NO GUARANTEES
James 4:13-17
1) Presumptuous judgments (vs. 13).
• Previously, James had warned against making presumptuous judgments about people (vs. 11-12). Now he warns against making presumptuous judgments about the future. We have a mistaken confidence; we think we can predict the unpredictable. It’s not good to make presumptuous judgments. It’s not good to assume tomorrow is guaranteed. And it’s arrogant to make our plans without considering God. James is writing to believers here. They had trusted Christ for salvation; they had given thought to their necessity for Jesus regarding their eternal life, but have failed to do the same regarding their everyday life. And so it is today. We recognize that we need Jesus on Sunday but how much is he a part of our lives every other day? Do we give thought to God when we go about our business? We get out our planners and make appointments for the day or week or month but how much do we stop and think about how God would want us to plan our lives? How often do we pray before a meeting or a phone call, asking for God’s guidance? Do we put God off to the side during the week and then come to church on Sunday saying, “Hey, thanks God for getting me through another week”? When ironically we hadn’t given him much thought throughout the week.
• We set ourselves up for disappointment when we make all these plans without considering God. We may have our heart set on a career choice but we end up running into brick walls, getting frustrated and discouraged; all because that’s not what God wants us to do; it’s what we want to do. “You can be anything you want to be”. Sounds nice but it’s not true. You can’t necessarily be anything you want to be. I will say go ahead and try it; don’t let restrictions stop you. You can rise above challenges, you can beat the odds but sometimes we have to face reality and change course when something isn’t panning out. It doesn’t mean failure; it just means we were meant to do something else. When we have our heart set on something and we don’t listen to God or wise counsel from others who would be pointing out certain things we need to take a look at we are in trouble. We plan our future with this picture-perfect scenario of how it’s going to go. We find ourselves getting our hopes up and becoming overconfident and over excited then something happens that we weren’t expecting and we are devastated. We don’t know what to do. We are angry and confused and we throw away our plans. We become depressed and conclude that we’re a failure; life’s a failure. All because we tried to make certainties out of uncertainties; all because we didn’t expect the unexpected; all because we didn’t plan wisely; all because we didn’t include God in our plans; all because we didn’t listen to God when he was trying to warn us.
2) Life is brief (Vs. 14).
• The brevity of life. Psalm 39:4-7. David understood that it was important to consider the brevity of life. That in the whole scope of things life is but a breath; a vapor. And it is wise to put things in perspective. And it is wise, in realization of all this, to make sure our hope is in the Lord. He is our hope in sustenance and our hope is the success of our lives. Life is brief and uncertain. One day a doctor called one of his patients into his office to deliver some very important news. “I have received the results of your tests and I have some bad news and some good news.” The patient was quiet for a moment, sensing the gravity of the announcement, “Let me have the good news first, Doc,” said the patient. The doctor took a deep breath and said, “You only have 24 hours to live!” “Oh my goodness,” shouted the patient, “If that’s the good news what could the bad news possibly be?” The doctor replied, “I was supposed to tell you this yesterday.” We never know which day will be our last. This is sobering when you really contemplate it. And it’s not only sobering it’s scary for those who aren’t saved. There are those who have heard the gospel and haven’t responded to it; they are putting it off. They think they have plenty of time. This is a delusion. There is an old fable that tells of three apprentice demons that were coming to earth to finish their apprenticeship. They were talking to Satan about their plans to tempt and ruin men. The first said, “I will tell them there is no heaven.” Satan replied, “Ah, they’ll never believe that. The bible is full of messages about the hope of heaven.” The second said, “I will tell them there is no hell.” Satan replied, “No good. Jesus talked more of hell than of heaven.” The final demon said, “Then I know the answer. I’ll just tell them there’s no hurry.” Satan said, “Aha! Go, and you will ruin them by the thousand.” It’s a risky misconception to think that there is always plenty of time. Poem: “The clock of life is wound but once, and no man has the power; to tell just when the hands will stop at late or early hour. To lose one’s wealth is sad indeed; to lose one’s health is more. To lose one’s soul is such a loss as no man can restore.” About 40 people died in the time it took to read that little poem. Every hour almost 6,000 people in this world go to meet their maker. Our lives can change in the blink of an eye. Therefore it’s important how we live each day. James asks us, ‘what is your life’? What are we doing with our ‘dash’? [Tombstone has date of birth and date of death with a dash in the middle.] Life is brief an unpredictable. It’s important that our plans coincide with God’s so that no time is wasted going in the wrong direction. We need to make sure that the most is made of the few years we have. Colossians 4:5 says to make the most of every opportunity. We need to consider the brevity of life, living each day to the fullest.
3) Lord Willing (Vs. 15).
• “If it’s the Lord’s will”. Many years ago, people used to add the initials “D.V.” when writing letters that included future appointments. The initials stood for the words Deo Volente meaning “God willing.” Paul used this statement often in his writings. In Acts 18, as he was leaving Ephesus the people wanted him to stay longer. He responded in verse 21 by saying, “I will come back if it is the Lord’s will”. Likewise, in 1st Cor. 4:19, when he was telling them he desired to come to be with them soon he added, “If the Lord is willing”. Paul was sensitive to the Lord’s direction. 1st Cor. 16:5-9. Paul had a desire, he had a plan, but he left it up to the Lord to direct. Sometimes, our problem is we want our will to be God’s will. Sometimes we even attach his name to our agenda. We set out to do godly things and think because of that we automatically have the green light. But yet we still haven’t prayed about it or sought godly counsel on it. So we move forward with “God’s will” yet it’s really our will. We want so badly for God to be on our side that we fail to really listen to him. We don’t want to have our bubble burst. We want something so badly we don’t want to deal with God saying “this isn’t my will for you.” During the US civil war Abraham Lincoln met with a group of ministers for a prayer breakfast. At one point one of the ministers said, "Mr. President, let us pray that God is on our side". Lincoln’s response showed far greater insight, "No, gentlemen, let us pray that we are on God’s side." When we make plans sincerely seeking God’s will we will succeed. Prov. 16:3, “Commit to the Lord whatever you do and your plans will succeed.” If God is at the center of your plans then whatever you set out to do will be a success.
4) Boasting and bragging (Vs. 16).
• In this verse, the word "boasting" (alazoniais) means an empty boaster; that is, a person who boasts about something he thinks he has, but he does not really have it. Why is it evil? This passage has to do with the respect of God. Therefore, it is disrespectful to God when we boast and brag; assuming we have tomorrow. It is audacious when we carry on our lives as if we were in control, as if we were the powerful ones, as if we were the wise ones, as if we were the all-knowing ones instead of God. In our pride we presume certain things about life. In all boasting and bragging we disrespect God. All such things are evil. Proverbs 27:1, “Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what a day may bring forth.” We don’t consider the Lord when we boast about tomorrow. Too often we make plans and go forward according to our own intelligence or desires. We fail to incorporate God’s intentions into our agenda. Therefore, in order to humble us, God may very well thwart our plans to get our attention and remind us that he is God. On the other hand, he may allow our plans to succeed and when it all comes crashing down we will realize that we made a mistake by not making God the center of our plans. A man was taking his cow to market when he happened along an acquaintance on the road. His friend asked, “Where are you going?’’ to which came the reply “I’m taking my cow to market to sell.” “You mean you’re taking your cow to market to sell, God willing.” “No, said the first man confidently, I’m taking my cow to market to sell.” And he stalked off down the road with his bovine. But before the man got to town, he was accosted by thieves. He was beaten and his cow was stolen. And he was limping along, tattered and torn, making his way back to his farm he came upon his friend who once again asked, “Where are you going?” To which the man humbly replied, “Home, God willing.” We have nothing to boast or brag about. Our boasting is empty and in vain. We don’t know the future-only God does. Therefore, He’s the one who knows the best course of action to take. God is the one with the map; God is the one with the aerial view. He can see what’s around the corner. Therefore, we don’t have to worry about tomorrow. We don’t know what tomorrow holds but we know who holds tomorrow. Let us stop all this empty boasting and bragging with this false assurance and instead humbly place our plans in the hands of the omniscient God.
5) The sin of omission (Vs. 17).
• James is saying, ‘you are no longer ignorant; you are now obligated to act upon what you know to be true. Therefore, now that you know the good you ought to do by including God in all your plans, by not doing it, you sin against him’. There are two types of sin-sin of commission, where we do what we shouldn’t, and the sin of omission, where we don’t do what we should. When we know what we’re supposed to be doing and we don’t do it, we sin. Sin isn’t just what you do; it’s also what you don’t do. When we know we should help someone and we don’t, we sin. When we know we should use our God-given gifts and we don’t, we sin. When the Holy Spirit moves us to witness to someone and we don’t, we sin.
• Let’s take this verse in light of verse 14-what is your life. Our lives are brief. Therefore, don’t waste precious time; don’t procrastinate in doing good works. Don’t be lazy; don’t be complacent. When you know the good you ought to be doing get to it. In procrastination we put things off thinking we’re guaranteed tomorrow. In this is boasting. It is evil to presume upon God as if to dictate the control of our lives in such a way. We fail to realize that life is short. Don’t put off until tomorrow what you know you should be doing today. Therefore, anyone who knows when he should do the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it sins. Richard L. Evans, “The tragedy of life is not that it ends so soon, but that we wait so long to begin it.” Matthew 25:14-18. Jesus was pleased with the ones who did the good they ought to do and he was not pleased with the one who sinned by not doing what he should’ve done. In verse 26 Jesus called this servant wicked and lazy and his fate was not pretty (vs. 30). God has given us gifts and talents to use-don’t bury them; don’t squander them. Max Depree in his book “The Art of Leadership” calls what the 3rd servant did in the story the sin of unrealized potential; the willful refusal to not use the gifts and develop the life God has given us. If we don’t use what God has given us we sin. He who knows the good he ought to have done and doesn’t do it will live with the regret of what might’ve been. He will live with the regret of lost blessings. He will live with the regret of not living up to his potential. He will live with the regret of knowing he could’ve made a bigger difference, could’ve furthered the cause of Christ. “Only put off until tomorrow what you are willing to die having left undone.”—Pablo Picasso.
6) To plan or not to plan–that is the question.
• Does all this mean we shouldn’t make any plans for tomorrow? Not at all. Making plans is wise; it is part of the good we ought to do. It’s been said if you fail to plan then plan to fail. It’s smart to plan ahead. Saving money in case of emergency or putting away for retirement. What’s not smart is making plans without seeking God’s wisdom. God should always be at the center of all our plans. Therefore, when we’re making plans for the future, we should write them in pencil and give the eraser to God. Proverbs 16:9, “In his heart a man plans his course, but the LORD determines his steps.” There was an officer in the navy who had always dreamed of commanding a battleship. He finally achieved that dream and was given commission of the newest and proudest ship in the fleet. One stormy night, as the ship plowed through the seas, the captain was on duty on the bridge when off to the port he spotted a strange light rapidly closing with his own vessel. Immediately he ordered the signalman to flash the message to the unidentified craft, ‘Alter your course ten degrees to the south.’ Only a moment had passed before the reply came: ‘Alter your course ten degrees to the north.’ Determined that his ship would take a backseat to no other, the captain snapped out the order to be sent: ‘Alter course ten degrees–I am the CAPTAIN!’ The response beamed back, ‘Alter your course ten degrees–I am Seaman Third Class Jones.’ Now infuriated, the captain grabbed the signal light with his own hands and fired off: ‘Alter course, I am a battleship.’ The reply came back. ’Alter your course, I am a lighthouse.’ No matter how big or important any of us think we are, God’s Word stands forth as an unchanging beacon. All other courses must be altered to His.
