1 What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? 2 You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures. 4 You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: "He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us"? 6 But He gives a greater grace. Therefore it says, "GOD IS OPPOSED TO THE PROUD, BUT GIVES GRACE TO THE HUMBLE." 7 Submit therefore to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9 Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom. 10 Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.
James 4:1 Where do you think these wars and fights come from among you?
- Wars – this strife, these struggles, this conflict
- Fights – struggles, battles, quarrels
Wars are between nations/ fighting is amongst yourselves
What is causing the strife and quarrels among you? What causes (root) cause of fights and quarrels among you? The small quarrels amongst us lead to wars between nations.
Do they (these conflicts, battle, strife) not come from your desires (wishes, cravings, where you put your attention, your wants)
for pleasure (diversion from what is Truth)
that war (chaos, disorder, undisciplined)
in your members (a part of the human body). Where is this continuous conflict going on? It is in the heart.
2 You lust (selfish desires lead to conflict as well as to wars … an overwhelming desire or craving) and you do not have.
You murder (deliberately kill) (when did war between men begin? Cain/Abel and has not stopped ever since.
It all begins in the heart.
Selfish desires lead to war!
What would you say the definition of worldliness is?
What movies you watch, do you dance, do you drink, smoke, cuss, do you hang around with the wrong crowd? Do you dress like the world?
James is saying that the definition of worldliness stems from our own selfish desires. The examples of worldliness are the result of our selfish ambitions.
If a clock doesn’t keep time, do you blame it on the hands? What is the root cause? The battery/mechanisms?
The spirit of strife, envy and jealous that lie within our wicked hearts is James’ definition of worldliness. That is the clock’s battery.
Always get to the root cause.
How does the spirit of the world enter into the church? We walk through the doors. Who can heal our wicked hearts?
If the people walking through the church doors have a spirit of the world in them, you are in a worldly church.
James is saying: You think there is a war going on in Iraq, what about inside the hearts of Christians?
covet (to desire something belonging to another. To wish for something strongly; crave)
and cannot obtain (the result of your personal planning to gain possession of).
You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.
A servant to a master, not as if you “deserve” anything.
3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss – an improper or defective way not the right way.
That you may spend it on your pleasures.
We ask God through prayer, but are we asking God with a worldly spirited heart?
Instead tell the Lord everything. Just be honest. Pray, but pray not with selfish motives.
We compromise with the world in order to attain our goals.
4 Adulterers and adulteresses – who is James say you are having an adulterous relationship with ???? – the world??? Should you not be married to HIM?
Why does he call us adulteresses? Take what doesn’t belong to you. Cause strife because you don’t get your way.
Do you not know that friendship with the world in enmity with God.
Enmity – deep seated/mutual hatred.
Whoever therefore wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
5 Or do you think that the Scripture says in vain (not yielding the desired outcome, fruitless, lacking substance). The Spirit who dwells in us years jealously”?
The spirit that is in us is envious. The only solution is to go to the Father and tell Him our problems.
6 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resist the proud, But give grace to the humble.”
He gives grace – unmerited (we don’t deserve it) favor
By His grace we are saved. Go to God and tell Him – and ask Him for grace to overcome whatever it is!
7 Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you.
Believe – submit – do not resist…
You cannot do anything in your own strength, because you are bombarded by evil influences …mainly yourself!
The way to resist the devil is to draw near to God. If you are close to God, the devil will flee. You fall away from God, the devil slips in. When does a wolf attack sheep?
8 Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double minded.
God comes to the door of our heart through His Word. He knocks, but YOU have to let Him in.
Ask and it will be given, knock and the door will be opened. Seek and you will find.
9 Lament and mourn and weep! (over your sinful self) You are not to treat sin nonchalantly. You are to mourn over your sins.
What does mourn mean? To be truly broken over your sin. Sadness over your sin.
Do you cry because of the sin you are allowing to remain in your life?
Let your laughter turn to mourning and your joy to gloom.
This laughter could be our outward embarrassment of our sin…our the laughter of thinking that the world has something to offer us. Worldly pleasures. Be sorrowful over your sin.
10 Humble yourself in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.
He shall lift you up – we don’t have the ability to lift ourselves up.
Humble means to make oneself low.
Ps 75:6
Once we get a small glimpse of who God truly is, we will fall to our knees in repentance, and in awe of HIM. We will realize that we cannot make it alone and that truly we can do nothing to save ourselves. We must turn everything over to HIM and stop trying to do it alone. We must set aside our selfish ambitions and begin today making Him Lord of our Life.
j.
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