Reconciliation for the Wanderer: James Lesson 32

James 5:19-20 Restoration

A man was walking along the countryside where he notices a lot of sheep and only one shepherd so curiously, he walks over to him and asks

"Are those sheep yours?"

"Which ones, the grey, or the white?" the shepherd asks.

"The grey ones?"

"They're mine." He said.

"I see, what about the white ones then?"

"They are also mine." he replies

The man thinks of his reply as funny and let it slide.

The man goes again and asks, "How much wool do they produce?"

"The grey or the white?" shepherd asks again.

"The grey ones." He says.

"About 20 kilograms."

"And the whites?"

"They also produce 20 kilograms."

This time the man gets a little annoyed but still lets it pass.

"How much milk do they produce?"

"Which ones, the grey or the white?"

The man holds on to his patience and asks, "The grey ones."

"About 15 litres per day."

"And the whites?" He continues" Also 15 litres."

The man loses it this time, enraged he says, "If all of them are yours, produces same amount of milk and wool then why do you always keep asking for them separately?"

The shepherd calmly replies, "You see those black ones, they belonged to my late father."

The man becomes a little hesitant after hearing him mention his late father and feels a little apologetic towards the shepherd

"O-oh I see."

"And the white ones?"

"They also belonged to my father."

My assignment here today is to teach the last two verses of James 5 and close out our study of the book. For me to do that and stay true to the text that we will be studying here today, I need to take you back through the book of James, give you some context, and make some distinctions between some sheep. 

Don’t worry, it will only take me about 2 hours to summarize this for you and about another hour to teach verses 19 and 20. 

I’m kidding. I am just going to give you the highlights to set the stage for verses 19 and 20. I don’t want anyone to fall asleep here, including myself. 

I’m going to take this chapter by chapter and then we will read through verse 19 and 20. 

In James chapter 1, James starts off with counting it all joy when we face various trials because the testing of our faith produces steadfastness. Then James moves on to explain the differences between being a hearer of the Word and a doer of the Word – creating this contrast and comparison. 

In chapter 2, James talks about the sin of partiality that comes from making distinctions between different economical classes. Then he goes on to tell us that faith without works is dead, because true faith will produce works. 

In chapter 3, James talks about that dangerous tongue of ours and then seamlessly starts talking about wisdom that comes from above and the wisdom that comes from the world. 

In chapter 4, James gives a warning against worldliness and sights worldliness as the reasons for the quarrels and fights among believers. Then James provides a warning against boasting about tomorrow that ties back to the idea of being worldly.

 In chapter 5, James warns the rich because they acted unjustly towards others and lived in self-indulgence, he tells us about patience in suffering and to look at the Old Testament prophets who endured, and then James starts posing some question. 

Is anyone among you suffering? Is anyone cheerful? Is anyone among you sick? Interesting questions, right?

Now, if we were to look at the book of James wholistically we could easily say that the book’s theme is that of “wise living for Christ.” 

We see that theme being continuously developed and then reemphasized from James chapter 1 to James chapter 5. 

However, what we may not immediately pick up on is the stylistic nature in which James talks about how to “live wisely for Christ.” 

If we take a step back from the verses, chapters, and subtitles noted in our Bible, and look at the book in its entirety, we begin to see that James primarily talks about the theme of wise living by using contrasts and comparisons. 

The contrasts and comparisons James creates are designed to get us to look at the differences between two ideas – ideas that led to two very different actions and lifestyles. 

For example, in chapter 3 James talks about the wisdom that comes from above and worldly wisdom. 

He is contrasting these two types of wisdom and comparing the behavioral outcomes of each type of wisdom produces. 

In other words, in this example, James is basically telling us that there is a substantial difference between worldly wisdom and Godly wisdom.

So, why is this important to us to be aware of these differences? 

Well, at least in this example, it helps us to see the difference between wise living for Christ and worldly living. It shows us what worldly wisdom looks like compared to Godly wisdom. 

And as we consider the book of James as a whole, we see that James often uses contrast and comparisons to show us the difference between wise living and foolish living. 

These types of contrasts and comparisons are designed to get us to think and consider how we are living our life right now in this very moment. 

And as believers, these contrasts and comparisons should cause us to prayerfully reflect on our own behaviors. 

They should lead us to ask the question, “Am I truly living wisely for Christ?”

The other reason why James uses contrast and comparisons so often is to point to his final summary in verse 19 and 20 in chapter 5. 

Let’s read those verses and break it down.  

“19 My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, 20 let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” James 5:19-20

Now, prior to verses 19 and 20 there is this build up of questions and answers that lead up to James’ final statement. 

Is anyone among you suffering? Is anyone cheerful? Is anyone among you sick?

And as James draws the letter to a close, he does so by addressing his readers again as “My brothers,” which is how he started the book off in chapter 1.

As with chapter 1, James is about to talk about another significantly important topic – the wanderers. 

He goes on to say, “if anyone among you wanders from the truth …” 

Now, I don’t know about you but that should get my question engine going. 

What does it mean to wander from the truth? What is he talking about here? 

Well, the conditional clause James uses here immediately suggests that James is concerned about some members of the Christian community wandering away from the truth. 

The verb rendered “to wander” does not suggest that the wandering away from the truth is accidental. 

It is a metaphor, comparing life to the road that a believer travels on. To “wander away” is to go astray from that road – or stray from the truth.

This type of wandering is not an unconscious departure from the truth but rather a rejection of the will of God. 

It is to “err from the truth.”  

Now the word “truth” here does not refer to Christian doctrine as we would typically define it in modern Christianity, but rather the truth of the gospel itself. 

With the concern that James has about right living, truth here has to do with truthfulness in Christian conduct, not the intellectual correctness of a Christian’s doctrinal beliefs. 

This means that the focus here is more moral than intellectual. 

For example, if someone leaves the church and no longer attends church. He or she would be wandering away from the truth because we are called to NOT forsake the assembling of believers. 

So, the person that wanders from the truth is a person who understands the moral implications of the truth, and yet that person has made a conscious decision to walk away. 

Now, I do want to acknowledge that there are some other interpretations for the phrase “wanders from the truth.” And, I want to take a few minutes to talk about that in the hopes that you don’t get too caught up in the differences between the white sheep and the grey sheep. 

Some interpret those who “wander from the truth” as being the unsaved, and some people interpret these people as being unsaved and yet a part of the church. 

Now, I would lovingly disagree with both of those interpretations, and I want to explain why and then add a disclaimer. 

James is addressing an audience of Jewish Christians. Now that’s not to say that some were not those in the church faking the faith, however the letter is intended for them as a group of believers. 

The second reason is the literary development of the statement and subsequent statement of clarification. 

James says, “if anyone among you wanders from the truth…” Essentially James is implying that the person who wandered from the truth knew what the truth was in the first place. 

The wanderer was on the road of truth and then wandered off that road intentionally. 

The final reason is the subsequent statement of clarification made in verse 19 and 20. In verse 19 James says, “and someone brings him back,” and then in verse 20 James says, “whoever brings back a sinner…” 

The illustration here is that someone came to know the truth, that person wandered away from the truth, and someone brought that person back. 

To put it in Okie terms, you can’t bring someone back to where they’ve never been in the first place. 

Now let’s think about that phrase for a moment, “And some one brings him back” 

What is James saying here? 

Well, in order to bring someone back, you’ve got to go get them back, right? 

What would you do if you were a shepherd, and a sheep wandered off? You would go get him and bring him back.

Now, I am going to stop here, throw a tent down, camp out here for a moment, and be very blunt with you. 

If you see someone who is or was attending church wonder away from the truth, it is your personal responsibility to help bring them back to the truth!

Too many people now days have an “Am I my brother’s keeper” attitude towards this. 

And what I mean by that is that they think they have no personal responsibility in helping bring back someone who has wandered away from the truth. 

They tend to think that bringing someone back is the responsibility of the pastor, elders, or church leadership. 

However, that is NOT what James is saying here. He is saying that we all have a responsibility to help bring back someone who has wandered away from the truth. 

Now this is where I am going to be blunt with you. 

If you have an “Am I my brother’s keeper” attitude, then you are the one who is wandering from the truth, and you need to repent. 

You need to realize that your attitude towards this is sinful, and it hurts the church! You need to understand that it is your personal responsibility to pursue those within the congregation who have wandered from the truth. 

Now that I’ve said what I have to say about that, let’s talk about what it means to bring someone back. 

The verb “to bring back” basically means “to turn around.” 

It is the “bringing back of a sinner from his wandering,” as explained in the next verse, and bringing that person back to the truth from which he or she has gone astray. 

And this should lead us to ask another important question. How do we identify and address a person who is “wandering from the truth?” 

Well, the answer to that question is addressed throughout the book of James and the rest of the New Testament. 

We can look at one example of that in James 4, where James addresses the topic of boasting about tomorrow. 

What does James see? He sees people boasting about tomorrow. What does James do? He speaks the truth to them through his letter. 

Now some might say that it is unloving to be that stern with people. 

They might argue that you are being too harsh. But keep this in mind – James’s writing came directly from the Holy Spirit. It is truth, and it is the truth being spoken in love. 

Now I am NOT giving you a license to go out and call out every person that you think may have wandering issues. Please do NOT misunderstand what I am saying here. 

What I am saying is that we are responsible for telling the truth to those who have gone astray even when it is difficult to do so. We should not cower or shy away from speaking the truth in love just because it can be difficult. 

Having said that, I do want to provide a word of caution from Galatians 6:1 which says this:

“Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”

Our speech towards those who wander should be filled with love and gentleness. To add to this, we also need to keep watch on ourselves to ensure that we do not fall into some type of temptation – like hyper critical judgement. 

And we all should keep in mind that this is a condition phrase – “if… someone brings him back…” we are not promised that a wanderer will come back, just because we told them the truth. 

Now let’s transition and tackle verse 20. 

This verse starts off with the imperative let him know. The “him” refers to the believer who turns the one who has gone astray back to the right way. 

The imperative is a form of assurance that lets us know that there is an upside to what we are doing even if we do not see it in the moment – which is generally the case. 

We have all been there at one point or another. We have all had to have those hard and uncomfortable conversations with people who are wandering away from the truth. And we all know that it can be very challenging. 

Yet, James wants us to know that there is a benefit or an upside to putting in the work – to attempt to bring back the wanderer. 

And he goes on to say, “whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

James wants us to know what’s at stake here – Life and Death. 

Now, having said that, there are a few questions that come up with this passage of text. 

What does the phrase “save his soul from death” mean. 

Whose soul will be saved, the wanderer’s soul or the one who brings the wanderer back?

The best way to answer these two questions is to first understand what the “soul” means here. Given the nature of the context here and how the word is being used, the word “soul” is referring to that person’s life both in a literal sense and a figurative sense. 

And whose soul is saved? It is the soul of the one who has sinned and then comes back that is saved, NOT the soul of the person that brought that person back. 

With that being said, turning back a sinner from wandering away will not only save that sinner’s life, but it will also cover a multitude of sins. 

This is the second assurance James gives us for calling a wanderer back to the truth. 

Now when James is saying, “a multitude of sins” he is not trying to convey the degree of wickedness, but the extent of God’s grace and forgiveness. 

The truth is that we all have a multitude of sins that need to be covered and thank God for Jesus, right. 

Our focus should NOT be the multitude of sins, but the fact that the sins will be covered! 

And this leads me back to the initial bang wagon I was on earlier when I was talking about the “Am I my brother’s keeper” attitude. 

That whole attitude is driven by a false notion of responsibility and a lack of wisdom. When we have that attitude, we say things like: 

Only God can turn a wanderer around. Only God can forgive sins. Only God can give the gift of repentance. Only God can save that person’s soul. 

And while these statements are true, God still calls us to do the work. 

Even though we cannot covert anyone, we must labor to do so. Even though we cannot save them from death, we must strive for their spiritual well-being as though their destiny rested on our shoulders. 

And though we cannot cover their sins, we must follow the example of Christ who can – understanding that no sacrifice is too great if only they were saved! 

Let’s make the effort to reach out to those who have wandered away from the truth and even those who are in a state of spiritual drift. 

Let’s take action. Let’s seize the day, because we do not know what tomorrow may hold!