Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. James 1:16–18, ESV
The last entry I made covered James 1:12-15. In that passage James warned us about the temptation to sin that can come in the midst of trials. Today’s passage builds on that warning with a glorious truth. We can defeat temptation by understanding that the only place genuine good gifts come from is God. Temptation to sin is an idea in our mind that we will be happier with the results of doing something disobedient to God than we will be doing something obedient to God. That is what happened to Adam and Eve in Genesis 3. God had set them up for joy. He had given them everything: a perfect home, a perfect spouse, a perfect job, perfect food, and intimate fellowship with Him. He told them not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil because, if they did, they would add bad to their experience of perfect good. They only knew the good. Eating of the tree would give them the option for evil: it would open the door to temptation. Sadly, they listened to the snake, ate the fruit, and all their offspring now know both good and evil. To help us in our struggle against sin and temptation, James reminds us that choosing sin never brings about good. Good, every good gift, comes from God. God is the only giver of good because God is the Father of lights. Nothing that comes from Him has any darkness in it. This is absolutely true all the time. There is no shadow of turning in Him. There is not even the hint of anything to be found in Him that would make Him the giver of evil. There is not one speck of creation that can offer you anything good that is contrary to Him. Good always comes from God. Where can you turn today as you try to accomplish Monday-life in this strange new world of ours? Just ask yourself these two simple questions: Do I want good? Where can I go to get good? Go to the God who created you to be the best of all His creatures (v.18). Spend time with Him today in His Word. Talk to Him about your desires. Trust Him. He is good. He is the only source of good. May God bless you in Christ today, Pastor Don Comments are closed.
|
From Pastor DonWriting about the Bible and praying that it will be of some good for someone. Archives
June 2021
|