Jun 18, 2017
James 5: 1-6 Warning to the Rich
“Those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare,
into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into
ruin and destruction.” 1 Timothy 6:8
“God would rather our hearts be heavy under adversity than careless
under prosperity.”-John Flavel
After addressing the uncertainty and vanity of trusting in our
abilities, James rebukes those who would trust in wealth
and encourages those who are suffering and oppressed by reminding
them of the imminent return of the Lord Jesus.
Jesus said, “A rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of
heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a
camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to
enter into the kingdom of God.” (Matt 19:23)
Why did Jesus say that? What is it about riches that would hinder
one from entering the kingdom of God?
Who are the rich that James is addressing? What does it mean to
have riches? (1 Tim 6:7) Are riches a good or bad?
Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are
coming upon you...
Jesus told the unrighteous, arrogant rich people of the world who
"laugh now" that they will one day "mourn and
weep." James here is calling upon the ungodly rich to do now what
Jesus said they will do at the judgment.
James uses harsh language to pronounce judgement upon the ungodly
rich and to wake up those with riches because
of the deceitful effect they have. (Matt 13:22) Riches are compared
to thorns that choke the seed of the word.
What is it about riches that deceives men? (Deut. 8:17). (Prov.
18:11). (Prov. 30:8-9).
The measure of worldly success is often wealth, this can lead to
pride and selfish ambition.
Riches can often be spiritually deadening, prosperity often deafens
the ear against God. (Jer 22:21) They are deceitful
for they promise security and lure the heart from trusting the
Lord. External prosperity often blinds internal realities.
Remember the Laodicean church (Rev 3:17)
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil (1 Tim 6:9).
We see the fruit born by hearts set upon worldly wealth
James’ indictment against the ungodly rich is proved by 4 witnesses
who bear their testimony :
1. Vs 2-3 Hoarded wealth reveals self-love and worldly trust (1
Cor. 3:12-13; Luke 12:19-20). James shows the
foolishness of amassing riches as they will not last. Even the gold
and silver will corrode!
2. Vs 4 Unjust cruelty - greed leads to oppressing laborers (Lev.
19:13; Deuteronomy 24:14-15)
3. Vs 5 Fattened hearts - continual selfish indulgence of pleasures
and distractions hardens hearts to any spiritual
sensitivity. Like fattened sheep. (Amos 6:4-7; Deut 32:15; Hosea
13:6) The heart is the seat of desires- plenty
gives rise to harm; and when all things are possible, people think
all things lawful. (Ezek 16:49-50)
4. Vs 6 Persecuting spirit- Condemnation and murder of the
righteous man (Christ? Acts 22:14, Acts 3:14)
Note the righteous man’s response (Matt 5:39, Isa 53:7) Christ
loved our justification better than his own
reputation; when his innocence was questioned, he would not answer
a word.
Sobering note: Jesus’ murder is attributed to the Jews corporately.
(1 Thess 14-15) Many in our culture are
willing to murder their own children for their pursuit of
comfort.
So then, if riches often prove to be a snare, why does God give
good men riches? That good may be done with them!
Application: How do we use riches rightly? (1 Tim 6:16-18)
1. “If riches increase, do not set your heart upon them.” (Ps
68:10) We must guard our hearts against the
deceitfulness of riches. This should be the constant request of
rich men, “Lord, let me not trust in what I have,
but in you; and this is a greater blessing than the greatest
abundance in the world.” Seek to be poor in spirit.
2. Give the firstfruits of both your time and money to the Lord.
(Ex 20:8; Mal 3:10; Hag 1:4-6)
3. Refuse to compromise with even the appearance of ungodly
business practices. (1 Thess 5:22)
4. “Possess as not possessing.” (1 Cor 7:30, Hag 2:8) Hold things
of this world loosely, actively seek to give
away what extra the Lord has provided. “Your office is not that of
a treasurer, but of a steward, to have them
in your hands, not in your hearts; otherwise not you but your chest
is rich.” - Thomas Manton
5. Remember the poor, the afflicted, the orphan, the widow, the
elderly especially in the household of faith.
6. Treasure Christ above all. Consider the fleeting nature of
wealth. Lay up treasure in heaven.
James 5: 7-12 Patience in Suffering
James now turns to encourage the oppressed. Riches are the gift of
God to his people, but so are afflictions! (James
1:2, Phil 1:29) If riches have the danger of blinding internal
realities, sufferings have the benefit of exposing our need.
Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming.
What is Christian patience? It is not indifference,
self-satisfaction, or laziness. It is the ability to wait for
something
that you passionately desire even amidst great suffering. Christian
patience differs from complacency and stoicism,
presupposing a sense of evil and taking the form of the whole soul
submitting to the will of God. (Heb 11:1)
We must see that the whole of Christian life is providentially
ordered to conform us to Christ. God is too just to do us
wrong and too kind and wise to do us harm. (Rom 8:28) It is not
possible to be a faithful Christian without suffering.
To proclaim faith in Christ as the only path of salvation will
inevitably arouse hatred from the world. (1 John 3:13)
What are the benefits of Christian patience?
1. Those who are patient do not lose their stability. “Stand firm”
(Psalm 112:7)
2. Patience preserves us from destroying the stability of the
truth. “Do not grumble” Grumblers always focus on
trivia, not eternity. You grumble because your eyes are focused on
the temporal. When the gaze of the church
is on the eternal glory of Christ, grumbling ceases.
3. Patience means you don’t lose your integrity. Vs 12 “Let your
yes be yes”
How do we learn to be patient? Often through our sufferings
1. Vs 7 Lesson from the patient farmer:
Why is the farmer not angry that his crops won’t be fruitful
now?
He is waiting for the land to yield its valuable fruit. The crop
means more to him than the irritation of having
to wait for it. The secret learned is to have our eyes fixed on the
coming of the Lord Jesus. Your ability to be
patient as a Christian in suffering is in direct proportion to look
forward to the glory of God. (2 Cor 4:16-18)
We must learn to live the Christian life backwards from God’s glory
and not forward from our own
sufferings.
2. Vs 8-9 Be patient because the Lord’s coming is near. He is just
outside the door!
We are now in the last days, the next major event in God’s calendar
is to return in glory. Long for his coming!
But, wait for it. (Heb 10:37) (Rev 22:20) Remember Christ's
promise: “I’m going to prepare a place for
you...” (John 14:3) Life is short, but eternity is long. The
nearness of Christ and the extensiveness of eternity
give us all the more reason to not live for this life, but to live
for the world to come. Those who have done
most in this life for God are those whose hearts are most set on
the life to come. He is at the door as a judge.
What will he judge? What we will be in eternity, by God’s grace, is
just what we are now- turned inside out.
People are not saved simply by dying. If you’re not living now with
an aim to glorify Christ, how in the world
will you do that for eternity? If we live day by day for this world
and for temporal things, what will Christ as
judge say? Paul called himself the chief of sinners, but he knew
his hope was set only on Christ! The only
way to know you’ll trust and love him in eternity is to trust and
love him now!
3. Vs 10-11 Patience from knowing the testimony of the Holy
scriptures
The prophets who suffered knew that the momentary light affliction
worked for them an eternal weight of
glory. Job prostrate worshiping God saw the reason for his
suffering. “What we do in life, echoes in eternity.”
The Lord will always be compassionate and merciful to his saints,
especially when he calls them to suffer.
4. Vs 12 Godly sincerity- God knows our inward being so we don’t
have to pretend to be sincere.
Conclusion
We see the trial of riches, the blessing of riches, the trial of
suffering, the blessing of suffering. Denying Christ by
either trusting in riches or despairing under sufferings are both
the product of living by sight, not by faith.
Christian contentment is the answer for both. (Phil 4:11-12) “All
the winds of providence blow us towards heaven.”
“Christian contentment is that sweet, inward, quiet,gracious frame
of spirit, which freely submits to and delights in
God’s wise and fatherly disposal in every condition.” - Jeremiah
Burroughs
Rest in the robes of Christ that no moth will ever destroy looking
to the gold streets of heaven that will never corrode.
Here we have two tests to know if you love Christ: Where is your
treasure? Do you have patience in suffering?