James Post #12 – James 4:1-10

Before we begin to deal with the scripture in todays’ post let’s look back over the previous topics James has been writing about.  In Chapter One he spoke about temptations and trials and how they are different.  He spoke of how trials show us where our strengths and especially our weaknesses are so that we will rely on God to help us change and grow.  Chapter One also contained thoughts about not just listening to the Word but putting it into action in our world.  Chapter Two warned against showing favoritism and reminded us that we are all lost without Christ and we all need him.  Because of that we have no basis for feeling better than someone else or looking down on anyone.  Then in the second portion of Chapter Two James gave us a lesson in how our faith must be demonstrated by our works (actions) in order to be authentic.  Then in Chapter Three we learned about guarding our words and the power for good or evil that little part of our bodies has.  Then James continued with his teaching on the difference between heavenly wisdom and earthly wisdom and how we need to be in God’s Word, to feed on it and make it a part of ourselves if we want to grow in true, Godly wisdom.

Today we will begin Chapter Four, working through the first 10 verses.  My Bible entitles this section  Submit Yourselves to God but I like to use the title Who’s In Charge?   We’ll begin by looking at verses 1 through 3 of Chapter 4.  We’ll call these "DESIRES THAT BATTLE WITHIN YOU..."

What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? ² You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. ³ When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

I immediately think of family quarrels that I’ve experienced or heard about from others.  Some families have been torn apart by some of the dumbest things.  In my own family history there was a story regarding a set of old, blue willow dishes that were part of one matriarchs’ collection.  The trouble started, as it often does, on the event of the elderly woman’s death.  That’s when the fights started, grew, festered and in the end caused a division in the family which lasted for years.  And all this over dishware!  I thought that a sledge hammer could have helped resolve that quarrel right of the bat.  But then again, I wasn’t born then.   Too bad!  There was a similar argument in another branch of my family tree over an old grandfather clock.  I can imagine that many of you are thinking of situations in your own families where some possession, some ‘thing’ has caused major problems between family members.

James says you want but you don’t have, so you kill!  That’s a shocking choice of words don’t you think?  The word ‘kill’ in verse one can also be translated ‘hate’ and that is totally applicable in the situations I mentioned above.   Hate can be thought of a murdering with words.  You might use words like ‘gossip’ or ‘slander’ to describe such hate (murder).  James goes on in verse 2 saying that “You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight.”   To covet is to want what someone else has.  It’s not yours but you want it!  Covet can also be described as inappropriate or wrongful desire.  This sounds like dealing with children sometimes.  They say they “need” something but the truth is that they “want” it.  They desire to have it even if that is not possible.  I’ve seen some pretty loud tantrums in stores and elsewhere when a young child (and sometimes not so young) throws a fit because they can’t always get what they want.  (Sorry, I just had another old rock ‘n’ roll flashback!)  James says this desire to have what someone else possesses causes you to quarrel and fight.

Now James turns our attention to where it should be in the first place.  He brings God into this discussion.  He says “You do not have because you do not ask God. ³ When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.”  He’s right, you know.  So often when a situation like this arises our first thoughts are often not about what God might want for us but what we want.  Sounds like those spoiled children I was just talking about.  When James says “You ask” he’s talking about asking God.  I.E. praying.  With the huge lotto jackpot just this past week I imagine there was a lot of praying going on but, as James says, I’m thinking that a lot of it was based on what the “prayer” desired rather than what God wanted for them.   It is certainly appropriate to bring your burdens, concerns, needs before the Lord in prayer but all too often we include the plan we already have in mind about how God should answer those prayers.  I often say “Don’t tell God how to do His work.”  It’s really kind of foolish isn’t it?  God knows our thoughts and he even knows what we are going to say before we speak.  (Psalm 139:1-4)  James says you ask to spend on yourself, not thinking of others.  If our hearts and minds are in sync with God through Bible study and prayer, then our motives are more apt to be the right ones and our desires will be in line with God’s desires for us.  (see 1 Jn. 3:21,22)  I wonder if you, like me, have ever prayed to the Lord and shared your ideas, plans with Him and then asked him to bless YOUR plans?  I know it’s dumb but I must admit that I’ve done it.  God is the one with the plans.  It’s our task to draw close to Him and ask for wisdom to see His plans for our life.  (Jeremiah 29:11)  

 James very next words in verses 4 and 5 remind us of the dangers of thinking like the world (ungodly) thinks.  “You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God. ⁵ Or do you think Scripture says without reason that he jealously longs for the spirit he has caused to dwell in us?  Remember that James is writing to Christians and not non-believers yet he calls them “you adulterous people”.  An adulterer is, of course, someone who has pledged their love and loyalty to one and then turns their back on that first love to become involved with someone else.  James says that the same thing happens with believers when they “choose to be a friend of the world”.  This speaks of acting, thinking and behaving in the way the ‘world’ would.  We are called to be “in the world but not of the world." (John 17:14-16) 

God is a jealous God, not willing to share you with the world.  That’s no different than the relationship I have with my wife.  I am a “jealous” husband if it means that I want her to be committed totally to me and not seek others in place of me in our relationship as husband and wife.  The same is true for me in my marriage.  I need to be totally committed to my wife above every other person and she needs to have that confidence in my fidelity.  That means I don’t seek intimate companionship, sexual gratification or any other kind of relationships to replace what we, as husband and wife, are meant to share together.  You may have heard the term “open marriage”.  That’s one of the dumbest ideas I have ever heard of.  Basically, it means you are married to one person but you seek out intimate relationships with other members of the opposite sex intentionally with your spouses’ blessing.  Of course they are doing the same thing.  They say that this improves their own marriages as a result.  My personal, unenlightened response to that is: HOGWASH!  A godly marriage is one man and one woman totally committed to each other for a lifetime.  The Bible speaks of our relationship to Christ in similar terms.  Jesus’ relationship to the church is that of bridegroom and bride.  God will share you with no one.  Just as with our decision to accept Jesus in the first place, our decision to be faithful to Him alone is ours.

If James ended his thought right here we’d be in deep trouble don’t you think?  But verse 6 gives us unbelievable hope and reason to thank God for His love.

 ⁶ But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”

I love the very first word, “but”.  I’ve often said that I am so thankful for the “but”s in scripture  They are the reminder that in spite of ourselves God loves us and wants to have a close, intimate relationship with us.  When we read “but”, it usually comes just before a statement where God makes a way for us to connect with Him in spite of our own sinfulness or disobedience.   “But he gives us more grace.”  Thank God!  He offers us grace beyond measure, undeserved, but so loving.  Then James explains that God gives us all the grace we need when we humble ourselves before Him. (see Hebrews 4:16)

                                   

I found a very sort poem by Annie Johnson Flint which I’ll share.  It’s entitled On God's Grace. 

He gives more grace when the burdens grow greater,

He sends more strength when the labors increase,

To added affliction He adds His mercy,

To multiplied trials, His multiplied peace.

                                                           

The Reuben Donnelly Co. of Chicago was one of the nation's largest printers of magazines.  They had a huge machine that sent out notices to people whose subscriptions had expired.  One day a tiny spring in the machine broke and a rancher in Powder Bluff, Colo. received 9,734 notices that his subscription to National Geographic had expired.  He rode the ten miles to the post office, sent his money, and wrote, "Send me the magazine.  I give up!"  That's how God's blessings and love are toward us.  He piles them on so much that we finally want to surrender to him.

⁷ Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. ⁸ Come near to God and he will come near to you. Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. ⁹ Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom. ¹⁰ Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.

Let’s break down these last few verses of todays’ post and see how much we might be able to “squeeze” out of them.

"Submit yourselves to God." [vs. 7A]

Submit means to put God in charge.  To submit means to yield, to give Him control of your life, to put Him in the driver’s seat.  Do you want to overcome and triumph over the worldly temptations in your life?  You have the choice of following the world or the Lord.  But the second half of verse 7 contains a great promise and something we should remember every day.

             

“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you”. [vs.7B]

I’m not sure you really got that last point so let me share it again. “Resist the devil, and he WILL FLEE from you.”  There, did that help any?  This verse contains an “If-Then” statement.  “If” you resist the devil, “then” he will flee from you.  We need to make a conscious effort to turn away from "worldly" things and the temptations that are there.  We need to use God's Word not only as a source of our salvation, but also our information and inspiration.  “If” we do our part “then” God will do His.  God has given us a great promise right here in verse 7.  If we “resist” then the devil will “flee”!  That’s great news isn’t it?  

“Come near to God and he will come near to you.” [vs.8A]

Here’s another “If-Then” statement/promise.  When we intentionally take time to be with the Lord in prayer and meditation as well as taking time to listen to Him through the reading of His Word, He WILL draw near to us.  I sometimes find the push and pull of daily life begins to drain me or drag me down.  I come to a point where I know that I have to take time, to make time to be with Him for a while.  The result is always the same.  First, I find that a sense of peace settles in and starts to calm me down.  Then, I find comfort and reassurance that it’s all gonna work out and that God is in control.  Finally, I end up with feelings of inspiration and admiration.  I’m inspired to get back out there and “Do This Thing” and admiration for God, all He’s done, is doing, and is going to do in my life.  I also find that the world around me, His creation, looks even better through my re-energized eyes.  God is always ready to

forgive, restore and love unconditionally but He doesn’t force His way in.  So often, I feel like God is saying, “Finally!  I’ve been waiting for you.”  And the truth is, He always is.  Prayer time is important anytime.  I heard this little phrase somewhere and like it:  ‘Prayer will make a man cease from sin, or sin will entice a man to cease from prayer.’  That has some real truth in it don’t you think?

"Wash your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. " [vs.8B]

In this verse James says we must change our lives both outwardly as well as inwardly.  When he tells us to “wash your hands” I don’t believe He’s talking about dirt.  He’s speaking about our outside self, our actions.  When he says to “purify your hearts” he’s talking about our inner self, our thoughts, motives and desires.  I believe James is telling us to ‘clean up our act’!  This includes all sorts of things: things others see and things hidden to everyone but God.  That includes our thought life as well.  God wants us to be clean inside and out.  Scripture tells us that people judge us by what they see (Matthew 7:16-20).  Man looks at the outside while God looks at the inside.  Remember, nothing is hidden from His sight.

“Grieve, mourn and wail. Change your laughter to mourning and your joy to gloom.”  [vs.9]

In this verse James is telling us that we need to show sincere repentance for our sins when we become aware of them.  I’m reminded of how often one of our children or one of my students in school would get caught doing something inappropriate.  So often their “I’m sorry!” seemed a bit insincere to say the least.  It was like they were sorry alright…sorry that they got caught.  I was much more prone to think their apology was sincere when it was followed by a change in behavior.  This is exactly the same for us as Gods children.  Are we sorry for what we did, what we said, what we thought or are we just sorry that we got caught?  The word ‘repent’ means to change direction or turn away from something.  If we are truly repentant for something it should be seen by a change in our behavior.  Here’s the kicker…God already knows if our contrite heart is for real.  He knows what we are thinking and that, sometimes, is kind of embarrassing isn’t it?  Here’s the amazing thing.  God knows us that well, that intimately yet He loves us and wants a close, personal relationship with us.  That is what godly, unconditional love is all about. 

"Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up." [vs.10]

Since God knows our hearts He knows when we are sincere and truly repentant.  We need to acknowledge God’s lordship in our lives and humble ourselves before Him.  When we pray about our needs we shouldn’t tell God what to do but ask Him and then look and listen for His answers.  We humble ourselves by placing God first in our lives once again.  Did you notice that this verse is also one of those “If-Then” verses?  That’s right, it says if you will humble yourselves before the Lord then  he will lift you up!  What a great promise. 

We’ll end this post on that uplifting note.  I hope this study of James continues to touch you in a personal way in your daily life.  I have worked through this book many times but as I write these posts God continues to speak to me in new ways and in areas of my life that need His renewing touch.  He’s a great God and His Word is alive, isn’t it?!  Thanks for being here with us all on this walk through James.