Two brothers were left alone in the kitchen. The older brother pulled the egg carton out of the refrigerator. He pulled the eggs out of the refrigerator and told his little brother, “I’ll give you five dollars if you let me break three of these eggs over your head.” The little brother said, “You promise?” And the older brother said, “I promise.”
Then he pulled out an egg and broke it over his brother’s head. It oozed down through his hair and ran down his face. Then he pulled out the second egg and broke it over his brother’s head. This one was really messy. It went all the way down the back of his neck and inside his shirt collar. After the second one, the little brother really braced himself. He knew the third egg was going to be really nasty. And he waited. And waited. He waited but the third egg never did come. Finally, he spoke up. “Hey, when’s the third egg coming?” Finally, the older boy told him, “It’s not—if I broke that one over your head, it would cost me five dollars.”
Could have quoted verse 16 to his egg soaked brother
1:16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren.
1. Long list of deceived names in the Bible when it come to difficult times
a. Job’s friends & wife b. Elijah c. WHY ME LORD? d. Eve
2. Satan’s nature is to deceive
3. Danger of deception during trials over the nature of God.
1:17 Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.
A legend tells of an ancient kingdom whose king had died. Ambassadors were sent to choose a successor from two twin infants. They found the little fellows fast asleep, and, looking at them, found it difficult to decide which one should be made king. But then, they noticed that one of the infants had his tiny fists closed tight and the other slept with his little hands opened. They choose the infant with the open hands and the infant grew to be known as “The King with the Open Hand.” Our God is not the “God of the clutched fist” but the “God with the Open Hand.” Our God is a giving God. He is a God, as we shall see, that gives and gives and gives.
God’s Interest “God has a great interest in every one of us.
A. In the original Greek there are two different words for gift, to emphasize the perfection and inclusiveness of God’s graciousness towards us.
1. “Good gift”, speaks of the act of giving.
a. God is a giving God. And no matter how hard you may look no one gives more than God. It implies that the gift is “beneficial for the recipient.” All that God gives us is for our benefit.
2. “Perfect gift” refers to the object of the gift
3. Perfect also means there is nothing evil that comes from God.
D. We enjoy a lot of good things. Whether it’s friends, health, employment, family or whatever.
E. We must come to the attitude and understanding that all things good come from God
God’s Immutability(changlessness) “With whom there is no variation of shadow of turning.”
A. From our perspective, everything around us changes.
1. Day turns into night. Seasons change. Music changes. Styles change. Leisure Suits
2. We live in a changing society. A society that says…
a. If you don’t like yourself, change. job, wife or husband, church, your god.
James says GOD DOES NOT CHANGE
His promises are sure
As the first American astronaut prepared to go into space, one reporter asked, “What are you depending on most in your venture?” No doubt, the reporter expected the astronaut to say something about the quality of his equipment, his navigational skills, or the people at the space center. But instead, he replied, “That God will not change His laws.”
His love for you will never diminish
Can anything ever separate us from Christ’s love? Does it mean he no longer loves us if we have trouble or calamity, or are persecuted, or are hungry or cold or in danger or threatened with death? (Even the Scriptures say, “For your sake we are killed every day; we are being slaughtered like sheep.”) No, despite all these things, overwhelming victory is ours through Christ, who loved us. And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from his love. Death can’t, and life can’t. The angels can’t, and the demons can’t. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow, and even the powers of hell can’t keep God’s love away. Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. [Romans 8:35-39 NLT]
C. James also says there is no shadow of turning.
It literally means, “or shadow as a result of turning.”
A shadow is cast as the result of the earth changing its position, but the sun remains the same. God is like the sun—He never changes. There is no turning on His part. He is unchangeable.
Jimmy Draper says, “When the sun is in eclipse, it is not the fault of the sun. The sun hasn’t failed to light or shine. But something has come between the sun and the earth. It is the way the earth is turned that causes the shadow. Whenever there is a shutting off of the presence of God from our lives, it is not His fault, but ours. It is our sinfulness that has caused us to turn away.”
God’s Paramount Gift. 1:18 In the exercise of His will He brought us forth by the word of truth, so that we would be a kind of first fruits among His creatures.
Ephesians 2:8 tell us that salvation is a gift of God and it is by far the greatest gift we have ever received.
God’s Intention “Of His own will”
1. This phrase translates a Greek word that makes the point that regeneration, salvation, the new birth, is not just a wish, but an active expression of God’s will.
2. Salvation is based on the sovereignty of God, but requires the cooperation of man.
3. God’s desire is for all man, all women, and every child to be saved. But we have to accept it. He will not force us it the cross. We must go willingly.
Verse 18 says, “Of His own will begat He us.” It literally means, “having willed it.” It speaks of a planned course of action, a choice made by God.
Henry Ward Beecher used to say, “The elect are whosoever will; the non-elect are the whosoever won’t.” Salvation is not limited but is available to everyone and anyone who will accept God’s gift.
The Bible tells us that before the foundation of the world God made the choice to send His Son to this earth to die on Calvary’s cross that He might provide salvation for all men. It was a choice that God did not have to make. He did not have to give His Son. He could have chosen to let me go to hell because of their own doing and sin. But He willed it. He chose to give His son and planned a course of action whereby men could be saved.
Salvation demands the word of God. The instrument God used to bring us to Christ was His word. Verse 18 tells us that we were begotten (born again) by “the word of truth.” There has never been a person saved that somewhere did not come into contact with God’s Word.
1. God regenerates, saves sinners through the power of the Word.
2. The Word of God is the instrument and the tool of salvation.
Ephesians 1:13 says; “In whom you trusted, after hearing the word of truth”
Colossians 1:5; “for the hope which is laid up for you in heaven, whereof you heard before in the word of the truth of the Gospel”
1 Peter 1:23; “Being born again… by the word of God.”
Romans 10:17; “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”
C. That is why we must preach the Bible.
1. We are sustained by its words.
2. We are guided by its words.
3. We are comforted by its words.
What a joy and blessed honor it is to preach God’s word, teach God’s word, and go out and share God’s word. It is the mighty instrument God uses to save people.
What did salvation do for us? Verse 18 tells us that we are saved, “that we should be a kind of first-fruits of His creatures.” John MacArthur says; “Originally this is an OT expression referring to the first and best harvest crops, which God expected as an offering.
Salvation has made us the purchased possession of God. I am His and He is mine! We are God people and God’s property. I think of the familiar story of the little boy who made him a toy sailboat. He carried the little boat out to the pond and began watching it float on the water. However, the wind pulled the little boat away from shore, and all the broken-hearted boy could do was watch it be blown out of reach and sight. Several weeks later he was walking through town and he saw his little toy boat for sale in a store window. He rushed in side and bought the boat and was overheard as he walked down the street hugging his little boat: “You are now mine twice. I made you and now I have bought you.”
