Temptation - James 4:6-17

4:6-8 - Even though it is human nature to envy and anger and lust, but we can “draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you,” because “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble.” It can start with just a desire to change the way we live, then that desire grows into very small changes, and that builds until we are transformed from our old ways into Disciples of Christ. Our efforts can be small but they are critical to the transformation process because that’s how we show that we want to keep the commandments. The other, and most important, aspect of our transformation is the healing and building that comes from Christ to us. That’s what James means when he promises that our efforts will be met by God “draw(ing) nigh unto (us).” We come a small way and Jesus comes a long way, that’s the process described and promised to us. We are not only promised spiritual progress if we try, but James also makes an interesting promise saying, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” I think that one of the lies Satan has worked so hard to make everyone believe is that he is all powerful. He wants us to believe that he knows our thoughts, that he can force us to do wicked things, and that there is nothing we can do to stop him. The truth is, he does not know our thoughts, he has no power to force us to do anything, and we can absolutely stop him whenever we want. Satan can tempt, he can lie, and that’s it. He can’t take over our bodies and physically force us to do what we don’t want to do. The article on this chapter from gospeldoctrine.com quotes James E. Faust as teaching, “We need not become paralyzed with fear of Satan’s power. He can have no power over us unless we permit it. He is really a coward, and if we stand firm, he will retreat… certainly he can tempt and he can deceive, but he has no authority over us which we do not give him. The power to resist Satan may be stronger than we realize. The Prophet Joseph Smith taught: ‘All beings who have bodies have power over those who have not. The devil has no power over us only as we permit him. The moment we revolt at anything which comes from God, the devil takes power.’ He also stated, ‘wicked spirits have their bounds, limits, and laws by which they are governed.’ So Satan and his angels are not all-powerful.” I had never considered Satan as a coward before, and it’s a really interesting concept. Anyway, all this begs the question, how do we resist the devil? If we have to constantly and adamantly scream, “NO!” all day every day, that sounds pretty exhausting, is it really like that? I don’t think so. How do temptations come to us? I think everything starts out as a thought and maybe that’s all Satan’s influence is, just someone next to us whispering into our unconscious spiritual mind. So does this mean that if Satan whispers some thought into our mind, it is counted as a sin against us? Again, I don’t think so. A friend of mine once said something I thought was a pretty good measuring stick for where our accountability begins. She said, “You’re not accountable for the first thought, but you are accountable for the second thought.” The sentiment being that if a thought enters your mind that goes against the commandments, that’s not your fault any more than it would be our fault if we overheard someone tell a graphic story. But if we take that thought and continue on with it, then that’s on us. That’s the beautiful thing about having a loving, merciful, just God. He knows were not going to get it right every time, in fact, we’re probably not going to get it right most times. James counsels us to “draw night to God… cleanse your hands… and purify your hearts.” Drawing to, cleansing, and purifying ourselves or something else is a process. If we think about something or get angry or have a visceral reaction sometime, if human nature gives us feelings and we take it to the second thought, it’s not fire and brimstone, it’s not failure, it’s “let’s try to do better next time.” That’s the process, trying to do better next time, and if we have a desire in our hearts to do better, then Jesus will help us do better, that’s His promise. I don’t know how it works, I don’t know how he does it, but I know that it happens because I’ve experienced it in my life so many times and I am so grateful for the opportunity. 4:9-10 - We know of God as love and high and joy and peace, but James gives some counsel that seems contradictory to God’s desire for us. James encourages us to “be afflicted, and mourn, and week: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.” That is a pretty stark view of discipleship, and in fact contradicts what James just said a few verses about righteousness bringing peace. The phrase “be afflicted” is cross-referenced with “Endure hardship, suffer harassment,” and from what I can I can gather, this might be James’ way of saying that believers will be persecuted and that we should accept it as part of the of being a believer. Then directly countering the word “heaviness,” James assures us that if we “humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, he shall lift you up.” Like maybe, “hardships are going to coming specifically because of your belief in Jesus Christ, but God Himself will be there to comfort you when the time comes.” 9:11-17 - Circling back to how we speak to each other, James continues “speak not evil on of another” and further says that it is judging our brother and speaking “evil of the law, and judgeth the law.” This might have had more significance when James wrote this 2,000 years ago, because as I recall, reverence for the law itself was important in ancient Judaism. But if we “knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.” The IM quotes James E. Faust as teaching, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Love your neighbor as yourself. When smitten, turn the other cheek. When asked for a coat, give your cloak also. Forgive, not just once but seventy times seven. This was the essence of the new gospel (Jesus taught). There was more emphasis on do than do not… I fear that some of our greatest sins are sins of omission… These are the thoughtful, caring deeds we fail to do and feel so guilty for having neglected them.”