17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, who does not change like shifting shadows.

18 By His own choice, He gave us birth by the word of truth so that we would be a kind of first fruits of his creatures.  

Everything good in this world is from God. God is not associated with the evil and sin that lurks about. He is goodness and purity and it is all He can produce. He is light and He will never change. People change and let us down, but God never will. His light is always shining.

The ancient Greek, Hiebert wrote: “Even so, there is never a shadow with God. When night comes, the darkness isn’t the fault of the sun, it shines as brightly as before. Instead, the earth has turned from the sun and darkness comes.”[1]

I love this concept. The sun is always light. It doesn’t grow dark. God is always light; there is no darkness in Him. If we bask in the light of His presence, we know love, peace, and mercy. We receive help in our times of need and our priorities are straight. But when we turn away from Him, darkness comes.

James is writing to the 12 Tribes of Israel (dispersed abroad). He reminds them that it was God’s will that the Gospel message be preached to them so that they would believe. And those who believed at that time, were the “first fruits” of all those who would come to believe.

[1] Guzik, David Commentary via Blue Letter Bible