Earthly Pleasure Or Heavenly Nourishment

MAY 3, 2020 STUDY NOTES JAMES 5:4-6 BIBLE TEACHER: CLIFTON JONES EARTHLY PLEASURE OR HEAVENLY NOURISHMENT INTRODUCTION The majority-of Americans are living a life of pleasure and luxury, like a rich man, Luk 16:19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: Many Americans will not claim to be rich, yet they are living like this rich man A man who had anything and everything that he needed, but he probably wanted more He was “clothed in purple,” the best clothes that money could buy “Fine linen” spoke of his undergarments, no one wore better underwear than he did He lived a bright and colorful life in the upper level of the social status In many ways, he is no different than the average American of today Most of us have enough clothes to wear and more than enough to eat each day Most of us have more leisure time than we really need and usually do what we want to do Most people spend as much time in pleasure as they do in working Many today are like the rich man, living their own life and doing their own thing Without any thought toward the spiritual life and little thought of God The rich man was too concerned about himself to be concerned about God or others He “fared sumptuously every day,” means that he lived in leisure and luxury Many Americans fit the description given by Jesus and many are like those James describes James speaks to those who had acquired their wealth in a sinful way They had robbed the poor, their wealth was sinfully gained and selfishly spent Something James has already stated, Jas 2:6 But ye have despised the poor. Do not rich men oppress you, and draw you before the judgment seats? There is an attitude of power that comes with worldly wealth The attitude of the rich can be, I have the right to take advantage of you who are poor Which is not wrong to them because in their thinking the poor are of little or no value anyway They will go so far as to take the poor to court, to sue them and take all that they have James has a warning for those who are guilty of what he is saying Jas 5:4 Behold, the hire of the labourers who have reaped down your fields, which is of you kept back by fraud, crieth: and the cries of them which have reaped are entered into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth. James uses the word “behold” 4 times in chapter 5, he wants their attention, they better listen He calls their attention to the laborers they hired to work their fields, laborers they had cheated They failed to pay them their proper wages, James said, “you stole their money” A sin that was dealt with in the OT, Deu 24:14 Thou shalt not oppress an hired servant that is poor and needy, whether he be of thy brethren, or of thy strangers that are in thy land within thy gates: Deu 24:15 At his day thou shalt give him his hire, neither shall the sun go down upon it; for he is poor, and setteth his heart upon it: lest he cry against thee unto the LORD, and it be sin unto thee. And a sin that is dealt with in the NT, 1Ti 5:18 For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, the laborer is worthy of his reward. The wages they cheated the workers out of will be a witness against them at their judgment day Those stolen salaries will speak against them when they face the Almighty God James makes the charge very personal, “which is of you,” you are the very ones who did this James means, “that sounds like you,” it is no surprise that you would do such a thing The warning is to those who are proud of what they had accomplished, they kept their money They had cheated and swindled the poor in order to keep their money They will face a righteous judgment for their unrighteousness deeds, Mal 3:5 And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts. God the Judge also stands as an Eyewitness, He sees every sin, He needs no other witness Four groups that will face the righteous judgment of God are identified The fourth group is the same ones that James warns, those who oppress the poor and helpless James said, they are crying out against you and their shout is being heard Their shouts have entered-into the ears of the Lord of sabaoth. (SABB a ohth) The “ears of the Lord” have been open all-of the time, He has heard every cry of the poor He is “The Lord of Sabaoth” which means the “Lord Almighty;” The Lord who is Sovereign The title refers to His control over all creation and will be revealed at the time of Christ return The world will then know that He is in control of all things, He is even in control of today The Psalmist proclaims Him as the “King of Glory,” Psa 24:7 Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in. A question is asked, and the answer is given, Psa 24:8 Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. The same question is repeated for the purpose of emphasis, Psa 24:10 Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah. The title “LORD of hosts” means the Lord of powers or the Lord Almighty David told Goliath that his weapon was the “Lord of Hosts,” 1Sa 17:45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. God is the Almighty, He is the “Lord of Omnipotence,” the commander of the hosts of heaven The title expresses His majesty and power as creator and ruler of the universe He is the “Defender” of all who have been unjustly treated, like those James speaks of When Christ returns all accounts will be settled, all things will be made right Jas 5:5 Ye have lived in pleasure on the earth, and been wanton; ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. James now shows how great the contrast is between the rich and the workers who were cheated There was a great contrast in the way the poor and the rich lived their daily life The rich had lived in luxury and “self-indulgence” Today that style of living is known as “High social class living” Look again at the rich man Jesus spoke of, a rich man who lived that kind of a life, Luk 16:19 There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: His daily life was lived in luxury, life was one big party, every meal was a banquet He lived his own life, doing his own thing, living for the selfish desires of his heart “On the earth” indicates a life of worldliness, living only for the things of this world The life that is advertised as the “live it up” lifestyle, have fun with the rest of the world Jesus revealed that such a life might be considered “good,” but it is a wasted life Jesus described the rich man who “fared sumptuously,” Luk 16:25 But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. The emphasis is upon “thy lifetime,” the life that he chose to live, he lived his own life His “good things” were the things that he considered “good for him” His bright colored clothes, his live it up lifestyle, he lived it all for his good But now the good is gone, the good is over with and it was not so good after all His punishment was not for what he did, as much as for what he did not do He gave no thought to God for his life, he gave no thought to others James has already warned us against not doing what we know is right, Jas 4:17 Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin. The rich man did not love God, he did not love his neighbor, he did not care for his neighbor James describes the results of the selfish life that the rich were living as, been wanton; The meaning of this statement is to “live a life of luxury,” to eat, drink, and be merry A life of self-pleasure, self-indulgence, self-gratification, satisfying every whim The original word that James used is found one other time in the NT, 1Ti 5:6 But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth. It is translated “she that liveth in pleasure,” the same way that James uses the word Describing a life that is-in contrast to a Godly lifestyle, which is a life that is spiritually empty Paul explained that living in selfish pleasure is not living at all, it is death Living a sinful, selfish live will put true life to death, not allowing you to really live life at its best James is warning us not to live that kind of a lifestyle ye have nourished your hearts, as in a day of slaughter. What an example this is, what an example he gives, James makes his point very clear You have fattened yourselves by indulging in everything you wanted You have done everything exactly the way you selfishly wanted to do it James compares that life of self-indulgence to the calf being fattened for slaughter Fill up the creep feeder and let them eat all they want to eat The calf keeps on eating all they want right up to the day of slaughter The “Day of Slaughter” is often referred to in Scripture, Jer 12:3 But thou, O LORD, knowest me: thou hast seen me, and tried mine heart toward thee: pull them out like sheep for the slaughter, and prepare them for the day of slaughter. The time will come when sheep that have been fattened for slaughter will be slaughtered There is also a day of slaughter coming for those who have refused to live for Christ James describes them as those who have filled their heart with worldly pleasure The “indignation of the LORD is upon them,” upon a pleasure-seeking world, Isa 34:2 For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the slaughter. There is a day appointed known as the “Day of Slaughter” Note that in the following verses that day is under “Divine Direction,” it is the hand of God It is the day of the wrath of God, Eze 21:15 I have set the point of the sword against all their gates, that their heart may faint, and their ruins be multiplied: ah! it is made bright, it is wrapped up for the slaughter. (Notice “I”) The sword is divinely directed and there will be no escape from it, Eze 21:16 Go thee one way or other, either on the right hand, or on the left, whithersoever thy face is set. Eze 21:17 I will also smite mine hands together, and I will cause my fury to rest: I the LORD have said it. (Notice “I”) Amos describes a sinful and selfish society that was guilty of oppressing the poor, Amo 4:1 Hear this word, ye kine of Bashan, that are in the mountain of Samaria, which oppress the poor, which crush the needy, which say to their masters, Bring, and let us drink. Amos speaks of a time when Israel was living an idle life of luxury because of their riches Which may not be much different than our “day of living” in America Amos identifies the women as “cows of Bashan” (BAY shan) “Bashan” was a well-known pastureland that was famous for its fat cattle His description is that of a luxury-loving society, a sinful and selfish society When you have sinful women, you are going to have sinful men and a sinful society A sinful society is a selfish society, they “oppress the poor” and “crush the needy” Amos promised them that their day of punishment would come, Amo 4:2 The Lord GOD hath sworn by his holiness, that, lo, the days shall come upon you, that he will take you away with hooks, and your posterity with fishhooks. God’s covenant of grace with His people binds Him to punish the sinful deeds of the ungodly The rich are indulging themselves in their luxury unaware of the coming day of judgment Among the many things that God’s wrath will fall upon will be greed and covetousness Which leads to the helpless poor being nothing but prey for those who are greedy Jas 5:6 Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you. “You have condemned” is a legal term suggesting the rich used the courts to justify their deeds The rich had a powerful influence upon the court system, an unfair advantage over the poor The rich had exercised the right of law against the poor but in a way that was not right The “Golden Rule” has been described this way, “he who has the gold makes the rules” What does James mean by you have “killed the just?” The word “just” has the meaning of righteous or upright The word “Justification” comes from the same root word as righteousness Justification is “to be made right,” it is being declared righteous before God Without the death and resurrection of Jesus there would be no justification of sinners “The just” are those who are in a right relationship with God and live right, Rom 1:17 For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith. Paul means that our righteousness before God can only come through faith Righteousness is entirely of faith it can come no other way than faith in Jesus Christ James said, “You have killed the just, his words could be literally or figuratively taken The rich may have physically taken their lives or deprived them of living their personal life Christians who faithfully live right before God will not be treated right by the ungodly world, Rom 8:36 As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Paul quotes, Psa 44:22 Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter. Until Christ returns Christian will face opposition and persecution, some will even face death But the slaughter at the hands of man is no comparison to the slaughter from the hand of God The future day of God’s wrath is known as the “Day of the Lord” The Day of the Lord will be a time of God's wrath, described as a day of darkness It will be the day when God comes to judge Satan, sin, and all who follow Satan and sin The day when God will judge the world that rejected Christ and followed Satan and sin James is warning those who have turned to money as their god, they will face God’s wrath Paul identifies the same truth for us, Rom 2:1 Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever thou art that judgest: for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself; for thou that judgest doest the same things. Paul is referring to the sinful human race in general, all sinners are without excuse Sinful man is guilty of judging others in different ways and various degrees, yet they are all guilty And they are sure to face the judgment of God, Rom 2:2 But we are sure that the judgment of God is according to truth against them which commit such things. God’s judgment “is according to truth,” it could be no other way, God is the God of Truth God’s judgment is based upon truth and God knows the truth of every person “Such things” refers to all things that have been done in a selfish and sinful way And there is no escape from the judgment of “such things,” Rom 2:3 And thinkest thou this, O man, that judgest them which do such things, and doest the same, that thou shalt escape the judgment of God? James told us about the thinking of the rich toward their riches and their treatment of the poor Paul tells us something about the thinking of sinful man, Rom 2:4 Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? “Despisest” has the thought of giving little attention to something You don’t pay attention to it because you underestimate the value of it It is easy to overestimate the value of worldly wealth and Paul tells us about those who do Because their eyes are upon the riches of this world, they cannot see the riches of God’s goodness They face and deserve the wrath of God upon them, Rom 2:5 But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; “Hardness” means stubbornness, a hard, stubborn heart that refuses to repent The word “Impenitent” describes the heart that refuses to repent They refuse to forsake their sin and give their heart to the will of God “To treasure up” means “to lay up as treasure,” treasure stored up for future use James speaks of earthly treasures being stored up in hope of a good life in the future The heart that refuses to repent is storing up a treasure chest of destruction, which is God’s wrath Every person will receive a pay day, it will be an individual matter, Rom 2:6 Who will render to every man according to his deeds: James has one other comment in verse 6, he doth not resist you. He refers to the attitude of the poor toward their opposition of the rich We can compare it with the attitude of Jesus, 1Pe 2:23 Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: And they followed the instructions of Jesus, Mat 5:39 But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. Mat 5:40 And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloke also. Mat 5:41 And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. Mat 5:42 Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away. All of which is hard to follow, but we must put our trust in God, believe what He says, Rom 12:19 Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord. CONCLUSION Earthly riches can cause headaches and heart failure They can cause headaches as you attempt to gain them and heart failure when you lose them The world believes money can purchase anything you want and get you anywhere you want to go But Jesus has riches untold, a rich life for today and eternity -- I’d RATHER HAVE JESUS