But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.
James 1:6-8
How much have we gotten wrong for how long? How many times have we had doubts about something and kept it quiet because doubting wasn’t “the right thing to do”? How many people have had doubts, didn’t feel that they could talk about it, and then silently walked away from the body of Christ?
One of the things that we might have gotten wrong is some of the interpretations of James 1:6-8.
James 1:6-8 has lead some well-meaning believers to wrongly place their faith in the strength of their own believing.* Additionally, they have believed that hardship or deprivation in life can be escaped.* This has been known in some circles as “name it and claim it.” It sounds like, “if you believe enough, you will get what you want.”
Other well-meaning believers have sought to avoid doubt by attempting to evacuate their souls of anything but positive thinking.* This positive-thinking can become an unwitting effort to manipulate God with positive thoughts.* This error leaves many living in fear that God will use their doubts against them to withhold wisdom or other good things.* It may sound like, “don’t question that or God won’t be good to you.”
God is clear that life is hard and that He gives wisdom freely to those who ask.* The doubt that God invites us to avoid is not a surface-level doubt of the soul.* James is not referring to honest intellectual doubts.* For example, David speaks openly about his doubts about God in Psalm 6, wondering if God rejected him.*
The doubt we are to avoid is a swaying between self-reliance and God-reliance, not a questioning of His will.* Trust in God is a heart issue that is birthed from experience.* One we experience the character of God who gives wisdom freely, we must not move from it.* We must not let go of the trust in the character of God and who He claims to be.* We must not have divided loyalty.* While we may not always be sure of what He wants for our lives in a given moment, we must continue to rely upon Him for what we need.
To have questions is human; to be unsure is natural. Ask questions, seek answers. Seek God. He is good. Don’t waver… He is the source of what we need.
Today, take a step.
Maybe today the one step God wants you to take is to come to God with the questions that you’ve been ignoring. Perhaps today God would have you commit to holding tight to Him as your source of wisdom and all that is good. Maybe today God would have you repent for attempting to manipulate Him and your life through the strength of your faith or positive thinking. Perhaps today God is asking you to trust Him. Maybe today God wants to permission you to see yourself as human.
Whatever the step, ask God to direct it. Take a moment to take that step. Invite Him to speak. He will.
Life is a long road. Walk it with Jesus.
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*Blomberg, C. L., & Kamell, M. J. (2008). James (Vol. 16, pp. 52-55). Zondervan.
McCartney, D. G. (2009). James (pp. 90-92). Baker Academic.
Stulac, G. M. (1993). James (Jas 1:5-8). IVP Academic.
Guthrie, G. H. (2006). James. In T. Longman III & D. E. Garland (Eds.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews–Revelation (Revised Edition) (Vol. 13, p. 215). Zondervan.
Nystrom, D. P. (1997). James (pp. 52-53). Zondervan Publishing House.