James 1:9-18

Goo Gel: James 1:9-18

James is writing to Jews who had been dispersed from the city of Jerusalem to locations all over the ancient world. A leader of the church in Jerusalem, James writes to explain how faith in Jesus has hands and feet in their current culture and our current culture.

In their dispersion he is providing both personal and interpersonal guidance to help their faith in Christ mature. The whole first section of the letter has been inviting us to understand that trials are an invitation for us to trust Christ and lean into his development of who we are as followers of Jesus. Trials are like Goo Gel and actually help us along our journey.

Rejoice in trials, though our natural tendency to despise them

Allow the trial to produce endurance and growth in you, though our natural tendency is to quit

When lacking wisdom, faithfully ask our generous God…even though we naturally depend upon ourselves

James understands that living faithfully for Jesus is hard and comes with an abundance of trials, but these trials are designed to expose our hearts/idols and grow closer to Jesus as his disciple. James knows that the various trials these disciples are experiencing through the 1st century world will test their loyalty to world or to the Lord Jesus Christ. In so doing, James is giving a glimpse into how the good news of Jesus permeates our life and oozes out of us on a daily, weekly, monthly, annual basis.

Today, James invites those dispersed to give another boost of Gel into their system by looking at their...

Status

Happiness

Father

I had the fortunate or unfortunate experience as a child to visit several different schools, especially during middle school. Perhaps you did too. Maybe you didn’t change schools often, but you moved geographical locations. Maybe you didn’t change schools or geographical locations but you did get placed on new athletic teams. Ok if you don’t fit into those categories maybe you received a new job. In change one of the first things you experience is people trying to know us, not for our good, but so they may size us up so they can determine our status.

Has anybody had that experience?

Sometimes it might look like this? What neighborhood are you from? What brand clothes? What type of car do you have? What was your past job? What are your credentials? Ivy League, state university, private? We like to size people up and place them in the correct status. Human determined status.

When moving into new locations and facing new trials and circumstances and temptations it is paramount toremember who we are due to our position in Christ. Your growth in Jesus’ good news in the midst of those situations is contingent upon your remembering Him. This knowledge is strategic for these dispersed ones. As they were dispersed new outposts were being established, the church, and they are scattered throughout the ancient world. Today our gatherings are little outposts for the world to observe our faith and weekly we go visit the villages of our world through work, neighborhoods, sports, restaurants, through culture. We are daily bombarded with trials and temptations as the world without Jesus looks on and they need to see the hands and feet of Jesus as we live out our faith right in front of them. We know from James 4 and James 5 that just like today, as in the ancient past, money creates all types of hostility. So as we meander through the verses/proverbs this morning be mindful of your current trials and current temptations and think about whose you are in Christ Jesus. This leads us to our first point in verse 9-11

Status (James 1:9-11)

James 1:9–11 NLT

9 Believers who are poor have something to boast about, for God has honored them. 10 And those who are rich should boast that God has humbled them. They will fade away like a little flower in the field. 11 The hot sun rises and the grass withers; the little flower droops and falls, and its beauty fades away. In the same way, the rich will fade away with all of their achievements.

We see James juxtapose two different types of people. The Poor and the Humble. Both persons exist in each of the cultural context to which the Jews were dispersed. They do in Winston Salem too. There are lines of demarcations written all over this city, when you see property values go from less than 50K to a few blocks over to 500K. You see the difference in the buildings when a Family Dollar is built in a poor area and when it is built in a nice area of town. The material used on the exterior of the building says we are in a wealthy area of town. The bars over gas station windows and doors says I’m in a poor section of town. There is a status disparity obvious to James in the 1st, but it is so today too. Fortunately, inside Jesus’ kingdom status is looked at differently.

Poor are Honored (vs 9)

The poor are honored by GOD and in this they should boast. The inferior/humble/poor may boast that God sees us, honors us, and does not expect us to have wealth and riches. My cultural status does not determine my eternal status. That ought to make Joel Olsteen CRINGE. God observes, notices, sees, honors---lifts to the highest place the inferior/poor. See God is not looking for the Jews to be rich in Cypress, Asia Minor, India, Spain, or Forsyth County or Winston Salem.

Conversely, how does our culture respond to the poor or those in a low status? How often are the poor honored by people? Do we look up to the poor? Do we avoid the poor? Do we have meals with the poor? Do we invite young people to look up to the poor? Will we invite the poor to our homes for meals? Do we prefer to stay away from the poor who might have a hard time washing their clothes and getting the right hair style or wearing the right shoe? Do we stay away from those poor neighborhoods that might jeopardize our reputation?

In an earthly kingdom (the world) everything is about the rich and famous, but in God’s kingdom the poor are honored. In God’s kingdom the poor/humble/inferior are honored.

We don’t exactly know how many of these dispersed from Jerusalem were wealthy going into poor locations around the world and James is telling them be mindful of the poor.

Maybe many of these dispersed were poor going into wealthier cultures and James is telling them be mindful of your position in Christ.

What he is drawing their attention to is their status in Christ when poor. he loves them, he honors them, and he expects them to BOAST about it.

Rich are Humbled (vs 10-11)

Rich people boast in God’s humbling of us…boast that God has helped us recognize our frailty and the vanity of our pursuits/achievements. This is God’s beauty don’t boast in what we have boast in how God has humbled us. Why? Because it is unusual for wealthy people (most Americans) to remember whose they are in Christ.

Matthew 19:23-26

Then Jesus said to his disciples, “I tell you the truth, it is very hard for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. I’ll say it again—it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich person to enter the Kingdom of God!” The disciples were astounded. “Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked. Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”

In Mark 10 an ecstatic follower of Jesus wanted to know how to inherit eternal life...

Mark 10:17-31 I’ve not murdered, committed adultery, stolen, testified falsely, cheated anyone, or dishonored my parents. Okay - go sell all that you have and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me…At this the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions.”

How loose do we hold our possessions? If God stripped everything we owned away would Jesus still be enough for us? Does his kingdom matter more than Jeremy’s kingdom?

James draws this great word picture explaining the brevity of all my accomplishments....

Jeremy have you seen the hot sun rise? Yes. Did you watch the grass cringing at the sweltering heat of the sun? Yes, I’ve watch a lot of people see their beautiful green grass turn brown under the hot NC sun. Did you see the little flower? Yes. It struggled to limp along, but eventually drooped and fail. Did you recognize the beauty in that flower Jeremy? Wow - the orange, yellow, and red colors were vibrant and beautiful against the backdrop of that green stem. Did you see what happened when the hot sun blistered the colors? I did all of its beauty went away. Jeremy herein lies the problem of wealth, fame, and wonderful achievements. They fade away quickly and in God’s kingdom they mean very little if anything.

Warren Buffett’s empire looks invincible. Oprah Winfrey’s entertainment enterprise looks never ending. Tony Parker’s global recognition in the realm of athletics seems insurpassable. Oh Jeremy it will fade away. Jeremy all that stuff on the soccer field, the logistics company, the university. Good stuff, but in the eyes of God there is nothing to boast about. It doesn’t determine your status in Christ. Boast that he humbled and you realize the very limited value on that home and those cars and your name.

How does God’s view of the poor inform our view of the poor? He honors them. What do I do?

How does God’s view of the rich inform your view of the rich? He humbles them. What do I do?

Are our assets and careers held tightly like the holy grails or do I hold it loosely like the flower fading under the hot sun?

How well do I understand my position in Christ? Do I have very little materially speaking? How does that make me feel? Do I have a pity party or do I boast in Christ? Am I loaded with material possessions? God has inundated with business sense and given more than I ever would have imagined. Are you boasting that God humbled you so that you realize it will pass away like the little beautiful flower in the field?

James ventures from understanding our status, whether rich or poor, in Christ to embracing trials and temptations. It is easy to imagine that many of those trials and temptations that the dispersed Jews were facing included economics. Some of them may have owned their own business in Jerusalem and now they are having to establish themselves in new markets. Perhaps they had a nice home in Jerusalem and now they are not living in prided neighborhood any longer. Let’s go look at how James explains to the Jews, and us, how to embrace these tests, trials, and temptations.

Happiness (12-15)

James 1:12–15 NLT

12 God blesses those who patiently endure testing and temptation. Afterward they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him. 13 And remember, when you are being tempted, do not say, “God is tempting me.” God is never tempted to do wrong, and he never tempts anyone else. 14 Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. 15 These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death.

Endurance

God blesses those who patiently ENDURE. God makes happy those who use courage to withstand the daily tests and trials that come our direction. The idea of the tests and trials = “the act of examining something close (as for mistakes).”

How many of you enjoy being happy? How many of you enjoy being blessed? if we want blessing and happiness then we need to put the mind of Christ on when going through various trials like (e.g. Coronavirus). Go on the offensive versus the defensive when experiencing the trial. Why? Because we know from James that through patiently enduring we experience happiness/blessing. So when you are waiting to sell that property and it keeps being stalled and delayed you have the God size view of let me patiently endure. I’ll keep knocking on the doors and doing my part, but I’m not going to venture over to anger and being mad.

When we choose to embrace the trial, afterward we receive a crown of life. For who? Those who love him.

Have you have had a proud parent or grandparent moment? When you child finishes a sport season or a music recital and they receive a medal or flowers for going through the trial. They practiced and practiced and practiced. They drove to the meet or the place to play the piano and they competed against the competition and they received that award. Why? They found joy in the sport or joy in the musical instrument. They loved the sport.

There is a an important part of verse 12 that our heart and mind needs to gravitate to as we embrace trials and temptations… “to those who love him.” “love” - agape “to have a strong, non-sexual affection and love for a person and their good as understood by God’s moral character; especially characterized by a willing forfeiture of rights or privileges in another person’s behalf.” (Logos; Exegetical Guide)

This love for God. It is this love for him that allows us to patiently endure and receive the crown of life. How many eloquent lyrics have been memorized and sung through the centuries between a man and a woman about love and everything they will sacrifice for love? I can remember as a teenager belting out, in private, Bryan Adams song Everything I Do

“Oh, you can't tell me it's not worth tryin' for I can't help it, there's nothin' I want more Yeah, I would fight for you I'd lie for you Walk the wire for you Yeah, I'd die for you. You know it's true Everything I do Oh I do it for you.

I don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, but this love we have for him is actually because he loved us and made us his firstfruits/prized possession. James’ theology here matches John’s theology that we love him because he first loved us. Because we love him we patiently endure knowing that our happiness will come through the trial not by avoiding it---and then a laurel to put on our head.

Have you thought about the beauty of your lives as onlookers look on and see you patiently enduring in your trial? There is a beauty to it. There is a beauty in watching the Shutt’s patiently endure caring for Marten.

In verses 13-15 we unfortunately see our response to trials and test, because of our human nature. We can begin the trial with a champion perspective, but by the end our sinful desires take the win. Let’s be honest, I like to “embrace the suck” in running, but sometimes I just whine and moan all the way through a run. Rather than embracing the run as a trial knowing that patiently enduring it, because I love it, that it will bring happiness and blessing I pitch a fit. It so much like our daily trials in marriages, relationship with children and siblings, the redundant experiences of life on a daily basis.

So we eventually let the evil desires of or hearts protrude into the lessons that God is teaching us through our trials. Rather than let our God develop and mature our faith through trials we blame and badger the one who loved us first and created us as his firstfruits.

When there is a lot to do at home and your work involves a craft it is easy to cut corners and do shoddy work when nobody is looking. Sure you want to get home and see your family, but you also are responsibly for providing exceptional work that glorifies God and honors what someone has paid you to do.

When we come home from a long day at work and the dishes are piled up high, the laundry still needs to be done, the toddler is sick, your neighbor has left you a note about your trash bin being in the wrong spot, and your spouse has dinner with a friend. Instead of embracing the trial you burst out in anger and wrath and viciousness.

When we come home to one bill after another and no foreseeable pathway forward and you decide nows the time to steal something. Nows the time for me to embezzle. Nows the time for me avoid taxes

When our numbers at work are not looking as bright as you expected and deadlines are imminent you seek methods to cut corners and cheat. Nows the time to use stats to my advantage

When you and your spouse have been trying to manage debt, your work is going well, you arrive home from good days at work making great contributions in a variety of ways and your neighbor stops by to let you look at his 2021 Land Rover. Would you like to take it for a drive? Uh no I want it for me. Jealousy

When we sit in a hostile meeting at work and the challenges expose our vulnerability and unprojected errors and we leave the meeting ready to slander and berate our colleagues. We intentionally misdirect and attempt to hurt our colleague to protect ourselves.

When you come home full of energy from an amazing day at work…you can see clearly now the rain is gone. You make the constant passes with your spouse in the kitchen and living room hoping that maybe it might be a nice evening for this married couple and the spouse is just not thinking that way so you casually use internet surf sites to try and find your sexual satisfaction.

Rather than embrace the trial and temptation…rather than seeing this as an opportunity to endure we start blaming God for all that is wrong in our lives. God might have led you to the trial, but God did not lead you to make fatal sinful decisions. These trials showcase our hearts need for the gospel, they showcase our idol factory inside. but when we don’t see our need for the gospel to permeate every inch of our mind and heart...to patiently endure expecting God’s blessing and crown of life we respond carelessly and selfishly resulting in brutal endings.

Equation

James explains in this witty insightful equation the DNA of our heart. It is the formula for our sin. This is how sin operates in us.

DNA of sin… Inner structure of temptation…similar to the inner structure of a cell (proton, electron, neutron)

So we are exposed to this trial and our natural instinct is to blame God, who is never tempted to do evil or cause you to do evil. James explains

Temptations = our desires > entice us > drag us away

Desires entice > like cheese on a string constantly luring us to a trap > It lures us away from what we are designed to do, which is to patiently endure and give glory to God in the trial. Our desires in those painful situations, painful trials, painful circumstances can shift.

Desires > Birth to sinful actions > Sin Grows > Gives Birth to Death - how gross connecting death to birth - self contradictory

Temptations = embryonic development to sinful actions....why am I looking at pornography? Why did I have that knee jerk reaction of anger? Why am I experiencing jealousy? What is going on in my heart that has convinced me that pornography is going to satisfy me? What is going on in my heart that makes me think what that person has will make me happy.

How many of you have watching sin entice you and drag you away into sinful actions? Have you ever been in a sinful action going why am I doing this? Stop Jeremy. I can think of one as recent as this Christmas where my anger escalated into sinful actions toward my daughter, which resulted in words of death. The trial was in front of me and I wanted to fix it on Jeremy’s terms so I granted permission to take it into my own hands…in so doing Jeremy’s anger/wrath resulted in speaking words of death rather than words of life.

It is of paramount importance to be attentive to your own desires that incline your heart to sin rather than to patient endurance. I think each of our hearts have their own tendencies and is important for you to identify those items for which you are tempted within your trials. Some of us may struggle with jealousy, while others don’t. Some of us may struggle with addictions, while others don’t. Some of us may want control and power, while others don’t. Some of us struggle with anxiousness, while others don’t. We need to understand our own hearts desires and be mindful of those as those trials come into our lives we will have the propensity to drift naturally towards our sinful desires.

These desires link back to what you love. JK Smith wrote a book entitled You Are What You Love. So he uses Augustinian theology to control your sinful desires control what you love. Pursue what we were designed to love; God. This pursuit is written out clearly in Colossians 3 and perhaps you might meditate on those desires.

In the midst of our trials and temptations we must keep have a teleological view.

When we choose patient endurance from our love for God we may expect happiness/blessing and a crown of life.

When we choose our sinful desires we choose death rather than life…we become a repository of death instead of infusing life into others through our trials and circumstances.

The joy of enduring during temptation.

Father (16-18)

James 1:16–18 NLT

16 So don’t be misled, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. 18 He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession.

As a firstfruit of creation our DNA has changed Holy Spirit, Word, Brothers _ Sisters in Christ...

Do not be misled into thinking that these trials are God our Father luring you to evil sinful actions. A good good Father does not lead you to sinful actions. These trials bring joy, steadfastness, maturation of our faith. They are not designed for us to drift into sinful responses.

We can create this is allusion in our mind that God has framed up our circumstances against us. When we do this we have distorted how God view us in the kingdom. In His kingdom we are his firstfruits and is expecting you to...

know your status, whether poor or rich

be patient in testing and temptation to experience happiness (God’s blessing)

blame your own desires and address them because you know the end is death

We serve an unchanging creative God who provides every good and perfect gift to us, his immeasurable love being of most importance.

As we leave this outpost and mobilize into the various locations that God has us doing life in a variety of different settings and circumstances may we remember who we are due to us being in Christ. Our position in him defines us and enables us to embrace our status, experience happiness, and embrace our Father of whom we are his prized possession.

Closing

If you have children to do you remember receiving that first child and showing that first child off to your parents, your siblings, your family, your friends. It’s like the movie the lion king..holding Simba up. As we move through the trials of life and our maturing in Christ Jesus wants to hold out our lives as a beacon as ambassadors for the world to see Him through us. Let’s embrace them and encourage each other in the midst of them.

Perhaps in closing...

What do we learn about humanity?

Humans may be poor

Humans may be rich

Human achievements pass away like a beautiful flower

Humans fade away like a flower and grass in the scorching sun

Humans may love God

Humans are tempted to do wrong/evil as opposed to God who can never be tempted to evil

Humans have a propensity to blame others for our temptations

Human temptation stems from human desires

Humans can have good desires and evil desires

Humans have the ability to practice restraint from evil desires

Humans can be misled

Humans can receive gifts from the never changing God

Humans can be given birth through the true word

Humans are God’s prized possession---don’t blame God for your sin, actions, desires, evil.

What do we learn about God in this passage?

Honors the poor/humble

Humbles the rich

Observes those in trials

Blesses the patient endurer of trials with crown of life

Recognizes those who love Him

God is not tempted with evil

God does not tempt

God provides good and perfect gifts

God is the Father of lights who does not change

God gives new birth through his true word

God has a prized possession