April 16-30
Daily Devotionals
by Pastor Larry Wilson
Are You For Real?: Meditations in the Epistle of James
April 16
Are You For Real? (James 5:12)
Scripture for Day 106—James 5:12
12 But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.
Devotional:
Take very seriously the end of v. 12—"so that you may not fall under condemnation." Condemnation! This is a solemn warning from God himself. It directs your attention to the Day of Judgment, of which our Lord Jesus says, "I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned" (Matt. 12:36-37). What hope does that leave for any of us? Who has not sworn? Who has not cursed? Who has not deceived with vain words? "The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray from birth, speaking lies" (Ps. 58:3). And what does every single lie deserve? Condemnation! Will there be any liars walking the streets of gold? Nary a one. "But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death" (Rev. 21:8).
Where then is there any hope? It is found only in the One who is Truth incarnate. "Christ … committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed" (1 Pet. 2:21–24). The holy Lord Jesus Christ was utterly without deceit. Yet this same Jesus was cursed by God his Father. He never cursed and yet he was cursed by God. How can that be? Where's the justice in that? God answers in Galatians 3:13—"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: 'Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.'" For us cursers Jesus became a curse. For us liars Jesus endured the condemnation of the God of truth. Jesus hung on Calvary's tree bearing our accursed judgment. Men cursed and mocked him as a liar and blasphemer. But on the third day he was raised from the dead. Vindicated! God said in the resurrection, "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased." God's curse was his so God's blessing might be ours.
That's where you need to go, to the one place where sins are washed away, where the Innocent Accursed One stood in our place and bore our curse to purchase forgiveness for us and reconcile a holy God to us. The condemnation is his and the blessing is ours. That's the great transaction that the good news of the Lord Jesus brings to every and any liar and covenant-breaker who will but turn in sorrow and repentance from his sin and cast himself upon the mercy of God in Jesus Christ.
April 17
Are You For Real? (James 5:13–18)
Scripture for Day 107—James 5:13–18
13 Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working. 17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.
Devotional:
In other words, God says that a church that is patiently looking for the coming of the Lord will be a praying church.
Prayer is not a mere religious duty. As O. Hallesby helpfully observed, the essence of prayer is opening your life to the risen Christ. When you draw near to the Lord, he actually does draw near to you. Isn't that what the church most needs in our day—the presence and power of the exalted Lord? Isn't that what you most need?
Pray in times of trouble. "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray" (v. 13a). Generally, trouble tempts you to turn away from God. Especially if it goes on and on. Something inside you wants to find a quicker fix. But God says, No. "Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray."
Pray in times of happiness. "Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise" (v. 13b). If trouble tempts some to forget God, it drives others to him. But when the sailing gets smooth, it becomes even easier to forget him. Remember that every circumstance is a test. "Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise."
Pray in times of sickness. "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord" (v. 14). God doesn't identify any particular disease. The word translated "sick" is a general word, meaning to be weak or sick. Weakness tempts you to feel hopeless, as if there's nothing you can do. The biblical outlook is just the opposite! You can do the most significant thing of all—pray! Weakness is the very time for prayer. As O. Hallesby says "Your helplessness is your best prayer."
In other words, pray in all circumstances. As R.V.G. Tasker puts it, "The habit of prayer should be, and indeed is, one of the most obvious features which differentiates a Christian from other people."
April 18
Are You For Real? (James 5:14–16)
Scripture for Day 108—James 5:14–16
14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
Devotional:
The purpose of these verses is still to call us to pray with and for each other in the church. But now God encourages such prayer by depicting how he expects it to operate in the church. In a healthy church, among other things, the members will call on the elders of the church for prayer. "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord."
This appears to be talking about an especially grave illness. The person can't even go to the elders; the elders have to go to him. Even so, notice that God insists that the sick person must take the initiative—"Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church." Often people grumble because their pastors and elders lack the clairvoyance to initiate this process. But God says, "Stop grumbling. I've put the ball in your court."
There's nothing magic about this (by "magic," I mean going through specific motions in order to get specific results from God.) The fact that the sick person calls is an expression of faith in God, which is a condition for effective prayer. It is "the prayer of faith [that] will save the one who is sick" (v. 15).
April 19
Are You For Real? (James 5:14–16)
Scripture for Day 109—James 5:14–16
14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
Devotional:
There's nothing magic about this (by "magic," I mean going through specific motions in order to get specific results from God.) The fact that the sick person calls is an expression of faith in God, which is a condition for effective prayer. It is "the prayer of faith [that] will save the one who is sick" (v. 15).
On the one hand, that means that if you do call the elders, do not do so as an attempt to manipulate God to do your will, but in genuine faith. Remember James 1:5, "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways."
On the other hand, that means that if you do call the elders, do so with the attitude, "Thy will be done." It is "the prayer of faith [that] will save the one who is sick" (v. 15). And genuine faith does not presume on God. Nor does it seek to boss God. Rather, genuine faith submits to God and his wisdom. After all, God has just said, "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"—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a 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" (4:13–17).
Moreover, the fact that the sick person calls "the elders of the church" is an expression of submission to Christ as the King and Head of the church, which is an additional condition for powerful prayer. "The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working." (v. 16b). Nothing in the text hints at anything like specialized gifts for miraculous healing, such as the apostles had. These are ordinary church elders. But they are ordained servants who do represent the King and Head of the church.
In other words, the prayer of faith seeks the Lord himself through the means that he has ordained and promised to bless. Among those ordinances is church government. "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church..."
April 20
Are You For Real? (James 5:15; 16b)
Scripture for Day 110—James 5:15; 16b
15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. … 16b The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
Devotional:
Ours is a supernatural religion. Although it involves both faith and life, it is not mere ideology or mere ethics. We know and serve the living and true God who is infinite and personal and sovereign over all. The Creator and Sovereign of the universe is a wonder-working God. And so he calls us to great expectations as we pray. "And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. … The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working" (vv. 15, 16b). This means that God can and does grant healing. Does that mean that each time we pray in faith and expectation, the prayer will be answered by the person's healing?
When she was a young woman Joni Eareckson Tada was paralyzed in a diving accident. At one point, she sought miraculous healing from the Lord, earnestly praying with a group of charismatic Christian friends. When she was not healed of her paralysis, her friends withdrew, blaming her lack of faith. This occasioned a spiritual crisis for her. She knew that she had believed as hard as she could. So she began to doubt God's motives. She asked her long-time friend, Steve Estes, if God didn't want her to be healed. He explained that God does promise complete healing for his redeemed children, but he does not necessarily promise it in this life. At the resurrection, God will totally heal and glorify Joni's body. In the meantime, God apparently has other purposes for her disability. †
Even the faith-filled apostle Paul confessed, "…a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited. Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong" (2 Cor. 12:7-10).
Our God is so much wiser and more compassionate than we are! When Jesus taught his disciples how to pray, he said that one of the most fundamental things that we should always pray is, "Thy will be done." Indeed, James has just said in the immediate context that it is the grave sin of worldly presumption to say that something is going to happen without saying "if the Lord wills."
God is great! God is good! When you pray "the prayer of faith," you put yourself into his safe hands and trust him.
† see A Step Further by Joni Eareckson and Steve Estes (Zondervan, 1978)
April 21
Are You For Real? (James 5:14–16)
Scripture for Day 111—James 5:14–16
14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. 15 And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
Devotional:
Notice that the prayer of faith is specifically in the name of Jesus Christ. "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord." There is only one Mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus. He alone is the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through him. The prayer of faith is repentant and trusts Christ alone for forgiveness and access to God.
Our Lord Jesus' promises summon you to expect great things as you pray in his name.
* John 14:13–14 — "Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it."
* John 15:16 — "You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide, so that whatever you ask the Father in my name, he may give it to you."
* John 16:23-24 — "Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have asked nothing in my name. Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full."
"Anointing him with oil" is not some sort of magical ritual to get God to do what we want. Nor is it the oil that heals. Contrary to what we sometimes hear, "oil" does not allude to the use of medicine. That should be done, but so should this. "Anointing … with oil" specially sets people apart to the Lord for healing. The same term is used in Mark 6:13 — "And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them." God's emphasis is not on any power in the oil, but rather on the power of the Lord.
Turn your trust away from yourself or any created thing and pray in faith. "And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven" (v. 15). "The prayer of faith"—that phrase explicitly brings us back to the theme that permeates the epistle—faith in Christ.
April 22
Are You For Real? (James 5:16)
Scripture for Day 112—James 5:16
16 Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.
Devotional:
A further principle of effective praying is this—pray for one another united as repentant sinners. "Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed" (v. 14).
God speaking through James introduced the mention of sin at the end of verse 15 in the context of praying for a sick person—"And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven." Notice the "if"—there might be a connection between sin and sickness, but it is not necessarily so in each case. The sickness and the guilt might be tangled together. Therefore the cure promised in verse 16 might include both physical and spiritual healing. God calls us to pray as repentant sinners seeking a complete salvation in our lives.
The epistle of James is written to people struggling with hardship. God's answer is not, "keep a stiff upper lip." God's answer is pray! But it's more than that. These verses, coming as part of the conclusion of the whole epistle, describe a healing of their relationships with God and with each other.
And their relationships needed healing. As a first result of their suffering, their relationship with God had been suffering. They were falling into temptations to doubt God (1:6); to blame God (1:13); or to bargain with God (5:12). God through James directs them back to God in faith expressed in a reliance on him in prayer.
A second result of their adversities is that their relationships with each other had been suffering. God had to warn them against playing favorites with each other (2:1); verbally attacking each other (3:9); fighting with each other (4:1); slandering each other (4:11); and judging each other (4:12).
Our present Scripture shows us that the Lord is calling you to experience a triumph of his grace in the whole congregation. He points out the oneness that we already have with each other because of our common need of forgiveness. If we consciously stand together before God as sinners needing grace and seeking righteousness, that stance has compelling application in our relationships. Instead of judging each other, we will want to confess where we have sinned against each other. Instead of wanting to inflict guilt-trips on each other, we will become eager to forgive each other. Instead of being moved to criticize each other, we will be moved to pray for each other.
Christians praising God joyfully, confessing their sins openly, and praying for each other lovingly; the church together experiencing the power of the Lord granting spiritual cleansing and physical healing. This is the exciting power of the Lord that we open our lives to by prayer.
April 23
Are You For Real? (James 5:16)
Scripture for Day 113—James 5:16
16 …confess your sins to one another…
Devotional:
This is a command from the living God himself. To neglect to obey it, then, is sin. But what should it look like? What does it mean?
It means to outwardly disclose your sins to one another ("…confess your sins to one another…").
It might be helpful to think first of what the point is not. First, the point is not secret confession of sin to God, even though that is a must when you've sinned. But here God commands, "…confess your sins to one another…" Second, the point is not private confession of sin to a priest. God says, "…confess your sins to one another…" If that means a priest, then the priest is equally obligated to confess his sins to you. But "one another" means fellow Christians. Third, the point is not public confession of sin in front of the church. I recall hearing of one church that tried that in an effort to obey this verse, but it quickly had to stop because of abuses. But more importantly, the biblical principle is that "confession must be made to the person against whom we have sinned and from whom we need and desire to receive forgiveness." †
What then is the point? The point is private confession of sin to fellow Christians. Above all, you must confess sin to those you have wronged. You must seek to walk in reconciliation with one another. This is a command, not a suggestion, and it is in line with what our Lord Jesus also taught:
* "So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift" (Matt. 5:23-24).
* "If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. But if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector" (Matt. 18:15-17).
* "Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him, and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, saying, 'I repent,' you must forgive him" (Luke 17:3-4).
Have you sinned against a brother or sister. Outwardly disclose your sins against one another. Be prompt and specific. Pursue reconciliation and healing in the body of Christ.
† John R. W. Stott, Confess Your Sins: The Way of Reconciliation
April 24
Are You For Real? (James 5:16)
Scripture for Day 114—James 5:16
16 …pray for one another…
Devotional:
These pithy words are also a command from the living God himself. To neglect to obey them, then, is sin. For that reason, we ought not to sail past them. It may be edifying to paraphrase Charles Spurgeon's meditation on these words from Morning and Evening (February 6, Evening):
As an encouragement for you to gladly pray for one another, remember, first, that such prayer is the sweetest that God ever hears. Why? Because it is like the prayer of Christ. In all the incense which our Great High Priest now puts into the golden censer, there is not a single grain for himself. His intercession must be the most acceptable of all. Therefore, the more your prayer is like Christ's, the sweeter it will be to God. Consequently, while God surely accepts petitions for yourself, your pleadings for others, having in them more of the fruit of the Spirit, more love, more faith, more brotherly kindness, are—through the precious merits of Jesus—the sweetest oblation that you can offer to God, the very fat of your sacrifice!
Remember, second, that such prayer especially prevails with God. What wonders it has wrought! The Word of God teems with its marvelous deeds. Believer, you have a mighty tool in your hand. Use it well. Use it constantly. Use it with faith. In this way you will surely be a benefactor to your brothers and sisters. When you have the King's ear, speak to him for the suffering members of his body. When you are favored to draw very near to his throne, and the King himself says to you, "Ask, and it will be given to you," let your petitions be not for yourself alone, but also for the many who need his aid. If you have any grace at all and you are not an intercessor for your brethren, then that grace must be as tiny as a mustard seed. You have just enough grace to float your own soul free of the quicksand, but you have no deep floods of grace or else you would carry in your joyful ship a heavy cargo of the needs of others. And you would bring back from your Lord rich blessings for them, which—except for your prayers—they might never have obtained.
"O may my hand forget her skill,
my tongue be silent, cold, and still,
this bounding heart forget to beat,
if I forget the mercy-seat." (Hugh Stowell)†
†Click here for the full hymn and tune.
April 25
Are You For Real? (James 5:17–18)
Scripture for Day 115—James 5:17–18
17 Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. 18 Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit.
Devotional:
Consider the example of Elijah. "He prayed fervently." Literally, "in prayer he prayed." The point is not how fervently or how frequently Elijah prayed. The point is that he was a mere mortal just like you and me, and he prayed! The point is that prayer is available to each who sincerely comes to God through Christ. Your prayers might be weak, but your God is powerful. He does mighty things through prayer. The church that patiently and expectantly waits for the Lord to come will be a church that is marked by prayer.
Our Lord Jesus reminds us of the importance of our praying with and for each other, "Apart from me you can do nothing," (John 15:5). Our Lord gives great promises of the power of our praying with and for each other, "…if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them," (Matt. 18:19–20).
Our Lord paints his vision for your congregation here in James 5:13–18—Christians praising God joyfully, Christians confessing their sins openly, Christians praying for each other lovingly, the congregation together experiencing the power of the Lord. This is the exciting power that we open our lives to by corporate prayer. Is your involvement making your church more like that?
April 26
Are You For Real? (James 5:19–20)
Scripture for Day 116—James 5:19–20
19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
Devotional:
God's Word assures us that our faithful Savior will lose none of those whom the Father has given him. But in our day, many distort this teaching to assure themselves that if they simply "walk the sawdust trail" or "sign on the dotted line" and merely profess faith in Christ then they'll have "fire insurance" from ever going to hell, no matter what. In his Parable of the Sower, however, our Lord Jesus warns us against being either "stony-ground hearers" or "thorny-ground hearers" (Matt. 13:1–22). Moreover, throughout the book of James, God warns us against a sham faith which is merely talk and is fruitless and rootless and dead. It is not saving faith.
Along that line, in John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, Christian and Hopeful discuss a character called Temporary. Temporary represents those who at some point show strong interest in the things of the Lord but later backslide and turn away from the Lord.
How can this be? Why are there "temporary" Christians? Christian and Hopeful note that first, notwithstanding the fact that some feel guilty for their sin and fear its penalty, their hearts are never really changed. Second, they fear what other people think of them so much that it overcomes any desire for heaven or deliverance from sin and hell. Third, consequently they're ashamed to be associated with a religion which is held in contempt by the world. Finally, in order to stifle their guilt-feelings and fears of God's wrath, they harden their hearts. Christian put it in a nutshell,
"Though the consciences of such men are awakened, yet their minds are not changed."
In other words, a temporary Christian has never really had his heart (mind, emotions, and will) supernaturally transformed by God himself. "Unless one is born again [or born from above], he cannot see the Kingdom of God" (John 3:3). The temporary Christian has never been truly born from above; he has never been genuinely converted.
Verse 19 says, "if anyone among you wanders from the truth…" In other words, God says that it is possible for church members, for professing Christians, to stray. Some of those may be "temporary Christians" who have never been born from above and converted. Some of those may be genuine Christians who are really born again but who backslide for a time. Only God really knows for sure. What we know for sure is that God calls us to show concern for one another. "My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins."
April 27
Are You For Real? (James 5:19–20)
Scripture for Day 117—James 5:19–20
19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
Devotional:
Verse 19 says, "if anyone among you wanders from the truth…" In other words, God says that it is possible for church members, for professing Christians, to stray. Some of those may be "temporary Christians" who have never been born from above and converted. Some of those may be genuine Christians who are born again but who backslide for a time. Only God really knows for sure. What we know for sure is that God calls us to show concern for one another. "My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins."
If "someone brings him back"—someone! It may especially be the responsibility of pastors and elders to seek to restore the erring, but according to God, it is not only their responsibility. It is also yours. As the 17th century English Puritan, Thomas Manton, wrote:
Besides the public exhortations of ministers, private Christians should mutually confer for comfort and edification. I say private Christians not only may, but must keep up Christian communion among themselves: Heb. 3:13, "Exhort one another while it is called to-day." They are mutually to stir up one another by speeches that tend to discover sin, to prevent hardness of heart and apostasy. God hath severally dispensed his gifts, that we might mutually be beholding to one another. Therefore the apostle calleth it, 1 Pet. 4:10, "the dispensation of the manifold grace of God."†
You might not be your brother's keeper, but you certainly are your brother's brother (or sister). "Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God. But exhort one another every day, as long as it is called 'today,' that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin. For we have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end." (Heb. 3:12–14).
† Thomas Manton, An Exposition of the Epistle of James, 1693 [Banner of Truth, 1968], pp. 475–476
April 28
Are You For Real? (James 5:19–20)
Scripture for Day 118—James 5:19–20
19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
Devotional:
In John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, Christian and Hopeful discuss a character called Temporary. Temporary represents those who at some point show strong interest in the things of the Lord but later backslide and turn away. In this discussion, Bunyan not only explains why some are temporary in their Christian walk but then he also presents downward steps which gradually reveal that they have never been genuinely converted by the Lord.
1. As much as they can, they avoid thoughts of God, death, and future judgment.
2. Bit by bit, they avoid private spiritual duties such as reading Scripture, praying, fighting temptation, and confessing sin.
3. They begin avoiding the company of earnest Christians.
4. Gradually, they drift away from public Christian duties such as public worship and Bible study and corporate prayer meetings.
5. They start to find as much fault as they can in the lives of Christians as an excuse to throw off their own profession of faith.
6. They begin to closely associate with the wicked.
7. They begin to give way to sinful and wicked talk in secret.
8. They begin to play with little sins openly.
9. Eventually, they become very hardened and publicly show themselves for what they really are.
These are very bad signs. Notwithstanding their previous confession, these backsliders are actually unrepentant and unconverted. Unless God intervenes by a miracle of grace in order to rescue them, they will go to hell! They literally don't have a prayer ... except the prayer of repentance. Do you see yourself in this description? Then cry out to God for mercy in Christ. Do you see a fellow church member following that path? Then it is your duty to seek to reclaim and restore him! Remember that "…if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins."
April 29
Are You For Real? (James 5:19–20)
Scripture for Day 119—James 5:19–20
19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
Devotional:
Some believers fear that their salvation depends on them so that they can actually lose it. Is that what God says in these verses? Before we answer that, let's get our feet on solid ground.
God makes it clear in his Word that you cannot be saved today and lost tomorrow. Our Lord Jesus Christ saves his sheep forever. He gives his elect eternal salvation. "I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand" (John 10:28). When the Lord converts you, you pass from death to life. You are transferred from the darkness of Satan's empire to the light of God's kingdom. "The Father ... has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins" (Col. 1:12–14). But if that's the case, how can the backslider need to be saved all over again from spiritual death?
Before we can answer that, we need to ask a second question. Who knows who are actually elect and born again? First, God knows objectively. God's Word says, "The Lord knows those who are his" (2 Tim. 2:19a). Second, you know subjectively as God assures you by his Holy Spirit working through the Word. "The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ…" (Rom. 8:16–17). But as far as other people are concerned, they must look on the outward appearance. They must deduce whether or not we are converted from what they hear us say and what they see us do. They are bound to judge us by this test—"Let everyone who names the name of the Lord depart from iniquity" (2 Tim. 2:19b).
Our text is not written from God's vantage point, nor from the perspective of what we know about ourselves, but from the point of view of fellow-Christians observing one another's lives and hearing one another's talk. To them, if one backslides, it must call into question whether or not he is genuinely born again. Why? Because they see him failing to pass the only test they can apply, namely, that he professes the name of the Lord but is not departing from iniquity. It's in this sense that these verses warn us that eternity is at stake when a fellow church member wanders away from the Lord.
In the church, we must look on one another as those who profess Christ. And our great concern must be to encourage each other the whole way through to the Celestial City. We must learn to see backsliding as if it is evidence that the person has never really taken hold of Christ at all. We must hurry to them. We must seek to recover them for our Lord.
In other words, as important as membership in the visible church is, it is not an automatic guarantee of salvation. Within every fellowship there are those whose profession is not real and whose attachment to Christ is not yet a genuine saving faith. Their true condition, as still in bondage to sin and death, becomes evident to the caring eyes of those who watch within the fellowship. Turning away from the truth and from the life that accords with the truth, gives a revealing testimony to how things really are. It calls for a spirit of concern in every truly Christian heart.
April 30
Are You For Real? (James 5:20)
Scripture for Day 120—James 5:20
20 …know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.
Devotional:
As a final observation on James' teaching, take note of the verbs he uses here to describe what he calls us to do for each other as we pursue our responsibility of loving, mutual encouragement and care in the church. "Know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins."
These verbs express various aspects of the work of salvation. They express things which only the living God—the Father, in Christ, by the Holy Spirit—can do. The living God alone can bring a sinner back, rescue him from eternal death, and blot out his sins.
How then does God expect us to do these things? The answer is that he doesn't expect us to do it; but he does expect us to offer ourselves as instruments for his doing so through us. God works through means. And one of his chief means is the loving fellowship of believers. These verbs express the earnestness and effort to which God calls in expressing our spiritual concern for one another. Though you cannot convert others, you must try to do so. Though you cannot rescue them from death, you must strive to do so as if their destiny rests with you. Though you cannot cover their sins, you must offer yourself as an instrument to the Son of God who can do so, and hold no sacrifice too great if only they are saved.
The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost. He has sought and saved you. Now he calls you to reach out in love in order to encourage one another in the faith and to call sinners to salvation in Christ Jesus.
This final exhortation ties together the themes of the letter of James. To pursue each other in order to encourage one another in Christ is the proper response to trials. In so doing, you show care to the needy. You bridle your tongue to constructive rather than destructive ends. You forsake the world in humility and help others to do the same. This final exhortation summons you not only to hear the Word of God in faith, but also to do the Word in faith and thus reap the blessings of grace.
