Please you turn in your copies of God's word to the book of James. The book of James in chapter one and the focus of our sermon will be on verses five to eight, but we'll read verses one to eight for context. So James chapter one beginning in verse one. James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the 12 tribes in the dispersion. Greetings. Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds. For you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. He is a double-minded man, unstable, in all his ways. So when's the reading of God's word? Let's pray and ask the Lord to bless his word to our understanding. Oh Lord, even as James tells us here of the wisdom that you freely give to those who ask in faith, we desire to be those who ask in faith. And we ask now, please give us the wisdom that we lack. Please, even this evening, grow and increase our faith and our trust in you. Give us the wisdom that we need to navigate this life so that we might do all things pleasing before you. We pray in Jesus' name, amen. Well, throughout time and across history, across all cultures, wisdom has been one of the most sought after of virtues. Every culture has some kind of quest for wisdom story in their folklore. For example, there's a well-known story from Irish folklore about Fionn Macuil and the Salmon of Knowledge. In the river Boyne, there was this fish, this salmon, the salmon of knowledge. And this fish was said to contain all of the knowledge and the wisdom of the world. And it was said that whoever caught this fish and tasted of it would gain all of this knowledge and wisdom for themselves. Well, a certain poet named Phinegas decided to set out and capture this fish. And so he spent seven years fishing, trying to catch the fish. Some of you would love that, I'm sure. For others, it would be horrible to spend that much time fishing. Well, finally, after seven years, he caught this fish. And so he gave it to his servant, Fionn. And he told Fionn, he gave him very careful instructions. Now, you're not to taste of this fish. This fish is for me. And Fionn agreed, and he said he would prepare the fish as per the instructions. And he did, he set about to cook the fish as instructed. However, he touched, as he was preparing the fish, he touched it to see if it was cooked, if it was ready. And a little bit of fish fat burned his finger and so naturally he sucked his thumb. And as a result, he tasted of the fish. And this servant boy gained all of the wisdom and the knowledge of the world, supposedly. And he went on to become this great hero in Irish myths and folklore. Well, the annals of the world are filled with these kinds of quests for wisdom. Mankind strives for wisdom, even at the very beginning of time itself. Humanity sought out wisdom. Think of the very first woman, Eve, how she took of the forbidden fruit. Why? Because the tree was to be desired to make one wise. Well, ironically, her actions were not wise. They were foolish and they did not spring from faith. They sprang from doubt because she doubted God and she doubted God's word. Well, how do we find this true wisdom, this wisdom from above? Where do we find the wisdom we need to navigate the challenging circumstances of our lives? Where do we find the wisdom we need to live a life honoring to the Lord in this chaotic, perverse, dark world? James tells us, if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives generously to all, without reproach, and it will be given to him. This is good news. Wisdom comes from God. God, who is the source of wisdom, gives us the wisdom that we lack. And we receive this wisdom not by doubting God, but by trusting him and by asking him. So that when we ask in faith, he promises to grant us the wisdom we need. As we examine this text of scripture, we're going to approach it by way of asking a series of questions. First, what are we to ask for? Second, how do we ask for it? And then third, why can we ask for it? What's the basis on which we can ask for it? So first, what are we to ask for? Well, we are to ask for wisdom. Let's set the context. In verses two to four, James described how trials are opportunities for joy. It's not that we enjoy pain. It's not that we rejoice in the trial itself. Rather, we rejoice in knowing that God is working in us through our trial for his glory and for our good. And we rejoice in knowing that God is making us more like Christ. Then in verse four, James explained how the goal of trials is that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. And that's where verse five picks up. But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God. So here we see we're told if you lack something, go to God. God provides the very thing that we lack. Now, the ESV translates this as, let him ask. It sounds very passive, it sounds very permissive. But actually, again, this is an imperative. And so we might better translate this as, if any of you lacks wisdom, he must ask for wisdom. So this is a command. If anyone lacks, they must ask. Well, first we need to understand what is this wisdom? If we need to understand or lack, what is this thing that we lack? What is wisdom? Well, for starters, wisdom is more than just possessing knowledge. It certainly includes knowledge, but it isn't only knowledge. For example, it's very possible for someone to acquire a lot of education through schooling and they pile on degrees upon degrees. I've seen that more than once in Ireland where education is free. So people just spend their whole lives accumulating degrees without ever working. And so someone might be able to have all of this knowledge without ever working it out. Well, that isn't wisdom. Wisdom isn't theory by itself. It's theory put into practice. And we see that. Biblical wisdom is inherently practical. It's a practical virtue. What's interesting is that the Hebrew word for wisdom could be translated as skill. And so wisdom is skill at life. And whenever you do something well, we say you do it skillfully. So wisdom is this ability to put what we know in our minds into practice in the nitty gritty of life. Wisdom involves knowing the right thing to do, but also actually doing it. John Blanchard puts it this way. Wisdom is the God-given insight into our human circumstances that enables a man to see God's will coupled with a wholehearted desire to see it done. And he continues, that being so, it is obvious that biblical wisdom is something that man desperately needs. Something that man desperately needs. I think Blanchard is right, don't you? We need wisdom. And we need wisdom because we lack wisdom. Notice how James writes, if any of you lacks wisdom, And now when he says, if anyone lacks wisdom, he's not saying that, well, maybe you lack wisdom, but you don't, you're okay. No, his point is that we all lack wisdom. The only difference here is between the person who realizes they lack wisdom and the person who's so self-deluded that they think they've acquired all the knowledge of the world. And so when you hear this, you should say, yeah, that's me, I lack wisdom, I need wisdom. So this isn't for the person two pews over, it's not for your spouse, I think they need to hear this, or it's not for even your wayward child. No, this is for you. You need to ask for wisdom because you lack wisdom. And you know this to be true, don't you? You know this. Regardless of what stage of life you're in, You know that you need wisdom to navigate and to handle your particular set of circumstances. Some of us are facing trials of sickness. Some of us are facing the loss of loved ones recently. Some of us have family struggles. And we need the wisdom to navigate those very heavy, those very difficult trials of life. We need the wisdom to see that this is God's fatherly good pleasure and he will bring about good from this. We need that heavenly perspective that comes as we ask God for wisdom. But we also need to realize that trials do not only come with the hard things and the heavy things. We also need wisdom for the trials of the good things. For example, having children is a great blessing. Parents, we know this. Having children is a blessing. But with this blessing comes lack of sleep, strained finances, less time to do other things. Or maybe at work, maybe you've worked hard for that promotion. You've impressed the boss, you've put in long hours, and you've wanted this promotion. Now you have it. But now with that promotion comes longer hours, more people to manage, more stress, maybe longer commute. Maybe you're a college student and you've yearned to get into this prestigious college or just any college and you've worked hard, you've got the grades, you saved up the money, you got the scholarship, now you're in. But now you're facing the challenge of hard work, a heavy workload. Maybe you're away from your family. Maybe your faith is being challenged in a new way. Maybe you're an older person. Maybe you saw your retirement as that golden age where you'd have no problems. But now that you're there, maybe you're facing new problems. You're facing problems of health. Maybe now that you've left your job, you're trying to find a purpose in life and you're struggling in that kind of way with a sense of purpose. Whether you are the youngest person in this room, or you're the oldest person in this room, or anywhere in between, you know what it is to lack wisdom. You know that life is full of challenging circumstances. And it's not enough to say, well, this too will pass. Because then you're going to be in the next stage, and you're going to face the next set of challenging circumstances. And you need wisdom for every step along the road of life. Well, James wants us to understand that these trials, these circumstances, the purpose of them is so that they show us our lack, and they show us where we need to grow. And in particular, in this section, James is showing us how trials expose our lack of wisdom. So the first step in applying this passage to your life is to realize that you need wisdom. You're lacking. We're all lacking in wisdom. But the second step is to realize that God supplies your lack. James writes, if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives generously to all. Loved ones, isn't this amazing that in the face of our lack, in the face of our foolishness, God supplies our lack? As one preacher put it, your weakness does not keep you from your Lord. Your delusion of strength does, because the gospel is for the weak. The gospel is for the unable. What a comfort. What a comfort that God meets the very thing we lack. Our weakness, our inability, is met by his strength and his supply. And therefore, let us not fear to acknowledge our lack before the Lord. Let us, like Solomon, ask the Lord for wisdom, and he will give it. So because we lack wisdom, we must ask of God. Well, how do we ask for wisdom? Secondly, we ask in faith. Look at verse six. But let him ask in faith with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. So we are to ask in faith. What does that mean? What does it mean to ask in faith? Well, it is as Hebrews 11.6 says, and without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. So to pray in faith means to pray trusting God, trusting in his promises. Faith here is not like a kind of a special ingredient that we add to make our prayers really effective. This isn't like the secret seasoning you put on your grilled chicken to give it that edge. No, faith here refers to the disposition of the Christian soul. It is the Christian soul as the Christian is resting and trusting in Christ. And therefore to pray in faith means to pray from this disposition of trusting and resting in Christ. It's praying from a heart of faith. The opposite of praying in faith is doubt. Notice how James continues in verse six. With no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the winds. So on the one hand, if faith rests and trusts in Christ, well, doubt is the very opposite of that. Doubt doesn't rest in anything. It's like a restless wave of the sea. It's tossed about. And the picture here of a wave of the sea, as you think about the sea, because that's what James wants us to do, it's an illustration. This isn't the mighty wave that mounts and builds up high and crashes against the shore and destroys something in its path. Oh, this is the kind of pathetic swell of the sea as it goes in and it goes out and it very slowly wears away a sandcastle or something like that. It's formless. It's changeable. It's easily manipulated. It has no consistent shape or consistency. It's just tossed about with the variations of the wind. And so the picture here is of the doubter. The one who doubts is someone who is unstable, they're unsteady, precisely because they do not have Christ, that anchor of the soul. So who is the doubter here? Who does James have in mind? It's important that we understand what he's saying here so that we rightly apply it to our situations. Is James saying that If I don't have the right level of faith, then God isn't going to hear my prayers and I might as well not pray anyway. Is James saying that if I have any doubt at all, then I'm just like this person, I'm just like a wave of the sea being tossed about? Unfortunately, this is how some have interpreted this passage. Some interpret this to mean that if you don't receive healing in your life, well, it's because you don't have enough faith. You could have overcome that healing, but you just didn't believe hard enough. Or that difficult financial situation you're in, if you had enough faith, you wouldn't be in that position. Well, that's not what James means by doubting here. The doubting person here is not someone who's struggling through a trial, struggling through great difficulty and trying to make sense of it all. No, James is not describing the person who in genuine faith is wrestling with God in prayer and crying out in the words of the psalmist, how long, oh Lord, will you forget me forever? Are you sleeping, God? No, the doubter here is not the struggling Christian. Rather, the doubter here is one who is doubting in the very core of their being. They're doubting at a very fundamental level. It's interesting, the Apostle Paul uses these same words to describe how Abraham never doubted and never wavered. Romans 4 verse 20 says, no belief made him waver concerning the promises of God. Now, we read that, and maybe some of us are thinking back to Genesis 17 and thinking, did Paul not read that far in his Bibles? Because we read in Genesis 17 that when God promised Abraham a son at the age of 100, how did Abraham respond? He didn't say, I believe. No, he literally started laughing. And the text says he was rolling around on the floor laughing. Well, of course, Paul knew Genesis chapter 17. Paul knew that at times Abraham, like every believer, experiences doubt. Paul's point is that Abraham never had, is not that Abraham never had any momentary doubts. His point is that Abraham never had that deep-seated and permanent attitude of doubt in his heart towards God. And James is using these words in this same way to describe his doubter. So the doubter here is one who has a deep seated doubt in his soul or her soul. And this becomes even more clear as James goes on to explain the nature of this doubter. Look at verse eight. He, that is the doubter, is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. It's interesting that the Greek word for this is literally double-souled. Many scholars say that this is the first time this word was ever used in Greek literature, so it's very possible that James coined this word. Double-souled. What do you think of when you think of someone who's double-souled? Well, it describes someone who is divided in their loyalty, in the very core of their being, in their very soul, they're divided. They're not giving their whole soul to something, their whole heart to the Lord. Well, it should remind us of the teachings of our Lord and how he condemned this kind of double-mindedness, this double-souled nature. In Matthew 6, verse 24, Jesus says, no one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. Likewise, Jesus singled out Deuteronomy 6, 5 as the greatest commandment. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength, Well, this is the opposite, isn't it, of the double-souled person. This double-souled man or woman is one who wants to have it both ways. They're trying to serve two masters, unless they do not love the Lord with a singleness of soul, with a singleness of mind. And there are consequences for living a double-souled life. The first consequence we see is in verse seven. This is serious. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord. God has promised wisdom for those who have faith in God, but for those who deny God and disbelieve Him and His promises at a fundamental level, they cannot expect anything from the Lord. What this means in very practical terms is that if you are living a life of hypocrisy, don't expect to be a recipient of God's blessing, not in this life, not in the next. It says, Peter writes, as he warns husbands who mistreat their wives that their prayers will be hindered. You cannot mistreat your wife and pretend to be a Christian at church on Sunday. You're double-souled. Well, the second consequence of doubting is being unstable. I'll look again at verse eight, where James writes, he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. Again, this is connected, of course, with that illustration of the wave or the billow that's blown about, that's tossed back and forth. The wave that's passive, that's susceptible to change and manipulation. It's always shifting. It's never the same. It's never solid. It's never sure. It's without foundation. And so too, James says, are all the doubters paths. He's unstable in all of his ways, invoking that Psalm imagery of the path. And so whatever choices he makes in life, they're inherently unstable and uncertain. Well, dear friend, does this describe you? Are you living this way? Again, this is not the person who struggles at times, maybe understanding doctrine. This is not the prayer of the believer who prays, I believe, help my unbelief. This is describing someone who's living a life of self-deluded hypocrisy. Someone who's living a double-souled life. He's trying to fool others. He thinks he can fool God, but really, he's just fooling himself. They think they're wise because they have one foot in the world and one foot in the church. They think they're getting the best of both worlds. Maybe in the church, they say all of the right things. They're here every Sunday. They punch in their card for perfect attendance. They look good in the church, but maybe their secret life tells another story, their online activity, or how they treat their family or friends. This is a dangerous place to be. This is not true faith. This is the opposite of saving faith. This double-souled nature is no faith at all and it cannot save. Only that faith that clings to Christ alone and trusts in him and turns to him in repentance and faith can save. So if you are this double-souled man or woman, you cannot expect God's blessing, not in this life, not in the next. What is the hope for such a person? Maybe you're here today and you feel like, you know what, this describes me, this is how I feel, and maybe you're worried that you've gone so far down this road that there's no return. Maybe you hear James' words and you say, that sounds a lot like my life. My life feels unstable. I have no hope. I have no bearing in my life. Well, dear friend, if that's how you feel, know that there is hope. There is hope if you repent and if you humble yourself before the Lord. Something we need to keep in mind as we go through the letter of James is that it is one single letter and it was designed to be read all at once. And so even as we look at the individual parts, we need to keep the whole letter in mind. And doing that, we realize that at the end of the letter, James writes of the hope that is there for the double-souled man or woman. In chapter five, verses 15 and 16, James writes of the prayer of faith that results in the forgiveness of sins. So there's forgiveness even for this sin. Then in verses 19 and 20, he writes, my brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, he must know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. And so, dear friend, if you're here today and you think that's you, and though you may be on the road of death, it's not too late. And so turn, turn from your folly. Turn from your self-delusion and repent of your sins. Confess your sins. Pray this prayer of faith, trusting in Christ. Trust in the one who James says is able to save your soul from death and cover your multitude of sins. We are to ask for wisdom. We are to ask in faith without doubting. And now thirdly, why can we ask for wisdom? Or to put it another way, what is the basis for our request? And here I'm deliberately placing third what James puts first in the logic of his order. And I do that because I think too often we move past the indicative of scripture, in other words what God has done, to get to the imperative. What am I to do? But we need to dwell on the indicative, what God does and promises for us. Well, notice the basis James gives in verse five for why we can ask for wisdom. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. Notice how James bases this request on three aspects of God's character. First, God is a giving God. James 1 verse 5 literally reads in the Greek, he must ask the giving God. God, your God, is a giving God. That is, it is in the character of God to give. He is a heavenly father who gives good gifts to his children. God promises here to give the gift of wisdom to those who ask in faith. Just as Proverbs 2.6 says, for the Lord gives wisdom. From his mouth come knowledge and understanding. Well secondly, God gives generously to all. Now there's maybe a word that's slightly more accurate than the word generous here. The word that's behind the word generous in the Greek has the sense of singleness and simplicity or genuineness. So it has the sense that God gives genuinely, with a singleness of mind. And obviously this makes sense because it stands in contrast to the double-souled man or woman. The man or woman who does everything from ulterior motives, with divided intentions. But in contrast, God gives, you might say with no strings attached, without ulterior motives, he gives graciously, genuinely. Well, third, God gives without reproach. This is in contrast to those who give with reproach. To give with reproach is seen when a person maybe helps another person out, but in a way that shames them, makes them kind of feel bad that they even asked in the first place, maybe in a way that makes life difficult for them. Well, here you go, I'll help you, but this better be the last time. You're asking for help again? So soon? And you shame the other person. As parents, I think we can be guilty of this on a regular basis. You know, there are those times where Maybe you're busy making dinner and you've got 100 things on your mind. Or maybe you've got home from a hard day's work and you just want to relax for a minute. And then a little hand tugs at your shirt and a little voice speaks, calling for help for some silly little thing. And it's the 100th time they've asked for that help. And instead of putting down whatever you're doing and giving them your undivided attention and helping them, You roll your eyes and you give that sign. Sure, you help them, but you make sure that they know that they've inconvenienced you, they've upset your little kingdom, and they're bothering you. Well, that's what it means to give with reproach. But beloved, by way of contrast, Our God is not like this. When we come and we tug at his shirt, he does not sigh, he does not moan, he does not roll his eyes, but he gives graciously, with singleness of intent, without reproach. He doesn't feel inconvenienced. Rather, he delights when we come to him. When we come expressing our need, he doesn't say, really, you need my help again? No, he delights in it. He delights when we come acknowledging our lack and seeking his abundance. So why can we ask for wisdom? Well, because of the gracious character, the nature of our God who gives and whose giving is not based on who we are or what we deserve, but it's based on his gracious nature. What greater motivation than is there to ask that we might receive grace and help in time of need? Well, since the beginning of time, man has yearned and searched for wisdom. and has asked that question, where can wisdom be found? What's interesting is that is the question that takes up chapter 28 of the book of Job, where can wisdom be found? But the chapter closes with these words. Behold the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom, and to turn away from evil understanding. If you want wisdom, the wisdom that you need, the wisdom that you lack, that skill for living life, then turn to God in faith. And in faith, ask for that wisdom, for he is the source of wisdom and understanding. And so, loved ones, ask the Lord for wisdom from that heart of faith. Faith in what? Faith in the character of our giving God. who gives with singleness of intent and without reproach to all who ask. Let's pray. Oh Lord, our gracious, giving God, our wonderful Heavenly Father who is so unlike our parenting on so many levels, but one who gives without reproach generously to all who ask. And so, Lord, we do, we ask for wisdom. Please help us. Send us now away with your blessing, giving us the wisdom we need to honor you with our lives. We pray this in the one who is wisdom incarnate, Jesus Christ. Amen.