James 5:1-11
Notes
Transcript
Read Chapter 5, 1-6, 7-12, 13-20
Read Chapter 5, 1-6, 7-12, 13-20
As we come to the last chapter of James’s letter he ends with five more topics for us to be introspective of, firstly a stern rebuke and warning to those that value money and material wealth above all, and through his rebuke we can use his warnings as a self introspective on how we value and use the wealth that God has so graciously given us. The Bible does not condone or say it is a sin to be materially wealthy in and of itself, Deuteronomy 8:18 “You shall remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth, that he may confirm his covenant that he swore to your fathers, as it is this day.” Proverbs 10:22 “The blessing of the Lord makes rich, and he adds no sorrow with it.”, but if we value money and material wealth above God and above the commandments that he has given us then we are being idolators, Matthew 6:24 ““No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” God does not say that being wealthy is a sin but He does have several warnings about wealth in his word. 1 Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pangs.” Isaiah, Amos, Job, Jeremiah, Micah, and Malachi are a few more places just in the Old Testament that God has warned and condemned the wicked rich person. The next section is on having patience in our suffering calling back to verse 2 of the first chapter, James 1:2 “Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds,” The life we have remaining on this earth is fleeting, just a mist and a vapor, but during our time here we will have trials and suffering, Jesus told us this himself that if the world persecuted him, the messiah, God incarnate on earth, then they will persecute us as well, John 15:20 “Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.” Then in verse 12 James says that above all of his reminders is for us to always be honest in our lives. Then in 13-18 he reminds us of the power we have in prayer and thanksgiving, if we are suffering, sick, or sinful then pray and pray for one another and if we are glad and cheerful sing our praises to glorify God. Then lastly in verses 19 and 20 James tells us that if we see any of our fellow brothers and sisters wandering or being led astray from the truth of the gospel to bring them back and in bringing them back will not only save his brother but will lead us to be more Christlike and further our own sanctification.
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James 5:1 “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you.”
James begins his rebuke against the wicked rich person with “Come now” the same call he used in verse 13 of chapter 4 when talking about those who make plans without considering or even believing in God’s will and plan for us. The King James has it translated as Go to now, but James is saying “Listen up!” or “Pay attention to this” You rich, again James is not directing those that are wealthy in general, but those that value their wealth and riches above God, and as we see in later verses have gained their wealth through evil and wicked practices. James tells those wicked wealthy persons that if they do not repent and turn from worshiping their wealth they are heaping up miseries that will be poured out on them. The prophet Isaiah condemned Israel’s wicked rich in his day; Isaiah 10:1–4 “Woe to those who decree iniquitous decrees, and the writers who keep writing oppression, to turn aside the needy from justice and to rob the poor of my people of their right, that widows may be their spoil, and that they may make the fatherless their prey! What will you do on the day of punishment, in the ruin that will come from afar? To whom will you flee for help, and where will you leave your wealth? Nothing remains but to crouch among the prisoners or fall among the slain. For all this his anger has not turned away, and his hand is stretched out still.”
Amos had an even grimmer warning for them in Amos 4:1–3 ““Hear this word, you cows of Bashan, who are on the mountain of Samaria, who oppress the poor, who crush the needy, who say to your husbands, ‘Bring, that we may drink!’ The Lord God has sworn by his holiness that, behold, the days are coming upon you, when they shall take you away with hooks, even the last of you with fishhooks. And you shall go out through the breaches, each one straight ahead; and you shall be cast out into Harmon,” declares the Lord.”
And again in Amos 8:4–10 “Hear this, you who trample on the needy and bring the poor of the land to an end, saying, “When will the new moon be over, that we may sell grain? And the Sabbath, that we may offer wheat for sale, that we may make the ephah small and the shekel great and deal deceitfully with false balances, that we may buy the poor for silver and the needy for a pair of sandals and sell the chaff of the wheat?” The Lord has sworn by the pride of Jacob: “Surely I will never forget any of their deeds. Shall not the land tremble on this account, and everyone mourn who dwells in it, and all of it rise like the Nile, and be tossed about and sink again, like the Nile of Egypt?” “And on that day,” declares the Lord God, “I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight. I will turn your feasts into mourning and all your songs into lamentation; I will bring sackcloth on every waist and baldness on every head; I will make it like the mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day.”
These wicked rich that James is addressing are loving this world and living it up, but unless there is true and saving repentance this is as good as it gets for them. Their love of money above God may bring them temporal, worldly possessions and a hollow type of joy on earth, but their actions and disregard for God and his commandments are just piling up pain and agony, that will have them weeping and howling in the judgement to come.
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James 5:2–3 “Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have corroded, and their corrosion will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure in the last days.”
All the wealth, possessions, and things hoarded while here on earth will get you nowhere when you are standing before God at the final judgement. You cannot take anything with you when you die. Also what good are material possessions that are hoarded for no other purpose than to say you have them, in the end they will rot and decay and be of no use to anyone. Even gold and silver can tarnish and corrode, but in the end any material wealth, even silver and gold , will be useless, as if they were thoroughly rusted away to dust, when you stand before God who will judge not on what you had, or what you were able to obtain, but on whether or not you trusted and had faith in Jesus Christ as your only salvation and righteousness.
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James 5:4 “Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.”
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James 5:5 “You have lived on the earth in luxury and in self-indulgence. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.”
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James 5:6 “You have condemned and murdered the righteous person. He does not resist you.”
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James 5:7 “Be patient, therefore, brothers, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, being patient about it, until it receives the early and the late rains.”
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James 5:8 “You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.”
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James 5:9 “Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the door.”
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James 5:10 “As an example of suffering and patience, brothers, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.”
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James 5:11 “Behold, we consider those blessed who remained steadfast. You have heard of the steadfastness of Job, and you have seen the purpose of the Lord, how the Lord is compassionate and merciful.”
