The faith that works recognizes the true source of temptation...

At the church where I serve we have been spending our time together looking at a letter that is recorded for us in the New Testament of the Bible called the book of James. The book of James was written by a man named James, who was the half brother of Jesus who repeatedly doubted Jesus claim to be God, but became a follower of Jesus who was the pastor at the church in Jerusalem and who was ultimately killed for believing that Jesus was God.

 James turned from being a doubter in Jesus to being a pastor of Jesus church and an author of this letter that is recorded for us in the Bible after seeing Jesus after He was raised from the dead. And as we look at this letter that was written by the half brother of Jesus, our hope and our prayer is that God would enable us to wrap our heads, hearts, and hands around several timeless truths that occur in the life of the faith that works in such a way that results in us living lives that look like Jesus.

Last week, we looked at the opening section of the book of James and discovered that that the faith that works trusts God in the midst of temptation. The faith that works trusts God in the midst of temptation because trusting God in the midst of temptation results in us becoming more like Jesus. We discovered that the faith that works trusts God in the midst of temptation because trusting God in the midst of temptation requires wisdom. The faith that works trusts God in the midst of temptation trusting God in the midst of temptation recognizes the temporary nature of our earthly circumstances. And the faith that works trusts God in the midst of temptation because trusting God in the midst of temptation results in the reward of eternal life.

This week, I would like for us to pick up where we left off last week. And as we jump into this next section of this letter, we are going to discover another timeless truth about the faith that works itself out in our lives in a way that results in us living lives that look like Jesus. So let’s discover this timeless truth together, beginning in James 1:13:

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

James begins this section of his letter to early followers of Jesus by continuing to address the issue of temptation and how we respond to the temptation that we face as a result of the circumstances that we face. James launches into this issue of temptation by commanding followers of Jesus “Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God". When James uses the word tempted here, this word means to entice someone into improper behavior.

As we discovered last week, there are temptations what we face when it comes to responding to the various circumstances we face. You see, the temptations that we face internally are the result of circumstances that we can experience externally. The issue that James is addressing here is the issue of our response to the temptation that we face as a result of the circumstances that we face, because while we are not necessarily responsible for the circumstances we face, we are responsible for our response to those circumstances

And apparently, there were followers of Jesus who were claiming that God enticed followers of Jesus into circumstances where they could act improperly. There were followers of Jesus who were claiming that God tempted people by placing them into situations where they could respond to the temptation in a way that rebelled and went against the message and teachings of Jesus.

James responded to that claim by commanding followers of Jesus not to make the claim that they were being enticed by God in a way that could result in them rebelling against God. And it is here, in this command, that we see James reveal for us a timeless truth when it comes to the faith that works. And that timeless truth is this: The faith that works recognizes the true source of temptation. Just as it was for followers of Jesus in James day; just as it has been for followers of Jesus throughout history, the faith that works recognizes the true source of temptation.

And in James 1:13-18, we will see James reveal for us three different ways that the faith that works recognizes the true source of temptation. We see James reveal that first way that the faith that works recognizes the true source of temptation in the second half of verse 13. Let’s look at it together:

for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone.

Here we see James reveal for us the reality that the faith that works recognizes that temptation does not come from God. When James states “for God cannot be tempted by evil”, this phrase, in the language that this letter was originally written in, literally means “God is incapable of being tempted”. James point is that temptation does not come from God because God is incapable of being tempted. God, in His very nature, is impervious to temptation. There is nothing that can tempt God to do something that is morally or socially reprehensible, because God is beyond temptation. God, in His perfection, makes temptation towards evil impotent.

But not only is God incapable of being tempted. In addition, James explains that He Himself does not tempt anyone. James point here is that temptation does not come from God because God does not tempt others to rebel against Him. God does not sit up in Heaven and attempt to entice people into doing things that dishonor Him. God does not spend His time thinking of ways that He can place us in circumstances where we will respond in ways that rebel against Him.

Now a natural question that arises here is “Well Dave, if God is not the source of temptation, that what is the source of temptation? If God is not the One who is enticing us to do things that rebel against Him, then who is?”

Tomorrow, we will see James provide the answer to that question…