Blessed the One you Instruct, O Lord
James anticipates a question we might have, considering his counsel yesterday that trails can be used for good by us. If this is true, perhaps we might think that God has sent us this trial or temptation to test our faith.
James says, “No one experiencing temptation should say ‘I am being tempted by God…for God himself tempts no one.’” God is the author of only goodness “all good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights.” James cautions us against seeing God like a cold disciplinarian testing us with temptations or even evil. If our temptations ought to be viewed as opportunities for the cultivation of grace and virtue, so too they should not be seen as punishments from God.
Rather, James reminds us that our God is the “Father of light and goodness” helping us endure, bringing us out of temptation and helping our hearts benefit from our struggles that we endure through trust. God allows us to undergo struggles, for he is in control, but he is not the author of evil, suffering, or sin. Rather, God is the redeemer of those realities, through Christ’s Cross and Resurrection.
James strengthened us yesterday to see in our trial’s opportunities for growth in virtue. Today, he cautions us against seeing our trails as punishments from God. Let us pray today to purify our notion of God and to cultivate a sense of trust in his goodness and love for us.