James began his letter, which is in many ways a lecture, by dealing with the problem of trials that all believers encounter. He pointed out the value of trials to encourage his readers to adopt a positive attitude toward these experiences, to endure them, and to view them as God's tools. God uses trials to shape believers into people that will glorify Himself.
What kinds of trials was James talking about? Did he mean troubles such as running out of money, or failing a test in school, or having to stay up all night with a sick child? Yes. The Greek word translated "trials"(peirasmois) means a "proving,"specifically "the trial of a man's fidelity, integrity, virtue, constancy . . . also an enticement to sin, temptation."22Various temptations to depart from the will of God are in view. The context supports this conclusion. Verse 3 restates these trials as "the testing of your faith."James was speaking of the different kinds of trials in which we experience temptation to accompany sinners rather than remaining faithful to the Savior. He was not distinguishing between internal and external temptations.23Trials come from both sources (cf. v. 14). Any trial can constitute a test of our faith, namely, a temptation to cease trusting and obeying God.
Note that James was speaking to Christians: "my brethren."24This title for the readers occurs 15 times in this epistle (cf. 1:16, 19; 2:1, 5, 14; 3:1, 10, 12; 4:11; 5:7, 9, 10, 12, 19).
"Even a superficial reading of James 1:2-18 shows that the author regards his readers as Christians. It may be said that nowhere in the letter--not even in 2:14-26!--does he betray the slightest doubt that those in his audience are truly his brothers or sisters in the Lord. If we do not observe this simple and obvious fact, we may fall into a quagmire of skewed interpretations, just as so many expositors of James have actually done."25
What follows is instruction concerning how Christians should respond when we experience temptation to sin.
James counseled his readers to view the various kinds of trials and tribulations they were encountering in their lives as opportunities for growth. He did not urge them to rejoice that they were undergoing trials. He did not advocate a masochistic attitude that unnaturally rejoices in painful experiences. Rather he commanded them to view their trials as profitable even though unpleasant. Another translation of "all joy"can be "pure joy."The attitude James advocated can take all the bitterness out of even very uncomfortable trials. Regardless of the source of our difficulties--the world, our flesh, or the devil--we can and should be glad as we go through them. The reason follows.
Trials are the means God uses to make Christians the kind of people that bring honor to His name. "Testing"(Gr. dokimion) implies demonstrating the true quality of something when it undergoes a trial. The true nature of gold becomes evident when the refiner heats gold ore over a fire. Similarly the character of God within a Christian that is there because of the Holy Spirit's presence becomes apparent through trials.
These are trials of our "faith"in the sense that our trust in God and obedience to God are being stretched to the limit. Trials can result in endurance, steadfastness, and perseverance (rather than "patience"[AV]). The Greek word translated "endurance"(hypomonen) describes the quality that enables a person to stay on his or her feet when facing a storm.26If we submit to them, they will eventually make us mature (fully developed) and complete (developed in every essential area of our lives). Consequently we should not try to escape from trials but submit to the maturing process with patient endurance. We must learn patience or we will not learn much else.
God will bring every believer who endures trials, rather than running from them, to relative maturity as we persevere in them. James taught that in view of this fact we should rejoice in our trials rather than rebelling against them. They are God's instruments for perfecting us.
"After over a quarter century of ministry, I am convinced that spiritual immaturity is the number one problem in our churches."27
The concept of living by faith that James introduced here for the first time seems to be the theme that unites all the parts of this epistle.28The Christian who not only experienced justification by faith in the past but is presently living by faith (trusting in God and obeying Him) has what James calls a living faith.29
"The root difficulty of the readers lies in a distorted conception of the nature of salvation by faith and its relation to daily life as the proving ground for the development of Christian character."30
1:5 What James just explained is divine wisdom, God's view of life. However the world, which does not have or accept this revealed wisdom, generally fails to appreciate the value of enduring trials. The Christian is apt to take the world's view toward his or her trials rather than God's and try to escape them at any cost.
James used the word "wisdom"(Gr. sophia) in the sense in which the Old Testament wisdom literature used it. There it refers to what God has revealed about His will for human life. Wisdom denotes "a fixed, righteous order to which the wise man submits his life."31The New Testament writers often regarded wisdom as the supreme gift of the Holy Spirit and sometimes identified it with the Holy Spirit.32Consequently the wise Christian is the one who views life in the light of God's revelation (i.e., His written Word).
If we do not understand God's view of life, James urged that we ask God to enable us to understand it. Every Christian lacks this wisdom to some extent.33Wisdom is seeing life realistically from God's perspective. The unwise Christian who repeatedly asks God to open his or her eyes and heart can count on God granting his or her request repeatedly. He will give this wisdom freely and graciously, as often as we need it (cf. Isa. 42:3; Matt. 12:20). This description contrasts God with the double-minded man in verse 8.
We must read this verse in context to understand it correctly. This is not a promise that God will give everyone who asks Him for wisdom a higher IQ. What God promises in this context is the ability to see the importance of enduring trials and persevering in them faithfully.
1:6 In Scripture asking in faith always means one of two things. It means either believing God willdo what He has promised or, if He has not promised, believing that He cando what the person requesting asks (cf. Matt. 8:1-4; Mark 4:35-41).
"James teaches that faith is the essential condition of prayer."34
Lack of confidence in God's faithfulness or power manifests a lack of consistency in the believer's life. James compared the instability that this inconsistency produces to the surf of the sea. Something other than itself drives it. The surf corresponds to the Christian who by not submitting consistently to the will of God is driven by forces outside himself or herself rather than by the Holy Spirit within. The surf (Gr. kludon) may refer to the tops of the waves that the wind blows off (cf. Luke 8:24). The low and high pressure conditions of life tend to blow us around in a similar fashion.
1:7 Such a person's problems are not only subjective, feeling circumstances are directing him or her rather than God, but they will also be objective. He or she really is at the mercy of circumstances and events beyond our control. This type of inconsistent person resists God's work in his or her life. Rather than simply perfecting maturity in the person through his trials, God now also has to discipline (educate) him regarding his attitude toward his trials.
In the context "anything"(v. 7) refers primarily to wisdom (v. 5). If a person is not going to trust God ("ask in faith,"v. 6) he or she will fail to enjoy the confidence that comes from knowing that God is in control of his or her trials. In a larger sense, of course, our failure to trust God can rob us of the confidence that comes when we know that all of what God has revealed is true.
1:8 In this context the "double-minded"man is one who trusts and obeys God part of the time but not consistently. A double-minded person is one who has a divided opinion or allegiance (e.g., Lot; cf. 1 Clem. 11:2).
". . . the man is a walking civil war in which trust and distrust of God wage a continual battle against each other."35
In summary, God will help us take His view of trials, which James explained in verses 3 and 4, if we ask Him to do so in prayer. We can be joyful while experiencing trials that constitute temptations to depart from God's will. We can do so because we know that if we remain faithful to God He will use these trials to produce what is glorifying for Him and what is good for us.
James had been urging his readers to adopt God's view of their trials. Now he broadened their perspective and encouraged them to adopt His viewpoint on all their present circumstances.
1:9 Materially poor believers should derive joy from focusing their thinking on their spiritual riches.
1:10 Likewise the materially rich should remember that riches are temporary and that one's real condition before God is a very humble one. Grass everywhere is not very hardy, but in some parts of Palestine it only stays green a few weeks. The term "flowering grass"evidently goes back to Isaiah 40:6-8. It is a combination of two thoughts, namely, that the grass withers and the flower fades. In Hebrew, mixing metaphors was a way of enriching the thought.36
The commentators differ in their understanding of who the rich people were to whom James referred. Many believe they were believers in view of James' parallel statement in verse 9. They take the verb kauchaomai("glory"or "take pride in") in verse 9 as the verb for verse 10 also. Likewise the subject "brother"in verse 9 seems to be the subject of verse 10.37Other interpreters believe that the context points to the rich being unsaved.38I think the evidence favors the view that they were Christians, probably Jewish Christians (cf. 5:1-6). In either case the meaning is clear: riches are worthless in the face of death and judgment (cf. 1 Tim. 6:9-10, 17-19).
"There is no higher honor than to be the object of God's gracious and loving concern."39
1:11 The flower of the grass refers to its stage of green, lush growth when it is at the peak of its vitality. Soon it withers and turns brown in the Middle East (cf. Matt. 6:30). Likewise the rich man may fade quickly (cf. 4:13).
"Speaking of his friend, a poor Christian, a wealthy unbeliever remarked, When I die, I shall leave my riches. When he dies he will go to his.'"40
Our trials as well as our triumphs on the earth are only temporary. This fact should help us endure our trials and not become self-confident in our triumphs.
"James seems to be indicating that trials erase any superficial distinctions that may be thought to separate the rich brother from the poor one."41
This introduction to the book (vv. 2-11) is in balance with the conclusion (5:7-20). Both sections talk about the need for patience (1:2-4; 5:7-12) and prayer (1:5-8; 5:13-18), and both end with an emphasis on all the contrasting circumstances of life (1:9-11; 5:19-20).42
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