James 1:5-8 (5) If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. (6) But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. (7) That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; (8) he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does. New International Version Change your email Bible versionOur Creator promises us wisdom—but only under the condition that we do not waver or be double-minded. I have sweat plenty over these verses through the years, having had to battle indecision. Likewise, when I pray, I have problems concentrating. I have battled doubts and fears when I have asked to be anointed.But is simple mind-wandering or normal doubts the subject of James reprimand? Or is it something else? Perhaps mind-wandering, indecisiveness, and doubting are more symptomatic than the actual causes of double-mindedness.The apostle Paul writes that anyone who comes to God must believe that He is and diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6). If we are in a conference with a human being, it is rude to tune him out, fall asleep on him, or become distracted. Some of my students have done that to me—giving me an insight on how God must feel when our minds wander when we pray, study, or meditate. Inattention and mind-wandering, although they are related to double-mindedness, do not seem to be what James had in mind.The anguished father in Mark 9:24, who says, Lord, I believe; help my unbelief! might be accused of being double-minded, but he is not. He desperately wants to believe, and he asks for help. He is not of two opinions.The Greek word translated double-minded in James 1:8, dipsuchos, in its literal sense means double-souled, like having two independent wills. The words with no doubting in verse 6 are translated from the Greek words meedén diakrinómenos, which describes one divided in mind, who wavers between two opinions.Some may wonder whether the apostle Paul, when he complains, For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice (Romans 7:19), was exercising double-mindedness. This state of struggle that goes on in all of us is not the same as double-mindedness. Pauls mind, he goes on to explain, is focused one way, in one direction (verse 22), but inherent in the flesh of every human being is an innate enmity toward God and His law (Romans 7:23; 8:7). Just like Paul, we also fail to keepGods law perfectly because we have human nature in us that is perpetually at war with Gods Holy Spirit in us.All of us have a deep-seated desire to be at one with ourselves. We will not realize this desire until we are totally composed of spirit. Until then, we can expect a spiritual tug of war to go on perpetually. As more of Gods Spirit flows through us, renewing our minds and displacing our carnality, we will find it easier to keep our carnal nature in check. All of us, I trust, can point to certain areas in our lives that are now under control—but which at one time were not under control. The spiritual struggle occurring in all of us between our spiritual and carnal natures is not double-mindedness.Double-mindedness is literally having two separate minds holding contradictory thoughts. Double-mindedness occurs in a church member when he has an implicit or explicit knowledge of Gods law, yet deliberately harbors a sin, choosing to conceal it, repress it, or ignore it.James supports this explanation of double-mindedness in James 4:8: Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts you double-minded. Anything one willingly does or does not do that is contrary to Gods law (verse 17) makes one guilty of double-mindedness. Double-mindedness depends on a knowledge of and a willful intent to reject Gods law, as the psalmist writes in Psalm 119:113: I hate the double-minded, but I love your law. On the other side, being synchronized with Gods law is equated with singleness of purpose and leads to peace of mind and a feeling of wholeness. The same psalmist writes, Great peace have those who love Your law, and nothing causes them to stumble (Psalm 119:165).Gods law itself is the vehicle of wisdom that the petitioner requests in James 1:5. It would be absurd for someone to ask to be filled with the spirit of the law and simultaneously be determined not to keep it. Sometimes we inadvertently do this when we ask a minister or counselor for advice on a problem—but have already purposed in our minds to do it our own way. Then when the minister tells us something that goes against what we have purposed to do in our inner being, a highly uncomfortable state of dissonance emerges.Harboring any secret sin puts a tremendous strain on the nervous system. Psychologists have a name for this emotional/psychological turmoil: cognitive dissonance, literally inharmonious thought. Some time ago, a television program called I Led Three Lives aired. It told the story of an American FBI agent, Herbert Philbrick, who posed as a Communist to learn the enemys secrets. To do his job effectively, he had to diligently keep things sorted out and compartmentalized. The television drama portrayed the mental strain that this professional agent had to endure to live a lie.People who were once part of our fellowshipbut no longer worship with us frequently report that they feel more at peace with themselves now than at any time they were in the church. This should not surprise us. When someone tries to submit to Gods law with a carnal mind, unbearable cognitive dissonance occurs. The nervous system plunges into a tailspin until it achieves a sense of equilibrium or wholeness. Carnal nature does not feel comfortable in the light of Gods law: Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be (Romans8:7). The easiest way to find equilibrium is to reject the beliefs that send them into a spiritual dither.We do not need to have the fears we sometimes associate with James 1:6-8. We can take comfort in the knowledge that mind-wandering and normal doubts and fears, while they are undesirable and should be rooted out, are not really what James has in mind. He is warning against double-mindedness. Double-mindedness requires knowing Gods law and making a premeditated effort to subvert it and then justify the behavior.Double-mindedness did not apparently apply to Uzzah, who broke Gods law in ignorance or foolishness (II Samuel 6:6-7). However, it does apply to Saul, whom God ordered to destroy the Amalekites totally, but only accomplished 80% of his objectives (I Samuel 15). When confronted with his compromise, Saul makes a whole series of excuses. Excuses and alibis are the defense mechanisms used by double-minded people. If we put sin out of our lives as soon as we find it, or as soon as it is pointed out to us, we do not have to worry about making and remembering excuses or alibis.Double-mindedness occurs when we harbor a sin and still appear to live Gods way. Tares, during their formative (immature) period, look just like wheat, yet mature wheat and tares do not look the same (Matthew 13:30). Over time, the tare is exposed because it does not mature like the wheat. So a double-minded Christian will become obvious by his lack of fruit and worldly, hypocritical attitude and behavior. Interestingly, God leaves the tares among the wheat ultimately to benefit the wheat.A double-minded person cannot have Gods Holy Spirit within him (Romans 8:5, 8-9;Galatians 5:16-17). Jesus says we cannot serve two masters because our allegiance will really be to one or the other (Matthew 6:24). One cannot be a double agent with the world and a member of Gods church (II Corinthians 6:17-18; I John 2:15-17).God demands that we choose one way or the other—but not straddle the fence. We cannot have it both ways. Unless in the battle between the spirit and the flesh we throw down the gauntlet in favor of our spiritual selves, we run the risk of being torn to pieces psychologically and emotionally.Recall Psalm 119:113: I hate the double-minded, but I love Your law. Notice that the antidote to double-mindedness is yielding to Gods law. Wholeness and singleness of purpose are the result of keeping Gods law through the power of Christ working in us. As our Lord reminds us in His Sermon on the Mount, The lamp of the body is the eye. If therefore your eye is good [single, KJV; focused, directed], your whole body will be full of light (Matthew 6:22).— David F. Maas
Posted on: Tue, 01 Apr 2014 01:40:56 +0000
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