James 4:13-17

James chapter 4, verse 13. We're picking right up where we left off last week.

James 4:13

As I prepared for the sermon this week, a song came to mind, a song that I listened to a lot in high school.

In 1978, Billy Joel, the piano man, published one of his famous songs called My Life.

So you can already hear the teenage angst.

This song came to mind because it's a song in which the narrator is obsessed with himself.

It's his life, and he will live it however he wants.

Just a few lyrics from this song.

He says, you can speak your mind, but not on my time.

He says, they will tell you you can't sleep alone in a strange place,

and they'll tell you you can't sleep with somebody else.

Oh, but sooner or later, you'll sleep in your own space.

Either way, it's okay.

You wake up with yourself.

And the chorus of the song is this.

I don't need you to worry for me because I'm all right.

I don't want you to tell me it's time to come home.

I don't care what you say anymore.

This is my life.

Go ahead with your own life.

Leave me alone.

So this song relates to our text in that here we have a singer who is describing his hatred for any kind of authority whatsoever.

He never mentions God, parents, government, elders, or anything like that,

but it's clear he wants to be free of any and all authority,

to just do what he wants to do to live his life.

And I doubt this song is super widely known today,

but the spirit of this song, right,

the message, the teaching of this song is all pervasive.

It's everywhere.

In fact, Billy Joel didn't come up with this idea, right?

It's just him describing any other sinner's heart.

Frank Sinatra had a song as well called My Life or My Way in which he basically said more or less the same thing.

He says, I don't care how any of you feel, I did it my way.

A more current song that embodies these values,

these values of self-love, self-autonomy, self-sufficiency,

which you should really not listen to,

is DNA by Kendrick Lamar.

And I only know about that from when I was younger and caught up in things of the world.

But let's just say it's so bad I wouldn't even dare quote it here.

But the point is there is a whole host of songs from generation to generation that teach this lesson.

More songs than we could possibly cover today if we wanted to.

And they all teach this.

You are the God of your life.

Now go out and take what you want, when you want it, and how you want it,

and give no regard to everybody else because they're just in your way.

So this is what we will see in our text today.

James is addressing believers in this text who are caught up in this worldly thinking.

Believers who forget that they serve a sovereign Lord

who demands their total devotion in singular worship.

And we're going to see James' prescription for this problem,

which on the surface seems simple,

but I think he's making a much more pervasive comment

on what the Christian life ought to look like.

So let's read our text together, picking up in verse 13, chapter 4 of James.

James writes,

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.

And he just stops and he says,

Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring.

What is your life?

For you are a mist that appears for 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.

So I want to start by just noting five assumptions of these men

that James addresses in verse 13.

Five assumptions of these men.

So again, they say,

Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town

and spend a year there and trade and make a profit.

So the first assumption is that these men assume when they will go.

They assume today or tomorrow we will go.

So try to think with me of all the reasons why that might not work out.

Maybe the horses escape.

Maybe the roads are bandit infested.

Maybe the weather would not permit them.

If you played the computer game Oregon Trail,

maybe dysentery strikes and wins again.

Then the very fact that they say today or tomorrow

suggests they don't even really know when they will try to leave.

So this is James' way of mocking them.

You don't even know.

And you know that you don't know.

The second assumption is that these men assume where they will go.

They assume they will go into such and such a town.

They have a plan.

They have a charted course.

They desire to go from point A to point B.

What's to stop them?

And again, think of the possibilities with me.

Maybe they get lost on the road.

Maybe they get kidnapped on the road.

I think of Joseph who never intended to go to Egypt,

and yet that's where he ended up.

Or Jonah who gets dragged by a great fish

to the very last place he wanted to go, Nineveh.

Maybe they turn back due to weariness or their desires change.

Okay, so the third assumption is that these men assume

how long they will remain in that city, right?

They assume they will spend a year there.

And you might think, well, surely they're in control

of where they'll stay, right, for how long.

Once they're there, surely they can guarantee that.

What's to move them?

But again, let's put on our thinking caps.

Maybe a natural disaster forces them to move on.

Maybe they hate it in that city, right?

They thought they'd love it, but they get there.

Ah, I don't like this. Let's go.

Maybe their wives want them home early.

Sorry, boys.

Right?

And the fourth assumption is that these men assume

what they will do.

They assume they will trade.

So this is maybe a little easier for us all

to imagine the innumerable possibilities

to why they might not be able to trade.

Right?

Maybe someone else is already trading the same goods

for a far better price.

So the competition's too great.

They're just not going to cut it.

Maybe the political climate is not tolerant

towards their business or their ethnicity or whatever.

Right?

Maybe there's some sort of prejudice

that's keeping them from trading

in that particular city.

And the fifth assumption

is that they will assume what the outcome will be.

They assume we will profit.

So one final time, let's consider some possibilities.

Maybe the economy crashes.

Maybe wars break out.

Maybe something crazy and unimaginable happens

like taxes getting hiked excessively

to stop cow farting.

Right?

And those taxes bury whatever profit they had.

And now perhaps me saying maybe so much

is getting annoying and old,

but it is by design.

I want you all to feel the depth

and the width and the breadth

of the absurd presumptions

on the part of these men.

I want you all to hear and feel that.

And I'm confident

we could spend the rest of today

thinking of the innumerable variables

that could change their plans.

So many unknowns,

so much fickleness,

and so much frailty.

So these men lack

any sense of reality.

They speak as though they are all-knowing,

as if they are all-powerful

and can make what happened, happen.

Whatever they want to happen.

In other words,

they talk as if they are sovereign.

It's my life.

I'll do it my way.

It's in my DNA.

So now you know what inspired those three songs.

But there are two realities

which James gives us

that should humble these men.

Two realities that should humble

these men.

And they're found in verse 14.

James writes that,

You do not know

what tomorrow will bring.

What is your life?

For you are a mist

that appears for a little while

and then vanishes.

So the first reality

that should humble these men

is that humans are not all-knowing.

This idea was at the heart

of our text last week,

so I'll be brief here.

But as shown in verse 13,

James is now explicitly stating

with the authority of God

that we do not know

what tomorrow will bring.

We are not God

that we should know

or could know these things.

We are not prophets or apostles

with a divine insight of any kind

so as to speak with authority

on what tomorrow will bring.

And even the smartest people

among us

in fields like

meteorology,

economics,

or politics

have a lifetime record

of being wrong.

They predict things

and they're wrong.

And again,

if you want a fuller

biblical teaching

on this idea,

go ahead and check out

last week's.

But in one sentence,

we are not all-knowing

and that should humble us.

Okay?

The second reality

that should humble these men

is that life is fleeting.

So the first reality,

we are not all-knowing.

The second reality

is that life is fleeting.

I'm fairly confident

that this text of scripture

inspired one of

William Shakespeare's

famous lines from Macbeth,

although it has a nihilistic twist

to his character.

But Macbeth says,

tomorrow and tomorrow

and tomorrow

creeps in this petty pace

from day to day

to the last syllable

of recorded time.

All our yesterdays

have lighted fools

the way to dusty death.

So he's reflecting

that everybody will die.

And then he says,

out, out, brief candle.

Life's but a walking shadow,

a poor player

that struts and frets

his hour upon the stage

and then is heard no more.

So you can see

he's reflecting

on the ignorance of man

and their foolish pursuits

in the light of the fact

that they all die.

At some point,

in some way,

in every case,

everyone dies.

So whereas Shakespeare

thinks of life

as a fleeting candle

that's snuffed

in a moment,

James compares it

to a mist

that appears

for a little while

and then vanishes.

Dr. John MacArthur

draws this picture

out for us well

in his commentary.

He says,

life is as transitory

as a puff of smoke

from a fire,

the steam that rises

from a cup of coffee

or one's breath,

briefly visible

to plan and live it out

without consideration

of God's will.

Or better,

consider the words

of the psalmist

in Psalm 78,

Psalms 78:39

verse 39.

He writes,

thus he remembered

that they were but flesh,

that they were but human.

A wind that passes

and does not return.

And so think of that,

a wind that's passed you by.

How long does that last?

Not very long.

In fact,

the Bible never talks

about life being long,

but it always expresses

how quick it is,

how fleeting it is,

how it's over

in a moment.

And every moment we live

is a moment

closer to this

sudden conclusion.

And sadly,

we're all too familiar

with this reality,

so I won't belabor

on this point longer,

but I do want to ask,

why would James cite

this specifically?

Why would knowing

we're going to die

change the way

we use our time

and make our plans

and live our lives?

What is James

implying here?

And I think it's easy

to assume that James

has judgment in mind.

He's reminding

his Jewish Christian audience

that when they die,

they will be judged

by God

for the way

they live their life.

Luke 12,

16 through 20

records Jesus' parable

that he gave

in response to someone

asking about splitting

his brother's inheritance.

It says,

And he told them

a parable,

saying,

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 grains

and my goods.

And I will say to my soul,

So,

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 while Jesus

is making a point

about the extremely low value

of earthly success

and possessions,

James is making a point

about not living

as practical atheists,

as if we aren't called

to live for God

and his will.

But for both,

the undergirding argument

is that you will be judged

by God

with condemnation

if this is the way

of your life.

Okay,

so our first application

is another

implicit call

to humility.

And on the one hand,

I hate using

this application

again,

because,

you know,

I want my sermons

to be fly

and on the top 100

billboard

if such a thing exists.

But this is the,

on the much larger hand,

though,

I want to be faithful

to the text,

faithful to what James

is saying.

And he's hitting this point

again and again

to be humble.

And I think it speaks

so much to how arrogant

we really can be.

And if you're sitting there

thinking,

well,

this isn't really me,

like,

I've got that one down.

This is probably for you.

Okay?

And that's why James

says it over and over

and over again

or implies it over

and over and over again.

So why should we be humble?

Well,

there are plenty of reasons.

The two reasons

in this text,

as I've already said,

because we are not

all-knowing

and we will die.

We will face

judgment.

So we have to be vigilant.

We have to be on guard

with our hearts

so as to not

give way

to sin.

And in a moment,

I will share more

on what this humility

specifically looks like

in this text.

We'll see it in verse 15.

But I want to skip

that verse for now

and save it

until the end

because I think

in that verse

we're going to find

the main thrust

of this whole thing.

That is where

we will find

the all-pervasive

but subtle comment

of James

which I alluded to

earlier.

So before we get there,

I want to jump

to verse 16

where we will see

the heart

of these sinners

and the heart

of these men.

So James 4, 16,

he says,

As it is,

you boast

in your arrogance.

All such boasting

is evil.

So James makes it clear

what is going on

in their hearts.

They are arrogant

and they are committing

evil or sin.

They make their plans

without any

acknowledgement of God

because they think

they don't need God.

You might call

their sin

the sin

of self-sufficiency.

I think a large part

of our culture

would tend to view

self-sufficiency

as a virtue.

This idea

that I danced

around with earlier

with the secular music,

being able,

competent,

powerful,

knowledgeable

to do any

and all things

for your own self,

for your own substance,

for your own will.

And I struggle

with this sin

all the time,

personally,

when it's at its worst,

I tend not to pray.

And why would I?

In those moments,

I'm acting as though

I don't need God,

so why would I ask

him for anything?

Which is,

of course,

evil.

And it's the opposite

of humility.

Another consequence

of this slippery slope

of sin

is that it leads

to this false boasting.

It sounds something

like this for all of us.

Hey, everyone,

look at this thing

I built.

Look at this money

I made.

Look at the sermon

I preached.

Look at the homeless man

that I was so kind to.

It's this attitude

of sounding the trumpet

before ourselves

to whether the work

is innately evil

or made evil

by our prideful motive.

It's an invitation

to worship,

but not an invitation

to worship God,

an invitation to worship

me,

myself,

and I.

But to be clear,

there's nothing wrong

with boasting.

Boasting in our arrogance,

boasting in the world,

boasting in things

like that

is evil,

of course,

but we are

called

to boast.

So this is our

second application.

Boast

only

in the Lord.

Jeremiah 9,

23-24 says,

Thus says the Lord,

Let not the wise man

boast in his wisdom,

let not the mighty man

boast in his might,

let not the rich man

boast in his riches,

but let him who boasts

boast in this,

that he understands

and knows me,

that I am the Lord

who practices

steadfast love,

justice,

and righteousness

in the earth.

For in these things

I delight,

declares the Lord.

So like James,

God told Jeremiah

that man should

put off this

self-sufficient attitude

and put on this

humble adoration

of God,

that if we were

to ever boast,

we should boast

only in the Lord,

as Paul summarily

says in 2 Corinthians

10,

17.

And praise God

that he delights

in love,

justice,

and righteousness.

This is why

we have the gospel,

because God

loved us

even while we were

yet sinners

and sent his son

to die for us

in Romans 5, 8.

Because God

justifies the ungodly

which results

in Christ's righteousness

imputed to us.

Paul says in Romans

4, 5,

and to the one

who does not work

but believes in him

who justifies

the ungodly,

his faith

is counted

as righteousness.

So anytime

the Bible

gives us

a verb

or an action

related to salvation,

God is the subject.

In other words,

he does everything

on our behalf

and despite ourselves.

Romans 8, 29-30

outlines

this entire process

of salvation.

And notice,

God is the subject,

the church

is the recipient,

the church

does nothing,

God does everything.

Paul writes,

for those whom

God foreknew,

he also predestined

to be conformed

to the image

of his son

in order that

he might be

the firstborn

among many brothers.

And those whom

God predestined,

he also called.

And those who

he called,

he also justified.

And those who

he justified,

he also glorified.

So this is our God

who does all

these things.

So naturally,

and of course,

we should boast

in him.

What else is there

to boast about?

Every other kind

of boasting

is evil.

So we boast

in the Lord

and the Lord alone.

Now James gives us

a warning

in verse 17

and I have to confess

it seems somewhat

broad and unrelated

at first glance

but I think it connects

in two ways.

So just to discuss

the first one for now,

we have a warning

and I think it's

an implied call

to repentance.

Right?

Verse 17,

he says,

so whoever knows

the right thing

to do

and fails to do it,

for him

it is sin.

So James is saying,

hey, you know

this thing is wrong

so change the way

you live your life.

Repent.

Turn around.

Go the other way.

He's recognizing

that everyone

deep down

knows

they are violating

God's law

and some of you

have heard this

called natural law

or the law

of the conscience.

Whatever you want

to call it,

James is saying,

I know that

even though you live

as if you were

autonomous and

self-sufficient,

that you do in fact

know there is a God

whom you are trying

to run from.

That deep down

you are suppressing

this truth.

So stop pretending.

Right?

So we have another

application from last week

again.

Our third application

is to repent.

If you've been living

lately the way

these assuming men

have from the

beginning of our text,

it's time to wake up.

Right?

To recognize,

I have been living

as though God

were not real.

I have been living

as though I will not

answer to him.

I've been living

as though it's my world

for me to inhabit

the way I want.

Right?

If that's been you,

if that's been your

plans lately,

if that's been your

dreams lately,

that's sin

and you need

to repent.

I love the hymn

entitled

When I Survey

the Wondrous Cross.

It ends with this line,

Love so amazing,

so divine,

demands my soul,

my life,

and my all.

So that's hitting

that wholeness idea

that we've talked about

in the weeks prior

with James,

that we're no longer

here to live for ourselves

as Christ followers,

but we are here

to live for him

and him alone.

And so this leads us

to the all-pervasive

comment that our text

is built around

in verse 15.

And this is the second

way that verse 17

is tied to James'

thoughts here.

So this is the big

sentence of today,

right?

The heart of this text

is that James wants us

to live life

in such a way

that we are constantly

reminded of our

servitude to God.

So I'll restate that.

The heart of this text

is that James wants us

to live life

in such a way

that we are constantly

reminded of our

servitude to God.

So this is the final

section for today,

what the Christian life

ought to look like,

what it should look like.

So verse 15,

James says,

instead you ought to say,

if the Lord wills,

we will live

and do this

or that.

So James says instead,

so he's contrasting

this statement

with the assuming

statements of the

arrogant men

in verse 13.

He's reminding them

that because God

is sovereign

and worthy of all

worship and praise,

his will alone

will and should

be accomplished.

God deserves this

and not only does

he deserve it,

but he will make it

happen.

Paul says in

Philippians 2,

9 through 11,

therefore God

has highly exalted

Christ and bestowed

on him the name

that is above

every name,

so that at the name

of Jesus every knee

should bow in heaven

and on earth

and under the earth

and every tongue

confess that Jesus

Christ is Lord

to the glory of God

the Father.

God's will not only

ought to be done,

but it will be done.

And to clarify,

James is not saying

we cannot make plans.

It's biblical to plan,

to save,

to invest,

to work,

to provide for your family,

to make wise decisions.

He's merely speaking

against this gainful,

arrogant,

boastful planning

that neglects

consideration of God

and his will

and his character.

I just want to leave

that as a clarification.

So how is this

an all-pervasive comment

then?

What do I mean by that?

I've been circling it

for a while now.

Well, I don't think

James' main intent here

is to say God is sovereign.

I think he says that here.

I think he's said it elsewhere.

He's made it clear.

It's important

and directly related

to what James is saying.

I also don't think

he is merely saying

include this statement

in your life, right?

This idea that we should

just throw around

if the Lord wills

to sound Christian,

pious, or holy.

Although I also think

he does want us

to say that more regularly.

But I think James

is talking more specifically

about a healthy church culture,

right?

And this is just

one specific thing

he's tapping on

to hit that larger picture, right?

He's writing to the church.

He's telling everyone

in that church

to speak this way.

So there are other ways

to communicate

if the Lord wills.

It's not so much

about the exact words,

although that's a wonderful

way to say it.

But he wants them all

to speak to one another

with such language.

And I think it's significant

that in verse 15

he says,

you ought to say

rather than you ought

to think, believe, or know.

And don't get me wrong,

we do need to know,

believe, and think

in this way

if the Lord wills, right?

We should think

in those terms.

That God's will

should be done.

That God is sovereign.

That God should have

his way.

But James has made clear

throughout his epistle

already this idea.

So I think he's saying

something more pervasive

and it is church culture.

And to be clear,

I'm not talking about

a church brand

or a marketing strategy

or anything like that.

So what kind of culture

am I talking about?

I'm talking about

the kind of culture

where we are constantly

reminding each other

of who God is.

What he has done

and what he is doing.

The kind of culture

that loves God

and loves neighbor.

And the kind of culture

that daily reinforces

the truth

that we are God's servants.

Because we need reminders.

Because we forget our place.

Because we can easily

lose sight of God

in our life

apart from our participation

in the body of Christ.

And this is especially important

when we are surrounded

by a secular culture

singing songs

that teach

the complete opposite.

Songs like the ones

I shared at the beginning.

How easy it is

for us to get swept up

in that line of thinking.

And it's not just in songs.

It's in movies, books,

politics,

advertisement,

education,

video games,

you name it,

it's there.

And so how do you combat

that worldly pervasive culture,

that pervasive worldly thinking

that idolizes self?

I know this,

you don't appeal to it

like so many so-called churches

are doing.

Rather you create

your own pervasive culture,

a resilient church culture

if you will.

And there are

two wonderful things

about this pervasive

resilient church culture

that I'm describing.

And I think James

is touching on.

One,

the church is the will

of our sovereign God

and Christ will build

his church.

He says in Matthew 16, 18,

Jesus says,

And I tell you,

you are Peter

and on this rock

I will build my church.

It's emphatic.

It will happen.

There's no question about it.

And he adds,

And the gates of hell

shall not prevail

against it.

Or in Philippians 1, 6,

Paul says,

And I am sure of this,

that God who began

a good work in you

will bring it to completion

at the day of Jesus Christ.

The salvation,

the sanctification,

it's all being realized.

It will happen.

It's emphatic.

The church body

will be built

and the body

will be sanctified.

So when I'm talking

about church culture,

I'm talking about

that sanctification

being lived out

by the members

of the church.

And the second thing

is that the work

is already done.

We just need to live it out

and realize it.

It is done

because of the cross

of Christ.

John 19, 30,

just before Christ

dies on the cross,

after bearing the wrath

of God

on behalf of the church,

Christ said,

It is finished.

Not fully realized,

but finished nonetheless.

It is only

a matter of time.

So what then

does it look like

to live out

this church culture,

to live among one another

as brothers and sisters

in Christ?

And a lot could be said here,

but I'll close

with this final application

as a good starting point.

To blow up James' words

to the larger picture

that I think he intended,

our final application,

is to use our interactions

in such a way

to remind each other

of God and his word.

Paul says

in 1 Thessalonians 5, 11,

Therefore,

encourage one another

and build one another up

just as you are doing.

He also says

in Ephesians 5, 19,

Address one another

in psalms and hymns

and spiritual songs,

singing and making melody

to the Lord

with all your heart.

Again, there's that

totality language.

So whether we are singing,

talking,

playing a game,

or whatever,

let's do so

in a spirit of love

with a motive

to build one another up

for the glory of God.

And I have to confess,

I'm not the greatest

at encouraging people.

It's not my strength.

Some of you are like me.

I feel weird giving

and receiving

encouragements

or compliments,

things of that nature.

In fact,

I remember calling

Nathan in Louisville,

letting him know

that I was moving back down.

And I made a great talk,

caught up, you know.

And at the end,

he said,

All right, man,

that sounds great.

I love you, brother.

And it felt like

a ten-second pause.

It was probably only three,

but I just was taken

off guard by that

because I just don't

really say that to people

other than like my wife,

my parents, you know.

It's just kind of weird to me.

And then I finally said,

Okay, man,

we'll see ya.

And I took a shower.

But it shouldn't be

that weird for me to say.

It shouldn't be weird.

It shouldn't be uncomfortable.

It shouldn't be unnatural.

I thank God

that I don't have to greet

anyone with a holy kiss,

as Paul said.

But it shouldn't be that weird.

It should be normal.

It should feel as natural

as praising God

or praying,

eating food,

drinking water.

It should feel normal.

And don't get me wrong,

I do love all of you.

I know I've

neglected the importance

of saying these kind of things

regularly.

for all manner of foolish

and petty

reasons.

And I'll tell you,

I think sometimes

my personal excuse is,

well, you just don't know that.

It's easy for me to think,

I play in the band,

I preach,

I've helped you all over the years

with different things.

I've done all this stuff.

So surely they know

that I love them.

And it's true,

nothing says,

I love you more

than action,

but it is false

to think

as I have.

And not verbalizing

these kind of things

is insignificant

because I'm so prone

to think.

And so don't fall

into that snare

as I have.

And so let's talk

to one another

in such a way

that sets us apart

from the world,

in such a way

that is loving,

in such a way

that sets our minds

on our sovereign

creator God

and his word.

To that end,

let's pray.