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1 Peter 4:19 – Committed Suffering

Posted on February 22, 2017 by Will

Therefore, let those suffering according to the will of God, as to a faithful Creator let them commit their souls to Him by doing good.

Truth to Learn

If you suffer for the cause of Christ, place yourself in His hands and serve Him faithfully.

Behind the Words

In the past we have noted that there are two different words for “will” in the New Testament, one meaning “desirous will” and the other meaning “determined will.” The “will” in today’s verse is “determined will.” So this verse is saying “… those who suffer as God has determined …”

The words “let … commit” are translated from the Greek word paratithēmi, which is made up of para, meaning “beside” or “alongside” and tithēmi, meaning “to put or place.” Hence, this word literally means “to place alongside.” It is a banking term that means “to deposit.” The implication is “to place something into someone else’s care.” It is expressed here in the imperative mood, indicating a command.

“Doing good” is from agathopoiia, made up of a form of agathos, meaning “that which is generally good” and a form of poieō, meaning “to make or to do.” Hence, this word refers to doing good things.

Meaning Explained

Whenever we see a “therefore” or a “wherefore,” we need to look closely at what it is “there for.” What has Peter been talking about? He has been talking about the fact that those who live out their faith with a positive witness as a born again Christian will very likely suffer for it. We, who are doing all we can to please God and to glorify Him may suffer, while the wicked ones and the irreverent ones may appear to prosper. But we who are saved only by the grace of God Himself have a future hope that the unsaved don’t have. Therefore, …

let those who suffer according to what God has determined as to a faithful Creator let them commit their souls to Him by doing good.

What is Peter telling us we should do if we are suffering according to God’s determined plan? He says we should commit our souls to him in doing good things. The word translated “in” could also be interpreted as “by.” So the way we commit our souls to His care is by doing good works. And why should we do this? We should do good works because He is the Creator, the Mighty God, the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And because He is faithful, He will not let us down. We are to place our souls into His care believing:

The One having begun a good work in you will finish it until the day of Jesus Christ; (Philippians 1:6b)

So … if you should suffer because of your faith, don’t despair, don’t panic, and don’t worry. Simply commit your soul into His care by continuing to do good things as He has instructed you and He will take care of you.

Application

Are you completely sold-out to God? Are you willing to do anything He asks you to do? Are you willing to suffer unjustly simply because you claim the name of Christ? Not all of us will have to suffer for Him, but if you do, commit your entire being – body, soul, and spirit – into His care and praise His name!

In God's service, for His glory,

James 5:15 – Chastening Love

Posted on June 30, 2015 by Will

And the prayer of faith will save the sickly, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he may have committed sin, it will be forgiven him.

Truth to Learn

God chastens those whom He loves and He forgives those who submit to Him, confessing their sins.

Behind the Words

The word translated “prayer” is not proseuchomai which was translated “prayer” in the previous two verses. This is a similar but different word, euchē. It refers to “a wish” or “a vow.” Since it is used in such obvious connection with proseuchomai, it is clear that James is referring to something other than simply a prayer. This word only appears in two other places in the New Testament (Act 18:18 and Act 21:23), both of which specifically refer to a “vow.”

The word translated “sickly” in this verse is also different from the word translated “sick” in the previous verse. Here it is kamnō, which refers to “one who is faint, weary, or sickly.” This implies that this is an ongoing sickness, producing weariness.

“Has committed” is translated from a form of poieō, meaning “to make” or “to do.” It is expressed here in the perfect tense indicating past action with an ongoing effect with the emphasis on the effect. Hence, this implies that the ongoing sickness is the result of past sins that have not been dealt with.

Meaning Explained

James is not simply saying that a salvation prayer or a prayer of regaining ones salvation (if you believe one can lose one’s salvation, which the Scriptures do not teach) will produce the sought after healing in this verse. He’s talking about a vow of commitment to change one’s ways. It is apparently a vow that is made in the presence of spiritual leaders of the church and implies that the person knows the reason for the sickness (being the direct, chastening hand of a loving Heavenly Father).

Though not all unpleasant events in our lives are the direct result of chastening, we all need to learn to be sensitive to the disciplining God provides. In Hebrews 12:5, 6 it says:

… my son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, nor be faint when you are being admonished by him; for whom the Lord loves he chastens …

We choose how we react to such chastening. We can either be like the children of Israel as they wandered in the wilderness being stiff necked and resisting such chastening, or we can humble ourselves before the hand of Almighty God and in due time He will lift us up. Personally, I don’t like the way God’s chastening feels, but I praise Him for it, because I know it is applied in love with the intent of making me more like His Son.

James tells us that sickness which is the result of refusal to deal with sin in one’s life can be healed. He clearly says that God will raise up such a person when he wholeheartedly vows to change his or her ways and submit to God.

Application

The worst thing a Christian can do is to resist God. If you are a born-again Christian and you are refusing to deal with sin in your life, God will chasten you, because He loves you. And, if this describes you, my dear brother or sister in Christ, I beg of you to humble yourself before God. Confess your sin and deal with it. You will discover that His mercy is great and His love is sure!

In God's service, for His glory,

James 2:9 – Sinful Favoritism

Posted on March 18, 2015 by Will

but if you show partiality, you commit sin, being convicted by the law as transgressors.

Truth to Learn

When we show special attention to those who are rich and powerful, we are sinning!

Behind the Words

“But if you show partiality” is a conditional clause, which, based on the grammatical construction, is a first class condition. There are three classes of conditional clauses in the Greek New Testament. The first class condition assumes the “if” clause (called the protasis) is true. Since James has just accused us of showing partiality, it is natural that he would use this first class condition. Because of this, some would use the word “since” rather than “if.”

The word translated “partiality” is a word that we looked at in verse one of this chapter, literally meaning “to lift up the face on a person,” that is, to show favoritism. Hence, in its root meaning, it refers to “treating one person in a more favorable way than another.”

The word translated “commit” is from the Greek word ergadzomai, which refers to “work or toil,” as one would do for an occupation. It is much stronger than the word poieō, meaning “to do,” which is usually used in reference to sinning. Hence, James is saying that when we show partiality, we are working hard at sinning. This is not something that a Christian should be doing.

“Convicted” is translated from a form of elegchō, meaning “to reprove, rebuke, or tell a fault.” Used as it is here, it implies a rebuke which produces a belief of the transgression without need of further proof or evidence.

Meaning Explained

Continuing on James’ summary of this topic from the previous verse, we now see the other shoe drop. In the previous verse, James said, “If you are as concerned for the good of others as you are for yourself, you do well.” Now he says, “but since you show favoritism toward someone because of their outward appearance, you are being selfish, you are committing sin, and the law declares you to be guilty.”

In these first nine verses of chapter two, James is talking about rich people and poor people, and the way we treat them. Notice, however, that James does not rebuke us for our treatment of poor people nearly as much as he does for our treatment of the rich. We tend to focus our attention on the outward appearance of people. The more beautiful and well off a person appears, the more we are attracted to them. We are more likely to talk to a rich person and try to make him or her feel welcome in our church than we are a poor person. That’s sinful!

God, on the other hand, does not focus on the outward appearance and, in fact, seems to favor the poor people by making them rich in faith. After all, when we have wealth, why do we need to have faith in God? But, when we are poor and in need, our faith gets strengthened.

Application

Most of us are willing to witness about salvation to the poor and homeless because it appears that they really need Christ. Today, let’s be just as willing to witness to rich and powerful people. They need Him even more!

In God's service, for His glory,