Devotional on James 14:13-17

by Larry Newcomer

“Come now, you who say, ‘Today or tomorrow we will gointo such and such a townand spend a year there and trade and make a profit’— 14 yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mistthat appears for a little time and then vanishes. 15 Instead you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”16 As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil. 17 So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin. (James 4:13-17) ESV

What was on your mind on New Year’s day 2020? a plethora of football games? a holiday away from work? time with the family? Like most Americans  probably one or all of these had crossed your mind. And probably the furthest thing from your mind was concern about a newly hatched disease—known as “coronavirus.” This flu-like virus emerged in the vicinity of the fish market in Wuhan China, a sprawling city of 11 million people in Eastern China. The fish market was closed on New Year’s Day for cleaning. Later evidence was found that the virus had left the market and begun to spread into the city of Wuhan. Soon hundreds of deaths in China and other parts of the world became the subject of grim reports. Now several weeks into the spread of the virus, the United States economy has been virtually shut down in an effort to quell the further spread of the virus.

The unexpected nature of this present devastating event is the kind of situation (on a smaller scale) that James addressed in his first century letter chapter 4.13-17. James’ audience appears to be business traders who run their businesses according to their own professional expertise without regard to the Lord’s direction. What they disregard is the unseen hand of God. Their shrewdness in business matters is charged as “arrogance” and that they boast in it. Such a disposition recalls “the tree of knowledge of good and evil” (Gen.2.9) at the fall recorded in Genesis 3. James doesn’t call his brothers “evil” but does state that the kind of boasting they are doing is “evil.”In the previous paragraph James had dealt with the subject of defamatory speech. This paragraph begins with another reference to speech, “Come now, you who say…” 

Presumptuousness is their mode of operation. Note its pervasiveness. 

• Today or tomorrow we will go(speech) into such and such a town (what if you are smitten with a deadly virus before you get to such and such a town)

• We will spend a year there(Are you ever guaranteed health for a year?)

• We will go trade and make a profit(can the  merchant really guarantee that all trading will make a profit)

The presumption here is not the defaming of a brother. Instead those practicing this arrogance practiced it toward ourselves. Look at the list again…we will spend a year…we will trade and make a profit…. 

We assure ourselves that time is on our side and at our disposal (today or tomorrow). We make our plans as if personal ability (and trade) and the profit motive (and get gain) were the only issues to take into account. We overlook frailty (a mist), and ignore the fact that even the small print of life is in the hands of a sovereign God (if the Lord wills). Yet we know better all the time (knows what is right), but self-confidence makes us boast, and all such boasting is evil and a sin against knowledge. (Alec Motyer, The Message of James, Bible Speaks Today, p.160)

Note how presumptive the business traders are. Their words include “today,” “tomorrow,” and “a year,” as if they can continue to live at will. 

It is the presumption that we are masters of our own life, so that we need to do no more than decide and, lo and behold, it will happen like that.

…

When James exposes their presumption, he exposes something which is the unrecognized claim of our hearts. We speak to ourselves as if life were our right, as if our choice were the only deciding factor, as if we had in ourselves all that was needed to make a success of things, as if getting on, making money, doing well were life’s sole objective. (Motyer, Bible Speaks Today, James p.160)  Instead listen to the psalmist Psa. 39:4    “O LORD, make me know my end and what is the measure of my days; let me know how fleeting I am! (Motyer, pg. 160)

Now how do we guard against presumptuousness? 

The three verbs in verses 14–15 will put us on our guard against presumptuousness. First, there is our ignorance, you do not know. James indulges here in a little irony. He is talking about a person who was busy laying out his programme for next year (13) and he quietly notes that you do not know about tomorrow(14). (Motyer, pg. 161)

The second remedy for presumption “you are a mistthatappears for a little time and then vanishes.” (Motyer, pg. 161)

James’ final remedy is “you ought to say ‘if the Lord wills…’” (Motyer, pg. 161)

The words “God willing” are not a lucky charm but a persuasive reminder that unless God ordains it, it will not come to pass. Contrast Paul’s mission work “I will return to you if God wills,” and he set sail from Ephesus. (Acts 18.21, et.al. 1 Cor. 4:19; 16:7; Phil. 2:19, 24; Heb. 6:3). 

Rather than boasting an evil boast instead obey the words of Jer. 9:23,24.   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, 24 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.”

Prayer

Father, you ordain all things. Nothing in our world or our lives happens apart from your will. The spread of this epidemic has shown us how arrogant we have been in presuming all of our own plans will go succeed. Yet as our plans fail, we know that you and your plans never fail. You are the God of steadfast love, justice and righteousness in the earth. You are glorifying yourself and sanctifying your people. Father we trust in you, and we ask for your help to say, "if the Lord wills, we will live." In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.