Biblical Wisdom From The Book of James

James is a short book in the Bible full of wisdom. I have so many things underlined in this book, because James made every word count. While my other post on the Book of James is short and grounded on the theme of active faith, this post is a longer study and reflection on the complete Book of James.

Context

Before we jump in, it's important to know who is speaking here. If you're like me, you probably grew up thinking every book in the Bible was written by God. We're told it's God's Word and it is. But it's important to understand, it's God's Word transcribed for us through prophets, disciples, and others who had direct experiences with God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit. Yes, God's exact words are included in the text as well as Jesus' but God did not carve the Bible we know today into stone.

While Moses carved the 10 Commandments into stone, commandments given by God, the Bible was compiled over the span of approximately 1,500 years and includes the writings of about 40 different authors. The majority of the Bible is considered Old Testament and concerns three primary topics: the creation of the world, God's law/ wisdom, and the prophecy of Christ's coming.

The New Testament represents the New Covenant God makes with us through Jesus. It is the fulfillment of the prophecy and the law, and a representation of God's love for us. We as humans were never going to live up to the holiness God desired for us. So, He sent His son, Jesus, to serve as the ultimate sacrifice, cleansing us all and giving us a direct relationship with the Lord, a relationship that doesn't require further sacrifice or ritual, a relationship that only requires surrender and faith.

The Book of James is included in the New Testament and was written by James, Jesus' half brother, between 45 AD and 60 AD. To put it into perspective, this book was written between 12 and 27 years after Christ was crucified. During this time, religious persecution of Christians was prevalent.

The Book of James is written as a letter from James to the body of Christians who were dispersed among unbelieving nations due to religious persecution. James offered instruction on how they could continue to grow as followers of Christ even during times of hardship and torment. He encouraged them to stand firm in their faith, seek God's wisdom, and reminded them to demonstrate Christ-like love. I can't wait to dive into that topic specifically. So, without delay, let's get into it.

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On Trials & Seeking Wisdom

"My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience." James 1:2-3

"If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will recieve anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways." James 1:5-8

"Lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness, and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls." James 1:21

The trials we experience strengthen our faith by forcing us to rely on God, surrender to Him, have faith in His presence, provision, and promises. As we experience hardship and grow our relationship with God, the fruits of the spirit grow inside us. The fruits of the spirit are: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

But this strengthening of our faith only occurs if we allow it. If we choose to view our circumstance through a woe-as-me lens (and yes, I'm guilty of this), we miss the chance to grow our faith and relationship with the Lord.

The key to wisdom (and relationship with the Lord) is God's Word, the Bible. The more we seek God, through study of His word and in prayer, the more He enlightens us, the more He makes His presence known. God desires relationship with us and relationships are built on understanding. If you seek the Lord's wisdom, He will give it you. As much as you ask is as much as you will receive.

The key to receiving is being willing and open to receive. Imagine offering someone a gift, or offering to pay for someone's meal, and they refuse your gift, doubting your motives or even turning you away because they don't think themselves worthy of your gift. If we are not open to receiving wisdom from the Lord, if we doubt Him--His motives, His goodness, His gifts, His wisdom, His promises--how can we receive from Him?

I have struggled with doubting God's goodness, especially when it comes to my love life, which is where I've struggled the most. Doubt is normal. It's human. But we are asked to replace doubt with faith. And I can honestly say, it feels so much better to trust in the Lord rather than doubt Him.

I have been that double-minded individual, tossed about like a wave as uncertainty, fear, and hopelessness took hold of me. I never doubted God's power. I doubted His goodness. And I think that is the most common struggle Christians face during times of hardship. And we all face hardship.

While there is still religious persecution today, the hardship we're probably most familiar with is our individual hardships. We all have our struggles. My struggle is related to romance, love, relationships, etc. Your struggle may be something different. Whatever it is, trust in God's goodness. Because when the Devil attacks God's goodness, we question everything. It's a stepping stone to losing faith altogether.

On Facing Temptation

"Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you." James 4:7-8

"Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death." James 1:12-15

When we think of temptation, we probably first think of sexual temptation. And that is certaintly an area the Devil loves to exploit and pervert. And it's so easy to fall into sexual temptation, because it stems from a very human, normal, holy, God-given desire for connection and intimacy. But temptation, in the Biblical sense, can be anything that pulls us away from God and into sin. Before I dive into this, I want to note the difference between temptation and sin.

Temptation is not sin. We all face temptation, which is basically a desire to act. Sin is giving into the desire, the temptation. When faced with temptation, we are asked to first, submit to God, and second, resist the devil. There is a reason why our surrender to God comes first, because He, through the Holy Spirit, empowers us to defeat temptation, sin, demonic forces, and the Devil. Satan isn't fleeing from us. He sought us out to steal, kill, and destroy. He flees from the Spirit inside us.

When facing temptation, treat it like a snake. Don't try to see how close you can get without it biting you. Flee from it. By removing yourself from the situation, you are demonstrating a desire to follow Jesus. You are acting in your power as a child of God, heir to the kingdom of Heaven, and vessel of the Holy Spirit and the Devil will abandon his mission against you, because He cannot stand against you. The only power Satan has over your life is the power you give him.

Our entire existence on earth is marked by temptation. We face it over and over again, sometimes in different forms. The Bible says, "blessed is the man who endures", meaning he does not give in to temptation, for he will inherit the kingdom of Heaven.

If you're like me, trials and temptation were a source of anger for many years. I felt like God was testing me. I felt like God was dangling counterfeit partners in front of me just to teach me lesson after lesson. I felt like the only way to pass His test was to give up all desire for love and marriage, because He is a jealous God and wanted me all to Himself, which only made me angrier and more hopeless. But the scripture above tells us, God does not test us. Our trials and temptations do not come from Him. This is just one of the ways the Devil gets into our minds and makes us doubt God's goodness.

God is not the author of pain. This is something I have to remind myself, but accepting that truth has helped me so much in my surrender to Him. And while I will write another post on overcoming my single season struggles, for now I'll say, I do not believe God desires for us to give up hope for love, connection, and covenant. This is another lie the Devil uses to separate us from God. God is love. God is the creator of covenant, of marriage. God is the one who recognized man's need for companionship. The Devil is the one who lures us into false beliefs and hopelessness. Satan is the one who tells us no one wants you, your time is running out, you're not good enough, you're destined to live in this season forever. The Devil is a liar.

"You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you may spend it on your pleasures. Adulterers and adultereresses! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain, 'The Spirit who dwells in us yearns jealously?'" James 4:3-5

Now, is God a jealous God? Absolutely. Does God want us to seek Him first? Absolutely. Does God desire relationship with us? Absolutely. The scripture above likens friendliness with the world as cheating on God. And, in truth, it is. When we give in to temptation and worldly ways, we are giving in to Satan. We are being unfaithful to the Lord.

On Loving Without Partiality

"Do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality." James 2:1

"If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself,' you do well; but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors. For whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all." James 2:8-10

"Speak and do as those who will be judged by the law of liberty. For judgement is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgement." James 2:12-13

"Do not speak evil of one another. He who speaks evil of a brother and judges his brother, speaks evil of the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge. There is one Lawgiver, who is able to save and to destroy. Who are you to judge another?" James 4:11-12

Oh, I am so excited to dive into this topic, because this right here is where so many christians and churches get it wrong. As Christians, we are called to be inclusive, not exclusive. We are called to show mercy, not judgement. We are called to love everyone not just the people who look like, act like, or pray like us.

To put the first scripture, James 2:1, into context, James is urging fellow believers to accept those who come into their assembly, to not judge them based on what they look like or how much money they have.

In James 2:8-10, we are reminded of the royal law which is to love your neighbor as yourself. In essence, we are called to love all mankind the same way Christ did. Christ loved all mankind. Christ died for all mankind. Will all mankind accept Him and His sacrifice, accept His love for them and their place in Heaven? No. But still, Christ died for them, because God so loved the world.

We have been misguided by the Devil to view each other as enemies. We have allowed, in the Christian community as well, anger, fear, and division to take root. But the scripture says, if you cannot keep the law of the Lord in its entirety (and we can't), if you fall short in even one area (and we do), then we are guilty of all. Therefore, who are we to judge one another? We are all guilty of falling short of God's commandments, His perfect design, His intention for us. We are all sinners. And, therefore, we are not each other's enemy. We are each other's brothers and sisters, meant to help and love one another.

The scripture takes it a step further and says those who judge will be judged. We are called to show mercy to one another, love one another, and stand firm against the one enemy we all share--Satan. The Devil is the root of division.

Loving one another is not the same as loving sin or being friends with the world. Loving all mankind is learning how to seperate the flesh from the spirit. We are all flesh, made of the same skin and bones. And without the Holy Spirit dwelling inside us, we are all empty vessels, powerless against the evil spirits roaming this earth, seeking to inhabit us and destroy God's greatest creation. The evil you find in man is not of man, but of Satan. When you understand that, you can see that man is not the enemy and the war we participate in is not of this earth.

On Having Active Faith

"Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves." James 1:22

"What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, 'Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,' but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit? Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead." James 2:14-17

"But if someone will say, 'You have faith, and I have works.' Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works." James 2:18

"You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe--and tremble!" James 2:19

"For as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead also." James 2:26

For the sake of time, I will link my post on having active faith here. Much of James is spent on the topic of active faith. It is so easy to fall into complacency or lukewarm faith because of modern teachings which misrepresent scripture. Have you ever heard the saying, faith as small as a mustard seed? When you understand that the mustard seed does not remain a seed, but in fact grows into a large, invasive tree, you understand faith as a mustard seed doesn't mean having a little faith, but a growing faith.

The parable of the mustard seed represents transformation and resilience through the nurturing of faith and relationship with God. Like the mustard seed that blooms into a strong tree, your faith will be evident in your transformation, in your works, in the fruits of the spirit you embody.

On Building Community Instead of Division

"Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." James 5:16

When we judge or exclude others, project perfection, or speak in condemnation rather than with love and mercy, we shatter community and the true image of God--the true love of God--which saves. None of us are perfect. We all fall short of the glory of God. The Book of James is a reminder of what true Christianity looks like and acts like. Let us remember the truth. Let us remember love. Let us remember we are not each other's enemy. There is only one enemy and his name is Satan.

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As in depth as this post is, there are still verses I was unable to include. I highly recommend you read the Book of James for yourself. It's only five chapters long and can be finished in two hours or less. In bookish terms, add this book to your TBR (To Be Read).