sermon

Seeking Wisdom in Difficult Days A Study of James Deo Volente James 4:11-17

Seeking Wisdom in Difficult Days

A Study of James

Deo Volente

James 4:11-17

Introduction

Mathias Rust had clocked up only 50 hours of flying time before commencing his journey that took in the Shetland and Faroe Islands, Iceland, Bergen and Helsinki before flying to Moscow.

Rust’s flight was risky. Just five years earlier a South Korean commercial plane had been shot down after it strayed into Soviet airspace. Rust himself was tracked by three separate surface-to-air missile units and a total of four fighter planes were sent to monitor him, but none of them were given permission to attack.

Rust approached Moscow in the early evening, and after passing the “Ring of Steel” anti-aircraft defenses continued towards the city center. Abandoning his idea of landing in the Kremlin, he instead touched down on a bridge next to St Basil’s Cathedral and taxied into Red Square. Within two hours he had been arrested. He was sentenced to four years in a labor camp for violating international flight rules and illegally entering the Soviet Union, but was released after serving 14 months in jail.

In a 2007 interview, Rust claimed that he hoped his flight would build an ‘imaginary bridge’ between east and west. What it actually did was massively damage the reputation of the Soviet military for failing to stop him. This in turn led to the largest dismissal of Soviet military personnel since Stalin’s purges, and allowed Gorbachev to push ahead with his reforms.

In more recent news there was a Facebook encouraging people to raid area 51 in Nevada. Over a million people responded saying that they were joining the effort – “they can’t stop all of us.”

In the first part of James chapter 4 he is writing to show where fighting and quarreling comes from in the church; it is our own worldy passions and desires that blind us to the consequences of our hurtful actions that we cause in our own efforts to have what we want (power, prestige, position).

Then James gives 10 commands that we are to do in order to get right with the Lord again (humble ourselves, resist the devil, etc.) which leads to God lifting us up and placing us where He wants us to be, not where our sinful hearts wants to be. In other words, we were wanting to place ourselves in positions, but we should allow God to be the one that exalts us.

James then goes on to discuss two other places we should not place ourselves 1) in place of judgment over other people, and 2) that of providence of our lives.

Prayer

Placing Yourself As the Judge of Others (vv. 11-12)

11 Do not speak evil against one another, brothers.[1] 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?

“Do not speak evil against one another, brothers”[2] – (lit. to speak down on) “means to talk against a person in his absence; it indicates speaking about the individual in a malicious way in order to influence the opinion of others against him.”[3] Whether its true or not is not the point – it is the unspoken person’s intent to be malicious.

The law was clear that, as a follower of God, one was not supposed to speak evil against anyone, especially “brothers” in the faith. Leviticus 19:16-18 “You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not stand up against the life of your neighbor: I am the LORD. 17 “You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. 18 You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.” So when someone “speaks against a fellow-believer, therefore, he is in fact not only setting himself up as a judge of his brother, but also of the law.”[4]

The laws job is to show whether or not a person is in right standing with God (or not), therefore when a person does it, instead of letting the Word of God do it – then you are placing yourself over the Word of God, the law, and by putting yourself over the Word of God, you are saying that it is not adequate to do its job, so I am going to help it out.

This was the same trap set by Satan for Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. The trap is to get man to think he is in a better position to determine what is right and wrong for his life (or his brother’s life) – instead of his Creator; Genesis 3:6 “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.”

Invictus BY WILLIAM ERNEST HENLEY

Out of the night that covers me,

Black as the pit from pole to pole,

I thank whatever gods may be

For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance

I have not winced nor cried aloud.

Under the bludgeonings of chance

My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears

Looms but the Horror of the shade,

And yet the menace of the years

Finds and shall find me unafraid.

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.

If you are a Christian, you are not the master of your fate, God is. If you are a person of faith, then you are not the captain of your soul, Christ is. If you are the captain, then you are in grave danger. Who is the captain of your soul?

Among religious people there is the constant temptation to place oneself above another person. Luke 18:9-14 “He [Jesus] also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”

“In the pursuit of goodness beware lest you assume the role of the self-righteous judge.”

Besides sinning by judging others, you are actually hurting yourself by putting yourself in a place you should not be. Ephesians 4:31-32 “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Your life will be better, your relationships will be better, when you let God be God, and you focus on being kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving.

The dogmatic, intolerant, and bigot all say they are standing for some higher good, but the truth is that they see themselves as being better and therefore judge of another person, or group of persons.

James says by doing this you are saying you are better or higher than God’s law because you are acting as their judge – but there is only one judge of all of humanity and you are not that person. “The cruelty of the self-righteous is most terrible because it is dressed in the garb of doing good.” [5]

Romans 14:10-11 “Why do you pass judgment on your brother? Or you, why do you despise your brother? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God; 11 for it is written, “As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me, and every tongue shall confess to God.” There is a place where judgement will take place, the “judgement seat of God” but you and I will not be sitting in that seat, we will be bowing before the throne thinking about our lives.

There is a difference between judging a brother and discerning their behavior as being unbiblical or undesirable for you and your family. Ex. Boy picking up your daughter for a date. Then the young man says, Matthew 7:1 “Judge not, that you be not judged.”

Planning Your Life Without the Lord (vv. 13-17)

13 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”— 14 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. 15 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. 17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.

In verse 13 James is saying, that there are business owners who are laying out their business plan, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit” We get the word emporium from this type of business plan.

“There is no harm in planning to make money, or in traveling for that purpose. The harm lies in the complete ignoring of God in all their plans.”[6] You are making plans for tomorrow, but you don’t know anything about tomorrow.

Not only are we limited in our knowledge of the future, our very being is temporal and finite “you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” God on the other hand is omnipotent and eternal. He knows everything, and He has always existed.

James has already told us that “if we draw near to God, then He will draw near to us.” And if we “humble yourselves before Him, then he will exalt you.” James’ command is that in all of our life’s plans (personal or business) we should be guided by God who knows everything and is eternal in His nature – our abilities are limited by our fragility, lack of knowledge, and the time we are on this planet. Our plans “offer only false hope and false confidence.”

By saying, ““If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” we are acknowledging that we are submitting the Lord’s will first, and His will for our lives. It does not mean that we should repeat this phrase every time we discuss planning and the future, but instead seek our the Lord’s will and see if it matches what we desire to do.

The phrase “If the Lord wills” was a play on the pagan Hellenistic phrase, “if the gods will”[7] – It is where James is playing with a very common worldly phrase to make the point that even the world believe that their gods influence their actions and decisions – don’t you think that we who believe in the one true God, should believe that as well and shouldn’t that belief influence our business and life planning?

“So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” “Here sin is defined negatively. Not only is it sinful to do and say things that are wrong (sins of commission), but it is equally sinful to refuse to do what is right.” It is when we do not do that which has been commanded (sin of omission).[8]

This also refers to the refusal to relate faith to all of life. There should be no separation between sacred and secular in the life of the Christian. Our seeking after and following Christ is vital in every factor and every decision of our lives. If we don’t do this it is a sin for us.

Matthew 4:1-4 “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 And after fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3 And the tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.” 4 But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”

The farmer plants the crop, gathers the grain, mills the grain, adds oil and leaven, makes the bread, and eats the bread – then the next day plants the crop, gathers the grain, mills the grain, adds oil and leaven, makes the bread, and eats the bread, etc. To live this way is to survive – this “go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”

Then doing this again and again with no direction from the Lord, having no purpose but to trade and make a profit is pointless. Jesus says that man must have bread, but it is “every word that comes from the mouth of God” that gives the work of making bread purpose and meaning. So it is not just a sin against God to leave Him out of the direction of our lives, it is a sin against ourselves because this way of living destroys us.

How do we face the future/life when the outcome is uncertain? James tells us to trust God, and not our humans plans. Jesus uses the building of a house as plans for the future. Matthew 7:24 “Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like aa wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. 26 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like aa foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.”

God must be in charge of the planning, His glory in our lives is the ultimate of these plans, not our glory, power, or prestige. And ultimately there are three ways of facing the future:

1) recognize that life is fleeting so seize the most while you can; carpe diem, “gather ye rosebuds while ye may.” “let us eat, drink, and be merry for tomorrow we die.” Get the most while you can because this all there is. (Hedonism)

2) recognizing that life is fleeting, avoidance of all that would potentially bring us pain, life is what brings us pain so avoid relationships, love, meaningful relationships, causes, and don’t give yourself to something that is meaningless and ultimately painful. Wall yourself up with brinks, so that no one gets in. (The Stoic)

3) recognizing that life is fleeting, “a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes” There is a God, and we are linked to the eternal. If we live this life, all the relationships with those around us have value, and significance.[9] (The Christian)

___________________________________

[1] This is in the present durative indicating that some of them had been doing precisely this thing (Robertson, 156).

[2] “The New Testament Greek word katalaleo is translated “back-biter,” and it means one who speaks against another.” (Strauss, 169).

[3] Clifton J. Allen, Gen. Ed., The Broadman Bible Commentary, Volume 12 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Publishing, 1972) 129.

[4] Herbert F. Stevenson, James Speaks For Today (Westwood, New Jersey; Fleming H. Revell Company, 1966) 81.

[5] Buttrick, 59.

[6] A. T. Robertson, Studies in the Epistle of James (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1959) 160.

[7] George Arthur Buttrick, Gen. Ed., The Interpreter’s Bible Study, Volume 12 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1957) 60.

[8] Lehman Strauss, James Your Brother (Neptune, New Jersey; Loizeaux Brothers, 1980) 181.

[9] Buttrick, 60.

Seeking Wisdom in Difficult Days A Study of James The Power of A Life Lived With Wisdom James 3:13-18

Seeking Wisdom in Difficult Days

A Study of James

The Power of A Life Lived With Wisdom

James 3:13-18

Introduction

Solomon and his wisdom

Prayer

The Influence of a Wise Person (v. 13)

Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.

James transitions from the power of our words in James 3:1-12, and now speaks to the powerful example of life lived with wisdom. James asks the question, “Who is wise amongst you?” If you are seeking to hold an office within the church and are doing out of selfish ambition and pride, he is going to call you out. James’ answer to this question will expose them.

If you are truly seeking wisdom, then the question becomes an invitation – you have a desire in your heart – so you set out to attain that aspiration. What that desire is and how you obtain it reveals if you are a wise person. So before we go any further, we have to ask, “Do you really want to be wise?”[1]

So with the question, “Who is wise and understanding among you?” Job asks a similar question “But where shall wisdom be found? And where is the place of understanding?” (Job 28:12) and Proverbs 4:7 says it again, “The beginning of wisdom is this: Get wisdom, and whatever you get, get insight.”[2] This is the only time these words are used together in the New Testament – so they point back to their use again and again in the Old Testament.

To be wise according to Clement of Alexandria is “the understanding of things human and divine, and their causes.” It implies thoughtfulness, penetration, grasp of the relations of things, and the right use of knowledge for the highest ends.

The second word (understanding) is used of a skilled person who has gained technical knowledge of a subject. “It implies personal acquaintance and experience, not merely abstract knowledge or intellectual apprehension of the theory of a thing.”[3] It is book learning and applied experience.

James is still going after teachers who are full of empty words and worthless religion. Not only do the words of the teacher (James 3:1-12) have a great impact, so does the life they live. “To be endued with the knowledge of God’s Word is commendable, but such knowledge must be practical in our daily lives; else we are not wise.”[4]

Elders and Teachers were primarily examples, and secondarily teachers. in 1 Timothy and Titus the requirements to hold office are outlined focusing on their character and the ability to teach is one in a list of qualifications.[5]

How do you determine if a person is wise and has understanding among you? You can hear it in their words and you can see it in their lives. “For James, the spiritual and ethical character of the leaders in the church was primary. The status of an official would not compensate for moral defects.”[6] To be a preacher is not enough, he must practice what he preaches.

Lincoln said, “a man may fool all the people part of the time, and some of the people all the time, but not all the people all the time.” People have a right to hold the preacher, teacher, or leader to the standard of the gospel – here is no room for hypocrisy.

“By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.” James also says that it’s not just about words and deeds, but gentleness and modesty you exhibit verses “arrogance and passion.”[7] So a person may be doing the work of God, but they are going about it in a sinful manner.

“The problem James is addressing, then, is not that there are teachers spreading false doctrine (as would be the concern in Paul’s letters). James is addressing the problem of arrogance, which can be present even when the correct doctrine is being taught.”[8]

The commentator George Sulac said, “I can be correct in my doctrine down to the most esoteric details; I can attain a consistency in my orthodoxy which surpasses others’; I can gain a reputation for my thorough grasp of theology and be regarded as a protector of the faith; and my teaching may still be earthly, unspiritual, of the devil, resulting in disorder and every evil practice by stirring up suspicion, slander, distrust and contention within the Christian community.”[9]

We are to go about the work of God “in the meekness of wisdom” – We typically don’t like the word meek because in our day it tends to hold the meaning of weak. But when James uses the word he wants us to think of humility. We are to live at peace with others, our deeds that we do resulting from a following of Christ are to be done in humility. The opposite of humility is “jealousy and selfish ambition.”

There are two ways of life, shown as two types of wisdom, and they are shown in contrast to each other. The meekness of wisdom, or wisdom from above compared to “demonic or earthly wisdom.”[10] “the man who is genuinely wise remembers his moral responsibilities toward others.”[11]

Wisdom From Below (vv. 14-16)

14 But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. 15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.

The first time the word “wise” is used in the Bile it is in connection with Satan tempting Eve. He directed her attention to the forbidden fruit in Genesis 3:6 “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate . . .” Satan has always, since the beginning, offered a false wisdom.[12]

If one follows the wisdom from below, then this wisdom is expressed in “jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts” jealousy is “a devotion to one’s position coupled with an insensitivity toward the views of others.”

Selfish ambition “refers to using any means to support one’s cause or program; it involves pride and personal ambition which will go to any length to be fulfilled.”[13] Aristotle uses the word (self-ambition) to mean, “the self-seeking pursuit of political power by unjust means.”[14]

“unspiritual” is drawn from Genesis 2:7 where God breathed the breath of life into Adam, and he becomes a living psyche. There is the appearance of life, but not the presence of the spirit of God in the person (or at least their argument). James is saying that a person may argue for what they say is right, but in the end they are being, “self-righteous, natural, base, and they have an unspiritual desire for personal status and prestige.”[15]

Whenever people are pushing for their opinion, combined with an uncaring attitude toward others, and wanting to succeed, no matter what then, “there will be disorder and every vile practice.” The results of wisdom from below is unrest and strife. The word for evil here in the original Greek carries the idea of something being blown around by the wind and being worthless. The end result are actions that have no worth.

This wisdom from below has not added to the church, instead it has caused the church to question its direction, and its purpose. When the church doesn’t know where its going, or why it exists, disorder and all types of vile practices” rise to the surface.

This type of wisdom is described as “earthly, unspiritual, demonic.” This is man’s condition apart from God, unregenerate. 1 Corinthians 2:14 “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.”

Again, we are looking at a person (specifically as leader) whose life is being expressed. Lived out in front of you – In their wisdom of life, there is jealousy, selfish ambition, uncaring, unspiritual, evil – this example should be abandoned and left behind. “It is wisdom such as that which demons have, not such as God gives (James 1:5)”[16]

Satan, when he was created is described in Ezekiel 28:12 “You were the signet of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty.” But pride came into his heart and his wisdom transitioned from being full of wisdom to a demonic wisdom, full of “bitter jealousy (of God) and selfish ambition” (he wanted to be in God’s place.)[17]

We also must be careful to discern between earthly knowledge and earthly wisdom. We all benefit from the knowledge of mankind[18] – medicine, science, exploration, technology, etc. but this is not wisdom. Wisdom is what we do with the knowledge. Mankind can unlock the secrets of the universe, but when he opens the door he doesn’t know what to do with it.

Paul gives two passages that help us see these two wisdoms Galatians 5:19-21 is the earthly wisdom list, and Galatians 2:22-23 is the list of the wisdom from above.

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.”[19]

Wisdom From Above (vv. 17-18)

17 But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. 18 And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

The wisdom that is from above is described in Galatians 5:22-23 as the Fruit of the Spirit, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control;”

James is careful in the order that he gives his list of wisdom from above. First it is pure, then it is peaceable – the leader who expresses wisdom from above does not sacrifice purity for the sake of peace. It is not a compromise on the godly standards so that we have peace – because peace without godly standard ultimately leads to destruction and chaos.

In fact, godly men may cause a disruption in the supposed peace because a sin needs to be addressed, or a compromise adjusted. These conversations are never fun, or peaceful.

Also, we live in a pragmatic day, here James urges us to do the right thing first (in purity) simply because it is the right thing to do. We don’t have to be able to see a benefit from a calling, only that it is what we are supposed to do.

How then do we have a “a harvest of righteousness”? This happens when the leaders and members of the church show wisdom from above and not that from below. James also says, “a harvest of righteousness is sown” Usually a harvest is gathered, but here James says the harvest is sown.

Whenever there is conflict in the church, ministries shut down. No real decisions are made, the church stops moving forward – it’s like a car that suddenly just turns off, and so you pull off the road. You are not going anywhere until the conflict is resolved. When those who teach, preach, or lead, use wisdom from above, there is peace, and in that peace comes “good fruits” and a “harvest of righteousness.”

Where there is peace righteousness can flourish.

In Matthew 5:9 the righteous are those that make peace, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” The result of living out wisdom from above is peace. When we live in godly wisdom, not only will we benefit, but the community around us will benefit by having peace. Righteousness thrives in peace, and dies in conflict. Proverbs 11:30 says, “The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life.”

“a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” Peace does not just happen in the passage James gives us; a farmer has to go gather the grain, prepare the soil, and make the effort to sow the seed (peace), In the Matthew 5 passage, those who are blessed are the makers of peace – making requires effort, it does not naturally happen, in fact it requires a supernatural effort to maintain the peace.

“The Christian life is a life of sowing and reaping. For that matter, every life is a life of sowing and reaping, and we reap what we sow. The Christian who obeys God’s wisdom sows righteousness, not sin; he sows peace, not war. The life we live enables the Lord to bring righteousness and peace into the lives of others.”

__________________________

[1] George M. Sulac, The IVP New Testament Commentary Series, James (Downers Grove, Illinois; Intervarsity Press, 1993) 132.

[2] A. T. Robertson, Studies in the Epistle of James (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1959) 125.

[3] Robertson, 126.

[4] Lehman Strauss, James Your Brother (Neptune, New Jersey; Loizeaux Brothers, 1980) 143.

[5] Peter H. Davids, New International Biblical Commentary, James (Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson, Publishers, 1989) 88.

[6] Clifton J. Allen, The Broadman Bible Commentary, Volume 12 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1972) 124.

[7] Robertson, 128.

[8] Sulac, 134.

[9] Ibid, 135.

[10] Allen, 125.

[11] George Arthur Buttrick, The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 12 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1957) 50.

[12] John Phillips, Exploring the Epistle of James (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Kregel Publications, 2004) 116.

[13] Allen, 125.

[14] David P. Nystrom, The NIV Application Commentary, James (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing House, 1997) 207.

[15] Nystrom, 208.

[16] Robertson, 132.

[17] Strauss, 144.

[18] Warren Wiershe, Be Mature, New Testament Commentary, James (Colorado Springs, Colorado; David C. Cook Publishing, 1978) 112.

[19] Hellenistic teachers of ethics and rhetoric made their pupils memorize lists of virtues or vices, to be used in moral guidance in learning good conduct and avoiding evil conduct. Buttrick, 50.

Seeking Wisdom in Difficult Days A Study of James The Powerful Little Troublemaker James 3:1-12

****Click here of another video I made regarding our words and why they are so important.

Seeking Wisdom in Difficult Days

A Study of James

The Powerful Little Troublemaker

James 3:1-12[1]

Introduction

In today’s society there is a lot of attention that is getting oriented toward speech. University professors, medical professionals, social workers, and many other professions, are having to be incredibly cautious in their identifying people according to their preferred gender orientation. (see graphic) There are micro aggressions, hate speech, and safe spaces where students feel the need to not be offended by conflicting ideas and opinions. So, what we as Christians say, and how we say it, is as important now as it has ever been.

James is writing to the church that has experienced persecution and has been forced to scatter into different cities away from Jerusalem. In earlier sections of James, he deals with things that were being corrosive to the local church and keeping it from being what God intends for it to be (not understanding trials and tribulations, worthless religion, partiality, a dead faith). Now James turns his attention to yet another topic that if not dealt with can cause much damage – our words.

In the previous verses, James gives “three examples of misused speech: (a) words that honor the rich and dishonor the poor, (2:3) (b) greeting a poor brother or sister without providing assistance (2:16), (c) claiming to have faith without works to show for it (2:18).[2] Those examples dealt with “empty words.”

In the first chapters of James he discusses that talk is cheap if that is all you have with regard to one’s faith – words or worthless is they are not backed by action. In chapter 3, he doesn’t want us think that we can then just say anything, our words actually do have a great impact on others.[3]

James gave us six pictures of the tongue: the bit, the rudder, fire, a poisonous animal, a fountain, and a fig tree. You can the put these six into three helpful categories.[4]

Prayer

Power to Direct: The Bit and Rudder (vv. 1-4)[5]

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. 4 Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs.

James mentions the tongue in every chapter of James[6], and in chapter three he expands the idea of word and their impact. Both the bit for the horse and the rudder for the ship are small things that control much larger things.

James has dealt with several issues that were cropping up in the diaspera church, and it now seems that it these teachers and their false teachings that were at the root of the problem. When we looked at James 2:1-12 and how Christians should not show partiality in the church, we looked at how in Roman society social movement was just about impossible.

So people would give toward building projects, public baths, art works, etc. But if you couldn’t do those things, then you could gain prestige and power by teaching in the church. So there were individuals who would assume to upon themselves to be teachers and would teach heretical and false teachings in an effort to have influence.

There was also a build in high respect in Judaism for their rabbinical teachers. So, there “seems to be some Christians who were seizing the opportunity to be called teacher (rabbi) and rushing into the office without a solemn consideration of the responsibilities.”[7] The Christian should not be so eager to teach that they overlook the responsibility.

1-4 begins with a rebuke of a teacher “Not many of you should become teachers” who should not be teaching, either because he is not qualified, or is saying things (teaching things) that are false. Such teachers do irreparable harm to those that trust them and hold to their teachings. And there will be a judgment of their teaching, “for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.”

If you believe that God has called you to teach others you must read Ezekiel 3:17-19 “Son of man, I have made you a watchman for the house of Israel. Whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me. 18 If I say to the wicked, ‘You shall surely die,’ and you give him no warning, nor speak to warn the wicked from his wicked way, in order to save his life, that wicked person shall die for4 his iniquity, but his blood I will require at your hand. 19 But if you warn the wicked, and he does not turn from his wickedness, or from his wicked way, he shall die for his iniquity, but you will have delivered your soul.”

There is a constant temptation on the part of the preacher/teacher to not teach all that the Bible says, or leave out certain parts because of the potential hurt feelings, or conflict that it may cause – but the watchman must keep watch and call out sin when he sees it.

In his farewell speech to the Ephesian church, Paul says, “Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all, 27 for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.” Declaring the whole counsel of God is what made Paul “innocent” of anyone’s choice to turn away from the truth. Paul had fulfilled his ministry among the Ephesians.

There is also the potential for those with opportunities to speak and influence others to be wrong (they mean well, but they are simply wrong in what they are teaching). James says, “For we all stumble in many ways.” Moses lost his temper and struck the rock (Numbers 20), Peter boasted that he would never leave Jesus’ side “Peter answered him [Jesus], “Though they all fall away because of you, I will never fall away.” (Matthew 26:33). “James is saying that the most difficult task a Christian faces is the mastery of his own speech.”[8]

James gives the example of a rudder (being small) directs the ship – so too a teacher can lead a large group in a good or bad direction.[9]

Matthew 18:6 “but whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him to have a great millstone fastened around his neck and to be drowned in the depth of the sea.”

Also, a false teacher has the potential to wreck years and years of good teaching with just a small amount of false teaching. Therefore, the reason for James to write this letter to the churches. “James’ point is that we should not underestimate the powerful potential of leadership positions nor undervalue the damage that can be done through careless or mean-spirited speech.”[10]

On the other side of this issue are those that hear and should not just accept everything told to them, even by those they trust and love – we must keep a discerning spirit about us. Acts 17:11 “Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so.” The Bereans were eager to receive the Word of God, but they also examined it against Scripture.

When James says “And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man” The use of the word “perfect” is not used the same way we use the word perfect as in without error or mistake – James means “mature” “or full grown.”[11] So the spiritual barometer of a Christian (how are you doing in your walk with the Lord) is your ability to control what you say, and understand its’ impact upon other people.

“If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well” The purpose of a bit in the horse’s mouth is so that you can control the animal. Imagine a 1,500 lb. wild horse running through the church on a Sunday morning, or a church meeting, or Sunday School class – kicking, jumping, running wild – it would be disastrous. The same is true for the person who can’t control their tongue, everywhere they go there will be destruction.

“Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs” The rudder determines where the ship goes. If the pilot of the ship doesn’t know what he’s doing, he can steer that ship into other ships, rocks, sandbars, underwater reefs, or just take a boat load of people completely off course and in the wrong direction.

Power to Destroy: The Fire and The Animal (vv. 5-8)

5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. 7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, 8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

Both fire and the poisonous animal are small things (like the tongue) that can bring destruction to the things it touches and spread to continue to destroy things much larger than itself.

Smokey the Bear warms campers to fully put out your campfires because just a small spark or ember can ignite an entire forest and destroy vast amounts of property. In the ancient world (before the days of home fire extinguishers and fire departments) fire was something everyone feared.

***wild fires in CA causing millions of dollars worth of damage and loss of life, due to a gender reveal explosive.

Strauss says, “The deadly drug does not need to be taken in large doses – a drop or two will suffice; and the tongue does not need to distill long speeches, it has but to drop a word, and the mischief is afoot. Thus has a peace been ruined, thus has a reputation been blackened, thus has a friendship been bittered, thus has a mind been poisoned, thus has a life been blasted.”[12]

In the example for the rudder, the pilot was in control. In the example of the bit, the rider was in control. In the example of the tongue of fire – “set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell” “A spark can ignite a forest, but the tongue is so powerful it can set all humanity ablaze.”[13] Words move people to action.

When a person speaks (not just verbal, e-mails, texts, letters, cards, social-media posts, etc.) in a destructive way, it hurts the members and affects the entire church, and ultimately is guided by hell itself.[14]

“For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature” In verse 7 James gives the four major categories of animals during creation in Genesis (Genesis 1:20-23). God created man to have dominion over, control over, creation, and every kind of animal has been “tamed.” “The image James uses here is a of a barely and inadequately caged beast, which breaks forth with irrational destructive power.”[15]

A poisonous viper that breaks loose from its’ cage and is going around striking people with poison. You then catch it, put it in its’ cage, but it keeps escaping again and again. You can keep the mighty elephant caged, but not the tongue.

Power to Delight: The Fountain and the Tree (vv. 9-12)

9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. 10 From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. 11 Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water?[16] 12 Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.

Both the water fountain and the fruitful tree can bring delight, happiness, a blessing to those that encounter them.

Earlier in James he discusses “the double-minded” person (James 1:7) “For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything [asking God for wisdom] from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” It is the man’s trying to live in the world with its’ values, and live a life that honors God leads you to instability.

When in one part of the day you are worshipping and blessing God then later in the day we are cursing someone (who is made in the image of God) then we are being double-minded, which leads us to be unstable. He uses a spring that produces one kind of water, tree producing fruit of its’ kind, and a salt lake – all produce according to their nature.

So if we are the Lord’s then that love for Him in our core is what gets spilt out when life bumps us. If you are a worshipper of God and sing praises, then cursing and evil words should not come out of your mouth, “it should not be.”

The use of the word curse is not to cuss at someone as in profanity – it “refers to the Jewish custom in the first century of expressing the hope that evil and tragedy would come to a person.” A common Jewish curse was “May your children become idolators and your wife be unfaithful.”[17]

So you praise God in the morning, saying you want to follow His plan for your life – then in the afternoon you are desiring your neighbor’s house to burn to the ground and his family to be destroyed – which is ignoring the plan of God for His creation, especially mankind.

Conclusion

There is a common children’s phrase, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” This is just not biblically true.

The affects of verbal abuse to the adolescent brain.[18]

****click here of another video I made regarding our words and why they are so important.

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[1] Beth Day, 1855 “Three Gates of Gold.” “. . . Make it pass, Before you speak, three gates of gold: These narrow gates. First, “Is it true?” Then, “Is it needful?” In your mind Give truthful answer. And the next Is last and narrowest, “Is it kind?” And if to reach your lips at last It passes through these gateways three, Then you may tell the tale, nor fear What the result of speech may be. (Buttrick, 49).

[2] Pheme Perkins, Interpretation, First and Second Peter, James, and Jude (Louisville, Kentucky; John Knox Press, 1995) 115.

[3] Lehman Strauss, James, Your Brother (Neptune, New Jersey; Loizeaux Brothers, 1980) 120.

[4] Warren Wiersbe, Be Mature, Growing Up In Christ (Colorado Springs, Colorado; David C. Cook Publishing, 1978) 99.

[5] The outline is from Warren Wiersbe, Be Mature.

[6] James 1:19, 26; 2:12; 4:11. 5:12 – Strauss, 120.

[7] Clifton J. Allen, The Broadman Bible Commentary, Volume 12 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1972) 121.

[8] Allen, 121.

[9] David P. Nystrom, The NIV Application Commentary, James (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing House, 1997) 176.

[10] Nystrom, 177.

[11] Strauss, 125.

[12] Ibid, 136.

[13] Allen, 123.

[14] “I lost a very little word, only the other day; It was a very naughty word I had not meant to say. But, then, it was not really lost – when from my lips it flew, My little brother picked it up, and now he says it too!” (Strauss, 136.)

[15] Nystrom, 180.

[16] Mediterranean wisdom, a fonte puro pura defluit aqua (“from a pure spring flows pure water.”) Nystron, 182.

[17] Allen, 124.

[18] https://www.dana.org/article/the-abused-brain/

Seeking Wisdom in Difficult Days A Study of James A Faith that Works James 2:14-26

Seeking Wisdom in Difficult Days
A Study of James
A Faith that Works
James 2:14-26

Introduction

The churches that James is writing to have been scattered from Jerusalem and are all over the Roman empire. As the church scattered they would be living in communities where there would be constant pressure just to blend in, and to not cause any trouble. Christians, no matter what the generation, are commanded to “go and make disciples.” We are to share our faith, and lead others to Christ.

For this early church, as is true today, there would be a constant pressure to make Christianity as easy as possible for people to follow and to water down any doctrine that may be offensive to a lost world. So, it appears that among the churches, James is dealing with how do we define faith in Christ and what does the Christian life look like? If the person just says they are a Christian – shouldn’t that be enough. Just state a creed, a belief statement, and you are in. You can’t see their heart, who are you to judge?[1]

Prayer

What Good is A Dead Faith? (vv. 14-17)

14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

James mentions in 2:1-13 that there should be no partiality in the church, and now he moves to another issue facing the dispersed church. In vv. 14-26 he “attacks the notion that a confession of faith guarantees salvation regardless of the conduct by the believer; in other words, that the recital of a creed makes a man acceptable to God despite his behavior toward others.”[2] Christians are not to show partiality in the church, but at the same time there are fellow Christian brothers and sisters who need help.

James is using the word “faith” and it is indicating different people depending on the context of how he is using the word. There are some who are expressing their “faith” in Christ but their lives have no deeds that are associated with being a Christian.

Then there are those that express a “faith” in Christ and also have the associated deeds of being a Christian. People who say they are believers do or do not have deeds that go along with being a Christian.[3] Strauss says, “The appeal is to be what you say you believe.”[4]

James begins by asking the question, “What good is it?” to say you are a Christian but not live the life of a Christian?[5] James says such a faith is dead. What good is it to have a dead faith? It doesn’t save you at the time of judgment, and it doesn’t make the world a better place – this person has ignored the needs of those around them and is giving out useless tropes “Go in peace, be warmed and filled.” Which also makes Christianity look back as a whole (hypocrites).

This is the same as giving a “thumbs up” on Facebook to some social issue your friend posts. They say, “we must stop sex trafficking . . .” So you give him a thumbs up, and scroll on your way. Have you actually done anything to stop sex trafficking? No. Have you done something to appease your guilt that someone should do something? Yes.

So, is praying for someone useless? It is the same as saying may God take care of your need to a fellow Christian. God has brought them to you, you have the means to help them, you know they need they are “poorly clothed and lacking in daily food.” But take no action to help them. Compassion and action is a characteristic of a believer. One could also say, “are we supposed to feed and clothe everyone?” This is an exaggeration and leads to doing nothing. You help those you can with the resources you have.

There is an important distinction to make with regard to faith and deeds. We place our faith in Jesus Christ which then, out of a thankful and obedient heart, leads to actions.

Faith Is Shown By Works; Three Examples (vv. 18-26)

18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

James insists that you cannot separate faith and works and then goes on to give three examples to make his point (demons, Abraham, and Rahab).

1) Demons Have Faith But No Deeds (v. 19)

19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!

The Jewish people would say the Shema twice-a-day; so the dispersed church would still hold to Deuteronomy 6:4 where it says, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.”[6] Reciting this truth, as all the Jewish people would have done, does not constitute true faith. Simply, stating beliefs is not a living faith. The demons have a monotheistic faith.

Demons are not atheists, they believe that there is one God, but their understanding, faith, doctrinal statement, can not save them. They believe the right things but their faith is not expressed in action. “Religion that is worth something involves action that grows from the heart.”[7]

Intellectual assent – is the belief that something exists, but not doing anything with that belief. The demons are acknowledging facts – but they are not placing any faith on those facts. There is no righteous action in their lives based on their understanding that God is real, Jesus is the Son of God, etc. “A genuine belief in the truth will produce a genuine behavior of the truth.”[8]

Simon the sorcerer is an example of a person who mentally believes but is not saved. Acts 8:13 “Even Simon himself believed, and after being baptized he continued with Philip. And seeing signs and great miracles performed, he was amazed.”

Acts 8:20-22 “But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money! 21 You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. 22 Repent, therefore, of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord that, if possible, the intent of your heart may be forgiven you.” “Here is a man who believed all that the demons believe, was baptized, but was without real repentance for his sin.” [9]

“A dead faith that does not move you to place all your trust in Christ is no better than the faith of demons and will send you ultimately to hell with the demons.”[10]

2) Abraham Had Faith and Deeds (vv. 20-23)

20 Do you want to be shown, you foolish person, that faith apart from works is useless?[11] 21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God.

James calls the person who believes they can be saved by words or confession of a creed alone a “fool.”[12] Which at first sounds harsh, but he is addressing the fool from a moral perspective.

It is a heart issue because even though evidence has been given, the immoral person wants even more evidence. They are happy to just say or expose being a Christian, but they do not actually want to do anything Christian.

We see the word “justified” in verse 21 and verses 24, 25, and it means “An instantaneous legal act of God in which he (1) thinks of our sins as forgiven and Christ’s righteousness as belonging to us, and (2) declares us to be righteous in his sight.”[13]

We are all guilty of committing the crime of sin, but because God is judge, we are found “not guilty.” This is not to say a person did or did not do the crime – it is a legal finding of “not guilty.” Or that you don’t have to face the penalty of a crime (someone else has taken the full extent of the justice given for your crime).

James is emphasizing that this justification will take place at the judgment. Faith is always revealed in deeds, and these deeds are taken into consideration at the judgement. When James uses “justification” he is meaning the actions as proof of the person’s salvation, not that the actions lead to justification.[14]

“Faith is a personal response in genuine attitude to the grace of God which Jesus proclaimed and manifested in his life, death, and resurrection. It is a relationship or trust, loyalty, gratitude, and affection.”[16] So faith is taking action based on one’s belief in the promises of God.

The Jewish people believed that because they were direct relatives of Abraham, then they would gain entrance to heaven based on that relationship. The Jews came to rely so much on the “merit” of Abraham’s faith that they felt that all they had to say “We have Abraham to our father (Matt. 3:9).[17] James shows that Abraham was a man of faith and that his faith led him to take action.

“A man is justified only by the kind of faith which does the things God commands. That faith which refuses to obey God is not the faith that saves. Real faith that saves is a faith that works.”[18]

There are two types of justification, the justification before men, and the justification before God. Romans 4:2 says, “For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.”

“Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? – When faith is genuine, it will follow in obedience no matter how great the cost. In obedience to the command to sacrifice his son, Abraham began with faith (Heb. 11:8), left his home and moved his family by faith (Heb. 11:9) and sacrificed by faith (Heb. 11:17). Abraham lived a life of faith that was full of obedient action. Abraham’s faith in God was real because it governed Abraham’s life.

“You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works;” The idea here is that faith is brought into maturity through action. Faith directs and motivates action; action matures faith. James is saying that the two are inseparable.[19] We learn and grow in our relationship with God as we act and move and do what He commands and directs us to do.

Abraham moved his family, believed God when he pointed to the stars of the sky and eventually gave him a son in his old age. Abraham had faith and action as he laid Isaac on the alter – He grew as a believer as he acted in obedience.

3) Rahab Had Faith and Deeds (vv. 24-26)

24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?[20] 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.[21]

Rahab is listed in the lineage of Jesus in Matthew 1:5, and as one of the “Heroes of the Faith” in Hebrews 11:31 “By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.” She is also in Joshua chapter 2 and 6. Abraham and Rahab are polar opposites – the patriarch and the prostitute – both are given as examples of faith with deeds.

***review the story of Rahab.

When did Rahab place her faith in God? She had already heard of God before the spies arrived, she told them, “And as soon as we heard it, hour hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the LORD your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. 12 Now then, please swear to me by the LORD that, as I have dealt kindly with you . . .” (Joshua 2:11-12)

We don’t know exactly when she placed her faith in God, but she was justified before the Lord when she hid the spies, and when she tied the scarlet rope to her window, and when she waited with her family during the battle – she trusted the Lord to do what He said He would do.[22]

It is amazing that Rahab is given as an example of a person who had faith and works, while at the same time did not have a foundation of doctrine (she didn’t grow up in the church), she was a prostitute, and she lied. “Rahab was justified by her faith because she performed works of mercy and showed hospitality to God’s people. (Bede)”[23]

She is also an example of a person whose life wasn’t perfect, it was messy – yet she placed her faith in God and took Him at His word. Her actions of hiding the spies and risking her own life to save God’s people was a first step of continued deeds that would strengthen her faith and make her more like the woman God intended for her to be.

James finishes his argument with an analogy, “For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.” Ultimately James is not contrasting faith and deeds, but a dead faith and a living faith. Faith alone without works is as dead as a body without breath.

__________________________

[1] Pheme Perkins, Interpretation A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, First and Second Peter, James, and Jude (Louisville, Kentucky; John Knox Press; 1995) 113.

[2] George Arthur Buttrick, Gen. Ed., The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 12 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1957) 40.

[3] “Can authentic faith find expression in a confession of right doctrine? Can authentic faith be expressed merely as sentiment that never reaches the point of action?” David P. Nystrom, The NIV Application Commentary, James (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1997) 148. We Baptists, who are “people of the book,” must be careful that our focus on correct doctrine and biblical teaching does not crowd out our works of compassion and meeting the needs of those in our world. One is worthless without the other.

[4] Lehman Strauss, James Your Brother (Neptune, New Jersey; Loizeaux Brothers, 1980) 104.

[5] Clifton J. Allen, Gen. Ed., The Broadman Bible Commentary, Volume 12 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press; 1972) 117.

[6] Allen, 119.

[7] David P. Nystrom, The NIV Application Commentary, James (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1997) 152.

[8] Strauss, 105.

[9] Ibid, 107.

[10] Ibid, 109.

[11] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antinomianism

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antinomian_Controversy

[12] The crook is the one who harms another person but not themselves; the fool is the person who harms both others and themselves; and the wise is the person who does no harm neither to themselves nor another.

[13] Wayne Grudem, Bible Doctrine (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1999) 488.

[14] A.T. Robertson, Studies in the Epistle of James (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1959) 92.

[15] Buttrick, 44.

[16] Ibid.

[17] Robertson, 99.

[18] Strauss, 113.

[19] Peter H. Davids, New International Biblical Commentary, James (Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishing, 1983) 69.

[20] Joshua 2.

[21] Helen Wodehouse, “We think we must climb to a certain height of goodness before we can reach God. But he says not “At the end of the way you will find me”; He says, “I am the Way; I am the road under your feet, the road that begins just as low as you happen to be.” If we are in a hole the Way begins in the hole. The moment we set our face in the same direction as His, we are walking with God.”

[22] So what do we do with the fact that she lied as to the direction the spies went, and is in the same sentence described as “justified?”

[23] Thomas Oden, Gen. Ed., Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, Volume 11 (Downers Grove, Illinois; Intervarsity Press, 2000) 28.

To Seek and Save the Lost: Redeeming the Past, Transforming the Present, Redirecting the Future Luke 19:1-10

To Seek and Save the Lost:

Redeeming the Past, Transforming the Present, Redirecting the Future[1]

Luke 19:1-10

There are some great children’s books that Kimberly and I have been given as parents, and ones that we have purchased for our children. Some classics that I loved reading to my kids were the “Frog and Toad Treasury,” by Arnold Lobel, and Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham,” and “If you take a Mouse to School” series by Laura Numeroff. One of the books that stayed on the shelf and that I really didn’t like was Shel Siverman’s, “The Giving Tree.”

It is the story of the relationship between a tree and a little boy. The tree gives the boy apples, branches, and eventually it’s trunk – only the stump was left. The boy took and took, and the story ends with the boy, now an old man, sitting on the stump. It always bothered me that the boy never learned to give, only to take. It bothered me that the tree gave and gave, eventually having someone sit on it – unable to give anymore.

Today we will look at a man who has taken, and taken, and taken from his community to such so that they hate him. He is isolated and miserable because of his decision to do these things. Have you ever regretted a decision that you have made, and now have to live with the fall out? Are we to live with the guilt, shame, and weight of our sin forever? What if there was a way out? I am going to go out on a limb here and say that there is.

We will start and the end of the text for today, verse 10, “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” This was his mission summarized into one sentence.

Prayer

Seeking the Lord Who Redeems the Past (vv. 1-4)

“He entered Jericho and was passing through. 2 And behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus. He was a chief tax collector and was rich. 3 And he was seeking to see who Jesus was, but on account of the crowd he could not, because he was small in stature. 4 So he ran on ahead and climbed up into a sycamore tree to see him, for he was about to pass that way.”[2]

“There was a man named Zacchaeus” – his name means “pure and clean” and for the Jewish people, a person’s name was very important. Parents would name their children with the hope that they would exemplify their name.

Zacchaeus was the chief tax collector of a very active area for the Jericho region, which was part of the Roman empire.[3] He had heard about Jesus and wanted to see who he was. Why would a wealthy man, who held a high position want to see Jesus?[4]

Perhaps he had heard that Matthew (Levi) the former tax collector had become one Jesus’ disciples.[5] As the chief tax collector, he may have known Matthew and heard about how he walked away from his tax collecting booth one day. Matthew himself, describes the encounter “he [Jesus] saw a man called Matthew sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he rose and followed him.” (Matthew 9:9) If Jesus had something to do with other tax collectors, then maybe he would talk with Zacchaeus too.

In the preceding passage a blind beggar pleads with Jesus to heal him of his sight, Luke 18:35-43 “As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.” 42 And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.” 43 And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.” The blind beggar called out, and would not stop. Luke takes the reader from a man lost in blindness and poverty to the deliverance of a man lost in wealth and corruption.[6]

Zacchaeus, even though he was wealthy, and held a prominent position, climbed a tree (which would have been very embarrassing for the people of his day) just to see Jesus. “he was seeking to see who Jesus was” It is a very sad picture of a man isolated from his community, hated and despised, lonely just wanting a glimpse of hope of a new life. He was anxious to see Jesus, this morning are you too anxious to see Jesus? Do you want just too see who Jesus is?

The Lord sees those who seek him, Deuteronomy 4:29-31 “But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. 30 When you are in tribulation, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, you will return to the LORD your God and obey his voice. 31 For the LORD your God is a merciful God. He will not leave you or destroy you or forget the covenant with your fathers that he swore to them.”

Receiving the Lord Who Transforms the Present (vv. 5-6)

“And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up and said to him, “Zacchaeus, hurry and come down, for I must stay at your house today.” 6 So he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.”

“Zacchaeus, hurry and come down. . .” “This is Jesus’ last personal encounter before his arrival in Jerusalem and the events leading to his death.”[7] Zacchaeus did not know Jesus (personally), he “was seeking to see who Jesus was,” yet Jesus calls him by name, and it seems he was why he had even traveled that way through the city, “for I must stay at your house today.”

There was a drawing happening in the heart of Zacchaeus, and there was a Savior who was seeking him out, meeting him in the street, coming to his house, calling him by name. Zacchaeus went up the tree lost, but came down the tree saved, “he hurried and came down and received him joyfully.”

Jesus is making the first move, he sees Zacchaeus, and he calls him by name. 1 John 4:19 “We love because he first loved us.”

In John 4:3-6 we see similar language with the woman at the well, “he [Jesus] left Judea and departed again for Galilee. 4 And he had to pass through Samaria. 5 So he came to a town of Samaria called Sychar, near the field that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well. It was about the sixth hour.” He is waiting for the woman to arrive. Jesus is given direct instructions from the Father – there are divine appointments all throughout Jesus’ ministry. Zacchaeus is one of these appointments, “I must stay at your house today.”

Saved by the Lord Who Redirects the Future (vv. 7-10)

“7 And when they saw it, they all grumbled, “He has gone in to be the guest of a man who is a sinner.” 8 And Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” 9 And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham. 10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

“they all grumbled,” – in the original language it gives the word picture of bees buzzing, or doves cooing.[8] Jesus is the hero that everyone is swarming around to see what he will do, and hear what he will say, but now the crowd is shocked that Jesus wants to spend time with the chief publican, a notorious sinner, who had robbed nearly everyone in the city by exorbitant taxes and no doubt those in the crowd.[9]

Jesus fully understands that when he says that he wants to associate with Zacchaeus then the anger of these people toward the corrupt tax collector would turn toward him as well. Jesus freely associates with sinners. “Under the impact of unconditional acceptance by Jesus, a transformation is worked in the life of Zacchaeus.”[10]

The man whose name means pure and clean – was not pure or clean. He was a thief, a traitor, and had gotten wealthy by stealing from others. “In that moment Zacchaeus saw it all: what his past had been, what his present was, what his future must be.[11]

The grumbling and murmuring had reached Zacchaeus’ ears and before Jesus and he enters, he turns around and faces the crowd and said, “Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor. And if I have defrauded anyone of anything, I restore it fourfold.” This was the Mosaic law requirement for anyone who had stolen from another person.

Exodus 22:1 “If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.”

Numbers 5:6 “When a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit by breaking faith with the LORD, and that person realizes his guilt, 7 he shall confess his sin that he has committed. And he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong . . .”

Restitution is a good sign of a changed heart, and he seems to be willing to make it right with people right there on the spot.

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

Why would Jesus seek out this man and then go to his home? “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.” Jesus’ mission is to seek out and save the lost – this man was lost and needed a Savior. The lost Zacchaeus was sought out and now saved.

Earlier Jesus had taught, “For it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.” The camel is going through the eye of the needle. God is doing that which is incredibly difficult. This meeting was ordained before the foundation of the world.[12] Jesus had to go this way, he had to go to Zacchaeus’ house, and salvation would happen that day.

Jesus says, “Today salvation has come to this house, since he also is a son of Abraham” Jesus gives Abraham has an example of how one receives salvation. So, how is that Abraham, who lived way before Christ, is saved?

Genesis 15:5-6 “And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.”

Righteousness is “holy and upright living, in accordance with God’s standard. The word “righteousness” comes from the root word that means “straightness.”[13] It was Abraham’s faith in what God told him that made him righteous or upright before the Lord.

So what was it that brought salvation to Zacchaeus’ home that day? Zacchaeus put his faith and trust in the person of Jesus Christ, just like Abraham believed God’s promise to him.

God has also promised us, that we can be freed from our sin, like Zacchaeus – John 3:16 “For God so loved the world,9 that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

For Zacchaeus, he went from being lonely and miserable to being accepted by God. He craved riches and power, but now freely gives it away – He is changed.

The Lord who had to go through Samaria to see the woman at the well, and the same Lord who had to stay with Zacchaeus at his house, now comes to our service today – He sees you, he is speaking to you, and wants to save you from your sin – to take off that weight. He says, Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

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[1] George Arthur Buttrick, The Interpreter’s Bible, vol. 8 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abington Press, 1952) 320.

[2] Milton, Paradise Lost, Bk. 1 “The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, and hell of heaven.”

[3] A.T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Luke (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1930) 239.

[4] James Russell Lowell, The Present Crisis, “Once to every man and nation comes the moment to decide, In the strife of Truth with Falsehood, for the good or evil side.”

[5] Kent Hughes, Preaching the Word, Luke (Wheaton, Illinois; Crossway Press, 2015) 656.

[6] John Nolland, Word Biblical Commentary, vol. 35c (Dallas, Texas; Word Books, 1993) 903.

[7] Hughes, 655.

[8] Robertson, 240.

[9] Ibid.

[10] Clifton J. Allen, Gen Ed. The Broadman Bible Commentary, Luke-John (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Publishing, 1970) 147.

[11] Alfred Edersheim, The Life and Times of Jesus the Messiah (Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishers, 1993) 718.

[12] Ephesians 1:4-6

[13] Ronald Youngblood ,Gen. Ed., Nelson’s New Illustrated Bible Dictionary (Nashville, Tennessee; Nelson Publishing, 1995) 1089.