Boasting In Christ (James 1:9-18)

Amen. Amen. What a joy it is to be worshiping today. So thankful for the many wonderful things that we celebrate today.

! And I pray that as we go through Scripture, we'll be reminded of our greatest celebration of all, and that is that we have a Savior and His name is Jesus.

And so hopefully as we make our way through and continue in our study of James, that will be something that comes very clearly to us today.

But before we get into that, I want to ask you a question. Have you ever been around somebody who likes to boast a lot?

They like to share many things, their accomplishments, and they want everybody to know how wonderful they are, all the things they've accomplished, how great it is.

And even when somebody else has some good news that they want to share about how God has blessed them, this person has to one-up them.

They've got to share a little bit more. They've got to make sure they are the one who comes out on top.

And I'm sure that as we think about that, there's probably somebody that comes to each of our minds as we think about that.

And if nobody comes to mind, well, then maybe you're that person.

No, I'm joking with that.

But as we think about this, as we think about boasting and whatnot, nobody likes to be around someone who's constantly lifting themselves up at the expense of others.

In fact, we try to teach our kids not to do that.

We try to make sure that we teach them not to be braggadocious and to share their accomplishments.

And hopefully we try to avoid doing it ourselves.

It's not only socially inappropriate, but it's also warned against in Scripture, especially when it comes to our faith, especially when it comes to our relationship with God.

Paul in Ephesians 2 is telling everybody that each and every one of us is dead in our trespasses and sins,

that each and every one of us has no hope, but God made a way that we can have a relationship with Him again.

And then he says, after making it very clear where our hope comes from, he says this,

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing, it's what?

It's a gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

And then Paul again in Philippians chapter 3, he reminds us that where our confidence is found,

Philippians 3 · chapter mention

our confidence is found in none other than Jesus.

He's telling the believers there, he says, look, don't put any confidence in your abilities.

Don't put any confidence in your background and what you have done.

And in fact, he says, if any of you think you have confidence in the flesh, he says, look, I have more.

And then he lists all of his credentials out, showing how he has lived as good of a life as anyone possibly could have lived.

And then he says this, he says, but whatever gain I had, I counted as loss for the sake of Christ.

Indeed, I count everything as loss for the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.

For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish in order that I may gain Christ.

All throughout Scripture we are reminded that we are on our own and on our own have no reason for confidence in the flesh.

We're reminded over and over again, if left to ourselves, we have no reason for confidence in the flesh.

And in our passage today, we are called to look at our life, to think about what it is that we're putting our confidence in,

and to realize that our only hope is a good Father who loves us more than we could ever imagine.

And so if you have a copy of God's Word this morning, I want to invite you to open with me to James chapter 1.

James 1 · chapter mention

We're going to pick up where we left off last week, starting in verse 9, and make our way down through verse 18.

But this is what God's Word says, starting in James 1, 9.

It says,

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial.

For when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life, which God has promised to those who love him.

Let no one say when he is tempted, I am being tempted by God.

For God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one.

But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire.

Then desire, when it has conceived, gives birth to sin.

And sin, when it is fully grown, brings forth death.

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers.

Every good and perfect gift is from above,

coming down from the Father of lights,

with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Of his own will, he brought us forth by the word of truth,

that we should be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.

And so from this passage, as we look at it this morning,

I hope that we'll be able to see a few reminders

that will give us a renewed confidence and joy

that comes only from a relationship with God.

And the first reminder for us to consider this morning

is to think about this question.

I want you to consider this question.

What is it that you're boasting in?

What are you boasting in?

It says,

Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation

and the rich in his humiliation.

Because like a flower of the grass, he will pass away.

For the sun rises with its scorching heat

and withers the grass.

Its flower falls and its beauty perishes.

So also will the rich man fade away

in the midst of his pursuits.

Blessed is the man who remains steadfast under trial.

For when he has stood the test,

he will receive the crown of life,

which God has promised to those who love him.

After all of this talk here at the beginning

about not boasting

and how throughout the New Testament,

we see over and over again

that we should not boast in our abilities,

what is James telling us here?

He's saying to boast.

But what is he telling us to boast in?

James is continuing to help his readers

get from James 1-2

where he's telling us to consider it pure joy

when we encounter various trials.

He's telling us to get,

he's helping us get from there

where the trials are

to this verse 12

of remaining steadfast in the trials.

And up to this point,

James has told believers to consider it pure joy.

And he's told them to ask for wisdom

when they need it.

And now at this point,

James is telling them to boast.

He's telling them to boast.

But a very important distinction must be made here.

We're not boasting in anything

other than Jesus Christ.

We're not boasting in any of our abilities.

We're not boasting in anything that we have to offer.

What we are boasting in is Jesus Christ.

You see, the gospel eradicates

all boasting in our abilities

and our blessings

and puts the focus squarely on Jesus.

Key to understanding this important truth

is understanding that this is true

across the board for all believers.

This is true for every person

who is a believer

that we are to boast in Christ.

It is true for those

from very humble circumstances.

And at the same time,

it is true for those believers

who are incredibly well off.

We all must be dependent on Jesus.

And therefore,

all of our boasting

is rooted in the finished work

of Jesus Christ.

All of our boasting,

all of our proclaiming

is rooted and grounded

in the finished work

of Jesus Christ.

Sam Albury,

who is a commentator

and wrote a book on James here,

he rightly notes,

he says,

whatever end of the pecking order

we may be at,

his advice is the same.

We are to boast in our position.

Not in our financial position,

but in our spiritual position.

The position we have before God,

the position in which

the gospel of Jesus Christ

has placed us.

And I believe that James

is distinguishing between

the rich and the lowly here

because this boasting in Christ

can sometimes play out differently

in our lives.

For those of lowly means,

there's a temptation to think,

well, I have failed.

I haven't been good enough.

I'm looking around

at all of my friends and peers

and see how well off they are,

see how great they're doing.

And it makes me look at myself

and think that I'm a failure,

that I'm not enough,

that I can't do this,

that somehow,

somewhere along the way,

I made a mistake

and I have failed.

I don't have what others have,

and so that must mean

that I am lacking something.

And to this, James says,

the message of the gospel,

even to the poorest Christian,

is that in Christ,

you are somebody.

You're important.

However poor you may be

from a materialistic standpoint,

James says to boast

in your exaltation

about your position in Christ.

And then to the wealthy brother,

James says to boast

in his humiliation.

Now, how many of us in here

like to boast in our humiliation?

I don't think any of us

like to share and boast

in our humiliation,

but this is what James

is saying here.

He says share, boast

in your humiliation.

You see, there's a real danger

for the rich to be defined

by their wealth.

There is something

that can be very deceptive

about wealth.

And I think this is why

Jesus warns

that it's incredibly difficult

for a rich person

to enter the kingdom of heaven.

Because you see,

when you have an abundance,

when you have more

than you could ever need,

what you begin to have

a hard time seeing

is that you're desperate

for something.

Because this money

is buying you

all kinds of things

that the world is telling you

is important

that the world is telling you

can give you happiness,

that can give you meaning.

And so it's really hard

to see that we're

in desperate need

of something

when it's clouded

by that excess.

It can give us

a false sense of security

because it's difficult

to see the need

for anything.

James is saying,

to those that may think

this world has forgotten you,

and to those who have no hope

because of your humble means,

remember,

you are a child of the King.

If you're in Christ,

you're a child of the King.

And to those who think

you may have it all,

whether it be riches,

talent, popularity,

or whatever the case may be,

remember,

he says,

remember that you need Jesus

just like every other person.

There's a song

that we like to sing sometimes,

I think primarily

in the early service,

although we'll be able

to sing it in here

in just a few weeks, Clay,

because we'll be getting

some new hymnals

that will have this

in there as well.

But it says this,

the song is called

My Worth Is Not

In What I Own.

And it says these

in the first few lines,

My worth is not

in what I own,

not in strength

of flesh and bone,

but in the costly wounds

of love at the cross.

My worth is not

in skill or name,

in win or lose,

in pride or shame,

but in the blood of Christ

that flowed at the cross.

You see, for us as believers,

our worth is not found

in anything in this world.

Our worth is found

in Jesus Christ.

Whether you are wealthy

or you don't know

where your next meal

is going to come from,

we can all boast in Christ.

Much of this section

is dealing with trials

and propelling us forward

to verse 12,

where it says this,

Blessed is the man

who remains steadfast

under trial.

For when he has stood the test,

he will receive

the crown of life,

which God has promised

to those who love him.

In order for us

to remain steadfast

in the midst of trials,

Christians are to boast

in their gospel identity.

We're to boast,

we're to make much

of who we are before God

because of Christ.

If you are a follower of Christ,

then your lowly state

doesn't define you

any more than someone

who is wealthy.

Your trials and your hardships

are not who you are.

Your grief and your despair

does not define you.

You are a child of God.

Your debt has been bought

and paid for

by the precious blood

of Jesus Christ.

And so this brings us

to our next reminder

that we see in this passage,

and that is this,

the origin and progression of sin,

where sin begins

and where sin leads to.

It says,

let no one say

when he is tempted,

I am being tempted by God,

for God cannot be tempted

with evil,

and he himself tempts no one.

But each person is tempted

when he is lured

and enticed

by his own desire.

Then desire,

when it has conceived,

gives birth to sin.

And sin,

when it is fully grown,

brings forth death.

We already discussed

how much we enjoy

people who boast

about themselves

and how much we enjoy

being around those

who can't help

but talk about themselves

and lift themselves up.

But another group

that we all enjoy

is those who pass the blame,

right?

Those who can never

do any wrong,

those who have never done,

made a mistake,

and if they did,

well then it was

somebody else's fault

that they made the mistake.

Putting the blame elsewhere

is something

that is incredibly common

in our culture today,

and I think it's something

that we can think

maybe only has been around

for a little while.

But here's the truth.

As soon as sin entered the world,

we as people

have been passing the blame.

We've been trying to say

that we are not guilty

and passing the blame

on to something else.

In fact,

if you remember in the garden

after God asked Adam,

have you eaten from the tree

of the knowledge

of good and evil?

Do you remember

what Adam says?

Adam says this.

He says,

the woman whom you gave

to be with me,

she gave me the fruit

and I ate.

In one sentence,

Adam puts the blame

on his wife

and then in turn

also puts the blame

on God.

In one sentence,

he passes the blame

off on his wife

and passes the blame

off on God.

Someone once said,

to err is human

and to blame it

on the divine

is even more human.

It's something

that we often

find ourselves doing.

Kent Hughes,

he gives three ways

in which we find

ourselves

passing the blame

off on God.

He says,

one way that we pass

the blame off on God

is that we just say

that our sin

is ordained by God.

A common misconception

is saying,

since God is sovereign,

which he is,

that he has ordained

that we succumb to sin.

Truth is,

God hates sin

and he hates

to see us sin.

God does not

ordain or approve

of sin.

God is not going

to tell you

not to do something

and then at the same time

force you to do

what he's just told you

not to do.

Others will try

to blame it off

and put it off

on God saying

that their fault

is their circumstances

that they find

themselves in.

God has placed them

in the circumstances

that are simply

more that they can bear.

A student,

for example,

cheats on a test

because he says,

well,

God has just given me

the hardest professor

there has ever been

and so I just have

to cheat on this test.

Or maybe the thief

says that he's stealing,

blaming it on God

for his poverty

and so on and so forth

where we're constantly

blaming and putting

the blame

on our circumstances

and ultimately

on God

for being in

those circumstances.

Another common

misconception is

it's just part

of our disposition.

It's just who we are.

God has given me

passions and appetites

so strong

I can do nothing

but yield to them.

God has made me

this way

and there's nothing

I can do about it

and so he's the one

to blame for my actions.

Well, this passage

warns us about

passing the buck

like that.

When it says,

let no one say

when he's tempted,

I am being tempted

by God

for God cannot

be tempted

with evil

and he himself

tempts no one.

And so if God

is not to blame

for our sin,

if we can't put it

off on God,

then who is to blame

for our sin?

We are.

We are, it says,

but each person

is tempted

when he is lured

and enticed

by his own desire.

We look no further

than ourselves

to see the origin

of sin in our lives.

It's easy to look

at this passage

and think,

well, James has just

shifted gears.

You know,

it seems like it would

have been a great place

to cut off back

in verse 12

because all of a sudden

it seems like we have

a whole new topic

that we're dealing

with here, Brett.

You know,

we've been talking

about these trials

and these testing

of our faith

and now we're moving

into these sin

and temptations

in our life

and it would be

real easy to say,

well, there's a shift here

but that's not the case

and that's why

we're going to continue

in this

because there's no line

that's being drawn

between verses 12 and 13.

In fact,

I love how Douglas Moon notes,

he says,

that James' concern

is to help his readers

resist the temptation

that comes along

with the trial.

Part of his concern here

is to help us

to resist the temptation

that comes

in the midst of trials.

You see,

as we go through trials,

we must avoid

the easy way out

that leads to sin.

The easy way out

that takes our mind

off of what we're going through.

The trials

that we're going through

seem so overwhelming

and so oppressive

that we begin

looking for

the easiest way out.

The first thing

that we can come up with

to take our mind

off of our situation.

The trials

are weighing heavy on us

and so we're looking

for the first place

that we can turn to

to take our minds

off of the trials.

And so it becomes

real easy

to look to things

such as drugs

or alcohol

or pornography

or inappropriate

relationships at work

and all of a sudden

we're trying

to find the first thing

that's going

to take our mind

off of the trials,

off of the hard times

that we find ourselves in.

You see,

there will be

plenty of temptations

to take the easy way out.

Giving in to these things

can feel so right

in the moment

but that path

leads to destruction.

That path

leads to destruction.

You see,

sin is never clean.

It's never easy.

It's always messy.

Verse 15,

it says,

Then desire,

when it has conceived,

gives birth to sin

and sin,

when it is fully grown,

brings forth death.

Sin is always messy

and it always leads us

down a path

further than we ever

intended on going.

Nobody ever intends

on going down that path

as far as sin leads

but yet when we sin,

when we take those

easy way out,

that's where it leads.

It is important

to understand

and to recognize

that in the midst

of trials,

temptation is real

and that it can be

some of the most

challenging times

in our lives

to resist it

is when we are

in the midst

of those trials

and so let us remember

the words of James here.

He could not be clearer.

The origin of temptation

is not God.

It's not even the devil.

It's our own sinful heart.

Our desire

is brought under control

only when

it gives way

to a stronger

and more beautiful desire.

Our desire to sin

is brought under control

only when we see

something that is

more valuable

and beautiful

to go after.

You see,

we're always going

to follow that

which is most important

to us,

that is which is

most valuable to us.

Imagine that I had

a table set up

right here

and I had a $1 bill

on the table

and I had a $100 bill

on the table

and I had just

an infinite amount

of money behind me

that I could replace it with

and I said,

all right,

everybody gets to come up

and take one bill.

You can either

take the $1 bill

or you can take

the $100 bill.

Every single person

in here would take

the $100 bill.

Even my six-year-old daughter

who thinks that she can

save her allowance

up to get an

in-ground pool

at our house,

she understands

that one is more valuable

than the other.

She's completely convinced

that at $5 a week

in a few months

you'll have enough

for an in-ground pool

and I told her,

sweetie,

go for it.

If you have enough,

you can put that pool

wherever you want to

on our own property.

But even she understands

that the $100

is far more valuable

than the one.

We're always going

to go after that

which is most valuable to us.

And so when you sin,

what you are saying

that in that moment,

this sin

or the immediate gratification

that this sin offers

is what's most important

to you.

It's what's most valuable

to you.

But when we see Jesus

for who he really is

and keep our eyes

fixed on him,

then our ability

to resist temptation

is given new strength.

It's given new strength.

Now I realize

you may be thinking,

well, Brett,

this sounds great,

but you don't know

what I'm dealing with.

You don't know

the amount of pressure

that I'm going through.

You don't know

how difficult

this person is

to live with.

You don't know

the pressure

that I'm feeling

in this moment.

And I'm in the middle

of it,

and I don't see

that there's any way

out of it.

This trial

is so pressing

and this temptation

is so much

that it is more

than I can bear.

And I have to tell you

that you're right.

I don't know

what it is

that you're dealing with,

and I don't know

how long you've been

dealing with it,

but I do know

there's a way out

and that his name

is Jesus.

And so the final reminder

that I want us

to see today

is I want us

to clearly see

the goodness of God.

The goodness of God

in this passage.

He says,

Do not be deceived,

my beloved brothers.

Every good

and perfect gift

is from above,

coming down

from the Father

of lights,

with whom there is

no variation

or shadow

due to change.

Of his own will

he brought us forth

by the word of truth

that we should be

a kind of

first fruits

of his creatures.

You see,

God is not the author

of temptation

or anything evil.

He is, rather,

one who gives

good gifts

to his children,

and the best gift

that he gives

his children

is new life

in Christ.

So don't believe

the lies that others

will tell you

about God

in the midst

of your trials

and temptations.

Don't believe

what they tell you

is important

in the middle of it.

You deserve to do this

or it's okay,

it's understandable

to go down this road.

Look at what

you've been through.

Know, stay firm,

keep your eyes fixed

on Jesus.

Know what God's word says.

This is why

it's so important

for us to know

God's word.

That's why

on Sunday mornings

we spend time

going through scripture

that we'll walk

our way through

verse by verse

through scripture

understanding

what God has for us.

This is why

we encourage you

to get involved

in live groups

and Sunday school classes

because not only

do you experience

this fellowship

amongst other believers

in these classes

but you also

dive deeper

into God's word.

This is why

we try to give you

resources

and encourage you

to read the Bible

on your own.

In just a few weeks

we'll be announcing

that we're going

to be encouraging

our church

over the last

three months

of the year

to read the whole

New Testament

together.

The reason

that we encourage

you to do this

is so that we

can know the truth

because if you

don't know

the truth

it becomes

really easy

to believe a lie.

If you don't

know God's word

it becomes

really easy

to believe

whatever anybody

else will tell

you about

God's word.

So know the word

understand that

it is pointing

us to Jesus.

David Platt

reminds us

of the truth

found in these

words when he

says in your

trials and

temptations

don't believe

the lies.

Remember that

God is good

so very good

and he wants

that which is

good for you

so trust him

in your trials

and turn to him

in your temptations.

We see goodness

displayed in several

ways in this

passage.

We see it

displayed in several

ways.

We see that his

goodness is

immutable.

It says every

good and perfect

gift is from

above coming

down from

the father of

lights with

whom there is

no variation

or shadow

due to change.

We see that

God's goodness

is immutable

because God

is immutable.

Now immutable

is just a big

theological term

meaning he

doesn't change.

He's the same

yesterday,

today,

and forever.

And so we

see that God

is unchangeable

and his goodness

is unchanging.

We also see that

his goodness

is undeserved.

Verse 18 says

of his own

will he brought

us forth.

Not when we

finally got our

act together.

Not when our

good things

outweighed our

bad things.

No, he's saying

when we were

dead in our

trespasses and

sins, that's

when God came.

This is undeserved.

This is not our

own doing.

It is a gift

of God.

And finally,

we see his

goodness is

final.

It says we are

a kind of

first fruits of

his creatures.

You see,

the first fruits

are the initial

batch of a

farmer's crops

that proves

and guarantees

the rest of

the harvest

is on its

way.

We, as

first fruits,

are reminded

that this is

just the

beginning.

And there's

so much more

that is in

store for us,

so much more

to come.

And so as we

close out this

message, I want

to make something

very clear.

Sin, it does

lead to all

kinds of

death.

The death

being talked

about here

most certainly

is a

physical death

as well as

an eternal

spiritual death.

But this

death is also

something that

happens to each

and every one

of us.

The sin that

comes in our

lives, we have

the death of

our relationships.

We have the

death of our

trust in the

middle of those

things.

We experience

all kinds of

death because

of sin.

But I also

want you to

know that we

serve a good

father in heaven

who loves to

restore life,

who loves to

fix that which

is broken,

who loves

reconciliation so

much so that he

gave his life so

that the death

does not have the

final say in

our lives.

You see, we

serve a good

father who

wants to restore

relationships.

And as long as

we continue in

sin, as long as

we continue to

justify those

things, it will

continue to have

a weight in our

lives that God

does not intend

for it to.

Now, of course,

once you are

saved, your sins

are paid for

past, present,

and future, and

it's not going to

affect where you

spend eternity

because of what

Jesus has done.

But one of the

themes of James

is that we

understand that

part of our

faith, it

produces

something in us.

Our faith

produces

faithfulness.

And so we

want to be

putting those

things to death.

Now, if this

is new to you

or maybe

something you

have known

but has become

real today,

then I encourage

you to give

your life to

Jesus.

If you've

never come to

him before,

then come to

him today.

Let Jesus

restore that

broken relationship

because here's the

truth.

Sin is real

and it really

destroys lives.

It really has

broken our

relationship with

God and it

absolutely leads

to eternal

death.

But each and

every one of us

has the opportunity

to have that

relationship with

restored, bought

and paid for by

the precious blood

of Jesus Christ.

And so the

question becomes,

have you given

your life to

him?

Heavenly Father,

we thank you

for your word.

We thank you

for what it

tells us about

you.

We thank you

that it reminds

us that our

sin is real,

that it's our

own doing and

Lord that because

of sin it has

broken not only

relationships here

on this earth

but it has

destroyed our

relationship with

you.

But you look

down and you

didn't leave us

in that brokenness.

You sent your

son to live the

life we couldn't

live, to die

the death that

we deserve so

that those

relationships can

be restored.

And so Lord,

help us to see

that clearly

today.

Help us to

look to you and

see the goodness

that you have

given to us even

in the midst of

trials, even in

the midst of

difficulties when

it's hard to

see.

God, remind us

of what it is

that you've done

for us.

And so Lord, I

pray that as we

think through this

passage that we

will think about

what it is that

we're boasting

in, what it

is that we're

giving our lives

to, what it

is that we're

putting our hope

in.

And if it's in

anything other

than you, Lord,

help us to see

that clearly.

God, we thank

you so very much

for all that you

do and we ask

all these things

in Jesus' name.

Amen.

If God is

speaking to you

this morning, I

want to encourage

you to respond.

We're going to

stand together and

sing hymn number

249, Jesus

Paid It All.

And as we stand

together and sing,

if God is

responding, won't

you respond?