"Thy will be done..."

“Thy Will be done…”

James 4:13-17

Introduction:  As Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount He taught his hearers what Kingdom life in a fallen world would look like.  In that sermon He taught His followers about prayer in Matthew 6:9-13.  The Lord’s prayer (or perhaps more accurately, “the disciples’ prayer,” since it was a model prayer for his followers), given by Jesus to his disciples to show them (and us!) how we should pray, begins, “Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven…”  Most of us have memorized that prayer and in one form or another, many have prayed that prayer, but how long has it been since you really thought about those opening words of the Lord’s Prayer? That God would be approached as our heavenly Father, and regarded as holy, that His Kingdom should be established, that His will should be done, willingly, joyfully, on earth as in heaven. His will. If we are praying that prayer, are we merely saying the words, or is that what we really desire? His will? James says that is the attitude of normal, healthy, Christianity.

Remember that James, in his letter, is telling us the kinds of things that accompany authentic faith in Christ.  As a Christ follower walks with the Lord, and matures in his faith, more and more the attitudes and actions that we see described in this epistle are apparent in our lives.  Genuine faith will spawn the works that accompany salvation. The implication also is that we need to guard our hearts, because any one of us can, for a time, fall into patterns that look like the world if we are not careful.  Chapter 4 has had a theme that has carried throughout the section: if we know God, if we see Him as He is, we will have a proper humility, and we must choose to be humble, willingly submitting our life to Him.  V.12 asked, “Who are you to judge another?”  The first part of that question undergirds the imperatives and instruction that we see throughout this section, “…Who are you…” James is asking his readers, and us, “What are you doing? Who do you think you are? Do you realize you are acting like the World, that you are living in ways that make you look like the enemies of God?” The short paragraph we come to today addresses the question of how we plan for the future, and ultimately, asks if we are willing to acknowledge the Lordship of Christ, and subject our will to God’s will and our plans to His plans for our lives.

The Big Idea: As Christ followers we should plan for the future recognizing that God is sovereign: Our will should be to discover and follow His will and purpose for our lives.

I. We should seek His will because that is the only thing that is sure about the future (13,14).  Whether it is natural disasters or the acts of humans, we simply cannot predict what will happen five minutes from now, much less on the coming days, weeks, or years.

            Verse thirteen begins, “Come now, you who say…” This phrase only occurs twice in the entire New Testament, here and in 5:1. It is not a friendly greeting, rather it is calling attention to the wrong thinking of a segment of the professing church to which James is writing. James is talking like an Old Testament prophet and saying, “LISTEN! HEAR THIS!”  “You who say…” shows that it is the actual speech of the group he is speaking to that is being presented as evidence against them.  They are using language and making claims that are inconsistent with their profession of faith in Christ.  Once again the tongue is a barometer, a gauge, that reveals what is at its core a heart matter. As we’ll see their speech indicates that they are guilty of planning their lives, their futures, without thought of God and his plans or sovereignty.

            Notice that specific statements that they are making: “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’…"  These people are confidently planning their future without considering God and His will. Notice the verbs are all future indicative, statements about what is going to happen: “We will go… we will spend… we will do business… we will profit…” Greek has a subjunctive mood that allows for doubt or uncertainty about exactly how future events will unfold. The indicative mood used here indicates absolute certainty, confidence about something that is being affirmed. They are planning confidently about what they are going to do for the next year, yet they don’t even know what tomorrow holds for them.  There is no doubt or uncertainty expressed, there is no provision for readjustment of their plans by God, they are saying this is it, this is what we will do. This is so easy to fall into. It is reasonable and right to plan, but we have to recognize only God knows the future.  Do you remember the financial crisis in 2008? Many people had their plans for the future laid out. The stock market always goes up, home values are higher every year. We had a reminder that the future is not so easy to predict as we thought. 

            “…yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” James says, for all of their arrogance, they don’t even know what tomorrow will bring (v.14). This is almost a citation of Proverbs 27:1, “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth…” The point is, planning ahead without allowing room for God to redirect is arrogant. We are acting as if we can control our future, as if we are the master of our fate.  We are essentially acting as if we think we are omniscient and omnipotent.  You might say, “Wait a minute, those are attributes only of God.” James (and Proverbs) says we don’t even know what tomorrow will bring, much less a series of 365 tomorrows over the next year.  That’s his point. As Christ followers we should plan for the future recognizing that God is sovereign: Our will should be to discover and follow His will and purpose for our lives.

II. We should seek God’s will because to live otherwise is arrogant (15,16). “Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.’  ¹⁶ As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil…” 

            Notice here that James is not telling us to live in the moment and forget about the future. He is saying that we must deliberately submit our will and our plans to God, recognizing that we are always subject to His redirection. If we plan contingent upon what “the Lord wills” we are recognizing His Lordship, we are acknowledging that He is sovereign and that His will is best.  We are planning, and that’s fine, but we are consciously submitting our plans to God’s plans. We are praying “God, your will be done on earth, in my life…” Just as it would be arrogant to put ourselves in the place of God and judge our neighbor (v.12) it would be arrogant to think that we know better than God about tomorrow.

Making our plans for the future without including God in the conversation is foolish and arrogant. Remember the story of the Rich Fool…

“And he told them a parable, saying, ‘The land of a rich man produced plentifully,  ¹⁷ and he thought to himself, 'What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?'  ¹⁸ And he said, 'I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods.  ¹⁹ And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.'  ²⁰ But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?'” (Luke 12:16-22).

             Notice what James said the believer should say as he plans the future: “Instead say, ‘if the Lord wills I will live and do this…”  We are dependent upon God for life, we don’t know how much time we have. God does. He numbers our days. He has a plan for us, and we need to recognize that even when we don’t understand, His timing is right, His plan is perfect.

So to plan our future without acknowledging God’s sovereignty is boasting, and “…all such boasting is evil…” James uses a strong word here, “evil” is the same word Jesus used in the disciples prayer when he told them to pray, “deliver us from the Evil One…”  The rich man’s attitude, an attitude that we are all susceptible to, is reflected in the famous poem “Invictus” by William Ernest Henley, “It matters not how strait the gate, How charged with punishments the scroll, I am the master of my fate: I am the captain of my soul.”

That is the attitude of pride, arrogance, and that is sin: Humans thinking that they are in control, that they make the rules. It’s the arrogant rebellion of the nations that we see in Psalm 2:1-6,

“Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?  ² The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his anointed, saying,  ³ "Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us."  ⁴ He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision.  ⁵ Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying,  ⁶ "As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill."  

God is sovereign, Jesus is Lord, and human rebellion is exceedingly arrogant. Ron Hodgecraft described sin as “…A tiny drop of protoplasm, floating on a little speck of dust in space, shaking its fist at the God who created a hundred million galaxies.”  As Christ followers we should plan for the future recognizing that God is sovereign: Our will should be to discover and follow His will and purpose for our lives.

III. We should seek His will because to know what He says and disobey is sin (17). ^“So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” 

             James here gives a principal that applies more widely than this context: If we hear the truth of God’s Word, if we know what God would have us to do as we are faced with a choice, a moment of decision in our life, and still we choose to go in another direction (our own!), that is sin.  When we know the truth, we are responsible to obey the truth. 

            More specifically, in this context, James is saying that if we choose to act presumptuously, to live as practical atheists going on in life planning our own future as if we thought we were masters of our fate without seeking God’s will and plan for our lives, that is SIN, because we know better.

What is God saying to me in this passage? As Christ followers we should plan for the future recognizing that God is sovereign: Our will should be to discover and follow His will and purpose for our lives. How do we discover His will? It starts with the Scripture. We need to hear and obey the Word of God. If you have trusted Christ as your Savior, there is no need to wonder if you should be baptized. There is no need, husbands, to wonder about loving your wife: God said it plainly, “Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church.”  That is pretty clear. We know what God’s will is. James is not telling us to look ahead. He is not saying do not plan for the future. He is saying that as we plan ahead we need to include God in our planning. Our will must be to seek HIS will for our life.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Life is all about decisions, choices we make as individuals. I read in a devotional this week that C. S. Lewis wrote,

"Good and evil both increase at compound interest. That is why the little decisions you and I make every day are of such infinite importance. The smallest good act today is the capture of a strategic point from which, a few months later, you may be able to go on to victories you never dreamed of."

That is a great encouragement. But the writer of the devotional warned:

“But as with all non-negotiables, it works the other way, too. Even a trivial indulgence in lust or anger today represents the loss of territory in our hearts that the enemy can secure, giving him an inroad to launch an attack against you—an attack that otherwise would have been impossible. Each misstep offers him a stronger foothold for marshaling his counteroffensives against you, against your marriage, against your family—if not right now, then at a later time when he knows he can inflict the greatest amount of damage.”

We are responsible for our choices, and our choices have consequences. We don’t know anything about what will happen tomorrow, five minutes from now, or five years into the future. God knows. Nothing is a surprise to Him. Doesn’t it make sense to submit our will to His?  Another proverb gives the right perspective: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.” That sounds like a plan we can live by!       Think about that.   Amen.

Pastor Report - October 2013

Pastor’s Report – October 2013

                The end of summer is a time of transition at Boothbay Baptist Church. Our summer residents have mostly left and the changing leaves and frosty mornings remind us that winter is approaching. As a church family this quarter we have continued our focus on the mission of “knowing God and making Him known” and continue to “…envision a community of Christ followers rooted in the Word, treasuring God as supremely valuable and proclaiming the riches of His grace to the world.” Training opportunities like the current adult class on apologetics and the recent Saturday seminar by Vision New England, “Disciples making Disciples” (DMD) are equipping us to more effectively implement our vision and carry out our mission.  This is not something new for Boothbay Baptist Church, but is a conscious effort to stay focused and to stay engaged in the work that God has entrusted to us.  One of the “take aways” from the DMD seminar is the fact that a biblical model of discipleship is something that needs to occur at various levels for all of us. Outreach begins with loving our neighbors and investing ourselves in relationships. Equipping and “in reach” means seeking to engage the entire body in mentoring relationships, in dynamic small groups, and in active worship.  To be most successful in carrying out our mission and vision we need a fully engaged church body with every member committed to discovering their gifts and realizing their personal mission and calling as they participate in the body. As I write this report we are anticipating our first baptismal service of the year tomorrow. May more follow as they see the importance of this public commitment of a new disciple.

                The exciting FASCAR Rally led by Eric Brown of Word of Life and our great team of Olympian WOL leaders was a high energy kick off to our Word of Life Olympian ministry this month. Our Word of Life teen ministry led by missionary Fay Christy and veteran leader Karen Lawless will be assisted this year by Shawn Cusumano. What a team!  Pray for these workers, consider getting involved, and look around for those in your neighborhood who you can invite to attend these groups.  The upcoming Trunk or Treat event on October 31^st will once again be an opportunity for outreach.  We are seeking to open our parking lot to the community and to create a safe, fun alternative to Halloween that will also give us an opportunity to present the gospel and distribute tracts and Bible portions to the community. We are focused on mission, to God be the glory.

                I have enjoyed the new preaching series on the Epistle of James, what a practical and convicting study it has been for me personally. As we finish up this series over the next few weeks we will soon transition to Thanksgiving and the Advent season, before beginning an exciting new series on the Book of Acts in January. I covet your prayers as I dig into the study of this important book.  I also continue to participate in the Wednesday night devotional series on the Psalms, and have been blessed by others gifted in teaching taking a turn at presenting encouragement from this portion of Scripture. Thanks to Mark Kamen for coordinating this time of learning together leading into our prayer time. Sam Michael continues to be a stalwart as he leads us in our prayer time.  I have also begun teaching a class in New Testament Greek at the New England Bible College on Thursday afternoons. It has been enjoyable having a part in equipping these men who have sensed God’s call to the ministry.

                Our small group on Thursday evenings continued through the summer and we enjoy the time of learning, sharing, praying, and fellowship. The elders would like to see full involvement of our church in small groups. If you have not yet found a group to participate in, I encourage you to talk to me or your elder and we will explore options with you.  Our Wednesday morning Men’s Prayer and coffee time at the parsonage has been consistently very small, but a blessing to those present. I continue to be available to counsel couples and individuals and value the privilege of looking at the scriptures together for God’s answers to the challenges we face in life.  Mary Ann and I are thankful that God has us here, as a part of this church family. May each of us be faithful in seeking Him together and engaging our community for His glory.                                                

                                                      Soli Deo gloria,

                                                  Pastor Steve and Mary Ann 

Draw near to God

“Drawing nearer, going deeper”

James 4:7-12

Introduction:  Hunting season is something a lot of folks look forward to. I recently had a contact from a friend of mine that I haven’t seen in years and learned that he was in Maine recently and got his first bear. Encountering something as big as a bear is not something I’d be anxious to do. I’ve heard that if you have a surprise encounter with a bear in the woods and it notices you and begins acting aggressively in some way, its best not to turn and run, but to “make yourself big”. I don’t know. I would probably turn and run and you would be reading about it in the paper. Bear 1, Steve 0. Those who know better say “make yourself big” and the bear might back away. In life, that is what many people try to do with other humans. They try to make themselves look as “big” as possible to the people around them. Sometimes even, as the next verses indicate, they try to make themselves look big by making others look small. James will show us that is not God’s plan for Christ followers. One of the great misconceptions of the world about Christians is the misconception that we are prideful bunch of religious people who live by a strict set of rules. I think that if our exploration of the Bible together over the last few years has shown anything, it is that the Christian life is not primarily about rules, but about relationship. At its heart is our love relationship with God based wholly on His grace.  If we embrace that truth, that will change us, and it will change how we see others.  James is almost shocking in the way he makes his point that the key to victory in the Christian Life is surrender. Submitting to God and His authority in our lives means acknowledging that He is Sovereign, and that we approach only because of His mercy and grace. Context is always important in interpretation. In the previous context James was asking his readers, “Why are you acting this way, don’t you know that being a friend of the world makes you are an enemy of God?” I don’t think the point is that James is necessarily questioning the salvation of his readers (though he may have suspected there were some among them that were not truly saved). He was saying that living in such a superficial way as they were looked like the world, they were acting like they were God’s enemies instead of His children. He is calling them to draw near to God, to go deeper in their relationship with Him, to experience the victorious, abundant life for which they were created.

The Big Idea: If we see ourselves rightly in the light of who God is, we will thank Him for grace, and we will be more gracious toward others.

I. Our Relationship with God (4:7-8a). The first element of understanding grace is that we will desire a deepened relationship with God. We will give Him the throne of our heart.

       James begins verse 7 with the admonition, “Submit yourselves therefore to God…” The word “submit” is frequently used with respect to our response to those who have authority over us (see for example I Peter 2:13,18; 3:1,5,22; 5:5). This however is not talking about our submission to any human authority, but to the Lord Himself. There is an axiom of Bible Study that says when you see a “therefore,” you should ask what it is “there for.”  The admonition to submit is based on the statements in the preceding context. In light of the grace of God described in v.6 and the call to an appropriate humility, recognizing who God is and His authority of us, we should submit ourselves to Him, affirm and embrace His absolute authority over our lives.  He is your Maker and Savior. That means He is the boss. Period.

       The parallel action we must take is stated next:  “…resist the devil and he will flee from you…” James reminds us that we have an enemy who will do all he can to destroy our relationship with God. Notice this statement is put in between two positive admonitions concern our relationship with God. Because the Lord is on our side we have what we need to resist Satan’s attacks. The Enemy is an expert in human weaknesses and will hit us where we are most vulnerable. But greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world! We need to consciously submit ourselves to the Lordship of Christ and resist the enemy who would lead us away from God.

       The next statement is an amazing invitation in the Jewish context of the first century: “…come near to God and He will come near to you…” In the Old Testament only the priest had the privilege of approaching God in the Holy of Holies. We see an amazing development in the context of the Gospel story. Matthew records it in Matthew 27:50-51,  

^“And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice, and yielded up His spirit.  ⁵¹ Then, behold, the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom…”

That was a literal, historical event, but it also had tremendous spiritual significance. Because of Jesus, the veil has been torn, and we can come with boldness into His presence. He is waiting, calling, inviting us to come. Does it sometimes feel like God is far away? James says “Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.” A thousand years earlier the psalmist wrote in Psalm 145:18, “The LORD is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.” He created us and redeemed us so that we could experience intimate fellowship with Him.  Because of Jesus He counts us as righteous, because of Jesus He calls us His children! What grace!  If we see ourselves rightly in the light of who God is, we will thank Him for grace, and be more gracious toward others.

II. Our Attitude toward sin (4:8b-10).  The second element of our response to grace is to detest our sin, to turn from it as we turn to Him.  Because you love Him, you’ll want to turn from those things that grieve Him. Paul asked the question at the beginning of Romans 6, “Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? God forbid! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” (Rom 6:1b-2).

Here James says “…wash your hands… purify your hearts…” There is a worship chorus that pleads, “Give us clean hands O God, give us pure hearts…”  That is a good word in that it reminds us that we are dependent upon God: He is our strength and help against the world, the flesh, and the Devil. By praying to Him like that chorus says we are submitting to his authority and sovereignty and asking His help to do what James here implores his readers to do.

o        “Wash your hands…” - “Clean hands” seems to look toward our actions, what we do. If we are going to cleanse our hands it means that we are choosing to repent of and turn away from those choices in life that we know run counter to the Word and will of God. When we confess our sins, implicit is the idea that we will repent, turn from them as we turn to God.

o        “Purify your hearts…” - “Pure hearts” goes even further, since we look not only at our actions, but our attitudes. This is what Jesus was getting at in the sermon on the Mount: “You have heard it said… but I say to you…” He was saying yes, these kinds of outward activities are deplorable to God, they are sin and can’t be tolerated among the people of God. But even further, God knows our hearts, and it grieves Him when our heart and mind entertains and even enjoys the kinds of things that we know would displease Him.

·          “…grieve, mourn, wail…” These phrases speak to our hatred of our sin, genuine heart felt repentance. This signals a kind of brokenness that seems to recognize what we deserve. If we confess our sin, as I John 1:9 suggests, we call it what it is, not simply “a mistake” or “a weakness” but rebellion against God and exaltation of self. I was speaking with someone this week who had been in a conversation with a friend about sin. The friend was getting excited, “I hate my sin. I HATE my sin! I HATE MY SIN! DO YOU HATE YOUR SIN???” The guy was so taken aback by the passion of his friend and said, “I, I think so, but apparently not as much as you do!” Do you hate your sin? Think of the reaction of Isaiah when he had the vision of the heavenly throne, with the Seraphim surrounding the presence of God worshipping Him in His holiness: “Woe unto me, I am undone, for I am a man of unclean lips…”  He saw his sin in the light of the holiness of God, and he was devastated, undone, left empty handed and naked before His Majesty, the King of the Universe. If we haven’t grieved over our sin it’s probably because we haven’t gotten a good sense of the holiness and perfection of King Jesus.

·          “…Humble yourselves before the Lord and He will lift you up…”

 Making yourself look big might be a good idea if you find yourself being threatened by a bear, but when it comes to relating to our fellow humans and especially when it comes to approaching God, that is not the way of the Lord: “Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.” I don’t think that means to make yourself look small, it means to be honest about who you are, and before God we are all very, very, small. Speaking of the scribes and Pharisees Jesus said in Matthew 23:6-12,

"They love the best places at feasts, the best seats in the synagogues,  ⁷ greetings in the marketplaces, and to be called by men, 'Rabbi, Rabbi.'  ⁸ But you, do not be called 'Rabbi'; for One is your Teacher, the Christ, and you are all brethren.  ⁹ Do not call anyone on earth your father; for One is your Father, He who is in heaven.  ¹⁰ "And do not be called teachers; for One is your Teacher, the Christ.  ¹¹ But he who is greatest among you shall be your servant.  ¹² And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Look, we would all be lost if not for the grace of God. In ourselves we deserve judgment because we are all sinners by birth and by choice. If we’ve been saved by grace, by definition it is all of Him. At best we are one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread. If we see ourselves rightly in the light of who God is, we will be genuinely thankful for His grace, and also be more gracious toward others.

III. Our Speech concerning others (4:11-12).  James at this time gets specific, he comes back to one specific sin, a sin of the tongue, which he knew his readers could relate to: speaking badly of a fellow Christian. Instead we should choose to let our speech reflect our love for our brothers and sisters:  “Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.  ¹² There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?”

        Our speech will reveal our heart, it will show what we really think about others. NB. to make matters worse, James says “one another” and repeats the word “brothers” three times. He is talking about our relationships in the church (see also Matt 7:1-5).  It is important to recognize that this is not saying we ignore sin, or that we don’t confront a brother or sister that is falling away or acting in a way that brings disrepute on the church (Matthew 18 gives clear instruction on a biblical procedure that is motivated by love and works toward restoration). But we do reject destructive sins of the tongue that target another. Gossip and slander that aims to hurt someone or embarrass them, and even to expose them not with a view to their restoration, but so that we might look just a little better. We make ourselves big by making them look small.

         Notice in v.11b that to speak against a brother is to speak against the Law! Remember Jesus said that loving God and loving our neighbor is the summary of the whole Law. If our speech reveals judgment and hatred toward a brother we are saying somehow God’s word is untrue or doesn’t apply to this life.

         Judging our neighbor and speaking against a brother also is putting ourselves in the place of God according to James. James 4:12  says “There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy.” If He gave the Law, its His Word, period. He is the Judge and the Savior.

         “But who are you to judge your neighbor?” See others rightly, being gracious toward one another, starts with seeing God rightly, and taking a hard, honest look at ourselves as well. We are only sinners saved by grace. We didn’t deserve it or earn it. If we are speaking badly about someone we are acting as if we are in the place of God, who alone is our judge. At best we can be one beggar showing another beggar where to find bread.

What is God saying to me in this passage? If we see ourselves rightly in the light of who God is, we will thank Him for grace, and we will be more gracious toward others.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Have you responded to the grace God has extended toward you? This week we celebrate the Lord’s Table together. It is an opportunity to examine yourself, to remember His grace, and as James says, “Submit yourself to God…” Recognize His authority, His Lordship, and voluntarily acknowledge that He is Lord. Resist the Devil, he has no power over you. Greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world. We are more than conquerors through Christ. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you… You remember the story of the husband and wife driving along, on opposite ends of the bench seat of their old sedan. “Why don’t we sit together like we used to?” His reply from behind the steering wheel, “I haven’t gone anywhere!” James says Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you! He wants to have a living, intimate relationship with you. I was at home sick when twenty of you had a great Saturday a couple of weeks back at the “Disciples making Disciples” seminar. From the feedback we got at our small group, one of the encouragements that was offered was that a disciple needs to develop his relationship with Christ at several levels. One is through public worship. Do you know He is here, right now? We need to come together, expectantly, with excitement, knowing that Jesus is here with us. As we sing, as we study the word, as we gather around this table in remembrance, He is here as surely as He was with His disciples in the upper room.  A second avenue for drawing nearer is our personal devotional time. That means getting alone in a quiet place, picking up your Bible and reading it. Praying to him, and sometimes simply sitting quietly in His presence. Do you have a daily quiet time with Him? How did you do this week? Were you in the Word? Another setting that we need is to be part of a small group. A small group setting can be important, it can be a place where we can discover our gifts, and “provoke one another to love and good works.” We all need it. Do you have it? A little more risky is to develop a one on one relationship with another believer who will meet with you and hold you accountable and encourage you toward love and good works.

            Loving God is always connected with loving one another. It means that as a recipient of grace we should be gracious toward others, rather than judging, forgiving, encouraging, doing what we can to point others to Jesus. As we pray, and prepare our hearts to celebrate His amazing grace in this ordinance, allow the Spirit to reveal to you exactly where you need to humble yourself, where you need to resist the enemy, how you can draw near to God more effectively, how you can speak words that edify others and bring glory to God.  Think about that.  AMEN.

A friend of the world, or a friend of God?

Who is Your Friend?

James 4:1-6

Introduction: Our vision statement at Boothbay Baptist Church says that:  “We envision a community of Christ followers rooted in the Word, treasuring God as supremely valuable and proclaiming the riches of His grace to the world.” We are not only a community, but a specific kind of community, that is, a family. A family designed by our Creator to encourage one another and to help one another, to bear one another’s burdens. As we lay that foundation our proclamation to the world gains credibility and we can more effectively carry out our mission “to know Christ and to make Him known.” In fact Jesus said, “By this men will know you are my disciples: if you have love for one another.”  That is God’s design, that is what we are made for. Even so, James reminds us that we still see contentions, divisions, and sometimes even all out fighting, within Christian families, even within the church! These things ought not to be! 

Chapter 3 of James ends in telling us that believers should be peacemakers, yet chapter 4 begins by asking what then causes fights among us? If we should be peacemakers, what are we fighting about?  James has been talking about authentic faith and godly wisdom as something that begins in our heart and shows itself in our life: our attitude in times of trial, our response to temptations, our care for the needy, our use of the tongue, the things he has been talking about in this letter make it clear that genuine Christian faith involves the head and the heart, and it will carry through to our feet and our hands.

“Joy” is a prominent theme in James, it is an aspect of the abundant life God wants us to have. It doesn’t mean there will be no conflict and struggle in life (James 1:3; see John 16:33!). But if we find ourselves in a battle, struggling with people around us, in the family, or in the church, James is saying that it may be time to look deeper to see if we are living in the light of our profession of faith in Jesus. Yes, there is conflict between light and darkness, so if we are walking with God we will have tribulation in the world. But we had better be sure that we are not guilty of closing our eyes to the Light and stumbling along in the darkness, living in a way that looks more like the world than the true church.  That is the question that James lays before us in this passage: Who is your friend, your best friend, the one to whom you turn daily in the search for happiness? Is it the world, or is it the God who made the universe, the One who so loved you that He gave His Son? To be God’s friend we must acknowledge who He is, and humbly submit to Him, then we’ll be transformed, increasingly enabled to reject strife and live in the peace and with the peace He wants for us.

The Big Idea: If we choose to be faithful to God and to humbly submit ourselves to Him, we’ll be enabled to rise above the chaos around us.

I. Look within: Our battles start in the heart (vv.1-3)! James is writing to a particular audience so it is likely that he knew of specific needs they were struggling with. It is also certain that he wrote under the inspiration of God to the church more broadly. The sad truth is, there are always conflicts going on at different levels all around us. Now Jesus did say that “wars and rumors of wars” would be a characteristic of this age. But it seems likely to me that James here is talking about in-fighting in the churches and Christian families to whom he is writing.  James does not debate whether or not there is conflict. He simply asks, “Why?  Where does it start?”

James answers his own question in verse 1: The wars outside start with the war in our heart: “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this: that your passions are at war within you (v.1)?” Whether it is division in the church, struggles in relationships, or conflict in marriage, it will raise its head from time to time, and it starts in the heart, in the “passions” or “lusts” within us. The word here, hedone, h`donh, , is the word from which we get the term “hedonism.” In English it usually connotes the unbridled pursuit of pleasure. The word is used in only five New Testament verses, two right here in this context (4:1,3).  We also see:

Luke 8:14 Where Jesus is explaining the parable of the Sower: “And as for what fell among the thorns, they are those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by the cares and riches and pleasures of life, and their fruit does not mature.”

Titus 3:3 Paul explains the characteristics of a life “B.C.” (before Christ!): “For we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another.”

Perhaps the most intense passage of all, Peter speaks of those who have been led by false prophets into indulging the flesh in 2 Peter 2:12-14,  ^“But these, like irrational animals, creatures of instinct, born to be caught and destroyed, blaspheming about matters of which they are ignorant, will also be destroyed in their destruction,  ¹³ suffering wrong as the wage for their wrongdoing. They count it pleasure to revel in the daytime. They are blots and blemishes, reveling in their deceptions, while they feast with you.  ¹⁴ They have eyes full of adultery, insatiable for sin. They entice unsteady souls. They have hearts trained in greed. Accursed children!”

Wow, that is tough language from Peter! Think about what James is proposing in our passage: the wars on the outside start with the war in our hearts. The root cause of many of the battles we face in life is the passion for pleasure within our own hearts.  It’s a question of priorities, but more than that it points to the deeper questions of our purpose in living, what we are striving for. James suggests that some of those to whom he is writing have drifted far from the attitude for example of the psalmist: “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God…” (Psalm 42:1-2a). The kind of intimacy the psalmist longs for is what we as humans were designed for.  Yet rather than giving God the place He should have, we are blinded by the world and the devil and seek to satisfy the longing in our hearts for things that won’t last. James shows how we can become so earthly minded that we are of no heavenly good.

Wrong thinking will lead to wrong choices: “You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask (v.2).  I don’t think James is talking about literal murder here (remember Jesus said that if we hate our brother we have already committed murder in our heart). He is speaking about the conflict that begins as coveting and desiring in our hearts. If envy and jealousy are our motivation we are never satisfied, we always want more, it’s us against them. That’s the flesh, not the Spirit.

God wants to bless us but our heart needs to be right: You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions” (v.3). The Bible makes a lot of statements about prayer, we saw some in our study of John. James has many parallels with the sermon on the mount (see the chart in the “James” pamphlet from Rose Publishing). One of those is right here, talking about the promise of answered prayer. Jesus said, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened” (Matthew 7:7,8). 

 We sometimes take those things out of context and assume it is an unlimited gift card from God’s storehouse, a blank check to get anything we want from God. John R. Rice wrote a classic book on prayer which he entitled “Asking and Receiving.” There are certain potential impediments to that kind of effectual prayer that are presented in Scripture and virtually all of them go back to our heart. If we are truly praying in Jesus’ name we will be praying according to His will. We might ask expressing our momentary desires, without even considering or seeking the will of God. James says that our asking, if it is wrongly motivated, will not be answered by God in the way we might expect.  To be God’s friend we must believe God and humbly submit ourselves to Him, and when we do, we’ll be transformed, increasingly enabled to reject strife.

II. Look around: Have our choices revealed a love for God or an affair with the world (vv.4,5)? We need to look within to find the source of much of the conflict we face in life. James uses strong language to challenge his readers to examine their lives for evidence as to where their hearts lie.

First of all, are we living as salt and light in the darkness, or have we been conformed to the world?  James says, “You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (v.4).  Now wait a minute, wasn’t Jesus accused of being a friend of sinners? Yes – and we are called to be light in the darkness and the salt of the earth. We are also called to be in the world, but not of the world. The opening declaration reveals what James is getting at…

“You adulterous people!” James is not accusing his readers of literally being unfaithful in the marriage relationships. He has another relationship in view. His main point is that they are acting in a way that amounts to spiritual adultery. This language would have been very familiar to the Jews. God repeatedly admonished the nation for their unfaithfulness to him (Jer 3; Ezek 16). They were his chosen, his special possession, and they chose to lust after the pagan world around them. Jesus repeatedly called the nation of his day an “evil and adulterous generation” (Matt 12:39; 16:4). James is making the same accusation. They were chosen by God, His special possession, and yet rather than pursuing Him they were running after the temporal pleasures of this world, as if that was where they would find meaning and purpose in life.

It is because believers are susceptible to temporary worldliness that Paul warns, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom 12:2; cf. 1 Pet 1:14–16), and, “Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth” (Col 3:2). Christians are “to live the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for the lusts of men, but for the will of God. For the time already past is sufficient for you to have carried out the desire of the Gentiles, having pursued a course of sensuality, lusts, drunkenness, carousing, drinking parties and abominable idolatries” (1 Pet 4:2–3). You get the idea. Those things, the “desire of the Gentiles,” elsewhere “the lusts of the flesh,” are not where we will find meaning and purpose in life. God has a better way.

Rhetorically he asks, “Don’t you know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?”  I don’t believe he is accusing them of being unsaved sinners, and so the enemies of God (though there were probably some in exactly that position in the congregation). I think he is talking to the believers who are living like the world.  He is saying “You make a choice: will you live like a child of God and citizen of heaven, or like the unredeemed sinners who are in rebellion against him?”

Next he asks,  “Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, ‘The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously’" (v.5, NKJV).  There are several questions about the translation of this verse. First of all, what Scripture is being referred to? It is not a direct quotation, but the Old Testament does affirm repeatedly that our God is a jealous God (e.g. Exod 20:5). I think that’s the point, and it fits the context. Commentators and translators are really divided over how best to handle this verse but it seems to me that the “Spirit” is referring to the Holy Spirit (hence the capital “S” in the NKJV), and He is the subject of the verb, “yearns jealously.” We are, after all, the bride of Christ! He has loved us, and laid down his life for us, and yet we are so easily tempted by the world, the flesh, and the devil.  That fits in this context that is talking about the spiritual adultery that we so easily fall into. God loves us. He chose us and made us his own. I’ve dealt with people who have experienced the heart break of being betrayed by a spouse. The worst thing imaginable, to have the one you love, the one to whom you pledged your life turn to another to share the intimacy they had pledged to you alone. Heartbreak. Devastation.  How much worse even than that the infidelity of humans whom God has chosen, to whom God has extended grace, for whom He has given His Son?  Does our life reflect our committed love to God, or an affair with the world? To be God’s friend we must humbly submit to Him, we’ll be transformed, increasingly enabled to reject strife.

III.   Look up: God is gracious to those who humbly trust Him (v.6).

First, the great hope is introduced by the word, “but”: “But he gives more grace…”  God is gracious: Grace, the unmerited favor of God, is something we desperately need. That is the foundation of the Gospel. That is the only basis upon which we, as fallen creatures, can hope to be reconciled to God. He saves us by grace, through faith.  And He graciously works in us, reaching out to us, picking us up when we fall, drawing us back when we wander, molding us into what he wants us to be. Max Lucado told a story that beautifully illustrates the idea of “Grace”:

Longing to leave her poor Brazilian neighborhood, Christina wanted to see the world. Discontent with a home having only a pallet on the floor, a washbasin, and a wood-burning stove, she dreamed of a better life in the city. One morning she slipped away, breaking her mother's heart. Knowing what life on the streets would be like for her young, attractive daughter, Maria hurriedly packed to go find her. On her way to the bus stop she entered a drugstore to get one last thing. Pictures. She sat in the photograph booth, closed the curtain, and spent all she could on pictures of herself. With her purse full of small black-and-white photos, she boarded the next bus to Rio de Janiero. Maria knew Christina had no way of earning money. She also knew that her daughter was too stubborn to give up. When pride meets hunger, a human will do things that were before unthinkable. Knowing this, Maria began her search. Bars, hotels, nightclubs, any place with the reputation for street walkers or prostitutes. She went to them all. And at each place she left her picture--taped on a bathroom mirror, tacked to a hotel bulletin board, fastened to a corner phone booth. And on the back of each photo she wrote a note. It wasn't too long before both the money and the pictures ran out, and Maria had to go home. The weary mother wept as the bus began its long journey back to her small village. 

It was a few weeks later that young Christina descended the hotel stairs. Her young face was tired. Her brown eyes no longer danced with youth but spoke of pain and fear. Her laughter was broken. Her dream had become a nightmare. A thousand times over she had longed to trade these countless beds for her secure pallet. Yet the little village was, in too many ways, too far away. As she reached the bottom of the stairs, her eyes noticed a familiar face. She looked again, and there on the lobby mirror was a small picture of her mother. Christina's eyes burned and her throat tightened as she walked across the room and removed the small photo. Written on the back was this compelling invitation. "Whatever you have done, whatever you have become, it doesn't matter. Please come home." She did.  [Max Lucado, No Wonder They Call Him the Savior, Multnomah Press, 1986, pp. 158-9].

It’s a long quotation, but it’s a beautiful illustration. And it is God’s invitation to every one of us. Christina abandoned her mother, ran from her, but her mother’s love was steadfast, enduring.  Don’t ever let the enemy convince you that it’s too late for you, you’ve gone too far, you’ve been away too long. Like the Father in the story of the Prodigal Son, God is waiting, looking toward the horizon, waiting for you to come home. He knows your past, He knows your struggles, and still He loves you so much that He gave His Son. His invitation still goes out to you: “Whatever you have done, whatever you have become, it doesn’t matter, please, come home.” James says, “He gives more grace.”

It is also true that God delights in humble submission to His lordship: “Therefore it says, ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’” Humility is not thinking badly of ourselves, it is merely admitting the truth. We are sinners, desperately in need of His grace. Paul asked the Corinthians “…What do you have that you did not receive? And if you received it why do you boast as if you had not?” (I Corinthians 4:7b).  We can’t save ourselves. Our only hope is in Him. If we affirm that truth He is there, extending grace, inviting us: “Whatever you have done, whatever you have become, it doesn’t matter. Please, come home.”

What is God saying to me in this passage? Are there battles that you are facing right now? Look within, because the battles around us often start with the battle in our own hearts. Look around, do the choices you have been making reflect love for God, or an affair with the world? It’s not too late to get back on course, to “Look up,” to turn back to Him. If you haven’t yet trusted Him, now is the accepted time, now is the day of salvation. If you have put your trust in Christ but honestly have not allowed Him to have His rightful place, on the throne of your heart, God is inviting you: whatever you have done, whatever you have become, it doesn’t matter. Please, come home. To be God’s friend we must humbly submit to Him, we’ll be transformed, increasingly enabled to reject strife and to live in the peace He wants us to experience.

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? Who is your friend? Is your life focused on pursuing things that won’t matter 100 years from now?  Has God been pushed into a tiny corner of your life, acknowledged and appreciated from time to time, but low on your priority list when it comes to what you really are pursuing? Come home, experience the relationship with God for which you were created, the abundant life He wants for you. Listen, if God is who He claims to be, if He demonstrated His love by giving His Son, if He has purchased eternity for us and created humans to have intimate fellowship with Him, why would we look elsewhere? The Lord gave the invitation to Israel through the prophet Isaiah, and it extends to us as well: “Why do you spend money for what is not bread, And your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, And let your soul delight itself in abundance” (Isaiah 55:2).  That is God’s offer to each of us. Life. Abundant Life. Life with meaning. Think about that.   Consider what God may be saying to you through this passage.     Amen.

The Body and the Mission

Its a strange feeling for a preacher to be at home while the church is meeting! Even so, here I am, still coughing and sneezing, but I think I have turned the corner. At least I won't be sharing my germs with the church family! What a blessing to be able to call an experienced preacher like Al Roberts at the last minute and have him step into the pulpit to preach the Word. I am confident that the message will be exactly what God intended for his people at Boothbay Baptist Church this morning. Yesterday I also missed the conference on discipleship that was presented by Keith Tulley of Vision New England. All of this is a reminder that the church is a body, and the mission that has been entrusted to us is the work of all of us. Ephesians 4:11-14 is a key passage for me and for us all...

"And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers,  12 to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ,  13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ,  14 so that we may no longer be children, tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes."

Pastors and teachers equip the saints. That means all of the believers in the church. Then together we carry out the "work of service." That is the mission, to make disciples. As we discover and use our gifts we build each other up, we provoke one another to love and good works. We all also are strategically placed by the sovereign Lord in a specific place, a sphere of influence which allows us to touch the lives of various unbelievers. As Tim Pierce told us when he was here, each of us is God's undercover missionary, placed around people who need to hear the Good News of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  May each of us take to heart the calling and privilege of being called by God to have a part in His mission!  Next Sunday, God willing, we'll return to our study in the Epistle of James.
your co-worker in Christ,
Pastor Steve

The Wisdom of God

“The Wisdom of Peacemaking”

James 3:13-18

Introduction: The Book of Proverbs tells us: “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom…” (Prov 4:7a). We have more knowledge at our finger tips at this moment than at any time in our history. Mary Ann volunteers in the library at Coastal Christian School and was talking recently about how “out of date” print encyclopedias can become – but with the internet, computers and smart phones, tablets and “phablets” at our command, we can quickly research mostly any topic and get at least some very up to date information on demand. But even with the explosion of readily available “knowledge,” wisdom is as hard to come by as ever.  James starts this passage asking “who is wise and understanding among you?” He is asking his readers, “Do you think you have wisdom? Show me!”  Earlier he made it clear that wisdom is desirable, it is something to be sought and prayed about: We read in James 1:5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.” But what does James mean by “wisdom”? Not all that we call “wisdom” is God’s wisdom.  

          The Old Testament writings have a lot to say about true wisdom. “Wisdom” from the world’s perspective is often equated with how much you know.  From God’s perspective it means knowing Him and discerning how His truth should impact your life. It forms a moral and spiritual foundation for the life God wants for us. Job 28:28 says “…And he said to man, 'Behold, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil is understanding.'" Psalm 111:10 says “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!” Practically “wisdom” is connected with knowing and fearing God, and praising Him, while we turn away from evil. Proverbs 1:7 likewise states that “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” I Corinthians 2:6-16 teaches about the spiritual discernment that is only found in the wisdom from above:

“Yet among the mature we do impart wisdom, although it is not a wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age, who are doomed to pass away.  ⁷ But we impart a secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glory.  ⁸ None of the rulers of this age understood this, for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.  ⁹ But, as it is written, "What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him"-  ¹⁰ these things God has revealed to us through the Spirit. For the Spirit searches everything, even the depths of God.  ¹¹ For who knows a person's thoughts except the spirit of that person, which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God.  ¹² Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God.  ¹³ And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.  ¹⁴ The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.  ¹⁵ The spiritual person judges all things, but is himself to be judged by no one.  ¹⁶ "For who has understood the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?" But we have the mind of Christ.”

Have you heard the phrase “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know”? In a certain sense that is true when it comes to biblical wisdom.  “Wisdom” is not simply knowing facts about God. It means knowing Him, pursuing intimacy with Him, and in the process submitting to the Spirit as He guides us in the application of God’s truth in our lives. To know Him is to love Him, and to love Him is to obey Him. Jesus said “If you love me, keep my commandments.” This is the kind of “wisdom” that James wants his readers to embrace.

The Big Idea: “True wisdom is found in knowing God and submitting to His Spirit and will result in a changed heart that pursues His peace.”

I. Godly Wisdom is evidenced by a changed life and a humble attitude (3:13). “Who is wise and understanding among you?” In the Greco-roman world in which James is writing many of the Jews of the dispersion to who James is writing no doubt had a muddled view of what constitutes true wisdom. It was an important subject in the Hebrew Scriptures to be sure, but the Greeks especially had an interest in pursuing “wisdom” as they understood it.

            “By his good conduct let him show his works…” Just as faith is evidenced by a changed life, the person who is pursuing God and His wisdom will live out the implications of faith by making wise, God honoring, choices in life. “Conduct” is a neutral term, and it can either be negative or positive.  Here he says godly wisdom will be shown by “good conduct.” “Faithful living” and “wise living” are virtually synonymous ideas for James. This is how we recognize the wise: “By his good conduct…” James is probably reflecting the Jewish perspective of “good,” based on the Hebrew word tob.  As every good thing comes from above (James 1:17), the blessing of the God of the covenant, so also good conduct, a lifestyle that reflects a covenantal relationship with God, is evident in the life of someone who is seeking God’s wisdom.

           “…in the meekness of wisdom…” The language here implies that “wisdom” is the source from which a proper, godly, “meekness” or gentleness will come. It is the “meekness that comes from wisdom.” Meekness is one of the fruit of the Spirit mentioned by Paul in Galatians 5. Meekness is not weakness, it is seeing ourselves rightly, and grasping the depth of our dependence on God. Moses was described as the meekest man on earth, yet he was clearly not weak, he was used by God to lead a nation out of bondage through the wilderness and to the threshold of the promised land. Godly wisdom will result in a sincere humility because we will understand our dependence on God for everything.  True wisdom is found in knowing God and submitting to His Spirit and will result in a changed heart that pursues His peace.

II. Worldly Wisdom is unspiritual and is marked by a carnal attitude and lifestyle (3:14-16).

           “But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth” (14).  Just as James has been giving gauges that we can check to measure the authenticity of our faith, here he gives some indications that would reveal most clearly that an individual is not embracing the wisdom that comes from above. “Bitter jealousy” and “selfish ambition” are the marks of a “fool” in biblical language, not a person walking in God’s wisdom.

        First, the phrase “…bitter jealousy…” These two words appear together only here in the entire Bible. A couple of verses earlier referred to “bitter” vs. sweet water. Psalm 64:2-4 also refers to our speech when it says, “Hide me from the secret plots of the wicked, from the throng of evildoers,  ³ who whet their tongues like swords, who aim bitter words like arrows,  ⁴ shooting from ambush at the blameless, shooting at him suddenly and without fear.” It seems to connote an attitude of jealousy or envy that is so intense it foments anger or hatred toward others.

       The attitude that is specifically characterized by bitterness is “…jealousy…” or “envy.” This reflects an attitude that Paul includes in the works of the flesh that contrast the fruit of the Spirit: We read in Galatians 5:19-21 

 “Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality,  ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,  ²¹ envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these."  

So “…bitter envy…” does not come from a heart walking in wisdom.  It is paralleled here with “selfish ambition” and “boasting”. It seems to picture the attitude “it’s all about me.” My comfort, my  accomplishments, what I know. Me, me, me.

          James says it plainly: “This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic” (15). In John’s language the world, the flesh and the devil are the source of the human wisdom that does not submit itself to God. He describes this with three adjectives…

·        “…earthly…” It is of this world system, not from God. Human wisdom is exactly what Paul was describing in I Corinthians 2. It exalts human reason over divine revelation. Proverbs twice warns “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12; 16:25). Earthly wisdom, worldly wisdom, is not wise at all.

·        “…unspiritual…” The antonym of “spiritual” is carnal. This refers to the fallen human nature. Because the natural man is infected by sin, he is “unable to understand the things of the Spirit of God, they are foolishness to him…” (I Cor 2:14). The way of wisdom is to seek and to obey the God-breathed, Spirit inspired, words of Scripture.

·        “…demonic…” It is the kind of thinking that the enemy would delude us with – “…it is set on fire by hell…” Earthly, human wisdom, wisdom of the world, is inspired and encouraged by the Enemy whose goal is our destruction. The enemy does not mind our pursuit of knowledge, as long as he can convince us to leave God out of the equation.  That is the perspective of secular science. How can we explain the universe without reference to God and the supernatural? It can observe a lot of true things but falls short because it denies God who created and sustains all things! It tries to put human reason in the place of the God who is.

        “For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice” (16).

·        “Jealousy” and “self-ambition” are both “self-centered” concepts. Rather than showing interest in sowing seeds that will lead to peace and righteousness, i.e. that salvation and spiritual growth of people around me, I am more focused on making them look bad so I’ll look good. That kind of attitude doesn’t come from God.

·        “…there will be disorder and every vile practice…”  Chaos, or anarchy, rather than order. Evil, rather than the “good things” that God desires to give to his children.

True wisdom is found in knowing God and submitting to His Spirit and will result in a changed heart that pursues His peace.

III. Godly Wisdom is accompanied by a pursuit of holiness and a desire for peace (3:17,18). Warren Wiersbe said that when it comes to wisdom, origin determines outcome. Worldly wisdom will produce worldly results, spiritual wisdom will produce spiritual results.

 “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial…” (17). Does this sound a bit like the “fruit of the Spirit”? It should. In the same passage where the apostle Paul tells the Ephesian believers to be “filled with the Spirit” he also says,

“Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, ¹⁶ making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.  ¹⁷ Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is...” (Eph 5:15-17). 

And in the very next verse he says to “be filled with the Spirit.” Wisdom from above is spiritual wisdom, it seeks God, and seeks to live in this world empowered by Him for the mission He has entrusted to us.

Notice that this divine wisdom is “…first, pure…”  God is “holy”. His people should live wisely, that is pursue the life He wants for us as we seek Him and His will for us. That means choosing God over the world, the flesh and the devil. These other characteristics reflect spiritual maturity, the Spirit-filled life God wants for us: 

 “…then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere [lit., “…without hypocrisy…”] (17). 

We very easily resort to wearing masks around each other. We want to appear strong even when we are struggling. That is arrogance, pride. We are made for community. We are designed to “bear one another’s burdens.”  That is wise living.  This kind of wisdom, wisdom from above, can be honest, transparent, sincere.

“And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” (18). One of the things James is reflecting on as he writes seems to be the “beatitudes” that Jesus taught. Here we are reminded “Blessed are the peacemakers…” Remember that James is writing to Jewish believers of the dispersion. It’s hard to imagine them hearing the word “peace” without thinking of the Hebrew term “shalom” that lies behind it. It is not just the absence of conflict but it is the blessing of the good life God intends for His people, the people of the covenant. Paul describes the way of sinners in rebellion against God in Romans 3:10-18…

"None is righteous, no, not one;  ¹¹ no one understands; no one seeks for God.  ¹² All have turned aside; together they have become worthless; no one does good, not even one."  ¹³ "Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive." "The venom of asps is under their lips."  ¹⁴ "Their mouth is full of curses and bitterness."  ¹⁵ "Their feet are swift to shed blood;  ¹⁶ in their paths are ruin and misery,  ¹⁷ and the way of peace they have not known."  ¹⁸ "There is no fear of God before their eyes."

       Notice that these sinners in rebellion against God have not known the way of peace (v.7) and have no reverence for God (v.18). Where does wisdom begin? With the fear of the Lord (Prov 1:7, etc.).  Paul goes on in Romans to say we have peace through faith (5:1) and we  are to pursue what makes for peace and mutual edification (14:19). And by our lives and by our testimony we sow seeds of peace in hearts of those in our sphere of influence, the mission field to which we have been sent.

What is God saying to me in this passage? “True wisdom is found in knowing God and submitting to His Spirit and will result in a changed heart that pursues His peace.”

What would God have me to do in response to this passage? How do we make wise decisions? It all starts not with what you know, but who you know. “The fear of the Lord…” is the foundation for true wisdom. If God is who he claims to be, his Word has absolute authority in my life – or it better! If it is my heart’s desire to know and love God, it should be my desire to obey Him. Jesus said “If you love me, keep my commandments.”   As we seek God’s wisdom the fruit will be evident in our lives, our priorities are different than those of our neighbors. Yet God will use us to sow seeds of peace if we are willing and available. Think about that.    AMEN.