SPIRITUAL TREASURE VS. TEMPORAL RICHES: JAMES 5:3

Verse 3: Your gold and your silver have rusted; and their rust will be a witness against you and will consume your flesh like fire. It is in the last days that you have stored up your treasure!

James continues to denounce the riches of the wealthy. Most translations read that their gold and silver have rusted. However, a number of translations1 have the Greek correctly rendered as corroded. The fact is that silver and gold do not rust. What James is referring to is a known chemical principle:

Corrosion is often used synonymously with rusting; however, rusting is almost exclusively used in the case of iron and its alloys whereas, corrosion can occur in different types of metals.2

The Greek word for rusted is only found 3 times in the New Testament and twice referring to poison: Romans 3:13, the poison of asps; and James 3:8, speaking of the tongue, full of deadly poison. Poison is “a substance that through its chemical action usually kills, injures, or impairs an organism.”3 In our verse it is used to illustrate the gold and silver having been corroded, or better yet, tarnished. The attraction of gold and silver for many is not only its value, but its glittery appearance. And as it ages, the chemicals in the air will cause tarnishing (note example below) and the need to remove the tarnish by polishing. This is James’ way of forcefully expressing the temporal nature of gold and silver.

Corrosion of money

He goes on to explain that symbolically this tarnishing will be evidence (a witness) against them pertaining to their own temporal nature—their physical aging. Therefore, the word flesh can rightly be understood figuratively as “the complete person”4 (cf. John 6:51–57; 2 Corinthians 7:5) in which the certainty of their aging will consume them as surely as fire consumes kindling. The Biblical principle is that man does not live forever physically. Scripture states that he has an appointment with death (Hebrews 9:17). This was decreed by God at the time of the Fall of Adam:

“By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return.” (Genesis 3:19)

We must remember that just because we are characterized as dust does not mean that man is insignificant. This is proven by God’s redemptive program through the ages, culminating in the sacrificial death and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the sins of the world—providing salvation for “whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16).

The remainder of this verse is James’ indictment of the wealthy who have stored up their riches (treasure) in the last days. The phrase last days as mentioned here denotes “the entire gospel dispensation extending from the first to the second advent of Christ.”5 To be more precise, MacArthur explains:

The fulfillment of the messianic prophecies commenced with the advent of the Messiah. Since He came, it has been the “last days” (cf. 1Corinthians 10:11; James 5:3; 1Peter 1:20; 4:7; 1 John 2:18). In the past God gave revelation through His prophets, but in these times, beginning with the Messiah’s advent, God spoke the message of redemption through the Son.6

The problem with these wealthy individuals is that they have failed to follow Our Lord’s directive:

“Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal.” (Matthew 6:19–20; cf. Matthew 19:21)

The Greek construction of “in the last days” indicates it is to their disadvantage7 that they have stored up their treasure for this present life instead of storing up for treasure in heaven—their spiritual inheritance “which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you” (1 Peter 1:4).

Therefore, beware that we do not become like the rich man in Our Lord’s parable.

And He told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man was very productive. “And he began reasoning to himself, saying, ‘What shall I do, since I have no place to store my crops?’ “Then he said, ‘This is what I will do: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. ‘And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years to come; take your ease, eat, drink and be merry.”’ “But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your soul is required of you; and now who will own what you have prepared?’ “So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.” (Luke 12:16–21)

The philosophy of the world today is “Eat, drink and be merry, for tomorrow we die.”8 This should not be the philosophy of believers today. Paul warns us that those desiring continuously to get rich “fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction.” (1 Timothy 6:9). It should be noted that the Scripture’s warning it is the love of money and the manic pursuit of wealth that is detrimental to the believer’s spiritual life and witness (1 Timothy 6:10).

Paul’s solution is simple:

But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called. (1 Timothy 6:11–12a)

Do we value temporal riches higher than spiritual treasure? Then our spiritual priorities are out of balance with God’s Word.

“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also...No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” (Matthew 6:21, 24)

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[1] The English Standard Version, New King James Version and the New American Bible

[2] https://thechemistrynotes.com/rust-vs-corrosion/ [retrieved July 14, 2022]

[3] https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/poison [retrieved July 17, 2022]

[4] Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 2.242.

[5] Ryrie, C. C. (1995). Ryrie Study Bible: New American Standard Bible, 1995 update (Expanded ed.). Chicago: Moody Press, p.1945 note.

[6] MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Heb 1:2). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.

[7] Wallace, D. B. (1996). Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics - Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament. Zondervan Publishing House and Galaxie Software, p. 143.

[8] Luke 12:19; Isaiah 22:13

 

  © 2022 David M. Rossi

EVERYDAY WITNESSES OF THE GOSPEL

Preface

Believers are always being encouraged to be everyday witnesses for Christ. It is a command which Jesus Christ gave to His disciples prior to His ascension into heaven: “you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8).

This command to His disciples has application for us today. One major difference in the witness of the early disciples’ and ours today is that they were eyewitnesses of Christ’s life and death, and three of them were eyewitnesses of His majesty in the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-8). All had the advantage of being “first on the scene,” enjoying face-to-face teaching from the Lord.

But we should never feel that we are at a disadvantage, for we have the completed canon of Scripture, our “sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God” (Ephesians 6:17). Note the following Scriptures which dispel the thought of any disadvantage.

The writer of Hebrews reveals the power and the temperament of the ‘metal’ of our sword of the Spirit:

For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12)

We are assured by our Lord Himself of the authenticity of Scripture: “Your word is truth.” (John 17:17).

The Apostle Paul proclaims its origin and its vital aspects for the Christian’s spiritual benefit:

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16–17)

The Apostle Peter supports this in his second epistle:

So we have the prophetic word made more sure, to which you do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star arises in your hearts. But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God. (2 Peter 1:19–21)

That which follows is a brief outline of the subject of witnessing—communicating the gospel message. I would encourage the believer, that after reading this, they undertake a more concentrated study of Scripture which will provide them with a greater understanding of the gospel and how to be an effective representative of Christ’s message of salvation.  

Biblical Witnessing

By definition, witnessing for Christ is “Fulfilling the divine commandment for believers to communicate God’s plan of salvation to unbelievers on a personal basis.”1

However, there is a need to dispel the confusion of the exact nature of witnessing for Christ. Generally, it has been explained as a formalized presentation of the gospel of salvation. But this is actually only partially what the Scripture describes as the believer’s witness—there are in fact two aspects to witnessing: the verbal explanation of salvation and the non-verbal—the demonstration of the inner life of faith of a Spirit controlled believer.

The Verbal Witness

We have already established the Divine commission given to the early disciples to be Christ’s witnesses “to the remotest part of earth” (Acts1:8), making more disciples for Christ “of all the nations” (Matthew 28:19f). By way of application, this commission belongs to believers today. The Apostle Peter provides a clear example of how the believer should be prepared for a verbal witness.

But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence. (1 Peter 3:15)

First, for the believer to sanctify* Christ in their hearts, He must be the center of their lives; everything revolving around Him—work, family and most importantly, the study of God’s Word to prepare their witness.

Secondly, the believer must be ready at all times to provide a defense of their faith. Always being ready is literally: always prepared. The believer should always be prepared with a defense of their faith, which consists of a structured verbal presentation of the gospel of salvation. There are a number of formulas2 which may help in assembling a gospel presentation, but it would be advisable to develop your own personal approach to the gospel message, incorporating these basic points: 

   1. That all have sinned

   2. That Christ died for all—His work on the cross is sufficient for salvation

   3. That belief in Christ is based upon faith alone in Christ alone. Emphasizing that the work of Christ is wholly sufficient and there is no human system of works, practices or methodology by which a person can obtain this salvation other than to believe.

 The believer’s defense consists of an explanation of the hope that is in them. This word hope means “favorable and confident expectation.”3 Therefore, the believer must have confidence in the expectation of their eternal destiny. A new believer may not be able to do this until they are thoroughly prepared. The undertaking of the study of Scripture is necessary so that a new believer can “be transformed by the renewing” of the mind (Romans 12:2); learning the essential skills of the Christian life.

Also, the believers’ gospel presentation is to be done in the spirit of gentleness—in sincere humility, not haughty or in an aggressive manner. We are not “foot-in-the-door” salesmen. We are ambassadors for Christ4 proclaiming the free gift of eternal life.

Finally, our witness is to be in an attitude of reverence. This word reverence in the Greek has the meaning of demonstrating respect and honor. We must respect those to whom we present the gospel, not demeaning them. In this way we recognize the eternal significance of our message of eternal life and can express this importance to the one who we are witnessing to.

Reverence should also be given to the fact that the gospel message is indeed the power of God for salvation (Romans 1:16). This means that we should rely totally upon its inherent power in our presentation of the gospel and not upon our personal power of persuasion. The simplest message can be used by the Holy Spirit to persuade the unbeliever.      

The Silent Witness

The silent witness is the exhibition of the believer’s Christ-like behavior before the world. This is the ideal life which God devised for all mankind—the normal life of Christ-centered living. Both mature and the new believers are to strive to achieve this witness in every facet of life: home, church, work, social, etc.

For new believers, their primary objective should be to learn what this life of faith is all about—relying upon the Holy Spirit to lead and empower. This is the formula the Apostle Paul suggests: learning God’s Word and leading worthy lives.

For this reason, since the day we heard it, we have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so that you may lead lives worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him, as you bear fruit in every good work and as you grow in the knowledge of God. (Colossians 1:9-10; cf. Ephesians 4:1)

The life of the believer should be an open statement of the gospel of salvation for all to witness and compel them to “ask the reason of the hope that is in you” (1 Peter 3:15). If our lives are a contradiction of the righteous character of Christ, then the unbeliever will naturally be repulsed and reject the free gift of eternal life.

Afterword

A word of advice (especially for new believers): Become a silent witness first. This requires learning Scripture to understand how to live a compelling life of faith in Christ. During the early stage of your Christian life, learn the core aspects of the gospel of salvation, remembering what you responded to when you accepted Christ as your Savior. Do this before attempting to present the gospel to an unsaved individual. The Boy Scouts had a good motto: Be Prepared. It’s what Peter meant when he wrote: always being ready (1 Peter 3:15).

And for all believers: DO live an exemplary life at all times; witness verbally whenever the situation allows. DON’T take time out of working hours to explain the gospel—when at work doing your job comes first. Demonstrating a Christ-like character is your witness of the gospel.

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 * Sanctify means to regard as holy.

[1] Thieme, Jr., R.B. (2021). Witnessing. R.B. Thieme, Jr., Bible Ministries: Houston, TX, p.49.

[2] The 4 Spiritual Laws; Evangelism Explosion

[3] Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 2.311.

[4] 2 Corinthians 5:20

 

© 2022 David M. Rossi