James 4:1-12
Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 34:24
0 ratings
· 470 viewsFiles
Notes
Transcript
Wisdom Applied
Wisdom Applied
Building on last weeks talk about two types of wisdom, wisdom from above and earthly/unspiritual/demonic wisdom, James is going to take some time to show us wisdom in action.
He is first going to show us that we have a choice between friendship with God or friendship with the world.
Then he is going to show us that we have a choice between humility and arrogance/selfishness.
Finally, he is going to show us how to speak wisely with those who are brothers.
What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you?
You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask.
You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”?
Blank
James wants us to take a moment of self examination.
He asks “What causes quarrels and fights among us?” But he doesn’t really give us moment before he exposes the reality.
We are selfish.
We let our passions take over and blind us to the reality of how we should be living in light of the gift of salvation.
There is obviously some bad blood in the churches that James is writing to. But this isn’t a problem limited only to 1st century Jewish Believers.
We all have been or are a part of some sort of quarrel with someone that is a believer.
We let our own passions blind us to the reality that we all serve the same God and are a part of the same mission.
These are the same sinful self-indulgent passions that cause destruction. That cause chaos. That cause pain.
He says here in v.2 that they are causing murder b/c of their evil desires.
This is probably not actual murder (though that may be a possibility).
James is most likely leaning on Jesus’ teaching
“You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’
But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.
Blank
Hatred and anger toward one another is a grievous sin against God.
This type of anger reveals a lack of wisdom from above. Because it relies upon Jealousy and Selfish Ambition, and Selfishness.
This happens when our passions, preferences, and perspective is wrapped up in me, me, me.
Then anyone that stands against us or in our way we get angry with. We push them aside. We begin to quarrel or fight with.
When we lack Godly wisdom all we are able to focus on is our self.
Our own desires.
17th century Jewish Philosopher Spinoza
“I have often wondered that persons who make boast of professing the Christian religion—namely love, joy, peace, temperance, and charity to all men—should quarrel with such rancorous animosity and display daily towards one another such bitter hatred, that this, rather than the virtues which they profess, is the readiest criteria of their faith.”
One of the marks of the church is that we love one another.
By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”
Nothing more detrimental to the church and our witness than if we hate. Especially if we hate one another. WE ARE TO BE MARKED BY LOVE.
If we continue to look more like the world then we do like Jesus we are not taking part in Godly Wisdom.
We can continue to be worried about things of this world to be worried about the state of our country we can continue to be worried about things that will pass away but if we don't love that is more detrimental to our mission to our calling and to our savior.
this leads to v.3
You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions.
God is the perfect giver of gifts. He loves giving gifts to his children.
But he will only give you gifts that will help you to grow in your love and affection for him and others.
So if you ask for things out of selfish desires. If you ask for things that don’t adhere to or bring about his glory you will not receive them.
Good and perfect gifts from God are not those that serve your passions.
They are not those that cause you to become more about you and your own advancement, pleasure, and comfort.
The gift God gives are given to help glorify him and bring about his kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.
This is where the prosperity gospel really gets it wrong. God doesn’t exist or provide just for your sole happiness or benefit.
God always gives so that he can be made much of.
We will not receive what we ask for if it doesn’t line up with Godly desires, unless it is used as a judgement upon us.
James goes in a little harder at the believers in this letter.
For most of the letter he has used particularly gentle language calling them brothers. But he is about to bring the hammer down.
You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”?
Blank
“You adulterous people!”
This would remind the believers of OT prophets calling out the Israelites
Surely, as a treacherous wife leaves her husband, so have you been treacherous to me, O house of Israel, declares the Lord.’ ”
When we are called to God we need to view it as a marriage between ourselves and the King of the universe.
When we chase after selfish earthly/demonic wisdom we are violating our relationship with God.
We we seek friendship with the things of this world. We are telling God that his love isn’t good enough.
We are committing spiritual adultery when we are friends with the world.
Friendship in the 1st century is a little different than how we view friendship now.
When James writes about friendship he is writing about a ‘sharing of all things’
this includes deeply personal, intimate, and spiritual unity.
We cannot have that type of reliance and relationship with both God and the world.
You cannot be unified with God and unified with the world. These things are mutually exclusive.
Something has got to give.
We cannot be bonded to the things of this earth without being adulterous toward God.
Here’s the thing often times we don’t overtly disclaim God by consciously deciding to follow the world.
But when we imitate the world. When our concern is chiefly worldly, that is when we are acting as friends of the world.
When our wisdom reflects mostly the earthly wisdom instead of Godly wisdom that is the problem.
When we neglect those in need, when we show preference to someone over another, when we speak with hatred, jealousy, or the like we are demonstrating a friendship with the world over a friendship with God.
When we are more concerned with our own pleasures and desires and preferences rather than the mission of God we demonstrate our friendship with the world over our friendship with God.
God doesn’t tolerate rivals.
He is jealous for you. He wants you to know that he cares for you. That he wants what is best for you.
He wants your full focus, your whole devotion to be to him, because he knows that is what will make you whole. That is what will make you be the best you that you can be when you are devoted solely to him.
Not only that but if you belong to him, he has sole claim over your life.
Because of the work that he is doing within you. Because of the sacrifice he gave for you.
He alone deserves your devotion. He alone deserves your friendship.
He yearns for your devotion. He longs for your intimacy. Because you are his child and he is your Father.
But even when we mess up, there is grace
But that grace can only be accessed through humility. “Grace Demands the response of Humility”
But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
Blank
Humility is hard. (full stop)
We have to get over ourselves and look to God.
We have to submit to God.
But humility is for our benefit.
It seems counter intuitive. How can thinking of myself less be beneficial for me?
God opposes those that are proud
But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
We want to be on God’s Side. We want God to be for us—> we can’t be proud
Pride spits in God’s face. It screams at him that I know better than him. That I am better than Him. and that I don’t need to rely on him.
Pride the first and greatest sin thinking that I know better than my creator on how to live my life.
If I submit to God, then through the power he gives I can resist the devil
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.
The Letter of James V. A Summons to Spiritual Wholeness (4:4–10)
To submit to God means to place ourselves under his lordship, and therefore to commit ourselves to obey him in all things
We all need a “how to” on how to resist the temptations of the devil.
Step one-Submit to God
Step two-Rely on God
Step three- obey God
Step four-Repeat steps 1-3
If we are under the authority of God then we will firmly refuse to bow to the devil’s authority.
Humility allows me to draw near to God b/c it allows me to see my wretchedness.
Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.
We all needed saving from our sinfulness. We all continue to need grace in our messiness.
As we draw nearer to God we will see the reality of our filthiness and repent.
God will cleanse us and purify us
As we draw near to God we will be able to focus on what is good, holy, righteous, and perfect.
We need to be constantly aware of our need for God’s grace b/c of our tendency to sin.
We are very apt at departing from Godly attitudes and behaviors, but as we draw near we will be reminded of our need for reliance on God.
We can’t do this on our own. We need the HS to aid us.
Humility allows me to take my sin seriously
Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.
Too often we look at our sin as just some little bad behavior that we didn’t have control over.
We don’t take our sin seriously enough.
We don’t really think that it grieves the heart of God.
James is trying to get us to see that Sin deeply affects us and not just us, but those around us.
We should mourn in our sinfulness not rejoice.
We should weep when we grieve the heart of God.
This idea of Laughter is reminiscent of the Fool talked about in the book of proverbs.
He scorns the idea of right living
He rejects the holiness of God
He lives a life of fruitlessness and is only concerned with the things of the earth.
He is a fool and is rejected by God.
Sin is a serious breach in our relationship with God.
Our sin can cause tremendous difficulty in our spiritual, physical, and emotional life.
We have to take it seriously.
Be killing sin, or it will be killing you.
As true believers we can never rejoice in our sin, but we can rejoice in God’s forgiveness.
But when we humble ourselves, we are exalted by God
Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.
When we recognize our spiritual poverty and need for God he elevates us and empowers us to seek forgiveness and be washed clean.
Humility is the only proper stance for a believer. Humility is elevation.
Humility is the way that we are to live our lives.
We submit to his greatness. We submit to his grace. We submit and in that process we are elevated to the status of God’s Children.
We are able to resist the devil. We are able to be purified. We are able to see our sin for what it really is.
We are able to be grateful for the new life we have been given.
True humility causes us to look at our relationships with God and with one another in the true light of the gospel of grace.
Therefore, when we submit to God and live a life of humility we will stand opposed to divisiveness and demonic wisdom.
James issues another aspect of Godly wisdom that we need partake in and that is pure speech.
Do not speak evil against one another, brothers. The one who speaks against a brother or judges his brother, speaks evil against the law and judges the law. But if you judge the law, you are not a doer of the law but a judge.
There is only one lawgiver and judge, he who is able to save and to destroy. But who are you to judge your neighbor?
Blank
Sometimes the harshest language we use for those closest to us.
This is true for the church too.
James tells us that we should not speak evil against a brother.
One who is bought by the blood of Christ.
We shouldn’t slander against them b/c we are not their judge.
We shouldn’t gossip.
Unfortunately when we quarrel over most issues it can result in name calling and personal attacks.
May it not be.
We are to love, cherish, and care for one another. Not offer slanderous words of hate, anger, and opposition toward them.
When we slander against our brothers or sisters we are causing division w/i the body of Christ.
Regardless, if we think that they are wrong if we cause division over things that don’t need to be divisive then we are the problem
If it doesn’t directly oppose God’s Word or the Gospel then we need to be careful how we respond to a brother we believe to be in the wrong.
Undue criticism of a fellow Child of God flies in the face of loving our neighbor as our self.
In fact, when we decide that someone is wrong and slander against them then we are infringing on the true Judge’s right.
We are taking on God’s role as judge.
We are saying that we believe that they are not fit to be part of God’s Family.
We are trying to determine their spiritual destiny.
We cannot and should use our standards of what it means to be a christian and place them on someone else. Especially, when our standards are no where in the God’s word.
There are places where we do need to speak up and say something.
Like when a fellow believer is living in outright sin and boasting in it.
When they are living according to the wisdom of the world instead of godly wisdom.
When their focus isn’t on Jesus and they are focused on serving self above all else.
But outside of these we can’t be the judge.
We definitely shouldn’t slander them just b/c we disagree with them on certain issues.
Be aware of what you are going to fight over. Some issues aren’t worth the fight.
The Second and Third Tier issues where there is room for different interpretation is a reality and we need to know that that is where we need to step back and step off.
We are to demonstrate love for God and for others.
So even when we wish to try and correct someone we need to do so in love. We need to approach them with grace and understanding.
We need to remember that we are chasing after Godly wisdom.
Godly Wisdom drives us to be friends with God instead of friends with the world
Godly Wisdom pushes us toward humility instead of arrogance.
Godly Wisdom guides our speech when we are dealing with those brothers and sisters that we disagree with.
Godly Wisdom should be our goal. And we should be seeking Godly Wisdom on a daily basis so that we can live the holy life that God has called us to.
Let’s Pray.