James 4:17

Verse of the Day Devotion: James 4:17

“Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.” – James 4:17

In my study of this verse, there are a couple valid ways to look at it, therefore I will present both.

First, that we make decisions about our lives, what we will do, where we will go, based on our own feelings and desires and not based on what God desires of us.  We make these big plans for our lives, visiting certain people, traveling to desired destinations, making this amount of money.  However, is this what God has called us to?  We decide on these things without looking at what God wants.  The idea here is that if we know what God wants of us and we do not pursue it because it is not what we want, then we who know nothing of the future seizes control from the one who does. This is seen from the previous verses. “Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit. Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that. But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil.” James 4:13-16. We know our calling, but we ignore it, or put it off, until we ourselves are ready.  We must spend serious time with God in prayer to be sure of what we are to do.  If we do not, and we follow our own desires rather than His, then we may find ourselves in sin.

Second, if we see a need or something we know is the right thing to do, and we refuse to do it.  Cotton Mather, a New England Puritan minister in the late 1600s to early 1700s, adopted this idea as a principle of action, saying ‘that the ability to do good in any case imposes an obligation to do it.’  The idea for him was “if he understands what his duty is; if he has the means of doing good to others, then he can promote a good cause; for example relieve the distressed, the poor, the prisoner, the oppressed; send the gospel to other lands, wipe away the tears from those who mourn or grieve, speak out in favor of those qualities that are positive and Godly, then he is under obligation to do it.”  If we choose not to get involved and we just ignore the good we can do, then we may find ourselves in sin.

As I said above, I believe both of these ideas are valid ways of looking at our focus verse.  Both allude to the idea of knowing the right thing to do but refusing to do it for selfish reasons.  If we have the means to help someone, then we should do it.  Remember the words of Jesus, “In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”  Matthew 7:12.  If we are in need and a brother or sister ignores us even when they know our situation, how would we feel?

In closing, too often we see sin as something we do, such as stealing, lying or murdering, however we forget that sin is also something we refuse to do, such as helping the poor or ignoring the oppressed.  Both types are wrong and ultimately sin.  Let’s remember that God has called us to love everyone, and love is more than a feeling, it is actions as well.  I encourage us all, myself included, to ensure that our plans are based on God’s will and not our own, and that if we see a need, we do all we can to meet that need.  God will see this and reward us.  “One who is gracious to a poor man lends to the LORD, And He will repay him for his good deed.” Proverbs 19:17.

William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries, Inc.

Proverbs 14:12

Verse of the Day Devotion: Proverbs 14:12

“There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” – Proverbs 14:12 
Many people have a distorted view of Christianity. Much of this comes because of the culture we find ourselves in today.  For instance, many have professed they are Christians but have also stated that abortion is a good thing and should be a valid choice for the mothers to choose.  Their idea is that a woman should have the right to do whatever they choose with their body.  However, the problem with this statement is not regarding their own body, but the body of the child that is within their womb.  Some truly believe that God is OK with killing the unborn.  Unfortunately, they are wrong in this assessment. This distortion of the truth has been a problem long before our time.  Paul said the following regarding the Jews in the first century, and this was regarding not just their ideas of Christianity, but Judaism as well.  And these verses speak greatly about our time as well.  “Brethren, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for them is for their salvation. For I testify about them that they have a zeal for God, but not in accordance with knowledge. For not knowing about God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.” Romans 10:1-4.  Let’s look at each of these verses a little closer. First, Paul states his heart’s desire is for the salvation of the Jews.  Being an Israelite himself, he understands their situation.  They have a zeal for God, they desired to do His will, but they did not understand that righteousness, and ultimately salvation, does not come from the law, but because of the work of Christ on the cross.  The observed the law which they believed came directly from God.  However, they missed the idea of the coming Messiah who would make things right.  They sinned not because they chose to, but out of ignorance.  Not understanding that salvation comes through the death of Christ which, if believed and accepted, would have the righteousness of Christ imparted on them, they sought salvation through what they believed at that time, which was their own righteousness.  And because of this refusal to accept the truth, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of Christ because they felt the keeping of the law was the answer. If we look at the beliefs of some in our churches, we see a very similar idea.  That is as long as they go to church, read the word, and try to do good, then God will be pleased.  Often, their Christian life is separated from the rest of their life, which causes much hypocrisy.  Often, they have not been told that this life is an ‘ALL IN’ life.  They are not taught that the Christian life is one that is wholly devoted to Christ and the work He did on the cross.  They base their salvation on either what they choose or understand, or by what their leadership tells them.  It is important that we be as the Bereans were in the first century.  “Now these (the Bereans) were more noble-minded than those in Thessalonica, for they received the word with great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.” Acts 17:11. We need to check and see if what we are told, and also what we have accepted as true really is truth. If we take the time to do this, then we can ensure that the way which “seems” right is not and make the adjustments to live the life that “truly is” right and pleasing to God. William Funkhouser MDiv, ThD, Founder and President of True Devotion Ministries, Inc.