James Chapter Four
Commentary by
Pastor
Timothy H. Burdick
Verse 1. “What is the source of
quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that
wage war in your members?”
Verse 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.”
Verse 3. “You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong
motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.”
Verse 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.
Verse 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?’”
Verse 6. “But He gives a greater grace Therefore it says, 'God is
opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’"
Verse 7. “Submit therefore to God Resist the devil and he will flee from
you.”
Verse 8. “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you Cleanse your
hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.”
Verse 9. “Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned
into mourning and your joy to gloom.”
Verse 10. “Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will
exalt you.”
Verse 11. “Do not speak against one another, brethren He who speaks
against a brother or judges his brother, speaks against the law and
judges the law; but if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law
but a judge of it.”
Verse 12. “There is only one Lawgiver and Judge, the One who is able to
save and to destroy; but who are you who judge your neighbor?”
Verse 13. “Come now, you who say, 'Today or tomorrow we will go to such
and such a city, and spend a year there and engage in business and make
a profit.’"
Verse 14. “Yet you do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You
are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes
away.”
Verse 15. “Instead, you ought to say, 'If the Lord wills, we will live
and also do this or that.’”
Verse 16. “But as it is, you boast in your arrogance; all such boasting
is evil.”
Verse 17. “Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does
not do it, to him it is sin.”
Commentary
In James 4:1, the writer asks where wars and fighting come from? Then he
answers the question with a question: Don't they come from the pleasures
that war in your members? James is asking us, don't wars and fighting on
a personal scale come when we allow pleasures to have free reign? When
we fight verbally or physically to obtain what we want, it causes
divisions. This may sound elementary until you really stop and think
about it. We are a people driven by pleasure. Most, rather than seeking
God in a whole-hearted way, have allowed pleasure to cause a division in
our allegiance. Just, as the individual person is divided, this leads to
groups of people being pitted against each other.
When our “god” becomes pleasure,
we think less about service and more about how we can satisfy our needs.
Pleasure is an appetite, however, that can never be satisfied. I think
that this pleasure was one of the factors that caused the “divisions”
that Paul talked about in 1 Corinthians 11:18. Paul said, "for first of
all, when ye come together, in the church, I hear that division exists
among you; and I partly believe it." I personally don't think that Paul,
in First Corinthians 11, was saying that we have to be carbon copies of
each other. That kind of unity is unnatural. God gave each of us a
unique mind, and we should grow in our diversity. We need to get rid of
the kind of pleasure-seeking that would eliminate our commitment to God.
God is not saying that all pleasure is wrong by any means. It is when we
let pleasure take over our lives and occupy the place that God should
be; then it becomes wrong. Also, we need to study the Word to find out
what pleasures are Godly, and what are not.
James goes on to say in the
second verse, "Ye lust and have not, Ye kill and covet and cannot
obtain, ye fight and war, you have not because you ask not." Many times
we leave God out of the picture altogether. Like little children, we
want what we want, when we want it. God is too slow! We want it now!
This leads to disaster. We don't have what we want many times because we
simply don't ask. Think through this a moment: most people think of God
as an impersonal force. They do not ask Him for want they want because
they don’t trust Him for what they need. We think that asking here means
a one-time shot, so, if we ask half-heartedly and don't get what we
want, we just go on our way. According to the Greek language of the
time, this is to be a persistent asking, and this is where most of us
fail. Jesus spoke about this in Matthew 7:7, where He said, "Ask and it
shall be given you; seek and you shall find; knock and it shall be
opened unto you.”
James tells us that many times
that we ask and don't receive because we ask with the wrong intent.
Sometimes when it seems like our prayers are hitting the ceiling and
bouncing off; maybe we need to look at why we are asking. The Lord said
to search our hearts like David did. Find out whether that request is
just selfish, or whether it is glorifying to God. A good parent doesn’t
give his children everything they want, but at the same time, tries to
meet their needs. Meditate on Philippians 4:19, which says, "And my God
shall supply all of your needs according to his riches in glory in
Christ Jesus." Notice it does not say “want,” but instead “need.” In
James 4:4 he calls us “adulteresses,” and continues, “don't you know
that if you are a friend of the world, that you are an enemy of God?”
Then he underscores that
statement by saying, “Whoever makes himself a friend of the world is an
enemy of God.” James must have seen this as pretty important to repeat
it like that. Ask yourself two questions: 1) are you a friend of the
world? and 2) what does it mean to be caught up in this friendship?
The idea of “adultery” is used
to describe our sinful condition. According to the Bible, we who have
trusted in Christ for our salvation, are his “bride.” It anticipates the
day when we are to meet Jesus, our “groom.” We are told in many places
to keep ourselves pure from the world. The writer of Hebrews, for
example, said that we are supposed to set aside every sin that so easily
ensnares us. Like John says in his first epistle (letter), everyone who
has this hope purifies himself. To find this concept; look in 1 John
3:2.
Now, let’s talk about what
another concept of the world really means. We will put both concepts
together. You may ask, aren't we all in the world? Again let’s go to the
apostle John, and let him define this term. He says this in 1 John 2:16,
"For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the
eyes and the vain glory of life, is not of the father, but is of the
world.”
Let’s break down this passage.
The “lust of the flesh” is simply our own desires when they are not
submitted to God. James is saying much the same thing that he did
earlier, but in a different way. Every day in advertising, the lust of
the flesh is appealed to. Next James talks about the “lust of the eyes.”
As a blind person, I use other people’s eyes. There is nothing we depend
on more powerful than what I call the “eye gate.” That is, of course, in
the natural realm. Think about television and all of the things you
might tempted to gaze at. Thirdly, let’s look at what is called “the
pride of life” here. This “pride” is simply looking at our
accomplishments apart from God. Remember the rich fool in the Bible, who
built himself bigger barns and houses. He told himself that he had
plenty of this world’s goods. He did not need God, he thought. But this
is not just a story in Scripture, for any one of us can be drawn away if
we are not careful. These three elements are what James is referring to
when he talks about the “world.”
Just as in a marriage
relationship where faithfulness is important, James is stressing
faithfulness to Christ. Paul emphasizes this in another way in 2
Corinthians 11:2 when he says, "I am jealous for you with a Godly
jealously; I promised you to one Husband, to Christ, so that I might
present you as a pure virgin to Him." What does it mean when James says
that God jealousy longs for the spirit he made to live in us? How does
this relate to the words of Paul, who said that our bodies are the
“temple of the Holy Spirit?” Or you may ask, according to the Bible,
isn't jealousy a sin? As you ponder these questions, let me just say:
Show me a good husband who isn't jealous of his wife in a positive way?
He protects her, he cherishes her, he will even lay down his life if
need be. That is what God is like in relation to you.
Please reflect on these
questions, and let the Lord show you things personally. For now, here
are my thoughts: Jealousy is a sin, when a person covets or longs for
something or someone that is not their own. He is just saying that God
longs for us to have this purity of mind and heart. After all, if we
belong to Him, we are not our own. Paul says that we have been bought
with a price. Paul enlarges upon this concept when he says, "Know ye not
that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in
you?” He goes on to say, “if any man defiles the temple of God, him
shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are."
This scripture is found, in 1 Corinthians 3:16-17. Read it for yourself
in different versions of the Bible, and meditate on what it means for
your body to be God’s “temple.”
How would you live differently,
if you really thought of your body as a temple? Jesus talked about this
need for purity, when He said, “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they
shall see God.” Notice the phrase, “in heart.” God doesn't want an
outward purity alone; He wants us to be pure in heart. The only way we
can do that, however, is to ask Him to cleanse you. This, like other
similar actions that the Bible talks about, is an ongoing process. What
does it mean for you to be “pure in heart?” The more you realize
personally how much God values you, the more this concept will mean to
you.
Jesus said about this in Luke
12:6, "Are not five sparrows sold for two pence? and not one of them is
forgotten in the sight of God.” Luke 12:7 goes on to say, “but the very
hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not: ye are of more value then
many sparrows.” You may be going through something that you don't feel
you can bear. The good news is that you don't have to bear it alone. God
longs for a personal, ongoing relationship with you because he values
you so much. He wants to help you face difficulties and challenges in
HIS strength; not in your own.
Helping us face everyday
problems in a Christian way, is part of what God is all about. It is a
great reason why He gave us the Holy Spirit. In 4:6, James goes on to
say that God gives us more “grace.” What does this mean to you? To me it
just means that He gives me more strength to face what is before me. His
strength! In some situations, it may not seem to me like God is giving
me any grace at all. But I have to realize that often God works behind
the scenes, and without His grace I couldn't get through. Sometimes, I
have found that I just have to sing and praise the Lord by faith, so to
speak.
I sometimes am guilty of
complaining; only seeing God’s gracious hand afterwards. It was only
God’s grace that helped me get through a situation. I was in sales on
the phone for 22-years. I felt like I would be in that kind of work
forever. But God finally got me out of it. This may be akin to what men
in the Bible went through, as they were prepared for service. Are you
going through a similar experience? Does it feel like it will never end?
Just try and rely on God’s grace, and know that whether you feel it or
not, God is providing an extra amount of grace for you. Paul says this
in a different way in 1 Corinthians 10:13; "there hath no temptation
taken you, but such as man can bear, but God is faithful, who will not
suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able, but will with the
temptation make a way of escape." That escape is what James is talking
about when he says that God gives us more grace. He goes on to say in
the same verse; that is why God “opposes the proud, but gives grace to
the humble.” In that place, he is quoting Proverbs 3:3-6. We have talked
a lot about humility. However, it is not a quality that can be stressed
too much. We are naturally proud, But it’s the humble person who can
hear from God. How can you be a more humble person? Are you proud and
think that you don't have anything to learn? Get alone with God, and ask
Him what this verse in James has to say to you.
There three key concepts in
verse 7.
These concepts are: submit,
resist, and flee. There have been many ideas of submission that have
done the cause of Christ a great disservice. I have to admit, some
definitions have made me angry. This is because submission isn't
crushing another person to get your own will. This idea is most popular
among Christians when it comes to the husband-wife relationship. True
submission for a Christian means my will being yielded to God first of
all, but secondly it means my will being yielded to the other person.
The Cambridge dictionary says that submission means to allow a person or
group to have authority over you. Using my definition along with their
definition, it is clear that we are to allow Christ total rule in our
lives, making him Lord. Is Christ Lord in your life, or is He merely
your Savior?
The second key word would be
“resist.” We need to continually resist the devil. How does this concept
apply to you? First of all, let me back up a little bit, because I don't
think most people take our enemy very seriously. The devil is a real
person. One writer says about this, "As a Christian, the existence of
Satan as a real person is proved by the fact that the Lord Jesus Christ
recognized him as such. He referred to him frequently by name (Luke
10:18, Matthew 4:10, etc.). The Bible calls him a “thief,” and says that
he has come to “steal, kill, and destroy.” How we are to stand against
the devil is found in Ephesians 6:11. He tells us in this verse: "Put on
the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of
the devil.” Please go on and read the rest of that Chapter, as it is
crucial to your Christian life.
In the last part of this verse
(4:7), where James talks about the devil fleeing, it is important to
know that he only runs if we put on the whole armor of God. Again I
would refer you to Ephesians 6:11 and the following verses. I have
restated this on purpose, because to live the kind of life that God
wants us to, we need to learn how to engage in spiritual warfare. D. A.
Robinson says about this, "Be assured the presence of Christ will expel
the presence of Satan.” He goes on to say, "Lifting up Jesus in praise
will send the devil running." Devout warfare is one of the pivotal keys,
when it comes to Christian maturity. But a lot of people associate
Christian maturity with having a long face. Nothing could be further
from the truth. God wants His people to have a song in their hearts and
a smile on their lips.
Verse 4:8 tells us that if we
draw near to God, He will draw near to us. We have all been rejected in
life, and I can tell you from personal experience, it hurts. This again
is where we need to see God as a loving Father. Though man may reject
you, God will never reject you. Jesus said in Matthew 11:28, “Come unto
me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Do
you feel rejected? Have you let this affect your relationship with God?
In Luke 15:20, we can see God’s compassion. The story of the prodigal
son has been told up to this point, but now the narrative shifts from
his condition to the loving acceptance of the father.
God has his arms open wide for
every child of His, who knows that they've strayed and wants to run back
into those arms. Drawing near to God, however, is something that is a
second-by-second action. Jesus spoke of abiding in Him: "if you abide in
Me and My words abide in you, ask whatever you will and it will be done
for you.” Notice that drawing near to God requires action on our part.
We must stay in His Word and in fellowship with Him through prayer. As
we have already seen, the world, the flesh and the devil would all like
to draw us away from Christ. We must draw near. Although we might feel
like our load in life is extremely heavy. First Peter tells us to “cast
all of our cares on Him because He cares for us” (1 Peter 5:7). We have
so many promises telling us that the closer we get to God, the closer He
will get to us.
Both verses 9-10 in James 4, go
together. We read, "be afflicted and mourn, and weep; let your laughter
be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness.” Then James goes on in
verse 10, “humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall
exalt you.” At first glance, James 4:9 may seem like a puzzle. Here God
is not speaking about physical affliction, as much as He is speaking of
the affliction or conviction we should experience over our sin. The New
International translation (NIV), uses the word “grieve.” We take sin too
lightly. We must come to God in an attitude of repentance. We must
confess our sin, turning away from it. Too many times, instead, we want
to play with it. We don't really see sin for the ugly barrier that it
is. I will never forget a Christian speaker saying that rather than
confess, we really typically just apologize to God.
The terms “mourn” and “weep” are
simply amplifying what James has already said.
Again, we don't have to go
around with a long face, but we are to deal with sin and turn from it in
disgust. Think about what Jesus said in Matthew 5:4, "Blessed are they
who mourn, for they shall be comforted." How can you apply these verses
to your life? Gossiping and sitting in judgment upon one another are
actions that many of us unfortunately perform without thinking about it.
James is saying, however, that this is a grievous sin in the eyes of
God. We each seem to have “pet” sins, but according to God, all sins are
all equally bad.
William Einwechter has this to
say: "In James 4:11-12, the author James is rebuking certain Christians
under his apostolic oversight, for speaking evil of one another and
judging each another.” While this is true, I think that we need to
emphasize that this same practice continues today. James is telling us
that he who speaks evil of his brother is actually judging the Law of
God. Reading about this in Leviticus 19:16, We can hear God saying,
"Thou shalt not go up and down as a tale bearer among thy people;
neither shall thou stand against the blood of thy neighbor: I am
Jehovah."
I will move on, but let me tell
you about a personal experience I had about judging while preparing this
Bible study. My wife, who has multiple illnesses, had a long hospital
stay. Right at the end of the stay, she found out that she had cancer
for the third time. When she came home she was preoccupied. She hadn't
had her surgery yet, and she couldn’t remember some things. I should
have realized that she had a lot on her mind, but I was impatient. One
day we made plans, and the next day she didn't remember them. I got
upset, and realized that I was doing the very thing that I was writing
against. Do you ever find this in your life? When we find this in our
lifestyle, we need to go to God and confess it and then go to the other
person if possible and ask forgiveness from them as well.
I like the way James 4:13 starts
in the New International Version of the Bible (NIV). It starts, “Now
listen;” or “He who has ears let him hear.” In other words, “Pay
attention.” These were the words of Jesus, many times after he finished
a parable. He said, “You who say today or tomorrow, we will go to this
or that city, spend a year there; carry on business and make money...” I
have met people who seem to think that planning in and of itself is
wrong. Looking further into this, however, it reminds me of Proverbs
16:9 - "A man’s heart deviseth his way, but the Lord directeth his
steps." Do you as a Christian think that planning is wrong? Look up what
Jesus had to say about this kind of planning. The people that James was
writing to, weren’t asking God to direct their steps. Think about the
personal pronoun that James uses, namely “we.” WE will do this or that
without submitting it to God. Do you make plans without submitting them
to God? How do you intend to change this pattern? James talks in this
verse about people who want to take care of business, and make money. Is
this wrong as a general rule? When and why is this wrong?
In 4:14 he addresses the same
people by saying you don't even know what will happen tomorrow! None of
us know what will happen tomorrow, but we act many times as though we
do. Why do we live in this way? Then in the next verse, James tells us
we should say that “if it is the Lord’s will we will do this or that.”
What does this mean? Is it something that we should say before planning
for good luck? Talking about the subject of God’s will is a scary
subject for some people. But it need not be. In Jeremiah 29:11, God
tells that He knows the plans He has for us. They are for good and not
for evil. They are also to give us a future and a hope. God’s plans for
you and me are good plans. They are plans that have our very best
interest in mind. Many people have trouble finding what God’s will is
for their lives, let alone what He has in mind for their daily tasks. I
know I did that. I was frustrated and confused for years.
Look at these verses: they infer
certain principles. In the light of these verses, how do we find God’s
will for our lives? I would just say, aside from what is being taught
here, according to Acts 17:11 we continually need to study God’s word in
order to find out what His will is. Acts 17:11 says, “Now these were
more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the Word
with all readiness of the mind, examining the scriptures daily whether
these things were so.” No (verse 16) you glory in your “vauntings”
(arrogance) and all such glorying is evil. I like to think of arrogance
as glorying in your pride. You think you can live your life apart from
God. You glory in that; you are proud of what you can accomplish. Is
there such a thing as a healthy form of pride? Then 4:17 concludes, “to
him that knows to do good and doesn’t do it, to him it is sin.” Do you
treat wrongful inaction as a sin?
We can't ignore this principle;
we each need to search our hearts before we act or do not act. Read all
of Romans Chapter 14. We need to take inventory of our OWN lives, and
not merely our neighbor’s. I want to close this Chapter with a quote
from Romans 14:10 – “But why do you judge your brother, or you again,
why do you regard your brother with contempt? For we shall all stand
before the judgment seat of God.”
NOTES and QUOTES
I have broken down Chapter 4 in James as follows: 4:1-4 is about
being drawn away by the world, 4:4 talks about being a friend of the
world; 4:5 talks about the Holy Spirit guarding us, and 4:6 speaks of
the grace that He gives us to overcome the world. In verses 7-10, James
gives some practical advice. He talks about how we are supposed to stay
close to God rather then remaining close to the world. 11-12 tell us how
to treat one another, and 13-17 speak about our attitude toward
“tomorrow.”
Timothy H. Burdick, Associate Pastor
Friday Study Ministries
PO Box 92131
Long Beach, CA
90809-2131 USA
www.fridaystudy.org
TSBurdick@msn.com
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