Chad Coley
Series in James/ Faith That Works
God Is Good All The Time
James 1:16-18
19 April 2020
James is confronting a common error that believers make when they go through tough times. James' message to his readers back then, and to us today, is not to be deceived.
He says this because his readers were being deceived about the character of God. In an ultimate sense, the deception is caused by Satan. Whilst Satan doesn't have the ability to deceive everyone at the same time, he uses the world system to deceive us and conform us to its image and its standards. And this goes all the way back to the garden!
Satan’s schemes haven't changed one bit. He continues to propagate the lie that what God has forbidden is actually better for us.
James is saying that if we grumble and mumble against God then we are in sin. Aside from this caution, James also offers a word of correction — that God actually is good. He is the very definition of "good". However, we need to understand "good" in its proper perspective — that "good" doesn't preclude hardship and difficulty. Goodness is the nature of God; and what He gives us is a reflection of His character. Therefore trials are also good because they have a sanctifying effect on us. God's gifts are not just good, they are also "perfect" . They are fully sufficient for all our needs.
James then moves on to the immutability of God: He is unchanging. Whilst the shadow of the dial may shift with the movement of the sun, God does not shift one bit in His character. He is constant and everlasting. His immutability is a reflection of His nature and character. James ties the immutability of God to His character. In other words. God is not just good, He is unchangingly good.
What's more, James ties the immutability of God to our election. When God chose us, He did so intentionally and deliberately to save us specifically. Therefore, when we are discontent with God's provision for us, we are actually rising up against His election of us. Our discontentment is an affront to His electing sovereignty. He caused us to be born according to His word of Truth ... as opposed to the word of Satan. So if we are born again from death to life because of Truth, we need to continue living our lives with that Truth directing our thoughts and actions and attitudes. This means that we need to view life through the lens of God's Truth about His goodness instead of the lens of Satan's lies that are intended to deceive us into thinking that God is vicious and aloof and uncaring.
We need to understand God causes us to be born again so that we would be His first fruits. In other words, we would be among those who glorify God and are grateful for the good that He has done in us and for us.