Wisdom and the Prayer of Faith
Dear Phil,
I get my approach to prayer from James 1:5–6: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting….” When I need wisdom in a particular area, I ask God. Then I assume, based on the command not to have any doubting, that the next thing I hear is God responding to my prayer. Is that an incorrect way to approach it?
Justin
I get my approach to prayer from James 1:5–6: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting….” When I need wisdom in a particular area, I ask God. Then I assume, based on the command not to have any doubting, that the next thing I hear is God responding to my prayer. Is that an incorrect way to approach it?
Justin
Dear Justin,
I do not understand James 1:5 to be a promise that any time you need wisdom and you ask for it in faith, God will give it to you directly. Here are the reasons:
First, just as a reminder, I’m sure you already know that verse numbers and chapter divisions were added to the Scripture text to help us locate things. They should not be a basis for isolating James 1:5–6 from James 1:2–4. If your Bible version begins each verse on a separate line, then it is easy to forget that and treat each verse separately from its context.
Second, as you know, the most basic principle of interpretation is “context determines meaning.” Immediate context (the paragraph a verse is in) is the most important element of context for determining meaning. James 1:2–15 addresses the issue of testing/temptation. This is clearer in Greek than in English, but in English translations the key words “trial/tempt” show up in verses 2, 12, 13, and 14. James doesn’t have to specify that he isn’t talking about wisdom in general because the context isn’t talking about wisdom in general.
Shifting to the broader context of the book, James addresses wisdom in chapter 3 as well (James 3:13–17), but what he says there doesn’t clarify what he means in James 1:5. The book of James has a lot of similarities to Proverbs, so that’s my next stop as a scriptural context for James’ way of thinking and writing.
In Proverbs, I find that wisdom must be listened to (Prov 2:2), asked for (Prov 2:3), diligently sought (Prov 2:4), daily sought (Prov 8:33–34), and purposefully retained (Prov 7:3–4). Wisdom also comes from Scripture (Prov 28:4; 29:18), from Yahweh (Prov 2:5–6), from parents (Prov 4:1; 6:20), from multiple wise counselors (Prov 11:14), and from wise companions (Prov 13:20). I find that people are naturally foolish (Prov 22:15) and need both reproof and the rod to move from folly to wisdom (Prov 29:15).
Third, I have watched people who (1) ask God for wisdom, (2) believe they received that wisdom directly from God, (3) don’t follow the rest of what Scripture says about obtaining wisdom, (4) choose to follow the wisdom they believe they have received, and (5) do foolish, even stupid, things. I’ve seen this in raising children, financial decisions, marital decisions, and more.
All that leads me to conclude that James 1:5 can’t mean “ask God and he’ll generously give you wisdom on any issue.” James 1:5 is not a promise of a direct line to God for wisdom about anything. It is not a promise that if I ask, God will directly give me specific wisdom regarding how to invest his money. That conclusion fits neither the immediate context of James 1 nor the broader context of what God has revealed about wisdom in the rest of Scripture. Yet, that is the way many Christians read it because they don’t pay attention to context.
I think we could argue that James is applying the broader principle that we are to cry out for wisdom (Prov 2:3–4) to the specific topic of how to respond to trials with persistent joy. We should ask God for wisdom about all of life. No question. This I affirm heartily.
And I do ask God for wisdom, but I also know that God provides that wisdom through a wide range of avenues: (1) study of Scripture, (2) spiritual authorities (Heb 13:17; 1 Pet 5:5; 1 Thess 5:12), (3) wise counselors (Prov 24:6), including parents and spouses, (4) providential circumstances (Col 4:3), (5) the Holy Spirit’s leadership (Gal 5:16; Rom 8:14), and (6) the peace of Christ (Col 3:15).
Bottom line: Ask God for wisdom and listen to His voice through all the avenues He uses to speak.
Blessings,
Phil
I do not understand James 1:5 to be a promise that any time you need wisdom and you ask for it in faith, God will give it to you directly. Here are the reasons:
First, just as a reminder, I’m sure you already know that verse numbers and chapter divisions were added to the Scripture text to help us locate things. They should not be a basis for isolating James 1:5–6 from James 1:2–4. If your Bible version begins each verse on a separate line, then it is easy to forget that and treat each verse separately from its context.
Second, as you know, the most basic principle of interpretation is “context determines meaning.” Immediate context (the paragraph a verse is in) is the most important element of context for determining meaning. James 1:2–15 addresses the issue of testing/temptation. This is clearer in Greek than in English, but in English translations the key words “trial/tempt” show up in verses 2, 12, 13, and 14. James doesn’t have to specify that he isn’t talking about wisdom in general because the context isn’t talking about wisdom in general.
Shifting to the broader context of the book, James addresses wisdom in chapter 3 as well (James 3:13–17), but what he says there doesn’t clarify what he means in James 1:5. The book of James has a lot of similarities to Proverbs, so that’s my next stop as a scriptural context for James’ way of thinking and writing.
In Proverbs, I find that wisdom must be listened to (Prov 2:2), asked for (Prov 2:3), diligently sought (Prov 2:4), daily sought (Prov 8:33–34), and purposefully retained (Prov 7:3–4). Wisdom also comes from Scripture (Prov 28:4; 29:18), from Yahweh (Prov 2:5–6), from parents (Prov 4:1; 6:20), from multiple wise counselors (Prov 11:14), and from wise companions (Prov 13:20). I find that people are naturally foolish (Prov 22:15) and need both reproof and the rod to move from folly to wisdom (Prov 29:15).
Third, I have watched people who (1) ask God for wisdom, (2) believe they received that wisdom directly from God, (3) don’t follow the rest of what Scripture says about obtaining wisdom, (4) choose to follow the wisdom they believe they have received, and (5) do foolish, even stupid, things. I’ve seen this in raising children, financial decisions, marital decisions, and more.
All that leads me to conclude that James 1:5 can’t mean “ask God and he’ll generously give you wisdom on any issue.” James 1:5 is not a promise of a direct line to God for wisdom about anything. It is not a promise that if I ask, God will directly give me specific wisdom regarding how to invest his money. That conclusion fits neither the immediate context of James 1 nor the broader context of what God has revealed about wisdom in the rest of Scripture. Yet, that is the way many Christians read it because they don’t pay attention to context.
I think we could argue that James is applying the broader principle that we are to cry out for wisdom (Prov 2:3–4) to the specific topic of how to respond to trials with persistent joy. We should ask God for wisdom about all of life. No question. This I affirm heartily.
And I do ask God for wisdom, but I also know that God provides that wisdom through a wide range of avenues: (1) study of Scripture, (2) spiritual authorities (Heb 13:17; 1 Pet 5:5; 1 Thess 5:12), (3) wise counselors (Prov 24:6), including parents and spouses, (4) providential circumstances (Col 4:3), (5) the Holy Spirit’s leadership (Gal 5:16; Rom 8:14), and (6) the peace of Christ (Col 3:15).
Bottom line: Ask God for wisdom and listen to His voice through all the avenues He uses to speak.
Blessings,
Phil