Tom Lowe
1/26/2021
Text: James 1:14-15 (KJV)
14But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
Commentary
14But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. 15Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
We think of sin as a single act, but God sees it as a process. Adam committed a single act of sin (evil), and yet that one act brought sin, death, and judgment on the entire human race. James described this sin (corruption) process in four stages – Desire (14), Deception (14), Disobedience (15), death (15).
Desire (v. 14). The word "desire" may carry sexual overtones, but not necessarily; it can also be translated as "covet" or "desire to possess." However, the writer does find sexual desire an appropriate image to characterize the downward slide of the one who does not endure. First, God is blamed, then desire, the real culprit conceives and gives birth to sin, finally sin, when it has fully matured, gives birth to death.
The word "lust" means any desire and not necessarily sexual passions. The typical desires of God were given to us by God and by themselves are not sinful. Without these desires, we could not function. Unless we felt hunger and thirst, we would never eat and drink, and we would die. Without fatigue, the body would never rest and would eventually wear out. Sex is a normal desire; without it, the human race could not continue.
When we want to satisfy these desires in ways outside God's will, we get into trouble. Eating is normal; gluttony is a sin. Sleep is normal; laziness is a sin. "Marriage is honorable in all, and the bed undefiled, but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge" (Heb. 13:4).
Some people try to become spiritual by denying these normal desires or trying to suppress them, but this only makes them less than human. These basic desires of life are the steam in the boiler that makes the machinery go. Turn off the steam, and you have no power. Let the steam go its way, and you have destruction. The secret is in constant control. These desires must be our servants and not our masters, and this we can do through Jesus Christ.
Deception (v. 14). No temptation appears as a temptation; It always appears more alluring than it is. James used two illustrations from the world of sports to prove his point. "Drawn away" carries with it the idea of the baiting of a trap and, enticed in the original Greek, means "to bait a hook." The hunter and the fisherman have to use bait to attract and catch their prey. No animal will step into a trap deliberately, and no fish will knowingly bite a naked hook. The idea is to hide the trap and the hook.
Temptation always carries with it some bait that appeals to our natural desires. The bait not only attracts us, but it also hides the fact that yielding to the desire will eventually bring sorrow and punishment. It is the bait that is the exciting thing. Lot would never have moved toward Sodom had he not seen "the well-watered plains of Jordan" (Gen. 13:10). When David looked at his neighbors' wife, he would never have committed adultery had he seen the tragic consequences: the death of a baby (Bathsheba's son), the murder of a brave soldier (Uriah), the violation of a daughter (Tamar). The bait keeps us from seeing the consequences of sin.
Anyone who endures temptation and trials receives a blessing (Matt. 5:11-12) that is the crown of life (Rev. 2:10; 3:11). Failure to endure produces blaming God, sin, and death.
When Satan tempted Jesus, he always dealt with the temptation on the grounds of the Word of God. Three times He said, "It is written." From the human perspective, turning stones into bread to satisfy hunger is sensible, but not from God's perspective. When you know the Bible, you can detect the bait and deal with it decisively. This is what it means to walk by faith and not by sight.
Drawn away (v. 14) is a Greek word used to describe wild game being lured into traps. Just as animals can be drawn to their deaths by attractive baits, temptation promises people something good, which is harmful.
His own lust (v. 14) refers to the human soul's strong desire to enjoy or acquire something to fulfill the flesh. Man's fallen nature has the propensity to desire whatever sin will satisfy it (Rom. 7:8-25). "His own" describes the individual nature of lust – it is different for every person due to inherited tendencies, environment, upbringing, and personal choice—the Greek grammar also indicates that these "desires" are the direct cause of one's sinning (Matt. 15:18-20).
Enticed (v. 14) is a fishing term that means "to capture" or "to catch with bait" (2:14-18).
Disobedience (v. 15). We have moved from the emotions (desire) and the intellect (deception) to the will. James changed the picture from hunting and fishing to the birth of a baby. Desire conceives a method for taking the bait. The will approves and acts, and the result is sin. Whether we feel it or not, we are hooked and trapped. The baby is born, and wait until it matures!
Christian living is a matter of the will, not the feelings. I often hear believers say, "I don't feel like reading the Bible, Or "I don't feel like attending the prayer meeting. Children operate based on feeling, but adults operate based on will. They act because it is right, no matter how they feel. This explains why immature Christians easily fall into temptation; they let their feelings make the decisions. The more you exercise your will by voicing a decisive no to temptation, the more God will take control of your life. "For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Phil 2:13).
Death (v.15). Disobedience gives birth to death, not life. It may take years for the sin to mature, but the result will be death when it does. If we will only believe God's Word and see this final tragedy, it will encourage us not to yield to temptation. God has erected this barrier because He loves us. "Have I any pleasure at all that the wicked should die" (Ezek.18:23).
These four stages in temptation and sin are perfectively depicted in the first sin recorded in the Bible. Eve disobeyed God by taking the fruit of the tree and eating it. Then she shared it with her husband, and he disobeyed God. Because Adam was not deceived but sinned with his eyes wide open, it is his sin that plunged the human race into tragedy (read Rom. 5:12-21; 1 Tim. 2:12-15).
Both Adam and Eve experienced immediate spiritual death (separation from God) and, ultimately, physical death. All men die because of Adam (1 Cor. 15:21-22). The person who dies without Jesus Christ will experience eternal death, the lake of fire (Rev. 20:11-15).
Sin is not merely a spontaneous act but the result of a process. The Greek words for "hath conceived" and "bringeth forth" likens the process to physical conception and birth. Thus, James personifies temptation and shows that it can follow a similar sequence and produce sin with all its deadly results. While sin does not result in spiritual death for the believer, It can lead to physical death (1 Cor. 11:30).
Whenever you are faced with temptation, get your eyes off the bait, and look ahead to see the consequences of sin: the judgment of God. "For the wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23).
James' discourse on the origin of sin and trials is taken directly from the fall of Adam and Eve (Gen. 30:1-13). God did not tempt our first parents; it was their desire that enticed them (vv. 13-14; Gen. 3:6), led them astray, and ultimately resulted in their death (vv. 12-15; Gen. 3:19). Don't be deceived (v. 16; Gen. 3:13b) God, "the Father of the heavenly lights" (v. 17; Gen. 1-3), gives only that which is good (v. 17; Gen. 1:31). He "does not change like shifting shadows" (v. 17; Gen. 1:2), but nothing sinful in His mind or heart or conduct can be ascribed to God. He is not the author of the rubbish though His fiery trial exposes it. Those who lay the blame for sin, either upon their constitution or their condition in the world, or pretend that they can not keep from sinning, wrong God as if He were the author of sin. Afflictions sent by God are designed to draw out our graces, but not our corruptions. The origin of evil and temptations is in our hearts. Stop the beginnings of sin, or all the evils that follow must be charged to us.
