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James 1:17—Good and usa clomid online perfect gifts are from God
Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. James 1:17
Three great big truths about God are packed into James 1:17. They are:
- God gives good and perfect gifts.
- God is the Father of lights.
- With God there is no variation or shifting shadow.
Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above…
Just before this important truth, James wrote, “Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren” (James 1:16). He obviously felt that it was necessary to warn his brethren that what he was saying could be twisted or undermined by those who did not rightly divide the Word of truth.
He openly stated without apology that good things and perfect gifts come from God. How could such a clear doctrine be twisted? One method is to twist the word “good”. Have you ever heard someone say that cancer was good because God used it to teach something? How about a person who lost a loved one being told to view the death as good—God needed “another angel”? Could cancer or untimely death truly be good or perfect gifts?
One of the first sermons I heard as a young believer stated boldly, “God is a good God; the devil is a bad devil. Good means good; bad means bad.” I learned then that John 10:10 is an excellent standard—even in church—by which to measure information categorizing what is good or bad. This Scripture says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” Is something in your life stealing, killing, or destroying? Then it is from the devil—do not be deceived. When you hear that a bad thing is good, beware—something’s not right. Just because it’s taught by an “authority” doesn’t make it so. Dive into the Word and pray; the Lord will bring discernment. I have had to stop listening to different individuals who pushed a warped perspective of good and bad.
…coming down from the Father of lights…
Last week I told you about a counterfeit twenty dollar bill that came into the church when I was on the offering team. I thought something was wrong with it, so I looked at it closely. I felt it. I smelled it. I still couldn’t tell squat about it. But when I held it up to the light, the truth was revealed—the bill was counterfeit. Likewise, when counterfeit “truths” are brought before the Light, they are quickly exposed.
James wrote that God is the Father of lights. His Son Jesus is the Light of the world (see John 8:12). His Word is a lamp to your feet and order tadalafil 100mg a light to your path (see Psalm 119:105). Therefore, truth and light are in Him alone—not in philosophy, spiritualism, or the multitude of religions that cling to a form of godliness but deny the power. Do not be deceived—there is no other Way, Truth, or Life outside of the One who has come down from the Father of lights. It is His light that reveals the true nature of all things—including every good thing and every perfect gift.
…with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
Have you ever heard someone say, “You never know what God’s going to do”? Perhaps you can’t guess the details of how He will work, but you can bet your bottom dollar that He will not violate His Word—ever. With God, there is no variation. Yes, God is limitless in depth, and He is multifaceted beyond our ability to imagine, yet He is the same, yesterday, today, and forever. He doesn’t change His ways or His Word to keep up with the times or to fit in with a progressive generation. His standards are timeless, applying to all mankind, forever.
In the Father of lights there are no…shifting shadows. Here on earth, shadows appear wherever there is light, but with the Father of lights there are no shadows. Why is that? Shadows occur when light is blocked by another object, creating a darkened area. In the Father, no light blockers can be found; He Himself is the light, and in Him there is no darkness (see 1 John 1:5). Not only that, but shifts are created by changes in position. We change position; people and objects around us change positions, but the Father never does. He will not shift in any degree, nor does He need to. He is everywhere present, always bringing light to anyone wise enough, humble enough, or desperate enough to seek. And to everyone who seeks, He will be found (see Matthew 7:8).
Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren:
- God gives good and perfect gifts.
- He is the Father of lights.
- With Him there is no variation or shifting shadow.
And He will remain this way forever and ever.
Dorothy
James 1:16—Do not be deceived
Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. James 1:16
I once read that Abraham Lincoln said, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.” According to James, the responsibility to see to it that you’re not deceived belongs to you and to you alone.
Eve told the Lord, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate” (see Genesis 3:13), obviously blaming the devil for tricking her and causing her to sin. However, God did not buy into her assertion that she was clear of blame. He held her accountable despite the fact that she had been deceived; you can read about her consequences in Genesis 3.
God is a bottom line God, and the bottom line is this: Each one of us is accountable for what we believe and acquistare lasix generico don’t believe. If you hear twisted, distorted information or teaching, you are responsible to discern truth from error. You don’t have to fend for yourself in this, however; the Holy Spirit continually prompts and directs you into all the truth (see John 16:13), and the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword and is able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart (see Hebrews 4:12). Judge everything—even the “good stuff” you hear—by the Word. On top of all that, Jesus said this: “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the Light of life” (see John 8:12). When you pursue Jesus with all your heart, He leads you away from the darkness of error and into the light of His truth.
Because of the indwelling Holy Spirit, the Word of God, and Jesus Himself, you are armed and dangerous to the deceptions that abound. When you put first things first, you more clearly see through the lies intended to deceive you.
Several years ago I was counting the offering at church and cheapest levitra now noticed a twenty dollar bill that seemed odd. It was the right shape, size, color, and had the correct design and mug shot of Andrew Jackson. But something just wasn’t right. I felt the bill, scrutinized it, smelled it, and put it up to the light. And then I knew—I was holding a counterfeit! We called in an associate pastor, and he called in one of the local police officers on security duty for the church, and sure enough—we had received a counterfeit twenty dollar bill. When the officer asked me how I knew it was a fake, I smiled and said, “I’m very familiar with the real!”
What does it take to spot a counterfeit in the spiritual realm? Just be very familiar with the real—the Word of God, the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and maintaining an authentic relationship with the Light of the world, Jesus Christ!
Two big truths about God
When James wrote, do not be deceived, however, he sandwiched this warning between two great big truths about God. This indicates that we must maintain a particularly high truth quotient in reference to what we believe about the Father.
Belief #1: God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He ever tempt you. Do not be deceived. When you are tempted, it is due to your own lust. You can’t pin it on God; you can’t even pin it on the devil and say God let him do it. As long as you are blaming temptation on God—or on God letting the devil tempt you so He can test you—you will never overcome.
Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. (James 1:17)
Belief #2:
Hold fast to these truths about the Father:
- God gives good and perfect gifts.
- God is the Father of lights.
- With God there is no variation or shifting shadow.
When you major on these truths about the Father and the way He operates, deception will have difficulty finding a foothold in your heart.
More to come next week on James 1:17 and those big thoughts about God.
Don’t be deceived!
Dorothy
“And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified” (Acts 20:32)
James 1:14-15 Part 2—The lust/sin connection
But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. James 1:14-15
Every bit of Scripture is designed to instruct and encourage you. The phrase “each one is tempted” reveals that the sin dilemma you face in your life is something everyone else has to deal with, too. Temptation hits each one of us, and therefore, when you are tempted, you’re not in a class by yourself. That alone ought to give you some relief.
First Thessalonians 5:23 reveals the three-part anatomy of a human being. “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ” (emphasis added).
I am a new creation; on December 29, 1974, I became a new creature in Christ. My spirit underwent both death and resurrection. That which died was my “old man”—or the old me (see Romans 6:6, Ephesians 4:22, and Colossians 3:9)—that which was resurrected was my new, recreated spirit man. My spirit is clean and whole and has been so since the night I was saved. It will remain so throughout my life. Thank God, my sin nature is gone.
That said, I woke up on the morning of December 30, 1974, with the same old soul and body. The power of God had intervened the night before and eradicated alcoholism from my body and mind; but besides that, the rest of my personality, memories, will, emotions, habits, and flesh stayed the same. But I—my spirit man—was brand new, nonetheless.
Since your soul and body are not made new when you receive Jesus as Lord, this causes conflict with your recreated spirit. Paul said, “…work out your salvation with fear and trembling” (see Philippians 2:12). He knew, as did James, that the reality of who we are in Christ needs to “be worked out” into the soul and the body. In fact, this conflict between spirit and soul is a huge portion of the “consider it all joy” trials we encounter in life!
But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust.
Your soul and body arrive on the scene with their own unique assortment of tastes, preferences, inclinations, and desires. You sowed into those things in the past, and by doing so, you developed habits and patterns, some of which violated the will of God. But when you were born again, you were cleansed of all of it. However, many of the habits and patterns remained behind, planted in your memory, mind, emotions, and body. These are the things James refers to as your own lust. Unfortunately, each of us has a set of our own lust imprinted on our soul and flesh due to our unique personal make up and life experiences.
The lust for life is a zealous attitude toward living—a positive thing; on the other hand, the lust James speaks of is an “uncontrolled or illicit sexual desire or appetite” or an “overmastering desire or craving” (dictionary.com).
Therefore, lust is often—but not restricted to—sexual desires that are off limits to you due to your particular status in life. A single person—according to the Word of God—is to remain abstinent until he or she marries; a married person is to satisfy their sexual longing with the partner to whom they are married (as specified in the Bible, someone of the opposite sex). If you align yourself with a biblical worldview, you recognize that God has designed this to apply to each one; we sin when we stray out of the bounds He has set.
When you feel an “uncontrolled or illicit desire”, that is your own lust. Don’t be alarmed; James says each one of us deals with these things, yet sin has not been conceived. The objective here is to stop lust in its tracks—whatever it may be—and to overcome it before it conceives.
Here’s the anatomy of the lust/sin connection.
- You feel an illicit desire within you—lust.
- You are enticed and drawn to it.
NOTE A: If you weren’t enticed by the desire, it wouldn’t be lust. Your own lust is something that uniquely attracts or lures you.
NOTE B: At this point, when you are aware of the pull toward your own lust, take note of it and mark it in your mind as something that can trip you up, and then stand guard against the next step in the lust/sin connection.
- You get carried away by the enticement of your own lust.
NOTE C: Being carried away is something you have control over. This stage occurs in your mind, not merely in your body. What happens is this: You start to allow your mind to “go there”, and as it does, you get carried along with it, hence the term, carried away.
NOTE D: If you don’t want to get carried away, break the train of thought. Read or speak the Word of God. Worship. Pray. Jump around and dance. Call a trusted friend or accountability partner.
- You are tempted when you are enticed by your own lust and get carried away by it in your mind.
NOTE E: The good news is that temptation is not yet sin. However, if you want to live an overcoming life in this moment of temptation, now is the time you must act on the Word. You cannot wait any longer without giving in to the temptation. Remember, you are an overcomer, not the overcome.
Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.
- Lust conceives, I believe, in the mind.
NOTE F: Feeling lust is not sin; being enticed by it is not yet sin; flirting with the enticement in your mind is being carried away and you are almost to the point of no return; but lust finally conceives when your will steps in and says “Go for it.” In other words, every conception requires two parties. In this case, your lust, originating from your body—the flesh—unites with your will—in your soul—and conceives. Lust does not conceive until your will forms a union of agreement with it.
NOTE G: Second Corinthians 10:5 warns you to take every thought captive. Once the thought grows to an imagination or a stronghold, it is much more difficult to arrest. You can train yourself by the Word and the Spirit of God to take those thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ before they grow into imaginations or strongholds. Again, you are an overcomer, not the overcome.
NOTE H: If you turn off the “monitor” within you (your conscience) that says “don’t go there”, then you will no longer be able to resist. And that was your own choice—neither the devil nor your genetics made you do it. Be honest and talk to God about that if this has been your experience. He knows how to help you to redirect a rebellious, disobedient, or lazy will.
- Conceived lust gives birth to sin. You carry out the action that violates your conscience and the Word of God.
- One way or another, once it is accomplished, sin produces death. This death can be physical or within your soul.
NOTE I: How many Christians carry a load of guilt due to disobedience which slowly kills off every bit of joy and happiness in their lives? If you recognize yourself in this description, you can be forgiven and freed from the oppression of your shame. Jesus bore even that on the cross; accept His forgiveness and cleansing, and seek God for the grace to walk free from here on out. He gladly provides you with it.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that lust equals sin. Learn to recognize your own lust when it crops up so that you can thwart it by the Word and the Holy Spirit before it takes over. And know that the grace to overcome all of it has already been deposited within you by the finished work of Jesus Christ.
Dorothy
James 1:14-15 Part 1—The sin dilemma
But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. James 1:14-15
Probably the most disappointing, confusing, and potentially debilitating obstacle I’ve faced in my life is the inclination to sin. Yes, I said it, and I’ve chosen not to be ashamed of it.
Before you call out the righteousness cops, please hear me out. When I was born again in the evening of December 29, 1974, I became a brand new creature. The old had passed away, and to my amazement, I was brand new. (See 2 Corinthians 5:17.) I felt and looked different; a weight had lifted off of me and I noticed a glow to my face when I looked in the mirror immediately after. My addiction to alcohol had also left the premises. When I returned to college after break, my drinking buddies were alarmed at the change, ostracized me, yet still hovered near whenever I got ready to go to Bible study, smugly looking me up and down as they drank their cheap vodka and Coke.
But I had found Jesus, and I had a peace and a power I had never known, so their intentionally obvious disdain didn’t intimidate me.
Alcohol addiction had vanished from my system in an instant; but other nagging tendencies did not suffer the same fate, much to my dismay. And since my faith in Christ was very real, this contradiction between righteousness and falling repetitively into sin patterns was a dilemma about which I often cried out bitterly to the Lord.
I would like to say that with some prayer and meditation on the Word, it all changed rapidly, but that would be dishonest. The truth is, I would seemingly conquer one sin pattern only to realize I’d opened the door to another. As I focused on that one, what do you know, but the other “conquered” pattern returned with a vengeance! It was as if I was stuck on the set of the “Three Stooges”, trying to close the drawer on one sin while two more drawers popped open, knocking me down. And yet, I still loved Jesus and was still a new creature. What gives? I would cry again and again in despair.
Trust me; I didn’t develop my love for the Word of God because I am so awesome. I absorbed the Bible into my system and wrapped myself up in it due to my abject inability to live the Christian life—even as a born-again, delivered-from-alcohol, Holy Ghost-filled young woman of God. And as I grappled with the sin question, the love of my life, Jesus, led me to verse after verse to comfort, cleanse, encourage, and instruct me. One of those portions of Scripture was James 1:14-15.
But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.
Through these two verses, the Lord instructed me concerning the anatomy of the lust/sin connection and how it worked. Understanding this helped me to shake the failure mentality that had started to enshroud me as a young Christian and gave me some important tools to operate as soon as I noticed I was being tempted.
Tomorrow I will be writing about the lust/sin connection, and it is my heart’s desire to encourage, strengthen, establish, and equip you to effectively defy the patterns of your past and live your life as the new creation you really are.
The truth will make you free!
Dorothy
…Jesus was saying…“If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” John 8:31-32
James 1:13—Temptation
Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. James 1:13
James draws a line in the sand: “Don’t even think your temptation is from God; don’t let those words be uttered out of your mouth!”
The word “tempted” here [Let no one say when he is tempted] is the Greek word peirazō (see http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?strongs=G3985&t=KJV ).
This word has a number of definitions, but in this verse, according to Thayer’s Greek Lexicon (also found at the above link), it means “to try or test one’s faith, virtue, character, by enticement to sin…hence, according to the context: to solicit to sin, to tempt” (emphasis added).
Let’s think about what James is saying by looking at the different scenarios presented by this definition.
- When your virtue is tested, don’t say it’s from God.
- When your character is tested, don’t say it’s from God.
- Whenever you are enticed to sin, solicited to sin, or tempted, it’s not from God.
Have you ever wondered Why does God allow me to be tempted? Please recognize this fact: God never sends enticement, solicitation, or temptation. But then why doesn’t He stop it? Are you implying that because you are tempted, you have no choice but to give in to it unless God blocks it in the first place? If this is true, and believers are helpless in the face of temptation, then Christ’s death on the cross was meaningless. However, His death and resurrection was the most revolutionary event in history, and the grace and power you need to thwart and/or overcome every temptation, enticement, solicitation, or test of your character have been abundantly provided for you in Christ.
Bottom line: God expects YOU to overcome. He expects ME to overcome. He’s given us everything we need pertaining to life and godliness (see 2 Peter 1:3), and we have a lifetime to learn how to draw upon the grace and power He’s provided for us through Jesus’ death and resurrection.
…for God cannot be tempted by evil…
I love to think about the things God can’t do. He cannot lie (see Hebrews 6:18 and Numbers 23:19). He cannot change (see Malachi 3:6 and Hebrews 13:8). And He cannot be tempted by evil. When I think of our omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient God, I am awed by the things He cannot do and what these limitations reveal about His character.
The God you serve cannot be tempted by evil. It just isn’t happening.
…and He Himself does not tempt anyone.
He is good, through and through. He cannot be tempted by evil, and He will not tempt you. If you are tempted, enticed, solicited, or your character or virtue is tested, God’s not in it, and He’s not behind the scene, authorizing it to take place.
What He has authorized is this: Consider it all joy when you encounter various trials [or temptations], because the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing (James 1:3-4).
And here’s one more thing God has authorized: No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13).
Next time you are tempted, tested, enticed, or solicited to follow a fleshly route, know that it is not God messing with you, trying to see what you are made of. He doesn’t do that! Instead, realize that He is on your side and will be faithful to you to provide the way of escape. Look to Him for it.
Expect that the grace and power you need to overcome will be provided as you obey Him and endure.
Dorothy
James 1:12—Persevere under trial
Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. James 1:12
This little verse packs a punch. In it we see:
- A man persevering under trial
- The same man being approved after persevering
- The man receiving the crown of life.
Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial…
This man is called blessed, not when he finally gets approved and not on that great Day when he receives the crown of life. He is called blessed while in the very middle of his trial. You are blessed, as well, in the midst of your trial, just as long as you persevere. Grasp that fact. You are not “unblessed” until you have been approved and have finally received the crown of life; you are blessed as you navigate every storm in your life, whether large or small. And you will continue to be blessed through thick and thin as you stubbornly cling to the Lord and refuse to quit.
Trials are enormously varied in depth and scope. They can be attacks against your body, reputation, mind, emotions, family, integrity, relationships, or your job, your church, your property, your safety, your finances, your morality, or your nation. Anything that concerns or involves you is a potential arena for trial. This is reality.
But remember, James said to consider it all joy when you encounter any one of those trials. Do you lack wisdom to deal with the attacks? Then ask God for it in faith.
Your faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of Christ (see Romans 10:17). That’s why you need to store up God’s Word in your heart. If you do, you won’t come up short-handed during trials—you’ve been building on the bedrock of Bible truths and your faith is a shield against all the fiery darts of the evil one. Not only that, but by this you are also equipped to wield this two-edged Bible sword, driving back every lie that comes against you with truth. And as you lean heavily on that Word, you will endure every trial—and be blessed.
…for once he has been approved…
“Approved” is the Greek word dokimos. It means “accepted or pleasing” and was used in James’ day to describe the value of coins. Scam-artists back then would scrape away the metal off the edge of a coin and set it aside to re-melt it for their own use, thereby falsifying the full value of the coin (see http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/Lexicon/Lexicon.cfm?strongs=G1384&t=KJV ). If a coin was “approved”, that meant it held its full value. Likewise, a believer who is approved is one who walks in genuine and legitimate faith, doesn’t “cut corners” or put on a false front to appear more spiritually “weighty” than he really is, and—by virtue of undergoing trials with joy, endurance, wisdom, and faith—will receive the crown of life on that great Day.
With every successfully endured trial, the result is being approved. Every trial is a test of some kind, but not all tests are sent by God. In fact, when bad things happen, you can bet it’s the thief who initiated it (see John 10:10). But ultimately, every trial you encounter is a test of your faith in Christ. Satan would love nothing more than to use your difficulties to separate you from God. He knows that he can’t tempt God to ditch you; but he can attempt to turn you away from God, so he seeks to steal, kill, and destroy the things you hold dear. If he can get you to question God’s love or faithfulness, he’ll use that to place a wedge between you and the Lord—and then try to manipulate you into further unbelief and despair.
But as you press through your trials with faith and patience, you inherit the promises of God (see Hebrews 6:12). You are approved as you complete with endurance your ultimate trial—your earth life—and as you pass out of this world into Heaven, you’ll receive the crown of life. Each individual trial you face with the Word is like a link in a chain of gold from which your life’s character is forged. Perhaps the substance of your endured trials is the very material from which the Lord will create the crown of life He will give you on that Day.
…he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.
Here is a reward you will not want to miss out on; it’s available to anyone who has received Christ. The “stuff” from which this crown will be formed is all around you right now—your trials, your tests, and all those temptations. And as James says, you will receive this crown once you are approved—after you leave this life and arrive in Heaven.
According to James, the Lord has promised this crown to everyone who loves Him. A crown just your size will be formed out of the trials you’ve endured with joy, wisdom, and faith—despite the natural outcome—and what a thrill it will be to receive it!
The crown of life is for those who persevere under trial and for those who love Him. Can you persevere under trial without loving Him? Can you love Him without persevering under trial? Perhaps you’ve been tempted to throw in the towel and give up a time or two, but when your love is genuine, you always run back to Him to obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need (see Hebrews 4:16). In other words, persevering under trial and loving God are inextricably linked together throughout your life. As you lean heavily upon Him in love, you will persevere. And as you set your heart to persevere, you are saying “I love You” to the Lord.
Persevere. It’s worth it!
Dorothy
Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. James 1:12
If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. John 14:15
James 1:9-11—The rich and poor
But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position; and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with a scorching wind and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away. James 1:9-11
James, in the middle of writing about how to navigate trials (James 1:2-8 and then James 1:12-15), interrupts his otherwise flowing train of thought to write about something that appears completely unrelated—the poor and the rich. It’s as if James became distracted by an airdrop of entirely disconnected thoughts plunked down in the middle of his discourse.
He had just revealed four keys to effective trial navigation—joy, endurance, wisdom, and faith. In the section following his comments on the rich and the poor, he continues to writes about persevering when under trials or temptation, and the lust/sin connection.
It’s my opinion that James was not suffering from a bout of ADD when he wrote the rich/poor section. I believe that he wrote his thoughts in this order on purpose. In fact, taken in context, these three verses on the rich and the poor give us a glimpse into the real life trials to which James was referring.
Taken by itself, James’ insight on the poor and the rich is a classic admonition to folks on opposite ends of the wealth spectrum. The poor are to rejoice in their high position; the rich are to glory in their humiliation.
When you consider what James says to the rich and the poor in the context of persevering under trial, however, it takes on a different tone. James spent more time instructing the wealthy than the poor in this section, reminding them that their riches were temporary. I believe this was also on purpose; James understood that the deceptive nature of riches posed more potential for spiritual entrapment the wealthier a person became. Let’s look at James’ admonition through the perspective of the men about whom James was writing—the poor man and the rich.
But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position.
How do you persevere when your resources are next to nothing? Imagine a poor man who has had to scrape to get by his entire life. Sure, he thinks, the rich can say, ‘Trust God!’ till the cows come home. But this man had a sneaky suspicion that rich folks would struggle just as much as he did if the tables were turned. Interrupting the poor man’s reasoning, James jumps in and reminds him: Consider it all joy, brother, when you encounter desperate financial trials. Are you poor? Then glory in your high position. And as the poor man considers James’ words, it all starts to make sense. He realizes that his bitterness against those of means has been keeping him in bondage. He commits in his heart to lay aside his resentment and to start glorying in his high position in Christ. He understands that James had just given him the master plan, showing him how to work the key of joy so he could exert endurance effectively and allow it to have its perfect work. He decides that the lifelong poverty he’s experienced is actually an opportunity—he will endure this trial, and by enduring it with joy, wisdom, and faith he will—sooner or later—end up perfect and complete, lacking nothing.
…the rich man is to glory in his humiliation.
As for the rich man, James’ letter stings a bit more. What do you mean, ‘glory in my humiliation’? My money speaks for itself! It says God backs me and I deserve respect! But he has been watching the persecution of his brethren—some very wealthy—and has been horrified to observe that their money hasn’t shielded them from being targeted.
So the rich man listens more intently as James’ letter is read, and it all starts to make sense to him, as well. The poor man can glory in his high position to help him to face his trials with joy; he—the rich man—can glory in his humiliation so he won’t be tripped up by looking to his money instead of the Lord when under attack.
The rich man thinks, Money has had a way of insulating me from harsh reality, giving me a sense of false security. James is right; riches or not, I’ll leave this earth someday just like the poor man will. I won’t be able to buy my way out of it.
He continues his musing. So many of us build monuments to ourselves, and for what? Time will crumble every one of them to dust, and anything that remains will be overgrown with weeds. I can distract myself with my money and toys and tell myself that things will always be wonderful…but who am I kidding? One day I’ll only be a memory, and after that…even the memory will vanish.
The rich man bows his head, wondering what to do with this unsettling revelation. Glory in my humiliation? Glory in humiliation…? How do I…?
He feels a hand on his shoulder; it’s the poor man, smiling softly. “Consider it all joy, my brother,” he says. “Ask the Lord for wisdom. He’ll give it to you generously and without reproach.”
And the rich man tells him, “I’ve been so busy buying, selling, accumulating, and consuming that I’ve given little thought to my true priorities. But consider it all joy when I encounter various trials? I’ve considered my money! And now this letter from James tells me to glory, not in my wealth, but in my humiliation.”
“And I’m to glory in my high position,” said the poor man.
“That’s it!” shouted the rich one. “James is telling us to get our eyes off of our present condition, whether it is poverty or wealth! It’s not what we own—or don’t own—that will determine our outcome—it’s where we are fixing our gaze! You need to get your eyes off of your poverty; I need to get my eyes off my wealth! And then, both of us will be able to consider it all joy when we encounter various trials.”
“Brother, if we refuse to fix our eyes on our present circumstances, the testing of our faith will produce endurance—no matter what—and endurance will have her perfect work, rendering us perfect and complete, lacking in nothing!” rejoiced the poor man.
Be blessed as you navigate successfully through every trial,
Dorothy
James 1:6-8—Ask in faith
But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. James 1:6-8
You need wisdom when you encounter various trials, and God is the One who has it to give. He is generous with His wisdom and gives it without the tiniest bit of disapproval. But along with the other three keys He provides to overcome in trials—joy, endurance, and wisdom—you’ll need a fourth key, too. That key is faith.
Ask God for wisdom to effectively pass your trial—and ask for it in faith.
James describes the man who asks without faith in this way: He is a doubter who is “like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind.”
Think about this. James is thought to be one of Jesus’ younger brothers, and if this is so, then surely he heard the tale of that stormy night when Peter walked on the water toward Jesus. I can just hear the bonfire crackling as Peter tells the story again; the faces of those leaning in closer to hear glow with rapt attention in the flickering firelight.
“We were being battered by waves as the wind blew furiously, and then in the fourth watch, we saw Him—the Lord was walking toward us on the sea!
“‘It’s a ghost!’ some yelled. But, no—‘It is I’ said the Lord. ‘Take courage and don’t be afraid!’
“I couldn’t contain myself any longer, so I shouted to Him over the storm, ‘Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water!’
“And He said, ‘Come.’ Just that. And I came…I walked on top of the water.”
I can picture tears filling the storyteller’s eyes as he is overcome with the memory. And I imagine young James drinking it all in, bursting with love for his big Brother and Savior.
And then Peter’s voice grows softer, more difficult to hear. “But I saw the wind, brothers, and was afraid. And I sank…” Again, his voice trails off for several seconds before growing stronger. “But I cried out, ‘LORD, SAVE ME!’ and Jesus was there by my side. He reached out His hand and took hold of me, but before we got back in the boat, He asked, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’” (See Matthew 14:23-33.)
I can picture Peter, squinting through the light of the flames to gaze directly at each of the men seated near. And I imagine James sitting there, taking it all in.
When James wrote his letter, he cautioned his readers to be sure to ask God for wisdom in faith. And in my opinion, James was remembering Peter’s wave-walking experience when he compared doubters to the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. And I imagine he was envisioning Peter sink in the water when he wrote, “That man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
James’ Brother had spoken privately to Peter out there on the water before He brought him back safely to the boat. He reproved Peter—not for asking Him to bid him to leave the boat—but for his little faith and much doubting once he stepped out. Peter, I believe, not Jesus, disclosed this reprimand to everyone in order to underscore—through his own failure—the utmost importance of faith in Christ.
So when James described the one who doubts as “the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind”, he knew what he was talking about. When he wrote that doubters ought not to expect to receive anything from the Lord, he was speaking from close observation.
James also described the doubting person as a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
What does it mean to be double-minded? Double means two, so double-minded describes the doubter’s mind going in two opposing directions. This person asks God for wisdom, but at the same time he doesn’t believe that he’ll get it. Peter asked Jesus, standing right there on the sea, to bid him to walk on the water, but after he had taken a few steps on those waves, he “saw the wind boisterous”, became afraid, and sank.
James wrote that a double-minded man should not expect to receive anything from the Lord, and added that such a person is unstable in all his ways.
As hard as James’ admonition is on your ego, don’t blow it off. Doubt is what causes instability in the believer, not faith—don’t get it reversed in your thinking. James likely heard the wave-walking story many times and understood that it was Peter’s doubt that caused him to sink, not the outrageousness of his decision to follow Jesus out on the water.
If you need wisdom, ask God—and ask in faith. You will receive liberally if you simply trust God to provide it. However, don’t let yourself go back and forth in your mind, wondering if God will come through. That’s doubt; and doubt makes you double-minded and unstable in all your ways. Yikes! I didn’t say it—James did!
If that steps on your toes, join the club. My toes are black and blue after reading this, and if others are honest, they’ll admit they’ve been stomped on by James’ words a time or two, as well. But you can rejoice—like Peter, you need not remain in doubt. Take the Lord at His Word from here on out, and you will be buoyed up on top of those waves. And then—look at you! You’ll be walking by faith!
Dorothy
James 1:5—If you lack wisdom
But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. James 1:5
Trials are like mazes. They have a beginning—and if you don’t give up—they have an end. Joy and endurance are keys to those mazes, enabling you to make it all the way through despite the time element involved. But in James 1:5, a third key is introduced—wisdom.
Rest assured, joy and endurance are both components of God’s wisdom. However, you can operate in joy and exert godly endurance—yet still lack the wisdom you need to navigate your trial.
That’s why James wrote, “If you lack wisdom, ask for it.” Your trial may be so tangled up that, despite your good attitude and hardy endurance, you still need help. Wisdom is what you need. With that added key, your joy can find the right path to take, and your endurance won’t have to work forever on this one task.
Don’t make the mistake so many others make. They think, “I don’t want to bother God with this.” What?!? The Word says He is intimately acquainted with all your ways (see Psalm 139:3). Don’t you think that if you were a bother, He wouldn’t take the effort to familiarize Himself with everything that you do and think? He already knows about your trial; He has the way for you to be delivered, and He wants you to ask Him for wisdom. If you were a bother, the Word wouldn’t tell you again and again to ask!
Ask God for wisdom. It’s that simple. James wrote that God gives it generously and without reproach. Generosity with wisdom is one of the Lord’s chief characteristics. He’s ready to pour out an ample share of it on you whenever you need it—but first you must ask. I think the Lord must scratch His head with how little we actually ask Him for wisdom. He’s so generous with it, but some of us act as if He couldn’t care less about our lives. Nothing is further from the truth!
God is a generous giver of wisdom, and He gives it without reproach. If God did reproach you for asking Him for wisdom, that would mean He disapproved of you for doing so. His reproach would indicate that your request for wisdom was a disappointment to Him. If He reproached you for asking Him for wisdom, that would mean He found fault in you for doing so. Do any of those scenarios make sense when you consider the great love He has for you? James made it very clear—God neither finds fault in you nor does He disapprove of you when you ask Him for wisdom.
What will happen when you ask God for wisdom? He will give it to you! Plain and simple.
Ask Him.
Dorothy
Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding. Proverbs 4:7, KJV
James 1:2-4—Consider it all joy
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James 1:2-4
Joy. What comes to mind? Birthdays? Weddings? Babies? Promotions? Graduation? Winning the big game? When you first heard “Consider it all joy”, I’ll bet you didn’t think of trials, testing, or having to endure.
Yet James began his letter right off the bat with this attention grabber—“Hey, everybody! Get happy—trials are coming your way!”
Had he lost his mind? I imagine that the original recipients of his letter were struck by the oddness of his greeting. He was writing to believers who had already undergone persecution and the loss of fellow Christians to martyrdom, and the sting of trials and demonic harassment was anything but joyful. Fortunately, however, James had a method to his madness, and I’m sure that the first group to read his message took a close look—and a very sober one—at what he had to say.
And in his remarks about joy, trials, and endurance, James left a trail of breadcrumbs, so to speak, for his brethren to follow so they could find their way through any trial they might encounter.
Imagine a pencil and paper maze from your childhood. Remember those? They always had one starting point and one end point. James 1:2-4 can be mapped out using the same principle. The starting point is called “My Trial” and the end point is “Perfect and Complete, Lacking Nothing”.
An interesting thing about this “trial maze” is that it works for the full spectrum of tests—from the seemingly insignificant irritations to massive worldwide turmoil.
If you remember those grade school mazes, you are keenly aware of the fact that within them several paths interconnect and wind around in every direction, but only one path will take you from start to finish. How many times did you have to start over when you first accepted the maze challenge?
As a kid, after messing up dozens of mazes by coloring the wrong paths, I started scoping them out first before I actually touched them with pencil, crayon, or marker. When I was satisfied I had correctly deciphered the route, I then colored it in with confidence and rarely botched a one after that.
James helped his brethren scope out the trials they encountered—from beginning to end—in a similar way. He gave them the secret to making it all the way through the maze effectively, but they needed two keys. The first key was joy, and the second, endurance.
Key number one. The very minute your trial starts, James wrote, start thinking about it as joy. Consider it all joy. If you look at something as joy, you don’t grumble, pout, or complain. You don’t scream, cry, or smack people. You smile. You laugh. You rejoice.
Fortunately for both James’ brethren and all the rest of us, he didn’t leave us dangling with this thought—face your trials with joy—with no further explanation. Instead, he gave us a second key to use with the key of joy—endurance—and a promise: that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
Joy is the very attitude that will undergird you as you apply endurance. Joy lifts you up and empowers you while its opposite—pouting, grumbling, complaining, screaming, crying, or attacking others—brings you low and destroys.
Joy is the force that enables you to sit back at the onset of an attack and think, “Hmm…there’s an end to this trial. Let’s take a look at this maze.” Joy empowers you to resist taking all the false paths that crisscross your trial—pouting, grumbling, complaining, screaming, crying, or biting off heads. Joy is the force that speaks to your heart, “Hey, this may take a while, but there’s a prize at the end!” And with joy leading the charge, the second key, endurance, can arrive on the scene, do her thing, and have her perfect work.
Key number two: Endurance is that force which doesn’t need to look at her watch every 30 seconds. Endurance doesn’t check out the other competitors around her to see if they are faster, smarter, or more adept. Endurance is the force that is willing to remain behind the pack, if necessary, in order to see God fulfill His purposes. Endurance doesn’t give up.
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
It is God’s will to bring about a perfect work in your life. But you must first apply two keys whenever you encounter a trial: 1.) Consider it all joy, and 2.) Endure to the end. Then you will be perfect complete, lacking in nothing.
Are you ready for the next maze?
Dorothy