Sermons

James: A Letter from Jesus’ Brother
Wisdom -- James 1:5-8

Let’s turn to Joshua 9.  If you need a Bible, go ahead and raise your hand and we’ll bring a Bible to you.  Joshua 9 is on page 185 in the Bibles we’re passing out.

Joshua was leading the people of Israel into the Promised Land.  And because of the wickedness of the people who lived there, God told Joshua that they all needed to be killed.  But within the Promised Land there was a people called the Gibeonites – a terribly wicked people. 

They had heard what Joshua and Israel had done in destroying Jericho, and they didn’t want to be destroyed, so they came up with a plan.  They dressed up some of their men in terribly worn out sandals and robes, and gave them bread that looked really old, so it looked like they had traveled for hundreds of miles.

Then when these men met up with Joshua they would lie to him.  They would tell him they were from a nation far outside the border of the Promised Land.  They would show him their crumbly bread and worn-out clothes, and invite him to eat and enter into a covenant of peace with them.  And their hope was that since Joshua would think they were from outside the orders of the Promised Land – he’d make a treaty with them.

And Joshua fell for it.  Joshua was completely deceived, and sat down with them, ate some of their food, and made a peace-treaty with them.  And the result was that for the rest of Israel’s history in the Promised Land, the Gibeonites were a problem.

But surely we can’t blame Joshua can we?  I mean, they deceived him and lied to him.  How could he have known?  What else could Joshua have done?  Joshua could have known.  There was something else Joshua could have done.

In v.9 we read what Joshua could have done --  

So the men took some of their [the Gibeonites’] provisions, but did not ask counsel from the LORD.

They “did not ask counsel from the LORD.”  Joshua never asked God for wisdom.  Joshua trusted his own ability to discern, his own ability to decide – and did not stop to ask God for wisdom.  God knew exactly what the Gibeonites were doing.  And if Joshua would have asked, God would have given him the wisdom he needed about the Gibeonites.  But because Joshua did not ask, God did not give it to him.

I’m praying that after this morning, none of us will ever do what Joshua did.  I’m praying that from this morning on, we will take all of our major decisions to Jesus and ask Him for wisdom.  To see why we should do this, let’s turn to James 1 – which is on page 1011 in the Bibles we passed out. 

We are studying the letter James wrote to followers of Jesus.  We saw last week that James was Jesus’ brother, who had scoffed at Jesus during his earthly ministry, but had Jesus personally appear to him after his resurrection.  As a result James owned up to his pride and unbelief and received Jesus as His Savior and Lord and Treasure.  James became a major leader of the church in Jerusalem, and ended up being stoned to death because he would not renounce Jesus.

But here in this letter he writes encouragement to followers of Jesus who were suffering because they had to flee persecution in Jerusalem, leaving behind property, businesses, homes, possessions.

In the first paragraph, vv.2-4, James encourages them to see all their trials as pure joy, because through them God will refine their faith, and give them the steadfastness they need to enter heaven.  Then look at what James says in vv.5-8 --

5              If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

6              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.

7              For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;

8              he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

So let’s start with this question: what should we do when we lack wisdom?  It’s clear from v.5 that there will be many times when followers of Jesus lack wisdom.  The moment you become a follower of Jesus, you don’t automatically receive all the wisdom you need.  There will be many, many times when we face a situation and don’t know what to do.

Maybe someone in our home group is struggling spiritually – and we don’t know what to do.  Or there’s a missions trip to Morocco coming up, and we don’t know if we should go.  Or a family asks if your son can do a sleepover, and you aren’t sure what to do.  Or you’d love to see the gospel advance in your neighborhood, and you’re not sure where to start.  Or you’ve thought about changing careers, and you don’t know if you should.

So we all face decisions where we lack wisdom, and aren’t sure what to do.  So what should we do when we lack wisdom?  Read v.5 again --

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God.

That’s what we should do.  We should ask God for wisdom. 

Now think of the things we often do instead of asking God.  We make a long list of pros and cons.  We ask friends to see what they would do.  We go to Barnes and Noble to see if there’s a book on the topic.  We log on to “Ask Jeeves.”

Now the point isn’t that those things are bad.  But by themselves, none of those will bring us God’s wisdom.  The one thing that brings us God’s wisdom is that we ask God.  Not just ask him in passing.  But really ask: stop what we are doing, clear our desks, sit down and earnestly and fervently ask God for wisdom.

But why?  Why should we ask God?  Look at v.5 again –

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

The reason we should ask God for wisdom is because, if we do so, God will give us wisdom.  That’s what James says: “It will be given him.”  When you lack wisdom, if you will ask God, then He will give you the wisdom you need.

And James says that God will give wisdom generously.  God won’t be stingy in giving wisdom.  He won’t just give you a little of the wisdom you need.  He will generously give you all the wisdom you need.

Now you might be thinking – how is that possible?  I’ve rebelled against God.  I’ve sinned against Him.  How can He generously give me wisdom?  And the answer is because you are trusting Jesus, and Jesus paid for your sins on the Cross.  The reason God will generously give you wisdom is not because you’ve been good enough to make up for your sin; it’s because you’re trusting Jesus whose death paid for all your sin.

And James also says that God will give wisdom without reproach.  He never says “Why don’t you figure these things out on your own?”  When you sit down and ask God for wisdom, He always says “I’m glad you came.  You are doing the right thing in asking me.  I’ll give you all the wisdom you need.  Come again.”

So picture it like this.  Let’s say that this Bible symbolizes all the wisdom I need for every decision I ever have to make.  Because of Jesus, if I’m trusting Him, then it’s always right there.

So let’s say I need to decide about switching careers.  So here’s God’s wisdom – all the wisdom I need to decide about switching careers; there for the asking.  But instead of asking, I’m stressing.  I’m making a long list of pros and cons.  I’m calling friends to ask for their counsel.  I’m snapping at my wife.  I’m trying to figure out what feels best to me.  So what’s wrong with this picture? 

What’s wrong is that God’s wisdom has been there all along – but I have not asked for it.  Because of Jesus, if I will just ask God – then He will always give me all the wisdom I need for every question I have.

So that’s why we should ask God -- because God will always generously and joyfully give us all the wisdom we need.

So how does God give wisdom to us?  James doesn’t tell us here – but it’s clear from the rest of God’s Word that there are four main ways that God gives us wisdom.

First and most important – God gives us wisdom through His Word – the Bible.  The Bible is a clear and perfect source of wisdom.  Dozens and dozens of our questions are clearly answered in this book.  And if we will pray and ask God – He will give us wisdom from His book.  And the wisdom God gives in His Word trumps all other wisdom, because this is the only source of perfect wisdom and truth we have on the earth.

Second, God gives us wisdom through other wise men and women.  This is taught in Proverbs 15:22 – “without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.”  So if you are facing a tough decision, or puzzled about a situation, when you ask God to give you wisdom, He might choose to give it to you through other godly men and women.  So you could go to your home group and ask them for counsel; maybe have your whole home group seek God with you about whatever decision you are facing.

Third, God gives us wisdom through our thinking.  Here’s what Paul says in 1Cor 14:20 – “Brothers, do not be children in your thinking.  Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.”  God has given us minds, which shows that he wants us to think.  We don’t start with thinking; we start by asking – asking God.  And then we think deeply about our situation, about what God’s Word teaches, about what counsel we’ve received from others. 

Fourth, God gives us wisdom through supernatural revelation.  There are times when because you have prayed and asked God for wisdom, God brings thoughts into your mind, or a strong sense of peace, or gives you dreams or visions, that bring you exactly the wisdom you need.

Now this should be weighed in light of Scripture, and shared with some trusted brothers and sisters to get confirmation.  But it’s clear from God’s Word that God will often give us wisdom through supernatural revelation.  And often God will give others supernatural revelation for you – that’s why it’s powerful in our home groups to pray together and ask God for wisdom about each other’s questions – because often God will speak something to someone else that’s exactly what you need to hear.

So if you are facing a decision, you should set everything aside and ask God.  Ask Him earnestly and fervently.  Then read God’s Word, maybe asking people in your home group if they know of helpful Scriptures.  And ask others for counsel, to get their wisdom.  And do some hard thinking, writing, pros and cons, journaling.  And take time to wait on the Lord, asking Him to speak to you. 

As you do all these things prayerfully – you will, in time, have a sense of what the Lord wants you to do.

But at this point James knows he’s got to add one more truth.  Because if we are going to receive God’s wisdom, we’ve got to ask in the right way.  If we ask in the right way – we will receive the wisdom; if we ask in the wrong way – we won’t.  So what’s the right way to ask for wisdom?

James tells us in vv.6-8 –

6              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.

7              For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord;

8              he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

So to receive God’s wisdom, we must ask in faith.  If we have any doubting, then we will not receive any wisdom from the Lord.

So what does this doubt look like?  Let’s say you are asking God for wisdom about buying a boat.  So what would it look like to ask with doubting?  It might mean doubting that God will give you wisdom – maybe because you are seeing your own sin, and you’re doubting that Jesus’ death was enough to forgive you.  Maybe you are clinging to your desire for that boat, so you fear that God’s wisdom might not let you buy the boat.

But if we are doubting, then like James says in vv.7-8, we are moving back and forth between trusting and not-trusting God; that dishonors God, and we won’t receive anything.

So what would it mean to ask in faith?  It means you are confident that God has all the wisdom you need, you know that because of Jesus’ death and your trust in Him He will give you all the wisdom you need, and that whether He calls you buy the boat or not – He will completely satisfy you with Himself.  When you ask in faith – you are full of peace and rest.

So what should we do if we’ve got these doubts?  We need to do something.  So what should we do?  Ask Jesus for help.  Pray the prayer of the man with the demonized son in Mark 9:24 – “I believe; help my unbelief.”  Then, confess your doubts and unbelief, trusting that because of Jesus you will be completely forgiven.  And then finally, set your heart on God’s goodness and power and mercy until you see and feel that not only will He give you all the wisdom you need – but that whatever He tells you t do – He Himself will satisfy your heart more than anything else.

As a result doubt will fade, and faith will rise – and we will receive wisdom from God.

Questions?

So what should we do?

Four things.  First, understand that following Jesus means you will always have all the wisdom you need for every decision you face.

Two, bring every need for wisdom to Him in prayer.

Three, take time in your home groups to bring each other’s needs for wisdom to Jesus.

Four, talk to people about how, because of Jesus, you are promised all the wisdom you will ever need.  This could be a powerful way to share the gospel with someone in your neighborhood or at work.