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More James commentaries
James 1:1-4
How to Profit from Trials
James 1:5-8
How to Deal with Trials
James 1:9-11
The Perspective of Rich and Poor
James 1:12-18
Loving God In Spite of Trials
James 1:19-25
Qualities Needed in Trials
James 1:26-27
Doers - Not Hearers Only
James 2:1-9
Beware of Personal Favorites
James 2:10-18
Faith is Proved by Love
James 2:19-26
Faith is Proved by Works
James 3:1-8
The Tongue that Needs Tamed
James 3:9-12
The Lips Need to Bear Spiritual Fruit
James 3:13-18
Heavenly Verses Demonic Wisdom
James 4:1-6
Pride Promotes Strife
James 4:7-10
Humility Cures Worldliness
James 4:11-17
Don’t Boast about Tomorrow
James 5:1-6
Rich Oppressors Will Be Judged
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Pride Promotes Strife
James 4:1–6
» View this passage in NIV (Bible Gateway)
Addressing a national seminar of Southern Baptist leaders, George Gallup said, “We find there is very little difference in ethical behavior between churchgoers and those who are not active religiously...The levels of lying, cheating, and stealing are remarkable similar i … More
James makes it plain in these verses that wars come from our sinful desires. These “wars and fightings” (v. 1) do not refer to international wars but to feuds and conflicts within the Christian community. What we do know is that feuds and conflicts among professing Christians are not just something of the past. In fact someone has rightfully said that Christians today are the only army that shoots off each others feet. Some Christians even make it a lifetime occupation of exposing and denouncing other Christians. The devil certainly must rejoice in the lifestyle of this type of Christian.
The writer develops more specifically the connection between lust and pleasures (v. 2). He emphasizes what can and does happen when men choose pleasure rather than God as a way of life. James has traced the origin of feuds and quarrels in the church to lust for pleasure and the desire for self gratification. The person that chooses to be a friend of the world is the enemy of God (vv. 3-4). It is one thing for a Christian to unintentionally find himself in an atmosphere of worldliness and quite another thing to deliberately adopt worldliness as a way of life.
God makes great demands upon His people (v. 5). He also makes great provision for them (v. 6). The difficulties of living wholly for God in a wicked world are many but God’s grace is more than adequate for all our needs (v. 6).
Application
Have I been guilty of criticizing and condemning other Christians because they do not live and do things exactly like I do? If so, what am I doing to change this pattern of life style?
James 4:1-6 (English Standard Version)
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"? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble."
View this passage in NIV (Bible Gateway) »
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