Our text is James 4:13-17 but it is important to remember the context in which we find these words. We should remember to keep our text in the context of James 4:7-10 which says, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.”
In these verses James gave us 10 commands which are to be obeyed by believers: submit to God, resist the devil, draw near to God, cleanse your hands, purify your hearts, be wretched, mourn, weep, turn, and humble ourselves before the LORD. When these things are done the believer receives grace and they are exalted by the LORD. (6,10)
After James gives these commands he gives a few practical ways that these things can be applied to our lives. Last week we saw that if we are submitting and humbling ourselves before the LORD we will not be judging our neighbor or exalting ourselves above God’s Word. A Christian who does these things is not putting themselves in a position to receive God’s grace and to be exalted by the LORD. On the contrary, they are being prideful and will encounter God’s resistance- God resists the proud and arrogant. (6)
We now come to James 4:13-17 where James gives a second practical application to consider. James says, “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’— yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.” As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”
James begins with these words, “Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit’…”.
Imagine for a moment what it might be like to try to reason with the type of person who is described in our text. This would be difficult to do because these people have made their plans and they are ready to start their journey.
When James speak to those who are saying these things he is referring to people whose minds are made up, their plans are in motion, their committed to this, they’re excited and they don’t want to be around the nay sayer’s, and they are not planning to look back once this journey begins. The people who would say these things are those who are willing to argue and defend the choice that has been made. If asked, they could lay out their thought process and justify their motives and intentions. They could give a well thought out and systematic discourse regarding the things their doing. They are so confident in these things they have begun to boast about the opportunity that is in front of them and they are convinced that nothing could possibly go wrong.
These people probably even have business partners who are encouraging them in these things and they are constantly telling them about all the good things they can expect. Illustration: I had a best friend who lived in Denver, Co. and he convinced Mindy and I that we should move there because the possibilities were endless. He coached us and cheered us on and we moved from Wisconsin to Colorado. We lasted six months there and we concluded that we did not take into account that my friend was a successful salesman.
Illustration. The people in our text are 100 percent committed to what they are doing. They are not like my son who one day handed me a bill for a semesters worth of on-line college courses. When did this I knew this was my opportunity to talk with him about these things. I told him that from my vantage point he did not look like he was excited or that he was confident in his decision.
Without saying much more than this Ian quickly confessed that his heart was not really in this decision but that he felt like this is what everyone expected him to do. After we talked Ian decided to cancel his plans. That night I did not have to work hard to convince Ian of anything.
I did not have to arrest his attention with strong bold words.
I did not have to plan an intervention for him.
I did not have to spend a lot of time forming arguments and counter-arguments with him.
I did not have to plead with him passionately to persuade him.
This, however, is not what we will see happening in our text. The people in our text have thought long and hard about these things and they’ve formulated their plan. They have been careful to surround themselves with people who will support their decision. They have set a date and it was fast approaching. They were ready to depart and go to another place where they would start a new life and they are confident they would have great success.
Because of these things James uses a rare expression to get their attention. He says, ‘come now’. This is an imperative verb so it carries with it the weight of a command. This phrase is only in the bible two times and both are in this section of the book of James. He uses it here in our text and also in James 5:1- “Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you.”
I remember one time when my dad used a similar expression when I had done something that he did not approve of. In that moment he grabbed my arm and said, “Hey, come on now stop that!” That moment made a lasting impression on me. This is what Pastor James is doing as he says these words.
I found it helpful to consider what some commentators have said about the meaning of these words.
Benson Commentary- “These words are calculated to excite the hearers attention.” James uses these words to arouse and make a person responsive to God and His Word. The bible is filled with many of these expressions: wake up, hear, listen, give attention, behold, etc.
Matthew Henry- “These words are a call for someone to consider that their thinking and conduct and conclude that it is wrong.” Let me ask a few questions,
Does the sin that James speaks of in our text seem all that bad to you?
Does this sin seem wrong and that we avoid it at all costs?
Or is this just James getting up on his own personal soap box?
In verses 16-17 we discover that James addresses this for three reasons: these plans are arrogant, they are engaging in evil boasting, and it is sinful!
Matthew Poole’s Commentary- “This is a command to inferiors. It is an admonition to such as are stupid (foolish) or rash, and tends to the awakening of their attention and stirring them up to the consideration of their duty and the danger that they are currently heading towards.”
Question: Do we see the danger of the sin that James is addressing in our text today?
Observation: This is dangerous because if we don’t address this sin it will lead to more sinfulness as we see in James 5:1-6.
Example: David did not address his lust and it led to adultery. David did not repent but tried to conceal his sin and it led to murder. David continued to hide these sins until the LORD sent Nathan to confront his sin. Praise the LORD, David repented! God can forgive the first sin and all the sins that come after it if we will obey James 4:7-10 and James 5:1.
Example: Romans 6:18- “For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.”
Gill’s Exposition- “The words, “Come now” contain a solemn and grave address to persons, who either think within themselves, or vocally express, words and intentions such as these.”
Question: Do we feel like James is giving us a solemn and grave address that confronts how we think or how we speak?
James gives us this warning but so did Jesus! In Luke 12:16-21 Jesus teaches the parable of the rich young fool, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ But God said to Him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich towards God.”
When James says, ‘Come now…’, he is attempting to take a hold, guide, and lead these people. These words are often associated with how someone leads an animal by the hand to a particular destination.
I found it helpful to consider James 5:19-20 and see that James is an example for us of what it says, “My brothers, if anyone among you wander from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” James addresses people who are wandering from the truth and he is taking action to bring them back.
Application: The Holy Spirit will use godly pastors, godly family members, and godly church members to do this. Therefore, beware of the Devil, and the sway of this evil generation, and the sin our own hearts which tries to keep us from being close to such people. (James 4:7; Hebrews 3:13) Submitting and humbling ourselves before the LORD is often evidenced by the fact that we choose to be connected, accountable, and make it a priority to be around God’s people in the church through church membership. If we do not do this we are heading towards danger. (Ephesians 5:18-21)
Proverbs 1 gives us a good illustration of what James is attempting to do in our text. In Proverbs 1:8 we see a son being admonished to hear his father’s instruction and to listen to his mothers teaching. This instruction needs to be heard and not forsaken by the child because he lives in a sinful world where there are many sinners, faithless people, and greedy individuals who will invite him to join with them in their pursuits with the promise of great wealth and gain. (1:8-19)
Let us read Proverbs 1:20-23 and notice that wisdom is saying something like, ‘Come now’ to get the peoples attention because everyone is busy with their plans. As they do this God and His Word is forgotten and neglected just like we see in our text in James.
We read, “Wisdom cries aloud in the street, in the markets she raises her voice; at the head of the noisy streets she cries out; at the entrance of the city gates she speaks…”. In the midst of the business and distractions Wisdom pleads with the people and asks, “How long, O simple ones, will you love being simple? How long will scoffers delight in their scoffing and fools hate knowledge?”
The people that James is speaking to in James 4:13 might answer these questions by saying, “We will listen to you at the end of next year when our business is done in that city after we have made our large profit.” There are three things that might happen to us when we say these things.
First, we may go off and do our plans and become angry at God.
Second, we may repent.
Third, we may go off and do our own thing and make our profit and maybe even more. But then we still don’t repent; rather, we become even more faithless and sinful. (James 5:1-6)
We read in Proverbs 1:23, “If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.” In Proverbs 1:24 we read these words which give us an illustration of James is doing in our text, “Because I have called and you refused to listen, have stretched out my hand and no one has heeded…”. Wisdom is speaking and stretching forth His hand to rescue people. This is how the Holy Spirit is using James in our text today.
As we continue to read in Proverbs 1:25-27 we discover how so many people respond to these things. They do not turn. No, they ignore Wisdom and have nothing to do with God’s counsel. We read, “...because you have ignored all my counsel and would have none of my reproof I will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when terror strikes you, when terror strikes you like a storm and your calamity comes like a whirlwind, when distress and anguish come upon you.”
If there were 10 people who had made their plans, booked their travel arrangements, signed a lease in another city, and started a business in another city, how many of them would listen to James’ counsel and change their plans at his reproof? Probably very few. Unfortunately, so many people do not do this. So many people make decisions without seeking God’s wisdom through the Word and prayer. Instead they rely on their own wisdom and feelings to make these decisions.
The warning continues in Proverbs 1:28-33, When this terror and calamity comes we are told, “They will call upon me, but I will not answer; they will seek me diligently but will not find me. Because they hated knowledge and did not choose the fear of the LORD, would have none of my counsel and despised all my reproof, therefore they shall eat the fruit of their way, and have their fill of their own devices. For the simple are killed by their turning away, and the complacency of fools destroys them; but whoever listens to me will dwell secure and will be at ease, without dread of disaster.”
In James 4:14 James gives them a couple facts about the future that should be considered. First, James says, “You do not know what tomorrow will bring.” James speaks of this in the indicative mood which means this is a fact.
These people would do well to go the scriptures and consider Proverbs 1 or the life of people like Naomi in the book of Ruth. During a time of famine her whole family left Israel and sojourned in Moab looking for a better life. While they were there, however, Naomi’s husband and two sons died. They could not have known that these terrible things would happen to them. When she returns home to Bethlehem she says these words, “Do not call me Naomi (which means pleasant); call me Mara (which means bitter), for the Almighty has dealt bitterly with me. I went away full, and the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi, when the LORD has testified against me and the Almighty has brought calamity upon me.” (Ruth 1:19-21)
The second fact that James gives them to consider is when he asks, “What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes.” This is an unarguable fact. In the bible our lives are described in several ways. For example,
All flesh is like grass and like the flower of the field. In the morning these things show up and then throughout the day they are dried out by the sun and by evening they are gone. (Psalm 103:15-16)
In Psalm 78:39 we see our lives are even shorter than the grass or a flower. It is like a wind that passes away and does not come back again.
Finally, James likens our life to something even shorter than the wind. It is like a vapor that is visible for a very short time and then it disappears. (James 4:14) When James speaks of how our life ‘vanishes’ he speaks of it in the passive voice. Our lives are passing away and this is outside of our control. James also puts this in the present tense which means it is happening even now. It is often said that so and so had a good long life. We should say that they had a good short life.
Because of these realities, instead of saying, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit”, we ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”
When James puts forward these facts he assumes that no one in their right mind would argue with him on these points.
One would think that it is an undeniable truth that we do not know what the future will bring us. We all have countless examples from our own lives that prove with out a doubt that we do not know what tomorrow will bring.
It is also an undeniable truth that our life is like a mist that vanishes away before our very eyes. There have been countless generations of people who have lived and died. Among mortal men there has not been one exception to this rule. And yet, I have known people who actually profess that they will be the exception to this rule.
What would cause people to deny these obvious facts? James gives us several answers to this question in the last two verses of our text. (16-17) James says, “As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.”
This arrogant boasting is empty and full of vanity. This evil boasting reveals that we are trusting in our own power and resources while we show that we despise God’s Word. This arrogant boasting reveals an impious and empty presumption which trusts in temporal things which are fading away right before our eyes while we neglect the eternal the eternal realities which will remain. Therefore, James believes these things revealed an arrogant, evil, and sinful condition.
Applications:
There is someone in this church who daily spends time with the LORD and does not get up from his devotion time until the LORD gives him his agenda for the day. Once he gets up and leaves that agenda becomes his priority and he sets out to accomplish those things by faith through grace. This is not what the people are doing that James confronts in our text today. This week spend some time each day asking the LORD what He would like you to accomplish by grace through faith. These things become the priority and all other things can go undone. (Matthew 6:33)
When I consider what this man does each day I know that one of the things that keeps me from doing that is I wonder if God will show me in His Word and in prayer the wisdom that I need to do. Perhaps this is why we should remember James 1:5-8. “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.” And Proverbs 1:23, “If you turn at my reproof, behold, I will pour out my spirit to you; I will make my words known to you.”
This week I have considered how there is always a temptation for a Christian to change jobs, change churches, change marriages, change cities to escape some test or trial. We do this when we convince ourselves that there is the promise of something better for us if we make this change. It is in these times when we really need to submit to God and humble ourselves before Him. It is in these times when we need to pray for wisdom (1:5-8) and seek God’s word to receive grace and His exaltation. The LORD may not want us to escape these trials so that He can display His grace and power in a dark and unbelieving world.
Recently, I watched a man on television who was like those that James confronted today. He seemed like a nice man who attempted to do something that may have provided a huge pay off for himself. However, when things did not go his way he cried and screamed up to heaven saying, “I am so mad at you!” When I witnessed this my heart ached. When our idols are taken from us our hearts will rage against the LORD and we will blame Him instead of admitting that this has happened because of our pride, arrogance and sin. (Proverbs 19:3) This man needed to repent and if he would do this he would have been forgiven.
You and I have a tendency to plan our lives out but it is utter foolishness and folly if we do not consider eternity and where we will spend eternity. Apart from Christ there will be an eternity of weeping, wailing, and misery. Do we live today in light of our need for a Savior. And if we are saved do we then live as servants of Christ who has exalted us and given us such grace.
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