So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. James 4:17

James 4:13–17 – Doing the Word: Directions for life to a scattered church from The Letter of James
Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost – August 23, 2020 (am)
 

Back in the 1960s a riddle was told that was intended to expose the depth of prejudice in our worldview. A father and his son had a serious car accident and were rushed to separate hospitals for immediate surgery. As the boy was rolled into the operating room the doctor said, Another surgeon must be called; I cannot operate on my own son. How is that possible? This surgeon was the boy’s mother.

I’ve also seen a video testing thought paradigms that showed ten playing cards, each for a fiftieth of a second, then for a twentieth, then for a tenth. Even with that long look, no one could remember more than eight of the cards. Why? One was a black heart. Another was a red club. Our minds simply cannot process that quickly something for which they have no established category.

How we view the world affects what we’re capable of processing. And I believe James speaks to us this morning about a matter that, simple and clear as it is, baffles us like a female surgeon in the 1960s or a black heart or red club in a deck of cards. It just won’t stick in our minds! He’s preaching to his people about their worldview, and what role God really plays in their day-to-day activities. James takes on the crowd that marginalizes God in their daily pursuits and reminds them of what they need to know, to remember, and of how they ought to be living. He offers a practical assessment in three parts.

What We Shouldn’t Say – 13-14

James opens this paragraph and the next one with the same address: a rather terse, Come now (13; 5:1), which is intended to grab their attention (Guthrie 259). 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.” From the balance of this paragraph (13-17) it appears that he’s speaking to believers, but they’re not living up to what he expects of them. They’re not living out what they believe about God.

They’re engaging in some of those pursuits he mentioned back in c.1: [Let] the rich [brother boast] in his humiliation, because he will fade away in the midst of his pursuits (1:10-11). They were making specific plans about where they would go on business, how long they’d stay there, and how they’d make money, even how much money they’d make.

And there was nothing inherently wrong with any of this. Money is a stewardship from God and we should use it well. Jesus used it often as an illustration of kingdom faithfulness. And in Pro. (13:22): A good man leaves an inheritance for his children’s children. So, there’s nothing wrong with seeking a profit. The problem was, God held no place in their plans. We lose touch with the foundational meaning of our existence when we forget God, even for a little while. We forget why we do the things we do, and for Whom.

We are nothing unless God gives us life and breath and health, gifts and abilities, the opportunity to live in a given time and place—education, profession, family, friends. Our ability to do anything, accomplish anything, promise anything (then keep that promise!), is only by God’s enabling!

As a child, Brian’s Song was one of my favorite TV movies. I can still remember James Caan playing Brian Piccolo, dying of lung cancer, laboring for breath, whispering to Gayle Sayers who was standing at his bedside: I’m going to get you next training camp. It was a powerful moment. And we all admired Brian’s courage. But the power for him to keep his word was out of his hands! We all knew it! Same for us, in all our pursuits!

14 … [We] do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is [our] life? For [we] are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Any future tense statement/promise/assertion we make, must be made with a present awareness of our total dependence on God to carry it out. We’re nothing apart from His grace! Yet, we can live as though we don’t really need it, like we’re fine without it! We shouldn’t say that!

What We Should to Say – 15-16

15 Instead [we] ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” We simply must acknowledge God’s authority and our dependence in all things! We must live in present awareness of His presence and His providence. Then v.16 identifies the main obstacle to that, what goes wrong: 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So, their problem was pride-induced unbelief: you boast in your arrogance. And it’s actually plural: you boast in your [arrogances], your [many manifestations of] arrogance. [That] is evil!

And we still do the same! We get so caught up in our own work that we view God as a virtual intrusion at times! Or He’s extraneous, unwelcome, irrelevant, or sometimes even an embarrassing interruption. At such times we don’t just need to say the words, if the Lord wills, as though they’re some kind of incantation. We need to repent, to change our attitude! We need humble [ourselves]! (10) We need wisdom! (3:17-18) So, we need to ask God for it! (1:5)

We need a present awareness that we’re living in God’s universe, to [pursue] God’s will, using God’s gifts, to manage God’s resources, all to God’s glory! Whether we are investing money or selling product or typing contracts or teaching classes or running races or promoting candidates or addressing issues or praying or talking or traveling or studying or shopping or voting—whether (we) eat or drink, or whatever (we) do, we need to do it all to the glory of God! (1Co.10:31) We need to go about our work as though we’re a living sacrifice to God (Rom.12:1). We present [our] bodies to [Him] so He can do His work through us in His way for His glory!

If the Lord wills captures all of this! And we need to be saying it in our hearts at very least, if not also with our mouths, in order to labor and strive toward [submitting] to God (7), [drawing] near to [Him] (8), and [humbling ourselves] before [Him] (10). It’s an acknowledgment that He is God and we are not. It’s a reminder of our true humility, of the fact that our times are not in our hands, nor are our achievements, long-term or short-term, today, now, ever!

What Difference It Makes – 17

Why does it matter whether we live with this level of acknowledgement of God’s sovereign providence in all areas of life? Most simply, first, we should already know this! We should already be doing it! It should come as no surprise that God’s people ought to be living in conscious acknowledgment of His providence day-by-day, and moment-by-moment through each day, should it?

Granting that, James tells us straight up what difference it makes if we’re not doing it: 17 … whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. If we know we should be doing this and we [fail] to do it, then we’re [sinning]—and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death! [1:15b) That’s what difference it makes! James is saying that sin is more than just doing what you’re not supposed to do. It’s also not doing what you are supposed to do! That’s initially a bit startling to realize. We can sin by not doing something! But it’s important to know that is how it works, agreed?

John gives us an example of this principle (1Jo.3:17): If anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him? Jesus gave an example as well. When He was talking to those who would not inherit eternal life, He said (Mat.25:42-43): I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me. And they asked: When did all this happen? He replied (Mat.25:45): As you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. Translation: when we fail to act in response to a need that moves the heart of God, we sin. When we live in such a way that our priority at the moment is higher than God’s priority for us, we sin. When we live as though God sits idly by while we close the next deal or complete the next task or capture the next prize, we sin.

Bottom line, the difference between pursuing our own plans and consciously living under the providence of God is the difference, to use James’ words, between arrogance and humility (4:1-17). It’s the difference between earthly wisdom and wisdom from above (3:13-18). It’s the difference between dead faith and living faith (2:14-26). It’s the difference between mercy and favoritism (2:1-13) in the way we treat people. Ultimately, it’s the difference between sin and righteousness (1:19-27), between eternal death and [receiving] the crown of life (1:1-18).

I was introduced to an interesting concept back when I was studying philosophy of religion—practical atheism. Atheism is when someone doesn’t believe God exists. Practical atheism is when someone lives as though God doesn’t exist regardless of what they believe about Him. James is preaching against practical atheism as a worldview.

• You who are involved in the markets, do you know that you buy and sell and trade for God’s glory, not primarily your own financial gain?

• Housewives, do you know that you cook and clean and shop and mother through the day for God’s glory, not primarily for a tidy and disciplined home?

• Students of all ages, do you know that you study for God’s glory, not primarily to ace the next test, or even to prepare for some particular college or career?

And God’s glory, God’s providence, often calls us to buy in a different way or shop in a different place or read on a different subject than we might otherwise have done. That difference is what makes us shine as lights in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation (Phi.2:15) . It calls us to let [our] light shine before others, that they may see [our] good works and give glory to [our] Father who is in heaven (Mat.5:16). Living in light of God’s providence results in a Christian worldview where Christ is preeminent over our priorities and plans every day!

Conclusion

So, how should we respond this morning? These are hard days. We all know that. And they could quite likely get even harder before they ease up. But our God is just as able today, in our day, as He ever was! And we are no more needy than we’ve ever been. We just don’t realize our need quite as keenly in “better” days. Today it’s much easier to say if the Lord wills than it was six months ago, because we’re seeing our need, our frailty, more clearly today than we did even that recently. And because of that we can count this trial (this COVID season) as all joy (1:2). It’s reminding us that God in in charge, all the time!

I was reading though some old notes this week and I found a brief series of questions in an article that was written in response to the uncertainty we felt in the wake of the stock market crash back in 2008. That was another season that reminded us of our weakness, our dependence on God in all things. Finally, let us consider the possibility that the Lord is allowing this economic meltdown in part to shake our confidence in anything but a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Is it possible that God is trying to shake us loose from trusting in our wealth, from trusting in our political leaders, from trusting in our own ingenuity and our own hard work? Is it possible that He is trying to get us to shift our focus from worldly, materialistic things to how much He loves us, and the truth that the only person we can truly trust in life to never leave us or forsake us is Jesus Christ? Is it possible that He is trying to get us to read the Bible more, and the stock tickers less? To pray more, and to worry less? To store up our treasures in heaven, and not concentrate so much on our treasures on earth? (Joel Rosenberg, Flash Traffic, 16 October 2008)

What do you suppose it’s going to take to keep our minds there, in that place? What’s it going to take for us not to forget, again, Who God is and who we are before Him? What’s it going to take for us to live in true humility here and now, today? Perhaps it’s a global pandemic. And even if this is not the primary reason we’re experiencing such a crisis, can you think of any better response from God’s people than for them to be reminded that He is sovereign over all, that He is in control of all that concerns us, that it’s His [will] we are pursuing with every ounce of our strength and every resource He provides?

Let’s ask Him now to help us have this response, each of us and all of us, individually and together, day-by-day, every day.

Next Sunday: What It Means to Be Blessed, James 5:1–12