09. The Sin of Presumption

James 4:11-5:6

Introduction

How many times during the average day do you make presumptions? How often do you think something or act in a manner which is based upon an assumption you have made about people or circumstances? The truth is, we all rely upon certain assumptions every day. We presume that our observations are correct and we act accordingly. Most of the time, this is a perfectly harmless way to function because most of the time our presumptions are correct. This is because life is predictable, to a degree, and people are predictable, to a degree. We don't live in a world where uncertainty characterizes everything, we live in a world which has order and order allows for presumption.

However, there are times when presumption can be sinful. There are times when it is sinful to assume that we know what is in a person's heart. There are times when it is sinful to assume that we know what tomorrow will bring. And there are times when it is sinful to assume that we are well-insulated from the harsher realities due to our circumstances. The sin of presumption is one which can easily overtake us. James writes about the sin of presumption in the next section of his epistle.

In 4:11-5:6, we find three illustrations of the sin of presumption. First, James describes and warns against presumptuous judgment regarding the actions and motivations of a brother. Second, James describes and warns against presumptuous expectations regarding the future, as if we control what will come to pass. Third, he describes and warns against presumptuous security, that is, basing one's sense of well-being upon that which, in reality, offers no true security.

01. Presumptuous Judgment (4:11, 12)

4:11 Do not speak against one another, brethren. He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it. 12 There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor?

The word translated “speak against” (katalaleo) in v. 11 means “to express hostility in speaking, to slander, or to revile.” Clearly, James has in mind statements made which are unloving and designed to harm the reputation. These are not statements which build up or protect an individual; they are statements which tear down and expose a brother to embarrassment and ridicule. Notice that James equates this kind of talk about a brother to passing judgment: “He who speaks against a brother or judges a brother…” By definition, slanderous statements made about another person are judgmental; that is, such statements are presenting an assessment of another's character and, therefore, their spiritual state. James flatly forbids this activity among believers: “Do not speak against one another, brethren.”

James continues and explains: “He who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and judges the law…” He means that there is already a standard of conduct in operation; there is already a code to which the people of God are held. This standard of conduct, the code to which we are held is not the opinion of our fellow-believers. It is not their standard against which we are measured, it is God's standard as revealed in His law. It is not our responsibility to condemn one another; that is taken care of in God's holy law. To judge a brother apart from the law, which is the implication here, is to disregard the one standard which God has given; and it is to subject a brother to an arbitrary standard, one which is grounded in our sinful hearts instead of in the unchanging and ultimately authoritative word of God.

Critical comments made about a brother pits the speaker against the law of God. If his opinion is contrary to the law of God, then the speaker has judged the law and, in essence, declared it insufficient. This is not a position anyone should desire. On the other hand, if the speaker is in agreement with the law, then he need say nothing in the first place. It is not necessary to spread the news that a brother is in violation of God's law. God's law does not need our verbal support to be effective. Besides, as we learn elsewhere in Scripture, the thing to do in a case where a brother has stumbled is to come to his aid.

A slanderer normally operates on half-truths and an absence of the facts. The law of God, however, is always perfect in its condemnations. If we choose to spread negative reports about a brother instead of allowing the word of God to be applied decently and in order, then we are guilty of judging the law-that is, we are guilty of setting ourselves above the law as if we know better. Then, James declares, “you are not a doer of the law but a judge of it.” The slanderer spends his time condemning others and ends up being condemned as a law-breaker himself. This is the danger of speaking against one another in the church, as James describes. This kind of behavior destroys fellowship and creates animosity.

What James is describing is the sin of presumptuous judgment. This is the sin of jumping to conclusions without facts, the sin of spreading harmful reports unnecessarily. Yet, this is one of the sins which can be found in just about every congregation. We are, by nature, slanderers, and we must work to control that tendency which arises from the flesh. James offers information which helps establish control: “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge…” (v. 12) Keep this in mind, James advises, and you will do well. There is only one Lawgiver and Judge and that is God Himself. Only God has the authority to tell us what constitutes sin and only God has the authority to condemn. When we step outside the bounds created by His law, then we are putting ourselves in opposition to His word and His authority.

Only God has the right “to save and to destroy,” James adds. Therefore, “who are you who judge your neighbor?” That's a good question, wouldn't you agree? If only God has the authority to tell us what is right and what is wrong and if only God has the authority to condemn His creatures for their wrongful conduct, then who do we think we are when we slander a brother or sister? By that act, as James says, we have entered into judgment against them. Who do we think we are when we pass judgment upon a brother or sister and eagerly share that judgment with others?

02. Presumptuous Expectation (4:13-17)

13 Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit.” 14 Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away. 15 Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” 16 But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting is evil. 17 Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.

If there is one issue which James touches upon in this letter that has relevance to our whole society it is the sin of presuming upon the future. The vast majority of citizens in our culture speak and act and plan as if they know what tomorrow will bring and as if they will direct their destinies as they choose. Presumptuous expectation is a wicked sin because, as James explains in these verses, it amounts to a denial of certain attributes of God, including His sovereignty and His omniscience, just to name two. In fact, you could go so far as to say that presuming upon tomorrow is close to a denial of the very existence of God.

James was rightly concerned about some in this Christian group who were saying, “Today or tomorrow we will do this or that, and we will go here or there, and we will carry on our businesses and we will prosper.” (cf. 13) Based upon what could such declarations be made? What is the foundation for such boasts? Only if we believe that we are the final authority in life, only if we believe that we are free to do what we choose, when and how we choose, can these kinds of statements be made. James sees a problem with this kind of presuming in regard to the future. Who is able to say with absolute certainty where they will go tomorrow? And who is able to say with absolute certainty that their plans will succeed?

The only thing “absolute” about such statements is their foolishness! Listen to what James writes after telling us how some were presuming upon the future: “Yet you do not know what you life will be like tomorrow.” (v. 14) Compare that statement with the previous. Imagine a man who proudly declares: “You know, tomorrow I think I'll travel to such and such a city, and I think I'll spend a year there and devote my time to my business. I'll have a very profitable year.” But then James reprimands that fool by saying: “But you do not know what you life will be like tomorrow. You boast of great things; you speak with much confidence, but you don't know what your life will be like tomorrow, must less next week or next month or next year!”

Listen to James again: “You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away.” Talk about a put-down! James says: “You are quite the confident man, aren't you? You speak with certainty about what you're going to do tomorrow and you speak with authority about how you are going to transact your business and reap a great profit. My, my, aren't you just full of pride and faith in yourself. Oh, by the way, did I mention that you are just a vapor? You don't even have enough substance in yourself to last longer than a puff of smoke or a cloud of steam from a tea kettle.” If we are just like a vapor, then how do we justify making any statement about where we will go and what we will accomplish in the future?

Here is what you should say, James writes: “If the Lord wills, we will live and also do this or that.” (v. 15) James is telling us that the boasting of v. 13 is done without reference to God's will. Therefore, it is baseless. It is not man's will which determines the future; it is not man's desires or plans or schemes which determine what he will experience the very next day. That kind of presuming upon the future fails to take into account the thing which determines what will unfold in the future and that is the decree of God. Therefore, making confident statements about the future apart from consideration of the Lord's will is laughable. That kind of talk has all the force of a mist which is seen for a moment and then disappears right before your eyes, James states. With that image in mind, the boasting illustrated in v. 13 is pathetic. The man who truly thinks that he controls his destiny is a pitiful sight. He's nothing but a vapor.

A man who talks like he will do what he wishes and will accomplish whatever he desires is, simply put, sinfully arrogant (cf. v. 16). All such boasting is evil, James adds. Presumptuous expectation is the sin identified here by James. Woe to the man who thinks he will go to such and such a city if God has willed him not to go. And woe to the man who thinks that he will prosper in a certain endeavor if God has willed him not to prosper. What is man compared to God? What is man's will compared to God's will? “If the Lord wills” should be the motto of every person. “I will go to such and such a city, if the Lord wills.” “I will spend a year there and engage in business and make a profit, if the Lord wills.” Those four words are the difference between arrogance and piety; they are the difference between ignorance and knowledge.

James closes this section with a proverbial saying: “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.” (v. 17) If we know what is right and do not do what is right, it is sin. If we know that God's will is sovereign, but do not speak or plan or act like it is sovereign, then we are sinning. To presume upon the future when we know that God's will governs the future is sin, James teaches.

03. Presumptuous Security (5:1-6)

5:1 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you. 2 Your riches have rotted and your garments have become moth-eaten. 3 Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure! 4 Behold, the pay of the laborers who mowed your fields, and which has been withheld by you, cries out against you; and the outcry of those who did the harvesting has reached the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. 5 You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. 6 You have condemned and put to death the righteous man; he does not resist you.

Here is the third illustration of the sin of presumption. In this case, James emphasizes the behavior of a particular class of people, the rich. It is clear that James is not condemning the rich because they are wealthy; he is condemning them for the manner in which they had utilized their wealth. It had been used for evil purposes. Overall, this passage teaches that the rich found a degree of security in their wealth and that allowed them to mistreat others. The shocking news for them, however, is that their riches would provide no security against the judgment which was to come.

James immediately calls the wicked rich to repentance (v. 1). He warns them that “miseries” are coming upon them. James is contrasting their present state, in which they drew comfort from their wealth and power, with what is about to befall them. The word rendered “miseries” (talaiporia) means “hardship or calamity.” A sudden and disastrous change was on the horizon. That in which the wicked rich found security, that which they presumed would comfort and protect them, would fail them shortly. James tells them that their riches were rotten, which probably refers to the food which the wealthy hoarded. And, he adds, their fine garments were moth-eaten (v. 2). Their much-prized gold and silver had rusted and would end up consuming them like fire (v. 3).

Obviously, James is speaking figuratively in reference to the gold and silver. He means that their accumulated gold and silver would be as if it were corroded and useless. It is vanity to depend upon wealth and the things which wealth can bring as a source of security. Such things disappear, they rot, they end up not serving the purposed intended. James is talking to some who had pinned their hopes, so to speak, on what they were able to amass. They sinfully presumed that what they owned and the influence which came to them because of their wealth would preserve them in the days to come no matter what.

The problem for them, however, is that injustice cannot be made right regardless of a person's wealth. James reveals how these people had treated others. They had withheld pay from their laborers and the Lord had heard the cry of the afflicted (v. 4). This was a wrong which they could not make right with money. In fact, it was their stinginess and love of money which led them to hold back what was due to the workmen. James warns them that the God of justice had taken note of their transgressions and a day of reckoning was approaching. The word “Sabaoth” refers to the hosts which are at the Lord's command. His armies would fight for the downtrodden and the abused.

“You have lived luxuriously on the earth and led a life of wanton pleasure,” James charges (v. 5) His point is that these wicked rich lived for themselves, they abused those with less means and cheated their workers. They felt free to behave in this manner because they believed that their wealth insulated them and provided them with a comfortable and safe future. They gave no thought to justice; they gave no thought to helping the poor; they gave no thought to the injunctions from the Lord regarding mercy and compassion.

Sadly, however, they did not know that they were headed for slaughter, which is James' way of describing a coming judgment. I think James has in mind the turmoil which soon would be prevalent in this part of the world as the Lord's plan to punish Israel reached its climax in the second half of the first century. Sources indicate that this was a perilous time for all. There was much civil unrest and society was much disrupted. It is quite possible that James is thinking of those days as that which God would use to judge the rich.

Citing the most grevious of sins, James concludes by charging the wicked rich with having “condemned and put to death the righteous man.” (v. 6) Here, James probably means to contrast the conniving and evil conduct of the rich with the relatively innocent and humble demeanor of those who had been wronged. The wronged man only wanted what he was owed; he only expected what was promised. Yet, the rich were seeing to the poor man's destruction by using money to subvert justice-even to the point, it appears, of taking the life of the righteous man.

Conclusion

Let's think for a moment about these three illustrations of presumptuous sin. First, James warned against the sin of presumptuous judgment. This is a sin which is so easy to commit. We find it so easy to pass judgment upon another person. We assume that what we have observed in the life of another person is sufficient information for us to reach a conclusion; so, we make a judgment and, more often than not, the conclusion we reach is something negative about that person. After all, how many times have you heard someone go out of their way to say something complimentary about another person? By contrast, how many times have you heard someone say something negative about another person? We are far more prone to conclude and report harmful things.

James cautions us against the sin of jumping to conclusions, thinking that we know all we need to know when, in fact, we may be far off the mark. If we do what James advises, which is keep in mind that there is one Lawgiver and Judge, and only He has the authority to pass judgment, then we will do well and we will avoid a lot of hurt and turmoil in the church. Let's keep in mind that it is not our standard which those around us are supposed to meet. We all are called to conform to God's word and it is not necessary for any of us to set ourselves up as monitors.

To put it as simply as possible, James teaches that we are in error if we presume the right to judge one another. Only God has that right and only His word, not our opinion, stands as the measure of all things. In the Christian community, disorderly judgment of one another is forbidden; and not only is it forbidden, it is destructive. God's law, applied as God instructs-that is, through the channels which He has established-should be the first and final word when it comes to assessing the spiritual character of one another.

The second illustration of the sin of presumption had to do with unfounded boasting. If it is true, as James declares, that we don't even know what tomorrow might bring, then we ought to be humble and prayerful people. We ought not to be the kind of people who talk as if they will do whatever they choose to do tomorrow, next week, next month and next year. We don't have that power; we don't have the insight required. All we know is that God has decreed whatsoever comes to pass and we know that our lives are in His hands. We must not, therefore, be guilty of boasting about the future while giving no acknowledgment of God's sovereignty.

If our lives are but vapors, then we don't have a lot to brag about. Before a puff of smoke can tell you how wonderful it is and what great things it is going to accomplish, it is gone. Young people, in particular, need to hear what James is saying. By the time you reach middle-age, you know full well that life does not go according to your plan; and you know that disruptions come in all shapes and sizes, so you've learned to guard yourself. But when you are young, you make great plans and you make grand declarations. I hear young people talking all the time about their career plans and their plans for their families which, for young women, will be composed of a godly man who will show the world how to be a husband and father, and children who simply will learn from day one how to obey mom and dad and never go astray.

James says to us all: “You do not know what you life will be like tomorrow.” So we all must watch the presumptuous boasting. Maybe we will realize our plans and maybe not, but the determining factor will not be our desires, but God's decree. Young people, if you will learn this lesson now, at this point in your life, you will much better able to find contentment and gladness in life even when circumstances don't turn out as you had hoped.

If James is correct, then acting like we are certain about where we will go and what we will do in the days ahead is a horrendous sin because, as I indicated before, for such talk to be true, God would have to depend upon us, instead of us being dependent upon Him; and His plans would have to be subject to our will, instead of our plans being subject to His will. Imagine boasting so in the face of God. But this is what such talk means. A careless attitude and a careless understanding of how this world operates leads to that kind of misplaced confidence and presumptuous expectation. Any believer who has lived for more than a few years should be able to tell you that the plans we make, no matter how wonderful, no matter how detailed, no matter how well-intentioned, no matter how well-grounded in today's reality can and are sometimes turned upside down when God has willed something different.

The third illustration provided by James was that of presumptuous security. He wrote about those who had wealth and because they had wealth, they assumed certain things about the future. They assumed that they would never be in need, never be in want and never end up like those folks they cheated and mistreated. But they were wrong, James stated. Judgment was coming and they would be totally unprepared.

You don't have to be tremendously wealthy for this type of presumptuous sin to show up in your life. Anytime you are finding security and comfort in the things of this world, you are playing with this sin. And, as the example used by James shows, when you get caught up in this sin, you become careless. The rich to which James refers felt so safe and comfortable that they openly cheated and abused those working for them. The wicked rich used their money and influence to subvert justice and you don't do that unless you think that there will be no day of reckoning for you. So there is a tendency to become morally careless when you allow your present circumstances to insulate you and blind you to the reality of God's sure justice.

This passage provides us with an opportunity to assess ourselves and see if, in some ways, we have become too comfortable with this life. Have you reached a stage where you think you can just sit back and take it easy? If so, be on your guard. Don't allow yourself to be fooled by circumstances and possessions. If God has brought you to a place of material comfort, then give thanks and be all the more determined to honor Him with your life. Be merciful and generous. Be kind and helpful. Let your blessings be blessings to others.

These sins of presumption show up in varying ways and to varying degrees. Be on your guard. Don't presume anything except what you find in God's holy word. That is the way of the godly man and the godly woman.