Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth. – James 1:18
How well do you know the heart of God? From the very beginning, the Lord has shown immense love toward all of His creation, and that includes all of humankind. It was by His own will that the worlds were created. It was by His own will that He gave freedom of choice to people. It was of His own will, and also out of His foreknowledge, that He understood that salvation would need to be provided in order to restore that “garden” experience of having His creation walking with Him. It was of His own will that He knew you would be among those who would accept His grace.
Theologian Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote, “Now mostly, men who are generous need to have their generosity excited. They will need to be waited upon; appeals must be laid before them; they must sometimes be pressed; an example must lead them on. But ‘of his own will’ God did to us all that has been done, without any incentive or prompting, moved only by himself, because he delighteth in mercy; because his name and his nature are love because evermore, like the sun, it is natural to him to distribute the beams of his eternal grace.”
By His own will, God implants the power of His Word into the human heart. Once again, it is done according to His divine purposes—that you might be a doer of the Word and not a hearer only. James, in this section of his epistle, goes on to compare Scripture to a mirror, it tells you the truth about yourself. It does not gloss over imperfections but shows you your true motives, desires, and spiritual condition. Yet, rather than walk away from what you see, you are encouraged to deal with any necessities of repentance and the restoration of your relationship with your Creator.
Theologian Adam Clarke says, “Take time to see and examine the status of [your] soul, the grace of your God, and extent of your duty, and the height of promised glory.” By the Lord’s grace and according to His will for you, your heart is being transformed to be more like His.
Today’s Verse: James 1:18
Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Recommended for further reading: James 1:16-27
16 Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. 18 Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.
19 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; 20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God. 21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. 24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. 25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless. 27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
All Scripture quotations and audio are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
