James 1:9-12

Lessons From the Rich and Poor Brother

In demonstrating the maturity brought by patient endurance of trials, James uses the example of the poor and the rich brothers. The Christian who is poor can rejoice in his poverty because he is rich in Christ (Ephesians 1:3). The rich man in Christ should be humbled by the knowledge that all he has cannot buy an entrance to heaven. Instead of being independently wealthy, he is really dependent upon God for his wealth. This passage has much the same purpose as Paul's message to the slave and the free man in 1 Corinthians 7:22.

All of us need to realize this life is as temporary as the grass and flowers of the field (James 1:9-11). Peter quoted from Isaiah 40:6-8, when he wrote, "All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, and its flower falls away, but the word of the Lord endures forever" (1 Peter 1:24-25). Knowing wealth did not stop one from needing God and remembering the brevity of life, Paul directed Timothy to, "Command those who are rich in this present age not to be haughty, nor to trust in uncertain riches but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy. Let them do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to give, willing to share, storing up for themselves a good foundation for the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life (1 Timothy 6:17-19).

The wise place to lay up treasures is in heaven (Matthew 6:19-21). When one has laid his treasures in heaven, he will be "blessed." Christians experience an inner peace, which is their joy or blessedness. It is not merely happiness which is brought on by good events around us, but an inner calm unaffected by outward events. Those who successfully overcome those trials which fall in upon them (verse 2) will receive the crown of life (James 1:12; 2 Timothy 4:6-8). In this case, life is our victory wreath. Those who continue to endure prove by their lives that they love God (1 John 5:3).