The Epistle of James
Part 15
We’re going to take a little "detour" today to discuss some questions that came up in our last lesson, but before we do, let’s look at the first six verses of James 5:
Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure! Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned and put to death the righteous man; he does not resist you.
(James 5:1-6 NASB95)The word prosper appears 85 times in the NASB95 in one form or another, at first glance, it might seem that James is condemning those who are prosperous.
How can that thought reconcile with these texts?
Interestingly, the word prosper only appears 5 times in the New Testament in any form and only twice is used to indicate that believers will prosper:
I believe James is warning that believers are to place no confidence in material wealth and that if their wealth has been accumulated by unjustly taking advantage of others God will punish such activity. This is not a condemnation of the legitimate employer/employee relationship where most employees create more income for their employer than they are paid. In a capitalistic society, if most employees don’t create more than they receive, the business will fail.
Now, in response to the question several of you raised last week, lets examine my assumption that God created this world as a demonstration.
At the outset, I concede that my assumption is nowhere explicitly taught in the Bible…neither is the doctrine of the Trinity. But both are implied and I believe supported throughout the Bible.
I want to begin by asking several questions:
Some may object that all these questions amount to nothing more than human reasoning and since God’s ways are not our ways, we can have no assurance that our answers are correct. But while that may be true, evidently God expects us to use reason in our relationship with Him.
Let’s look at Isaiah 1:18-20:
If we start at the very beginning according to Genesis, we find Adam and Eve living in a perfect garden where God provided everything for their enjoyment. They were completely dependent upon God…He was their Creator and their Provider. There was only one place in the garden where Adam and Eve could make a wrong choice…only one place where they could choose to either trust God and not eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil as He had told them, or they could choose to believe the Serpent who said they would become like God, knowing both good and evil if they would only eat the fruit of the Tree.
The idea of this world being a demonstration has its foundation in Pauline theology. The word demonstrate is used11 times in the NASB95 in one form or another with 9 of those instances appearing in the writings of Paul. The word appears 3 times in Chapter 3 of Romans where Paul makes his case for demonstration:
It’s a little long, but let’s look at the complete chapter:
(Romans 3 NASB95)Then what advantage has the Jew? Or what is the benefit of circumcision? Great in every respect. First of all, that they were entrusted with the oracles of God. What then? If some did not believe, their unbelief will not nullify the faithfulness of God, will it? May it never be! Rather, let God be found true, though every man be found a liar, as it is written, "That You may be justified in Your words, And prevail when You are judged." But if our unrighteousness demonstrates the righteousness of God, what shall we say? The God who inflicts wrath is not unrighteous, is He? (I am speaking in human terms.) May it never be! For otherwise, how will God judge the world? But if through my lie the truth of God abounded to His glory, why am I also still being judged as a sinner? And why not say (as we are slanderously reported and as some claim that we say), "Let us do evil that good may come"? Their condemnation is just. What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin; as it is written, "There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; There is none who does good, There is not even one." "Their throat is an open grave, With their tongues they keep deceiving," "The poison of asps is under their lips"; "Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness"; "Their feet are swift to shed blood, Destruction and misery are in their paths, And the path of peace they have not known." "There is no fear of God before their eyes." Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin. But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe; for there is no distinction; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith. This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. Where then is boasting? It is excluded. By what kind of law? Of works? No, but by a law of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law. Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since indeed God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith is one. Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law.
In chapter 5 of Romans, Paul links the idea of demonstration with complete reconciliation by showing that through the first Adam, sin came upon all mankind and through the Second Adam, justification came upon all mankind. Again, let’s look at the whole chapter:
(Romans 5 NASB95)Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation. Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned— for until the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come. But the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. The gift is not like that which came through the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many transgressions resulting in justification. For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. For as through the one man’s disobedience the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many will be made righteous. The Law came in so that the transgression would increase; but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, so that, as sin reigned in death, even so grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
What shall we say then, does God save unbelievers, as I am slanderously reported and as some say I teach? God forbid, for He saves only those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. But the Good News has been announced: Before the end of the ages when time will be nor more, every one will believe and pledge allegiance to God and confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:10)