HUMILITY AND THE FUTURE//JAMES 4:13-17

INTRO:

Where do you hope to be in 10 years? What do you want your life to look like?

 

Most people make the most life-changing decisions in their lives between the ages 18 and 22: college or join the workforce, where to go to college and why, what to study, who to date, if you should get married, join the military, or where you should live. So many decisions! Sometimes it's just so difficult to figure out the right decision.

So how do you know if a decision is the right one?

PROVERBS 3:5-6

⁵ Trust in the Lord with all your heart
    and lean not on your own understanding;
⁶ in all your ways submit to him,
    and he will make your paths straight.

Scripture talks about the futility of making decisions without seeking God's wisdom.

LESSON:

Today, we'll be diving into what James said about that and how it applies to our lives.

Read JAMES 4:13-14

¹³ 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.

To whom was James talking?

Jewish businessmen

What decisions were these people making? 

They decided they would go to another city, spend a year there, and make profit. They knew what they would do, where they would do it, when they would it, and why they would do it. But they did NOT consult God in any of those decisions.

Now…

Think about tomorrow… Who are you going to see? What are you going to do? Where are you going to be at a certain time? When? Why? etc.

Why did James think this approach to life was wrong?

We can't even tell exactly what tomorrow will bring. You cannot predict what will happen in your life. It may bring great happiness—or great sorrow.  All of us need God's wisdom, perspective, and direction for the decisions we make because no one knows what tomorrow will bring.

Leaving God out of your plans is a bad idea— only He knows what tomorrow will bring.

In verse 14, what did James call these people (and us)?

…A MIST that appears for a little while and then vanishes.

This is another reason for humbly submitting our lives to God.

Hopefully this doesn't discourage you. James wasn't trying t say that your life is meaningless like a puff of smoke, here today and gone instantly. He also is not telling us that we shouldn't plan for our future and think ahead. Rather, he was trying to help you to understand that your life is short and frail, and because your life is grain of sand in the ocean of eternity, it would be foolish and unwise to plan it out and live it out without seeking God's will and purpose.

Time is short, so spend it wisely. And the only way to live wisely is under God's guidance.

The people that James wrote to apparently ignored God's wisdom because they were choosing to leave Him out of their decisions. In essence, they were setting themselves up as ruler of their own lives. They had decided that they knew what was best and therefore didn't need God's input, wisdom, or guidance.

If you met someone like that, how would you describe him/her? How would you feel about him/her?

To say you know what is best and don't need any help is the very definition of pride or arrogance.

Remember James 4:6?

 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says:

“God opposes the proud
    but shows favor to the humble.”

 

If God is opposed to pride, then the best approach to the future is to live in humility. So what did James tell us next?

James 4:15-16

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 in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil.

Based on those two verses, what might be a good question to ask God about your life, not just in big decisions about the future, but also in the little decisions, too?

Living in humility before God means that you and I continually ask God, "What do you want me to do?" If you ask that question and sit long enough to listen for God's answer, He'll give it. 

Remember James 1: 5?

⁵ If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.

Think about some areas in your life that might need God's wisdom and direction. Ask God what He wants you to do both right now and in the future:

Boyfriend/future husband	Friendship with…	Argument with…	Money management
College	Career	Relationship with parents	Spare time

ONE LAST WARNING

¹⁷ If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.

So what is the "good" James is talking about? Ideas?

Answer: God's will. When God tells you to do something and you don't do it, you are sinning against God. You're rebelling against what He wants. That applies to big things—like whom to marry or where to go to college—as well as the small things, like how you treat your parents or your sister/brother. 

How do we know God's will?

Check out these two websites: 

• God's Will Revealed in God's Word.
• How do I know what God's will is for my life?

HOMEWORK: 

Just something to think about... "Incomplete obedience is disobedience."

Read: 1 Samuel 13:5-14; 1 Samuel 15 – Story about how King Saul disobeyed God.

AS WE CLOSE...

James reminds us that life is short, therefore, let's live it for God-- that is the only way we'll live this life meaningfully. Let us acknowledge God in every plan, every dream, everything. Let us constantly seek His will and live in it. And if there are areas in our lives that are not according to His will, let us pray that He will reveal those areas to us and that we can surrender them to His perfect guidance and will. Our Father in heaven loves us and He knows our every need, every longing... He knows what's best for us and we can trust that He desires nothing else other than EVERYTHING that will make us happy. He desires that we will love Him too, most of all-- with all our hearts, our souls, our strengths, and our minds.

Study from: Gibbs, P. (2011). James: Faith under pressure. LifeWay Christian Resources.

Wise Words// JAMES 3:13-16

Before going on the lesson proper, I texted some girls this and have one of them read it out loud:

Try reading this out loud, yourself:

"i walked into my room, leaving the world outside. i must've had the worst day of my life... it's like no one understands. my parents, my friends, even the only person who i thought would... nope, no one! and yet godisnowhere. i knelt down, closed my eyes, and in the silence of this tiny room, in between my sobs, i felt his presence. i asked him, why?... i did not hear an audible answer... but in my heart, there's peace... i know... i am loved. i am not alone."

What did you notice? How did you read "godisnowhere"?

Some girls read it as "God is nowhere" while some read it as "God is now here."

*Sometimes, we read verses in the Bible that seem out of place; but, actually, if you read it carefully and think about how the author is writing it and to whom, you'll see the relationship between the verses before it and the verses after. Context matters!

This is true in the next verses in James.

New International Version (NIV) Two Kinds of Wisdom 13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.

The Message (MSG) Live Well, Live Wisely  13-16Do you want to be counted wise, to build a reputation for wisdom? Here's what you do: Live well, live wisely, live humbly. It's the way you live, not the way you talk, that counts. Mean-spirited ambition isn't wisdom. Boasting that you are wise isn't wisdom. Twisting the truth to make yourselves sound wise isn't wisdom. It's the furthest thing from wisdom—it's animal cunning, devilish conniving. Whenever you're trying to look better than others or get the better of others, things fall apart and everyone ends up at the others' throats.

How would you define wisdom?

Accdg to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary (http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/wisdom):

1

a : accumulated philosophic or scientific learning : knowledge

b : ability to discern inner qualities and relationships : insight

c : good sense : judgment

d : generally accepted belief <challenges what has become accepted wisdom among many historians — Robert Darnton>

2

: a wise attitude, belief, or course of action

3

: the teachings of the ancient wise men

Accdg to the Book of Job:

Job 28:28
²⁸  And he said to the human race,
    “The fear of the Lord—that is wisdom,
    and to shun evil is understanding.”

** How does one get wisdom?

James 1:5
⁵  If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.

Proverbs 9:10
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom,
    and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.

Psalm 119:97-104
⁹⁷ Oh, how I love your law!
    I meditate on it all day long.
⁹⁸ Your commands are always with me
    and make me wiser than my enemies.
⁹⁹ I have more insight than all my teachers,
    for I meditate on your statutes.
¹⁰⁰ I have more understanding than the elders,
    for I obey your precepts.
¹⁰¹ I have kept my feet from every evil path
    so that I might obey your word.
¹⁰² I have not departed from your laws,
    for you yourself have taught me.
¹⁰³ How sweet are your words to my taste,
    sweeter than honey to my mouth!
¹⁰⁴ I gain understanding from your precepts;
    therefore I hate every wrong path.

Proverbs 2:6
⁶ For the Lord gives wisdom;
    from his mouth come knowledge and understanding.

1 Kings 3:6-9
⁶ Solomon answered, “You have shown great kindness to your servant, my father David, because he was faithful to you and righteous and upright in heart. You have continued this great kindness to him and have given him a son to sit on his throne this very day.

⁷ “Now, Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David. But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties. ⁸ Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number. ⁹ So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong. For who is able to govern this great people of yours?”

According to James, how was a wise person supposed to prove she was wise?

It'll be manifested in how he/she lives his/her life.

v. 13 Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom.

How did James describe wisdom?

Wisdom is characterized by humility (v. 13). Wisdom from heaven is not earthly, unspiritual, demonic (v.15).

What do you think James was trying to say in verse 14?

¹⁴ But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth.

We must remember that James is speaking to fellow believers, the early Christian church. They know what they believe in... James is warning them not to be too confident in what they know that they become a "stumbling block" for others as their confidence and knowledge might appear to be too arrogant to the hearers. James is warning them not to focus on their own praise but God's alone, not so that they will be looked up to as wise but to reserve all the glory to God.

How do these verses connect with the verses before this (Jas 2:7-12) and the verse after this (Jas 4:1-6)?

James 2: 7-12 is about following not having favoritism as " For whoever keeps the whole law and yet stumbles at just one point is guilty of breaking all of it. James 4: 1-6 is about the quarrels among people and enmity with God when one becomes a friend of the world. James in the verses above is warning Christians to be wise and tells them that wisdom is manifested on how they live life... Therefore, these verses are all related in that Christians ought to live life by keeping God's law, loving each other by the love of Christ, asking God for wisdom, living life humbly, and relying on God's grace.

 "In order to live out what we say we believe, we much constantly depend on God. True wisdom to live out Truth comes from Him and not from ourselves Trusting in
 worldly wisdom and living only for yourself only ends in selfish ambition and a life that would delight the Devil. Living life God's way requires one essential character trait: humility ."

 

Are you willing to admit to God that He is sovereign, that He is in control, and that He knows what's best for your life? Are you willing to submit to His authority, lean on His leadership, and seek to live by His principles? Are you willing to act on what you believe about Him? If not, then you might want to evaluate your relationship with Him?