James: Where Faith
and Life Meet
Today and Tomorrow
5/13/12
Introduction:
Benjamin Franklin wrote in a letter to
Jean-Baptiste Leroy in 1789, which was re-printed in The Works of Benjamin
Franklin, 1817, “In this world nothing
can be said to be certain, except death and taxes." Is Margaret Mitchell book “Gone With the Wind”,
1936: she writes, "Death, taxes and childbirth! There's never any
convenient time for any of them."[1] If you are a mother then I would think you
agree with the last statement and as mortal human beings who pays taxes we all
agree with Benjamin Franklin’s quote.
The frailty and the shortness of life are
or should be sobering and humble thoughts to us all. So many spend our lives working and preparing
for the future; whether we are saving for retirement, a vacation or socking
money away in case of an emergency we want to be assured that we have enough resources
to help us get by in the future. A
Pastor I worked with used to say, “Jesus saves and so do I” when talking about
saving for the future. As Christians
what should our mindset be when it comes to preparing for the future? There are so many people in the world who
prepare for a future that they believe is certain and deserved. Is this wrong? Are we lacking faith when we save for days
that aren’t certain? I intend to talk a
little about this today.
A
key phrase I will continue come back to is, “Life is a vapor.” Keep that in your mind as we talk about the
passage today in James 4:13 – 17. Before
I begin I want to share a short and tragic story of a man whose life
preparations didn’t go as planned.
I knew of a man (but did not know him
personally) who desired to retire life at the age of fifty. This was something he worked hard to
attain. For many years of his life he
worked two or three jobs with the hopes of gaining enough money to retire at
this age so he could spend it with his family.
He didn’t neglect his family as he worked, he was a father who was
present when he was at home yet, he wasn’t home as much as he would have
liked. At around the age of 47 he was
diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He
fought a good battle and lived a little longer than many because he was in
great physical shape but unfortunately and ironically at age 50 the cancer got
the best of him and he passed away. When
I think of this man and the pain his family went through I am saddened because
he spent his whole life preparing for a future that he was never going to
have. Do I fault this man for the
preparations he was making? Not at all;
I believe he would have enjoyed his latter years more than anything had he
lived. Now I know many people who have
lived a similar life and their story did not end tragically like this man and
are enjoying the future. I think this
helps me to know that there truly is a healthy balance between preparing for
the future and having faith that God will provide. However his story also gives me perspective
about what is important in life and also shows that none of us are guaranteed
another day here on earth. It helps me
to understand that life (and everyday for that matter) is indeed a gift from
God and His will is what I should and need to concern my life with so as not to
waste it away.
The Business Model
In today’s passage, James 4:13 -17, the
author speaks directly about the frailty of life and the lack in wisdom in
preparing for the future without first seeking the will of God. I do
not think in this passage James is even implying that Christians do not make
preparations for the future (i.e. 401K’s, saving money) as some have preached; instead
I believe he is talking about the ludicrous idea that we make our own selfish preparations
for the future and depend on them to sustain us throughout life.
In this passage it is believed James is
speaking to merchants (probably wealthier Christian businessmen) who were
arrogantly making preparations to go out to certain cities trade, sell and
accumulate wealth. They were planning on
conducting business in the way that the rest of the world did and were
depending on getting wealthy in the process.
In short they were making plans for themselves and not inquiring of God
in how or where they should conduct their business. Their
business plan was to go out sell, trade and accumulate but failed to include
two major factors…
1)
God… They
were looking to succeed and accumulate in their own selfish and self confident
ways. They decided where they will go,
how long they will be there, when they will go and how much money they will
make. All of this is done while
neglecting the wisdom in seeking God in their endeavors to see where He may be
leading them.
2)
Tomorrow is not guaranteed. You may
come down with a serious illness or health issue or worse you could be dead
tomorrow. James reminds them by asking,
“What is your life?” The answer is found
throughout the Old and New Testaments.
Jesus speaks in Luke 12:16 – 21 about the foolish man who acquires
wealth for the future and unexpectedly dies.
David speaks of the shortness of life in Psalm 39:5. Even Job knew that life is short and tomorrow
holds no guarantee (Job 7:7).
He answers the question, “What is your
life?” Essentially it is this, “Life is
a vapor.” Living in the Upper Midwest we
know and understand vapors. In the
winter months when the temperature goes to a mild 5 to 15 below we go outside
and as we breathe we can see our breath for only a moment. This is what James says about our life on
earth. It is here one moment and gone
the next.
The Right Perspective
So as Christians what should our
perspective for the future be? Should we
live day by day with no regards for tomorrow?
Do we even make plans for the future? These are questions James answers
by telling them not to forget about God in this equation. We are not to make plans willy nilly for the
future. Yet he also does not discourage
us from actually making preparations for the future. The answer is found in verse 15… Key words,
“If the Lord wills”. This is the proper
perspective, in everything and in anything in making plans for the future. All we plan for should be sought out in
accordance to God’s will. This involves
prayer, scripture reading, counsel from godly men and women, and listening to
the Spirit. We have to be good with the fact that whatever our plans may be, they
are all ultimately subject to God’s will.
This simply means we must be an open and willing vessel to be used by God
no matter where we are in life. We need
to come humbly before God and seek his counsel in life’s decisions and
plans.
I look back on my life and reflect on
the fact that I am in a place where I would have never thought I would be even
twenty years ago. First I never would
have thought I would become a senior pastor and secondly, I never thought it
would be in Western Wisconsin. But I am
glad I am. I don’t know where I would be
if I chose to go my way instead of Gods.
He has a way of changing our plans or better yet letting us know that
our plans are not his plans and we need to be ok with this.
In verse 16 James rebukes these arrogant
business people because they are bragging about their plans and all the money
they are going to make. In fact some of
them may even be pursuing these selfish ambitions and telling others that God
told them to do what they are doing when in fact He is not. James says that this kind of boasting is
plain evil.
In verse 17 he takes it one step further
by rebuking those who know that what they are doing is not from God and yet
they choose to ignore his guidance and will.
James says to these individuals,
“If God has revealed to you the right thing to do and yet you willfully ignore
or don’t do it then this is a blatant sin.”
Oh the stories I could tell you in regards to this.
Certainly verse 17 is not only applied
to those wealthy merchants but also applied to the church as a whole. Whether they were neglecting the poor when
they knew they should be helping them, talking badly about someone when they
knew they should be speaking kind words or no words for that matter, pursuing
the world’s ways and wisdom instead of God’s ways, or merely saying they have
faith with no evidence through their words, works and deeds this was in fact
sin. This also applies to us today. Having the words of Scripture before us we
are in fact instructed how we should live as to glorify God, whether in our
business practices, moral living, spiritual lives, social lives and personal
lives. All we do should be done for the
glory of God and according to his will.
Conclusion
Life is a vapor… Here today gone
tomorrow. There is so much freedom in life when you can
accept the fact that we are not in control.
My tomorrow is not guaranteed. I
am hopeful that God will’s that I live yet another day so I may enjoy the
blessings he has given me. Do I have
plans for tomorrow? Yes. Do I have a three year plan? Yes. Do
I have a five year plan? Yes. However it is all subject to God’s will and I
am ok with that. Ask yourself this
question… Are you ok with the fact that tomorrow is no guarantee? Are you ok if what you have planned does not
actually happen? Are you ok if God decides that where you are, what you are doing and
how you should do it may change tomorrow?
I am not just talking about death or sickness. I am talking about daily routine, profession,
and relationships. We would do well to
remember that not only is life a vapor, but if we know that God is telling us
the right thing to do and we ignore it or don’t do it. This is sin and God cannot bless sin.
In the meantime enjoy today for it is a
gift from God. Make preparations for the
future all in accordance to God’s will.
Do what is right and pleasing before God in everything; in
relationships, our spiritual lives, our families, our workplaces, our leisure
time, our businesses, our schools and our church.
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