and therefore His glory, and
therefore our eternal good. We know that. And these trials
have a purpose now, for they reveal faith. Faith must be tried
and proved. And these trials not only reveal
faith, but they strengthen faith. They actually strengthen our
faith. And it's trial that produces
patience. Tribulation worketh patience. And these trials also, we learned
last week, help to make us useful servants. God uses us to be a
blessing to other people who are enduring like trials. And
these trials also, in the fifth place, help to wean us from this
world. And we realize, and we experience
this, many of us do, these temptations and trials, especially the severe
ones, sometimes they cause us to doubt
the love of God for us. That goes through our minds when
these trials are heavy upon us. Does God really love us? If he
does, why is he afflicting us in this way? David asked that
in Psalm 73. And then this also was experienced
by David, written in Psalm 73. He began to find fault with God's
providence. He said, I was as a beast before
me. And I was a bad example to our
people in this time. And that happens to us. And then
it leads us to complain of our lot. That goes through our thoughts
and our minds. And he says here in verse 12,
But blessed is the man that endureth the trial. Blessed and happy
is the man who endures, who stands, who in faith and submission sees
it through. For he says, when he is tried,
when the Lord has put him as gold in the fire, and when God
has purged his pride and proved his faith, and reveal the true
grace and confidence in his heart. When God has tried him and proved
him, that man, that woman, will receive the crown of life. He doesn't receive the crown
of life because he was faithful. He receives the crown of life
by the grace of God. but only the faithful will receive
the crown of life. He that endures to the end, the
same shall be saved. Paul said it's not those who
run that are crowned, it's those who finish the race that are
crowned. So that's what he said here. Happy, blessed is that person
who endures, who stands, who continues, for when he has And
God has proved his faith and he's endured, he's continued
in the faith. He'll receive the crown of life
which the Lord promised to them that love him. Now verse 13. Let no man say when he's tempted,
I'm tempted of God. For God cannot be tempted with
evil, neither tempteth he any man. When I preach isn't that
the same word that James used back here. In verse 2 of chapter 1, my brethren,
count it joy when you fall into divers temptations. And here he says, let no man
say when he's tempted, I'm tempted of God. Well, the verse over
there, chapter 2, or verse 2, chapter 1, those temptations
are trials. It says that Verse 3, knowing
that the trying of your faith, those are trials. The word in
verse 13, tempted, that refers to another sense, temptation
in another sense. It's talking about fleshly desires,
sensual desires, which tempt us to sin. That no man save when
he's enticed to sin, when his fleshly desires overcome his
judgment. And he's tempted, that God's
tempting me. No, God's not tempting us. God
never tempts anybody to sin. God tries His people. But when
we're tempted to sin, that temptation and desire does not come from
God. It flows from our corrupt nature. That's where it's coming from.
It's our corrupt nature. So he says, let no man say when
he has overcome with passion and desire and lust and temptation
to sin that God's doing that. That's not so. That's blasphemous. For us to ascribe to God any
of our sins is blasphemous because it says God cannot be tempted
with evil. God's pure. And God's holy. He's not tempted, nor does He
tempt anybody to sin. So that's what He's saying, sin,
neither tempteth He any man. He's holy, pure, righteous. He cannot be tempted to sin,
and He does not tempt anybody. Now He may, on purpose, leave
a man to himself, like He left Peter. Our Lord said, Peter,
Satan hath desired thee that he may tempt you, test you. And he left Peter in his hands.
But God doesn't tempt any man to sin. No. Now here's the problem. But every
man, verse 14, every man is tempted. to sin when he's drawn away of
his own lust and enticed. Now the word lust here, you see
that word in verse 14, every man is tempted to sin, to speak
evil, to do evil when he's drawn away of his own lust. What is the word lust? Today
it's used mainly for sexual desires, but the word lust Here is anything
sensual, anything natural, anything is not spiritual. The word lust
refers to the principle or root of that corrupt nature which
we have dwelling in us. That's our nature. It's sensual. It's natural. It's not spiritual. It's fleshly. We're born with
it. We're born with it. David said,
in sin my mother conceived me. I was shapen in iniquity. I was
brought forth speaking lies. I'm born with this nature, sensual
nature, fleshly nature, sinful nature. And it's mine. It's mine. Turn to Romans 7 just
a moment. I can't lay it on somebody else. I can't blame it on somebody
else. Every man is tempted. when he's
drawn away of his own lust. It's his lust. It's his sensual nature. It's his flesh that's causing
it, not somebody else's, it's his. Romans chapter 7, look at
verse 21. I find then a law that when I
would do good, evil is present with me. I delight in the law
of God after the inward man. We're talking about saved people,
redeemed people, people who know God. But there's another principle,
there's another law, there's another nature in my member's
mind, warring against the law of my spiritual mind and thought,
and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, which is in
my members. So go back to my text. The whole
Romans 7 there just a moment. I said this, every man is tempted
when he's drawn away of his own lust. It's a principle, a nature
we're born with. And secondly, it's ours. It dwells
in us. We're drawn by our own evil nature. Our own. Look at Romans 7 again,
and it will stay with us until we die. Look at Romans 7 verse
24. Now, O wretched man that I am
by nature, who shall deliver me from the body of this death?
Who is going to deliver me? I thank God through Jesus Christ
our Lord. He is the one who can deliver
me now and He is the one who will deliver me someday. Take
me out of this body and lay aside this fleshly nature. So this
verse, verse 14 is saying this, anything evil in me, of me, from
me, about me can be charged to my own nature. My own nature
with which I was born, which dwells within me and which will
stay with me until God takes me home. Anything evil But anything
good in me, of me, from me, about me, must be attributed to God. So don't let anybody say when
he's tempted to sin, God tempted me. No, God can't be tempted.
But we're tempted and we're enticed and we're drawn away by our own
evil nature. Now here's the pattern, here's
the pattern of a fall. Here's the pattern. I want you
before I read verse 15 to turn to Joshua. Joshua chapter, turn
over to Joshua chapter 7. I'm going to illustrate this
pattern and then read what James said. Joshua chapter 7. You remember when Joshua and
the people He captured the town and God told him not to take
any of the pagan idols and any of the pagan treasures and any
that belonged to those people. Well, this man Achan, listen
to what he said, Joshua found a wedge of gold in his tent.
He had taken this wedge of gold and God judged the whole camp
because of that. Until Joshua found this man who
was responsible. And I want you to listen to what
he says. And verse 20 of Joshua 7, Achan answered Joshua and
said, Indeed, I have sinned against the Lord God of Israel, and thus
and thus have I done. First, I saw among the sparrows
a goodly Babylonian garment and 200 shekels of silver and a wedge
of gold of 50 shekels weight. I saw it. I coveted it. Thirdly, I took it. That's the
pattern of the fall. Adam in the garden, he saw that
the tree was good. To make one wise, he coveted
that position. I ate it. I saw it, I coveted
it, I took it. Now turn back to James 1. And
he's telling us everything evil is charged to us. It's our own
doings. Anything good is the grace and
mercy of God. Now what's the pattern of the
fall? Then, when lust hath conceived, when we see things and hear things
and think things, thoughts of flesh and pride and covetousness
and lust and evil rises up in our hearts. I saw it. I read
it, I looked upon it, and then secondly I coveted it. Lust,
when it is conceived, instead of resisting the thought, instead
of rejecting the suggestions, instead of putting down the old
man, instead of running away, we consider it and we plant it
and we justify it. And we find a reason why we should
have it. So lust conceives, brings forth
sin, and then we do it. And then sin brings forth death. In Adam's case, death to the
whole race. In the unbelievers case, judgment. In the believers case, sorrow
and grief, embarrassment, disappointment. So verse 16, brethren, do not
err in this. Do not ascribe to God any evil
that we do. It's of our own making. So when
a man is tempted to sin, trials, they come from God, and they're
good for us. But when a man is tempted to
sin, don't let it be so blasphemous as to say God had anything to
do with this. This is of me. A man is tempted
and enticed when he's drawn away by his own lust because we see
and we keep looking and we cut it and we take it and then we
suffer. That's the pattern of the fowl. So don't err, my beloved brethren.
Now stay on this subject. Verse 17. Every good gift Every
good gift, we're still on the same subject, we're talking about
what we talked about before, evil is of us, goodness is of
God. Every good gift, whether it's
of nature, prosperity, success, happiness, joy, whether it's of nature, whether
it's of providence, whether it's of grace, every good gift and
every perfect gift And it's called perfect because nothing from
God is imperfect. God doesn't give imperfect gifts.
Everything from God is perfect. It's not mixed with evil. It's
from God. Every good gift and perfect gift
is from above. Listen to what our Lord said
in John 3. John 3 verse 27. I quote this every once in a
while. It's good to remember. John 3 verse 27, John answered
and said, John 3 verse 27, a man can receive nothing, nothing,
except it be given him from heaven. Nothing good, nothing perfect,
nothing lasting, nothing eternal. So let's take full blame for
our sin and give God full credit for every good And every perfect
gift. I'll keep on in verse 17. And
this, these good gifts, this good gift and perfect gift, which
is the unspeakable gift of Christ, it's all in Christ. In Him dwelleth
all the fullness of God. But it comes down from the Father
of Lights. The Father of Lights. Light in
the Scriptures means two things especially. And we are blessed
with light, where the father of lights has blessed us with
light. And light in the scripture means
many things, but it means two things especially. It means the
light of truth. The light of truth and the light
of holiness. And that's the two things the
father of lights has blessed us with. The light of truth opened
our eyes. He calls the light of the knowledge
of the glory of God to shine in our hearts. And then He's
given us the light of holiness. The light of truth, the light
of holiness. The light to see, the light to
live. The light to understand, the light of acceptance. God
is the origin, God is the source, God is the giver. He's the God
of light. Light of truth and the light
of holiness. And He gives us every good gift,
every perfect gift. Comes down from the Father of
light. He dwelleth in a light to which
no man can approach. And yet He's pleased to give
that light to us. And watch how He gives it, that
same verse, with whom there is no bearableness. With whom there
is no bearableness. A shadow of turning. What's this
mean? There's not a shadow, or a shade,
or a possibility of His changing His gift. No possibility. In Him, there's no wavering,
there's no unsettled state, and there's no darkness. Let me read
you what He says over here, and I'll turn quickly to the numbers.
Listen to this. God is not a man that he should
lie, neither the son of man that he should repent. Has he said,
shall he not do it? Has he spoken, shall he not make
it good? No change. No change. With whom is no possibility,
shatter, wavering, turning. What comfort this should give
to us who are subject to such change, who are subject to decay. God never changes. Everything
wrong with me is my fault. Everything right with me is because
of His mercy. Everything, every good gift,
every perfect gift coming down from the Father of light That's
the good gift, that's the perfect gift, the light of truth and
the light of holiness, righteousness. And if He's given you that, you'll
never change. You'll change. You may forget
your name. You may come to the place in
life when you just don't understand a lot of things,
you've forgotten a lot of things, but He never changes. Change
and decay. That's what the hymn writer said.
He said, Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day. Earth's
joys grow dim and earth's glories fade away. Change and decay in
all around me I see. O thou, with whom there's no
bearableness, no shadow of turning, or change, abide with me. And here in verse 18 is the highest
example of God's good and perfect and unchanging gift, the Father
of Lights. Listen, here it is. He's the giver of His own will. Beget he us with the word of
truth of His own will. You didn't choose me, I chose
you. Our election, our birth, our regeneration, our adoption
as sons and heirs is because He willed to do it of His own
will. Begattius. 2 Timothy 1.9. Listen to the
Apostle Paul writing to the young preacher Timothy. In 2 Timothy
1.9, he says, He saved us. He called us, not according to
our works, but according to His own purpose and grace, His will,
His purpose, His grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus
before the world began. And we're born, John said, not
of the will of the flesh, not of the will of man, but of the
will of God, of His own will. Even so positive seemed good
in thy sight. Of his own will begat he us. How? With the word. With the
word. With the word of truth. Because
God willed it, he made us his sons. Because God willed it,
Christ came down and died for us. Worked out a perfect righteousness. Because He willed it, the Holy
Spirit came and quickened us, enlightened us with the Word,
and we heard the Word, and received it, and believed it. Because
God willed it. He begat us with the Word of
Truth. And James is talking about himself and those early believers
that we should be, listen, a kind of first fruits. What's first
fruits say? Well, they say God brought them
forth. God gave him life. God made him
live. God produced him. But he's going
to produce some more. That's what firstfruits. Plenty
more where that came from. That's what he's saying here.
We apostles and believers in these early days are kind of
firstfruits of a number which no man can number. That's us. A number which no man can number.
Out of every tribe and kindred, nation, hung unto heaven. Wherefore,
my brethren, listen, because he begat us with the word of
truth, because he never operates in a sinner's heart apart from
the preaching of the gospel, he is chosen by the foolishness
of preaching to save them that believe, he begat us by the word
We're born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible by
the Word of God. Wherefore, my brethren, verse
19, be swift to hear it. Let's be eager to hear it. If the Word has that power, the
gospel is the power of God to salvation. God sends His gospel
to regenerate people, to comfort His people, but to enable them
to grow. Desire that sends you, milk of
the Word that you may grow. Well, let's be swift to hear. Let's be eager to hear. Let's
don't be reluctant to hear. That's what Cornelius said over
there in Acts 10. He and all those fellows got
together and they said when the apostle Peter came, they said,
now, we sent to thee God told us to send for you and we did
it. And you've done well that you've come to us now. Therefore,
are we all here present before God to hear all things that are
commanded of thee, thee of God. We're swift to hear. If the Word,
oh, If it's God's means of begetting, quickening, comforting, growth,
enlightening, illuminating, let's be swift to hear it. Swift to
hear it. And secondly, let's be slow to
speak. Let's be slow to speak against it. It's awful quick to pop off about
things, you know, having to do with, I don't believe that. Be
careful. He's awful slow to speak either
for it or against it until it's been heard and carefully
considered and studied. See, these Bereans, they went
home. They kept their mouths shut. They heard Paul preach
and they went home. And they took the scriptures
and searched them to see if these things be such. So the word, God uses the word
to enlighten a man and to judge a man. I was studying that today in our
Sunday School lesson. He's going to, over here in Thessalonians,
let me read you this. It says, and then that wicked
shall be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the spirit
of his mouth, his word, and destroy them with the brightness of his
coming. His word. He said, my word will judge you.
It's the word that quickens. It's the word that judges. It's
the word that gives life. It's the word that damns. It's
the word that enlightens. It's the word that hardens. Gospel
hardens. So let's be swift to hear and
mighty, mighty slow to respond. Either for it or against it.
So you've got to trial the spirits. whether they be the Spirit of
God. So the Bereans set the example for us, be content to be a learner,
slow to set ourselves up as a teacher until we've been taught, and
study Scriptures in the light of Scripture, and being convinced
of God. It's the truth. And here's another, and be slow
to wrath. We're talking about the Word
here now. Be slow to wrath. Slow to wrath. Slow to oppose. Slow to object
to the gospel of God's sovereign mercy. Slow to become angry and
upset when we're reproved, when we're rebuked. Be slow to be
angry. Be slow to wrath. I've had that
experience right here, you know. I'm trying to teach and preach
what God says. And be honest with myself and
with you. I've had folks listen to me for
years and then get upset when I ring their bell on something,
you know. Just get awful upset. Now be careful now. Be slow to
wrath. Be slow to get upset when we're
rebuked and reproved. It's the Word of God. Not my
words. It's His Word. Be slow to riot. Be slow to become
angry. Listen, and we who know the truth
and believe it, let's be slow to be angry with unbelievers
who don't see it and don't receive it. Don't get mad at them. I've
done that many times. For verse 20 says, the wrath
of man doesn't work the righteousness of God. Passionate, angry spirits do
not adorn the gospel. Angry spirits do not promote
the glory of God. An angry spirit does not persuade
any man to repent or believe. In fact, Like Brother Scott Richardson
gave us that illustration about the man feeding his chickens. Went out there with the corn
or mash or whatever he was feeding them and he just gently put it
out for them, you know, and it pecked away. He told the fellow
there, he said, watch, same chicken, same food. Took it and threw
it at them and they just cackled and flew everywhere. And he said,
it's all the way you give it to them. You can lay chicken feet on your
feet and they'll eat off your feet. And you can take the Word
of God. My brethren, let's be quick to
hear, slow to pop off about things we don't know anything about. And slow to wrath, because wrath
of man does not work the righteousness of God. Now look at verse 21.
Now we're still talking about the Word of God now. We haven't
left the Word of God here at all. Wherefore, lay aside all
filthiness, superfluity of naughtiness, We're still talking about the
gospel, we're still talking about scripture, we're talking about
preaching, teaching the word of God and the kingdom of God,
all the way from verse 18 to now. And what he's saying here
is lay aside suggestive, sensual language and thought. That's naughtiness, filthiness. Superfluity is excess, it's overkill,
it's overflow. It's naughtiness carried to the
extreme. Suggestive, sensual talk. Don't
be constantly engaged in the banner and the suggestive language
and the naughtiness and filthiness and overkill and overflow which
the world delights in. That's what the world delights
in. And what we do when we engage
in that sort of thing or run around with folks who do, we
just feed that old nature. Just feed that old man, just
keep feeding him. He gets stronger the more we
feed him. So this is what he's saying, lay aside that foolishness,
naughtiness, filthiness, excess of suggestive talk, and rather
do this, receive with humility the engrafted Word of God. Made
your own and received with humility, with an interest, the promises
of God, the Scriptures, the Word of God. Which are able to save
your soul. This naughtiness and filthiness
and suggestive language, it won't help your soul. And I know a
man can't sit around and read the Scriptures all day. Can't
run around, let's talk Bible all day long. Oh no, that would
be excess. to the extreme in a false humility
and will worship. But what I'm saying is our language
and our talk on any subject, doesn't matter what the subject
is, it can be wholesome, it can be in a wholesome direction,
it can be seasoned with grace, you can talk about You can talk
about shopping or sports, or you can talk about raising children,
you can talk about farming, you can talk about hunting, you can
talk about golf, you can talk about any of these things, and
your language can be seasoned with grace and not with naughtiness. See what I'm saying? It can be
edifying to the hearer and not detrimental. Listen to Colossians
4 verse 6. Colossians 4 verse 6. This is
what we're talking about here. Colossians 4 verse 6. Let your
speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt. Use salt to make something taste
better. That's what he's talking about. But you may know how you
ought to answer every man. So whatever the subject, let
our conversation be wholesome, and godly, and edified, and just
lay aside the way the world talks. And we're still on the Word,
verse 22, and be a doer of the Word of God. And like we're sitting
here looking at the description, let's not just talk about this,
let's do it. Be a doer of the Word, not just
a hearer. It's deceiving ourselves. That's
misleading ourselves. And here's an example. Watch
this. For if any man be a hearer of the Word, not a doer, he's
like a man that beholds his natural face in a mirror. He looks in
the mirror. And he sees his face, and it's
dirty. It needs washing. Looks carefully and he's got
a cancerous growth here. It's deep. Sore and it's red. And then he sees an attitude,
a frown of hate. Not a look of grace and love
and contentment, but hate. And he looks and he sees the
gray hair and the wrinkles. Old age. He's a dying man. And he sees all that and he turns,
listen, and he beholds himself, verse 24, and goes his way. Goes
his way and straightway forgets what he just saw. Well, here
we are, looking at the Word. And this Word says, we're dirty,
we're sinners, we need washing. We've got a cancer, not just
on the face, but in the soul. Destroying us. Sin. Born with it. We got a look of
unpleasantness. An unrest. Hatred for God. And we're old. We're dying. And
going to meet God in the judgment. Now, what are we going to do?
Well, verse 25. And you too are going to do.
But whoso... We're not going to be like the
man who looks and walks away, forgets it. But whoso looketh
into the perfect law of liberty. What's that? That's not Moses'
law. He looks into the law of liberty.
It's the law of the Spirit of Christ. It's not the law of sin
and death. I can look at the law all my
existence and do nothing but just cry guilty, guilty, guilty.
But I'm going to look at the blood, and the cross, and the
righteousness of Christ, and the law of the Spirit of God,
the law of liberty. Why is it called the law of liberty?
Because it frees us. He frees us from the curse. He
frees us from condemnation. He frees us from the bondage
of sin. Frees us from the dominion of
sin. Frees us from the power of Satan. frees us to come into
God's presence, come boldly before the throne of grace, and enables
us to continue therein. He looks into that perfect righteousness,
perfect atonement, perfect law of freedom, and what does He
do? He just sits down there, ceases
from His labor and enters therein. He's not a forgetful hearer.
He's a doer of the work. This man will be blessed in his
doing. And then in closing this chapter,
the apostle is emphasizing this fact, what we all know, true
salvation is not in word only. It's not in doctrine that saves,
it's Christ. True religion is not holding
to a certain doctrine, it's walking with the living Lord. Listen
to it. If any man among you seem to be professed to be religious
and doesn't control his tongue, he deceives his own heart. This
man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before
God and the Father is to visit the orphans, help them, and the
widows in their affliction. and to keep himself unspotted
from the world. Works of faith and labor of love. Well, may God bless that to your
heart. I hope it's a blessing. It has
been to me in preparing it.