6
Faith on Display in Your Priorities
Question 1:
When has an unexpected change turned out better than the original plan?
THE POINT
No matter what lies ahead, maintain your trust and dependence on God.
THE BIBLE MEETS LIFE
Olaf, the snowman in Frozen, dreamed about leaving the dreary days of winter and experiencing the warmth of summer. The audience entered his daydream as he sang the song titled, “In Summer,” about all the wonderful things he had heard about the season of summer. He sang about blowing fuzz off dandelions from the lawn, laying on the beach under an umbrella, riding in a canoe on a lake, going for a swim, relaxing in a jacuzzi, dancing under a gazebo, going on a picnic, and experiencing the warmth of the sun.
Even the children watching the movie know exactly what will happen to Olaf if he ever gets his wish. However, the lovable, naive snowman doesn’t realize that he will never see summer because he will melt in the spring.
We’re not fictitious animated characters, but we can also be wrong about the future and what we plan to do. When that happens, how do we respond? In this last session from the book of James, we’ll see where our focus should be even as we plan for the future.
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
James 4:13-17
13 Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” 16 As it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. 17 If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for them.
Nothing is wrong with planning. In fact, the Bible contains several proverbs that encourage us to make plans:
- Like the ant, wise people plan and prepare for times of need (Prov. 6:6-11).
- Wise people include counselors when planning (15:22; 20:18).
- Diligent people make plans, which leads to abundance (21:5).
In Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus told a parable about wise and foolish virgins. Jesus called the unprepared wedding attendants “foolish,” but He called those who prepared “wise” (Matt. 25:1-13). Jesus also spoke of the wisdom of planning as He called people to count the cost of following Him (Luke 14:28-33).
Planning is important, but planning is also fallible. In business, even the wisest executives can’t know what the future holds. Only God knows the future, and only God is infallible. These truths should humble even the most confident planner. However, the businesspeople in James’s example lacked humility and made their plans as if they confidently knew the future. Plans are good, but these people were boasting in their arrogance. Their arrogant action was not that they made plans; it was that they thought they knew or could control the future.
Question 2:
How did the COVID season affect your planning for the future?
Not only did the businesspeople in James’s example not know what the future would be like, they did not even know if they would have a future. Life, James cautioned, is just a vapor that is here for a moment and then disappears. Only God knows how long we will live (Job 14:1-6). Stan Gerlach made this point as he delivered a eulogy and presented the gospel at a funeral. He said, “You never know when God is going to take your life. At that moment, there’s nothing you can do about it. Are you ready?” When he finished, he sat down and immediately fell over and died. Members of his family tried to resuscitate him but were unable to do so.1
Life is precious and fragile. We should plan, but we must subject our plans to God’s will. We don’t put our trust in our plans. We put our trust in God, submitting our plans to His will.
James 5:7-9
7 Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. 8 You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. 9 Don’t grumble against one another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door!
In the passage that precedes this section, James criticized the rich who gained their wealth off the backs of their hired workers while they themselves lived self-indulgent lifestyles. This group would include unjust farmers who supported their lavish lifestyles by paying unjust wages and abusing their power to condemn those who opposed them.
The unjust farmer might unjustly control his workers, but he can’t control the rain. Just as the businesspeople in James 4:13-17 needed to depend on God because they could never fully anticipate the future, farmers also must rely on God because only He can produce the rain they need to be successful. Without the rain, farmers will not survive. When the rain comes, the crops will flourish. The prophet Jeremiah painted a picture of what happens when the needed rain doesn’t come: the drought leads to mourning, shame, and humiliation (Jer. 14:1-4). Rain is essential, but only God can send the rain. We are dependent on God for what we need and all we have.
The patient farmer knows that. He doesn’t give up, but he waits patiently for God to send the rain to water and nourish the crops. James declared, “The farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains” (v. 7). He trusts that God will send the needed amount of rain at the right time.
In the same way, we are to be patient as we wait for the Lord’s return. Just as the farmer doesn’t know when the rain will come, so we don’t know when the Lord will return (Mark 13:32). What we do know is that He will return because Jesus has promised that He would (John 14:3).
James wrote, “the Lord’s coming is near.” James wrote this truth some two thousand years ago, and because we think in terms of hours and days, we might think James missed the mark. But nearness is a relative term, and the apostle Peter encouraged his readers not to “forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day” (2 Pet. 3:8). Exactly when Jesus will come is not the point; that He will come is what is important. The first-century believers needed to be prepared, and so do we.
The patient farmer exemplified the attitude that we are to have as we wait for the Lord’s return. For now, we are in a dry spell, and we experience a similar pain to the farmer’s as he looked at the parched, thirsty soil. We must endure evil for a season, but Christ will return and set things right in His eternal kingdom. That truth should encourage us to be patient and strengthen our hearts.
Question 3:
What are some practical ways we can ensure that our plans are aligned to God’s will?
James 5:10-11
10 Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11 As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy.
To underscore the value of patience and trust in the face of whatever difficulties we face, James pointed us to the example of the prophets. God’s servants were familiar with suffering. Even though the prophets suffered hardships and even persecution, they didn’t give up. They stayed the course.
Job suffered without ever knowing why. He lost his wealth, his children, and his health. God allowed Satan to attack him and never explained to him the reason. As he suffered his losses, his friends came to comfort him, but instead, they berated him for his assumed sin. Even his wife urged him to “curse God and die!” (Job 2:9), but he would not. Yet, in all his pain, frustration and suffering, Job refused to blame God. He endured the suffering that came his way. He stayed the course, and God rewarded him in the end.
Question 4:
Why is it so important that we remain focused on the Lord’s return?
Believers around the world continue to endure great hardships. Believers like Leah Sharibu. Sharibu was fourteen when Boko Haram terrorists kidnapped her along with over a hundred other students from her school in northeast Nigeria in 2018. The Nigerian government negotiated the freedom of all the girls that had been with her, but Boko Haram refused to let Sharibu go because she refused to renounce her Christian faith. Her fellow students who returned home told stories of Sharibu’s determined stand for her faith.2 Sharibu is staying the course.
Persecution is a clear and present danger for millions of Christians today. Instead of having the protections afforded those living in free countries like the United States, they live in imminent threat of various levels of persecution. But they stay the course.
“We count as blessed those who have persevered” (v. 11). These blessed people have God’s approval and will receive His reward. They stayed the course.
Question 5:
What are some ways our group has helped you stay the course?
PLANNING AND PRIORITIES
Where in your life have you left God out of the planning process? Choose the area listed below where this is true. Then write a way or ways you can prioritize God’s will from this point forward.
Finances:
Leisure time:
Serving the Lord:
Family responsibilities:
Career advancement:
Other:
“Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”
PROVERBS 19:21
LIVE IT OUT
We don’t know what the future holds for us, but we can respond to the challenges with God’s help. Choose one of the following applications:
- Pray with praise. Trust God, knowing Christ’s return will bring full justice, freedom, and deliverance. Consider ways you can pray and praise God right now for how He is working in your life.
- Pray over your plans. Trust God with all your scheduling, appointments, and plans. If those plans change, thank Him and pray to see how He is at work throughout your day.
- Pray for the persecuted church. We need to do more than admire the steadfastness of the young girl who has the courage to stand for her beliefs. Take time to pray for her and other believers in our world who face persecution for their belief in Jesus. Check out imb.org for specific places and ways to pray.
We likely won’t face the kind of impossible future our friend the snowman faced. But we will face unforeseen circumstances and our options may not seem attractive. It’s in those times that it’s even more important that we turn to God. He has a plan for our lives, and it’s a good one!
Teacher's Notes
Last Lesson in Series
If COVID did anything good it was to make us stop and look up for what would happen next in life.
James wrote to encourage believers to live by
faith in a world that’s in turmoil.
Life at its fullest is lived in accordance with
the will of God, understanding that what He desires is always best.
THE POINT
Our priorities for life are to be shaped by our
trust and dependence on God, no matter what the future holds.
James begins this morning with the plans we
make in life
James 4:13-17
Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we
will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make
money.” Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life?
You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. Instead, you
ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.” As
it is, you boast in your arrogant schemes. All such boasting is evil. If
anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn’t do it, it is sin for
them.
James wants us to think about the plans we make
in life with God and His purposes in mind.
I. Your plans
and God’s will.
How
do you plan and prioritize your future with God’s will in mind?
Most
Christians would at least say they desire to live according to God’s will. Yet
in practice we may do otherwise — if not intentionally, at least inadvertently.
We make our plans and establish our priorities. Planning and prioritizing are
not wrong, but both are to be done with a commitment of submission to God’s
will. James used imagery from the business world to illustrate his point. The
picture is of traveling businessmen who are anticipating future business
ventures. Of course, being prudent businessmen, they develop plans. Again,
James is not against that. His concern is with planning as if our lives were
completely under our control.
We are to include God in all our planning and
allow His will to shape what we do.
James challenges us to remember that our lives
are short. Time is fleeting. By asking “What is your life?” James also questions the significance and
importance of our temporal plans.
James rebukes arrogant people who boast about their future plans. He challenges them to not put too much confidence
in their own efforts to take care of themselves, but rather to seek the Lord’s will and discover His plans
for their lives (James 4:15).
Story:
Stan Gerlach made this point as he delivered a eulogy and presented the gospel
at a funeral. He said, “You never know when God is going to take your life. At
that moment, there’s nothing you can do about it. Are you ready?” When he
finished, he sat down and immediately fell over and died. Members of his family
tried to resuscitate him but were unable to do so.1
James says life is short no matter how many
years we live. Don’t be deceived into thinking that you have lots of remaining
time to live for Christ, enjoy your loved ones, or do what you know you should.
Live for God today! Then no matter when your life ends, you will have fulfilled
God’s plan for you.
When you are making long-range plans, how much
do you actually factor in the will of the Lord? Do you pause to think about the
brevity of life, the effect of the unknown, or what God may desire to do in
your life?
Plan ahead but hold your plans loosely. Put
God’s desires at the center of your planning; He will never disappoint you.
As Christians, we not only are to avoid doing
evil, but we are also to determine to do the good.
We tend to think that doing wrong is sin. But
James tells us that sin is also not doing right. (Sins of commission and sins
of omission) it is a sin to lie; it can also be a sin to know the truth and not
tell it. It is a sin to speak evil of someone; it is also a sin to avoid them
when you know that they need your friendship. We should be willing to help as
the Holy Spirit guides us. If God has directed you to do a kind act, to render
a service, or to restore a relationship, do it.
Next, James wants to talk about living our
lives with Jesus’ return always in mind.
James 5:7-9
Be patient, then, brothers and sisters, until
the Lord’s coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable
crop, patiently waiting for the autumn and spring rains. You too, be patient
and stand firm, because the Lord’s coming is near. Don’t grumble against one
another, brothers and sisters, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at
the door!
II. Focus on
Christ’s return. The Christian
believer is to face the trials of life with patient endurance. The Christian
believer takes actions that make them spiritually strong. The Christian
believer hopes in the imminent coming of the Lord. Believers are accountable to
the Lord for their behavior.
How does Christ’s return figure into your plans
and priorities?
What area of life have you found it easy to
completely depend on God? What area is harder for you?
Is a belief in the return of the Lord truly a
practical part of your belief system? What effects does that belief have on the
way you view life and establish priorities?
Just as the businesspeople in James 4:13-17
needed to depend on God because they could never fully anticipate the future,
farmers also must rely on God because only He can produce the rain, they need
to be successful. Without the rain, farmers will not survive. When the rain
comes, the crops will flourish. Rain is essential, but only God can send the
rain. We are dependent on God for what we need and all we have.
James 5:10-11
Brothers and sisters, as an example of patience
in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord.
As you know, we count as blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of
Job’s perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord
is full of compassion and mercy.
To underscore the value of patience and trust
in the face of whatever difficulties we face, James points us to the example of
the prophets. God’s servants were familiar with suffering. Even though the
prophets suffered hardships and even persecution, they didn’t give up. They
stayed the course.
Job
suffered without ever knowing why. He lost his wealth, his children, and his
health. God allowed Satan to attack him and never explained to him the reason.
As he suffered his losses, his friends came to comfort him, but instead, they
berated him for his assumed sin. Even his wife urged him to “curse God and
die!” (Job 2:9), but he would not. Yet, in all his pain, frustration and
suffering, Job refused to blame God. He endured the suffering that came his
way. He stayed the course, and God rewarded him in the end.
III. Stay the
course. Believers are to reject
the tendency to grumble against others, for they too will be subject to the
judgment. God’s blessing comes to those who persevere in faith. The Lord is
compassionate and merciful in His dealings with His people. God has a purpose that
ultimately will be accomplished.
Why is it so important that we remain focused
on the Lord’s return?
What are some situations you are currently
dealing with that are demanding patience and endurance? What is the source of
those attributes for you?
PLANNING AND PRIORITIES
Where in your life have you left God out of the
planning process?
Finances
Leisure time
Serving the Lord
Family responsibilities
Career
“Many are the plans in a person’s heart, but it
is the Lord’s purpose that prevails.”
PROVERBS 19:21
Conclusion
We don’t know what the future holds for us, but
we do know who holds the future.
Pray over your plans.
Trust God with all your scheduling,
appointments, and plans. If those plans change, thank Him, and pray to see how
He is at work throughout your day.
Many factors go into decisions we make in life.
We list our options, determine our priorities, maybe seek counsel, then make a
decision based on — what? That is the most critical question of all. On what
basis do I make the most important decisions of life? Is it prestige? money?
popularity? interest? skillset? need? Maybe all of those to some degree. But
something else is even more important. That is faith — trust and dependence on
God that leads to searching out His will, conforming to His call, and making
His priority the priority.
In this session we were reminded of the
importance of subjecting our plans to God’s will. We were challenged to focus
our attention on the truth that Christ will come again; therefore, we are to
serve Him well and do our best to influence others to prepare for that glorious
event. Finally, we are encouraged to stay the course even when the going gets
tough, for therein comes God’s blessing. When our priorities flow out of our
faith, no matter what lies ahead, we can maintain our trust and dependence on
God who does all things well.
