Judging the law - James 4:11-12

"Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor?" (James 4:11-12)

I have most often heard this scripture used in its denunciation of judging one another. However, it seems to me that the main force of this passage is against those who would speak evil of, slander, or be a traducer of another. A traducer is one who brings shame upon another person through falsehood and slander. This is the same word Peter uses when speaking of those who spoke evil of believers in his day. "And keep a good conscience so that in the thing in which you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ will be put to shame." (1 Peter 3:16) It seems to me that James is not speaking here of any form of judicial judgment, either by civil or religious law, but rather the form of judgment that disparages another and subjects them to shame for failures, faults, and frailties that we perceive in them. It is a judgment based on our own ill-will rather than a judgment based upon facts and reality. It is a judgment that is meant to demean rather than to correct and instruct.

When we speak evil of our brothers and sisters, we also speak evil of the Law of Christ which has redeemed them and called them holy. The apostles repeatedly refer to believers as saints which means holy ones, yet when we judge and slander each other, we condemn the very same law that made them holy; the law of Christ. Furthermore, while we condemn the law as being wrong in regard to our slandered brothers or sisters, we are proving ourselves to be transgresses of that law by not heeding its commands to love. We set ourselves above the law, to judge it rather than to obey it.

The phrase, "Jude the law" is a modern legal term that is used in association with Jury Nullification. The group Jury Box (jurybox,org) defines Jury Nullification as "Jury Nullification is the term given to the process where the jury of a criminal case acquits the defendant regardless if he has broken the law in question. The jury would do this in a case where they judge the law to be unjust, therefore the jury can vote to find the defendant innocent since the jury found the law itself to be immoral, unfair, unjustly applied, or unconstitutional. By voting to acquit, the jury therefore nullifies the law." When we become judges of the law, we judge the law to be wrong, immoral, and unfair. We set ourselves above the law and not subject to the law. We grant ourselves power to nullify the law while at the same time feel no obligation to keep the law ourselves.

When it comes to the "law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus," (Romans 8:2) there is one legislator and one judge, Jesus Christ. We did not establish the law and He has not shared His role as judge with us. There will always be people we don't like, people who rub us the wrong way, people we disagree with, and people whom we believe are doing it all wrong. However, this does not give us the right to judge them or to slander them and speak evil of them to other people. We may not like them, but God does and He alone is worthy and just to judge them. Paul reminds us, "Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand." (Romans 14:4) People are not accountable to us, but to God. He judges them and He sustains them in their walk before Him. While we judge and cut down, God sustains and props up. We should set aside our evil thoughts and our slanderous talk and let each other live and walk before God and let Him be the judge of all things.

David Robison

Posturing with God - James 4:6-10

"But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, 'God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.' Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you." (James 4:6-10)

Grace is essential to our Christian life, it is what opens up to us the very storehouses of heaven. All of us have experienced His grace. Whether it is the common grace that is shown to all ("for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous." Matthew 5:45) or the saving grace that all believers have received ("For by grace you have been saved through faith." Ephesians 2:8) we have all received of His grace. However, there are still greater levels of grace that He bestows upon some, upon those who position themselves well before God. God gives greater grace to some that others will never know. The secret to greater grace is in our proper standing before God.

James says that God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble. The word for "resist" means to "set oneself against", as an army would array themselves against a city to siege it and take it by force. God sets Himself up to wage war against the proud, but is gracious towards the humble. The proud will never know the greater degree of grace that is available in God; a greater grace that is only available to the humble.

So how does one humble themselves before God? How do they position themselves before God to receive greater grace in their lives? First, we must submit to God. This is a submission to obedience. It is not enough to believe in God, we must also obey God. Paul reminds us that we must choose whom we will obey, "Do you not know that when you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness?" (Romans 6:16) To find greater grace with God we must choose to submit to God in the obedience of righteousness.

Secondly, we must resist the lures and temptations of the Devil. The resisting of the Devil and the drawing close to God are not two separate acts, but two parts of a single action. We cannot resist the Devil if we simultaneously do not also draw near to God. Paul tells Timothy, "But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness." (1 Timothy 6:11) One act must follow the other.

Thirdly, we must pursue sanctification both in our outward acts and our inward thoughts. God receives us "just as we are" but He doesn't intend to leave us "just as we are." John, speaking of the marriage supper of the Lamb, says "Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready. It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints." (Revelation 19:7-8) There is a part of our salvation that is up to us; for us to "make ourselves ready". This process is sanctification and is a joint endeavor between us and God's Holy Spirit.

Fourthly, if sin exists in our lives, then we must repent. Repent not only means to turn away from, but also to change our minds. So often, while we may acknowledge that we have sinned, we don't often really appreciate the sinfulness of our sin. We know from God's word we sinned, but we don't fully understand how our sin effects ourselves, others, and God. Paul tells us that part of the purpose of the Law was "so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful." (Romans 7:13) Morning and humiliation may well attend our repentance if we truly understand the sinfulness of sin.

Finally, in our humiliation, we must trust God for our exaltation. God, speaking of Himself, says, "All the trees of the field will know that I am the Lord; I bring down the high tree, exalt the low tree, dry up the green tree and make the dry tree flourish. I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will perform it." (Ezekiel 17:24) It is our temptation to stand up ourselves, to promote ourselves, to seek by our own strength to reach an exalted position, but it is God who raises up and brings low, it is God who exalts and who humbles. In our humility we must wait for God's exaltation. We must learn to be content with our present state knowing that, in His time and in His way, He will exalt us.

David Robison

Spiritual adulteries - James 4:4-5

"You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: 'He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us'?" (James 4:4-5)

This is an extremely difficult passage to translate and understand, particularly because this scripture can be parsed and understood in so many ways. To begin with, James seems to be quoting some unknown text, either an ancient Jewish text of some New Testament writings that have not been preserved down to our time. Of all the know texts of that period, scripture or not, we know of none that fits well with James' quotation. For most scholars, the key to understanding this scripture is in knowing where to place the punctuation. The early Greek texts did not use punctuation and sentence structure was inferred by the context. The punctuation in our English versions of the scriptures have been added to fit with our language's syntax and grammar. Therefore, where one translator may place a comma, another may use a period. This variation of punctuation can change the fundamental meaning of a verse. For example, this same passage Darby translates as:

"Adulteresses, know ye not that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore is minded to be [the] friend of the world is constituted enemy of God. Think ye that the scripture speaks in vain? Does the Spirit which has taken his abode in us desire enviously?" (James 4:4-5 Darby)

In this interpretation, James is not quoting scripture but his thought is really two statements: Does the scripture speak for no purpose? Does God's Spirit come to us that we might envy and covet the things of this world? For me, this seems like a much more natural and consistent expression of the thought James is trying to bring forth.

Adultery is when the love of one wanders from their spouse towards another; when one has pledged their love to someone but instead gives it to someone else. As believers, we have pledged our love to Christ. The greatest of the commands is to "love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might." (Deuteronomy 6:5) As believers we have also been betrothed to Christ as His bride. Paul, speaking of marriage, says that it is a type of the church's relationship with Christ. "Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless." (Ephesians 5:25-27)

We now belong to Christ, and James warns us against taking our affections that belong to Him and giving them away, or spending them on, the world and its system. Lust, covetousness, and envy are temptresses who seek to draw our affection away from the Lord and to give ourselves to the things of this Earth and, when we yield to their temptation, we commit adultery against our Lord. The scriptures are very clear; they speak for a purpose. Over and over they warn us against desiring the things of the flesh and of this world. Further, Paul tells us that this world, and its system, is passing away, saying it is time that "those who buy [should be], as though they did not possess; and those who use the world, as though they did not make full use of it; for the form of this world is passing away." (1 Corinthians 7:30-31)

This is not to say that we must be completely done with the world, but that it no longer deserves our love. We can use and possess the things of this world, but we must not let them possess us. We must not let our love of this world tie us to this world. There is a sorrowful picture of the end of the age. John, as recorded in his Apocalypse, witnesses the judgment of Babylon and records,

"And the kings of the earth, who committed acts of immorality and lived sensuously with her, will weep and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning, standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in one hour your judgment has come.' And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn over her... and were crying out as they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, 'What city is like the great city?' And they threw dust on their heads and were crying out, weeping and mourning, saying, 'Woe, woe, the great city, in which all who had ships at sea became rich by her wealth, for in one hour she has been laid waste!'" (Revelation 18:9-11,18-19)

One day, all this will come to an end. The heavens and the Earth will be destroyed and new ones take their place. In that day, some will mourn at what they've lost and others will rejoice in what they've gained. Which person will you be? Will your love of this world cause you to mourn its loss or will your love for God cause you to rejoice in having inherited eternal dwellings with Him in His new heaven and Earth? I hope that day will find me rejoicing.

David Robison

The source of anger - James 4:1-3

"What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures." (James 4:1-3)

Someone once said that anger is our response to the hopeless we feel when we fail to achieve our goals in other people. We desire them to do something or to behave is a particular way, but when they don't behave or do what we wish them to do, and we are unable to make them to do and behave as we want them, then we respond in anger to the helpless feelings we have towards them and our desires for them. Often we project the cause of our anger on other people. They provoke us, they do the things that offend us, and when we ask them to change, they persist in their ways. However, while the other person may truly be behaving badly, the source of anger is within ourselves; anger comes from our own heart, not the actions of other people.

Many of our impure emotions, such as anger, resentment, bitterness, and hatred, comes from our wants and desires of our heart. We want people to love us and, when they don't, we respond with hatred. We want others to help us with our burdens and, when they won't, we respond with resentment. We want what we believe we deserve, and when we fail to get it, we lapse into anger. The secret to overcoming anger and quarreling in our lives is not in learning to repress anger, but in learning to deal with our desires that erupt into anger and conflict when they are go unrewarded. We can spend all day trying not to be angry, but until we learn to quite our desires, anger will always be an issue for us.

The secret to overcoming anger is in learning to fulfill our desires. If our desires were fulfilled, then there would be no source for our anger. Anger is the improper approach to fulfilling our desires, so what is the correct approach? One night, King David was walking on his roof. As he did, he saw a beautiful woman bathing on another rooftop. He lusted after her and wanted her. So, being king, he sent his men an took her and slept with her. Later, when his sin was found out, God sent Nathan the prophet to rebuke him. God said to David, "It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul. I also gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you many more things like these!" (2 Samuel 12:7-8) David's sin came because he sought to take what he desired rather than coming to God with his desires. God had already given him many good things and, if David needed anything else, God was ready and willing to give that as well. However, David did not look to God for what he wanted, he just reached out and took it.

The key to fulfilling our desires is to understand that it is God who is the source of all good things and that He wants us to come to Him for want we want and need rather than waging war on our own to get what we desire. Jesus said, "Until now you have asked for nothing in My name; ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be made full." (John 16:24) Jesus wants to make our joy full by granting us the things we want and desire, but we must come to Him with our request and trust in Him for their fulfillment. Those who seek the fulfillment of their desires through prayer and faith towards God will never be disappointed and will give no place for anger in their lives and, even if they should ask amiss, but submitting to God and His care for their lives, they allow Him to modify the desires of the heart that they may learn to desire what is good and right rather than what is sensual and evil. Solomon said, "Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart." (Psalm 37:4) If we delight ourselves in the Lord than our desires will, in time, be molded after our delights and we will find ourselves desiring the things of God's Kingdom over the things of this world; the things of the Spirit over the things of the flesh.

Our only remedy for anger is Christ and our submission to Him and His portion for our lives. When we learn to become content with what He has given us and to seek all that we should desire and want from his hand, then we will learn to be truly content and to say with King David, "The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You support my lot. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me." (Psalm 16:5-6)

David Robison

Show me the wisdom - James 3:13-18

"Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." (James 3:13-18)

Someone once defined wisdom by comparing it with prudence. Prudence is the ability to avoid sin while wisdom, containing prudence, is also the ability to do righteousness. James challenges those who claim to have wisdom to show forth their wisdom by their behavior. Like faith, wisdom without deeds is empty, worthless, and dead. If we truly possess wisdom then it should color all we do; it should leak through our lives and express itself in godly behavior. However, if the wisdom we claim does not yield in us the fruits of righteousness, then maybe we should reexamine what we claim to possess.

Jesus rebuked His generation saying,

"But to what shall I compare this generation? It is like children sitting in the market places, who call out to the other children, and say, 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.' For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon!' The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds." (Matthew 11:16-19)

"Wisdom is vindicated by her deeds." To test the wisdom of those who claim it, we need only to look to their deeds. The Jews in Jesus' day claimed to have the wisdom and understanding of the law, and yet they sought to kill Jesus who told them the truth. They became murders while He became "a life-giving spirit. (1 Corinthians 15:45 NKJV) They brought death to the Righteous One while He brought many righteous to life. Their deeds were not the deeds of wisdom while His always testified to the wisdom of God.

There is a deception that comes upon us when we delude ourselves into believing that we have something we really do not possess. To think ourselves as wise and understanding when, as evidenced by our deeds, we lack the very thing we confess; when we become like the Laodiceans who said of themselves "'I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing,' and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked." (Revelation 3:17) James counsels us to repent and renounce the lie of deception; to be honest about what we have and do not have. Furthermore, we must take stock after what is really motivating our life. Is our life being animated by a wisdom from above or are we living after a wisdom that is worldly, natural, and demonic? We must look at our lives. If they are not producing the fruits of righteousness then we need a "wisdom transplant." We need to replace what we claim to be wisdom with true wisdom from above; a wisdom from Christ "who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption." (1 Corinthians 1:30) He who has Christ has true wisdom and he who has true wisdom will bare the fruit of that wisdom in his life.

David Robison

Duplicity in speech - James 3:9-12

"With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water? Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh." (James 3:9-12)

Duplicity is being doubly contradictory in our lives. We think, say, and do one thing in one context and we thing, say, and do something completely different in another. We bless God in church on Sunday, yet at work on Monday we gossip, backbite, and revile those coworkers and associates we don't like as much. We have become like that double-minded man that James spoke of who was always shifting, changing, and "unstable in all his ways." (James 1:8)

One of the problems with being duplicitous is that people see right through us. We think we are being sophisticated and coy, but other people know the real score. People see through our disguises to our real self. They see our duplicity and tune us out. It is like when Lot went to warn his sons-in-law about the coming destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. "Lot went out and spoke to his sons-in-law, who were to marry his daughters, and said, 'Up, get out of this place, for the Lord will destroy the city.' But he appeared to his sons-in-law to be jesting." (Genesis 19:14) Why did they take him for jesting? Because this was the kind of man he was. They probably saw him jesting before, even in the context of God and morality. He never seemed to care much for it before so why should they listen to him now?

I've seen this happen in families. On Sunday the parents speak wonderfully about God and their love for Him, but the rest of the week they are mean, harsh, and biting in their words. This leaves the children confused and they are often not likely to take seriously the message of the gospel which is so quickly replaced in the lips of their parents by harsh words. This is true not only of parents but of all who are duplicitous in their speech and behavior. Our speech must be consistent if people are to take us seriously and to give full consideration to the gospel we proclaim with our lips and with our lives. Jesus said, "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for the tree is known by its fruit." (Matthew 12:33) So should be our lives. Either we should be consistently good or consistently bad for duplicity does no one any good.

Finally, when we speak one way of God and another way of man, it reveals an ignorance in our learning of God. God created all things and, especially of mankind, "God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." (Genesis 1:27) If we love God should we not also love His creation and especially those created in His image? It is said of God's creation, "God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good." (Genesis 1:31) Should we not love that which is very good? Should we curse what God has blessed? We are often used to looking up at God through our own eyes but perhaps we should learn to look down at creation through His eyes. If we really learned to see this creation as He sees it, them maybe we would not be so quick to curse what He Himself has made.

David Robison

Flaming tongues - James 3:5-8

"See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell. For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race. But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison." (James 3:5-8)

The effect of our tongue is disproportionate to its size. Often we use our tongue to reflect our anger or hurt in an attempt to make ourselves feel better. We say things like, "I just needed to get that off my chest." However, we are often unaware of the effect our words have on others, and even upon ourselves. We may, in the moment, feel better, having released all our emotions through our words, but the effect of those words on others and the long term health of our own lives can be incalculable. A few simple words uttered in anger or hurt can produce a lifetime of pain and offense in others that is not easily healed. Solomon said, "A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city, and contentions are like the bars of a citadel." (Proverbs 18:19)

James tells us two important things about our tongue. First is that, among all the members of our body, the tongue is one that can defile us. This means to soil, make dirty, or to stain us. I once met the wife of one of my coworkers and she was a very pretty woman... until she opened her mouth. Such foul words changed completely how I looked at her. However, I have known some rather plain women who spoke with such warmth, kindness, and cheerfulness that you couldn't help but like them. You may be stunning on the outside, but your tongue reveals what is on the inside, and inward beauty is much more compelling than outward beauty. A person with a beautiful soul is perceived by their gracious words and is thought by all to be a beautiful person. However, ugliness of the soul overshadows all earthly beauty can can never be overcome by makeup, ornamentation, and apparel. King David said, "For the Lord takes pleasure in His people; He will beautify the afflicted ones with salvation." (Psalm 149:4) But this can only take place if we allow His salvation to reach even to our tongue.

Secondly, the tongue is like a fire, ready to inflame any situation we might meet. Our words have the ability to either defuse a potentially volatile situation or to cast fire to the fuel and to make things worse. Solomon said, "A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger." (Proverbs 15:1) Unfortunately, before coming to Christ, we let our tongue to be trained for evil; trained by the very spirits and motives of hell. Our tongues have become the unwitting servants of the forces of darkness and the workers of iniquity. Not only have we learned to use our tongue in the service of the evil one, but we have let it also set on fire the course of our lives. We have used our tongue to sow bad fruit and we have eaten that fruit ourselves. To change the course of our lives we must learn to tame our tongue. Taming our tongue will not be easy nor will it be miraculously affected in a day or and hour, but it will take work, consistency, and time, but the fruit we will bear in our lives, and the fruit we will help to produce in the lives of others, will make all our efforts worthwhile. The tongue is restless and unruly. It is in constant motion and agitation. In fact, Solomon promised, "In the multitude of words sin is not lacking, but he who restrains his lips is wise." (Proverbs 10:19 NKJV) This fight to tame our tongue will not be easy, but it is a fight we must win and a fight we can win through the power and grace of our Lord.

David Robison

Bridling the tongue - James 3:2-5

"For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well. Now if we put the bits into the horses' mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires. So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things." (James 3:2-5)

Many of us underestimate both the power of our words and our need to control and harness them for good and not for evil. Jesus warned us about the importance of our words. "But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." (Matthew 12:36-37) It can be a frightful thing to consider that we will be judged by every word that proceeds from our lips; that each word we have ever spoken in anger, presumption, foolishness, and discord will one day be require of us as we stand before the judge. Words matter; they matter to God, they matter to others, and they should matter to us as well.

One of the reason words are so powerful is because the proceed directly from our soul. Jesus said, "You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil." (Matthew 12:34-35) When we speak, we speak out of what fills our heart. If our heart is full of anger, then we will speak anger. If our heart is full of grace, then we will speak grace. This is why James says that if we can control our tongue then we can control our whole life, because he who can control his tongue can control his soul, and he who can control his soul can control his whole life. If we can control anger, malice, and greed in our soul then not only will we not speak such things but neither will we do them as well. If a man's speech is bad then his heart is bad and his actions will be bad as well. However, if a person has learned to tame his soul so that his speech is good, then his actions will follow along in suit. A man who speaks well will also live well.

However, not only is the tongue like the pulpit of a ship, showing the direction the ship is heading, but it also like the rudder of the ship, helping to guide it along. Not only does our speech give an indication of what fills our heart, but it also helps to decide what continues to fill our heart. King Solomon once said, "With the fruit of a man's mouth his stomach will be satisfied; he will be satisfied with the product of his lips. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit." (Proverbs 18:20-21) Our speech has the ability to steer our lives and to determine what becomes a part of our lives. A man who speaks anger will become more angry and will steer his life away from the pathway of peace. However, a man who speaks graciously will tame his angry heart and steer his life to safe harbors. A man who speaks violence will become violent will lead a life of violence. However, a man who speaks conciliation will find his heart conciliated towards others and will grow in relationship with God and man.

It may seem like a small matter, but a change in the way we speak can drastically change the outcome of our life. If we speak love, hope, grace, thankfulness, and faith then we shall find ourselves inheriting these things in our lives. However, if we speak anger, hatred, avarice, pride, and discontent then our lives will become filled by these things and we will find ourselves eating the unwanted fruit of our lips. A small change with our tongue can produce a large change in our lives. Maybe it's time to give greater thought and consideration to what and how we speak.

David Robison

Teachers beware - James 3:1

"Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment." (James 3:1)

Teachers are an essential part of the Body of Christ and of the Church of Jesus Christ. Speaking of apostles and prophets, Paul says, "So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone," (Ephesians 2:19-20) Apostles and prophets are primarily concerned with the foundation of the church; insuring that it is foundation is secure and properly situated with respect to Jesus Christ. However, with respect to teachers, Paul says, "And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues." (1 Corinthians 12:28) Now some may say that Paul is giving simply a listing of functions within the church rather than a ranking of functions. However, I believe that, next to apostles and prophets, teachers are critical in the long term health, growth, and viability of the church, which is the Body of Christ. Once the foundation has been laid and the body established, its pressing need is to be taught the word of God, the ways of God, and how to become the Body of Christ.

Because of the important role teachers serve in the body, and because of the authority and sway they hold over the people's mind, God holds them to a higher standard of fidelity than other believers. Many people may believe wrong, but when a teacher teaches wrong, God takes notice. Their stricter, or greater, judgment is like unto the two servants which Jesus spoke of. "And that slave who knew his master's will and did not get ready or act in accord with his will, will receive many lashes, but the one who did not know it, and committed deeds worthy of a flogging, will receive but few. From everyone who has been given much, much will be required; and to whom they entrusted much, of him they will ask all the more." (Luke 12:47-48) Teachers have been given much in regards to knowledge and understanding of God and, as such, are held accountable for what they have received. They have been given much and much is expected of them. Their stricter judgment is as the judgment that befell Moses who lead the people of Israel out of Egypt. His actions were more strictly judged than those of the people. There was the time when God told Moses to strike the rock, but he, in his frustration with the people, struck it twice instead of once. "Then Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came forth abundantly, and the congregation and their beasts drank. But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 'Because you have not believed Me, to treat Me as holy in the sight of the sons of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.'" (Numbers 20:11-12) Moses was not faithful to the word of the Lord and as such was barred from entering into the promised land.

The scriptures gives some suggestion to teachers to help them avoid this greater judgment. First, before we teach others, we must first allow Jesus to teach us. "If indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus..." (Ephesians 4:21) Secondly, we must not think too high of ourselves. Paul chides the Jews who thought they were, "a corrector of the foolish, a teacher of the immature, having in the Law the embodiment of knowledge and of the truth." (Romans 2:20) yet who were so only in their own minds. Thirdly, we must live the truth before we seek to teach it. "you, therefore, who teach another, do you not teach yourself? You who preach that one shall not steal, do you steal?" (Romans 2:21) Fourthly, we must not teach beyond our knowledge and understanding. "Wanting to be teachers of the Law, even though they do not understand either what they are saying or the matters about which they make confident assertions." (1 Timothy 1:7) And lastly, we must remember that we are not called to teach our own ideas, but to perpetuate the teachings and traditions of the Apostles, for that's what it truly means to be apostolic. "The things which you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses, entrust these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." (2 Timothy 2:2)

David Robison

Dead faith - James 2:18-26

"But someone may well say, 'You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works.' You believe that God is one. You do well; the demons also believe, and shudder. But are you willing to recognize, you foolish fellow, that faith without works is useless? Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up Isaac his son on the altar? You see that faith was working with his works, and as a result of the works, faith was perfected; and the Scripture was fulfilled which says, 'and Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,' and he was called the friend of God. You see that a man is justified by works and not by faith alone. In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead." (James 2:18-26)

It is important to understand that James is not saying that we cannot be saved apart from the law, but rather that we are not saved by faith alone. Many have misunderstood this passage because they have confused works of the law with works of faith. Combining works with the Law will never save us because our works will never be complete enough to satisfy the Law, but combining works with out faith gives life to our faith and transforms our soul and brings us into harmony with the image of Christ. Works of faith enlivens us while works of Law secures our death.

James whole point is that faith, apart from works, is useless. It is interesting that he compares faith to the body and works to the spirit. I would have thought the comparison to be reversed, but the truth is that it is works that give life to our faith, not faith to our works; faith comes first then works, not works then faith. Faith without works is an empty claim and benefits us nothing. James reminds us that even the daemons have faith and are not benefited. The daemons believe in God and believe in His pending judgment over their lives. On one occasion when Jesus came to cast out the daemons, they said, "Have You come here to torment us before the time?" (Matthew 8:29) They believed in God and in His word, yet that faith did not save them. How can that which we hold in common with daemons actually serve to save us as well? 

James contends that, that which cannot be demonstrated, is that which lacks power. If we say we have faith but have no works to demonstrate it, then our faith lacks power and can in no way save us. As evidence of his statement, he offers up the life of Abraham. Abraham was the friend of God and, one day, God made him this promise. "Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them... so shall your descendants be." (Genesis 15:5) Abraham believed God and it says that his faith was accounted to him as righteousness. Almost forty years later, after the birth of his son Issac, God came to him and said, "Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you." (Genesis 22:2) Abraham obeyed God, although God provided a substitute sacrifice for Issac. James speaking of this second event says, "and the scripture was fulfilled..." but what scripture? The scripture that forty years ago had equated Abraham's faith as righteousness. It took Abraham's works forty years to catch up with his faith and to complete his faith.

James says that the scriptures were "fulfilled." This Greek word means to "fill up, cram full, or to level a hollow spot". It is as if our faith creates a potential in our lives; a potential for change and for action, but it takes our works to fulfill, or to fill up, that potential. Many people die and take the lions share of their potential unfulfilled to the grave. Their life has so much promise, yet little of it is ever realized. The same is with the economy of God. When we are saved by faith we come into the Kingdom of God with great potential. Our faith secures for us the reality that "all things are possible with God," (Mark 10:27) yet, few of us actually get to experience the endless possibilities of God in our lives. We believe God yet we fail to reap many of the benefits of that faith. Our works of faith, done through love, turns that potential into realities; it transforms what might be into what is.

Here is James' challenge to us. When we look at the men and women of faith who make up that "great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us," (Hebrews 12:1) we must ask ourselves, "do we have what they confessed only or do we also have what they possessed?" Are we like Rahab, who not only confessed faith but acted on her faith as was saved because of it? Looking back to Abraham, the father of our faith, do we possess his faith in action or merely in words? Faith without words is dead and cannot save us. True faith, saving faith, requires works; works wrought in love; works that can save the soul.

David Robison

Faith almost real - James 2:14-17

"What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, 'Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,' and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself." (James 2:14-17)

What is the benefit of faith? The Greek word James uses here for "use" means to "pile up" or to "accumulate." This word can similarly be translated as "profit". So what profit is there in faith? Faith opens up to us the entire Kingdom of God. Paul tells us that "the administration of God which is by faith." (1 Timothy 1:4) The very economy of God is administered through faith. Without faith we cannot receive or participate in the Kingdom of God. However, through faith, all things are opened up to us and all things become possible to and through us. The writer of Hebrews lists some of the benefits that others have found in their faith. "Who by faith conquered kingdoms, performed acts of righteousness, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, from weakness were made strong, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight." (Hebrews 11:33-34) And the list goes on. There is great benefit in faith, if it is the right kind of faith.

James warns us of a faith that is concealed from reality; a faith that is merely internal, mental, and "spiritual." Such faith we have, not as a real possession, but as a phantom, or shadow of the real thing. Such a warning applies not only to faith but to all things which we posses in shadows only, not in reality. King Solomon said, "Better is open rebuke than love that is concealed." (Proverbs 27:5) Even love, when it is concealed from reality, is of little use to us or to anyone else. Love benefits us only when it is bought into the light and prompts us to loving actions and behaviors. Love revealed is powerful while love concealed is dead. The same is true with faith. If something is to have benefit in our lives then it must transcend the conceptual and break forth into the practical; it must produce in us change that is lasting and actions that are salutary.

Faith brings its benefits when it works. Notice what the writer of Hebrews says of faith. "By faith Abel offered to God... By faith Noah... prepared an ark... By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out... By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden... By faith he left Egypt..." (Hebrews 11:4, 7, 8, 23, 27) Each each case, and many more could be cited, their faith lead to an action. For them, faith was as much a verb as it was a noun. Faith caused them to do something, and that action, the result of their faith, did profit them and those who were with them. Faith has little or no benefit in our life if it remains a thing and never becomes and action.

Here in lies the great biblical definition of righteousness. "For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love." (Galatians 5:5-6) To put it in an algebraic formula, faith working through love equals righteousness! Faith without works generated through love is worthless, Love working without faith is useless. But faith working through love is of great benefit.

So why do so many people fail to reap the benefits of their faith? Because they have never added anything to their faith. They have faith but that is all; their faith remains in them alone. It promises great things, but never actually accomplishes anything. It looks beneficial, but its hopes are disappointing. It is like a runner in baseball who makes it to first base and then stops. Until he adds to his run another run to second, third, and finally home plate, his one single accomplishment will remain alone and without the benefit of a score. You have faith, that's great! But what will you be adding to that faith? Will you be joining your faith with love to produce the works of God or will you simply remain where you are, content in your "faith"? It is time to add works to our faith that we, and others, might be profited by what we posses.

David Robison

The law of liberty - James 2:10-13

"For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all. For He who said, Do not commit adultery.' also said, 'Do not commit murder.' Now if you do not commit adultery, but do commit murder, you have become a transgressor of the law. So speak and so act as those who are to be judged by the law of liberty. For judgment will be merciless to one who has shown no mercy; mercy triumphs over judgment." (James 2:10-13)

In choosing which law we shall live under, James reminds us of the minimal requirements of the Mosaic law, and that being total and complete obedience. To fail the law but once, and in only one regard, is to be guilty of the whole law. The law is an all-or-nothing proposition, just as righteousness is. You are either righteous or your're not and you are either a law keeper or your're not; there are no shades of gray here. Here in lies the problem with the Law of Moses: no one can keep it! We are all weakened by sin and, despite our most heroic efforts, none of us have ever, or can ever, keep the law in its entirety. We may have good days, but we all, from time to time, fail at the law.

The scriptures have made it clear that the penalty for our transgressions of the law is death; perhaps not immediate death, but a death that works like a cancer within us; killing us spiritually and, at last, physically as well. Fortunately, Jesus came to establish another law and to free us from the law of death. "Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death." (Romans 8:1-2) James refers to this new law as the "law of liberty."

The law of Christ is a law of liberty because it springs from liberty rather than merely promising liberty. The Old Covenant promised liberty to all who could keep its law, but its law proceeded from the bondage of man and lead to only greater bondage. Paul, speaking of the law said, "For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin." (Romans 7:14) Furthermore, this law kept us in bondage rather than freeing us from it. "So also we, while we were children, were held in bondage under the elemental things of the world." (Galatians 4:3) However, the law of Christ proceeds from our own liberty and freedom in Christ and proceeds to even greater freedom in the Spirit. That is why Paul warns us, "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." (Galatians 5:13)

Christ has made us free, and He has given us a law that we might remain free; not a law leading again to legalistic bondage, but a law that invites us to join in His nature and to conform ourselves to His image; a law that frees us from sin, want, and self. Jesus has set us free and His law invites us to make others free as well. When we grant forgiveness over right, mercy over judgment, and compassion over contempt, we participate in the law of liberty; having received it ourselves, we share it with others, thus securing for ourselves even greater liberty and life in the Spirit. Those who have been set free but who hold others in bondage to law will themselves be brought into bondage. However, those who have been given liberty and extend this same liberty to others will secure for themselves liberty in Christ and no condemnation from any law. "Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law... Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law." (Romans 13:8, 10) Thus, mercy triumphs over judgment both in others and in ourselves.

David Robison

The royal law - James 2:8-9

"If, however, you are fulfilling the royal law according to the Scripture, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself,' you are doing well. But if you show partiality, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as transgressors." (James 2:8-9)

Here James distinguishes between what he call the "royal law" and the Mosaic law. The Mosaic law was codified in hundreds of rules, regulations, and ceremonies. Almost every aspect of a person's life was covered by the Law of Moses. However, when Jesus came, He summed up His royal law in two simple statements. "And He said to him, 'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.' This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 22:37-40) We get to choose which law we choose build our lives upon. Either we can choose the Mosaic law and seek to keep its hundreds of commandments and regulations, or we can choose to regulate our lives according to His royal law, choosing to love God and love our neighbor.

We must understand that God has not left us without a law, however, it is not an external law written in stone but an internal law written in our hearts. God prophesied of this long ago, "'But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,' declares the Lord, 'I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.'" (Jeremiah 31:33) And Paul confirms this for us in the New Covenant, "being manifested that you are a letter of Christ, cared for by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of human hearts." (2 Corinthians 3:3) This new law has been called by many names, including, "a law of faith," (Romans 3:27) "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus," (Romans 8:2) "the law of Christ," (1 Corinthians 9:21) and "the law of liberty." (James 1:25)

Regardless of which law we choose, we are obliged to keep and obey that law. James reminds us that, even with the Royal Law, we must be careful not to transgress the law. However, with the royal law, we transgress when we fail to live godly, or godlike, lives. Those who show partiality in their love transgress because they are not living godly nor properly expressing God with true fidelity for God Himself does not show partiality. "Opening his mouth, Peter said: 'I most certainly understand now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the man who fears Him and does what is right is welcome to Him.'" (Acts 10:34-35) We should always seek to live lives that fully reflect Christ and that are in conformance with His image. In doing so, we will always keep His royal law and not found to be a transgressor of the law of Christ.

One final word on Christ's command to love our neighbor as ourselves; some have taught that to do so first requires us to love ourselves. However, I do not believe that this is what Jesus meant at all by instructing us to love our neighbors. I believe that this command is a simple restating of a previous command of Jesus, "In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 7:12) To love our neighbor as ourselves is to treat them the way we want to be treated. This scripture does not presuppose any self-love as a prerequisite for loving others, rather it simply commands us to love others. Whether or not we "love" ourselves, we can still love others by extending to them the same loving actions and care as we desire others to extends to us as well. If the God who is love dwells in us, then we too can love others, even if we don't love ourselves. Pursuing self-love is a dead end and will never lead us to loving others. However, loving our neighbor as ourselves opens the door for God's blessing in our loves and presents opportunities for us to experience the love of God afresh.

David Robison

The consolations of God - James 2:5-7

"Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court? Do they not blaspheme the fair name by which you have been called?" (James 2:5-7)

When we become judges with "evil motives" (James 2:4) we often do so to our own disgrace, and sometimes to our own harm. When we show preference to the rich and powerful, we often end up spending our love and adoration on those who love us not in return; offering ourselves for their dominion and oppression while reaping no benefits for ourselves in return. When we seek the friendship of the world in order to secure a more favorable life for ourselves, we often do so to the disgrace of our own faith; seeking those who despise us and the Holy One who truly loves us. Why is it that we are so quick to lavish our favors on those who favor us not in return? In doing so we become like the nation of Israel who prostituted herself to the nations around her; hoping to secure from them their help, aid, and riches for her time of need, yet in all her pursuing she was left wanting. "Although you dress in scarlet, although you decorate yourself with ornaments of gold, although you enlarge your eyes with paint, in vain you make yourself beautiful. Your lovers despise you; they seek your life." (Jeremiah 4:30)

We err when we value people based on external clues, such as their wealth, position. beauty, eloquence, and perceived knowledge. All such things are external and of no guarantee of the true quality of a person. In fact, God has told us that oftentimes He has chosen those who lack such external merit to shame those who trust on externals only.

"For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God." (1 Corinthians 1:26-29)

A person's value is not found in such external things but rather found on the inside, on the quality of person they are in truth, in their soul, where the real person lives. However, we are so good at judging the outward yet so poor and judging the inward man. We must retrain our senses to see the real person, to view others through spiritual eyes; to come to understand what Paul meant when he said, "Therefore from now on we recognize no one according to the flesh; even though we have known Christ according to the flesh, yet now we know Him in this way no longer." (2 Corinthians 5:16)

God has never promised equality to all. Some will always be rich, some always poor, Some will always be beautiful and some always plain. However, for those who lack external glory, God has provided, as a consolation, internal riches that is of much greater value than anything external. James tells us that, to the poor, God has granted great faith as a consolation. Paul further tells us,

"On the contrary, it is much truer that the members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary; and those members of the body which we deem less honorable, on these we bestow more abundant honor, and our less presentable members become much more presentable, whereas our more presentable members have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that member which lacked, so that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another." (1 Corinthians 12:22-25)

It seems to me that often those who possess an uncommon depth of the grace and favor of God do so in consolation to their lack of outward grace and favor. Those who possess, or should possess, great honor in the Body do so in consolation of the lack of honor that their natural appearance would normally secure. When we discount the poor, weak, and contemptible, we often do so to our own poverty, for such God has endowed with gifts and graces we, and His body, need. Similarly, when we disqualify our own selves because we deem ourselves unfit for holy things, we conceal the good things God has given us by way of consolations; things the Body of Christ and the world are in need of. It is time to cleanse our eyes and learn to see in the spirit; to see the things that are of true spiritual value in ourselves and in those around us.

David Robison

Faith and Partiality - James 2:1-4

"My brethren, do not hold your faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ with an attitude of personal favoritism. For if a man comes into your assembly with a gold ring and dressed in fine clothes, and there also comes in a poor man in dirty clothes, and you pay special attention to the one who is wearing the fine clothes, and say, 'You sit here in a good place,' and you say to the poor man, 'You stand over there, or sit down by my footstool,' have you not made distinctions among yourselves, and become judges with evil motives?" (James 2:1-4)

At first blush, it's hard to understand how our faith in God has any relationship in how we show favoritism to others. I could have understood it if James had spoken of our love, our benevolence, or our deeds, but James understood that our faith includes all these things. Faith not only governs what we believe, especially what we believe towards God, but it also includes how we view, judge, and accept other people around us. To James, faith in the abstract was towards God, while faith in the practical was towards other people. We cannot hold the faith of God without it affecting our disposition towards other people. John put it this way, "If someone says, 'I love God,' and hates his brother, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God should love his brother also." (1 John 4:20-21) To James, such love towards God is inseparable from our faith towards God as expressed in love towards other people.

James warns us against becoming judges with evil motives. By judging, James is not talking about any sense of judicial judgment or judging others behavior or their "fruit" as Jesus would say, but rather judging their person; making a distinction between people based on such external factors that have no relevance upon who they really are. We can judge a drunk to be a drunk, because we can see his behavior and the destruction his behavior brings upon himself and those around him. However, we cannot judge a poor or filthy person for any moral defect or neglect in their lives. Their poverty has no bearing upon their worth as a person or their standing before the throne of God. However, when we make distinctions between people based on such external factors, we make distinctions that are groundless and frivolous.

James expressly mentions judging people based on their "face", which would include using beauty, race, nationality, and countenance as measures of merit. He also warns about judging people based on their dress which would include their economic standing, their sophistication, and their political, ecclesiastical, and social elevation. All such judging comes from "evil motives." What James means by this phrase, from the original language, is an evaluation and calculation of our mind that is harsh, harmful, hurtful, and malicious. It's not evil in the normal since, but hurtful in the practical since. Paul makes it clear that God does not judge us this way, "But glory and honor and peace to everyone who does good, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For there is no partiality with God." (Romans 2:10-11) God receives us without partiality, and so should we do to others.

Finally, as an example, James warns us of showing partiality in our gatherings. Interestingly, the word He uses here for assembly is the Greek word for Synagogue, a term familiar to those whom he was writing to. The early church was a place of refuge where people could escape the social trappings of the world around them and find a place of mutual love and acceptance regardless of their social position, wealth, or personal beauty and perceived worthiness. It was a place where aristocrats and slaves broke bread together as they shared one bread and one life in Christ. It was a place where the rich accepted and cared for the poor and where the poor accepted and blessed the rich for their kindness. It was a place where people could once again be the family of God and where all barriers to distinction and separation were torn down and dissolved. James warns us not to let our "evil" hearts destroy that for which Jesus came to create. Let us no longer look upon people with "evil" judgments but let us accept all as being of one blood and one family in God.

David Robison

Pure and undefiled religion - James 1:26-27

"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. Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world." (James 1:26-27)

The term James uses for "religion" speaks of that which is external and especially that which is ceremonial. Some have distance themselves from the term "religion" saying that "religion" relates to laws and codes while Christianity is built upon a relationship. In this I understand what they are saying, but religion, as used in its "pure and undefiled" since, is still a good word and can still be used to describe our relationship to God and man. James tells us three important things regarding religion.

First, religion has its seat in our hearts. If a man cannot control his tongue, all the rest of his external acts of worship are useless and vain. This is because he words flow from his heart, where his religion is seated. Jesus said, "You brood of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak what is good? For the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart. The good man brings out of his good treasure what is good; and the evil man brings out of his evil treasure what is evil." (Matthew 12:34-35) A man who speaks evil things give testimony to the evil in his heart while a man who speaks good things shows forth a good heart. Religion proceeds from the heart and all our external attempts at religion are in vain if our heart has not yet been converted, and the easiest way to tell if a man's heart has been converted is to listen to his speech.

Secondly, religion is to be practical and personal. So much of what we call religion is acts we do towards God; acts that are suppose to, in some way, help, bless, and minister to God. However, pure and undefiled religion is directed outward not upward; to those in need rather than towards God who is in need of nothing. Jesus said, "Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, even the least of them, you did it to Me." (Matthew 25:40) How can we who are of this world minister to God who is in heaven? How can we who are natural minister to a God who is spiritual? By ministering to those whom He has created. When we care for each other, we care for God. When we bless each other, we bless God. Practical and personal religion is religion that touches God.

Finally, true religion seeks to be Godlike not worldly. Peter describes Jesus as a, "lamb unblemished and spotless." (1 Peter 1:19) And he calls us to be "diligent to be found by Him in peace, spotless and blameless." (2 Peter 3:14) Our external religion should express our conformance to Christ's nature. True religion is to be Christlike. In part, this means that we choose behaviors which help us to guard what we have received against loss or stain by the world. For each of us, such a religion may be different. For some, it may mean abstaining from drinking, for others the abstinence from certain forms of entertainment. For the believers of the first century it usually meant not going to the theater, the bloody shows, or even the public bath houses. For some, these activities are too enticing and can stain their otherwise cleansed soul. If is far better to avoid such places that to proceed in a false sense of security; to error on the side of prudence than to reap the repercussions of loss. True religion is a guarded religion that prizes heavenly values above worldly pleasures.

David Robison

A doer of the word - James 1:21-25

"Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls. But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does." (James 1:21-25)

The key to receiving the word of God in our lives is to make room for the word of God in our lives. There was a time when the Pharisees came to ask Jesus why it was that, "The disciples of John often fast and offer prayers, the disciples of the Pharisees also do the same, but Yours eat and drink." (Luke 5:33) Jesus explained to them that there was something new going on and those who wanted to receive of the new thing God was doing must be prepared to receive it in a new way. He told them, "no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins." (Luke 5:37-38) Jesus was doing something new and, if the disciples of John and the Pharisees wanted in on it, they could not receive it the old way. If they wanted to receive what Jesus was doing then they needed to present to Jesus new wineskins for filling.

Some of us fail to receive the word of God implanted in our hearts because we have not presented to Him new wineskins to hold His word. Our lives are already so full of "stuff" that there is little room for God and His word in our heart. If we want more of God's word them we must begin to empty out our hearts, starting with filthiness and wickedness. The remains of our old way of life can crowd out the word of God; our old life keeping us from our new life. Let us first cleanse our hearts, make room for the Word of God, then let us receive it humbly and meekly from His Spirit that by it we may grow in newness unto Him.

However, making room for the Word of God is not sufficient in and of itself. Once receiving the Word we must act upon the Word. This act is not only unto obedience but also an action towards change. The word of God not only prompts us to action but it also prompts us to change. However, both require an actual doing of the Word not just a hearing of the Word.

The word that James uses for "doer" and "does" means a performer, especially a poet. James paints a picture of one who performs the poetry and those who sit idly by listening to the poetry. How accurately this portrays the conditions of many of our churches today. The pulpit had been moved from-and-center on the stage and the seats for the congregants are arraigned like an auditorium. Every Sunday, people file in to sit and hear the Word expounded; their praise and critiques apportioned as the performer works his trade. Rows and rows of people hearing, but few actually doing.

When we are content to merely hear the word, we delude ourselves. We become the willing participant in our own deception; hearing and understanding the word but turning a blind eye to its import in our lives. We judge ourselves by what we hear and not what we do and in doing so deceive ourselves as to what kind or sort of person we really are. The word of God reveals to us the kind of person we are and promises hope of change and sanctification. However, we leave content in the hope of change without actually putting the word into action in order to secure the promised change.

It is time for us to leave our seats and take our place on the stage; to become performers of the word not just hearers only. It's time to stop deceiving ourselves that change will "just happen" and to put into action the words that have the power to produce change. It is time to be doers of the word.

David Robison

The anger of man - James 1:19-20

"This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God." (James 1:19-20)

It seems to me that the best way to be slow to anger is to be quick to hear and slow to speak. However, most of us are quick to speak and we completely forget to hear. Conversation is one of the most basic ways in which we participate in relationships; in the sharing of our thoughts and hopes and in understanding the same from other people. However, when we let anger usurp our conversation for its own end, then we place all our relationships in danger.

For some of us, our speech had become the handmaiden of our anger. We use it liberally to express the emotions within us; destructive emotions that harm and oppress those closest to us. Instead of conversation, our speech becomes a one-way stream of emotion flowing from a darkened heart. Intending to show our anger and displeasure, we only show ourselves the fool. It is said that, "A fool has no delight in understanding, but in expressing his own heart." (Proverb 18:2 NKJV) When we care more for expressing our own heart than hearing the heart of another, the we have become a fool who is quick to speak and slow to hear.

Worse yet, the words we speak in anger becomes seeds in the lives of our hearers that grow to be weeds in our relationships. "Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit." (Proverb 18:21) When we speak our of anger, we speak death to our relationships; a death for which we have only ourselves to blame. Our words can sow life or death, the choice is ours.

The key to reversing the destructive nature of speech in our lives is to realize that the anger of man cannot and will not produce the righteousness of God. However, for some of us, righteousness is not our aim. We speak, not to bring righteousness into our relationships, but to hurt the other person, to bully them into agreeing with us, and to force them into submission to our ways of thinking. When someone hurts us with their words, our first response is not always to find a way to righteousness, but to hurt them back; to make them feel the same pain from our words as we did from theirs.

The first step in changing our speech is in changing our aim. If we want to hurt someone then we will pick speech appropriate for our aim, but if we want to bring life then we will choose words that are healing rather than wounding. Only when we are quick to hear and slow to speak will we have time to examine our motives; to see if they tend to revenge or reconciliation. We need that space in our minds between hearing and speaking to be honest with God and ourselves over our motives and the reasons why we are so anxious to speak in response. Only in that space can we allow God to speak and to change our heart and our words and to interject His grace in our conversation. Being slow to speak give God time to act.

Finally, even when our goal is righteousness, we must remember that it is not produced by our anger. As a parent, when my children were small, it was sometimes hard to find the right tool to drive out foolishness and secure righteousness in their lives. Some tools worked  better than others and not all tools worked the same for all children. However, one thing we know for sure: the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God! This maxim, or universal truth, cannot be transgressed without reaping the destruction in our relationships. What ever position we are in, what ever the people we wish see moved to righteousness, though there be many ways to encourage righteousness, anger is never one of them. If we truly desire the best in other people then we must be done with anger and we must learn to be quick to hear and slow to speak that we will truly become slow to anger.

David Robison

No shadow of turning - James 1:17-18

"Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures." (James 1:17-18)

James brings forth several important characteristics of God which, to a Jew scattered abroad were meant to call to remembrance the true nature of God, but for the Roman and Greek reader, they are truly radical and revolutionary ideas that challenged their understanding of God and gods.

First, James reminds us that God is still active and involved. God did not spin up the world and is now sitting back and watching it slowly unwind. God is not some impersonal force, such as gravity, that is ever present yet impersonal and disinterested in our daily lives. God is ever active, ever working, and ever caring in our lives. David says of God, "I will lift up my eyes to the mountains; from where shall my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep." (Psalm 121:1-4) God not only made the heavens and the Earth but He also made us and is still active in care and providence over our lives. When we need help, we have one in heaven who is engaged in our lives and ever ready to help.

Secondly, James reminds us that God is good. Every good thing in our life, every perfect gift we have received, comes from God. God is good and everything he does is good. Where there is pain, evil, and death, this does not come from God but from below. Jesus said of His Father, "If a son asks for bread from any father among you, will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will he give him a serpent instead of a fish? Or if he asks for an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!" (Luke 11:11-13) Our Father has our best in mind. If we ask for bread He will not give us a stone, but if we ask for a stone He might give us bread if bread is what we really need. God is not a vending machine but a Father who only gives good gifts to His children.

Thirdly, we see that God never changes. The Greek word used here is the same word we get our word "parallax" from. Parallax refers to the case where the view of an object varies with the position and distance of the observer. For example stars appears differently when viewed from different positions on the earth. Even Venus is sometimes viewed as the Morning Start and sometimes as the Evening Star due to parallax. When we view things from different places they may appear to be different, but God is always the same. This was not true of the Greek and Roman gods. Sometimes they were kind and other times mean, impetuous, and irascible. When you approached a Greek and Roman god you were never sure which god you were going to get. They worshiped their gods not out of love but in an attempt to ward off their unpredictable malevolent behavior. However, God is always loving, always good, and always just. He never changes. The writer of Hebrews says this about Jesus, "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." (Hebrews 13:8)

Forth, we are reminded that God is constant. His light is always shining in our lives and is not subject to the occlusion, diffusion, or refraction by things of this creation. A shadow is only possible when something stands in the path of light, such as a cloud, building, tree, or even a person. However, Paul declared, "For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 8:38-39) Nothing of this creation can separate us from the light and love of God. If His light seems dim and His love distant, its not His love and light that are at fault but rather it is our perception of reality that is askew. His light is just as bright and His love just as strong whether or not we can perceive of feel it. Even in our darkest and most perilous moments, by faith we can still apprehend His light and love.

Finally, James teaches us that God is still creating and making things new. However, this time He is creating a righteous generation from sinful man, a kingdom of priests from enemies of His cross, and lovers of God from lovers of self. There is a new creation that God is bringing forth and we are but its first fruits. Jesus said, "Behold, I am making all things new" (Revelation 21:5) and one day that will include both the heavens and the Earth. However, now, prior to that new heaven and Earth, He is creating and preparing a people fit for that new creation. This transformation is not the work of our own hands but is rather the work of God, being birthed from the word of God according to the will of God. How much we have to give thanks for. For what we could not do, God has done for us. Thanks be to God!

David Robison

New resource - Grace

I've added a new resource to the Resource tab on my blog: Grace. Grace is not a blue-eyed blond, but what is it and, more importantly, how do we grow in it? In this teaching we will look at the benefits of grace, how if differs from the law, and how we might grow in it. We will also look at the connection between grace and giftedness.

David Robison

From temptation to death - James 1:12-16

"Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, 'I am being tempted by God'; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death. Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren." (James 1:12-16)

There are trials that come upon us to test the genuineness and quality of our faith. These trials are represented by seemingly insurmountable obstacles to the promises of God in our life. Joseph, through a dream, had received a promise from God. "Please listen to this dream which I have had; for behold, we were binding sheaves in the field, and lo, my sheaf rose up and also stood erect; and behold, your sheaves gathered around and bowed down to my sheaf.." (Genesis 37:6-7) However, after relating this dream to his brothers, his life took a nasty turn. He was sold into slavery and, for the next several years, no one bowed down to him, especially not his brothers. For years he served as a slave and even as a prisoner; his circumstances mocking him and his promise from God. The psalmist relates that, "He sent a man before them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. They afflicted his feet with fetters, he himself was laid in irons; until the time that his word came to pass, the word of the Lord tested him." (Psalm 105:17-19) The Word of the Lord tested him in the midst of his trials to see if his faith was genuine or only opportunistic. In the end, his faith won out and he was elevated to governor of Egypt and saved his entire family, and the known world, from famine. Such trials and tribulations we are call to endure and bear up under for they are for our good and for the purification of our faith. Those who endure such trials are promised the crown of life in the age to come.

However, there is another form of trial, one that proceeds from within. Rather than being a trail of our faith it is a trial that is brought about by the raging of our flesh in its lusts and desires. This trial is the struggle between or flesh and spirit and is a struggle that we must overcome. This trial is not to be endured but to be conquered. Is is as God said to Cain, "And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door; and its desire is for you, but you must master it." (Genesis 4:7)

Jesus said of Himself in relation to the Devil, "the ruler of the world is coming, and he has nothing in Me." (John 14:30) However, when the "ruler of the world" comes for us, he often finds plenty in our lives to tempt us with. Our lusts, desires, and the impurity of our flesh provide him many opportunities to snare us and to lure us away from our continuance and love for God. James is very clear that such temptation does not originate with God nor even with the Devil, but originates with us. If we had nothing in us by which the Devil could tempt us then there would be no temptation. However, it is the residual lust and desires that provide opportunity for temptation; opportunities that we must over come.

The key to overcoming such temptation is to understand that sin is a process in our lives. No act of sin happens accidentally but is the result of a process that started, festered, and bore fruit in our lives. The process begins with our lust which is enticed by temptation, Temptation is yielded to and sin is born. As we continue to yield to sin, sin works its work on our lives sowing death and destruction to us and those around us. When sin has run its course, it leaves behind only death; spiritual, emotional, intellectual, relational, and physical death.

The secret to overcoming sin in our lives is learning to "unwind" the process. We start by repenting of present and habitual sin in our lives, Next we learn to repent earlier and earlier of our sin so that it has less time to work its destructing work. We then learn how to spot temptation before it overcomes us. having spotted it early we are in a better place to overcome it and to resist its pull on our lives. Finally, we learn how to sanctify our souls to rid ourselves of our impure lusts and impulses. For where there is no lust there can be no temptation. With each step in the process we spend less time in sin and temptation until our mastery over it is complete. Such a process is not easy, but its rewards are eternal.

David Robison

The lowly and the exalted - James 1:9-11

"But the brother of humble circumstances is to glory in his high position; and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with a scorching wind and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away." (James 1:9-11)

In speaking of the humble, James is not referring to those who are humble in the attitudes or spirit but rather those who are of low estate in life; those who have been oppressed and humiliated by their station and circumstances of life. However, even in their low degree, they can still find reason to glory.

In the early church, the Christian gospel did more to unify men and women of all stations of life than any other religion past or present. During their gatherings, and in their Love Feasts, slaves and masters, rich and paupers, fellowshiped together around a common table rejoicing in their common salvation and their common hope of eternal life. They were no longer divided along class distinctions, nor along economic lines, rather they were all one in unison in the Body of Christ.

For the lowly, they were elevated to a place of importance; importance with God and with their brothers and sisters. They were given precious gifts that the world could not receive and they partook of a table of blessing reserved only for the children of God. Their lives were lifted from the ordinary to being kings and priests before God. Though they were poor in this life, and in what the world had to offer, God gave them consolation, benefits far beyond what the world could offer. Later, James will remind us, "did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him?" (James 2:5) The poor may be poor in this life, yet he is the inheriter of eternal riches both now and in the age to come.

For the exalted, James reminds them not to exalt in their present circumstances. This world is fading away along with their riches and pursuits. Those who glory in this life are glorying in that which is already condemned and is passing away. Paul reminds us that, "those who use the world, [should be] as though they did not make full use of it; for the form of this world is passing away." (1 Corinthians 7:31) There is a deception that overtakes those who are exalted in this life. "Their inner thought is that their houses are forever and their dwelling places to all generations; they have called their lands after their own names. But man in his pomp will not endure; he is like the beasts that perish." (Psalm 49:11-12) The exalted man should glory that he has been delivered from this deception; that he has inherited a new life that does not consist of the things of this world. His glory is not that he has been made low but rather that he has been freed from being high. He is lo longer the slave of his position and possessions. He is now free to pursue a life of holiness, temperance, and generosity. He is no longer the prisoner of his wealth but its master. Finally, in his "humiliation" he is brought into relationship with other believers great and small; he has become part of a family that loves one another and is loved by their Father in heaven. What wealth could not provide him, he has found in the gospel.

The gospel should be that which unites us regardless of our standing in life. The gospel unifies us as one body, one family, and one nation before God. Paul tells us, "For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's descendants, heirs according to promise." (Galatians 3:27-29) Let us learn to live united before God.

David Robison

The double minded man - James 1:5-8

"But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways" (James 1:5-8)

To reproach, at least here in the Greek, means to upbraid or to "dress down." It is to rebuke or to chide one for their wrong doings or their lack in some area of their life. There were those whom Jesus did upbraid. "Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, because they repented not." (Matt 11:20 KJV) And He even upbraided his disciples for their unbelief and lack of faith. "Afterward He appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at the table; and He reproached them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who had seen Him after He had risen." (Mark 16:14) However, here, James makes us a promise that, if we engage in this one specific act, God will in no way upbraid or rebuke us for our actions. That action is asking!

When King David had sinned with Bathsheba, God rebuked David through His prophet saying, "It is I who anointed you king over Israel and it is I who delivered you from the hand of Saul. I also gave you your master's house and your master's wives into your care, and I gave you the house of Israel and Judah; and if that had been too little, I would have added to you many more things like these!" (2 Samuel 12:7-8) We all have lack in our lives and, sometimes, we are ashamed of our lack and afraid to approach God thinking He will judge us for our lack, but God already knows what we need and He is ever standing ready to fill up what we lack. David's sin came because he tried to secure what he wanted in his own strength rather than coming to God and asking of Him what he wanted and needed. If David had too little, God was ready to give him more, if he would have but just asked.

Why is it that, when we are in need, the last place we turn for help is the one person who can actually help us in our need? If we would but turn to God we would realize that He is not waiting there to criticize us but rather to congratulate us for our faith and trust in Him? Throughout the life of Jesus we read stories where Jesus congratulates those who came to Him in need and in faith. "Daughter, take courage; your faith has made you well." (Matthew 9:22) Let us put aside our fear and come to Jesus for what we lack. "Therefore let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (Hebrews 4:16)

When James speaks of doubting and the double minded man it always bothered me, because sometimes my faith is not as strong as it should be. However, here James is speaking of the doubt of a double minded man. This doubt comes not from weakness of faith but from weakness of heart. Later, James will command the double minded, "purify your hearts, you double-minded." (James 4:8) The problem is not weak faith but impure hearts. James is speaking of those who have duplicity in their hearts, who vacillate between faith and unbelief, between dependence on God and dependence on self. They are like the Israelites whom Elijah rebuked saying, "'How long will you hesitate between two opinions? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.' But the people did not answer him a word." (1 Kings 18:21) They are like the Samaritans who, "feared the Lord and served their own gods according to the custom of the nations from among whom they had been carried away into exile." (2 Kings 17:33)

The double minded man, the one who has two spirits within him, lives an unstable life; now trusting in the Lord, now trusting in himself. Such a person is at the mercy of circumstances and the forces that rage around him and that make war within him. His double mindedness undermines all he attempts and brings forth only failure in his life. Such a man is not the kind of man God is looking for. God is looking for those who are either "in or out," those who are either "with Him or without Him." The double minded man finds no pleasure with God. "I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot. So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth." (Revelations 3:15-16) It is time to stop vacillating between opinions; either God is God or He is not; either we are with Him or we are not! Now is the time for decision, now is the time for choosing. Let us abandon everything else and give our lives whole heartedly to the Lord and to His mercy and grace.

David Robison

New commentary - Jude

Having just finished a series on Jude, I've collected all the posts, edited them, and formatted them for easy downloading. You can find it on the Commentary tab on my blog.

David Robison

The path to perfection - James 1:2-4

"Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing." (James 1:2-4)

Finding joy in our trials is usually not our first thought when we first encounter them. Trials, by their very nature, are not fun and often fraught with difficulty and danger. One who fails at a trial can suffer harm and loss through the process. Even one who successes in them is not immune to the pain and suffering they experience along the journey. However, the very thing we find difficult to summons is the very thing that will strengthen and sustain us through the journey. It was said of Jesus that, "for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." (Hebrews 12:2) That joy was our redemption and it was His joy in seeing our redemption which enabled Him to endured the cross and the shame. It was for the joy of seeing us brought into the Kingdom that Jesus endured His trials and sufferings.

The reason joy in trials can be so elusive is because we often fail to see the ultimate purpose and good of the trials. Jesus saw clearly the purpose of His suffering and that purpose gave Him joy in the midst of great pain. For us, our trials are meant to produce something with in us; first patience, then endurance, and finally perfection. Often the path to achieve the very things we desire in our lives passes through times of trials and tribulations, but if we understand that they are there not to derail us but to produce in us the things we truly desire, then we can find joy even in their midst. We can have joy in the midst of difficult times because we know what they are working in our lives and that our suffering is not in vain. Our suffering produces within us the very nature and character of God.

When James refers to trials he is not speaking of random painful events that enter our lives. Rather he is speaking of opportunities to test the genuineness of our faith. It is an opportunity to either choose according to our faith or according to our fears, impulses, and unbelief. These trials allow us to see the true quality of our faith and the degree to which our faith in God is merely mental or truly integrated into our lives. For Abraham and Sarah, such a testing came upon them after God had promised them a son. Years of waiting had provided an opportunity for their faith to be tested. Did they really trust God and His promise or did they trust their own wisdom and strength? In the end, their faith faltered. "So Sarai said to Abram, 'Now behold, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Please go in to my maid; perhaps I will obtain children through her.' And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai." (Genesis 16:2) However, failing at a test is not disqualification with God, rather it is merely meant to show to us the strength, or weakness, of our faith and the areas of our lives that we must strengthen so that next time, when faced with a similar test or trial, we will be successful rather than fail. Failing a test is a call back to God that we might continue to grow and to shore up the areas of our lives that are weak.

Like Abraham and Sarah, when faced with prolonged trials, we look for shortcuts or ways to exit prematurely, rather than submitting to the trial and trusting God for our eventual deliverance from its grips. God has already promised us, "No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it." (1 Corinthians 10:13) We may feel that we have hit our breaking point, but our faith in God ought to reassure us that, if we are still suffering, then we are still able to endure it and that God still has a way out for us. Exiting trials prematurely will only serve to rob us of the good God is working in our lives and will necessitate future trials to work into us what God intended for us in our present trials. However, such endurance requires patience, yet not a passive patience, but a joyful, hopeful, confident expectation of good. Often in our Christian lives faith alone is insufficient, we also need patience. "And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you will not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises." (Hebrews 6:11-12)

In the end, the goal is perfection; to be perfect and whole in every area of our lives. Some areas of our lives may only require mild affliction to perfect while others may require more strident trials. However, the end is desirable and for our own good. If there were any other way, God would avail us to such milder means. However, things of great value often come only at a great price. Jesus once prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; yet not as I will, but as You will." (Matthew 26:39) Trials, difficulties, and suffering are inevitable, but if we can see their purpose, see the joy set before us, then we will be able to embrace them and endure them as Jesus did and we too will reap their benefits in our lives.

David Robison