James: More GraceSample

It is very dangerous to follow all the desires of our hearts. We love the Lord and want to please him, but we have lots of sinful desires too. Our hearts can easily be divided, so we need to watch out!

There is a sinister and dangerous force on the loose, beckoning and pressuring us towards sin. The culprit is not God or the circumstances he allows us to experience. Temptation comes from our ‘own evil desire’ (v. 14); it comes from within our own hearts. When we give in to temptation, there can be no excuses; we have no one to blame but ourselves.

• James uses very graphic language to describe what is happening. How does he describe what our evil desires do (v. 14)?

James makes our sinful desires sound like a clever and dangerous kidnapper. These desires tempt us, whispering subtle and attractive lies that sound so plausible: ‘It would be perfectly understandable to behave like that, under the circumstances’ … ‘It will make you feel better’ ... ‘It will do you good.’ Lies. All lies. We are enticed and pulled towards sin by the selfish desires that constantly well up in our own hearts. 

Does it really matter that much if we obey these inner whispers? What will happen if we do? Many times in this letter James points his readers to the consequences of today’s decisions. He does so here.

• Persevering in loving and trusting Christ will lead to receiving the crown of life in the end (1:12). But what will the habit of giving in to temptation lead to? (v. 15)?

Here is an ugly family tree. Nurture the flicker of an evil thought and you will soon find that a sinful action or attitude has sprouted into life and is growing stronger every day. Sin breeds. It spreads. An action becomes a habit, and a habit becomes a character and a way of life. The end result will be death: separation from God forever.

You may be thinking, ‘Surely, when I do something wrong, I can repent and ask Christ for his forgiveness?’ Yes, you can. And wonderfully, Christ freely forgives those who sincerely repent and seek his grace. But James’ double-minded readers need a serious warning against taking sin lightly. James’ message is do not settle down with your sin. Do not let it become ‘full-grown’. Cut it down before disobeying God becomes the whole direction of your life. Be killing sin before it is killing you! Don’t be deceived: the root of sin is in your heart, in your desires. Be very careful what you wish for.

Pray

Pray you would heed James' warning too.