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James 1:16–18
“Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 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. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.”
In the Lord’s Prayer, Jesus tells us to ask the Father to “lead us not into temptation” (Matt. 6:13). Comparing this text to passages such as James 1:13–15, which says that God tempts no one with evil, we see that Jesus must mean for us to ask our Father not to allow others to tempt us in such a way that we are overcome. We are to pray, in other words, for the Lord to strengthen us so that we persevere against temptations and commit no further sin. This petition in the Lord’s Prayer recognizes the sovereignty of God over evil, that sins occur only by His permission but not in a way that makes Him guilty of evil. He can do no evil and never entices us to sin even if He uses evil for His good purposes (Rom. 8:28).
Today’s passage expands on the idea that God tempts no one to evil by stressing His absolute, unchanging goodness. James 1:16 exhorts us not to be deceived, indicating that what is about to be said can be denied only if we give in to deception, if we allow ourselves to be tricked into thinking otherwise. It is a particularly strong way to call our attention to the teaching that follows.
James 1:17 stresses that every good and every perfect gift comes from God, who is referred to as “the Father of lights.” The Apostle here focuses on God as the Creator of the heavenly lights—the sun, the moon, and the stars. These lights make agriculture and navigation possible. They illumine the world so that we can conduct our affairs. We could list other benefits that they provide. The point is that God’s goodness is especially seen in providing the heavenly lights, as the Old Testament sees the creation and sustenance of these things as signal evidences of God’s good and loving superintendence of creation (e.g., see Ps. 136:7–9). James 1:17 goes on to say that there is “no variation or shadow due to change” with God, “the Father of lights.” This phrase has in mind the waxing and waning of the moon, the movements of the sun and stars, and more. The point is that God and His goodness do not change as the heavenly lights do. He is absolute, unchanging goodness.
God’s creation of the sun, moon, and stars reveals His goodness, but an even greater revelation of His goodness is seen in His redeeming us. He brought us forth by the “word of truth”—the gospel—making us “firstfruits” of His creatures (James 1:18). The Lord changed our hearts and granted us faith in Christ as the start of His renewal of all creation (see Rom. 8:19–23; 2 Thess. 2:13).
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
John Calvin comments that “to do good is what properly belongs to [God], and according to his nature; and from him all good things come to us.” It is easy for us to forget this or to fail to acknowledge that every good thing we have and every good thing that has happened to us has God as its ultimate Author. Let us thank God this day for His good gifts and remember that He does only good to us.
For further study
- Psalm 31:19
- Nahum 1:7
- 1 Peter 1:22–25
- Revelation 14:1–5
The bible in a year
- Genesis 34–35
- Matthew 12