Wisdom is Useless without Faith

“If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.  But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering.  For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed.  For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.  A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”  James 1:5-8

Continuing with the theme of faith, it appears that the boisterous sea is used more than once in scripture to illustrate those whose faith is weak.  In yesterday’s blog, Jesus rebuked His disciples for having weak faith when a storm arose and scared them half to death.  In this passage of James, the writer is comparing one whose faith is weak and wavering, that is, up and down, never solid or grounded, but rather doubtful and disengaged.  Scripture uses nature many times to illustrate a principle, doctrine, or message.  It would be interesting to know how many times nature was used, but that would be quite an undertaking of research in the Bible to discover all the times weather, animals, crops, trees, etc. were used in parables and to explain valuable lessons for folks.  And don’t forget when the boisterous waves and wind caused Peter to lose his focus on his faith in Jesus (Matthew 14:24-32).

James had earlier been writing about the need for patience in the believer, but now he turned to the availability of godly wisdom for every faithful follower of Jesus Christ.  Folks can have knowledge without wisdom if they don’t have the ability to use their knowledge in a righteous and beneficial way.  Here is a recent example:  some scientist has come up with the idea of blocking out the sun in order to control climate change.  This fellow might be brilliant as far as facts and figures go, but how dumb is that idea?  I am not a farmer, but I know that crops have to have a good bit of sunlight in order to grow.  They talk about solar energy on one hand and talk about eliminating the source of solar energy on the other.  It is this kind of crazy stuff that people think up when they have no clue about God and about His purpose for creation.  They have no faith in God and thus have no capacity for wisdom.

Maybe that is why Jesus hung out with the common folks because at least they had sense to recognize their need for forgiveness of sin and had enough wisdom to know that Jesus could forgive them.  They also understood that they had to have faith in Him.  James said that we must ask the Lord in faith for those things that we need and/or desire.  We can’t waver, that is, go back and forth, one day having strong faith and the next day doubting.  Think about a rollercoaster.  One second you are at the very top and then ride downward really fast leaving your stomach behind, at least that what is feels like.  But up you go again even higher and then dropping even lower.  That continues until the coaster stops, you get off, and walk a little uncertain of your steps.  Metaphorically, this is like faith.  One may feel on top of the mountain of faith, strong, confident, and contented, assured that God will answer your prayers.  However, if the answer doesn’t come quickly or doesn’t come at all, then doubt sets in.  Perhaps God didn’t hear that prayer or perhaps He has decided to ignore it and ignore me.  Really?

Suppose you asked a friend to come and help you with a project.  He had always followed through before, but for some reason you began to doubt that he would show up.  Perhaps you felt that you were imposing on his time or that he might forget.  On the day he was scheduled to come, he came, tools in hand, ready to work.  You then look at him and say, “I didn’t think you were coming.”  He promised, and he had always shown up before, so now how do you think that would make him feel?  Would he feel like you didn’t really trust him?

James wrote that a “double-minded man is unstable in all of his ways”.  Wavering between faith and doubt not only hinders answers to our prayers but also affects all other areas of our lives, particularly decision making.  We cannot make a firm decision because we are always second-guessing ourselves.  Doubt produces instability.  Faith helps us to evaluate circumstances and consider the consequences which leads to better decision-making and a peace in which we can move on.  Doubt dwells on the past; faith moves us forward.  Faith is the conduit by which we receive all that the Lord has to give us, and that includes answers to prayer.