Brothers and Sisters in the Lord,
So far in our Sunday morning study of the Epistle of James, and particularly 1:13, we have learned that God our Father is not the source of our temptations. Simply stated, we cannot say when we are being tempted that He is doing it. For James tells us most emphatically that God cannot be tempted by evil, and that He tempts no one. And this being the case, it is very clear that the blame for our experiences of temptation—and the sins that result—cannot be passed on to our heavenly Father, or to anyone or anything else for that matter.
But in 1:14-16, James moves us deeper into a Biblical understanding of temptation. He will show us its true source. And then he will reveal to us the way that temptation inevitably progresses until it finally reaches its terrible consummation. You can see the awful trajectory for yourself as James sets it out in verse 15—“desire,” then “sin,” and then “death.” Then in verse 16 he will sound a sobering warning for each of us to heed—“Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers.”
The immediate relevance of this passage—1:14-16—should be very apparent to us. It has been called “one of the most powerful statements about sin in the New Testament.” In fact, we could well argue that here James presents us with the history of the world in three simple words: “desire,” “sin,” and “death.” This inexorable downward spiral explains everything about our own individual lives as well as the events of world history. These three words will help us to see and understand ourselves, and the reason we do what we do in our rebellion against God. And in these words we will also discover the key to interpreting our world through the lens of Scripture, allowing us to grasp both the reality of man’s terminal depravity as well as the glorious remedy in the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Let’s commit ourselves to fervent prayer for the preaching of God’s Word. May His Word fill our hearts with the knowledge of His blessed truth, and equip us for every good work in His Name.
I love you all so much,
Mike