Today we are concluding the fourth
chapter of the book of James.
How many of us live our lives
planning every day and even our whole life ahead without even considering the Lord’s
plans for our lives? How often do we tell the Lord what we are going to do, asking His blessing on it? How many of us have
made stupid mistakes because we hurriedly or impulsively made a decision that
could have been avoided had we been waiting on the Lord, or even simply applied
Godly principles in our decision-making such as Solomon suggested in Proverbs 15:22:
“Plans fail for lack of counsel,
but with many advisers they succeed.” How many
of us actually wait for days on end in anticipation of an answer to prayer or
some direction so we could know what the Lord’s next step for us is?
Therefore we read in James 4:13-16: “Now
listen, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend
a year there, carry on business and make money.’ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What
is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.
Instead, you ought to say, ‘If it is
the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.’ As it is, you boast and brag. All such boasting is evil.”
The point in this passage is that
our life here on earth is a dot in time in comparison to eternity. Why would we
then live as if this is all we have and make decisions that only apply to this
life? We plan for old age and retirement; we make sure we have
enough money to sustain our lifestyle until the day we die and even leave
enough for our children to do the same until they die. But what about the
afterlife, how have we prepared for it?
We need to acknowledge the Lord’s
will in everything we do. The boasting and bragging that James mentioned (even
if it is hidden in our heart) comes from pride that we have accomplished what we
have decided. The Lord’s will is without exemption aimed at eternity. We know
our treasures should not be on earth but in heaven (Matthew 6:19), that we
should choose the narrow way that leads to eternal life (Matthew 7:13-14) and
that we should first seek the Kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33) to name only a few.
As James put it; we are in this life “a mist that appears for
a little while and then vanishes.”
James concluded the chapter with: “Anyone,
then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins,” (James 4:17).
The word ‘then’ refers to the previous passage. The will of the Lord is not for
us to live for ourselves and become comfortable and rich in this life, but it
is for us to become rich in good works.
“For we are God’s workmanship,
created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us
to do,” (Ephesians 2:10).”
Jesus said: “I tell you the
truth, anyone who has faith in me will do what I have been doing. He will do
even greater things than these, because I am going to the Father,” (John 14:12).
What things did Jesus do? “You know what has happened
throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached—how
God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went
around doing good and healing all who
were under the power of the devil, because God was with him,” (Acts 10:37-38).
If we therefore focus on our own wellbeing, planning our lives as
to meet our needs according to our own will, we sin. Even if we do good
works of our own choice to look impressive
or to have our consciences soothed, we still plan and do according to our own
will and still sin. However, if we have heard from God the good works He has planned
for us to do to His glory; we have a
treasure in heaven.
Lord, let your will be done in and
through my life.
Thank you Lord that your Word went
out from your mouth, via your servant’s pen, and it will not return to you
empty, but will accomplish what you desire and achieve the purpose for which
you sent it.
Please pass this on if you think others may
benefit by it.
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