The Source of Quarrels and Conflicts

Transcript

GRM 724
3/11/2001
The Source of Quarrels and Conflicts
James 4:1-6
Gil Rugh

We'll look into James chapter 4 together this evening if you'd turn there in your Bibles. We looked at the end of chapter 3 last week and really, we have a chapter break at chapter 4, but it doesn't break the flow of thought. Keep in mind our chapter division and verse divisions were brought in much later and they are very helpful in enabling us to find our way around the Bible together. But we have to keep in mind just because you move from chapter 3 to chapter 4 for example doesn't mean you've broken off one subject and started another. In fact, James started chapter 3 by an exhortation, "Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we shall incur a stricter judgment." Then he began with a warning about the tongue and how we use our tongue and the danger of the tongue and the difficulty of controlling the tongue. Then at the last part of chapter 3, which is where we were looking at together in our last study, he talked about true godly wisdom, biblical wisdom, wisdom that is from the Lord, versus the wisdom of the world, that worldly wisdom, earthly wisdom, demonic wisdom as he identified it in verse 15 in contrast to the wisdom that comes from God. The wisdom of this world that finds its source in the demonic world is a wisdom that is characterized by disorder and every evil thing in verse 16 of chapter 3. The wisdom from above is pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy, good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. You'll note the context, "The seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace." One of the identifying marks of true godly wisdom is that those who have that kind of wisdom promote peace because it's in the context of peace and harmony and he's talking about the fellowship of believers here, the relationship of believers. That is the ground, if you will, out of which the fruits of righteousness are produced. The world, the flesh and the Devil are at work to create disharmony and disorder and every evil thing even among God's people. So that we do not have produced the fruit of righteousness even in God's people.

You'll note then how he begins with chapter 4 verse 1, "What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you?" You see the flow of thought continues. He's contrasted heavenly wisdom with earthly and demonic wisdom. The wisdom from above is characterized by peace and then righteousness. The wisdom from the world is characterized by disharmony, disorder, conflict. Now what is the source of conflicts and quarrels among you? It seems to me that James is addressing those who profess to be believers here. He's writing remember to Jews who have been scattered in various places in the world. These are Jews who have come to profess their faith in Jesus as the Messiah of Israel. But he is greatly troubled by some of the things that are going on in their relationship together, which deny the truth that they claim to believe.

What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Really the question is for the purpose of challenging them to stop and think. Why are you having this trouble? Quarrels and conflicts. The picture here as he develops it is almost like a war going on, ongoing battles, ongoing conflicts. Quarrels and conflicts - both words are in the plural as we have them in our English Bibles as well and that denotes that these aren't just isolated cases, but it becomes something of the general characteristic. Quarrels and conflicts going on with regularity among you, you that I'm writing to, you that claim a relationship with the living God through His Son Jesus Christ. Where is this all coming from?

Now part of it is you raised the question because we are all tempted to blame problems on someone else. James wants to put it into the proper perspective, so he answers another question which answers his first question. "Is not the source you pleasure that wage war in your members?" James says the problem is very simple. It's your self-centered determination to have your own way. Your pleasures that wage war in your members. That word "pleasures," we have an English word hedonism or hedonism as we usually say it. It comes from this Greek word "haydonon." Now what does a person who follows a hedonistic philosophy of life? Pursuit of pleasure, self-satisfaction, self-gratification. Often, we as Christians speak against the hedonism of the world and the life around us. Here James says isn't the source of the conflicts and quarrels, the battles that are being waged among you, the hedonism that characterizes you. What a thing to say. We think of that's the world, that's the playboy philosophy, self-gratification, self-fulfillment. James says that's the problem, brethren. That's the problem among you. That's why there are wars and battles and conflicts going on. You are living the playboy lifestyle. Not sex per say but what is at the root of it? Self-gratification, self-pleasure. That's what he says is the source of quarrels and the conflicts. The self-desire, self-gratification. That wages war among your members. The picture here is of a military battle ground. A military battle ground is going on within the person and there's a war being waged and within there is that selfish desire to have my way, to have what will please me. Now again be careful we don't move this over just to the sensual, sexual area. Chapter 3 began this section by talking about a warning to those who would desire to become teachers and warning that there ought not many you becoming teachers, which would indicate there seemed to be some desire on the apart of many to assume the teaching role. That's the role of focus. Who gets all the attention right now? I do as the teacher. To be up front, to get recognition, to get honor and he gave that warning. Don't let many of you become teachers.

So, as we come to the beginning of chapter 4, the context really hasn't changed. So even good things . . . The teaching of the Word of God is good. Other areas of ministry and exercising of gifts are good, but if they become part of the pursuit of self, self-gratification, self-honor, then we take that which is good and corrupt it. James says that's what's going on in your midst. In your members there's a battle. We even take the gifts that God has given and we twist them for selfish motives. That's what the world does, isn't it? The book of Hebrews tells us that in marriage the bed is undefiled. Sex is honorable, a gift of God among the married couple. The world takes it and distorts that which God has given. We look at it and say, oh, it's terrible. Oh, how can the world do that? Oh, this hedonistic lifestyle. How terrible it is. The church has to stand against it. Here James says the church is doing battle within itself. Believers have a battle. We can even take the gifts of God like teaching and distort them to use them for our own selfish end. Oh yes, I want to teach but I only want to do it in one of the important classes, one of the more visible ways. You know, you aren't going to tuck me off there with a little group of people. I mean, I'm a good teacher. I'm better than some of the others. I ought to have one of the more prominent positions and pretty soon we've taken what God has given and using it for our own selfish pleasures and selfish ends.

Back to the book of Philippians chapter 2. In Philippians chapter 2 the first part of the chapter is on that great example of humility in Jesus Christ. Verses 3 and 4 Paul exhorted the Philippians to do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit. You see, believers have been set free from the slavery to sin, the world, the flesh and the Devil. But the world, the flesh and the Devil have not ceased to exist. So, we are constantly being reminded not to allow the world, the flesh and the Devil to have any place in our lives. So do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind let each of you regard one another as more important than himself. Don't look out just for your own interests, look out for the interest of others. You see that hedonistic lifestyle approach of self-fulfillment, self-determination. Don't let that be an influence and control your life.

Jump down later in the chapter to verse 20. What he says is I hope to send Timothy to you shortly. He'll be my messenger to find out more about how you're doing. Note what he says in verse 20. “For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will be concerned for your welfare. For they all seek after their own interests and not those of Christ Jesus.” Now what he is saying here is I don't have anybody available to me right now that I could send to you like Timothy, a man who puts his interests in the background. He's a man who will come with only your interests at heart, not concerned about himself but concerned about you. Sad testimony to give. We think of the impact of the apostle Paul's ministry, and you know what? At this stage of his life, he says I only have one man available to me that I could send to you right now. What's happened to the others? Well, they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus. I'm not talking about the world out there because of course that's all the world does. They never would seek the interests of Christ Jesus. But even believers have got distorted and distracted. What will happen to Paul in his last letter? All who are from Asia have forsaken me. Demus has forsaken me, having loved this present world. Don't minimize the reality of the potential danger here. We have been set free in Christ. That doesn't mean we can be lax now and the flesh wants to assert itself still in our lives. The Devil wants to influence us. The world tries to immerse us in its thinking.

Paul writes and James writes be careful about your life becoming focused on yourself. I can send Timothy to you, Philippians. Other people, look, I don't have time to go to Philippi. I have my hands full with my own things. Besides I'm making money. Besides I'm . . . fill in the blank. Timothy, he'll make the sacrifice. He'll pay the price. He'll put you up front. I can send him for this ministry. Come back to James chapter 4.

"You lust and do not have; so, you commit murder. And you are envious and cannot obtain; so, you fight and quarrel." Here's the picture and he has really two parallel statements here that reinforce one another, and he shows how these internal desires lead to external conflict and battle. We often look and say when we have conflict among ourselves as believers, when we have conflicts within the Church, we say, oh what is the Church not doing right? What are we not doing right? You know where we need to stop and think? What is wrong in the hearts of God's people that this is happening? James tells us. We become self-centered.

Let me use an example then we'll look at the details here. What happens when you get married? Well, you know, you're dating and you're you know in love. And all you can do is what? Think about the other person. Everything you're thinking about you're going out. We'll they like this? Will they want to do this? Will they like what I'm wearing? Will they enjoy this? And you know, that's the way our life is to be lived, not just in our marriage relationship but always. But what happens often in marriage? We're married 20 years. Well, I don't care whether she likes it or not. I like it. Well, I don't know if she enjoys doing it or not. We have to do some things I enjoy, too, you know. What happens? I've adjusted my thinking. Me. I mean when we started this all she could think about was me and all I could think about was her but, as self begins to enter the picture what happened? We begin to grow apart and pretty soon there's conflict. She knows I don't like that. Why does she do it? I mean before if she doesn't like it, I don't want to do it.

That's what happens in the church. We get saved. We come in. We're enthusiastic. I don't care if anybody notices me. I don't care if they give me the lowliest, most insignificant job to do. It doesn't matter. That's all I want to do is to serve the Lord. I'm so excited about belonging to Him. They tell me to go clean the toilets, I’ll clean the toilets. That's wonderful. But pretty soon after a while I'm thinking nobody is recognizing me. I don't know if they are concerned about my problems. I realize how gifted I really am. They haven't seen that I could really be better used in this more significant position. Pretty soon what? I'm being driven by self. That creates conflict. You can't do enough to please me, to satisfy me because it grows. The more I focus on self the more I have to have, it consumes us.

You lust and do not have. We think of the word "lust" again in the sexual context. It's a word that just means strong desire. You have strong desires and cravings and here in the context selfish kinds of desires and cravings. He used back in chapter 1 verse 14, "Each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust," his own craving. Don't blame God. We sometimes even as believers fall back and say, the Lord made me this way. I can't help it. James started out in chapter 1 of this letter saying don't blame God. Those selfish cravings come from within your own sin.

"And lust when it is conceived gives birth to sin. Sin when it is accomplished brings forth death." Now he's come back to that basic idea in chapter 4 verse 2. You lust and do not have, so you commit murder. Murder being here is the ultimate end of acquiring for me. But the ultimate in trying to assert myself and when somebody is in the way, the way of what I really want for me, then I can become very destructive, and murder is not out of the question.

It's interesting. I was reading a book a while ago about a person who is involved in a lot of dealing with married couples. He says almost in every case, and I've had to deal with a couple where there has been another party involved, a third party, there's been a desire on the part of the party involved, wishing their spouse would die. I found that in a few of the cases I've been involved in. The person's become honest, "You know, I just wish my spouse was dead." Why? Then I'd be free for this person. What do they want? To satisfy self and that's true of the other. He's not saying these Christians have been murdering one another. Then obviously they'd come under the judicial system that was in place in those days. But in their heart, that's where it has carried them.

In 1 John toward the back of your Bible. I John 3:15, “Everyone who hates his brother is a murder; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him." John's writing to those who profess to be believers. What is he going to do here? Draw some lines here. Something's wrong, folks. Love characterizes the children of God and love means what? Sacrificing self for the good of others. If you hate your brother, you are really a murderer in your heart.

Turn back to Matthew 5. Jesus speaking in the Sermon on the Mount. Earlier in the chapter he's given the Beatitudes that were so familiar with. Then look at what he says in verse 21 of chapter 5 of Matthew, "You have heard that the ancients were told, 'You shall not commit murder' and 'Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.' But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and everyone who shall say to his brother, 'Raca,' shall be guilty before the supreme court; whoever shall say, 'You fool,' shall be guilty enough to go into the hell of fire. So, if you are presenting your offering at the altar, and you realize your brother has something against you, leave your offering there, go, be reconciled to your brother, make your offering." How many people come to worship the Lord, but there is bitterness and conflict among other believers, but they don't think they have to resolve that. These things go on and they are tolerated. Then they become acceptable. We realize we are constantly battling that the standards of the world to become the standards of the Church. This becomes acceptable. Of course, the world lives for the pursuit of self. That's the heart of sin, isn't it? Pride, me. They hold it up as a virtue. You have to learn more self-esteem. You have to quit thinking so much about others and focus on yourself for a while and the flesh loves it. Soon the Church comes to accept it and all it does is create conflict. The more that is emphasized what happens to our country? The more factions and divisions and conflicts there are. What happens in the Church? The more conflicts and factions and divisions there are.

We don't have time to look through the numerous passages that warn believers about coveting, using the same word here "lust." Passages like Romans 6:12, Romans 13:8-10, 1 John 2:16-17. Sometimes you'll have the word "covet" used. It's the same word we have translated "lust" here. Because what is coveting? It's lusting for what someone else has. Back to James 4:2, “You lust and do not have.” You know how it is when self gets in motion then whatever gets in the way of you having what you desire for yourself, you begin to push for it, then people can get stepped on, battles can take place, but . . . You commit murder.

"You are envious, and you cannot obtain." This word was used back in chapter 3 verse 14. You have bitter jealousy. The word translated "jealousy" is the same word translated "envious." Down in verse 16 the word "jealousy," same word as we have translated "envious." Envy and selfish ambition exist where there is jealousy . . . That's the idea of the word envy, jealousy. Intense selfish desire is what we're talking about. That's the wisdom from the world, that's the wisdom from demons. Jealousy and envy characterize it. So here you are envious. You cannot obtain. I don't get want I want so you fight and quarrel. Same words that are used in verse 1, quarrels and conflicts, only they are used in reverse order. Here we have conflicts and quarrels, translated fights and quarrels, but same thing, conflicts, fights. The wars and battles we have in our homes, we have in our churches, are a result of the frustration of not getting what we want. We don't have any conflict in our home if I am totally giving over to pleasing my wife and she's totally given over to pleasing me. The only time we only have conflict is when she's not totally given over to pleasing me. Sometimes when I'm not given over to what? Putting her first. It creates conflict. It happens in the church. It starts and you know we have to cover it over with a guise of spirituality. We don't want to let it out but in our heart what? We're seething. Bitterness settles in. Resentment settles in. Then I find more things I don't like. More things are aggravating and agitating me. More things are upsetting me, and it grows and pretty soon there's not much I do like and we have conflicts, disagreements and our tongues get into it and on it goes. You fight and you quarrel. You know it's rather simple, isn't it? Wouldn't like to say this is the cause because I don't like to find it in me. I like to think, well, it's something that's not being done right here. You do not have because you do not ask. I mean we're talking about what you want, what you desire. The reason you don't have is because you do not ask. You fail to turn to God for every need. He's told us in chapter 1 of James verse 17 “every good gift and every perfect act of giving comes down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow caused by turning.” In other words, God is perfectly consistent, ever the same. He never changes. There are never any shadows caused because He's moved. The Father of lights and He gives every good and perfect thing. Jesus exhorted us in Matthew 7:7-11 to come. I mean your earthly father gives you good gifts when you ask. Your Heavenly Father delights to do that. Well, some would say I've asked Him. I didn't get it. Well, he answers that in verse 3. Because obviously what do you have? You have people bent on satisfying the flesh, satisfying selfish desires. They bring that to God. They don't get it. James 4:3, "You ask and do not receive because you ask with wrong motives so that you may spend it on your own pleasures." Wrong motives. The word there "cogos," evil, wicked. You ask with evil intentions. Now you note here. We didn't come to God and ask for something that in and itself is good. But we're asking with selfish, wrong motives that are thus evil. I mean Lord, bless my teaching of the Word. Lord, help people to pay attention and hear what I say. But the Lord examines my heart and knows my reason is what? I would like honor. I would like people to respect me as a good preacher and on it goes. We have to be careful. We ask for good things with wrong motives. "You ask and do not receive because you ask with wrong motives, evil motives, so that you may spent it on your own pleasure." The warning here is strong. We can take prayer, where we come and speak to Almighty God, and we are corrupting that with our self-centeredness. I have the audacity to come before the throne of the living God and ask Him for those things which would be good and are His blessings, but I come and in my heart my motive in asking is selfish. We realize how we can corrupt the very heart of our relationship with the Lord. Like our children that would come, and they are asking for something but you as a parent know what? What they are asking for is fine, but you know they are asking for the wrong reason. You know their real intention. Can I have four cookies instead of one because I want to share them with my friends. The Bible says we should share. You know they are going out on the porch and eating all four. They are asking with selfish motives. To ask for four cookies to share with their friends, that's good. But what James says is you are asking so you can spend it and consume it for your own pleasures.

This as though we could fool God who searches the heart, who tries the motives. These kinds of passages should each of us as believers to walk very carefully and examine ourselves very carefully, our own motives. Because we're being reminded how deceptive we are within, how corrupt the flesh is. Praise God we've been set free from its power and authority, but we have not yet been set free from its presence and it is there to try to corrupt even the best of things, even my prayer life.

James gets very strong here. "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 the enemy of God." Jude would understand this. Remember he's writing to Jews who profess to be believers. Out of the Old Testament, we don't have time to go back there, Isaiah 54:5 God says that Israel is His wife. In Ezekiel 16, Ezekiel 23, God lays out in detail how Israel has been unfaithful, an adulterous wife, even as Hosea's marital relationship was an illustration of the unfaithfulness of Israel to God. So, when James says to them, "You adulteresses," they are well aware of the picture." Spiritual infidelity and unfaithfulness. That same picture is used of the Church. Ephesians 5 the Church is the Bride of Christ. In II Corinthians 11 Paul says to the Corinthians I have espoused you to Christ but my concern is what? Your purity of devotion to Him. The things that would lure you away from faithfulness to Christ are coming in through the false teachings and false doctrines and so on.

James is concerned they haven't considered the seriousness of their sin. You know certain sins believers are willing to walk down the street holding placards, but you know certain sins we just tolerate: selfishness, division, quarrels, fighting among ourselves. Well, you know, they are just differences of opinion. We have to expect that. Whether it can be differences of opinion but it's the world, the flesh and the Devil that turns that into fighting and quarrels. We can disagree as we've talked about. You might like blue carpet. Somebody else likes green carpets. Somebody else likes tan carpet. We have differences of opinion, but that will be turned into battles and conflicts, wars and fighting when self gets into the picture and we have to have it our way, I have to have it my way. Now we've taken those differences of opinion and brought the flesh into the picture. Allowed the Devil to assert himself. Insert himself if you will. And so, we have the conflict.

"You adulteresses, do you not know." Now that kind of question is used in Scripture to draw attention to something they know the facts about, but they are not putting into practice. Like the questions we ask our children. Don't you know better than that? Well, it's a question to draw attention to the fact that they do know better. That's the question here. Do you not know? Well, of course they know this. The Old Testament unfolded it in clear detail. The ministry of Christ continued in its clarity.

"Friendship with the world is hostility toward God." That word "friendship," this is the word for love. Not agape love but philia love. That love of friendship, family love, and it means something that is dear to you, something that is loved by you, something that you are committed to and have affection for, so it sometimes used of friendship. This relationship of love and affection with the world makes you hostile toward God. I mean what happens in a marriage relationship? You develop a love and an affectional relationship with someone other than your spouse and you really declare your hostility against your spouse. I move with my affection to someone else. You say that's terrible. Think of it spiritually. James is trying to drive home the seriousness of the point. We tolerate these things and think they are all right: conflict, division, quarrels, battling. But you know, who am I to judge. He's going to get to that later in chapter 4. We won't get there tonight but James does in his writing. It's got to be dealt with. This is a matter of spiritual adultery. It's a matter of getting cozy with the world. Remember the world, the flesh and the Devil . . . Back at the end of verse 15, "This wisdom is earthly, natural, demonic." You develop in that kind of relationship. You understand you moved into a position of hostility toward God. Now you raise a question where you really are spiritually. James doesn't say they're not saved. He's dealing with them according to their claim, but now you are saying you're hostile toward God because your affection is with the world. We try to blur the lines today because we don't want to just say you are an adulterous, manifesting earthly, fleshly, demonic kind of wisdom. You have a friendship with the world that's creating hostility toward God and hostility toward God's people.

James 4:4, "Therefore, whoever wishes to be the friend of the world makes himself the enemy of God." Whoever wishes to be a friend of the world. Here's a person who's moving there and by his action indicates what? I want to develop a friendship with the world, a relationship with the world and thus he makes himself the enemy of God. This is a deliberate choice. This is just not something that happens and we always try to cover it up. People come and say you know I don't love my wife anymore and there's somebody else and I can't help it. It just happened. No, it was a decision. So here. Well, you know, these things just happen. No, it was a decision. Really you pursued what you wanted. You wished to be a friend of the world. You wished to do it your way. You really wanted your own selfish desires to be fulfilled. Don't gloss it over with some kind of spiritual rubbish. I say well that just happened, you know, and the Lord's hand must have been in it. Oh no. You wanted to do it the world's way. You wanted satisfaction for self and so you did it. That's what James says. You want to make yourself a friend of the world and thus make yourself the enemy of God.

"'Or do you think that the Scripture speaks to no purpose: He jealously desires the Spirit which He has made to dwell in us?" James 4:5. Sometimes we as Christians declare our allegiance to Scripture but by our action, we really say the Scripture is really meaningless to me. The question here is, do you think Scripture speaks to no purpose? Now do you think God just talks to hear Himself talk. Do you think there is really no purpose in what the Scripture says? Then he gives a statement that is very difficult. Some say it is one of the most difficult statements in all of Scripture to really grasp but the outcome is rather simple because there are a couple of alternatives in translating the passage, but they are both biblical. It's just a matter of determining in the context what is the biblical one here. In the New American Standard Bible which I'm using he says, "He jealously desires the Spirit which is has made to dwell in us." And the picture here is God has made His Holy Spirit to dwell in us and so that relationship pictured in a marriage relationship that's being violated as adulteresses. But he longs for that relationship with the Spirit He's placed within us. This is the way the translators of this translation have handled it. Another way is that the Spirit here could be small s. "The spirit which He caused to dwell in us longs to envy." The Spirit small s, our human spirit, was placed in us by God. When He created Adam then He breathed into him the spirit of life. But as a result of the fall, it has been corrupted by sin and now it longs for envy. That seems to me to fit the context here better. It's true the Spirit of God dwells in us and He is part of the Triune God. There is truth in the other view, but it seems to me in the context what he is saying here is that the spirit that He's placed within us has been corrupted by sin and it longs to envy. We've been corrupted by the fall, and we know how that is. Even as redeemed people what do we battle? The lust of the flesh. I mean he's warned us about the tongue. Is there anybody here that's never said anything improper with their tongue? James says no. Because if you controlled your tongue perfectly, you'd be a perfect person. So, these kinds of things. That I'd never really desire something which was selfish for myself. When I really sat down and I had to say, Lord, you know, I really desired that, but it was all selfish. I wanted it for my own selfish ends. I even prayed for it, Lord. I came to You and asked You to give it. I tried to cover up the desires of my heart and not actually face them and act like it would really be something I wanted because it would enable me to honor you more. Lord, I really wanted it just for me. How disappointed we are even in ourselves because the spirit within us does long to envy. We have to catch ourselves again and again and that's key. If I find that at all coming, I have to deal with it early. The longer I let it settle within me, the more it grabs hold, the more entangled by it and controlled by it I become. The spirit within me desires, longs to envy is the picture. It denotes an intense craving or longing.

He goes through the Old Testament as well where the whole issue of the sinfulness of man. Genesis 6 the desires of his heart were only evil continually, resulting in the Flood. That kind of emphasis. Psalm 14, God looked down from heaven to see if there were any that did good, that were righteous. No, there wasn't anyone. That corruption of sin. Now we've been set free from it as believers, but remember it has not been removed, the flesh. Any more than the world has been removed or the Devil has been removed even though we have been crucified to them. They are still there trying to influence us and control us. The spirit that is within me, there's a part of me, I hate to say it, that has a desire to be like the world, to pursue what the world pursues. There is pleasure in sin for a season. I Corinthians 10:12, "Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall." We think we've above temptation. We are not like other people. We would never succumb to that. We would never be enticed by that, and we fail to consider the spirit within us has an intense longing for selfish ends.

Verse 6, what's the solution? "But He gives a greater grace." That seems to put it in the context that I said it's not talking about the Holy Spirit in verse 5, but it's talking about the work of the spirit within us and the answer to that selfish-centered approach. "He gives a greater grace." Grace that is greater than that fallen, corrupted old man and its self-centered selfish determination for its own honor, its own goals, its own fulfillment. He gives a greater grace. It's similar to I John 4:4, "Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world." God graciously provides the strength of the Spirit, and we have the fruit of the Spirit in contrast to the works of the flesh.

He gives a greater grace. He supports that by a quote from Proverbs 3:34, "Therefore it says [the Scripture says], 'God is opposed to the proud, but gives grace to the humble.'" That word "proud," it's a compound word and it means to evaluate yourself above others. One who wants to show himself above others. Oh, if they give me a chance, I could show them I'm a better teacher. Back to chapter 3 verse 1. I could do a better job. I am better qualified. I am better able. Now the balance to that isn't the Oh me, I can’t do anything. The balance is I am a servant of the Lord and He has gifted me to contribute to the Body and my desire is to serve Him and to serve others as effectively as I can.

He is opposed to the proud, those who would evaluate themselves, those who would try to show themselves above others, better than others, more important than others. That word "opposed," He stands against. The picture of the warfare that runs through this section comes here now. God is standing opposed to certain kind of people, those people who would try to lift themselves up above others.

But He gives grace to the humble. God's provision for the humble, those of lowly thinking. Those who think of others as better than themselves, as more important than themselves. I'm not to lose my focus. That I always be in awe that God in His grace has called me and privileged me to be a part of a fellowship of believers and to contribute to this Body. Even though as I look around, there are so many people so gifted and so used of the Lord in so many ways that it is humbling as I see how God uses them and works in their lives. I count it a privilege that God has joined me with these and privileges me to serve with them and serve them. Then God gives the grace that I might honor Him with my life and be used of Him.

That theme of the humble will be what takes place in the following verses. So very subtle yet very clear. The problems in our relationships together as believers, the problems that take place in the Church that leads to quarrels and conflicts start within, in the heart. If I say, oh, if we change this in the Church, that would resolve it. No, it won't. Because the problem is not with these external things, the problem is inside me, that I must bow before the Lord and set aside myself, the high opinion that I have of myself, that I am better, that I can do it better, that I know better, that I am better able and on it goes. Lord, I am nothing. What am I apart from the grace of God, nothing. I am what I am, as Paul said, by the grace of God and I should think of myself better than others? The one who is nothing apart from the undeserved favor that He has bestowed upon me. If we have that kind of attitude, harmony comes together. Because what? It is our greatest joy to humbly serve the Lord with the grace He gives, to do all we can for others and to see them as deserving and worthy of all that we can give. With that attitude where's there going to be conflict. I'm not in the pursuit of my selfish goals. But for me I'm happy to have it your way. I see you as better than me. I'm happy to submit my desires to you. Where's there going to be a conflict? Certain things have potential. There may be a doctrine we have to divide over. There may be clear sin that has to be dealt with and confronted. But the major quarrels, battles, conflicts, they don't come from those clear areas. They come from the things James is talking about.

How sad this early in the Church--most take the epistle of James being one of the earlier letters of the New Testament--we already have these kind of problems that have to be dealt with among God's people. We say today what has happened to the Church. The same thing that happened at the very beginning: the world, the flesh and the Devil worked in concert to do all that it could to oppose the work of God. May it not be true here. Let's pray together.

Thank you, God, for Your grace. Thank you that it is a grace that is sufficient. Lord, there's not one of us who does not need to step back and consider carefully whether we really are living humbly before you, that we might receive the fullness of Your grace to serve You and to serve others. Lord, the world, the flesh and the Devil are so alluring and so deceptive and we are so corrupt that we often desire what they offer. May we consider carefully our own motives. Consider it a privilege to be servants of the living God and servants of Your people, the Church. We pray in Christ's name, amen.