Title: The Futility of Life
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Title : The futility of life (James 4:13-16 )
I just thought I would share a little bit about something that God has been teaching me these days. I hope it would be helpful to us all.
The title may carry a negative tone, but that is not meant to be. Rather the purpose of this essay is to remind us all that the reality of human life short, how unpredictable, and how weak it is. This realization must then lead to a total dependence on God and trust in God's sovereign rule over the universe.
James chapter 4 begins with things that are to be avoided in Christian life.
Verse 1 ;quarrels and conflicts
Verse 2 ;murder, envy
Verse 3 ;selfish prayer, carnality
Verse 4 ;love for the world
Verse 5 ;jealousy
Verse 6 ;pride
Verse 11; evil speech
And the rest of the chapter talks about what a believer is to do in contrast to the sinful things just mentioned.
Verse 7 ;submitting to God, battling against the devil
Verse 8 ;seeking God, repentance
Verse 9 ;mourning over sin
Verse 10;humility
And from verse 13 to 16 talks about the reality of human life, and indirectly admonishes that we must depend on God.
Verse 14 gives us an idea of what a man really is. It says that we do not know the future. We are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.
Other passages also tells us how frail we are;
Jam 1:10 ;he rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away.?(1 Pet 1:24 ;ALL FLESH IS LIKE GRASS, AND ALL ITS GLORY LIKE THE FLOWER OF GRASS. THE GRASS WITHERS, AND THE FLOWER FALLS OFF.)
Psalm 103:14 ;we are but dust.And the following verse says, as for man, his days are like grass.(Is. 2:22 ; regarding man, whose breath of life is in his nostrils; For why should he be esteemed.)
There's nothing to boast about in man.
The first sin that man ever committed came from the desire to be as wise as God. We also see in the Gospels and in Romans that the self-righteous Jews boasted in their works. And just like them, many boast today as well. I think it is a human tendency to want to boast about ourselves. We may not boast in front of others, but inside, we may be giving ourselves too much credit for God's grace. But we know that the reason why we are saved by faith is so that we cannot boast in our works.
The Bible tells us that no matter how talented a person is, he is but dust, vapor, grass. There's nothing to boast in man. Rather, we are to boast in God, and God alone.
Ps 20:7 ;Some boast in chariots and some in horses,
But we will boast in the name of the LORD, our God.
Ps. 34:2 ;My soul will make its boast in the LORD;
The humble will hear it and rejoice.
Jer 9:23, 24 ;Thus says the LORD, Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches; but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the LORD who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things, declares the LORD.
Three most common types of boastings of man are mentioned. Man boast in their knowledge, in their youth, and in their possessions. But we are not to boast in these things. We are to boast that we understand and know God. We are to boast in God's lovingkindness, justice and righteousness. We are to find confidence in our relationship with God and we are to boast in His works, not our works.
May we boast in God and God alone.
And may we depend on Him in every circumstances.
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