The Desire of the Father
James 1:16-18
* Parents want the best for their children. In the 21st century American culture, parents go beyond the call to make sure that their kids have ‘all the things that I didn’t have.’ Candidly, this is done with the best of intentions but ‘too much too soon’ may have been the culprits of many of today’s problems. The issue is: ‘we want the best, but do we know what’s best?”
* Our Heavenly Father not only desires for us to have the best, but as our creator and Lord, He KNOWS what is best for us. His intent is for us to have life to the fullest (abundant life) on earth and eternal life when our earthly time has passed.
* We are working our way through the book of James in a series of messages entitled “How To Do Life” and find ourselves hearing from James about the ‘desire of the Father.’ Let’s read & consider these words. (Read text)
* James’ message is written to those who believe. Sometimes he writes about social issues, other times his message is about pray, and other times he writes about sin. We have already studied about test and temptation, about who they are from, and about the outcome of our response. It is on the heels of this subject that I would like us to consider what, exactly, the desire of our Heavenly father truly is.
* Life is all about choices, decisions, and actions. He says 3 things to us;
1. Be Clear –(Verse 16) It is obvious from the words of scripture that our Lord God wants us to be or our guard for deception. James has just finished writing about trials and temptation and follows with the affectionate address of “My dearly loved brothers” ‘don’t be deceived about these things. Candidly, the Bible gives us a laundry list of people who were deceived.’ From Eve’s story in Genesis to the reminder of Balaam & Korah in Jude, deception runs rampant throughout history. This is why we are repeatedly admonished to ‘be not deceived;’ to the point of speaking about becoming ‘self deceived.’ God desire that we understand some things.
a. His Principles – God’s principles are, in large measure, neither, a secret or a mystery. His principles are found in black and white on the pages of the Bible. It is amazing how many people ‘say’ they don’t or can’t understand God’s word. I submit that most of the people who say they don’t understand God’s word will one day be forced to admit to God that they never really read God’s word. They may have skimmed over it, speed read, or even ‘did the daily Bible reading.” However understanding God’s word is as simple as taking one book at a time, reading with focus & study. Paul told the young preacher, Timothy, that all the scripture was inspired by God and will teach, rebuke, correct, and train. (could this be the reason that so few read?) God wants us to know His word and put His principles so deeply into our mind that we are able to live by His principles of life.
The Desire of the Father – Pg 2
b. His Plan – Because of our traditional way of thinking, some will say, “No one can know the plans of God.” While we cannot know the specific plans we can discern the general plans God has for us. God tells us, “I know the plans I have for you.’’ If the word stopped there then we would not know God’s plans, but the verse doesn’t stop there. He continues (Jer. 29:11) I am making plans for your welfare, not for disaster, to give you a hope and a future. Candidly, God’s one plan for us and that is for us to know Him, love Him, worship Him, and live for Him. The amazing thing is this; God still gives us a choice in the matter. Do I understand how this works into His divine sovereignty? Nope (and neither does anyone else) because we have finite minds attempting to understand an infinite God. One day we will see as we are seen and will known as we are known. Think about this; God wants the best for us and He’s planned out the best. If I want the best for me, what will I do? Perhaps I will get in on God’s program because I know He knows what’s best. He has more than just a plan.
c. His Power – Be clear about the fact that God possesses the power to do whatever He plans. Where He guides, He provides. Don’t be deceived about it. When the 3 Hebrews boys were thrown into the fire, when Daniel was put in the lion’s den, and when Jesus was laid in a borrowed tomb, God showed up and showed out! Don’t ever get fuzzy on this truth; God always has the power. Generally, we do not have a problem saying this or saying that we ‘believe’ this, but do we live like we believe this? As long as things are good, God’s got the power. However, when the economy takes a nose dive is our faith and trust shaken? God has the power no matter what your circumstance. God wants us to be clear & not deceived.
2. Be Confident – James’s message is this; don’t be deceived, be assured or confident in that “EVERY act of giving and every gift comes from the good GIVER which is the Father above. Look at how skillfully James teaches us the three parts of God’s generosity. It gives us a reason for confidence.
a. In the Giving.- The HCSB says, “Every generous act” while the KJV says, “Every good gift.” The Greek language uses a word that speaks more about the act of giving. Other translation says, “Every good giving” & even ‘every good endowment.” The NETB reads “All generous giving.” In His desire to give us the best, God’s motivation is His unending love for us. It is like a wealth man giving to His family not because he’s required to or is expected to, but because He wants to. It gives Him pleasure. Never doubt the reason that God gives like He does, He’s in love with us.
b. In the Gifts.- While the giving is good the gifts are perfect, complete, without repentance. God has a way of giving us things we think are bad which are, honestly, blessings. We tend to view the gifts from God in the ‘immediate’ while God sees and acts on the eternal.
The Desire of the Father – Pg 3
* His gifts are given because we are His creation, His chosen, and His cared for. Sadly, we miss the opportunity to thank Him when me overlook the source of our gifts in life.
* Time magazine carried the following news item. “When the post office in Troy, Michigan, summoned Michael Achorn to pick up a 2-foot-long, 40 pound package, his wife, Margaret, cheerfully went to accept it. But as she drove it back to her office in Detroit, she began to worry. The box was from Montgomery Ward, but the sender, Edward Achorn, was unknown to Margaret and her husband, despite the identical last name. “What if the thing was a bomb? She telephoned postal authorities… “The bomb squad soon arrived with eight squad cars and an armored truck. They took the suspected bomb in the armored truck to a remote tip of Belle Isle in the middle of the Detroit River. There they wrapped detonating cord around the package and, as they say in the bomb business, ‘opened it remotely.’ “When the debris settled, all that was left intact was the factory warranty for the contents: a $450 stereo AM-FM receiver and a tape deck console. Now the only mystery is who is Edward Achorn and why did he send Michael and Margaret such a nice Christmas present?” We gasp with shock at the thought of a costly stereo in pieces, yet many reject the far more costly gift of God’s son. Eventually they will regret what they discover they have scorned.
* Jesus said, ‘If you, being evil, give good gifts to you children, how much more will the Father give to you.” St. Francis of Assisi wrote, ‘it is in giving that we receive’ & it seems this is the mind of God, the supreme giver.”
c. In the Giver.- James tells us that the supreme giver is “The Father of Lights who never changes.” Consider the confidence found in a never changing giver. The “Father of Lights” (in the context of the original audience) refers to God being the designer and creator of the lights in the heavens. No matters which way He turns or what He does, He is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Look at it another way; He is the giving, His greatest gift is His Son, and He gave this gift so that you and I can have eternal life.
3. Be Converted – I must confess that not until I read a message by Dr. Johnny Hunt did I completely see the complete gospel in verse 18. Follow along;
a. His will for your life. – God has a plan and a will for your life. James says it this way, “By His own choice” (In His own will, by His choice). It matters not how it is said, that bottom line is this: God is in control & He desires for you to know Him. Not a person here is outside of God’s will & plan.
* In a commencement speech at Hampton University in Virginia, Bill Cosby made this sobering statement, “People say, ‘God will find a way.’ But God can’t find a way if you’re in the way.” When taken to the extreme, this statement is plugged with theological problems, but the point is well taken. When the Children of Israel refused to possess the land, God took 40 years to remove them out of His way. Here is your question; will God have to get you out of His way in order to fulfill His will in your life?
The Desire of the Father – Pg 4
b. His work in your life. - God knows what He wants for you & He knows what He wants to do IN you, give you a new birth. He wants you to know His Son, Jesus, in a very up close & personal way. It is only in a close relationship with Jesus that you can make heaven and miss hell.
* An Indian was converted to Christ. When some white men found out about it, they began to taunt him. They said, “What did Jesus ever do for you, Indian?” The Indian said nothing as he fell to his knees. He began digging in the earth for a worm. When he found one, he surrounded it with a ring of dry leaves, which he set on fire. He sat there and watched those leaves burn and just about the time that ring of fire reached the worm, he reached into it and pulled out that worm. Then he said to the white men, “That is what Jesus did for me.”
* It is a sad day when, by their lives, people demonstrate a lack of belief in a place of punishment called hell. What’s worse is that for people who believe in hell, their belief is skewed toward those who we call criminals. If a man enters the church in a nice suit, with a nice car, and a nice family, then our American logic tells us, “He’s a child of God.” Yet, when a man of meager means comes in with his tattered, torn, and dirty clothes, then that logic tells us that “HE needs the Lord.” James will teach us about this in chapter 2 because He knows how we are. God wants to do such a work of grace in your life that your testimony is “This is what Jesus did for me.”
c. His word through your life.- (Recap) His want His word to flow through us so that we may be ‘washed by the water of His word.’ Think about coming in from a long day working out in the yard. You dug dirt, sweat, dust has caked on to your skin, and you feel basically filthy. (My dad would come in from a day like this and tell mom, “I’m going to bed and if I don’t look any better in the morning, I’ll take a shower.”) Most of the time when we go into the world, we come in with the grit, grime, dust, and dirt of the moral impurity which surrounds us. What do we do? God desire for us to wash.
d. His workmanship of your life. The First fruits (as taught in Exodus 23) were the first crops of the land and they belonged to God. It’s similar to our tithe in that it is the first part of what we earn. God wants us to be His. Eph 2:8-9 are arguably some of the most quoted verses in the Bible while verse 10 is left out. (Read Eph 2:10) In Jesus we are to do good works. These works are the plans of God for our lives. He desires for us to have, do, live, & be the best this world has to offer. He worked for us when in Jesus, He works in us when we receive Jesus, & He works through us when are cleansed by His word and become like Him. His plan is to use you, it is His desire
* Jerry Bridges of Navigator gives us a great perspective on God’s working in our lives, “"Your worst days are never so bad that you are beyond the reach of God’s grace. And your best days are never so good that you are beyond the need of God’s grace."
Powerpoints are available for all of these messages...just email Jerry
