THE CONTEXT: This book was written with Jewish readers in mind--people of modest means who were oppressed by the rich, who dragged them before the courts (2:6)--and blasphemed "the honorable name by which (the believers were) called" (2:7)--and kept back the wages of believers (5:4). James counsels patience, and calls them to remember that the Lord will ultimately set things right. The author opened by identifying himself only as James (1:1), traditionally believed to be James the brother of Jesus who came to lead the Jerusalem church. He identifies the recipients of the latter as "the twelve tribes which are in the Dispersion" (1:1)--literally meaning Jews living outside Israel. However, 1 Peter uses the word Dispersion metaphorically to refer to Christians living in "Pontus, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia" (1 Peter 1:1), and that is likely the meaning here. James addresses their temptations, saying, "Count it all joy," because "the testing of your faith produces endurance" (vv. 2-3). He counsels prayer for wisdom, prayed in faith without doubts (vv. 5-8). He counsels the poor to "glory in (their) high position"--and the rich to assume the humility appropriate to their mortality (1:9-11). Then he returns to the issue of temptation, pronouncing a blessing on those who endure temptation, because they "will receive the crown of life" (v. 12). He counsels them not to think of temptations as being sent by God, because God "tempts no one" (v. 13). Verse 15 sets up a parallel with verse 18 when it says, "lust, when it has conceived, bears sin: and the sin...brings forth (Greek: apokueo) death. In verse 18, he says that God "brought us forth (apokueo) by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures." The contrast, therefore, is between the offspring of sin (death) and the offspring of God (first fruits of God's creatures).
Introduction: Prior to 1539, if one had said, "Turn with me to the first chapter of the Book of James," there would have been a great rustling of pages in the congregation, with many puzzled looks. Up to that time, you would not have found the book where it is today in any English translation. Indeed, you would not have found the Book of James included among the New Testament books at all. This is because it was hidden away at the very back of the English Bible, along with Hebrews, Jude, and Revelation. The obscure placement of this book is indicative of the initial reluctance the early church had accepting it and several other books into the canon of Scripture. Perhaps the greatest reason for this delay was due to the question of its authorship. Books that were most readily accepted into the New Testament canon were those written by apostles, whose doctrine and teaching accorded with other writings of the New Testament, and that were commonly regarded as Scripture by the churches as a whole.
James 1:1 - Author, Date, and Audience
1 James, a bond-servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad: Greetings.
In his introduction to this book, the author identifies himself simply as James. This presents us with a bit of a problem since the New Testament refers to several men as "James." For example, there is James, the son of Alphaeus, but we see little of him in the New Testament, and few would view him as the author of this epistle. Then, there was James, the son of Zebedee, and brother of John. He is unlikely to be the author since he died as a martyr in the year 44, as recorded in Acts 12. The third "James" is the half-brother of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is prominent in Acts as the leader of the Jerusalem church. Since James, the half-brother of our Lord, died in A.D. 62, the book must have been written prior to this time. Perhaps it was written before A.D. 50 and the Jerusalem Council, since neither the Council nor its decision is mentioned in this epistle. If so, this book is the earliest book of the entire New Testament.
One final word of introduction is necessary, pertaining to the recipients of this epistle. James addresses this work to "the twelve tribes who are dispersed abroad." By this I understand that he is writing primarily to Jewish Christians who have been dispersed from Jerusalem. In Acts 2:9-11, we read of all the distant places Jews had come from to observe the Feast of Pentecost. These folks had already been dispersed abroad, before the death of our Lord. When we come to Acts 8:1, we read of the persecution that resulted from the stoning of Stephen, and we are told "they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles."
James 1:2-4 - James' Teaching on Adversity
2 Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. 4 And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
Adversity is like a stress test, pushing us up to and beyond our limits, so that we will recognize our dependence upon God, and call on Him for help in the time of trouble. Adversity is designed to produce endurance in our lives. And this endurance perfects us, so that we will become complete, lacking nothing.
James 1:5-8 - A Deficiency Common to All Suffering Saints: Wisdom
5 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. 6 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. 7 For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, 8 being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
As indicated by the footnote in verse 5, the "if" is not really "iffy." James assumes that everyone is deficient in wisdom. If there is ever a time when our lack of wisdom is apparent, it is when we are in the midst of adversity. We need wisdom to rightly assess our situation and to determine our response to it. At times like this, we need divine wisdom, which we do not possess within ourselves. It is the kind of wisdom which God possesses, and which He promises to give to those who ask for it. Many of our teenagers wear a bracelet that reads: WWJD. This stands for, "What would Jesus do?" Isn't that the question we all need to ask? Isn't what Jesus would do in our circumstances the wise thing we should do? James goes on to encourage us to pray for wisdom by assuring us not only that God will answer our prayer for wisdom, but that He will do so without shaming or humiliating us. This is because He is glorified when we confess our dependency and His sufficiency. God delights in the fact that we express our dependence on Him.
James sets down only one condition and that is that we pray in faith, without wavering. It is never wrong to pray for wisdom, and there is never a time when God will not grant us that wisdom - except when we ask with an inner wavering. This wavering is a vacillation between one thing and another. I'm not sure that I really like the word "doubts" here. Is James suggesting that this person doubts God will answer his prayer? Perhaps, but frankly I doubt it. In verse 9, James tells us that this wavering fellow is "double-minded," literally "two-souled." This term is found only twice in the New Testament, and both times it is in the Book of James. Notice the second instance of this term in James 4:8, in context: To be double-minded in chapter 4 was to waver between submitting to God or to the devil. It would appear that it was to waver between humility and pride (pride being a very devil-like characteristic).
By inference, then, we can see that faith manifests itself in stability, steadiness in the midst of life's storms. But a deficiency of faith manifests itself in instability. The one who lacks faith bounces hither and yon, blown about by the winds of adversity, as well as the winds of false doctrine (see also Ephesians 4:14). Faith rests assured that God is in control, and that adversity has come from His loving hand, to build us up in His strength. Faith rejoices in adversity, because it is for our good, and for His glory.
James 1:9-12 - On Rags and Riches
9 But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position; 10 and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away. 11 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. 12 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.
In turning to wealth and poverty, James has not really changed subjects. In the Jewish mind, wealth was the measure of one's piety. The pious were expected to prosper, while the wicked were to suffer. This is why our Lord's story of the "Rich man and Lazarus" in Luke 16:19-31 was so shocking to the Jews who heard it. James wants both the rich and the poor to see their circumstances from an eternal perspective. Note, however, that James indicates to us that there will be both rich saints and poor saints, and both of them are exhorted to respond to their circumstances in a godly manner. He does not accept the premise that the pious prosper and the wicked suffer.
It has never been very difficult to understand James' words to the poor man, instructing him to take pride in his high position. After all, Jesus said, "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God" (Luke 6:20). The story of Lazarus and the rich man tells it all. A few years of doing without is nothing, compared to an eternity of bliss. But what of the rich man? How can James say that he is to take pride in his humiliation? What is his humiliation, and how can he take pride in it? James tells us, I believe. The rich man's humiliation is his earthly demise. When Paul wrote, "For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain" (Phil. 1:21), he was expressing a universal truth for every believer. I am reminded of our Lord's words in Luke 16:11: "If then you haven't been trustworthy in handling worldly wealth, who will entrust you with the true riches." "True riches" are not earthly riches, but heavenly riches. If "true riches" are heavenly riches, then it is our earthly demise that opens the door to true riches. It should not just be the poor who look forward to heaven then, but also the rich, because there is where our true riches await us at our arrival, so the rich man is to realize that his earthly wealth is paltry, in comparison with the heavenly wealth that awaits him. Since it is his earthly demise that takes him to heaven, the rich man exults in his death, his humiliation.
James 1:13-18 - When Temptations Arise, Who Do You Blame?
13 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. 14 But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. 15 Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. 16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. 17 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. 18 In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.
It isn't difficult to see a connection between adversity and temptation. In the midst of adversity, we may be tempted to think or act in a sinful manner. Many folks wrongly conclude that times of stress somehow justify ungodly responses. There is a sinister dimension to the words, "I am tempted by God." It is one thing to say, "The devil made me do it;" it is quite another to lay the blame on God. You can see how one could twist reality to come to such a conclusion. Their distorted logic would go something like this:
It seems to me that verses 13-18 take up the subject of the double-minded man, mentioned in verse 8. The double-minded person wavers between humble submission to God and prideful disobedience. It is that proud disobedience which seems to underlie the logic that blames God for our sin and names Him as the source of our temptation. James speaks in very absolute terms in verses 13-18. He says that one should never blame God for the temptation we face. He also says that God cannot ever be tempted by evil, and that He never tempts anyone with evil. God tests us, but He never tempts us.11 Temptation, James tells us, comes from deep within us, and not from God. Jesus made this clear as well:
The God who cannot be tempted (because there is no sin within Him, which responds to temptation) does not tempt, either. Temptation comes from within the one tempted. It begins with desire, and when this desire is facilitated, the fruit it bears is that of sin. And sin results in death. Sin and death are the result of a sequence of events, all of which begin with a desire which is not proper, and which is not rejected and resisted.
When James says, "Do not be led astray, my brothers and sisters. . .," he indicates that when we see God as the source of our sin, we have been terribly deceived. God is not the source of any temptation, but He is the source of any and every truly good gift. This God who does not tempt and who gives good gifts is immutable - He never changes. As James puts it, "there is no variation or the slightest hint of change" (verse 17). The God who is good and immutable is also sovereign (verse 18). It was through God's initiative that we were brought to life, through the instrument of His Word (verse 18). If there is any basis for faith and stability, it is in knowing that God is good, that God is unchanging, and that He is sovereign. The good work which God began in us by saving us, He most surely can be expected to finish (see also Phil. 1:6). God is going to redeem all creation, which has suffered the curse as the result of the fall, and man's salvation is a prototype, first fruits of the subsequent salvation or restoration of "all things" (see Rom. 8:18-25).
James 1:1-18 Commentary
CONTEXT AND PURPOSE: A large number of the Christians had left *Jerusalem and had gone to live in other countries. But the *apostles and leaders of the church did not go. So, these Christians no longer had the day-to-day contact with their leaders. James wrote to help them. He wrote to encourage them to live as Christians should, in the places where they now lived. What Christians believe must affect what they do. That is the main subject of his letter. He shows how they should apply their trust in God to the problems that they have. Real *faith must be active. That is the key to what he wrote. *Faith that does nothing is not real *faith. So he says that *faith without works is dead.
v1 This letter is from James, who is a servant of God and of the *Lord Jesus Christ. I greet you who are from the 12 *tribes of the *Jews scattered among the nations of the world.
Verse 1 James was the half-brother of the *Lord Jesus. Their mother was Mary but Joseph was the father of James. After Jesus came back from the dead, James trusted in him. He soon became a leader in the church in *Jerusalem. The *apostle Paul talks about him as one of the three top leaders (Galatians 2:9). Among these, he seems to have been the one with the most authority. Both those in the church and those who did not believe in Jesus respected him. *Jewish Christians left *Jerusalem and settled in other parts of the world. The fame of James spread with them. He was such a great man and yet he was humble. He did not write as the brother of the *Lord or as the leader of the church. He just called himself a servant of God and of the *Lord Jesus Christ.
In this, he is a good example to us. If we are anything, it is from God. And there is no cause for us to be proud. He called himself a servant or slave of God and of the *Lord Jesus Christ. He was neither a free man or a hired servant but a slave. The master owned the slaves. And the slaves lived to do what their master told them to do. To James it was an honour to make himself a slave, and to belong to God and to the *Lord Jesus. The *Scripture calls some of the great people in *Israel's history slaves or servants of God. [See for example Abraham (Genesis 26:24), Moses (Joshua 1:1), David (Psalm 36:1).] James, like them, lived to serve God and the people of God.
Those to whom he is writing are from the 12 *tribes of the *Jews. They live in many parts of the world. These were *Jews who had become Christians. They were probably members of the church in *Jerusalem who went away from there after the death of *Stephen (Acts 8:14; 11:19-20). If this is so, then James had been their *pastor. He is now writing to them to help them and to encourage them as they try to live for Jesus.
James writes to those first Christians who were *Jewish. Some time later, those who were not *Jews trusted in the *Lord Jesus. And then they joined the church. All that James teaches, however, is true. And it is for all Christians. He shows us what God wants us to believe and do. We should all learn from him.
v2 My Christian brothers and sisters, consider it pure joy when you have all kinds of *trials. v3 You know that, as you overcome these *trials, your *faith will grow stronger. v4 Go on overcoming so that it may work for your benefit. Then you will grow up to be mature Christians. You will be complete and you will lack nothing.
Verse 2 James calls them his brothers and sisters because he cares about them. They are his brothers and sisters as children of God because they trust in Jesus Christ.
They were having many *trials that were hard for them to overcome. These *trials came to them from other people and were a real test of their trust in God. The same word can mean *temptations that come from inside ourselves. It has this meaning later in James 1:13-18. We have to fight the *trials that come to us. We have to be careful not to give in to the *temptations that come from our own desires.
We do not know what the *trials were that these Christians had. They were *Jewish and many people hated the *Jews. They could have shared the things that the *Jews suffered. They believed that Jesus is the *Messiah, so the *Jews hated them. They could have suffered attacks from the *Jews. Having left their homes in *Jerusalem, they had to make new homes in foreign places. At first, it must have been very hard for them to get work and to earn money to live. James does not say what the *trials were. But he says that there were many of them and of all kinds.
*Trials can be a real test of trust in God. But when we meet them with the right attitude, they serve to prove the quality of that *faith. They know that God is the *Lord of all. And they know that he will help them. God has allowed the *trials to come. This is to prove their trust in God and to make their *faith stronger. So when *trials come, Christians can have pure joy. That is because they know that they can overcome the *trials. Each time they overcome they are stronger to fight the next *trials.
Verses 3-4 They must go on in their trust in God, overcoming each test. Then the *trials will achieve the purpose that God has for them. Christians should grow up and be mature in the life that they have with Christ. They will lack nothing. They will be all that God wants them to be. This is the purpose for the *trials. In this life, no person can be perfect, that is without *sin. But one day God will make all those who belong to him perfect. Then they will live for all time with him.
v5 If any of you needs wisdom, ask God for it. God is generous. And he is ready to give to all that ask. He will never say that you are wrong to ask. He will give you what you need. v6 But when you ask for something, you must believe. You must believe that God will give it to you. You must not doubt that he will do it. Whoever doubts is like a wave in the sea that the wind drives and blows about. v7 If you are like that, you must not think that you will receive anything from the *Lord. v8 You are unable to make up your mind. And you are not sure in anything that you do.
Verse 5 Those who suffer *trials need wisdom. They need the wisdom to know how to deal with them. It will help them to understand the *trials. And it will help them to decide what they must do. God gives this wisdom so that they can choose to do what is right. They will know how God would want them to live in their troubles. Then they can overcome them all and not give up the struggle.
God alone can give this wisdom to them. All who feel the need of it must ask God for it. He will answer the prayers of those who ask for it. But they must believe that he will give it. God is kind and generous. He gives to them, freely and without limit, all that they need.
God does not blame those who ask. They need never be afraid to ask too much or too often. God is always ready to give to them all that they need. He is never angry with them for their lack of wisdom. He is so often much more ready to give it to them than they are ready to ask for it.
Verse 6 When people ask God for wisdom, they must believe. They must believe that God will hear their prayer. They must be confident that God will do what they ask. Having asked, they must receive the answers. And they must obey what God tells them to do. They must be firm and constant in their trust in God. They must not doubt that God will answer them. And they must not doubt that he is able to do it. God will not answer the prayers of those who doubt.
Those who doubt do not know what to think or expect. James says that persons like that are like the waves of the sea. The wind drives the waves in one way and then another. As the wind varies, so do the waves. The water moves and is never still. It does not settle; it has no rest. Those who doubt are just like that. They are just like waves that the changing wind blows about.
Verse 7 Those who doubt will not receive anything from the *Lord. God will not answer their prayers. We cannot think in two ways at once when we pray. Either we believe with no doubts or we do not.
Verse 8 In the *Greek, James says that persons who doubt have two minds. They are trying to serve God and someone else at the same time. They are not loyal to God alone. They have two opposite opinions in their mind. They cannot choose which is the right one. At one moment, they believe and the next moment, they do not. You cannot depend on them either in their prayers or in the rest of their lives.
v9 But let the poor brother be glad because God values him. And he will make him great. v10 And let the rich person be glad that he or she will lose everything. He or she will pass away like the wild flowers do. v11 The sun rises and the hot winds dry the wild flowers. They fall and die and lose their beauty. Similarly, while the rich man is busy, he will fall and die like a wild flower.
Verse 9 James wants to encourage the poor people who trust in God. They may feel that they are of little worth because they are poor. But their hope for the future is in God. The word 'poor' can mean humble and weak as well as poor in the goods of this world.
They can have joy and satisfaction in the fact that they are rich with God. They belong to Christ and, with him, they have a place of high honour. They are children of God, who owns all things. God has given them new respect and worth. They know that they are of great value to God. So, they can be happy because of that.
They look to the future. Then, what they see should please them. God has chosen them and will raise them up to new life. Then they will no longer be poor and weak. They will receive from God all that he has promised to those who love him. They will be with Christ for all time and they will share with him the riches of heaven.
Verse 10 We cannot be sure whether the rich person is a Christian or not. It is most probable that he or she is. There were poor and rich Christians in the churches then, just as there are today.
Rich Christians must not be proud of what they own. They must not be proud of the power that they have. They must be humble. They must not think that they are better than anyone else. They should know that their wealth and rank mean nothing to God. To God, they are no better than the poor Christians. If the rich persons here are not Christians, they would seem to have a lot to be happy about. But what they are happy about now will be their shame. Wealth and power will be of no value when they die. God will declare them guilty in the day of judgement.
James wrote about the flower of the grass. Grass does not have flowers. Flower of the grass is an expression that means the wild flowers that grow with the grass. In that land the grass and the flowers grow up quickly in the spring. They only last a short time and then they are no more. The colour and the beauty of them die away. The rich person is like these wild flowers. He or she is no more permanent than they are. Like them, he or she will pass away. Life is so brief and not certain. Rich people cannot take their wealth with them to the next world. The flowers in the spring grass drop after their brief life. In the same way, the rich people and their riches will come to an end.
Verse 11 In the land where James lived, the sun was very hot in summer. There was also a very hot wind that blew from the south-east. It came straight from the southern deserts, and it burst on the land like the heat from a fire. In an hour, it could burn all the grass and flowers. Even without this wind, the heat of the sun in summer could be so hot that it would burn them up in a day. There was no doubt that the sun and the wind would come and destroy the flowers. Similarly, the wealth of this world cannot last. The rich person also will die as the flowers do. Both can be alive one day and gone the next. While the rich person is going about his or her business, he or she will die. Then they will be no more. The end will come quickly and without warning.
It is foolish to trust in things that cannot last. We brought nothing with us when we came into the world. We can take nothing with us when we go from here. Like the poor Christians, we must put our trust in God alone.
12 God blesses those whose *faith does not fail during *trials. When they have overcome the testing, they will receive the crown of life. That is the life that God has promised to give to all who love him. v13 When *trials come to tempt you, do not say 'These *trials have come from God.' Nothing bad can tempt God and God will not tempt anyone. 14 But it is our own evil desires that tempt us. They lead us to do what is wrong. 15 When we do what our evil desires tempt us to do, we *sin. The end result of *sin is death.
Verse 12 Those who overcome the *trials of this life have real joy. They have proved their trust in God. They can look for the blessing that God has promised. This is the crown of life. God will give it to those who love him. It will be that better life that they will enjoy after this life ends. The crown and the life are the rewards that God will give to those who have real *faith in him.
Verse 13 When we fail, it seems to be natural for us to blame someone else. We do not want to be responsible for our own failure. We like to think that we are not to blame. We think that it was not our fault. It must be God's fault because he is tempting us. This must be wrong. God cannot be the cause of the evil things that men do. *Temptation does not come from God. Evil things cannot tempt God. There is no moral weakness in him. There is nothing in him to which evil things can appeal. God is all good and can have no contact with evil things. He has no desire that any person should do wrong things.
God does test people but not in the sense that is in these verses. He tests to prove them and not to make them fail. God himself tempts no one to do what is wrong. It is not possible that *temptation to *sin could come from him.
Verse 14 The source of the *temptation is in ourselves. The fault is in the desires and the weakness of our human nature. Those who *sin have no excuse for their *sin. It was their own choice and they are responsible for it. Our desires tempt us. They make us want to do what we know to be wrong. The trap for us is our own weakness. That which is not good attracts us. We could refuse to do it. But if we do not refuse we fail and *sin.
Verse 15 When we say yes to the evil desires then we *sin. *Sin starts when we say yes. Then it results in our doing what is wrong. That is also *sin. The result of *sin is death. All who *sin will die. The good news is that God can forgive *sins. God can forgive *sins because Jesus Christ has died for all people.
v16 Do not make a mistake, my dear brothers and sisters. v17 Every good and perfect gift comes down from God the Father. It is he who made the sun, moon and stars. As they change and turn, they throw shadows. But God never changes or turns. v18 He chose to make us his children by his true word. We must be the first among all that he has made.
Verse 16 Here is a warning. We must not think that God sends *temptation to us. It seems that they had made this mistake. They cannot blame God for their own weakness. Each of us is responsible for our own *sins. Only good can come from God and not bad.
Verse 17 All good and perfect gifts come down from above. This means that they come to us from God. He does not send anything that is bad. He does not send the *temptations that lead us to *sin. He sent Jesus to die for us to bring us new life. He sent the Holy Spirit to be with us and in us. He helps us when we have any troubles. He gives wisdom to those who ask for it in *faith. He gives us all that we need and much more.
In the *Greek language, James calls God the 'Father of the lights'. The *Jews knew God as *Lord of all the powers in the earth and Father of the skies. It means that he made the lights in the sky. And he controls them. These are the sun, the moon and the stars. They show us how great and powerful God is. The light from the sun, the moon and the stars varies but God does not. They move and change. As they turn, they cause shadows on the earth. These may change and turn but God never does. It is not possible for God to change. He is always the same. We can trust him because he is always good and kind to his people.
Verse 18 Of all the gifts from God, the gift of new birth to his children is the best. God chose to make us his children. As a mother gives birth to a child, so God gives life to those who trust in the *Lord Jesus. God makes them his own children. When God made the earth and the sky, he did it by speaking a word. Here he speaks his true word to give the new birth to us. This true word is the good news about what Jesus has done for us. Those who accept that true word with *faith become children of God.
In the *Jewish religion, the first of the fruits belonged to God. They gave to him the first part of the harvest. These Christians, like the first of the fruit, belong to God and are special to him. They were the first fruits of a much greater harvest to come. After them, there would be many more who would receive the word of truth. Of all the things that God has made, Christians are special to him.
EXTRA JAMES 1 COMMENTARY
The Value of Trials (1:2-4)
James says, "Consider it pure joy ... when you face trials ... because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance" (1:3). In other words, we should have joy in knowing that our trials are doing some good. They are building in us a "hang in there" attitude, one which will continue on and not give up.
The word translated "trials" (NIV, NASB, RSV) or "temptations" (KJV) is the Greek word peirasmos, "test, trial." But the same word is also used for "temptation, enticement to sin,"1 thus causing a bit of confusion that James clears up in verse 13. James refers to trials "of many kinds." These may be adverse circumstances such as being hurt by a loved one, or bereavement, poverty, or oppression. Or these trials may be much more diabolical: actual temptation or overt seduction by Satan to sin, such as Jesus experienced (Matthew 4:1-11). As we've learned the hard way, trials and temptations come in all sorts of shapes and sizes. James tells us to let these be a stimulus to joy in our lives.
When we are brand new Christians we have genuine faith, sure enough, but our faith is innocent, untried. As faith is tried, it deepens and matures, and is able to flourish in all sorts of circumstances. And as we know God's faithfulness in various places of testing, we develop the boldness of faith that only a tried and tested faith can possess.
The word variously translated "perseverance" (NIV), "steadfastness" (RSV), "endurance" (NASB), and "patience" (KJV) is the Greek word hypomonē , "patience, endurance, fortitude, steadfastness, perseverance."2 The verb means "to remain behind, stand one's ground, survive, remain steadfast, persevere and also to wait."3 Trials and temptations build a maturity and completeness in us. "Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature (teleios) and complete (holoklēros ), not lacking anything" (verse 4). The Greek word teleios means "having attained the end or purpose, complete, perfect." When used of people, it means "full grown, mature, adult" or " 'perfect, fully developed' in a moral sense."4 Teleios is used here with a another word, holoklēros , a qualitative term, which means, "with integrity, whole, complete, undamaged, intact, blameless."5
I've met some people, and so have you, who are trying to live as adults with a tiny Sunday School faith. They haven't grown. God intends our trials to make us complete and mature, to build integrity and wholeness in us. Have you let your trials do that? They are to complete us, so we are "not lacking anything."
Ask God for Wisdom (1:5)
Now that we've understood the value of trials, let's go back to verses 5-8 to understand our need for wisdom. And what are we to do when we are pressed to the wall and our sins and weaknesses lie exposed? We ask God for wisdom. When we ask people for wisdom, we often hear judgment instead: "I
told you so." But not with God. And we have a very clear promise: "It will be given to him."
There is a condition to the promise, however. We must ask with a clear commitment and faith. Unless we deal with our mixed motives and sins, we won't be able to hear wisdom even if God speaks to us. Coming to God without repenting of and forsaking the sin that divides our allegiances won't work, either. Adversity and trial have a way of clarifying the issues and highlighting the decisions we need to make. Faith flourishes where we come to a place of a single mind about the things of God, a place where doubt and indecision do not disable action, but where clear, single-mindedness enables it.
Double-Mindedness (1:5-11)
James introduces two powerful ideas into his letter:
"Double-minded" translates the Greek word dipsychos, "doubting, hesitating," literally "double-minded."6 Until we come to the place where we are willing to face up to the sins that hang on in our lives, we continue to experience the inner war that St. Paul alluded to. Until we surrender our evil desires to God and let him work on them, we are "patsies" for sin's temptations.
But trials have a way of forcing the issue, of making "push come to shove." When we have no other place to wriggle out of, in our extremity God helps us identify those parts of our character that are sinful and wrong. We are able to identify those unsurrendered desires that Satan entices and lead us into sin. And at those times, he grants us the ability to repent and see the hold of those sins break and lose their power. Unless we come through these difficult testing times, we don't sort out our priorities and become single-minded in our love for God. Our faith remains stunted and crippled by our double-mindedness, and we remain spiritual babies.
So, in a real way, we can often look back on our trials with pure joy, since it is in those times that God is able to get our attention, help us make new commitments, and embark in new directions.
Crown of Life (1:12)
There is a promise that comes along with our trials, and that is "the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him" (1:12). Our trials set us back. We struggle, we complain to God sometimes, and sometimes we just grit our teeth and hang on. But we do so with the vision ahead of a reward, a promise, a laurel wreath given to the winners, those who have "stood the test." That promise stimulates and encourages perseverance in us.
And so as we grow in the Christian life, we move from innocent, infant faith, yet untried, to faith that is tested and found true, to a confidence in God that enables us to be "more than victors" (Romans 8:37) and laugh with joy at our trials, knowing that God's love for us endures, and that we look forward to a crown of life. This crown is not a reward for extra service, above and beyond the call of duty. It is the crown that consists of eternal life itself. We have that life now; we look forward to the words at the end of our journey, "Well done, good and faithful servant, enter into the joy of your Lord," the joy of life in his immediate presence forever.
The Nature of Temptations (1:13-15)
We have examined the value of trials. Now let's consider the nature of those trials.
When we get into trouble, it seems like two questions tumble out of our mouths: "What did I ever do to deserve this?" and "Why is God doing this to me?" God allows evil in the world -- that's part of him allowing us our free will. Did God create evil? No. He created the possibility for evil, but that is not the same as creating evil. Let's rephrase that statement. Does God create injustice and unrighteousness? Of course not! He stands diametrically opposed to injustice and unrighteousness, to evil of all kinds.
James applies this by asserting that God does not tempt (peirazō ) us with evil in order to see if we will fall. It is with this negative sense of "to tempt with evil" that James asserts, "no one should say, 'God is tempting (peirazō ) me.' " In the same way, Jesus taught his disciples to pray, "Lead us not into temptation (peirasmos), but deliver us from evil" (Matthew 6:13). God tests us to strengthen and confirm us in our faith, but the evil in our struggles doesn't come from God -- he can't be tempted by evil and never tempts with evil himself.
Evil Inside (v. 14): The source of the evil is something inside us. "Each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed" (1:14). We don't like this sort of teaching, of course. We want to believe that man is basically good and that evil is an aberration, not inherent in man. But the Bible seems to indicate the opposite.
"And God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually." (Genesis 6:5)
"The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?" (Jeremiah 17:9, KJV)
"For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man 'unclean'; but eating with unwashed hands does not make him 'unclean.' " (Matthew 15:19-20)
"... We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin. As it is written: 'There is no one righteous, not even one....' " (Romans 3:9-10, quoting Psalm 14:3)
These verses and others are at the root of what is known as the doctrine of original sin. As St. Augustine expressed it, all men inherit natural corruption from Adam. God created man in his own image (Genesis 1:27) and declared his creation "very good." But Adam and Eve sinned, and they and their offspring "fell" from the original goodness in which God created them. Only Jesus was without sin (Hebrews 4:15). Only he could say, "... The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me" (John 14:30, KJV). Our sins create "footholds" for the devil (Ephesians 4:27), but in Christ there was no foothold of the evil one. Only a single-minded love for his Father.
The Inner Battle
Though there are many evidences of God's good creation, yet this fallenness or depravity extends to every part of man's nature. When we receive Christ as Savior and Lord, there is a desire for God in the inner person, but at the same time a war is raging within us. St. Paul wrote, "For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do -- this I keep on doing" (Romans 7:19).
It is the life of the Spirit within us that delivers us from the power of the sin within us (Romans 8:1-17). But this is a gradual process, called in theological terms, "sanctification."
