Who do you want to be? (James 1:1-12)
Today, we begin a new series on the letter of James. The sort of weird thing about teaching on James, from my perspective, is that I've done this before. Maybe 10 years ago, I preached through James in two little churches in Kulm and Medina. I'm not planning to look at my old sermons-- maybe at the end, I'll dig them out. But I'm in a very different place in life, in many ways. And I'm guessing that the whole book is going to come out quite differently.
One of the really interesting things we find about James's letter, when we study it academically, is that NT scholars read the letter in two very different ways. The older (critical) approach tended to divide James up into dozens of little sections, and treat them all as distinct little sayings. The end result was that James was treated like the book of Proverbs, in many ways (Dibelius is like the shining example of this approach).
Now, my guess is that most of us, when we read James's letter, tend to take the same approach. We treat it a little like a 5 minute Our Daily Bread. We'll read two or three verses, chew on them, and then put the letter down. The next day, we'll maybe read two or three more.
More recent NT study understands that James has a number of topics that he covers-- things like faith, prayer, testing, good works, and wealth. But above all of these ideas, arguably, there is one central idea. You can use a few different English words to describe this idea: Wholeness. Completeness. Perfection. Maturity (Douglas Moo does a nice job on this, somewhere).
I say this, and it's possible that some of you find yourselves feeling really squirmy. We evangelicals have been trained to have a built-in, instinctive response to all language like this. Any time we hear talk about wholeness, and completeness, and maturity, and perfection-- especially perfection-- we find ourselves wanting to offer a cautionary note. We will always sin. And perfection is something that won't come until Jesus returns.
All of this sounds pious, and humble. But the expectation throughout the NT is that we will grow to the place, spiritually, where we can legitimately be called whole, complete, mature, and perfect.
I know if I say something like this, I need to defend it. Let me quote two other people in the NT who are kind of big deal.
Let's read Jesus' words first, from Matthew 5:43-48 (NIV no reason):
43 “You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor[i] and hate your enemy.’ 44 But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. 46 If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? 47 And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? 48 Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.
Now let's turn to Ephesians 4:12-13 (NIV again). Paul says:
11 So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, 12 to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up 13 until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.
The word Paul uses here for "mature," is the same word Jesus used in Matthew 5:48. "Be perfect, as your Father is perfect." Paul expects that through the work of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, we (laity) will be equipped for ministry, and we (laity) will build the body, so that we as a church grow together to a place of spiritual maturity. We, as a church, will attain the "whole measure of the fullness of Christ."
The idea of perfection, and completeness, and maturity, isn't that we never sin. Jesus, and Paul, and James are all aware that Christians still sin at times. The idea with perfection, and completeness, and maturity, is that we can reach the place, as individuals, and more importantly, as a church, where we are completely committed to God and to each other. We do sin, now and then. But we don't live in sin. We aren't slaves to sin. We don't even think that much about sin. Our attention is focused up, toward God, and outward, toward people.
So this goal of maturity, and wholeness, and perfection, is Jesus' goal for us. It's Paul's goal. And we will also see that it's James's goal.
And when we find ourselves realizing this, we don't need to be scared about their language of maturity and perfection. We don't need to fight it, or push back against it. What we need to do, is realize that our thinking on this is a little off. We have to bend our brains to the Bible, instead of the Bible to our brains.
I heard a great sermon one time by a pastor in town (Greg Allen) that was basically about the idea of wholeness, and maturity, and completeness. But the pastor used different language. He talked about being "all in." That would be another to think about it, and maybe a more useful way. James wants us to be "all in" for God, and "all in" for each other. That's spiritual wholeness. It's a life lived in total faith, and trust, and confidence, and obedience toward God. It's a life marked by love, and mercy, towards others.
When we hear this, we have two reactions, probably. The first, should be a sense of longing. This is what you want, above all else in life.
The second, is a little bit of sadness. Because that kind of life maybe seems really far away. It seems like something impossible.
But what James is offering us in this letter, is a real possibility. He expects that we can come to a place of spiritual wholeness-- of being all in, toward God, and toward each other.
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Patrick Hartin, James, 72, after noting places where the same Greek word is used in the LXX for Noah (Genesis 6:9), for unblemished/whole lambs (Exodus 12:5), as a command to Israel ("You must remain completely loyal to the Lord your God" Deuteronomy 18:13), and as a statement about God's character and what He wants (2 Samuel 22:26: "With the loyal you show yourself loyal; with the blameless you show yourself blameless), goes on to unpack the Hebrew word "tamim" the Greek word translates:
"(1) The first dimension is the idea of wholeness or completeness, whereby a being remains true to its original constitution.
(2) The second aspect is the giving of oneself to God wholeheartedly and unconditionally, which includes a relationship between God and God's people . . . If the person was grounded in this relationship she or he would be seen as whole, perfect. Perfection includes a community relationship, not just an individual dimension.
(3) Third is the wholehearted dedication to the Lord that is demonstrated above all in obedience to God's will."
All of this is a brief summary of his larger book, A Spirituality of Perfection: Faith in Action in the Letter of James.
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Before we dive into our study, let me say one other thing. When I was at Bethel Seminary, I took a class on the gospel of Matthew with what ended up being my favorite professor, Donald Verseput. He told us, up front, that he wasn't going to spend a lot of time interacting with other interpretations. He was going to teach us what he thought Matthew meant. And if we wanted a second opinion-- and we should, because we are good Bereans-- then he encouraged us to read a commentary on Matthew to go along with his lectures (his recommendation was David Garland, Reading Matthew-- a great commentary).
I would encourage you to do something similar as we study the letter of James. I'm not going to spend a ton of time interacting with other views. If you want a second opinion-- and you should-- I'd recommend spending $4 on ebay, and buying Alec Motyer's little commentary. It's practical, and warm, and useful, and cheap. [I will mostly rely on two different excellent commentaries by Luke Timothy Johnson and Patrick Hartin. Anyone who has either of those will see my dependence on them.]
Let's start by reading James 1:1-4:
(1) James, of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, a slave.
To the twelve tribes-- to the ones in the dispersion:
Greetings.
(2) Only joy consider it, my brothers, whenever various testings/trials you encounter,
(3) knowing that the process of the testing of your faith produces steadfastness/fortitude/endurance.
(4) Now, steadfastness/fortitude/endurance, its perfect/fully developed work/effect, must have,
in order that you may be perfect/fully developed and complete/whole, in nothing lacking.
So let's focus on verses 2-3 to start.
James's main concern here, is with how we should we respond to "testings" in life (that's what's focused in the Greek).
Now, what are "testings"? How we answer this question is really important, so let me offer you two suggested answers. And I do this, because sometimes the best way to learn, is to hear the (slightly) wrong answer first. It sharpens the right answer:
(1) Some people (=scholars) would say that James is mostly talking about persecution here. When you suffer because of your relationship with King Jesus, you are going through testings.
(2) Others would say that "testings" describes all the hard things in life-- poverty, oppression, "sickness, loneliness, bereavement, disappointment" (Moo, James, Pillar New Testament Commentary, 54).
So those are two approaches. Does James give us any help? Let's reread verses 2-3:
(2) Only joy consider it, my brothers, whenever various testings/trials you encounter,
(3) knowing that the process of the testing of your faith(fulness) produces steadfastness/fortitude /endurance.
Verse 3 opens with a participle-- an "ing" verb. "Knowing." And what participles do, when they follow the main verb, is explain it. So what verse 3 actually does, is give us our answer (in two ways here, actually. It also explains why we should consider it joy). A "testing" is something that "tests your faith."
That's simple enough, right? If something hard happens to you in life, or something bad happens, that tests your faith, it's a "testing," and James says you should consider it only with joy.
Does this mean every bad thing that happens in life is a testing? I don't think so. Over the past two weeks, probably hundreds of people across North Dakota have had water seeping into their basements from all the rain we've had. I don't know that I would call this a testing. I don't know that sucking up water with a shop vac creates steadfastness.
Or, on a much more serious note (not that flooding isn't serious), consider an abused wife. Should we think that James is telling her to consider her abuse as only joy, because this is a testing of her faith, and this process will create steadfastness in her?
I don't think so. I don't think "testings"= bad things.
If we hug James's words, again, a "testing" is something that tests your faith.
We maybe find ourselves a little stuck. But the way out, is through the word "faith."
What is "faith"? We are tempted to pour a vast amount of theology and meaning into this word. We want to say we know the answer to that.
But let's pretend we don't. If all we had in the NT was the book of James, we would end up defining faith something like this: "Single-minded commitment to God and to each other." Faith is basically about "faithfulness" (and this holds true for much of the NT).
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What I'm doing here, without really explaining myself or defending my definition, is trying to model how to do a word study. If you want to know what "faith" means in James 1:3-4, the first place you look is elsewhere in James. You don't turn to Paul, or Hebrews, or anywhere else, because it's possible that James uses the word slightly differently than other people do. Plus, words get their meaning from how they are used. James gives us a definition, and the book makes more sense if we let him guide the discussion of his letter.
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So we go through life, committed to God, and to each other. We live a faithful life. And there are things in life that pop up, that test that faith. You find yourself, in that moment, wanting to respond to the situation in a dark, sinful, bad way. You find yourself wanting to stop doing things God's way, using God's wisdom. Instead, you want to use worldly wisdom.
Let me give you one example. Let's say that you really struggle with a coworker, or maybe even with someone in this room. You find that you are like oil and water, at least on some things. And your struggle with that person has reached the boiling point. Something has to be done. So you find yourself having an internal debate about how to respond to them. You could lash out at them, or undermine them, or gossip about them. The possibilities for how to harm them are endless. But what will you do?
That situation, is a "testing."
Or let's return to the example of water in the basement. I'm not sure that you sucking water out of your own basement is a testing. But let's say you got off early on a Friday afternoon, and plan to go fishing. Then, you hear the news that your "neighbor" has water in his basement, and he's struggling to keep up. That is a "testing."
Or, you've been up half the night sucking up water, and you're tired, and crabby, and it's now 9 am. Your kids come downstairs asking what's for breakfast. That's a testing-- how will you respond to your kids?
The right way to respond to testings, is "in faith(fulness)." You respond, keeping in mind your love for God, and for that person. And if you respond rightly, verse 3, James says that the end result is steadfastness.
What is steadfastness? A lot of Bibles translate the word as "endurance." But at least in English, "steadfastness" and "endurance" don't really mean the same thing. Usually, we think of enduring something as grimly hanging on. You endure the dentist office. You endure tax preparation. Maybe your spouse thinks your marriage needs work, and you endure marital counseling.
But (probably) the Greek word has more of an active sense-- it means something more like "steadfastness" (Sophie Laws does a nice job on this). When you successfully live in faith-- in "faithfulness"-- loving God and others in the midst of trials, the end result is steadfastness. You become the kind of person, who faithfully, consistently, does what's right.
So there's lots of kinds of testings. There are lots of things that pop up in your life, that stretch your faithfulness, where you find yourself fighting to respond the right way.
And some of us know, honestly, that there areas of life where we fail. Testings come up at work, or in our marriage, or with our kids, or with our parents, and we tend to respond with worldly wisdom.
What's the solution?
It's not simply a matter of trying harder, and truly committing to a life of faith. James says, if you struggle with this, God is happy to help. Verse 5-8:
(5) Now, if anyone of you lacks wisdom, he must ask from The God Giving To All Simply/Straightforwardly/Generously and Not Demeaning/Criticizing,
and it will be given to him.
So there is one right way to respond to testings. You're supposed to respond "in faith." In "faithfulness" toward God and people.
If you struggle with this, you can ask God for help.
Now, all of us at times have had to ask someone for help for something, and we are a little scared to do so.
Sometimes, we know we shouldn't need to ask for the help. Say my boss explained something to me once, or twice, and I still don't get it. I still can't do my job, plus now, on top of that, I feel like an idiot. And the third time I ask my boss about how to do something, my boss might find himself agreeing with me. My boss knows this isn't that hard. My boss knows he did a great job explaining himself. And yet, here he is, having to tell me a third time how to do my job.
This is the idea of verse 5.
When you have to ask God for wisdom to live "in faith(fulness)," you're going to feel like an idiot. None of this is that complicated, or that hard, and God has explained himself quite well.
But James encourages you to think about God in a particular way (using overspecification; cf. Steven Runge, Discourse Analysis of the Greek New Testament). When we you come to God, asking him to help you live the way He wants, God will give to you, first of all, straightforwardly and generously (the Greek word is actually a little tricky here). Most of us, when we give money, kind of measure out how much help we will give. Even when we write the check for our offering at church, we have this little sense of hesitation when the pen hits the paper, and we think: "How much will we give?" Or if someone needs help, we measure out how helpful we will be. We pause, maybe just for a half second, and think about it. How much help does that person really need? How much help is enough, for them to get by?
God does not give like we give. God doesn't fight stinginess. God gives generously. If you ask, He simply gives.
James also says that God gives without demeaning, or criticizing. There are times in life when you will ask someone for help, and they will help you-- but they will do so, criticizing you. They'll say, "Here's the money, but you need to get your act together." Or, "I'll help you this time, but you need to stop being so stupid." The giving comes with a cost-- you are belittled, mocked, humiliated.
When you come to God, asking him for wisdom in how to live rightly, there will be no criticism or belittling coming from heaven. All you will receive, is help.
Now, what is wisdom?
James is going to have a lot to say about wisdom later in his letter, and I don't want to talk myself out. So let me just say, "wisdom" is skill in life. It's about (1) seeing reality for what it truly is, and (2) responding to that reality the right way-- God's way. So like in the book of Proverbs, if a loose woman tells you that her husband is out of town, and it's a good time to fool around with her, a guy with wisdom is going to understand that nothing good could possibly come from listening to her. And he will do the wise thing-- he will respond, by running the other direction.
So if you find that when you are in a testing, you struggle to respond the right way, what should you do? You should ask God, and God will give you wisdom. He will give you the ability to see the testing the way He sees it. And He will give you the ability to respond the right way. The smart way.
Verse 6-8 (working from "de" to "de"):
(6) Now, he must ask in faith, without any wavering.
For the wavering one is like waves of the sea, being moved by the wind and blown away.
(7) For that man must not think that he will receive anything from the Lord--
(8) a double-minded man, unstable/restless in all his ways.
A lot of times, this verse is explained in terms of mountain moving. Jesus had said, "If you say this mountain, go from here to there, without doubting, believing that it will happen, it will be done" (Mark 11:23).
And so we read James 1:6, and we think James is saying, "If you're going to ask God for wisdom, you have to believe that He will actually give you this gift."
But I don't think that's right. Let's go back to our working definition for what "faith" means in James:
"Single-minded commitment to God and to each other." Faith is basically about "faithfulness."
So let's say you struggle to respond to testings of your faith the right way. You find that you want to respond with worldly wisdom, instead of God's wisdom. And what you really need, is for God to help you, by giving you his wisdom.
I think what James means by asking "in faith, without any wavering," is that you have to actually desire this. You're asking, wanting to be faithful to God, wanting to love God and people. You've reached the place where you are frustrated by sin, and by your own stupid behavior. And you want something better. You want to do it God's way.
But if there's a part of you that prefers living like the world, using worldly wisdom, God won't help.
God helps people who are single-minded, who are completely devoted to God and to people. And if you're wavering, and not really committed to this, or to God, God won't help. God won't give wisdom to people, if they won't use it. God won't help people, who are still planning to use testings as an opportunity to do evil.
With this, we come to verses 9-12:
(9) Now, the brother of humble circumstances must boast in his greatness/high position.
(10) Now, the rich one in his humiliation,
because like a flower of the grass/field he will disappear.
For the sun rises with its heat,
and it dries out the grass/field,
and its flower falls off,
and its lovely appearance perishes.
Thus also the rich one in his course/trajectory will gradually disappear/fade/die out.
(12) Blessed is the man who endures testing,
because, tested/approved being, he will receive the crown of life
that He promised to the ones loving him.
I think if we read verses 9-11, in the context of this section as a whole, we will end up saying this: "One of the main ways that our faith is tested, is through wealth, and money." [I think if we focus on how verse 12 builds on the passage as a whole, and verses 3-5 in particular, it helps us realize that what James says about wealth is not a separate topic here].
James first focuses, in verse 9, on the poor, with a single line. The brother living in humble circumstances must boast in his high position. In Christ, as a member of God's household, the poor person is a big deal. Later on in the letter, James will unpack this, so I'll just leave it for now.
James's focus here, really, is on the rich (look how much more space he spends on them). Rich brothers [and sisters] need to boast in their humiliation. By worldly standards, they are a big deal. They have wealth, and power, and influence, and social status. They are like a flower of the field. In the vast sea of people, the rich stand tall. People draw close, to admire their beauty, and glory (Psalm 49:16). No one notices the grass around the flower. The grass is what you step on, to get close to the flower, and praise its beauty.
But when wealthy people become "brothers," they join a new kingdom, where people are valued by a different standard, using a different perspective. Wealthy disciples understand that their wealth is temporary. That in many ways, it's like an illusion, or a mirage. And they understand that they, with their wealth, will slowly fade away. They'll be like aging Hollywood actors. Back in the day, people thought they were amazing. But in their old age, they live out their days in obscurity, as the world has moved on.
So I think what James is saying here, is that wealth is a "testing." When you find yourself with extra money in the bank account at the end of the month, and extra food in the pantry, you end up confronted with constant choices in life about how you'll use it. You can spend it on yourself, and live like a flower of the field. You can make sure people admire you, and praise you for your glory.
Or... what? James doesn't unpack the other option here. But there's maybe a different way you could spend your money, right?
Wealth is a testing. When you have extra, you have choose if you live "in faith," loving God and loving people. Worldly wisdom would say, "Keep your wallet closed. Guard what you have, and enjoy it. If you must give, don't give to the point where it hurts. And if you give, give openly, so people understand you're a great person."
Let's reread verse 12:
(12) Blessed is the man who endures testing,
because, tested/approved being, he will receive the crown of life
that He promised to the ones loving him.
James wraps up his introduction by answering this question: "Who is blessed?"
When you respond to testings the right way, and grow in steadfastness, and become mature, you become someone who is "approved." You are the kind of person who truly loves God, not in word alone, but in action. And what's waiting for you, is the crown of life.
The crown of life that James is talking about here, is eternal life. There is a kingdom waiting for you, for you to inherit. You will have eternal life in that kingdom.
If.
If you endure testing.
God gives eternal life to people who live "in faith." People who live faithfully toward him, and toward others. We who live this way, live in expectation that God will keep his promise to us, and give us eternal life.
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Craig L. Blomberg and Mariam J. Kamell, James, vol. 16, Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2008), 69:
Endurance will show people as “having passed the test” or “having been approved” (d???µ?? ?e??µe???). As in 1:3, the word for approval (d???µ??) refers to the approval that comes from actually passing the test. Such people will receive “the crown of life” (t?? st?fa??? t?? ????). This is not a royal crown but the laurel wreath that was given to winners in athletic competitions, including the Olympics. The genitive is best taken as appositional (“the crown which is life”), rather than descriptive of the actual wreath (“the living crown”),14 because the prize for which Christians strive is eternal life (cf. Rev 2:10).
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So how do we put this whole passage together?
Our goal in life is to become mature, complete, perfect disciples of Jesus. We want this, not just as individuals, but for this church body as a whole. We want to be all-in, loving God and people with the entirety of who we are. We want to lack nothing.
But many of us know that there is a gap between who we are, and who we want to be.
How do we get rid of that gap? James says, that at least one of the ways this gap disappears (I'm not prepared to say this is the one single way) is through "testings." There's maybe other ways that we can grow in steadfastness, and righteousness, and maturity. But testings are certainly one way. So let's think about testings.
There are times in life when your faith will be tested. You will find yourself having to make a choice between doing things God's way, and the world's way. When you find yourself in this situation, you should consider it with only joy, because you know that these are the moments that can shape you into becoming a different kind of person. Someone who is complete, and perfect, and whole, lacking in nothing. These are the moments when you can grow as person, into becoming what God created you to be.
So when you find yourself in the midst of a testing, see it as an opportunity to level up spiritually. It's a chance to grow in steadfastness. It's a chance to become more complete.
If you recognize these situations for what they are, you're more likely to respond the right way, using God's wisdom.
That said, we all know that responding the right way to a testing is not an automatic thing. All of us have had testings, at points, where we failed miserably. Something tough happened to us, and we responded with greed, or anger, or envy, or quarreling, or selfishness. We blew it. We responded with worldly wisdom, instead of God's wisdom.
If you find that this is an ongoing problem in your life, and you genuinely want to fix it, ask God for his wisdom. God will generously share his wisdom with you, and enable you to start growing.
At the end of the day, I think that what this passage teaches, is that we have to decide what kind of people, and what kind of church, we want to be. We can all say the right thing. We can act like we want to be steadfast, and live in faith, and do the right thing. We can pretend that we want to be single-minded people.
But do we?
If that's what we want, truly, then God will help us, and we will become mature, complete Christians. And we will become a mature, complete, perfect church, that has grown into the fullness of the measure of the stature of Christ.
But if there are things you hold back from God, you'll go through life like a wave of the sea. You'll be unsteady. You'll shift back and forth, from righteousness, to wickedness. You'll listen to whatever what wind pushes you, in any direction. Your life will be a chaotic, confusing mess.
James is saying, don't be like this. Make the choice, of being all-in for God and people. Take the path that leads to wholeness, and completeness, and maturity. Take the path that leads to becoming all that God created you to be. Take the path that has no end-- the one where you receive the crown of life.
Translation:
(1) James, of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, a slave.
To the twelve tribes-- to the ones in the dispersion:
Greetings.
(2) All joy consider it, my brothers, whenever various testings/trials you encounter,
(3) knowing that the process of the testing of your faith produces steadfastness/fortitude /endurance.
(4) Now, steadfastness/fortitude/endurance, its perfect/fully developed work/effect, must have,
in order that you may be perfect/fully developed and complete/whole, in nothing lacking.
(5) Now, if anyone of you lacks wisdom, he must ask from The God Giving To All Simply/Straightforwardly/Generously and Not Demeaning/Criticizing,
and it will be given to him.
(6) Now, he must ask in faith, without any wavering.
For the wavering one is like waves of the sea, being moved by the wind and blown away.
(7) For that man must not think that he will receive anything from the Lord--
(8) a double-minded/souled man, unstable/restless in all his ways.
(9) Now, the brother of humble circumstances must boast in his greatness/high position.
(10) Now, the rich one in his humiliation,
because like a flower of the grass/field he will disappear.
For the sun rises with its heat,
and it dries out the grass/field,
and its flower falls off,
and its lovely appearance perishes.
Thus also the rich one in his course/trajectory will gradually disappear/fade/die out.
(12) Blessed is the man who endures testing,
because, tested/approved being, he will receive the crown of life
that He promised to the ones loving him.
