James 4:1-10 “What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is the source not your pleasures that wage war in your body’s parts? You lust and do not have, so you commit murder. And you are envious and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. ask You do not have because you do not. You ask and do not receive, because you ask with the wrong motives, so that you may spend what you request on your pleasures. You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God? Therefore, whoever wants to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you think that the Scripture says to no purpose, “He jealously desires the Spirit whom He has made to dwell in us”? But He gives a greater grace. Therefore, it says, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” Submit therefore to God. But resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Come close to God and He will come close to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be miserable, and mourn, and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning, and your joy into gloom. Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.”
This last Sunday, Pastor Herk of Little Church in the Pines preached on this text. The point is that God wants to have a relationship with us. God wants us to draw closer to Him. His desire for us is for us to desire Him. Sometimes, we feel that we need to seek and perform good works for God. That God has done something for us because He is saving us for something, and we are trying to discover what it is that He is saving us for. It may just be that God wants us to be saved from whatever He is delivering us from so we can draw closer to Him and enjoy Him more. That is the primary thing. God will lead us to what tasks He has for us, if we are living in a close relationship with Him through His Son, our Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.
Jeremiah Calvin Lanphier was an American lay missionary in New York City, popularly regarded as having been instrumental in instigating the American religious revival of 1857–58 through establishing daily prayer meetings which spread nation-wide. We need to be praying for our leadership in government that is losing sight of God in our nation. The Bible is so clear that if we draw near to God, He will draw near to us in a personal relationship. Jeremiah 29:13 say, “You will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.” Jesus says in Revelation 3:20 “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me.” Are we going to answer that knock on our door and let Him in?
We create obstacles that keep us from coming closer to God. Prayerlessness (we don’t pray enough), pride (we think that we can do everything ourselves and know better than God), and we don’t exert humble submission to God. The first roadblock is prayerlessness. We don’t ask God for the things that we desire and need. We should include in our prayers, prayers of: Petition, which is asking something for yourself; Adoration, which is praising God for what He is; Thanksgiving, thanking God for what He has done; and Intercession, praying for the needs of other people, and many others. I like to use the ACTS formula for prayer. First is Adoration—to spend time in praise of God. Second is Confession of sin. Third comes Thanksgiving. Fourth comes Supplication, which includes petitions and intercessions.
When we fail to pray, it gets us into trouble. James 4:1-10 asks, “What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you?” The word “quarrel” is defined as: to complain, that is, to cry out with a loud voice; a petty fight or scuffle; from its noise and uproar. A dispute; a contest. A breach of friendship or concord; open variance between parties. Cause of dispute. Something that gives a right to mischief, reprisal or action. Objection; ill will, or reason to complain; ground of objection or dispute. Something peevish, malicious, or disposed to make trouble. In quarreling, Christian Believers have ceased being the peacemakers that they are called to be and, instead, live in antagonism towards one another. Disagreement are going to occur, but when they happen, we must understand why they happen. Do we know their source? When they are handled correctly with Godly wisdom, they can lead to knowledge and growth on our part, benefiting from it.
In verse 2, James answers the question from verse 1: “Is the source not your pleasures that wage war in your body’s parts? You lust and do not have, so you commit murder. And you are envious and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel.” The word “lust” is defined as: Longing desire; eagerness to possess or enjoy; as the lust of gain. Concupiscence; carnal appetite; unlawful desire of carnal pleasure. Evil propensity; depraved affections and desires. The word “envious” is defined as: Feeling or harboring envy; repining or feeling uneasiness, at a view of the excellence, prosperity or happiness of another; pained by the desire of possessing some superior good which another possesses, and usually disposed to deprive him of that good, to lessen it or to depreciate it in common estimation.
You do not have because you do not ask; a failure to petition in pray. Sometimes, we get what we want, to find that it was not what we really needed. We need that deep contentment that only comes from that close relationship with God. If we are left to our own desires, it is going to lead to the things of this secular world; not the things of the Lord. Bottom line: you don’t have what you desire because you do not desire God. Verse 3clearly states: “You ask and do not receive, because you ask with the wrong motives, so that you may spend what you request on your pleasures. You adulteresses, do you not know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God?” Not only are we asking for the wrong things for the wrong reasons, but are asking in the wrong way. Almost as bad as not asking at all, is asking for the wrong things for the wrong reasons in the wrong way. There is a “right” way and a “wrong” way to pray. When our heart is aligned with God’s heart, then God will give us the desires of our heart. If we miss the “right” use of prayer, we might not pray at all or try in our prayers try to manipulate God. Galatians 6:7 “Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a person sows, this he will also reap.”
In James 4-5, he says, “Or do you think that the Scripture says to no purpose, “He jealously desires the Spirit whom He has made to dwell in us”? But He gives a greater grace. Therefore, it says, “God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” In our prayers we need to exhibit humility and not pride. The word “pride” is defined as: Inordinate self-esteem; an unreasonable conceit of one's own superiority in talents, beauty, wealth, accomplishments, rank or elevation in office, which manifests itself in lofty airs, distance, reserve, and often in contempt of others. If we come to God in a prideful way, it is a guarantee that our prayers are not going to be answered. We should not be surprised that when are motives are “wrong”, our prayers are not answered. There is nothing that tells the truth about us as Christians so much as our prayer life. Are we praying? Do we have a regular time set aside each day for prayer? Have a devotional time each day that you spend with God. Draw close to God. This is why, for Christians, prayer ought to be as essential as breathing. Prayer is not an option, but an absolute necessity for us.
Let's continue Pastor Herk's message about drawing closer to God in the next post.
In Christ, Brian
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