I thought I got it that James says we're living for our self. Or rather, I guess I thought he was saying YOU'RE living for your self. It took me another time through the book to see that he was saying I am living for MY self.
And even though I asked the question, "Is there a different between selfish and self?" I did not understand it. If I want something and you want something, and I do what I want instead, that's selfish, right? But somehow that doesn't seem reasonable. If I do what you want, doesn't that make you selfish? And why should you always get what you want? It's easy to see WHY James isn't going that direction with his teaching.
He sets self in opposition to God! If I want something, but God wants something.... well of course what He wants should happen. Getting that less than perfect and often annoying middle man out of the picture makes it much more clear.
This is an entirely different thing than being selfish. The question is whether you are living for self. I KNOW I said that when we were studying chapter 4 but I didn't get it.
God's been after me though. Fighting and quarreling come from wanting your own way, James says. Well, I've done enough fighting and quarreling that I finally started to consider whether having things my way was really that important to me. Maybe not. Maybe a lot of stuff I thought was important wasn't. Maybe I was just in the habit of living for my Self.
James says we are can't be both friend of God and friend of the world, logos, the world system. John tells us what that is; we talked about it before. John 2:15.. "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world-the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life--comes not from the Father but from the world."
James agrees with John. Worldly wisdom is characterized by envy and selfish ambition. It is in direct contrast to heavenly wisdom, which is FIRST OF ALL PURE.... undivided in it's submission to God. Then, after that focus is determined, the character that flows out of the "fountain" is peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere.
You know, I think I'd rather live that life than the fighting and quarreling one.
I had a chance to share some of this with someone yesterday and I was well aware my husband was listening while I was speaking. It's easy to talk about it. He lives with me. I had to ask him if he could see that I was getting it.
He said he could see a difference. "Night and Day" he said. 😢
Wednesday, May 24, 2017
Friday, May 19, 2017
Theme: submission to the will of God
I'll only write about one more theme that clearly runs through the book of James. We saw it come to a head in chapter four with the clear command, submit to God. Yet the very essence of the book might be submission to the will of God.
The very first reference is in 1:4. "Let perseverance finish it's work." We focus on the end of that verse as part of the joy of going through a trial; an eye on the prize type of thing. Yet we need to submit to it. We need to let God do the work in us. This becomes a strong theme throughout the book. Verses 5,6 say ask God for wisdom... isn't that [when done rightly] asking to see his will?
1:21 says in humility [submission to the will of God] receive the Word, and the next verse says to do what it says.
Chapter 2:12 says speak and act as those who will be judged by the law of liberty... giving God the right to judge. Later 4:12 will remind us there is only one judge; not us.
3:13 and 17 speaks of deeds done in humility that comes from wisdom, wisdom that only comes from heaven. Submission to the superior knowledge and plan of God.
4:4-6 makes us chose between the world and God: which path will we take? Doesn't that involve submission to Him. In fact 4:7 [again] says it right out. "Submit yourselves, then, to God."
Continuing in chapter 4:10, humble yourself. 4:15, instead we should say, if it's the Lord's will....
Chapter 5: 7,8 wait. What does wait mean if not to let God do what He is going to do? In fact, it says wait until the Lord's coming. He IS doing something. He's coming to make it right. The examples James gives are the epitome of submission. The prophets; submitting to God's will in seemingly ridiculous ways: laying on one side for so many days then the other side so many days.. marrying an unreformed prostitute, buying a field days before the destruction of Jerusalem. God said: they did.
The other example is Job. "The Lord gives. The Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord." Again, the perfect example of someone who was willing to let God do whatever He wanted.
I wonder how much peace there would be in that? A perfect belief that whatever God is doing is perfect. A wholehearted trust His will is best. Wouldn't that be the perfect attitude to have in this context, especially, of going through trials. It would be the perfect attitude to have every day! Wow. This requires some examination.
The very first reference is in 1:4. "Let perseverance finish it's work." We focus on the end of that verse as part of the joy of going through a trial; an eye on the prize type of thing. Yet we need to submit to it. We need to let God do the work in us. This becomes a strong theme throughout the book. Verses 5,6 say ask God for wisdom... isn't that [when done rightly] asking to see his will?
1:21 says in humility [submission to the will of God] receive the Word, and the next verse says to do what it says.
Chapter 2:12 says speak and act as those who will be judged by the law of liberty... giving God the right to judge. Later 4:12 will remind us there is only one judge; not us.
3:13 and 17 speaks of deeds done in humility that comes from wisdom, wisdom that only comes from heaven. Submission to the superior knowledge and plan of God.
4:4-6 makes us chose between the world and God: which path will we take? Doesn't that involve submission to Him. In fact 4:7 [again] says it right out. "Submit yourselves, then, to God."
Continuing in chapter 4:10, humble yourself. 4:15, instead we should say, if it's the Lord's will....
Chapter 5: 7,8 wait. What does wait mean if not to let God do what He is going to do? In fact, it says wait until the Lord's coming. He IS doing something. He's coming to make it right. The examples James gives are the epitome of submission. The prophets; submitting to God's will in seemingly ridiculous ways: laying on one side for so many days then the other side so many days.. marrying an unreformed prostitute, buying a field days before the destruction of Jerusalem. God said: they did.
The other example is Job. "The Lord gives. The Lord takes away. Blessed be the name of the Lord." Again, the perfect example of someone who was willing to let God do whatever He wanted.
I wonder how much peace there would be in that? A perfect belief that whatever God is doing is perfect. A wholehearted trust His will is best. Wouldn't that be the perfect attitude to have in this context, especially, of going through trials. It would be the perfect attitude to have every day! Wow. This requires some examination.
So what IS the solution? [Clean that fountain at it's source.]
I left us hanging at the end of chapter 3, promising more discussion of self and a solution in chapter 4..... then I never wrote about it. Yet chapter 4 is clearly where the book of James comes to its climax.
Reviewing chapter three, we bemoaned the fact that clearly blessing and cursing CAN both come out of our mouths. James says it can't, but we know all too well....... James' illustrations lead us to consider the source, our unbridled mouth being just a symptom of a polluted source.
It becomes clear where he's going immediately in verse 1 of chapter 4. "What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you?" What is the source? The answer he gives is, your desires. What you want is off kilter.
But what you want is also so important that you fight and quarrel [and kill!] to get it. And it took me lots of rereading the passage to understand it isn't the thing that you want James is talking about, it's the self focus of wanting what you want.
Verse 3, speaking of prayer, says even when you ask God you ask with the wrong motives. Motives isn't quite the right word and it narrows our thinking a little too finely. We examine our motives. We think about why we are asking. Not wrong, but not quite right. The verse actually just says we ask wrongly, defined by "we ask for ourselves" or "to secure their own enjoyment ". [linguistic key]
What actually makes that clear is verse 4. "You adulterous people!" James exclaims. We are so used to thinking we have a right to what we want. Our society is based on pursuing what we want. James draws a line in the sand. What you want/what God wants: which will it be. He reinforces the idea with the next line; "anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." Line in the sand. Verse five brings it home. Why do you think scripture refers to God as a jealous God?
"But he gives us more grace." [verse 6] Whew. That was a little frightening. Keep that idea of the line in the sand as you read the beautiful poetry of verses 6-10.
God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.
Submit yourselves then to God.
Resist the Devil and he will flee from you.
Come near to God and He will come near to you.
Wash your hands, you sinners.
Purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Grieve
Mourn
Wail.
Change your laughter to mourning.
Change your joy to gloom.
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.
Surely that is a poem or saying that was familiar to James' readers. It is written with too much symmetry to be anything else. And in this context it is the perfect poem to reach for. The scriptural use of the word humble always has to do with agenda. It asks, whose agenda are you following? Pride is following your own agenda. Humility is following God's agenda. Think about the famous Philippians 2 passage about Jesus' humility. He was obedient, even to death. His only passion was the will of God. That's what James calls pure, not double-minded. He would call that faithful, not adulterous. He calls it humble, not proud.
So going back to why we don't get what we want when we pray... we ask wrongly, for ourselves and our own enjoyment. Wow. That makes you back up and tackle the whole issue of prayer again doesn't it? Surely effective prayer at this point will begin with a lot of repentance.
Reviewing chapter three, we bemoaned the fact that clearly blessing and cursing CAN both come out of our mouths. James says it can't, but we know all too well....... James' illustrations lead us to consider the source, our unbridled mouth being just a symptom of a polluted source.
It becomes clear where he's going immediately in verse 1 of chapter 4. "What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don't they come from your desires that battle within you?" What is the source? The answer he gives is, your desires. What you want is off kilter.
But what you want is also so important that you fight and quarrel [and kill!] to get it. And it took me lots of rereading the passage to understand it isn't the thing that you want James is talking about, it's the self focus of wanting what you want.
Verse 3, speaking of prayer, says even when you ask God you ask with the wrong motives. Motives isn't quite the right word and it narrows our thinking a little too finely. We examine our motives. We think about why we are asking. Not wrong, but not quite right. The verse actually just says we ask wrongly, defined by "we ask for ourselves" or "to secure their own enjoyment ". [linguistic key]
What actually makes that clear is verse 4. "You adulterous people!" James exclaims. We are so used to thinking we have a right to what we want. Our society is based on pursuing what we want. James draws a line in the sand. What you want/what God wants: which will it be. He reinforces the idea with the next line; "anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." Line in the sand. Verse five brings it home. Why do you think scripture refers to God as a jealous God?
"But he gives us more grace." [verse 6] Whew. That was a little frightening. Keep that idea of the line in the sand as you read the beautiful poetry of verses 6-10.
God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.
Submit yourselves then to God.
Resist the Devil and he will flee from you.
Come near to God and He will come near to you.
Wash your hands, you sinners.
Purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Grieve
Mourn
Wail.
Change your laughter to mourning.
Change your joy to gloom.
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and He will lift you up.
Surely that is a poem or saying that was familiar to James' readers. It is written with too much symmetry to be anything else. And in this context it is the perfect poem to reach for. The scriptural use of the word humble always has to do with agenda. It asks, whose agenda are you following? Pride is following your own agenda. Humility is following God's agenda. Think about the famous Philippians 2 passage about Jesus' humility. He was obedient, even to death. His only passion was the will of God. That's what James calls pure, not double-minded. He would call that faithful, not adulterous. He calls it humble, not proud.
So going back to why we don't get what we want when we pray... we ask wrongly, for ourselves and our own enjoyment. Wow. That makes you back up and tackle the whole issue of prayer again doesn't it? Surely effective prayer at this point will begin with a lot of repentance.
Wednesday, May 17, 2017
Theme: Double-minded
One of
our key words in the book of James was clearly “double-minded”. We saw it many
times. In fact, when I made a list, not just of the word but the idea, I was
astounded. I’m not going to write about it but just give you references. It’s
worth another run through the book to look at them specific to defining what
James means when he talks about it.
I’ve,
tragically, switched to NASB in the last two weeks which makes a mess of my NIV
notations, but the first use of the word in 1:6 means divided; to be at
variance with one’s self. NASB uses the word doubt which didn't convey that
idea to me nearly as well as "double-minded". Its opposite is often “pure” or the idea
of single mindedness. James may illustrate it by opposites that can’t co-exist,
e.g. earthly wisdom, heavenly wisdom, or by apparent integration, as in faith
and works agreeing.
Here’s
a list if you want to study it for yourself.
1:6,
1:8, 1:22, 1:25, 1:27
2:10,
2:22
3:10,
3:11, 3:12, 3:13, 3:15, 3:17,
4:3,
4:5, 4:6, 4:7-10, 4:11
5:10,
5:11, 5:15
It took
me one and a half times through the book to get it clear in my own mind. That’s
why I made this list, in order to try to get what was so important. And it
surely is one of the most important ideas in the book. The biggest idea,
submission to God, cannot be practiced from a place of double mindedness.
Chapter 5 Theme: Honesty
Although the last two paragraphs of James are often taught
as detailed info about prayer, I think that, as valid as that info is, the real
value in the passage is to back up and look at the big picture. I think James
is talking about living honestly in community.
Is anyone
suffering? Let him pray.
Is anyone
cheerful? Let him sing praises.
Now there are
passages, our opening one in James for example, that exhort us to sing joyfully
while suffering. This passage does not. It is straightforward. Suffering…pray.
Cheerful…praise. Be honest about where you are, first of all with God. In your
communication with God, if you’re suffering, tell Him. If you’re cheerful, tell
Him. No matter where you are in your relationship with God, communicate from
that place. Be real.
We have actually
had this theme of honesty throughout the book.
1:22; But prove yourselves doers of
the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.
1:26; If anyone
thinks himself to be religious and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives
his own heart; this man’s religion is worthless.
2:14;
What use is it, my brethren, if a man says he has faith but he has no
works? [The man is making a claim to faith; it may be true or it may be false.
Without the works to prove it, the claim remains unsubstantiated. Maybe this is
not quite the same as deceit, but functionally it is very close.]
3:14;
But if you have bitter jealousy and
selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the
truth.
4:14; [Even though you have made detailed plans for
your life, ] you don’t even know what your life will be like tomorrow. [This is
the perfect example of selfish ambition lying against the truth.]
This
deceit shows up in our claim to faith when we only practice religion. It is our
profession of obedience to the word when we don’t look at the Bible closely
enough to see what it says. It is the appearance of heavenly wisdom when we
live by earthly wisdom. It is a fake submission to God while we continue to promote
self. James is dead against it. Yet, he understands. We are easily deceived!
Earthly wisdom is natural and demonic. It is exactly the way any human acts
left to his own devices, especially when Satan still has influence in our
lives. But it will destroy us.
So I
believe this final emphasis in the book is begging us in short, sweet, right to
the point sentences… be honest when you come to God. And be honest when you
come together.
If
you’re sick, call for the elders to pray over you. Don’t pretend all is well.
Don’t believe you can deal with it on your own. What if there is a sin issue?
Confess your sins to one another. Pray for one another. This is a condition of
our survival. This is what endurance looks like. Honest dependence on God.
Honest dependence on each other.
When we’ve messed up, we
want to hide. We experienced this conflict when we learned Aaron was going to
have a baby. We were distressed. We were embarrassed. We were unsure of the
future. And we just blurted it all out. We cried. We apologized. We worried. We
needed the church to come around us. This was not a time to be proud. This was
a time to be honest with both God and the brethren.
There
was another family in the church that just disappeared. No one ever saw them
again. No one knew if they changed churches or what they did. Later we found
out their daughter had become pregnant. They didn’t want anyone to know. I can
understand that! But I wonder how they survived that stressful time on their
own. I wonder IF they survived. I seriously didn’t ever see them again.
So
James finishes the book with an exhortation to honesty and an encouragement for
us to follow in his example. “My brethren”… James is so direct and so straight
forward and so black and white, but how often he has softened the blow with
this endearment…”My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth, and one
turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his
way will save his soul from death, and will cover a multitude of sins.”
I’ve debated
for 6 months now whether this might be the purpose statement for the book of
James. I guess I don’t really believe that it is. If you remember the
distinction we made reason the book was written and the purpose; the thing the
author wanted to say.
James
is clearly worried these dear, dear brothers are straying from the truth. He’s
desperate to turn them back. As Angela said during the winter bible study,
maybe he’s even “ticked!” He knows the errors in their thinking will risk their
souls, subject them to defeat in sin and maybe even result in their death. They
have to grasp the truth and hold it honestly in the forefront of their life and
relationships. Nero is coming.
That
may be the reason James wrote the book. But the thing he wants to say, his
purpose, is to patiently spell out those ways of thinking that they need to
survive. Right thinking honestly applied will allow them and us to encounter
any trial, various trials… a lifetime of trials because we know we aren’t in
heaven yet…. With joy…….
Thursday, May 4, 2017
Clean that fountain at it's source
This week we studied James 3. James once again gives us very clear illustrations that communicate exactly what he means. He is talking about our tongues and says we both bless God and curse people with our words. "This should not be." He isn't saying, don't do this, he's saying, this should be an impossibility.
The illustration? A fountain can't shoot out both clean and foul water. A grapevine can't produce olives. An olive tree can't produce figs. All of these things can only produce what they are.
Which makes the real question about the source of the things that come out of us. Are we followers of Christ? Are we redeemed? Are we new creatures? Then the things that come out of us should be Christ.
We find ourselves drawn into James' never ending discussion about single mindedness. He nails that down in verses 13-18. "Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life." How logical is that? A good person should live a good life. A good life should flow out of a person redeemed by God and indwelt by the spirit. Once again James moves from an illustration of the truth to the opposite of the truth he wants us to see. [And we're nearly to the crux of the argument here... chapter 4 will take us to its conclusion.]
The opposite of Heavenly wisdom is earthly wisdom. Bitterness and selfish-ambition in our hearts. Earthly. Unspiritual. Demonic! Where you find envy and (again) selfish ambition, you find disorder and every evil practice. [vs. 16] How much of the trouble we find ourselves in is the result of a) wanting what someone else has, or b) just plain wanting our own way.
I've been so convicted of this during my study of James that I've looked back and wondered whether I've ever followed God at all! Have I just had my own ideas of what God wanted and pursued those... my own ideas... believing myself to be following God? Self is a persistent master. James has clearly brought home that truth.
Opposites. Earthly wisdom. Heavenly wisdom. First of all, as Betty pointed out, heavenly wisdom is pure. Nothing double-minded here. Pure devotion to God is where godliness starts. It is as impossible to be devoted to both God and Self as it is for a fountain to produce both clear and polluted water. As impossible as a plant producing a different fruit than what it is. Impossible.
So why do I find it so very possible? The sneaky self, posing as godliness, is always there. What did Sue say about the lie... oh, verse14. "If you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth." Don't say you're devoted to God! Don't boast about what great things you've accomplished for him! Not when you've only been trying to get what other people have and what you want most. Devotion to God can only be single minded. He does not share.
Double-mindedness tries to have it both ways. It tries to follow God without giving up following self. One foot in both camps. As impossible as a fig tree growing olives.
Well, as I said, this discussion continues in Chapter 4. So we will continue it next week. "What is the source......" [4:1] and finally, what is the solution.
The illustration? A fountain can't shoot out both clean and foul water. A grapevine can't produce olives. An olive tree can't produce figs. All of these things can only produce what they are.
Which makes the real question about the source of the things that come out of us. Are we followers of Christ? Are we redeemed? Are we new creatures? Then the things that come out of us should be Christ.
We find ourselves drawn into James' never ending discussion about single mindedness. He nails that down in verses 13-18. "Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life." How logical is that? A good person should live a good life. A good life should flow out of a person redeemed by God and indwelt by the spirit. Once again James moves from an illustration of the truth to the opposite of the truth he wants us to see. [And we're nearly to the crux of the argument here... chapter 4 will take us to its conclusion.]
The opposite of Heavenly wisdom is earthly wisdom. Bitterness and selfish-ambition in our hearts. Earthly. Unspiritual. Demonic! Where you find envy and (again) selfish ambition, you find disorder and every evil practice. [vs. 16] How much of the trouble we find ourselves in is the result of a) wanting what someone else has, or b) just plain wanting our own way.
I've been so convicted of this during my study of James that I've looked back and wondered whether I've ever followed God at all! Have I just had my own ideas of what God wanted and pursued those... my own ideas... believing myself to be following God? Self is a persistent master. James has clearly brought home that truth.
Opposites. Earthly wisdom. Heavenly wisdom. First of all, as Betty pointed out, heavenly wisdom is pure. Nothing double-minded here. Pure devotion to God is where godliness starts. It is as impossible to be devoted to both God and Self as it is for a fountain to produce both clear and polluted water. As impossible as a plant producing a different fruit than what it is. Impossible.
So why do I find it so very possible? The sneaky self, posing as godliness, is always there. What did Sue say about the lie... oh, verse14. "If you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth." Don't say you're devoted to God! Don't boast about what great things you've accomplished for him! Not when you've only been trying to get what other people have and what you want most. Devotion to God can only be single minded. He does not share.
Double-mindedness tries to have it both ways. It tries to follow God without giving up following self. One foot in both camps. As impossible as a fig tree growing olives.
Well, as I said, this discussion continues in Chapter 4. So we will continue it next week. "What is the source......" [4:1] and finally, what is the solution.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)