The book of James in the New Testament helps us see how we

all fall short of God's perfect standard. It also illustrates how easy it is to be

enticed by the opportunistic ways of the world. Today we'll explore the stern

warning given to the greedy and the tender encouragement offered to the poor

and oppressed. As we wrap up our study in the book of James on Truth for Life,

Alistair Begg is teaching from the opening verses of chapter 5.

Probably the best way to come to grips with the passage was to summarize the charges

that are leveled against these individuals. And we only managed to deal with one of them,

and that was to recognize, as it says at the end of verse 3, you have hoarded wealth

in the last days. The second charge that is leveled is that these same individuals have failed

to pay the wages to the workmen. That's in verse 4, the wages you fail to pay the workmen

who mode your fields are crying out against you. Thirdly, you have lived in luxury.

That's the third charge you have lived on earth in luxury and self-indulgence. These charges

are absolutely crystal clear, because the rich man's punishment didn't lie in what he did as much

as in what he failed to do, as in Luke chapter 16, in the power of the rich man and Lazarus.

The problem for the rich man was not that he was intrinsically a rich man, but it was that his

riches blinded him to the needs of the poor man. And poor old Lazarus, even the dogs were there

just to lick his sores, and that was the kind of comfort that he received, and he would have

gladly eaten from the stuff that the rich man had his servants throw out after they'd had a big

dinner party, but the rich man was oblivious to all of that. His luxury had sort of deceived him

as to what it means to live in the real world. Now, the word that is used here for luxury

is a word that would be, it's not just, you know, you bought yourself a cashmere sweater.

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