth with all its wealth and all its trouble will pass away. But you are looking toward something that will never fade away, everlasting life in heaven, and rewards that will never perish.

What trials are you going through now? Where is your focus in the midst of them? Where are you putting your faith? In money? Or in God?

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James

That we may be mature and complete

Wholeness

What is God’s intention and desire for us?

In a word, “wholeness.”

That we would be whole in our relationship with him. That we would be whole in our relationships with each other. That we would be whole in every aspect of our lives.

That’s a comforting thought, isn’t it? We all want to be made whole.

The next thought might not be so comforting: It is for the purpose of being made whole that we go through many of the trials and struggles we do.

That’s why it’s hard for us to accept James’ word to us when he says,

Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. (James 1:2-3)

Pure joy? When we face suffering?

Yes. Pure joy. Why? Because these trials produce perseverance in our lives. Why is perseverance so important?

Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. (4)

In short, the path to wholeness is one of persevering through trial. For through those trials, we learn to cast aside trusting ourselves and our own wisdom.

The reason our lives are so broken is that we have spent our entire lives trusting ourselves and our own wisdom. But through our trials, we learn just how vain life is living that way.

But when we turn to God, learning to trust him and his ways, and we persevere in living that way even through trial, then we find wholeness. In our relationship with him, with each other, and in every aspect of our lives.

That’s why James tells us in the next verse,

If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.

But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.

That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. (5-8)

As I read this, I can’t help but think of Hebrews 11:6, where it says,

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Wholeness comes down to trusting God. If we doubt God’s goodness in our lives, we will never do the things he asks. And if we don’t do the things he asks, our lives will remain the broken shells they are.

How about you? Do you want to be whole, when all the while you’re holding on to your wisdom and your ways? You can never be made that whole that way. That way leads only to brokenness and despair.

But if you will trust in God, he will bring you out of the trials you are going through. And he will bring you out mature, whole, and complete.

What will you do?