James 1:5-11
Last week, we learned from Len Austria that problems are opportunities for us to grow and to mature in life. Problems also are opportunities to put God’s word to the test and experience the power of His word. Today, from verses 5-11, I’d like to talk about "How to Make up Your Mind". Life is full of decisions and life is basically a series of choices we make every day. We have to evaluate, decide, draw conclusions. Frank Boreham, a prominent Baptist minister in the early 1900s, said, "We make our decisions and then our decisions make us." The quality of your life will be determined by the kind of decisions you make in life. Some of them we regret, some of them we feel good about.
A young businessman went to an executive one day and asked for his wisdom, "What is the secret of business success?" The man said, "Wise decisions." "How can I learn to make wise decisions?" "Experience." "How do you get experience?" "Dumb decisions!"
The fact is, because we are human we all have a great possibility for error. We wait too long, we pay too much, we say the wrong thing. My favorite movie is “Back to the Future.” I can watch that movie again and again and would never get tired. I wish that DeLorean, the car with the time machine, is real! Then I could go back in time and correct all those bad decisions I made in the past, and then come back all happy and joyful just like Marty Mcfly. Don’t you wish there are cars like that? I don’t mind paying $10 a gallon on gas to get one of those. But unfortunately, it only happens in the movies. Bad decisions are bad decisions. We are to just accept it and learn from it.
James talks about how to make decisions. How do you make up your mind? He tells us the problem, then gives us the prescription, then he gives us the promise from God.
I. The PROBLEM: INDECISION
Verse 8 says, "A doubleminded man is unstable in all his ways." Double-mindedness is devastating and debilitating. It makes you unstable. The word is translated "confused" in many parts of the Bible. It's used to describe a drunk who's staggering, reeling, and unstable in all his ways. James is saying, "If you can't make up your mind it produces an unstable lifestyle. All your ways will be unstable. Constant turmoil."
3 ways indecision makes you unstable:
Unstable emotions. It's a strain when you can't decide. You worry and strain, you're confused. You can't sleep and can't eat. You wonder, "Did I do the right thing?" It creates emotional instability in your life when you can't make up your mind. William James said, "The most miserable person in the world is the person who is habitually indecisive." It causes unstable emotions.
Unstable relationships. When you’re indecisive, you can’t make a commitment to anything whether it is to church, school studies, marriage or career. So you switch careers; keep changing majors in school, or you’re not sure who is the right person to marry. You can't decide in a relationship.
Unstable spiritual life. Verse 7 says, "That man will not think that he'll receive anything from the Lord." It blocks your prayers. Indecision keeps God from giving and you from receiving what God has to offer. Some of you say, "Why doesn't God answer my prayers?" You always question God’s love.
Double-mindedness can lead to a double life, a spiritually schizophrenic Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde. In Pilgrim's Progress it talks about a man named Mr. Facing-Both-Ways. That's when you want to do your will and God's will at the same time. When you know what's right but you do wrong anyway. When you're trying to live for two people. On Sunday you come and sing "How Great is our God" and Monday you go AWOL. Double-mindedness produces a double life. It causes instability in all of your ways. It produces an unstable life style.
The problem is indecision. You can’t decide. You don’t know what to do. What’s the right thing to do? What's the solution? James says, "Get wisdom." "If any of you lacks wisdom he should ask God who gives generously to all without finding fault and it will be given to him." James gives us 3 practical steps. You admit, you ask, you anticipate.
1. Admit your need. Verse 5 says, "If any of you lacks wisdom..." I detect a little sarcasm in that statement. "If any of you don't have it all together." If you don’t have it all together, that means you’re a Christian. You humbly admit that you need help, and especially admit that you need God. To admit your need leads to repentance. (Repent means to turn to God). We make mistakes and bad decisions because we often do things our own way instead of God’s way. We tell God, “I got this, Lord” God says “Ok, it’s your choice.” Then that’s when we make mistakes. The moment we tell God, “I got this, Lord,” we’re saying we don’t need God’s help. So James encourages us to admit our need before God.
James is the book of wisdom in the New Testament like Proverbs is the book of wisdom in the Old Testament. We lack wisdom. It is universal. We all lack wisdom. Wisdom is different from knowledge. Wisdom is knowledge put into practice. Wisdom is seeing life from God's point of view. Wisdom is making decisions the way God would want us to make decisions. The word for wisdom in Greek is the word "Sophia." "Phila - sophia" equals "philosophy" -- the love of wisdom. Wisdom means practical application of knowledge. The Bible talks a lot about wisdom, but all we're interested in is knowledge. The world is impressed with knowledge. God is impressed with wisdom.
2. Ask for wisdom. Pray to God. Talk to Him. "If any man lacks wisdom he should ask God." How do you get wisdom? By listening to Oprah or Dr. Phil? By knowing your Horoscope? Or by watching TV? The Bible says you get wisdom by asking God. So you talk to Him about it and you ask for wisdom. Proverbs 2:6 "It is the Lord who gives wisdom, from Him comes knowledge and understanding."
If God were to come to you one day and say, "I'm going to give you one wish. You can ask for anything in the whole world. You can have one wish." What would you ask for? There was one person in the Old Testament who got a shot of that one wish. He’s name was Solomon. God came to Solomon and said, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you." Solomon said, "Lord, I’ve been given this huge responsibility to lead a great number of people, the people you have chosen, and I really have no idea how to lead. I need to be able to make the right decisions, know what to do and not do. I need your help.” The Bible says that God was pleased. God was like, “Wow! This guy didn’t ask for a billion dollars or great power, but he asked me for wisdom.” So God granted it to him. God is always pleased to give wisdom to those who ask for it. God said, "Solomon, because you asked for wisdom, I'm going to give you the other things too: wealth, fame, long life." (1 Kings 3:5-13) Solomon not only became the wisest man, but he was the wealthiest man, a famous person, and he lived a long life. Wow! Now where can you get such a great deal? When we ask God for wisdom, it comes with wealth, fame and long life. There’s nothing in the world that can beat that!
Now if you were to get one wish from God, what would you ask for? Would you not ask for wisdom? Probably most people would ask for great wealth. Wisdom would be their last choice. Proverbs 4:7 says, “Wisdom is supreme; therefore get wisdom.” What we really need is wisdom from God. The problem is we don't ask. James 4:2 "You have not because you ask not." 20 times in the New Testament it says, "Ask, and it shall be given." When you pray, keep on asking, be persistent, ask continually. Reason with God and explain to Him how much your prayer request means to you. And be honest. Pour out what is in your heart and say what you really want to say.
3. Anticipate it. Expect an answer in faith. You anticipate an answer. James says "But when he asks he must believe and not doubt." Most of time doubt comes when we focus on what the problem can do rather than what Almighty God can do. Remember Peter. Peter was in the boat one day and Jesus comes walking on water. Peter jumps out and he too started walking on water toward the Lord. How was that possible? Because his eyes was on Jesus. But all of a sudden he looked down, and says to himself, "I'm not supposed to be able to do this." What happened? Instant sink. The moment you get your eyes off the Lord and onto the circumstance, you're dead!
Doubt also comes because of our lack of confidence in God’s love. We need to keep building our relationship with God until our relationship with God is like the oneness of God the Father and his Only and Son Jesus.
James says we must believe. God answers our prayers. Sometimes we don’t notice it. I’ve been a Christian for twenty years plus and I can say that God speaks to us in many ways. Sometimes we get the answers we want right way, and sometimes we have to wait. Sometimes his answers gives joy, sometimes it gives pain. And those painful answers that He gives He reveals to us the reasons why. James says we must believe. Believing is not expecting God to give the answer we want, but believing that God will give us what’s best for us.
God also speaks to us through the Bible. If we want to receive quick wisdom from God, read the Bible. It’s the greatest book ever written. The words are living, and it has power to change lives. Remember our Nehemiah study? The Bible is Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth. If you study Bible and master the Bible you will be the wisest man on the planet. Psalm 1:2-3 says. “But his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.” We need to be reading through the Scripture continuously. The Bible says in Psalm 119:105 "God's word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path." It shows the way.
From my experience as a Christian God answers prayers through events and advices from Christian elders and friends. To me, they are the same as the prophets of the Old Testament sent by God. But I don’t call them prophets, but friends. God comes and speaks to us in different forms. God could be in a form of a pastor, or a Bible teacher or a Chinese doctor whom we all know. Sometimes just watching movies with my kids, God comes and speaks to me. Sometimes we become inpatient and tell God, “Why can’t you just show yourself and let’s talk.” But if that happens, then it’s because you are dead. That’s the closest we can get to see God. When you’re struggling spiritually and a Christian friend tells you to hold on and not give up, you may think that it’s your friend telling you this but it is God using your friend to encourage you. We are in a community of believers and God loves to dwell in these places, especially when there’s love and oneness. When you need prayer support, ask your spiritual family and pray for one another. God loves those of kind of prayers.
III. THE PROMISE: GOD WILL GIVE IT!
"If any man lacks wisdom he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." God wants to give us wisdom. He is eager. Just like it pleased God when Solomon asked for wisdom, it pleases God when we come to Him and say, "Lord, I need you, I don’t know what to do, I need your help." It is God's nature to give. God is a giving God. Look how God says He'll give wisdom:
Continually. "Ask God who gives..." In the Greek, that is in the continuous tense. He keeps on giving. He doesn't run out of energy. He never wears out.
Generously. His resources are unlimited. He has enough resources for everybody. He's got plenty.
Without finding fault. God gives cheerfully. God just loves to give wisdom. Many times in the New Testament, Jesus says, “Come to me.” He wants to give us wisdom. He came all the way from heaven, gave up everything for us to have complete joy.
In this passage let’s come to God for wisdom. Where do you need wisdom right now? What's the big decision in your life? Is it a career decision? Marriage? Kids? Church membership? An investment? The greatest decision we should ever make in life is this: Who's going to be number one in your life? Are you going to be number one? Is your job going to be number one? Is your family going to be number one? Is money going to be number one? There is only one thing that will produce stability in your life. That's when God is number one in your life. Thus, James encourages us to come to God, admit our need, and get wisdom from God. God is waiting and he has so many great things He wants to tell us. Let’s pray.