Yes - All Who Wander Are Lost

Have you ever heard the saying, “Not all who wander are lost?” Typically, it travels with those who have the travelling bug that’s so common in the western world today. While I think it’s important to remember that travelling is a privilege and not a right, I’m not condemning travelers or an itinerant lifestyle with my title. Though their reasons were certainly different than most who travel today, plenty of good people have lived as wanderers and nomads (cf. Hebrews 11:8-13, 38), and the sojourner/pilgrim mindset is one that every Christian should adopt (1 Peter 2:11).

No, my title was inspired by the divinely inspired words of James: “Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren” (James 1:16). While most of the commonly used translations read similarly to the NKJV here (cf. ASV, ESV, NASB, NIV, CSB), the word has a broader meaning than simply being tricked or believing a lie. In Hebrews 11:38 which we cited earlier, the word is translated “wandering” or “wandered” in each of these translations. Jesus used it to describe the ninety-nine sheep “that did not go astray” (Matthew 18:13). “Do not be deceived” is by no means a bad translation as sometimes the word very clearly references deception (e.g. “deceives” in Revelation 12:9). I like though how some versions honor that while James is warning about believing a lie, he’s probably also warning about living a purposeless life and ultimately being lost. The KJV records, “Do not err,” the NET and YLT read, “Do not be led astray,” and the MSG Bible (which I normally don’t recommend!) reads, “Don’t get thrown off course.”

So, what lie that would totally throw our lives off course is James warning us about? Let’s trace James’ flow of thought before and after this statement.  
James is writing to “the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad.” He clearly has Christians in mind with this description (later he says that God “brought us forth by the word of truth” – James 1:18; cf. John 3:3-5), so I believe he’s talking about physical Israel but “the Israel of God,” i.e., the church (Galatians 6:16; cf. 3:26-29; 4:21-31). Specifically, he’s probably writing to Christians who were forced from their homes because of persecution (e.g. the “scattered” of Acts 8:4). To this persecuted audience, James teaches about the value of trials (James 1:2-4) and the importance of prayerful steadfastness before God (James 1:5-8) rather than trusting in material blessings (James 1:9-11). Trials, he says, are a test, and when they are endured, they lead to eternal life (James 1:12).

Having said all of this, James quickly points out how important it is not to see God as the source of any temptation that leads to sin (James 1:13). Yielding to sin doesn’t even happen because of a temptation; it happens when an unlawful desire within us seizes an opportunity presented in a moment of temptation to take root in our lives through thoughts and deeds (James 1:14). If sin grows unchecked, it ultimately leads to death (1:15).
Stepping outside of the text, we see this illustrated in Job 1-2. God did not take anything from Job or harm him in any way; all of this was done by Satan. God merely allowed Job’s test to happen, not so that Job could fail as Satan desired but so that he could be tested and bear the fruit of patience (James 1:3). We would never have heard of “the patience of Job” (James 5:11 KJV, ASV) had he not been tried. God never sets us up to fail, and Satan has no power to force us to fail. We only fail because of our choices.

It is therefore as at this point that James says, “Do not be deceived.” Given what he’s just said and what he says in the next couple of verses, the point of deception becomes clear. God is the exclusive and perpetual source of anything and everything that is good in our lives (James 1:17). We need only to think about what He freely choose to do – to bring “us forth by the word of His truth” (James 1:18) at the expense of His only begotten Son (John 3:16; Romans 5:8; 8:31-32) – as positive proof that “God is for us” and not “against us.” It’s clear that James is saying that we must not allow any trial to mislead us about the nature of our God.

If we believe that God wants us to fail, tempts us to fail, or even expects us to fail, we are being led astray. If we believe that God is anything but the source of gifts that are categorically good and perfect in every way, we have believed a lie. If we live with this belief, we will wander through life, meandering along a broad way that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13). It won’t be because God didn’t love us, but because we didn’t love ourselves enough to recognize that our selfish desires were destructive.

“So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath” (James 1:19). This too is a statement made in context. Before you let a trial get you angry at God and start a process that will see you wandering through life, trapped in a lie, be “swift to hear” what God’s revealed in “the word of truth” (James 1:18) that can “save your souls” (James 1:21). Your wrath won’t save your soul; in fact, it will destroy it (James 1:20). Process the trial through the word of God, then speak. “Ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach” (James 1:5). He’ll provide you with the strength you need to endure (James 1:12) and grant you the wisdom needed to move from wrath to joy (James 1:2, 5, 19).

-Patrick Swayne  
patrick@tftw.org