We’re coming to the end of James. James wrote this epistle to help us grow and please God, also called progressive sanctification. Here’s a quick review. Chapter One: See God in your trials and rejoice; don’t blame God for your sins or excuse them; be doers, not just hearers. Chapter Two: Practice love and mercy; show your faith by your deeds. Chapter Three: Control your tongue and develop godly wisdom. Chapter Four: Purify your heart and draw near to God; be an encourager rather than a critic; submit your plans to God. Chapter Five: Don’t let money deceive you; practice patience and quit complaining.
Now James is going to teach us how to handle life’s surprises in a godly fashion. Have you had any surprises come your way recently? “Whoa! I did not see that coming.” The next moment in life is always an unknown. You never know what God has planned for you. It’s good we only get to live one day at a time. Someone said, “Time is God’s way of keeping everything from happening all at once.” Jesus said we are not to worry about tomorrow. Each day has enough trouble of its own, or each day has enough surprises. We can say whatever we want about trusting in God’s sovereignty over our lives, but it’s how we respond to the surprises of life that expose our hearts. James now gives counsel on how we should respond to life’s surprises.
#1 NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS, SPEAK THE TRUTH.
James 5:12, But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.
“Above all” means this is big stuff. If you have to swear to buttress up your words, you’re in trouble. James says that no matter what happens or what you do, be honest. Do you lie and then try to cover it by appealing to God? “I swear on a stack of Bibles I wasn’t on any porn sites last night,” while your history reveals otherwise. Using God to defend your lie is blasphemy. It’s taking God’s name in vain. The third commandment in Exodus 20:7 says, “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.” But the Jews had a sophisticated system of using vows to hide the truth. James says don’t swear at all – just speak the truth.
We live in a sea of lies. David says we tell lies right from the womb – Psalm 58:3. Romans 3:13 says, “With their tongues they keep deceiving.” MacArthur wrote, “Fallen men are basically inveterate liars…. Our society is built on a framework of lies, leading one to wonder whether our social structure would survive if everyone were forced to speak the truth for even one day.” You’ve got the lies of evolution, gender choice, and reproductive “health.” Even science is no longer based on reality. Satan himself is the liar and the father of lies; deception is his mode of operation. The world lies to avoid truth or circumvent trouble.
What do you do when you are under duress and a lie would be convenient? Should you be able to trust a Christian to tell you the truth? Ephesians 4:25 says we are to put off falsehood and speak truth each one with his neighbor, for we are members of one another. Your physical body depends on each member telling the truth to the other. Your eye tells your brain a car is coming. Your finger says it’s hot and I’m burning. Let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no! James tells us not to swear, just speak the truth.
Jesus said the same thing in Matthew 5:33-36, “Let your yes be yes and your no be no, and anything beyond this is evil.” You shouldn’t have to defend your statements with oaths and vows. This doesn’t mean you can’t swear in a court of law or you shouldn’t make a vow at your wedding. Paul at times said, “As God is my witness.” In Hebrews 6:13-18 God swore by Himself to assure us of His promises. You’ll find vows and commitment swearing throughout the Old Testament history.
What about the words “falling under judgment” in verse 12? James is probably thinking of the warning in the third of the ten-commandments that those who take the Lord’s name in vain will not go unpunished. Christ says in Luke 6:45 that a man’s mouth speaks from that which fills the heart. If Christ hasn’t changed you into a truth teller, He probably hasn’t changed you at all. Or if you do lie as a believer, you’ll be hit with 220 volts of conviction. Revelation 21:8 says all liars will have their part in the lake of fire. So if you find it easy to lie without qualms, or if you are constantly trying to convince people with oaths, “I swear I’m telling the truth,” James says check yourself to see whether you have a genuine faith. When life hits you with an unexpected surprise, be honest. Speak truth. “Live not by lies,” as Mr. Solzhenitsyn said.
#2 WHEN YOU ARE HIT BY HARD TIMES, PRAY.
James 5:13a, Is anyone among you suffering? Then he must pray.
The word suffering here literally means suffering evil or hardship. KJV says afflicted. Things are tough. It may people conflicts. It may be some foolish thing you brought on yourself. It may be some calamity, accident, or financial hardship. It could be anything bad or evil that causes affliction and hard times. We live in a fallen world. God never promised to shield us from the temporary evils of this world. Some life events are really hard. Back in 2008 Steven Curtis Chapman’s teenage son was backing their vehicle out their lane and accidentally ran over their adopted five year-old daughter. How do you deal with that degree of tragedy? James says, “You pray!” We live in a fallen world. Bad things happen. The Puritans called this world a vale of tears. The church throughout history has traveled through fiery trials and bloody seas.
Look at Job. Was it Satan or God who allowed Job to go through all that trouble? Yes! Job 5:7, “For man is born for trouble, as sparks fly upward!” But God’s people can count on this – nothing comes to you apart from the sovereign and good hand of God.
So how do you handle it when hit with hard times? Do you fret and stew? Do you pity yourself and worry yourself crazy, get angry, gripe and complain and grumble like all the other people at work? Some try to drink their sorrows away or depend on anxiety pills. But know this. If you are a child of God, you have a heavenly Father watching over you to whom you can pray. He is the God of the universe and totally trustworthy and your heavenly Father. Let’s plug in a great passage right here.
Philippians 4:6-7, Be anxious for nothing but in everything with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made know to God!
That’s how you handle trouble, distress, and suffering as a believer. Why does God allow evil and suffering? He allows it for His glory and our good, to draw us to Him. Psalm 119 shows us that David knew this.
Psalms 119:67, Before I was afflicted I went astray, but now I keep Your word.
Psalms 119:71, It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I may learn Your statutes.
Hard times should draw you closer to God as you run to His word for comfort and understanding. As you draw closer to Him and call on Him, your prayer life will ignite and grow deeper. Pray for endurance through the fire. Pray that you can see God in the affliction and rejoice in it. Paul said, “I rejoice in my suffering” (Colossians 1:24). Pray for a godly attitude and for strong faith to give God glory. Pray that God will use these afflictions to grow the fruit of the Spirit in your life.
Life here on earth will include suffering, trouble, and afflictions. How should you respond when they come? You pray. You open your Bible to get focused on Truth and you pray to your heavenly Father who cares for you. Suffering and troubles are God’s reminders that He is the only One with the answers in a fallen world with all its pain and sorrows. When you encounter life’s surprises, first, be honest, second, pray.
#3 WHEN YOU COME INTO GOOD TIMES, PRAISE!
James 5:13b, Is anyone cheerful? He is to sing praises.
This is such a neat word – euthumeo – “I feel great!” KJV says, “merry.” Everything is going your way. You’re getting along just swimmingly with your spouse. Your kids are all productive and living for Christ. The church is growing. You just got a raise, your investments are holding strong, vacation is coming up next month, and you are healthy! Life is good! Right? Wrong! God is good. Psalm 119:68 says, “God is good and does good.”
James 5:13b says when you come into good times, sing praises to God! He is the source of all these blessings. God packs lots of cheer and goodness into our lives! The Psalms are filled with David’s praises to God.
Psalms 103:1-5, Bless the LORD, O my soul, And all that is within me, bless His holy name. 2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits; 3 Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases; 4 Who redeems your life from the pit, Who crowns you with lovingkindness and compassion; 5 Who satisfies your years with good things, So that your youth is renewed like the eagle.
The word “praises” is our word “Psalms.” Are you stressed or blessed? James covers the dark valley and the sunny heights here, doesn’t he? God is in it all, so pray and praise! Martin Luther wrote, “My heart bubbles up and overflows in response to music which has so often refreshed me and delivered me from dire straits.”
Think of the hymns we sing that express these feelings. Often I find a hymn or chorus swimming to the top of my mental soup and I start to whistle a tune, often one we sang the week before here in church. How about last week’s “It Is Well with My Soul?” or “Great Is Thy Faithfulness?” or “How Firm a Foundation, Ye Saints of the Lord?” or “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross?” Or this classic, “We have an anchor that keeps the soul, steadfast and sure while the sea billows roll! Fastened to the rock which cannot move, grounded deep and firm in the Savior’s love.”
And what about this beloved hymn? “What a friend we have in Jesus, all our sins and griefs to bear! What a privilege to carry everything to Him in prayer! Have we trials and temptations? Is there trouble anywhere? We should never be discouraged; take it to the Lord in prayer! Are we weak and heavy laden, cumbered with a load of care? Precious Savior, still our refuge – take it to the Lord in prayer!”
When God surprises you with blessings and you’re feeling cheerful, sing praises! That’s living biblically. That’s living as more than a conqueror in Christ. That’s letting the joy of the Lord be your strength. That’s living as if there really is a loving, caring, heavenly Father watching over you and meeting all your needs.
How does the world handle the good times? They celebrate, break out the booze, give thanks to their lucky stars, even take God’s name in vain, as in “OMG!” or ignorantly count it up to their impersonal karma or some other pagan, godless notions. Christians know that God is personal, sovereign, that His invisible hand of providence leads their lives, and sometimes He brings hard times and sometimes He brings rejoicing times.
#4 WHEN YOU ARE STRUGGLING WITH WEAKNESS, GET HELP.
James 5:14-15, Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; 15 and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up, and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him.
This section can be seen in different ways and you may differ with my understanding. But if you come out that the main point James is making is that when we struggle we should seek help, we’re all good. I agree with two of my remote mentors in interpreting this – John MacArthur and Jay Adams. I may be wrong, they may be wrong, but this is what I think James is saying and not saying.
James is not talking about holding healing services here. He’s not talking about faith healing or confessing to a priest for absolution. He’s not talking about extreme unction or even a ceremonial anointing with oil. He may be talking about God’s discipline for some sin, but all sickness is clearly not from personal sin.
What’s the problem? This fellow is weak. While the word “sick” is used of physical sickness, it is often used of weakness, feebleness, feeling defeated and without strength. James is talking about a defeated, exhausted, discouraged Christian. It could be God’s discipline on his life. First Corinthians 11:30 says some are weak, sick, and some sleep. But it’s not always discipline. First Thess. 5:14 says “help the weak.” So this person has lost spiritual vitality. He is down and has come to the place where he realizes he needs spiritual help and counsel.
That’s where the elders come in. The elders are shepherds responsible to help the sheep, right? But notice, this fellow calls the elders and they come and do several things. They counsel him, they anoint him with oil, and they pray for him. This is so much like Jesus praying for Peter in Luke 22:31-32 – “I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail!”
Here’s how this should work. If you are spiritually down and you’ve come to the end of your spiritual tether, you call the elders to come over to help you. They gather round and talk with you about your relationship with God and what your problems are. You confess your need of God and if there is sin or sins in your life, you confess them. All this is done in the name of the Lord. The olive oil is probably medicinal, for soothing. The idea of anointing is to spread or pour oil on wounds, not a ceremonial anointing. The good Samaritan poured oil on the wounds of that poor fellow who had been beaten up by thieves. Let’s not slip on the oil here. This was the first century when they used oil for many things, especially medicinally, and it is only spoken of here in the epistles. We’re not going to get into oiling services.
But once the elders are convinced that this person is sincere and genuine in his repentance, they pray in faith or with greatest confidence that God is going to work in his heart and life. “God will raise up the one who is sick.” The word “sick” here is different from vs. 14. Here it means weary or discouraged.
Their prayer restores energy, hope, courage into the heart of this distraught sheep and the Lord will raise him up to usefulness in his Christian life. And since the elders have counseled him and helped him deal with his sin if sin was involved, and he has confessed his sin, God gives the assurances right here that He is forgiving him!
It isn’t unusual in the body of Christ for someone to ask an elder or a brother or sister for help, counsel, and prayer. It is God’s way and it is wonderful. Someone texted me recently and described their case much like this, “weary and losing spiritual traction.” This is the ministry of the body of Christ to help one another grow and change, to become more like Christ, and to handle life’s surprises in this old world!
James 5:16, Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.
Here in verse 16 James spreads this praying and confessing to one another to the whole body of believers. He doesn’t mean we should confess all our sins publicly. One of the values of small groups is you are given a greater level of spiritual intimacy as week by week you meet together in the Word and pray for one another. You are able to be involved with each other and available to work through struggles together. “Guys, I’m really struggling right now. I’m feeling stressed. I’ve not been getting into the word. Pray for me that I might be spiritually healed.”
Normally we should never confess specific sins to others outside the circle of offense. If I offend someone, I need to go to that person and ask forgiveness, not confess it before the entire church. That’s what Christ said in Matthew 5:23-24, “First go and be reconciled to your brother.” Group confessions or anything like group therapy where everyone sits around dragging out all their ugly sins of their private lives is not what James is encouraging here. Be careful about sharing with everyone all the sordid details of your previous life or your thought life. That is not edifying and has no benefit to the listeners. However, if you have a trusted brother or sister with whom you can bare your soul, share your struggles, concerns without dragging them down – that is a precious blessing!
#5 WHATEVER HAPPENS, GOD IS MORE THAN ABLE TO MEET OUR NEEDS.
James 5:17-18, Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain, and it did not rain on the earth for three years and six months. 18 Then he prayed again, and the sky poured rain and the earth produced its fruit.
Now what is the key word through all of this? Prayer! It is mentioned seven times in the passage. Life’s surprises are designed by God to expose our hearts to ourselves and show us our need for Him. Then we are to draw near to God and seek the Lord in our times of need.
Here’s Elijah, a man just like us, and God answered his prayers. If God answered his prayers, we ought to pray big prayers for one another too! Elijah went up on Mt. Carmel after three and one-half years of drought, got on his knees and prayed seven times when finally that little cloud rose up on the western horizon and God poured on the rain! (1 Kings 18:42-26). James is saying God is able to do far beyond what we can ask or think. This body gathered here this morning is an example of “far beyond what we even thought to ask for.” We sit back and marvel and are so very thankful to God for His amazing ways.
Life is full of surprises. How do you respond to them? You never know what God has just around the corner. But this you can know – God designs every surprise in your life to draw you closer to Him, to walk with Him, to carry on a living faith, to have your eye on God in all of them. You have a loving Savior and Shepherd to whom you should take all our cares and concerns. You have a loving Father who can comfort you in all your afflictions. When something happens you weren’t expecting, speak truth, pray, praise, and get help when needed.