PONDERING... Are Your Priorities Empty? (James 5:1-12)

VIDEO

Are Your Priorities Empty? (Virtual Sermon Notes)

GIST: The pursuit of empty, self-seeking priorities results in eternal punishment, but the patient, purposeful perspective of Jesus results in permanent peace. 

SCRIPTURE: James 5:1-12

We’re getting very close to the end of our study together in James. We started this before COVID-19 was even a word any of us had ever heard and then continued it mainly through our time of social distancing. It’s been a blessing for me to dive into these passages each week, and I pray they’ve spoken to your hearts, as well. Typically, next Sunday would be when we’d start our Summer in Psalms back up, but we’re so close to finishing up James, we’re going to wrap it up before we jump back into Psalms.

That being said, today we’re going to look at the first 12 verses of James chapter 5. I know. Last week we only covered 1 verse, but don’t freak out, I’ll still be considerate of your time ☺️. Throughout this letter, James has been telling these early Christians, who were spread all over the world and experiencing lives very different and much more challenging than they had expected, they need true faith, and he’s been painting us a picture of what it looks like to really live that! The passage we’re coming to today comes right after that summary point we looked at last week. If then, we know what to do and don’t do it, that’s sin. Following that, we’re faced with both a warning and an encouragement. I thought about dividing them up, but they seemed too paired for me to do that. So, let me give you my overly alliterated gist statement, then we’ll pray and dive in! Gist: The pursuit of empty, self-seeking priorities results in eternal punishment, but the patient, purposeful perspective of Jesus results in permanent peace. 

I. EMPTY PRIORITIES=ETERNAL PUNISHMENT

After telling us to actually live active lives for Jesus, the first thing we see pictured here is really→ 

Empty Priorities. Look at verses 1-3 real quick. “1 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.” Let me start by addressing the context a bit here. Clearly, the specific form of empty priority being drawn out here has to do with wealth. However, this is not a blanket statement against money, but rather a clear picture of what the love of money does. And before you feel any kind of relief too soon here, keep in mind that loving money isn’t always the same thing as having it. I heard Alistair Begg quote, I believe, J.C. Ryle as saying “you can love money without having it and have money without loving it”. And as someone who has never had much, let me just say, I know this is completely true. Wealth, in itself, is not evil. It is the selfish and wicked use of wealth and the longing after it at all costs that so often leads to corruption.

That’s the picture we have here. All this stuff that they’ve based their lives around is decaying around them and their foundation is falling out from under them. Guys, this is a truth we have to hold onto and hold onto hard. If we are putting our identity and our hope in anything or anyone except Jesus, it will not stand the test of time. It will fade. It will decay. It will let us down. So devoting our lives to this is running headlong toward our own condemnation. That last line is really key. It says, “their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.” That picture of eating our flesh like fire reminds us of Hell. The eternal punishment waiting for all those who reject Christ and put their hope in themselves. Then that final sentence emphasizes the futility of it all by reminding us that this is happening “in the last days”! Time is short! Don’t waste it on empty pursuits. You’ll never have enough money to fill your heart. 

Then, the second warning we get here is that→ 

Pride Hurts Us...And Others. Look at verse 4. Not only are these wealthy individuals hoarding emptiness, but→ “4 Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.” Let me just make two observations here. The first is a warning. Don’t take advantage of other people. I know that seems like basic human decency, especially since our culture has been so influenced by Biblical teachings, but it’s not the reality we live in. Our world is out to get what it can from whoever it can, and if others get the short end of the stick, that’s ok as long as you came out on top. Don’t by into that garbage. We are called to love God and love people. Pride destroys both of those in one decisive blow.

The second thing I’ll point out here is an encouragement. James assures both his readers and the selfish rich that these sins have not gone unnoticed. They have reached the throne of God, the Lord of Hosts. This is a picture of God as the powerful leader of an immeasurable army. Man, I love this! James is telling his readers the Lord, who is great in power, has heard the cries of the oppressed. Be assured; this will not go unpunished! 

Now, that’s not a call to some kind of vigilante justice. There will be justice, but it won’t come from you… but I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself here, so look at verses 5-6. Here we have a sort of→ 

Summary And Bridge.  “5 You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.” First, we see the condition of those seeking these empty priorities. They have→ 

Fat Hearts On Slaughtering Day. Listen, it’s not good to be fat on slaughtering day! The “day of slaughter” is referring to the final judgment—when these self-indulgent will be punished, and the imagery is profound. Before an animal is taken away to be slaughtered, it’s fattened up. The picture here is of an animal knowing they will be killed if they continue to eat in excess but doing it anyway. That’s nonsense! But, that’s the reality of people enslaved by their own sin. It’s killing us, but we’re doing it anyway.

The second thing we see is in that last little line “he does not resist you”. There has been a lot of speculation about what exactly this might be referring to, but it seems most likely to be referencing the→ 

Righteous Reaction. Either the Christian does not resist because he can’t because he’s too impoverished or powerless to stand against these oppressors, or they wouldn’t anyway because of their changed perspective. Both fit in this context, but especially the latter given what James continues with, which is why I wanted to present these together today. There is no physical abuse or verbal attack coming from the saint. Why? Because the Lord of Hosts has heard! The sinful nature within us makes us long for “justice” and “retribution”—both nice words we use to cloak our true intentions—revenge and pride. Instead, we’re called to the → 

II. PATIENT, PURPOSEFUL PERSPECTIVE= PERMENANMENT PEACE

Yeah, I know. That’s a lot of Ps. I can’t help myself ☺️. Let’s run through this. First, James tells us to→ 

Be Patient. I don’t even have to read the verse for this one to be convicting, right? We don’t typically do well with patience in our culture. We’re used to getting what we want when we want it and have missed out on the beauty of waiting on Jesus. Look at verses 7-8a. “7 Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains. 8 You also, be patient.”He tells these believers, in light of the condemnation of the sinful, to be patient until the coming of the Lord. Like a farmer waiting for the much-needed water—without which his crops will die—we are to wait on our vitally needed Savior, who is at hand! Don’t envy the wicked, but look forward to what really matters, that precious fruit: Jesus Christ! And while you wait, → 

Keep Your Eyes On His Truth. The rest of verse 8 says to “Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.” That’s the precious fruit we’re waiting for: seeing Him and bringing as many people with us as we can! It’s easy to lose sight of that and to waiver in our convictions when we’re feeding on the emptiness of this world. Cling to His Word and dig deeply into it. Hold on to His truth, and→ 

Don’t Waste Time Complaining. Verse 9 should provide a nice little kick in the teeth here. “9 Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.” Don’t grumble. Don’t gossip. Don’t waste your words by using them to tear others down and by so doing bring judgment on yourself. → 

Instead, Remember His Compassion & Mercy. Verses 10-11 hold this beautiful truth. “10 As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.” This is the permanent peace part! You want to know what this patient and purposeful perspective looks like, look back at the prophets. They were called by God with a message to deliver, just like us, and as they went out… their lives weren’t always easy. Yet, they remained faithful and God used them, and now they’re experiencing His grace in ways beyond our comprehension. James tells us to think about Job who suffered so much but was then given back twice as much as he lost. This isn’t a picture of what will necessarily happen here on earth, but the beautiful illustration of God’s heart! He is compassionate and merciful and pours that out on us every day if we’ll look for it. Moreover, a day is coming when we’ll experience that compassion and mercy face-to-face!

Then, this section ends with a verse some feel is out of place here. “12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.” It almost directly parallels Jesus’ exhortation in Matthew 5. But what does it mean? How does it fit here? As we wait for Him, we are to stand firm in our faith, but this isn’t just an intellectual thing. We need to strive to actually live like Christ. As such, we should be living lives of integrity and uprightness. Oaths are unnecessary when we are living in the truth. So, as we be patient, we keep our eyes on the truth, we don’t waste our time complaining, but we remember His compassion and mercy And Have The Integrity Of A Transformed Heart. That’s when we’ll experience the permanent peace of Heaven rather than the eternal punishment of Hell awaiting all those who live only for themselves. 

Ok, so some quick→ 

TAKEAWAYS

1. Empty priorities will lead to Hell. Let’s not sugarcoat it. If you’re living for yourself and have become a slave to whatever makes life a little easier, a little better, a little more comfortable—even if that might cost someone else, even if that might require bending on the moral convictions found in God’s Word— you’re worshiping yourself, hurting those around you, and running headlong toward one destination only: Hell.  

2. Be patient and remember your purpose. You aren’t here for you. Life is bigger than that. Don’t let your pride rob you of what you were made for! You were made to be with Him and to be used by Him here to point others to this truth!

3. Be patient and remember… He’s coming back! This world isn’t all there is. We’ve been talking the past two weeks about the brevity of our lives. We’re vapors, but so is this world. This whole timeline we call human existence is just a bleep compared to the vastness of eternity! And this isn’t just something we tell each other to make us feel better about our “bad days”. It’s true. He’s coming back. He’s only delayed because He’s not done saving people yet, but that day IS coming! Rejoice, look forward to it, and let that perspective drive your...every day! 

PONDERING... What If You Just… Don’t? (James 4:17)

VIDEO

What If You Just… Don’t? (Virtual Sermon Notes)

GIST: There is good we’re meant to do, but we don’t have forever, so don’t get weary and don’t put your “good” in a box.

SCRIPTURE: James 4:17

Today, we’re going to wrap up James 4. Last week, we just left this one verse. However, the implications of this verse are the summation of a point James has been making throughout the letter. Essentially, the true Christian life will be actively lived. It’s not just a label we put on. It’s also bigger than just not doing certain things. Because we’ve had a heart change, our desires are being transformed. There are two sides to that coin. Because we have been changed, there are things we will not do. However, because we have been changed, there are also things that we will do. Missing out on either side of that is an issue, but James zeroes in on the latter. You might hear this referred to as the difference between sins of “commission” versus sins of “omission”. Most of the time when we think of sin, we think of it in the terms of just not doing bad stuff. Don’t kill people. Don’t look at pornography. Don’t steal stuff. But when you read the Bible, you see it’s much bigger than that. When Jesus was preaching the Sermon on the Mount, He took all these moral expectations the Jewish community had embraced and flipped them upside down. He pointed out that it wasn’t enough just not to do bad stuff, it was about the heart behind those actions...or inactions.

Here, James has been building up this picture of Christian living— true, active faith that’s lived— and he makes this statement, which many agree was probably a common phrase at the time. Nonetheless, he frames it in a very dynamic context.  From the beginning of this letter, he’s told us to face trials with joy knowing God is good and can use even our struggles to grow us closer to Him, to be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, to actually do what the Bible teaches, to control our tongues, to be impartial in our sharing of the gospel, to be merciful, to care for those in need, to avoid mindless arguing and complaining, to seek God’s wisdom and not our own, and (as we studied last week) to only make plans with reference to God’s ultimate sovereignty. Then, he says this. Look at James 4:17→ 

“17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”

Simple truth, but such meat for us to digest today. And I feel like this is especially hard hitting for most of us studying this together today. See, James says, if you know and don’t do, that’s sin. If you’ve been exposed to God’s Word, you’re amongst those who know better. We’re without excuse. I have a pretty wordy gist for us today, but it’s also my points and my takeaways, so don’t get too intimidated ☺️. Gist: There is good we’re meant to do, but we don’t have forever, so don’t get weary and don’t put your “good” in a box. 

I don’t want to keep you long, but I do want us to break down the practical implications of this verse, so let’s dive in.

I. There Is Good We’re Meant To Do.

Works Prepared. A few months back when we were still meeting inside our building without masks on ☺️, I referenced Ephesisan 2:8-10.  Verses 8-9 are often quoted because they remind us that our faith is the gift of God and is not the result of works. Unfortunately, verse 10 often gets left out, but you need it to get the whole picture here. We’re saved by Jesus alone! And we’re saved on purpose with a purpose. Look at what Ephesians 2:10 says, “10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

This is expressing the same truth as our verse this morning. We are called to actually do stuff. We should be actively loving God and loving people. We should be digging into His Word and coming to Him in prayer and sharing Him with those we communicate with (I would say “around us”...but that is a more limited circle right now ☺️). AND here's the deal, every day God is providing you opportunities to serve Him in so many different ways, and if you know that (which if you just read those words, you at least do now!), then it’s a→  

Sin To Not. We spin our wheels doing so many things, don’t we? I know I do. I know I waste so much time on empty pursuits. They’re not inherently evil, but they’re robbing me and others of the blessing of being used by God to do what I was actually called to do! We were created for good works, and→ 

II. We Don’t Have Forever.

Remember last week? We’re just→ 

Sinful Vapors. Our time on this earth is limited. We’re not guaranteed tomorrow. So we must→ 

Live Intentionally. That one hits me hard. Guys, this is a call to prioritize. I don’t mind saying that. I even kind of like thinking about it. But I’m not good at doing it. I’m not good at always following through on actually spending my time wisely for Him. Pray for me. I need His constant support in this. Pray for each other, because I’m sure I’m not in this boat alone. And as you strive to live this intentional life for Jesus→ 

III. Don’t Grow Weary.

Galatians 6:9 is one of those verses I find myself quoting pretty often. I’m usually using it to try and encourage someone else, but I think I’m probably the one who needs to hear it most. In the context of telling the Christians in Galatia they will reap what they sow, Paul gives this encouragement. “9 And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.”

Guys, it’s easy to give up. It’s easy to put on the “church stuff” cloak and go do some kind of service project, or outreach, or VBS, but then just take it off and go back to “normal living” because maintaining that would just be too exhausting. Christian living will not be easy, and there will be times that you feel overwhelmed and burdened. It will be tempting to tell yourself lies like, “well, no one else tries as hard as I do” or “I’m the only one giving this much anyway”. I know. I’ve been there too. But don’t let weariness rob your joy! Persevere knowing the harvest is coming, even if you never see it! 

And as you do that→ 

IV. Don’t Put Your “Good” In A Box.

I know that probably just sounds like I was stretching for a point, so let me explain what I mean here ☺️. We’re all called to→ 

Righteous Living & Gospel Sharing. That’s what our lives should all be about. However, we have to be very careful not to confuse that with→ 

Churchy Doing. Now, I know this can be taken the wrong way, so please hear me out. Too often, we can allow ourselves to get away with not actually serving Jesus actively with our lives by doing “church stuff” and calling that good. Now, that doesn’t mean those things aren’t valuable or purposeful, but too often, they’re just not enough, and sadly, sometimes they’re not helping spend the gospel or grow our own faith at all. Just coming to church won’t save you. And just coming to church isn’t enough for you to say your faith is alive. 

I know that’s uncomfortable, but sometimes we need to feel uncomfortable, so we can see what we’re missing. In fact, right now, life isn’t really very comfortable, but this is a perfect→ 

Time To Evaluate Our “Good”. Let me just be real with you guys. In our current climate, that might look different than we’re used to, and this might stretch our comfort zones. But let’s take this as a challenge. I don’t know when life is going to return to “normal”, but I don’t want that to be our goal as a church. I don’t want us to be looking forward to the time when we can go back to doing… fill in the blank. Instead, I want us to live active, faith-sharing lives right now, so that when we’re able to do more, we’re ready to do more better. Let’s take this time to evaluate our own hearts and our practices as a church, so we can move forward serving Him and showing Him to this community even more effectively than we were before this pandemic.

We could keep going with that one, but for this morning, let’s leave it there and recap in our→ 

TAKEAWAYS

1. There Is Good We’re Meant To Do.

2. We Don’t Have Forever To Do It.

3. But Don’t Grow Weary.

4. And Don’t Put Your “Good” In A Box.

PONDERING... How Shouldn’t We Plan For The Future? (James 4:13-16)

VIDEO

How Shouldn’t We Plan For The Future? (Virtual Sermon Notes)

GIST: Don’t try to live this life without reference to God’s sovereignty and miss out on His perfect purpose!

SCRIPTURE: James 4:13-16

Last week, we had our first parking lot service. It was a blessing to have at least a portion of our services in the same vicinity ☺️. Truthfully, a few weeks ago, when they first started discussing the gradual reopening of churches, I didn’t think we’d be back together like that until this week at the earliest. As I considered that, and looked ahead to which passage we’d probably be in at that point, I could think of few passages more fitting for current circumstances. As James has been calling us to live of real and vibrant faith, he’s been contrasting God’s wisdom and purposes with our sinful arrogance. The passage we’re coming to today, then breaks that down in the context of making plans for the future. Guys, let’s be real. In a way more prevalent than most of us have ever experienced, at least on this global of a level, we have come face to face with just how little control we really have over our lives. For many, this realization hasn’t been a welcome one.  And again, James sugarcoats...nothing as he lays out this truth for us. I considered going all the way through chapter four this morning, but for our purposes, let's leave verse 17 for next week and just break down verses 13-16.

“13 Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit"-- 14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that." 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.”

Does that passage hit home for any one else? Our driving question then for today is: How Shouldn’t We Plan For The Future? Here’s our gist: Don’t try to live this life without reference to God’s sovereignty and miss out on His perfect purpose!

I. Don’t Try To Live Without God’s Sovereignty (13, 16)

First here, we have an→ 

Example. It’s just one verse, but there is a lot in it, so let’s break down what the planner in verse 13 is actually saying. (Disclaimer: I am going to rearrange the order just slightly so my explanation flows better.)

“Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow...” They have a plan for when this is going to happen. They have a timetable. 

“we will go into such and such a town...” They have a plan for where this is going to take place. They have a clear destination in mind.

“and trade...” That’s what they plan on doing.

“and spend a year there...” That’s how long they plan on doing it.

“and make a profit...” And that’s the result they are expecting. 

They literally have everything all planned out: the when, where, what, how long, and how much! Now, before we get too much further here, let me make this clear, not all planning is evil. Melissa and I are planners. We’re also chronic dreamers. You combine those two together and the result is a lot of “forward projection”... but we’re not as good at the forward motion part all the time (which just gave me flashbacks to my Relient-K driven teen years!). In fact, I sometimes find that I have so many hats throughout any given week that if I don’t have a concrete plan for how and when I’m going to tackle everything, I won’t ever get it all done. However, there is a distinct line here. While much of the Bible speaks to the importance of intentional living, James is clearly pointing to a serious→   

Danger. Look at verse 16. He literally says, “16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” So, if we’re supposed to intentionally live our lives for God, when does planning become evil? When your planning is all about you! This ties into the whole point James has been making in this section of his letter. We won’t live faith-filled lives if we’re living for ourselves. If all of our planning is just focused on how we will benefit from fill-in-the-blank, we’re living in arrogance...which is the opposite of what we’re called to, and James lays that out in clear terms. He calls it flat evil. Why? Because → 

II. It Causes You To Miss Out On Jesus’ Perfect Purpose (14-15)

Now, look at those middle verses (14-15). You make all these plans to benefit yourselves “14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, "If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that."” Let me break this down into two broad categories here. First, spinning our wheels trying to do whatever we can for ourselves ignores

Our Tainted Temporariness. (Yes, that is a word. I looked it up ☺️.)  You could break down this reminder as — I’m a sinful vapor ☺️. As we’ve been established clearly over the past several weeks, we’re sinners. As such, we have a tainted perspective on life, and tend to view the world through the lens of our own selfishness. In addition to that, our earthly existence...isn’t a forever thing! We have a very limited perspective. We don’t last that long, and the time that we are here...we basically have no control over. How many of you can say with confidence you know exactly what is going to happen tomorrow? None of us. How many of you predicted that May 17th would be our second “in person” service since March, and it would be outside with most people staying in their cars, and most of those who aren’t wearing masks? We didn’t see this coming, and that’s just a dramatic example of how we live...every day. Since we don’t have the ability to predict the future with any kind of accuracy, does it make any sense to try to plan our lives on our own? No. 

This perspective also missed out on→ 

God’s Saving Sovereignty. I’m a sinful vapor. God isn’t! All the limitations in my life don’t exist in Him. He’s not tainted by sin. In fact, He came deliberately to rescue us from our sins. And His existence is eternal. He has always been and will always be, so He possesses a perspective that so far exceeds ours that really thinking about it is enough to explode our minds ☺️.  That being said, let me wrap this section up with two big picture observations from these verses.

1. “Lord willing” isn’t just a figure of speech. It has to be a reflection of our reality. We definitely throw that term around pretty flippantly. James isn’t just saying, hey don’t make all those plans. That’s evil! But… if you make all those plans and then throw in a “if the Lord wills” at the end, then you’re covered ☺️. No, we’re talking about a complete perspective change here. Proverbs 19:21 presents this as clearly as anywhere else in Scripture: “21 Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.” That needs to be how we live our lives. I know I can make all kinds of plans, Lord, but only your plans work, and only your plans are worth my life, so please lead me to those. Because→ 

2. Planning isn’t evil, but planning without Him reflects our heart issue. You can do all the churchy stuff you want, but if you live your life like He has nothing to do with it, that’s practical atheism. Make plans, but make them with the right perspective. If my life is supposed to be lived to show other people the love of Jesus, am I making those kinds of plans? When you make decisions, your driving concern should be, will this honor God and allow me to be used by Him? Again, the more you...know His Word, the more informed this thought process becomes. And really, that’s the heart here. Be more concerned with His plans and His purposes than yours. 

So let me give you just a few quick→ 

TAKEAWAYS

1. BAD NEWS: You won’t fix this life!

2. GOOD NEWS: The ultimate planner can!

3. So… live with this perspective. Again, this doesn’t mean we don’t make plans, but rather we make them with the right perspective.