God’S Good Gifts
GOD’S GOOD GIFTS
JAMES 1:9-18
What do you value most in life?
We are always tempted to use a wrong set of values. It is natural for us to think of wealth as important and there are few people who do not make a serious effort to gain many of this world’s goods. James reminds us that riches will fail (1:11), and he goes so far as to say that it is “the lowly brother” [believers in humble circumstances] who should “boast in his exaltation” (1:9). When a poor person receives the gospel, they become rich in the things that really matter. They are exalted, and although they lack earthly wealth, they may well rejoice. Likewise a rich person who becomes a Christian has matter for rejoicing, but this time in their “humiliation.” Like the poor person’s exaltation, this refers to a spiritual condition. It is not that the rich person loses any of their wealth (though it is possible that their becoming a Christian will mean the loss of certain sources of gain). Rather, they have learned the true place of riches (and the place of true riches) and no longer think of themselves in the same way. They have learned real humility and lowliness.
A similar lesson lies behind James’ next section (1:12-15). He advises his readers to consider times of testing in the right way. It is a blessed thing, not a disaster, to undergo testing. Those who enjoy this experience are also learning a sense of values. To survive testing is the way to “the crown of life” (1:12). This includes an understanding of the meaning of temptation, namely, that it does not come from God, but from a person’s own desire. And the end result of giving way to it is death (1:15).
So both poverty and a right attitude to wealth are gifts of God. So, too, in another way, are trials. God never sends temptations, but he uses them for the building up of his people. James goes on to notice that every good gift really comes from God. Our attention may be fixed on some intermediary through whom the gift comes, but it is God who is the author. And he is not subject to change. So whether what comes to us seems pleasant or the reverse we can take it as from the hand of a God who never stops giving good gifts to his children.