James 1:12-18

James 1:12-18

If you want a faith system to relieve you of struggle, then I do not recommend Christianity. In verse 12, the clear implication is that the perseverance under trial doesn't end until we are approved, at which point we are given the Crown of Life, i.e., we enter into glory. Trials and temptations are a part of our life as disciples. It is the refining process that God uses to make us more of ourselves than we already are. God uses both trials and temptations to accomplish His purposes and our good, but we must not assume from this that temptation comes from God. There is the need for careful discernment between testing, which is from God for the purpose of revealing and manifesting what is within, and temptation, which comes from our own lusts, in cooperation with Satan, for the purpose of leading us to death and away from God.

Verse 15 is one of the most powerful descriptions of the sin process. While the word “lust” is generally associated with sexual desires, it is not exclusively so. The word comes from “focus” plus “desire” and means “passionate longing” and can be a positive. When, however, the focus of our desire is sinful, it is an evil power that ends in ruling over us. The root word for “conceive” literally means “together” and “take hold of.” It is easy to see the description of a couple's conception of a child in this word. It carries the implication of inescapability. The lovers held by passion cannot escape the other's grasp. The implications for us are profound. When we give in to our desires, we embrace something from which we are incapable of escape. That moment begins the growth process that ends in death, separation from God. There is much more to say on this subject. For the moment we need to focus that temptation to sin doesn't come from God. Since the sin of the garden, humans have wanted to blame someone else for our failures. But the One who is so pure that no darkness can dwell in Him and who is the source and origin of all light is never the source of our sin. 

James makes a marvelous point in verse 17 about God's consistency. In that culture so heavily influenced by astrology and the idea that the stars, planets, and constellations are growing and declining in influence, God's power never weakens and has no dark side. In verse 18, James pictures us as having been born, not conceived by lust, but by the word, and of this we are only the beginning.

“Lord, give me a heart to resist and grow in all things, even in times of temptation. AMEN”