Introduction

Today we are switching back to the book of James and we're looking at chapter 1 verses 13 to 18. And I think this is a passage that deals with the issue of blame. When we do something wrong and we do not want to face the consequences, one of the easiest ways to get out of it is to use the strategy of blame. Blame someone for your mistake.

I know it's a Sunday morning, you are probably still asleep, at least mentally. So let me try to crack some, I know it's corny, but crack some jokes to wake us all up. You can't really blame barnacles for being clingy. Why? Because they are just a little shellfish. Okay, let's try another one. I blame my wife's cooking for my weight gain. I'm not talking about myself, but I blame my wife's cooking for my weight gain. Ever since she started cooking, I've been eating out more. Let's switch to the Bible one. Adam blamed Eve. Remember the story? They took that forbidden fruit and Adam immediately blamed his wife, even though he knew exactly what was going on. And what did Eve do? Eve blamed the serpent. And actually, both of them ultimately blamed God. But what about the serpent? He had, he didn't have a leg to stand on. He had no one to blame.

Blame Game and Spiritual Wisdom

The blame game is something we all play. I see kids blame one another when they crashed something. Oh, it's him! It's her! We see colleagues blame their fellow workers, their boss, their subordinates, for work that is not properly done. We see politicians blame one another. We see countries blame one another. We see husbands blame wives, and wives blame husbands, because that is a common strategy people adopt to hide their consequences or to cover their shame. So when we do something wrong, we like to blame it on someone else. And James has something to say about blame.

James is a book about spiritual wisdom. We saw James as the brother of Jesus, but he was also a very wise man, plunging into the depths of the book of Proverbs and also the Sermon on the Mount. He emerged with teachings, I think, that give us spiritual wisdom. That's the climax, that's the pinnacle of this book.

He begins with a study of suffering. We began that last week or two weeks ago, and then later on, we're going to see him move towards self centeredness, and then about speech, and then about strife, and then culminating in wisdom. And after we have caught a glimpse of wisdom, he comes back down the mountain, dealing again with the problem of strife and of speech and of self centeredness and of suffering.

James' Advice on Enduring Trials

So he begins his letter, chapter 1, chapter 5, with a treatise or treatment of the subject of suffering. He is writing to the Jews who have been scattered. The Jewish Diaspora, probably going through hardship, persecution, poverty, and so he wrote to them. As we noticed two weeks ago, that when you meet with trials of different kinds, pains and afflictions and troubles of various kinds. These are the things you need to do. You need to rejoice. You need to request. You need to reflect on life now and the life that is to come, so that when you do these things, you will be able to endure the trials, so that you may be proven in your faith and so that you may grow.

James' Teachings on Suffering and Blame

But the question now is, what if I don't endure and I sin when I meet with hardships, persecutions, trials? What if I fail? Well, there is always that tendency of men, when they fail and sin to shift the blame. And now, instead of blaming one another, there is a danger for us to blame who? Blame God. I am being tempted by God. God is the one who is leading me to some kind of compromise and sin. And so James anticipates that reaction, that strategy, and he says,

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” (James 1:13a)

James is affirmatively saying, “Don't you blame God for your sin when you fail to endure in trial.” That's what he said. Now we kind of should expect this when we were reading the earlier verses, because we saw in verse 6, James said, “If you want to ask God for wisdom, make sure you ask God with no doubting.” And this is to be read together with verse 8, which says a double minded man. This ‘double minded’ word, ‘dipsuchos’ in the Greek, is used again in chapter 4 in verse 8, talking about someone who is double minded in his loyalty. He loves God, at least he thinks he does, and he loves the world. So James is hinting of someone who is doubting if God is altogether worthy of His love and loyalty and allegiance. Maybe this person going through trials is tempted to be arrogant and angry with God, and therefore, when he fails in sin, he comes to God saying,

I am being tempted by God. (James 1:13a)

 So is God to blame for my sins when I fail to endure in trials?

Maybe I'd like you to take a step even further back to a bigger question. The bigger question is this, “If God is God, why is there evil and suffering in this world?” Now that's a big picture question. James is limiting this. Why is there sin in my life, if God is real to trials? But I'd like us to take a step back and look at a bigger picture. If God is good, as you say, why would he allow evil and suffering to exist? It's a very big question to many people, at least people who are trying to understand about faith, life, God, religion, Christianity.

A Greek philosopher, Epicurus. He lived a long time ago. He probably gave the most famous statement about the problem of evil, vis-a-vis the existence of God. It's a bit complicated, so I'll read it a bit slowly, so that you may perhaps get a sense of it better. He said, “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able?” So he's willing but unable. “Then he is not omnipotent.” He is not all powerful because he wants to but he can’t. He doesn’t have the power. “Or is it that he is able but not willing to stop all evil? Then he is malevolent.” He is not altogether good and kind. “Is he both able and willing?” If God is both able and willing, “then why should there be evil in this world?” “Think about it,” he said. “But is he neither able nor willing? Then why call him God?” So Epicurus struggles with the existence of evil together with God. If God is God and He is good and powerful, there should not be any evil. And if there is any evil, that means He is not God, or He is not omnipotent, or He is not kind. That's the assumption. Now you may not care about Epicurus, I know he lived a long time ago. Who cares what he says, but you may care about Lex Luther. Okay, may not be so excited, too. Now Lex Luther, of course, is a fictional character, but in a movie ‘Batman versus Superman, Dawn of Justice 2016’, the character Lex Luther said this, “If God is all powerful, he cannot be all good. And if he's all good, then he cannot be all powerful.” Why? Because of the problem of evil.

The Problem of Evil and Theodicy

So whether you are Lex Luther in this movie or Epicurus, who lived thousand, two thousand years ago, they all struggled with this question. Is God to claim, if God is God, why is there evil in this world? And the branch of Christianity that deals with this question is called ‘theodicy’. Heard of this word? We heard of ‘theology’. But very few may hear about the word ‘theodicy’. ‘Theodicy’ asks and answers this question, “If God is good, why is there evil in the world?” The word ‘theodicy’ is made up of two Greek words, ‘theos’ means ‘god’. ‘dikē’ is ‘justice’. So ‘theodicy’ is the justice or the vindication of God in the presence of evil. How can God be good and just when there is so much evil and suffering in this world?

That is the bigger question, and that is that philosophy that fuels what James is going to talk about in chapter 1 verses 13 to 18. Is God just when I sin in my trial? Is God still good when I fall in my trial? Is God to blame for my sin when I go through trial? I'm going to do a short exegesis of James 1 verses 13 to 18, and then I'll come back to you with Lex Luther. So the answer from James is a very affirmative ‘NO’. God is never to be blamed for my sin when I fail to endure in my trial. He says this very clearly,

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” (James 1:13a)

God's Incorruptibility and Invariability

And he furnishes us with at least three reasons. Number one, when you sin and you fail to endure in trial, never blame God, because God is never to be blamed. And the reason is because God is totally incorruptible, the incorruptibility of God. He says,

Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God,” (James 1:13a)

Why? For, because this is his logic.

God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. (James 1:13b)

God can never tempt you to sin. That is never what He does. He never induces people to sin or to destroy their faith. He never does that. He cannot sin, He cannot be tempted with evil, and He tempts no one with it.

So what we are learning from James so far gathering from two weeks ago, is that God does test you, Christians, put you through hardships, pains and sufferings. Why? So that you may be proven in your faith, and that you may be growing in your faith. So God does test, to prove and to grow, but he never tempts to induce sin or to destroy your faith. Why?

Because God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. (James 1:13b)

So you may ask, then whence forth comes my sin? If God never sets out to tempt me to sin, then why do I sin? Where does the fault lies? James answers this question by saying,

Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. (James 1:14)

The word ‘lured’ is used in the imagery of hunting. You draw, you catch an animal, and you draw, and you drag. And the word ‘entice’ is to bait, so we are caught

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in a trap by our own desire. Why do you sin? Oh, it's God. No, no, nope, God never tempts us. It's our own desire. We have been lured and baited.

Story is told of a man who wanted to go on a diet, but he saw his favorite donut shop. So he prayed, “God, if it be your will, let me have a parking lot.” And so after praying and after circling 10 times in a parking lot, a slot finally opened up, and he smiled to himself, must be God's will. You know, we like to blame God when we bite into our donuts and and we ruin our diet plans, we say, “It's God!” But no, it's your own desire. It's your own desire that you were enticed with, your own evil, illicit desire that you're enticed with, baited by that you sin against God. Don't blame God for that. And when this desire has conceived, so and hunting imagery, now a gynecological imagery, that when this desire has conceived, it kind of brings about a baby. This illicit desire when it does not resist, when you do not resist it, but you receive it, you welcome it. It's impregnated, and it gives birth to a baby called sin. And when sin grows up, sin brings forth death. Now I think the best way to understand death is not, is not physical death, like you ‘mati’ now, but I think this is eternal death. Why? Because this has to be read in comparison with verse 12, speaking about the crown of life that represents eternal life. So when someone sins against God, and he continues to sin against God, well, ultimately, it brings forth spiritual and eternal death. So theodicy, the vindication of God, when we sin in trials answers the question, ‘Is GOD to blame for my sin’? James tells us absolutely ‘NO!’. Because number one, God is incorruptible - He never induces sin. You sin because of your own desire. And James’ point again is, ‘Don't blame God for your sin’. He is very clear in his logic.

Here he tells us a second reason why no one can ever blame God when we fall into sin. He speaks about the invariability of God because he says, “Don't blame God for your sin. He is invariably the giver of every good gift and every perfect gift.”

Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers, (James 1:16)

Don't cheat yourself. Don’t try to blame God on this.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. (James 1:17)

Let me just break this down a little so that it's easy.

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above. (James 1:17a)

 What a wonderful statement. Everything that is good and perfect you have in your life is from God. Just this one statement is awesome. Life, breath, food, family, faith, friends, where did it all come from? You earned it? No. God is the giver of every good gift. So James here is saying, “You know, we have such a good God, such a generous God. And this is still coming down. It's a continuous tense. These good things are continuously poured out onto you. And this comes from one source, the Father of lights.” So James now refers to God as the Father. He fathered the light. He created the light. When we see light here, please do not think of these lights, but he is referring to the lights in the skies - the sun, the moon, the stars. In ancient times, these are precious things. Today we have light with a flick of a switch. But in those days, you rely on these lights. You are thankful for these lights. And James is saying, “Every good thing is from God, including the lights.” He fathered them. He is the giver of these lights that constantly shine in your life. But there is a difference. He says that the Father of lights is someone

with whom there is no variation or shadow. (James 1:17c)

So I think he is saying that lights are good, but God is even better, because lights change. There are eclipses, there are shadows, there are twists and turns of the planets. You do not always get the sun, but with God, you always get good and perfect gifts.

So if God is so good, how can you blame God for your sin? He is invariably the giver of every good thing. Why would He now induce sin and death in your life? So when we go through hardship, we may sin. James answers that question, Is God to blame? The answer? Very good. Must be clearer, louder. Is God to blame for your sin? (“No!” from the congregation) Very good like that. “NO!”. Yes, exclamation mark. Then why did you sin? (soft answer from the congregation) Must be very clear. I sin because I'm tempted by my own evil desires. And when this desire is impregnated, it brings forth sin. And when sin is fully grown, it brings forth death, spiritual eternal death. But is God involved in hardships? Yes, but He is involved in such a way that He does it or He gives it to test you so that you may be able to endure. And when you endure these tests, your steadfast through them, it produces provenness, maturity and the crown of life. The second line is what God aims for in your life. But when you are tempted by your own desires, you don't produce provenness, maturity or the crown of life. It switches to death. But the point I think James is making is don't blame God for your sin, because he is incorruptible and he's invariable.

God's Intentionality and the Purpose of Evil

Now third reason he gives is the intentionality of God. Again, this point is very simple. He is saying, “Don't blame God for your sin”, which is what he's been saying. Why? “Because his intention for you from the very beginning, is that you may be the most precious and glorious of all His creation. So why will He go against His own plan to defile you by sin?” Look!

Of his own will, He brought us forth by the word of truth that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. (James 1:18)

He uses the imagery of firstfruits in the Jewish culture for their crops. The first batch is always the best, the most precious. So in the Old Testament, you read of God saying, “When you have your firstfruits, offer it to me.” It's a symbol of saying, “I'm giving, I'm honoring God with my best.” So God is saying of His own will, “He has brought us forth, by the word of truth, that we, who are believers, should be the most precious and glorious of all His creation.” That's God's goal. This is His own will. No one coerced Him. No one influenced Him. This is His intention and plan from the very beginning. And now His will effects Himself by giving birth to us. The birthing, the bringing forth of the firstfruits is accomplished through the word of truth, which I think refers to the teachings of the Bible that centers on the gospel, the gift, the good news of Jesus Christ. So this is always God's will for you. Why would he go against His original intention to defile you in sin?

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“I am being tempted by God”, (James 1:13a)

someone angrily says, when he fails in trial. James says, “Let no one say that, don't you blame God for your sin when you fail to endure in trial?” Why? “Because God is incorruptible. God tests you to prove you and to grow you, but he never tempts you to induce sin.”

for God cannot be tempted with evil, and He Himself tempts no one. (James 1:13b)

Don't blame God for your sin because of the invariability of God. He is invariably the giver of every good and perfect gift. So how can He induce sin and death in you in your life? Never blame God for your sin because of the intentionality of God. From the beginning, His intention for you is to be the most precious and glorious of all His creation. So why will He go against His own plan to defile you by sin.

Theodicy and the Greater Purpose

Now I am coming to the end of the sermon, and I come back to Lex Luther. He says, “If God is all powerful, he cannot be all good.” Evil exists in this life, because God is somehow evil. You see that insinuation. This God is not altogether benevolent and kind and good. “And if he is all good, like you say he is, then he is quite useless because he can't stop the evil.” See, that's what people struggle with, and what people use as an excuse to say, “I don't want to believe in this God”. But what Lex Luthor says really is based on what Epicurus had already said. “Is God willing to prevent evil, but not able? He's not so powerful, right? Or you say He is powerful, then he is not so kind, right? Because he is not willing to stop all evil. And if you say that he is both powerful and good, then why is there evil? And if he cannot do both, then why do you call him God?”

My last slides are the shortest ones, but that's my best attempt at trying to answer Epicurious if he was to be standing here together with me. I would say to Lex Luther, I would say to Epicurious, this is my stab at it. You may defer a little, that's fine, but this is my attempt. I'll say to you, “Dear sir, GOD hates sin and evil, but He does allow it. Now this is the key, because there is no question in the Bible, He does allow sin. But because of what James has taught us, we must be clear that He though allows it, does not Himself induce it.”

There is a distancing of God from evil we can read in the Bible. So I think this is a nuanced but accurate description of how the Bible accounts for evil in this world. God hates sin and evil, let us be clear. But he does allow it, even though he does not induce it because there is a greater purpose, there is a higher reason. And you say, “What is the higher reason why evil exists in this world if God is all good and all powerful?” The higher reason I see in the Bible is that it is ultimately to manifest the riches of His grace and the power of His wrath. Without evil, without sin, we will never be able to see how wrathful God is against evil. We will never be able to see the power of God against evil. And most supremely, we will not see how good and gracious and merciful God is when He is able even to receive and to restore those who are rebels in His sight.

So the problem of evil exists not because God created evil, He allowed it. He didn't induce it so that He can achieve a greater purpose to manifest His glory. And when He manifests His glory, His creation may now glory in Him and rejoice fully in Him. You see, our satisfaction is found in knowing God. And it all comes back to how we are made to know God. We are made for God. We are made by God, and we are made for God. Your real satisfaction and joy in life is not found in the little things you possess, not even in a person you see, not even in some holiday you took, but it's ultimately found in knowing God and who He really is. The more you know him, the more satisfied you will be and that is God's greater purpose.

The Role of Jesus in Theodicy

Oh, God is playing man. Oh, God is just making a fool of us. Oh, God is just having a game, laughing at man struggling instead. No, I say that's not a game to God. Why? Because his own Son was made sin for us. In order for God to deal with the problem of evil, He had to send His only Son that He may die on the cross, suffer for us. He was made a curse. We blame God, but God put the blame on His own Son. Jesus took the blame for you, and He died and rose again, so that sinners may be graced. Sinners may receive grace. Sinners may be forgiven. Sinners may now know God is so forgiving, so good, so gracious. And all who repent and believe in Jesus will be saved.

Practical Application and Prayer

If you are here today for the first time, I want to tell you this is what the Bible is all about. This paragraph is really what the Bible is all about. That our God is all powerful and all good and even though evil exists in this world, it is one day going to come to a wonderful end when Jesus will return and deal with all sin and evildoers and bring all who believe in Him into that eternal life, the new heaven and new earth where there will be no more pain, no more sin, no more suffering. And there for all eternity, His new creation will all sing His praise and rejoice in Him. This is theodicy. This is the vindication of God in the presence of evil and suffering. May you today believe, not waver in this good and powerful God as you go through the trials of life. Let's bow for a word of prayer.

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Some of you today may be going through hardship and trials, often times hurt. They hit us hard, and there is always that danger we may fall. And when we fall, there is always the easy way out to play the blame game. Some of us today may be angry with God in our hearts. Some of us today may be dissatisfied, dissatisfied with a lot of life. Some of us may say it is all God, He tempted me. But James the wise man, speaking to people in suffering, says, “Let no one say when he is tempted, I am being tempted by God.” Because God is incorruptible. He cannot be tempted with evil, neither does He tempt any man. God is invariable because He is the giver of every good gift and every perfect gift, and there is no variation or shadow of change in Him. And God is intentional of His own will. He has begotten us through the word of truth that we might be the first fruits of his creation. Don't we ever blame this good God. Trials are given in your life not to induce sin, but to prove you, to grow you and to bless you with the crown of life. May our perspectives shift. May our hearts repent. May we go back to what James told us, to rejoice, that we may count it all joy when we fall into diverse trials. May we request of God this wisdom so that we may practically endure and count it all joy, and may we reflect that what we are going through today is for a moment, but it will work out an eternal weight of glory that is to come. May God steady your hearts in the storms of life. And for all my friends who are here today, I hope you see that we cannot judge God based on our own human logic and observations, The Bible reveals that there is a higher plan, greater purpose. The Bible speaks of your greater need and search of your soul. It is to know this Creator God. And what a wonderful thing it is that God is allowing us in this lifetime to get to know Him, how holy and just and righteous and merciful and gracious and loving He is. Oh, one day, it will all make sense. One day, when we all gather with Jesus, it will all make sense. Today, will you bow before this good and great God? Believe that He has given you His Son, Jesus Christ. Repent and believe in Him that you might be saved. What grace, what grace is mine that God would search us out from the darkness of sin.

Father, thank you so much for your love. Thank you for who you are, because no man would ever come up with a plan like this. But you are altogether wise, you are altogether powerful, you're altogether good. May your people rejoice in you, worship you, trust you, serve you. Once again, please be merciful upon our friends that they might see, believe and be saved. We pray all this in Jesus name, Amen.