Operate in Life by Faith, Because It Produces Much Good

by Beebe Kauffman

When the TV or coffee maker isn’t working, we need the trouble-shooting guide. When our daily Christian lives aren’t working as they should, we need God and His word. Just like we scan the “Troubleshooting Guide” to diagnose the problem, we can scan God’s word and find the wisdom we need.

What do we do when our tempers keep flaring out of control and our words keep hurting people? How do we overcome temptations, endure trials, and make grumbling or swearing things of the past?

We can turn to God and His word. As we read about the problems of the real-life people in the Bible, we see how to deal with our own troubles more effectively. When we read what Scripture prescribes concerning doubts, prejudice, envy, or selfishness, we are forearmed to preclude these problems in our lives or better equipped to fight our way free of them.

The book of James is a jewel of practical wisdom. It gives us the what’s, why’s, and how’s. It tells us why we should control our words, how we can weather trials, and what we should do instead of letting anger boil up and spew harm.

Here is a practical take on this book of the Bible:

James: A Troubleshooting Guide for the Christian Life—
Apply the wisdom of God to the problems of man.

James Chapter 1 shows us that troubleshooting begins with having faith in God. Whether it’s faith to persevere in a trial or to ask God for help, faith is key to receiving God’s blessings.

Read Chapter 1 in your Bible and then the application below.

Ch. 1  Operate in life by faith, because it produces much good.

v.1-4  Count trials as opportunities to grow in faithful endurance—in “staying power”¹—that moves you closer to a more complete Christian character.

v.5-8  Ask God for wisdom when you lack it, without doubting, and you will receive it.

Commentary Notes:
v.5 If any of you lacks wisdom. Wisdom signifies in general, knowledge of the best end and the best means of attaining it; but in Scripture it signifies the same as true religion—the thorough practical knowledge of God, of one’s self, and of a Savior.²

v.5 Let him ask of God. Because God is the only teacher of this wisdom.³

v.6 He who doubts is like a wave of the sea. The wave of the sea has no stability. It is at the mercy of every wind, and seems to be driven and tossed every way. So he that comes to God with unsettled convictions and hopes, is liable to be driven about by every new feeling that may spring up in the mind. At one moment, hope and faith impel him to come to God; then the mind is at once filled with uncertainty and doubt, and the soul is agitated and restless as the ocean. … Hope on the one hand, and the fear of not obtaining the favor which is desired on the other, keep the mind restless and discomposed.⁴

v.9-11  Faith is a great equalizer—the true riches of the lowly brother and of the rich man both lie in their relationship with Christ.

v.12-18  Don’t be deceived into thinking that God tempts us to sin; on the contrary, He gives us every good and perfect gift, the crowning gift being eternal life.

v.19-20  Stay ready and willing to hear God’s word (v.18), reserve your opinion until you understand it well, and don’t get angry in discussions of it, because anger does no good.

v.21  Lay aside sin that pollutes and corrupts your soul, and receive the instruction of God’s word, which can save it.

Commentary Note:
v.21 Lay aside all filthiness and overflow of wickedness. A corrupt mind, a mind full of sensuality and wickedness, is not favorable to the reception of the truth. It is not fitted to see its beauty, to appreciate its value, to understand its just claims, or to welcome it to the soul. Purity of heart is the best preparation always for seeing the force of truth.⁵

v.22-25  Be blessed by not only hearing God’s word, but by doing what it says.

v.26-27  True faith provides the power to bridle your tongue, the compassion to help orphans and widows in distress, and the motivation to keep yourself unspotted by the world.

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1. Archibald T. Robertson, Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament, quoted in Phil Lindner, Power Bible CD, CD-ROM (Bronson, Mich.: Online Publishing, Inc., 2007), James 1:3.
2. Adam Clarke, Adam Clarke’s Commentary, quoted in Phil Lindner, Power Bible CD,  CD-ROM (Bronson, Mich.: Online Publishing, Inc., 2007), James 1:5.
3. Ibid.
4. Ibid., James 1:6.
5. Albert Barnes, Albert Barnes’ New Testament Commentary, quoted in Larry Pierce, The Online Bible, CD-ROM (Winterbourne, Ontario: Larry Pierce, 2007), James 1:21.
*This adapted excerpt comes from Beebe Kauffman, A Whole Lot of Wonderful—Application of the New Testament for Today (Buford, Georgia: Lighthouse Bible Studies, 2018), 610, 614-615.