Main Idea
Wisdom is whole-hearted devotion to God.
Sermon Notes
This week, my Sermon Notes are literally the notes that I took during my study. Assume that anything here is either a direct quote or a paraphrase - none of the ideas are originally mine.
Ideas from Blomberg and Kamell
Verse 5
Wisdom highlights a key aspect Christians cannot lack if they are moving toward maturity
Wisdom is precisely that which enables us to stand in times of trials and leads us to perfection
Wisdom remains crucial throughout James, referring to the endowment of the heart and mind which is needed for the right conduct of life
Wisdom is not mere intelligence or knowledge, but adds the practical element of living out what one believes
Wisdom from above (3:17-18) closely resembles the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).
No matter how hard we try to work toward perfection, we cannot fill the lack of wisdom without God’s help and generosity
The present tense of “ask” suggests possible ongoing action - repeated and continuous prayer - and it will be given suggests that James already knows the Jesus tradition that is found in Matthew 7:7 in Greek.
We are told to ask of the Giving God - didontos theou. Here, the present participle suggests that giving represents a continuous characteristic of God.
Aplos -> singly or generously. Can also be taken as single-mindedly in contrast to double-minded. God gives without reservation and without mockery.
Does God promise to give us the complete outline to our lives, or clarity on every decision we need to make? No, He promises wisdom - namely the ability to discern how he would have us live.
This is not an unqualified statement that everything we ask for will be given to us, but rather we will receive the practical knowledge we need to endure our trials from the God who gives without hesitation.
Verse 6
Addresses the issue of unanswered prayer
The way -> in faith and without doubting.
Faith -> continued confidence in the identity and nature of our God
Faith forms a fundamental religious attitude in all areas of life, far more than just the trust that one will receive what we ask for. Meanwhile, the one who doubts is a person whose allegiance wavers, not one tormented by speculative intellectual questionings, which do not fall within James’ horizons.
We are also told not to doubt, a command often misunderstood in the history of the church.
James does not say that the Christian cannot question what God gives them lest their faith become null and void.
Rather, given the context, we are called not to question the character of God, who gives unflinchingly
To this kind of doubt, James strongly objects calling the person a wave of the sea, blown by the wind and tossed around.
The inconsistency of the sea - the waves moving up and down with no easily discernible pattern
Oscillating between faith and skepticism, never giving whole hearted trust and allegiance
Verse 7
The doubter is the person in view. There is disdain in the use of the pronoun.
The vacillating person is at odds with God’s sense of unity of purpose. Such a person should not expect anything from God.
Verse 8
This is the earliest known usage of the word translated double-minded (dipsychos) - maybe James coined the term. Only other appearance is in 4:8, referring to sinners.
Soul divided between the world and faith, parallels Matthew 6:24
To be thus divided in one’s soul renders one useless for the Kingdom
We are called to love God with an undivided heart (Deuteronomy 6:4-5, 18:13)
Unstable -> unreliable, vacillating, unwilling to commit to anything and as such unreliable.
The phrase in all their ways shows them to be consistently inconsistent. These people are unwilling to let go of the world and follow Christ, torn between sin and obedience, reluctant to let go of the pleasures of the world for the sake of discipleship.
Ideas from Wright
How do I cope with trials? I need wisdom, so I need to ask for it.
We often don’t ask because we project onto God the fearful, petty, spiteful character we so often see in the mirror
Learning who God truly is and what He truly is like and reminding ourselves of that regularly is the key to it all. Leads to a settled character of wisdom, faith, and patience.
Ideas from Barclay
Wisdom is a practical thing. It encompasses the deep things of God, there is the goal of the questing mind - but it is knowledge turned to action, in all decisions and relationships of everyday life.
There is a way of giving that breeds obligation, there is a kind of giving that is about the person giving’s personal gratification. Then, there is God’s generous gift. God is the lover of gift-giving.
We must ask, confident in God’s power and desire to give.
The image here is like a cork blown around in the sea, or a drunk staggering on the stage.
Ideas from Ancient Christian Commentary
Hilary of Potiers
Only God should be asked for wisdom, not philosophers or astrologers
Bede
James is talking about the kind of wisdom we need to face temptations
Cyril and Alexandria
The doubter is really full of pride
Oecumenius
Such a person soon retreats from the faith he does have and then backslides. This happens to him because of his pride, because he so quickly despairs of ever getting something which he asks for but does not immediately turn up.
(Also Hermas)
This refers to the person who asks in a spirit of haughtiness or contempt. Take away all double-mindedness, and above-all, when you ask God for something, do not hesitate, saying to yourself, “How can I ask anything of God for something, seeing that I have sinned so greatly against Him.”
A double-minded person is someone who is unstable and unreliable. Such a person has no clear vision of the future and no sure grasp of the present, but rather drifts about here and there grasping at whatever he can
Origen
We who do not follow the Lord with complete and perfect faith, but yet have withdrawn from foreign gods dwell in a no-man’s land. We are cut down by foreign gods as deserters, but because we are unstable and unreliable, we are not defended by our Lord.
Ideas from Moo
Verse 5
Jewish wisdom literature connects wisdom with enduring trials (Sirach 4:17). Some connect themes of testing, wisdom, and spiritual integrity.
The Lord gives wisdom (Proverbs 2:6) and is a central theme in Proverbs. Wisdom is the means to discern and carry out the will of God.
Taken together then, the evidence suggests that James is not so much highlighting God’s generosity in giving as his single, undivided intent to give us the gifts we need to please him.
Contrast to Sirach 20:14-15a about the fool
God doesn’t scold us like we should already know the answer
Verse 6
We have to ask in the way God gives - singleness of intent
While he was talking about wisdom in verse 5, it doesn’t appear and and parallels other teachings in the NT about prayer in general
Parallel to Matthew 21:21-22
Not health and wealth. Ability to do the work set for us to do
In both Matthew and James, the opposite to faith is doubting
The word basically means “differentiate”, and is often used in the NT in the sense to “create distinctions”, “judge”, or “dispute”. The middle voice is a reflexive idea - dispute within oneself.
A basic division in oneself that brings about wavering and inconsistency of attitude toward God.
The contrast is with the sea constantly changing in variation with direction and strength of the wind.
So the doubter, not having an anchor for the soul, does not pray with consistency and sincerity of purpose (Hebrews 6:19). Prey to the shifting winds of motives and desire, he wants wisdom from God one day and wisdom from the world the next.
Double-minded is literally double-souled
Whole Hearted Devotion - Psalm 119:2/Deuteronomy 6:4-5
Divided Heart - Psalm 12:2/Hosea 10:2
Unstable is found only in James (cf. 3:8) and Isaiah 54:11 in the LXX where it refers to the effects of a violent storm
All he does - basic inconsistency in attitude and spirit - not an occasional doubt or lapse.
A basic division in the soul that leads to thinking, speaking, and acting that contradicts one’s claims to belong to God.
Ideas from Motyer
The heart of verses 5 - 8 can be expressed in answer to three questions
What does the Bible mean by wisdom?
What does James say here about God?
What does he teach about prayer?
The wisdom of Solomon was practical sagacity, the ability to apply what he knew to the problems of life. The Lord Jesus promised His disciples that at times of trial they would be given a mouth and wisdom (Luke 21:15). Stephen had this gift preeminently for ministry (Acts 6:10). 1 Corinthians 1:21 ties it to the meaning and significance of a thing.
If we say about someone ‘He knows his Bible really well’ we have described a knowledgeable person. But, if he also knows how to use his Bible to understand life and the world around him and to guide is own conduct and the conduct of others in the maze of life’s problems then knowledge as passed into wisdom (3:13, 17)
Wisdom is tied to verses 2-4 - the wise person will see life, make decisions, and face trials as a journey toward perfection.
There is a beautiful simplicity and directness - if you lack this wisdom - ask for it. This is either naive or rooted in the character of God.
It is God’s nature to give - the literal Greek is to ask from the giving God.
No one attribute of God encompasses all that God is, but all express something that is always true of Him. His attributes are as infinite as He is.
God’s bounty is unrestricted. He gives to all in heaven and Earth.
Generously - adverb haplos connected to the adjective haplous in Matthew 6:22 about a sound eye. Literally singly
Not plagued with double sight or lack of clarity or vision.
Noun - haplotes - singled mined devotion to Jesus (2 Cor 11:3) or slave to master (Eph. 6:5)
Also associated with a ministry of generosity (Romans 12:8, 2 Corinthians 8:2) - single-minded concern for the needs of others, selflessness.
God’s welcome never fails without reproach
Verses 6-8 raise the question of our sincerity. Do we really want to go forward with God? Are we whole-heartedly committed to His way of seeing things and His ambitions for our future? Or are we keeping a door open for the world?
God’s mind is clear! But are we double-minded? Faith is our absolute confidence that He will give what we ask, doubting our own inner uncertainty about whether we really want him to give or not.
He affirms here that if we are not secure with God, we are not secure at all.
Essentially, it's the problem of finding meaning which James says is a gift of wisdom from God given to those whose lives are fully integrated in Him.
Resources Used
Barclay, William. The Letters of James and Peter. The Daily Study Bible. Rev. ed. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2003.
Blomberg, Craig L., and Mariam J. Kamell. James. Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2008.
Bray, Gerald L., ed. James, 1–2 Peter, 1–3 John, Jude. Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, New Testament XI. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2000.
Moo, Douglas J. The Letter of James. Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000. (Digital edition)
Motyer, J. Alec. The Message of James. The Bible Speaks Today. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1985. (Digital edition)
Wright, N. T. The Early Christian Letters for Everyone: James, Peter, John, and Jude. Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 2011.
Wright, N. T., and Michael F. Bird. The New Testament in Its World. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Academic, 2019.