THE PERFECT MAN AND THE SECOND COMING
Intro: Many topics are discussed in this chapter: Trouble of various kinds, poor being deprived of their wages, people physically sick, spiritual backsliding, and prayer. James encourages the believer
through it all by saying, "for the coming of the Lord draweth nigh".
I. THE PERFECT MAN IS PATIENT WHEN WRONGED
A. Two Aims of the first 6 verses of James Ch. 5
1. To show the Ultimate worthlessness of all earthly riches.
Proverbs 11:28 He that trusteth in his riches shall fall: but the
righteous shall flourish as a branch.
2. To show the detestable character of some of those who possess riches
B. Three Main Sources of Riches
1. Grain
2. Garments
a. Achan died for Babylonish garment in Josh 7:21
Remember Ch. 2:2 -- "in goodly apparel"
b. Gehazi lied to obtain garments and received leprosy
2 Kings 5:5, 22
Elisha and Naaman -- Cleansed
c. Paul declared he had coveted no man's money or apparel
Acts 20:33 I have coveted no man's silver, or gold, or apparel.
3. Gold and Silver
C. The Sins of the Rich
1. Hoarding (Not Saving) -- "Ye have heaped treasure together"
It is wrong to store up wealth when you owe money to your
employees.
2. Stealing Wages
a. Labourer is worthy of his hire Luke 10:7
Colossians 4:1 Masters, give unto your servants that which is
just and equal; knowing that ye also have a Master in heaven.
b. Payment was to be daily Deut. 24:14-15 Thou shalt not oppress an
hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of
thy brethren, or of thy strangers that are in thy land
within thy gates: 15 At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the LORD, and it be sin unto thee.
The day labourer in Palestine always lived on the very
verge of starvation. His wage was small; it was impossible for him to save
anything; and if the wage was withheld from him, even for a day, then
literally he and his family would not eat. (W. B. pg 139)
Lev. 19:13 Thou shalt not defraud thy neighbour, neither rob
him: the wages of him that is hired shall not abide with thee all
night until the morning.
3. Extravagant Luxurious Living (v. 5)
a. Luxury meaning waste, waste being sin.
There is a great difference between enjoying what God has given us
(1 Tim 6:17) and living extravagantly on what we have withheld from others (or from God).
b. James compares them to senseless cattle feeding themselves
without restraint little realizing that they are only
being fattened up for the slaughter.
Means to live in lewdness and wanton riotousness.
It is the condemnation of the selfish rich that they have used their possessions to gratify their own lusts, and they have forgotten all duty
to their fellow-men.
4. Injustice
a. In modern day, often, the Golden Rule is "Those who have
the Gold,make the rules."
b. In Bible days, the same was true, yet without the checks
and balances.
D. What Will Their Riches Do?
1. Material Wealth
a. Grain -- Grows rotten
b. Garments -- Moth eaten
c. Gold and Silver--canker -- to rust over; cover with rust; corroded, value
changes, stocks and markets?
Matt. 6:19-20 Then charged he his disciples that they
should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ. 21From that
time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he
must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders
and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again
the third day.
2. Character-- Often tarnished in greedy exploits.
1 Timothy 6:9 But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a
snare, and intomany foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men
in destruction and perdition.
3. Soul -- Required
a. Anyone who chooses this pathway has also chosen the end of
it. The end of the specially fattened cattle is that they will be slaughtered for
some feast. The end of their pleasure is grief, and the goal of their
luxury is death. Selfishness always leads to the death of the soul.
To live selfishly is to pierce Christ again. (W. B. pg 141)
b. Judgment is a certainty
-- wages will witness
-- workers will testify
-- Blood will cry out
Jeremiah 17:11 As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and
hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right,
shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall
be a fool.
4. Within 10 years of the letter of James, Jerusalem fell to Roman conquest.
a. Within 10 years where will you be?
b. What about 20 years?
E. The Patience of the Poor.
Alcibiades was the friend of Socrates, and Alcibiades for all his great talents often
lived a riotous, reckless, and debauched life. And there were times when he used to
say to Socrates: "Socrates, I hate you; for every time I see you, you show me what
I am." The evil man would gladly eliminate the good man, for the good man reminds
him of what he is and what he ought to be. (W.W. pg142)
By faith, they are to take God's long-range viewpoint of life and be assured of judgment upon the unjust. It is true that wealthy men who harm them now have the
upper hand and appear to be immovably established. But their reckoning with the
Lord must inevitably come. Thus faith invests one with patience rather than succumb.
(RRR pg 126)
John 16:33 These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might
have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good
cheer; I have overcome the world.
Acts 14:22 Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them
to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation
enter into the kingdom of God.
James used two different words for patience. In verses 7, 8, and 10 it was the word
"long-tempered." The words "endure" and "patience" in verse 11 literally mean "to
remain under" and speak of endurance under great stress. Patience means "to stay put
and stand fast when you'd like to run away." Many Greek scholars think that "long- suffering" refers to patience with respect to conditions or situations. (W. W. pg 154)
The word "patient" does not mean that the believer sits idly by, doing nothing. Rather,
it carries the idea of endurance, bearing the burdens and fighting the battles until the
Lord comes. (W. W. Outline)
F. Examples of Waiting
1. The Farmer
a. No crops appear overnight except a crop of weeds
b. Too much rain -- rot
c. Too much sun -- burn it up
d. Jewish Farming
-- plowing and sowing in Autumn (October on)
-- early rains would soften soils
-- Latter rains in early Spring (March & April)
--would mature the harvest
Gal. 6:9 And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due
season we shall reap, if we faint not.
There are seasons to the spiritual life just as there are seasons to the soil.
e. Establish your hearts -- This is one of the purposes of the local church.
Rom 1:11 For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you
some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;
f. The farmer constantly works as he waits.
(1) Waiting for fruit
(2) The Husbandman waits for precious fruit.
g. Farmers are friendly, not grudging one another.
Impatience with God often leads to impatience with God's people,
and this is a sin we must avoid. If we start using the sickles on each other, we will miss the harvest!
2. The Prophets
a. In the will of God -- yet they suffered
It is always a comfort to feel that others have gone through that which we
have to go. (WB pg 146)
Satan tells the faithful Christian that his suffering is the result of sin
or unfaithfulness; and yet his suffering might well be
because of faithfulness!
Psalms 27:14 Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he
shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD.
b. Trials
-- with Unbelievers
Matt 10:22 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's
sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.
-- with Believers
c. Why is it that those who "speak in the name of the Lord" often must
endure difficult trials? It is so that their lives might back up their messages. The impact of a faithful, godly life carries much power.
We need to remind ourselves that our patience in times of suffering is
a testimony to others around us.
Luke 6:23 Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for,
behold, your reward isgreat in heaven: for in the like manner
did their fathers unto the prophets.
3. Job
a. The Burden before the Blessing
b. Great Experiences may require great thorns 2 Cor 12: 1-10 Read
c. There is a Blessing
-- during the trials of life
-- after the trials of life cease -- "I Just Start to Live When I Die"
d. God was glorified
Job was purified
e. Satan wants us to get impatient with God, for an impatient Christian is a
powerful weapon in the devil's hands. When Satan attacks us, it is
easy for us to get impatient and run ahead of God and lose God's
blessing as a result. (WW pg 161)
f. When you find yourself in the furnace, go to the throne.
Heb 4:14 -16 Seeing then that we have a great high priest,
that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God,
let us hold fast our profession. 15For we have not an
high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. 16Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
II. THE PERFECT MAN IS PURE IN SPEECH (v12)
A. Point of Clarification: James is not thinking of what we call bad language, and of
swearing in the modern sense of the term; he is thinking of what we call taking
oaths, and confirming a statement or promise or an undertaking by an oath.
B. Swear not -- Jews used various oaths, but were careful not to use the name of God in
their oaths lest they blaspheme God.
1. Swore By:
-- Heaven
-- Earth
-- Jerusalem
-- Even their own heads
2. Two Evil Practices (WB pg 148 -149)
a. Binding and Nonbinding Oaths
The distinction was this: any oath in which the name of God was directly used was considered to be definitely binding; but an oath in
in which direct mention of the name of God was not used was held
not to be binding. The idea was that, once God's name was definitely
used, God became an active partner in the transaction, but He did not
become a partner unless His name was so introduced. The result of this was that men became experts in evasive swearing; and it became a matter of skill and sharp practice to find an oath which was not binding. Obviously this made a mockery of the whole practice of confirming anything by an oath.
b. The value of an oath depends to a large extent on the fact that it is very
seldom necessary to take one. Its impressiveness lies in its exceptional character; and when oaths became a commonplace, they cease to be respected as they ought to be. In an honest society, no oath is needed; it is only when men cannot be trusted to tell the truth that they have to be put upon oath. An the prevalence of oath-taking was in itself a proof of the prevalence of falsehood.
C. Few Words Needed
1. It is a basic principle that true Christian character requires few words. The person
who must use many words (including oaths) to convince us has something wrong with his character and must bolster this weakness by using words. If you are a true Christian, with integrity, then all you to say is "Yes" or "No" and people will believe you.
2. The great Greeks held that the best guarantee of any statement was not an oath, but
the character of the man who made it; and that the ideal was to make ourselves such that no one would ever think of demanding an oath from us, but would be certain that we would always speak the truth. (WB pg 150)
D. NT View -- Every word is spoken in the presence of God, and that, therefore, every
word must be true.
E. James is not forbidding legal oaths. He is telling us to have such honest speech that we
do not have to "back up" our promises with oaths. The rich men did not keep their
promises; but the Christian must always keep his word, even if it hurts him personally.
III. THE PERFECT MAN IS PRAYERFUL IN TRIALS
A. God answers prayer
1. Prayer for the Suffering
a. Afflicted -- Suffering in difficult circumstances.
We should pray, asking God for the wisdom we need to understand
the situation and use it for His glory. Remember James 1:5
Prayer can remove affliction, if that is God's will. Remember the Thorn, "thrice" Paul prayed.
b. Is any merry? "let him sing psalms"
Psalms 105:2; Sing unto him, sing psalms unto him: talk ye of
all his wondrous works.
Ephesions 5:19; Col 3:16; Rev 5:9
c. Can we be afflicted and merry at the same time?
Paul and Silas were -- Acts 16:25
d. Praying and singing were important elements in worship in the early
church, and they should be important to us. (WW pg 167)
e. Songs should:
(1) Be Praiseful
(2) Come from the heart
(3) Be Motivated by the Spirit of God
(4) Based on the Word of God. If a song is not biblical it is not
acceptable to God.
2. Prayer for the Sick -- The Church has always cared for her sick; and in the
Church there has always resided the gift of healing. (WB pg 153)
a. Proper Prayer
(1) Call the Elders -- Perhaps to their home due to sickness.
(2) Anoint with Oil
-- In the Roman Catholic Church--A.D. 852 -- became
the Sacrament of Extreme Unction administered to prepare for death.
--some Medicinal uses in biblical times; anointed head & feet
--to us, represents the power and presence of God to heal
through faith
(3) In the Name (authority) of the Lord
b. Sickness due to Sinning --"if he have committed sins" -- if he has been
constantly sinning
James here describes a sick member being disciplined by God.
(WW 168)
Remember I Cor 11:30
many weak and sickly
many sleep -- dead
(1) Confess your Faults
-- to the Catholics -- to the Priest
-- to us -- Proper Church Practice to bring healing
No man can know any health of either soul, or mind, or body until he is right with God. A right relationship with God is a
prerequisite of health in every part of a man's life and being.
There is the idea that, to be effective, confession of sin has to
be made to men, and especially to the person wronged, as well
as to God. In a very real sense it is easier to confess sin to God
than it is to confess them to men; and yet in sin there are two
barriers to be removed--the barrier which sin sets up between
us and God, an the barrier which sin sets up between us an our
fellow-men. And if both these barriers are to be removed, then
both kinds of confessions must be made. (WB pg 154)
The "confessing" that James wrote about is done among the
saints. We confess our sins first of all to the Lord, but we
must also confess them to those who have been affected by them. We must never confess sin beyond the circle of that
sin's influence. Private sin requires private confession; public
sin requires public confession. (WW pg 170)
Matt 18:15 Read
Church Discipline I Cor 5 -- dismiss a the sinning member
A thing of the past?
(2) Healed by the "prayer of faith"
According to Wiersbe -- The "prayer of faith" is a prayer
offered when you know the will of God. The elders would
seek the mind of God in the matter, and then pray according
to His will. (WW pg 169)
B. Some Practical Lessons
1. Disobedience to God can lead to sickness
2. Sin affects the whole church.
We can never sin alone, for sin has a way of growing and infecting others.
3. There is Healing (physical and spiritual) when sin is dealt with.
C. A PRAYING MAN -- EXAMPLE
Elias -- Elijah
-- Was a man
-- Subject to like passions
-- He prayed --it rained not
-- He prayed again -- it rained
D. A STRAYING MAN
Scriptures on Erring: Jude v11Woe unto them! for they have gone in the
way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward,
and perished in the gainsaying of Core.;
1Tim 6:10For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some
coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced
themselves through with many sorrows.;
2Tim 2:18 Who concerning the truth have erred, saying that
the resurrection is past already; and overthrow the faith of some.
1. To the Baptist -- A straying brother who may be taken to Heaven as a result
of his straying, not translated like Enoch, but by death.
2. To us-- A backslider in danger of dying lost and going to Hell.
"No Christian is in more danger of erring than that one who has already
erred in thinking he cannot err." (RRR pg 163)
Gal. 6:1Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are
spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness;
considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
& Jude v22-23 And of some have compassion, making a difference:
23And others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire;
hating even the garment spotted by the flesh.
& 1 Peter 4:8 And above all things have fervent charity among
yourselves: for charity shall cover the multitude of sins.
