Our Evil Desires (13-15): We must not fault God for our sins, because our temptations don’t come from God; they come from our own desire for evil things. James shows that our lusts are what trigger the chain reaction of sin.[1] Sin has a natural course, and if it is left unchecked, it brings about the catastrophic outcome of spiritual death.[2] This means we are to put our energies into forging our own desires into godly ones. We are to “delight… in the LORD” and have our “delight in the Law of the LORD.”[3] If we let sinful desires fill our sails, they will certainly drive us to death. Fill them with godly desires, and we will bear fruit for God and be filled with the Lord’s joy.[4]
Our Good God (16-18): James adds another reason why God is not the source of temptations. He is the unchanging Giver of good things (“every good thing given” and “every perfect gift”). And His goodness is consistent. Unlike the created order which is in constant motion (think heavenly bodies—“lights”), the Creator’s goodness doesn’t change. God’s goodness is best seen in our salvation. Our good God gave us His Word and by it caused us to be born again and brought us to salvation.[5] Our lusts, if left alone, will ruin us, but our good God by His Word saves us. The LORD is good, indeed (Psalm 100:5)!
[1] James portrays sin with a picture of three generations. When lust (1st gen.) becomes pregnant (“[it] has conceived”), it gives birth to sin (2nd gen.). And sin, when full grown, brings forth death (3rd gen.).
[2] “Death” in 1:15 is spiritual death. This is seen in the obvious fact that sin does not always lead to physical death. This is also observed in the rest of this book where saving faith and a life of sin are at odds with one another (4:4, 7-10; 5:1-3, 19-20). The principle that the natural course of unrepentant sin is second death seen elsewhere in Scripture: Ezekiel 18:31-32; Romans 6:21-23; Gal. 6:7-8; Rev. 21:8.
[3] Cf. Psalm 1:2; 37:4.
[4] Cf. Psalm 1:3; John 15:7-8, 11.
[5] Cf. 1:21; Romans 10:17; 1 Pet. 1:23.