Fruits: James 4:13-5:6. Warning the Wealthy

vs. 14: “James is asking, in effect: How can you, being the kind of creatures that you are, presume to dictate the course of future events?” Moo

Vs. 14: Mist= smoke or vapor

“But whichever word we choose, the point is clear enough: human life is insubstantial and transitory, here one minute and gone the next. Illness, accidental death, or the return of Christ could cut short our lives just as quickly as the morning sun dissipates the mist or as a shift in wind direction blows away smoke.” Moo

“But, as is so often the case, especially close to James’s teaching are some words of Jesus. In , he warns the crowds about covetousness and reminds them that “a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” In a brief parable, he illustrated his point with a rich man who, like James’s merchants, made definite plans for acquiring more goods, but who was prevented from executing his plans by his death ( ).” Moo

Verse 15

Instead of saying… from vs. 13, instead say...

DMV: “If the Lord wills”

Vs. 16: “

“Phillips captures the meaning that results from this interpretation very well: “ ‘you get a certain pride in yourself in planning your future with such confidence.””

“Arrogant sense of self-sufficiency so characteristic of the world, that James condemns.”

“People not only leave God out of account in planning their lives; they brag about it as well, proclaiming in effect their autonomy and independence from the Lord.” Moo

“He warns, therefore, of the tendency of the world to “press us into its mold” by leading us, perhaps very subtly, to begin assuming that we control the duration and direction of our lives.” Moo

James explicitly connects the 16 and 17.

Vs. 17

God’s will of direction and God’s will of desire

Plan Properly

Investment of Time

Spend a year? Short period! Go, exploit, and trade

Investment of Finances

Profitability, business-minded

“If the Lord wills, we will live and to this or that.”

Not doing the Right Thing with your investment is actually a sin.