It is most unfortunate that the
chapter division occurs here, for I think James did not intend a break in his
words. We shall take them, however, in that division and see how they are
intended.
(James 4:13-17 NIV) 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." {14} 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. {15} Instead, you ought to say, "If it is the Lord's will,
we will live and do this or that." {16} As it is, you boast and brag. All
such boasting is evil. {17} Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and
doesn't do it, sins.
God: Creator and Decider
One of the mysteries of our
civilization is how we have missed the point that God is sustaining his
creation. We have the image of a universe which God created, wound up and sent
spinning into space (having created that too) - and then leaves alone. This is
a relatively recent view of the universe, and no evidence really supports it.
It is, however, very popular. King David gave us the opposite view:
(Psa 104 NIV) Praise the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God,
you are very great; you are clothed with splendor and majesty. {2} He wraps
himself in light as with a garment; he stretches out the heavens like a tent
{3} and lays the beams of his upper chambers on their waters. He makes the
clouds his chariot and rides on the wings of the wind. {4} He makes winds his
messengers, flames of fire his servants. {5} He set the earth on its
foundations; it can never be moved. {6} You covered it with the deep as with a
garment; the waters stood above the mountains. {7} But at your rebuke the waters
fled, at the sound of your thunder they took to flight; {8} they flowed over
the mountains, they went down into the valleys, to the place you assigned for
them. {9} You set a boundary they cannot cross; never again will they cover the
earth. {10} He makes springs pour water into the ravines; it flows between the
mountains. {11} They give water to all the beasts of the field; the wild
donkeys quench their thirst. {12} The birds of the air nest by the waters; they
sing among the branches. {13} He waters the mountains from his upper chambers;
the earth is satisfied by the fruit of his work. {14} He makes grass grow for
the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate-- bringing forth food from the
earth: {15} wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine,
and bread that sustains his heart. {16} The trees of the LORD are well watered,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted. {17} There the birds make their nests;
the stork has its home in the pine trees. {18} The high mountains belong to the
wild goats; the crags are a refuge for the coneys. {19} The moon marks off the
seasons, and the sun knows when to go down. {20} You bring darkness, it becomes
night, and all the beasts of the forest prowl. {21} The lions roar for their
prey and seek their food from God. {22} The sun rises, and they steal away;
they return and lie down in their dens. {23} Then man goes out to his work, to
his labor until evening. {24} How many are your works, O LORD! In wisdom you
made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. {25} There is the sea, vast
and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number-- living things both large
and small. {26} There the ships go to and fro, and the leviathan, which you
formed to frolic there. {27} These all look to you to give them their food at
the proper time. {28} When you give it to them, they gather it up; when you
open your hand, they are satisfied with good things. {29} When you hide your
face, they are terrified; when you take away their breath, they die and return
to the dust. {30} When you send your Spirit, they are created, and you renew
the face of the earth. {31} May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the
LORD rejoice in his works-- {32} he who looks at the earth, and it trembles,
who touches the mountains, and they smoke. {33} I will sing to the LORD all my
life; I will sing praise to my God as long as I live. {34} May my meditation be
pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the LORD. {35} But may sinners vanish from the
earth and the wicked be no more. Praise the LORD, O my soul. Praise the LORD.
It is rather long for a lesson
quotation - but worth it. David's view of nature is very distinct from ours.
We say "laws of nature"; David said, "Nature's God." For
the Christian, we can see even more than this. We know that Jesus Christ is
the agent of creation and the sustainer of the universe:
(Col 1:16-17 NIV) For by him all things were created:
things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers
or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. {17} He
is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
Do you see how tremendously
different our view of reality is by comparison? We see a clockwork universe,
wound up and spinning, working by fixed laws - laws which we can manipulate to
our profit. He saw a universe sustained by God, whose laws were fixed because
God is eternal. It is no accident that science blossomed in Northwestern
Europe after the Protestant Reformation - there were men who knew God's fixed
purposes. But they also knew who was God.
God, the Decider of all things
The kings of Israel, in their
better moments, knew that God is the decider of all things. Do you remember
the story of Namaan the leper? We recall that Elisha cured him, but you might
have forgotten that Namaan appealed first to the king of Israel. The king's
reaction is interesting:
(2 Ki 5:7 NIV) As soon as the king of Israel read the
letter, he tore his robes and said, "Am I God? Can I kill and bring back
to life? Why does this fellow send someone to me to be cured of his leprosy?
See how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me!"
The king should have followed
bureaucratic policy and passed the letter on - to the prophet of God. Here's
his response:
(2 Ki 5:8 NIV) When Elisha the man of God heard that the
king of Israel had torn his robes, he sent him this message: "Why have you
torn your robes? Have the man come to me and he will know that there is a
prophet in Israel."
Even when Namaan arrives there is
a surprise. Namaan is expecting to be told to perform some mighty feat to earn
his healing (remember Dorothy being told to get the witch's broom?) - and
Elisha sends him to dip seven times in the Jordan. Namaan is enraged, but his
servants talk him into it. Then he knows who is God!
Man proposes, but God disposes,
said the ancients. Indeed, the point which puzzled the ancient philosophers
was not so much why does God act as why does he allow man any freedom at all!
The only real conclusion I have found is this: we are responsible for our
actions - and God is responsible for the results. If you hit your thumb with a
hammer, God's laws of physics and biology say you should suffer pain. If you
hit your wife with the same hammer, God will say the same in that case too.
Presumption
That being the case, it is
utterly presumptuous for us to plan without God. Consider:
·
When you do plan without God, does it go just the way you
planned? Or does "something" come up?
·
Planning presumes (there's that word again) that you will have
tomorrow in which to act. Are you guaranteed tomorrow? Is there any insurance
that you will be alive tomorrow? The insurance companies pay off to your
widow.
·
Worse yet, if you make your plans without him, you may indeed
oblige him to find someone else to fulfill the plans he had for you. Does he
plan good things or bad for those he loves?
What then should you do? Place
yourself at God's disposal. As James teaches us here, preface your plans with
"If God wills it.." - for if he does not it will not happen. By
putting him first in your planning you tell him that you are at his disposal,
reporting for duty - and such saints he will use and bless abundantly. Which,
then, brings us to the view of wealth the church has - and should have. For we
make our plans largely to gain wealth, and it is the perspective on wealth
which should change when we hear these words of James.
The church view of wealth.
"Has any prosperously
fraudulent banker, I wonder, ever been refused Communion on the grounds that he
was, in the words of the English Prayer Book, 'an open and notorious
evil-liver?'" Thus Dorothy Sayers wonders; so do I. There are sins
which are socially unacceptable; there are sins which are socially acceptable,
of which being wealthy by legal but unethical means is indeed one.
No wonder! The church teaches
her ministers the marketing concept of "target market." I once met a
minister who spoke glowingly of how he intended to change the congregations
membership to focus on 25-45 year old people with double incomes - so that the
church could afford all the programs he had in mind. Did he consider what
"programs" God had in mind? Or who it is who provides for his
people?
Let us consider, therefore, what
God has to say about the rich.
The Rich
(James 5:1-6 NIV) Now listen, you rich people, weep and
wail because of the misery that is coming upon you. {2} Your wealth has rotted,
and moths have eaten your clothes. {3} Your gold and silver are corroded. Their
corrosion will testify against you and eat your flesh like fire. You have
hoarded wealth in the last days. {4} Look! The wages you failed to pay the
workmen who mowed your fields are crying out against you. The cries of the
harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord Almighty. {5} You have lived on
earth in luxury and self-indulgence. You have fattened yourselves in the day of
slaughter. {6} You have condemned and murdered innocent men, who were not
opposing you.
Kindly note that our Lord is not
accusing all the rich. Indeed, it is a fairly common concept throughout the
Old Testament that riches might be a sign of God's favor. The complaint is
against riches obtained fraudulently - and used poorly.
·
Note first the complaint against hoarding wealth. This is the
opposite of stewardship. If God provides wealth to you, then you are the
steward of same - remember you are here only for a little while - and you are
obliged to use it as God desires.
·
The next complaint is the way in which the wealth was gathered.
It was on the backs of the laborers. It is no accident that William Jennings
Bryan's "Cross of Gold" speech was made during a deeply religious
period in American history. The Scripture consistently condemns this. Note
also this is not directed at just one person. We despise "social
gospel" - but our Lord preached it frequently. He did not hesitate to
single out "the rich." Just because a sin is committed by many does
not make it righteousness - or exempt from the Lord's wrath.
·
Finally, there is self-indulgence and luxury. Are you the
brother and sister of those who belong to Christ? Are they starving while you
are worried what kind of wine to serve tonight? By your failure to act you
condemn yourself; it is your self-indulgence that will be brought forward at
the day of Judgment.
What then should you do with your
wealth?
The proper use of money
(1 Tim 6:17-19 NIV) Command those who are rich in this
present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so
uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything
for our enjoyment. {18} Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and
to be generous and willing to share. {19} In this way they will lay up treasure
for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take
hold of the life that is truly life.
·
The first thing is this: don't trust in your money. Don't be
arrogant about being rich. Remember, as James said, you're here for just a
little while. It will do nothing for you in the day of Judgment if you do
nothing for God with it while you are here.
·
Wealth allows us to do good. "I can solve that problem in
just one check!" That's a good feeling for those who like to solve
problems. It is also good for our souls that we would reach out to those in
need.
·
There is also the soul of the rich man to consider in this: if
we hoard wealth, it will eventually rot our souls. We will look at those poor
whom Christ loved and say, "they get what they deserve." If we do,
we will get what we deserve too. Justice I do not desire - mercy I beg for.
·
Finally, there is this point: "He is no fool if he would
choose to give the thing he cannot keep to buy what he can never lose."
Your wealth, your plans, you
yourself in this life are transient - a mere wisp. God is eternal, and rewards
the faithful with eternal life and joy. Do you make plans? Plan accordingly.