02.01. Chapter 1 - Verse 07

James 1:7. For let not that man think that he shall receive anything of the Lord.

Let him not think.—It is either put to show that they can look for nothing, nor rise up into any confidence before God; he doth not say, ‘He shall receive nothing,’ but ‘Let not that man think he shall receive;’ whatever God’s overflowing bounty may give them, they can expect nothing. Or else, ‘Let not that man think,’ to check their vain hopes. Man deceiveth himself, and would fain seduce his soul into the way of a carnal hope; therefore, saith the apostle, ‘Let not that man think,’ that is, deceive himself with a vain surmise. That he shall receive anything.—Such doubting as endeth not in faith frustrateth prayers, and maketh them altogether vain and fruitless. There are doubts in the people of God, but they get the victory over them; and, therefore, it is not to be understood as if any doubt did make us incapable of any blessing, but only such as is allowed and prevaileth. Of the Lord, παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου; that is, from Christ; Lord, in the idiom of the New Testament, being most usually applied to him, as mediator; and Christ as mediator is to commend our prayers to God, and to convey all blessings from God; therefore, the apostle saith, 1 Corinthians 8:6, ‘To us there is but one God, the Father of all, by whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.’ The heathens, as they had many gods, many ultimate objects of worship, so they had many lords, many intermediate powers, that were to be as agents between the gods and men, to convey the prayers and supplications of men to the gods, and the bounty and rewards of devotion from the gods to men; ‘But to us,’ saith the apostle, ‘there is but one God,’ one sovereign God, ‘the Father,’ the first spring and fountain of blessings; ‘and one Lord,’ that is, one Mediator, ‘Jesus Christ, διʼ οὗ τὰ πάντα καὶ ἡμεῖς διʼ αὐτοῦ, by whom are all things’ which come from the Father to us, and by whom alone we find access to him. The notes are these:—

Obs. 1. That unbelievers, though they may receive something, yet they can expect nothing from God. Let him not think. They are under a double misery:—(1.) They can lift up no thoughts of hope and comfort, for they are not under the assurance of a promise. Oh, what a misery is this, to toil, and still to be left to an uncertainty—to pray, and to have no sure hope! When the task is over, they cannot look for acceptance or a blessing. The children of God are upon more sure terms: 1 Corinthians 9:26, ‘I run not as uncertainly;’ that is, not as one that is in danger or doubt of having run in vain. So Solomon saith, Proverbs 11:18, ‘The righteous hath a sure reward;’ they have God’s infallible promise, and may expect a blessing; but the wicked, whether they run or sit, they cannot form their thoughts into any hope; whether they run, or sit still, they are in the same condition;¹ if they run, they run uncertainly; if they pray, they pray uncertainly; like a slave that doth his task, and knoweth not whether he shall please; so, when they have done all, they are still left to the puzzle and uncertainty of their own thoughts; and indeed it is a punishment that well enough suiteth with their dispositions; they pray, and do not look after the success of prayer; they perform duties, and do not observe the blessing of duties, like children that shoot their arrows at rovers, with an uncertain aim, and never look after them again. Those that live best among carnal men, live by guess, and some loose devout aims. (2.) If they receive anything, they cannot look upon it as coming by promise, or as a return of prayers. When the children are fed, the dogs may have crumbs: all their comforts are but the spillings and overflowings of God’s bounty. And truly this is a great misery, when we cannot see love in our enjoyments, and blessings are given us by chance rather than covenant; they cannot discern mercy and truth in any of their comforts, as Jacob did, Genesis 32:10. Well, then, let the misery of this condition make us to come out of it; get a sure interest in Christ, that you may be under a sure hope and expectation. Unbelief will always leave you to uncertainty; doubting is a new provocation, and when a man maketh a supplication a provocation, what can he look for? A man may be ashamed to ask God, that is so backward to honour him.

¹ ‘Τὸ στάδιον Περικλῆς εἰτʼ ἔδραμεν, εἰτʼ ἐκάθητο,

Οὐδεις οἶδεν ὅλως· δαιμόνιος βραδύτης.’—Grœc. Epigram.

Obs. 2. From the other reason of the words, let him not think. Men usually deceive themselves with vain hopes and thoughts: they are out in their thinking: Matthew 3:9, ‘Think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father.’ Carnal confidence is rooted in some vain principle and thought; so men think God is not just, hell is not so hot, the devil is not so black, nor the scriptures so strict as they are made to be. The apostles everywhere meet with these carnal thoughts; as 1 Corinthians 6:9, ‘Be not deceived; neither fornicators, nor adulterers, nor idolaters,’ &c. They were apt to deceive themselves with some such hope; so Galatians 6:7, ‘Be not deceived, God is not mocked.’ Men are persuaded that if they can devise any shift to excuse themselves from duty, all will be well enough. God is not mocked with any pretences; this is but a vain thought. Well, then, look to your privy thoughts. All corrupt actions are founded in some vain thought, and this vain thought is strengthened with some vain word; therefore the apostle saith, Ephesians 5:6, ‘Let no man deceive you with vain words.’ All practical errors are but a man’s natural thoughts cried up for a valuable opinion, and they all tend either to excuse sin, or to secure us from judgment, or to seduce us into a vain hope; and thus foolish man becometh his own cheater, and deceiveth himself with his own thinking. In all natural and civil things we desire to know the truth; many do deceive, but none would willingly be deceived;² but in spiritual things we think ourselves never more happy than when we have seduced our souls into a vain hope, or gotten them into a fool’s paradise.

² ‘Gaudium de veritate ormnes volunt, multos expertus sum qui velint fallere, qui autern falli neminem.’—Aug. lib. a;. Confes. cap. 13.

Obs. 3. From that, that lie shall receive. The cause why we receive not upon asking, is not from God, but ourselves; he ‘giveth liberally,’ but we pray doubtingly. He would give, but we cannot receive. We see men are discouraged when they are distrusted, and suspicion is the ready way to make them unfaithful; and, certainly, when we distrust God, it is not reasonable we should expect aught from him. Christ said to Martha, John 11:40, ‘If thou wouldst believe, thou shouldst see the glory of God;’ that is, power, love, truth, discovered in their lustre and glory. Omnipotency knoweth no restraint, only it is discouraged by man’s unbelief; therefore it is said, Mark 6:5-6, ‘And he could do no mighty work there, because of their unbelief;’ he could not, because he would not, not for want of power in him, but for want of disposition in the people. So Mark 9:22-23, the father cometh for a possessed child: ‘Master, if thou canst do anything, help us.’ Christ answereth, ‘If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.’ The distressed father saith, ‘If thou canst do anything;’ our holy Lord saith, ‘If thou canst believe:’ as if he had said, Do not doubt of my power, but look to thy own faith; I can, if thou canst. If we were disposed to receive as God is fitted to give, we should not be long without an answer. Omnipotent power can save to the utter most, infinite love can pardon to the uttermost, if we could but believe. ‘All things are possible to him that believeth;’ that is, God can do all things for the comfort and use of believers; faith is his immutable ordinance, and he will not go out of his own way. Well, then, if you receive not, it is not for want of power in God, but want of faith in yourselves.

Obs. 4. From that anything—neither wisdom nor anything else—that God thinketh the least mercy too good for unbelievers: he thinketh nothing too good for faith, and anything too good for unbelief. It is observable, in the days of Christ’s flesh, that faith was never frustrate; he never let it pass without some effect; nay, some times he offereth all that you can wish for: Matthew 15:28, ‘Great is thy faith; be it to thee even as thou wilt.’ Faith giveth Christ content, and, therefore, he will be sure to give the believer content; crave what you will, and he will give it. But, on the contrary, ‘Let not that man think that he shall receive anything.’ How are the bowels of mercy shrunk up at the sight of unbelief! Believers shall have all things, and you nothing.

Obs. 5. From that from the Lord, that the fruit of our prayers is received from the hands of Christ; he is the middle person by whom God conveyeth blessings to us, and we return duty to him. See John 14:13, ‘Whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.’ Mark, ‘I will do it.’³ Christ receiveth the power to convey the blessing; we must ask the Father, but it cometh to us through him: and all this, not that the Father might be excluded, but glorified. We are unworthy to converse with the Father, therefore Christ is the true mediator. God is glorified when we come to him through Christ. In times of knowledge, God would have your thoughts in prayer to be more distinct and explicit; you must come to the Father in the Son’s name, and look for all through the Spirit: and as the Spirit worketh as Christ’s Spirit, to glorify the Son, John 16:13-15, so the Son, he will give to glorify the Father. What an excellent ground of hope and confidence have we, when we reflect upon these three things in prayer—the Father’s love, the Son’s merit, and the Spirit’s power! No man cometh to the Son but by the Father, John 6:65, no man cometh to the Father but by the Son, John 14:6, no man is united to the Son but by the Holy Ghost: therefore do we read of ‘the unity of the Spirit,’ Ephesians 4:3.

³ ‘Mirum novumque dictu quod patri exhibeatur petitio et filius exaudiat, cum exauditio ad eum pertineat cui est porrecta petitio.’—Simon de Cassia, lib. 13. cap. 2.